Bentham Science Publishers

Current global economic crises call for social responsibility to replace neo-liberalistic, one-sided and short-term criteria causing monopolies of global enterprises. The triad ‘freedom, brotherhood, equality' and ‘the invisible hand' support the hypothesis of interdependence among humans. Humanity's existence is endangered under the threat of global capitalism, unless the social responsibility's concept ‘everyone's social responsibility impacts everyone in society' becomes the new socio-economic order, realized alongside concepts as ‘interdependence' and ‘holism' and using its principles of accountability, transparency, ethical behavior, respect for stakeholders, for the rule of law, for international norms and human rights.

Social Responsibility – A non-technological innovation process explores the realm of social responsibility in the context of innovation, business practice and economic crises. Readers can apply related principles to their business practices and enhance their business prospects in a modern environment facing the challenges of socio-economic crises.

This volume is intended for graduates and professionals working in government organizations and commercial enterprises, to learn basic concepts about social responsibility and introduce holistic management practices in their daily and professional lives.

Software and Programming Tools in Pharmaceutical Research is a detailed primer on the use for computer programs in the design and development of new drugs. Chapters offer information about different programs and computational techniques in pharmacology. The book will help readers to harness computer technologies in pharmaceutical investigations. Readers will also appreciate the pivotal role that software applications and programming tools play in revolutionizing the pharmaceutical industry.

The book includes nine structured chapters, each addressing a critical aspect of pharmaceutical research and software utilization. From an introduction to pharmaceutical informatics and computational chemistry to advanced topics like molecular modeling, data mining, and high-throughput screening, this book covers a wide range of topics.

Key Features:

· Practical Insights: Presents practical knowledge on how to effectively utilize software tools in pharmaceutical research.

· Interdisciplinary Approach: Bridges the gap between pharmaceutical science and computer science

· Cutting-Edge Topics: Covers the latest advancements in computational drug development, including data analysis and visualization techniques, drug repurposing, pharmacokinetic modelling and screening.

· Recommendations for Tools: Includes informative tables for software tools

· Referenced content: Includes scientific references for advanced readers

The book is an ideal primer for students and educators in pharmaceutical science and computational biology, providing a comprehensive foundation for this rapidly evolving field. It is also an essential resource for pharmaceutical researchers, scientists, and professionals looking to enhance their understanding of software tools and programming in drug development.

Soil Improvement and Water Conservation Biotechnology is a comprehensive guide addressing the urgent challenges of soil degradation and water scarcity in agriculture. This book explores innovative biotechnological strategies for enhancing soil health, conserving water, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. It covers foundational topics like soil composition and water management in arid regions, focusing on Mexico's unique desert environments. Advanced chapters highlight cutting-edge solutions, including biofertilizers, biopesticides, microalgal applications, bioremediation, nanotechnology, and biological desalination. The book also introduces tools like luminescent biosensors for pesticide detection and ethical and social aspects of environmental biotechnology.

Tailored for students, researchers, and professionals in agriculture, biotechnology, and environmental science, this book bridges theoretical insights with practical applications to offer sustainable solutions for global soil and water challenges.

Key Features:

- Biotechnological solutions for soil improvement and water conservation.

- Practical case studies, tools, and methodologies for sustainable agriculture.

- Ethical and social dimensions of environmental biotechnology.

This book encapsulates current information about the science behind solar energy and the solar thermal systems available to meet domestic needs. Several scholars have contributed to the chapters in the text in an effort to distill research-oriented topics for learners.

The book starts with an explainer on the fundamentals of thermodynamics, heat transfer and solar energy in the first 2 chapters. The basics of some solar thermal devices along with their thermal modeling are covered in the next few chapters, along with solar distillation systems. This is followed by information about the design, development and applications of solar cookers along with their thermal modeling. Thermal modeling of semi-transparent PVT systems and their applications are discussed in Chapter 9. Chapter 10 covers the development in solar photovoltaic technology. Chapter 11 and Chapter 12 discusses thermal modeling of greenhouse solar dryers and presents a case study on a hybrid active greenhouse solar dryer. Chapter 13 covers the thermal analysis of photovoltaic thermal (PVT) air heaters employing thermoelectric modules (TEM). The applications of various solar systems in building sectors and the development in this field are covered in Chapter 14. Chapter 15 deals with energy and environ- economics analysis of bio-gas integrated semi-transparent photo-voltaic thermal (Bi-iSPVT) systems for Indian climates.

The book has a broad scope and is intended as a resource for students, researchers and teachers in universities, industries, and national and commercial laboratories to help learn the fundamentals and in-depth knowledge of thermal modeling and recent developments in solar heating systems.

