As technology continues to revolutionise today’s economy, Big Data, Blockchain and Cryptocurrency are rapidly transforming themselves into mainstream functions within the financial services industry. This book examines each concept individually, analysing the opportunities and challenges they bring and exploring the potential for future development. The authors further evaluate the fusion of these three important products of the FinTech revolution, illustrating their combined influence on the digital economy. Providing a comprehensive analysis of three innovative technologies, this timely book will appeal to scholars researching innovation in the finance industry and financial services technology more specifically.
Wind power penetration is rapidly increasing in today's energy generation industry. In particular, the doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) has become a very popular option in wind farms, due to its cost advantage compared with fully rated converter-based systems. Wind farms are frequently located in remote areas, far from the bulk of electric power users, and require long transmission lines to connect to the grid. Series capacitive compensation of DFIG-based wind farm is an economical way to increase the power transfer capability of the transmission line connecting the wind farm to the grid. For example, a study performed by ABB reveals that increasing the power transfer capability of an existing transmission line from 1300 MW to 2000 MW using series compensation is 90% less expensive than building a new transmission line. However, a factor hindering the extensive use of series capacitive compensation is the potential risk of subsynchronous resonance (SSR). The SSR is a condition where the wind farm exchanges energy with the electric network, to which it is connected, at one or more natural frequencies of the electric or mechanical part of the combined system, comprising the wind farm and the network, and the frequency of the exchanged energy is below the fundamental frequency of the system. This oscillatory phenomenon may cause severe damage in the wind farm, if not prevented. Therefore, this book studies the SSR phenomenon in a capacitive series compensated wind farm. A DFIG-based wind farm, which is connected to a series compensated transmission line, is considered as a case study. The book consists of two main parts: Small-signal modeling of DFIG for SSR analysis: This part presents a step-by-step tutorial on modal analysis of a DFIG-based series compensated wind farm using Matlab/Simulink. The model of the system includes wind turbine aerodynamics, a 6th order induction generator, a 2nd order two-mass shaft system, a 4th order series compensated transmissionline, a 4th order rotor-side converter (RSC) controller and a 4th order grid-side converter (GSC) controller, and a 1st order DC-link model. The relevant modes are identified using participation factor analysis. Definition of the SSR in DFIG-based wind farms: This part mainly focuses on the identification and definition of the main types of SSR that occur in DFIG wind farms, namely: (1) induction generator effect (SSIGE), (2) torsional interactions (SSTI), and (3) control interactions (SSCI).
This book presents practical guidelines and recommendations for the design in seismic-prone regions. It is based on extensive research and it includes original drawings and sketches at the macro and micro levels. It is the first time that an attempt has been made to publish a book on urban design in the seismic-prone regions, covering the needs of government officials, planners, economists, architects, engineers and scientists, with the purpose of planning for seismic risk reduction and the practical implementation of methodologies and findings in earthquake affected regions. The guidelines presented are expected to be immensely beneficial to all countries in the earthquake prone regions, particularly in the developing world.
This book presents practical guidelines and recommendations for the design in seismic-prone regions. It is based on extensive research and it includes original drawings and sketches at the macro and micro levels. It is the first time that an attempt has been made to publish a book on urban design in the seismic-prone regions, covering the needs of government officials, planners, economists, architects, engineers and scientists, with the purpose of planning for seismic risk reduction and the practical implementation of methodologies and findings in earthquake affected regions. The guidelines presented are expected to be immensely beneficial to all countries in the earthquake prone regions, particularly in the developing world.
This book investigates Twitter activism in authoritarian regimes, with particular attention to Iran. Twitter provides citizens around the globe with a free and quick way to engage in politics and public discourses. The role of Twitter, alongside other social media, is even more critical in authoritarian regimes where official media is systematically monitored and censured. Thus, social media is vital in restrictive (non-democratic) societies for people to seek their liberty, raise their voice, and create counter-narratives and discourses. There is substantial research into Twitter and democracy, both in democratic and non-democratic regimes. However, Iran, as a country with a high population of tech-savvy users who actively participate in political discussions online, remains understudied to a great extent. Twitter in Iran has been blocked since the 2009 presidential election and its subsequent protests, the Green Movement. Nevertheless, Iranians have been continually using it to date.Recently, another significant hashtag movement unfolded in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini. But it is only an instance of how Iranians employ Twitter to fight a dictatorship. Given the unique context of Iran as a non-democratic society with a high number of Twitter users, this book tries to explore how Iranian users participate in politics, challenge the regime, mobilize their protests, and shape anti-regime discourses. It also examines the strategies that the Iranian regime takes to dismantle Twitter activism. Therefore, this work will fill some gaps in the existing literature on Twitter and democracy, which is relatively Western-centered.
This book takes a bold epistemological approach to address the fundamental questions that urban design has faced since its inception – questions concerning its legitimacy, definition, nature, content, purpose, theory, methods, jurisdiction and above all its knowledge base. The appropriate level of urban design – global or local – is another critical and emerging question discussed. At the end, an integrative theory of urban design is introduced, on the basis of which a set of principles is developed for application by practicing urban designers. These principles are presented at three essential levels: general, global and local-Iranian. Toward an Integrative Theory of Urban Design is intended to dispel many of the ambiguities still troubling urban design as a discipline and profession.
