Nonlinear Waves and Dispersive Equations

Nonlinear dispersive equations are models for nonlinear waves in a wide range of physical contexts. Mathematically they display an interplay between linear dispersion and nonlinear interactions, which can result in a wide range of outcomes from finite time blow-up to solitons and scattering. They are linked to many areas of mathematics and physics, ranging from integrable systems and harmonic analysis to fluid dynamics, geometry, general relativity and probability

Covid Conspiracy Theories in Global Perspective

Covid Conspiracy Theories in Global Perspective examines how conspiracy theories and related forms of misinformation and disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic have circulated widely around the world. Covid conspiracy theories have attracted considerable attention from researchers, journalists, and politicians, not least because conspiracy beliefs have the potential to negatively affect adherence to public health measures. While most of this focus has been on the United States and Western Europe, this collection provides a unique global perspective on the emergence and development of conspiracy theories through a series of case studies. The chapters have been commissioned by recognized experts on area studies and conspiracy theories. The chapters present case studies on how Covid conspiracism has played out (some focused on a single country, others on regions), using a range of methods from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including history, politics, sociology, anthropology, and psychology. Collectively, the authors reveal that, although there are many narratives that have spread virally, they have been adapted for different uses and take on different meanings in local contexts. This volume makes an important contribution to the rapidly expanding field of academic conspiracy theory studies, as well as being of interest to those working in the media, regulatory agencies, and civil society organizations, who seek to better understand the problem of how and why conspiracy theories spread

Covid Conspiracy Theories in Global Perspective

Covid Conspiracy Theories in Global Perspective examines how conspiracy theories and related forms of misinformation and disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic have circulated widely around the world. Covid conspiracy theories have attracted considerable attention from researchers, journalists, and politicians, not least because conspiracy beliefs have the potential to negatively affect adherence to public health measures. While most of this focus has been on the United States and Western Europe, this collection provides a unique global perspective on the emergence and development of conspiracy theories through a series of case studies. The chapters have been commissioned by recognized experts on area studies and conspiracy theories. The chapters present case studies on how Covid conspiracism has played out (some focused on a single country, others on regions), using a range of methods from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including history, politics, sociology, anthropology, and psychology. Collectively, the authors reveal that, although there are many narratives that have spread virally, they have been adapted for different uses and take on different meanings in local contexts. This volume makes an important contribution to the rapidly expanding field of academic conspiracy theory studies, as well as being of interest to those working in the media, regulatory agencies, and civil society organizations, who seek to better understand the problem of how and why conspiracy theories spread

Supporting Video Applications through 4DIS Temporal Framework

. Video has become an essential component of multimedia applications nowadays. To support multimedia and video applications efficiently, video objects must be modeled and structured in secondary storage effectively, allowing flexible, easy, and efficient retrieval. Existing video database systems are quite ad hoc, each being designed for a specific kind of application. In this paper, we illustrate that a temporal database system is crucial in providing powerful capabilities for supporting both storage and manipulation requirements of a generic video manipulation framework. We present the design of our experimental prototype which is developed upon the 4DIS temporal database system. Utilizing the query capability of the 4DIS system, abstraction primitives are developed to provide a core set of operations for various kinds of application semantics. In particular, the temporal database system provides persistent storage for video objects and query capabilities for retrieving video objects..