Since the first description by John Scott Russel in 1834, the solitary wave phenomenon has attracted considerable interests from scientists. The most interesting discovery since then has been the ability to integrate most of the nonlinear wave equations which govern solitary waves, from the Korteweg-de Vries equation to the nonlinear Schrödinger equation, in the 1960's. From that moment, a huge amount of theoretical works can be found on solitary waves. Due to the fact that many physical phenomena can be described by a soliton model, applications have followed each other, in telecommunications first, where the propagation of solitons in fiber optics helps in increasing transmission capacity, thanks to their inherent stability, which make long-distance transmission possible without the use of repeaters.

The aim of this book is to present a state of the art theoretical study of solitary waves. Prominent actual works on solitary waves are described.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection represents one of the biggest challenges of current years. However, scientists and physicians still do not have an efficient therapy for preventing or eradicating the virus. The selection of drug-resistant strains as well as side-effects, represent common problems encountered in all anti-viral therapies. However, it has been clearly demonstrated that the potency of early immune responses profoundly regulates levels of HIV, and hence also the generation of virus mutants as well as the velocity of disease progression to AIDS.

A prominent feature of this e-book is the focus on interaction between innate immunity and HIV infection. This topic has been investigated by many authors from the late 80's, and many soluble factors responsible for such activity have been discovered, such as suPAR and HMGB1. At present, these two novel factors are the subject of very intense research on HIV infections.

A key advantage of this e-book is the selection of authors, recognized worldwide as leading experts in their field. Because of the comprehensive coverage, as well as the eminence of the authors, this e-book provides a detailed and high quality description about the role of innate immune responses regulating HIV replication. It should prove to be a useful resource for readers interested in immunology and HIV research.

Lately there is an increasing interest in partial difference equations demonstrated by the enormous amount of research papers devoted to them. The initial reason for this increasing interest was the development of computers and the area of numerical analysis, where partial difference equations arise naturally when discretizing a partial differential equation. The aim of this e-book is to provide some recent advances in the field of partial difference equations. Applications of partial difference equations in numerical analysis and systems theory are also presented. This e-book will be of use to high level undergraduate students, graduate students and researchers working in the area of partial difference equations.

Spatial Ecology elucidates processes and mechanisms which structure dynamics of real world systems; these include lakes, ponds, forests and rivers. Readers are introduced to contemporary models in ecological literature based on the author's research experience. The e-book starts by presenting an introduction to basic mechanisms of ecological processes. This is followed by chapters explaining these processes responsible for generating observed spatial patterns in detail. The e-book concludes with a chapter on water quality management and its relevance to the spatial setting in a wetland area. This text in spatial ecology is a welcome resource for readers interested in models, methods and methodologies best suited for the study of advanced ecology courses and topics related to ecosystem structure, function and habitat fragmentation.

Spinal Surgery Biomechanics: Principles for Residents and Students provides a comprehensive overview of the biomechanical principles essential for understanding spinal surgery techniques. This book explores key topics, including pedicle screw anchorage, lumbar total disc replacement, interbody fusion techniques, and spinal surgery in osteoporotic patients. It also covers degenerative spondylolisthesis, interspinous devices, and spinal stability classification systems.

Written for students, residents, and researchers, this volume simplifies complex biomechanical concepts with clear explanations, clinical insights, and up-to-date research findings.

Key Features:

- Covers essential biomechanics relevant to spinal surgery procedures.

- Discusses surgical approaches, implant selection, and stability mechanisms.

- Examines spine surgery in osteoporotic and degenerative conditions.

- Explores motion-preserving and fusion-based spinal implants.

- Reviews classification systems for spinal trauma and instability.

Stability of Geotechnical Structures: Theoretical and Numerical Analysis is a comprehensive introduction to the theory and applications of soil mechanics in structural stability. Chapters explain different mathematical methods to calculate structural stability metrics. Topics covered in the book include upper and lower bound methods, kinematic methods, slip line methods, limit analysis, limit equilibrium, and element methods. Additionally, fundamental principles in plasticity formulation are discussed in sufficient details, and sample computer programs are included to aid the readers in learning the presented theoretical material. The book also features worked examples for easy understanding. Theoretical material in the book is based on actual research conducted by the authors, with additional literature reviews and discussions about important topics in geotechnical engineering.

Stability of Geotechnical Structures: Theoretical and Numerical Analysis is suitable for students undertaking advanced foundation or geotechnical engineering courses at undergraduate or postgraduate levels.

Frontiers in Civil Engineering brings scholarly references on all topics related to civil engineering to the fore. Each volume presents thematic information on theoretical frameworks and practical applications in the field, including (but not limited to) soil and rock mechanics, flood control, road and railway engineering, and the construction of large buildings, bridges and dams. The series aims to compile and present useful information in the form of handbooks and monographs for students involved in technical courses in addition to providing updated references for professional engineers about the latest trends in civil engineering.