This book focuses on the effect of plasma nitriding on the properties of steels. Parameters of different grades of steels are considered, such as structural and constructional steels, stainless steels and tools steels. The reader will find within the text an introduction to nitriding treatment, the basis of plasma and its roll in nitriding. The authors also address the advantages and disadvantages of plasma nitriding in comparison with other nitriding methods.
This book explores how the recent development of Muslim countries as a group has fallen far short of non-Muslim countries, which, some have concluded, may be a result of Islamic teachings. The authors examine Muslim countries over time, viewing their progression on the Islamicity scale. They assess why some countries have done better than others, and to derive useful policy recommendations to improve political, social, human, governance and economic performance.
This book takes a bold epistemological approach to address the fundamental questions that urban design has faced since its inception – questions concerning its legitimacy, definition, nature, content, purpose, theory, methods, jurisdiction and above all its knowledge base. The appropriate level of urban design – global or local – is another critical and emerging question discussed. At the end, an integrative theory of urban design is introduced, on the basis of which a set of principles is developed for application by practicing urban designers. These principles are presented at three essential levels: general, global and local-Iranian. Toward an Integrative Theory of Urban Design is intended to dispel many of the ambiguities still troubling urban design as a discipline and profession.
This monograph presents new algorithms for formation control of multi-agent systems (MAS) based on principles of continuum mechanics. Beginning with an overview of traditional methods, the author then introduces an innovative new approach whereby agents of an MAS are considered as particles in a continuum evolving in Rn whose desired configuration is required to satisfy an admissible deformation function. The necessary theory and its validation on a mobile-agent-based swarm test bed are considered for two primary tasks: homogeneous transformation of the MAS and deployment of a random distribution of agents on a desired configuration. The framework for this model is based on homogeneous transformations for the evolution of an MAS under no inter-agent communication, local inter-agent communication, and intelligent perception by agents. Different communication protocols for MAS evolution, the robustness of tracking ofa desired motion by an MAS evolving in Rn, and the effect of communication delays in an MAS evolving under consensus algorithms or homogeneous maps are also explored. Featuring appendices which introduce the requisite concepts from continuum kinematics and graph theory, this monograph will provide advanced graduate students and researchers with the necessary background to understand and apply the methods presented.
This book focuses on the effect of plasma nitriding on the properties of steels. Parameters of different grades of steels are considered, such as structural and constructional steels, stainless steels and tools steels. The reader will find within the text an introduction to nitriding treatment, the basis of plasma and its roll in nitriding. The authors also address the advantages and disadvantages of plasma nitriding in comparison with other nitriding methods.
This book explores how the recent development of Muslim countries as a group has fallen far short of non-Muslim countries, which, some have concluded, may be a result of Islamic teachings. The authors examine Muslim countries over time, viewing their progression on the Islamicity scale. They assess why some countries have done better than others, and to derive useful policy recommendations to improve political, social, human, governance and economic performance.
Biomedical Engineering An exploration of materials processing and engineering technology across a wide range of medical applications The field of biomedical engineering has played a vital role in the progression of medical development technology. Biomedical Engineering: Materials, Technology, and Applications covers key aspects of the field—from basic concepts to advanced level research for medical applications. The book stands as a source of inspiration for research on materials as well as their development and practical application within specialized industries. It begins with a discussion of what biomedical engineering is and concludes with a final chapter on the advancements of biomaterials technology in medicine. Offers comprehensive coverage of topics, including biomaterials, tissue engineering, bioreceptor interactions, and various medical applications Discusses applications in critical industries such as biomedical diagnosis, pharmaceutics, drug delivery, cancer detection, and moreServes as a reference for those in scientific, medical, and academic fields Biomedical Engineering takes an interdisciplinary look at how biomedical science and engineering technology are integral to developing novel approaches to major problems, such as those associated with disease diagnosis and drug delivery. By covering a full range of materials processing and technology-related subjects, it shares timely information for biotechnologists, material scientists, biophysicists, chemists, bioengineers, nanotechnologists, and medical researchers.
Die Ergebnisse der empirischen Wahlforschung, insbesondere die des dominierenden sozial-psychologischen Ansatzes, haben wiederholt gezeigt, dass die Wahlentscheidungen der Burger in erster Linie von affektiven und insofern von irrationalen Momenten bestimmt sind. Dies steht in grobem Widerspruch zu dem Idealbild, das die normative Demokratietheorie vom demokratischen Prozess zeichnet. Das Buch greift diese zentrale Problematik der Politikwissenschaft an ihrer theoretischen Wurzel auf und beginnt die bisher wenig erfolgreiche Suche nach dem "rationalen Wahler" mit unkonventionellen Instrumenten neu. Konzeptionell orientiert sich diese Untersuchung an der Theorie rationalen Handelns und berucksichtigt die neueren Entwicklungen dieser Theorie zur Modellierung sozialer Prozesse. Operationell greift sie auf explorative Verfahren zuruck, um die erkenntnishindernde Dominanz der Instrumentarien des sozial-psychologischen Ansatzes empirisch zu uberwinden.
