Physics in a New Era


Book Description

Physics at the beginning of the twenty-first century has reached new levels of accomplishment and impact in a society and nation that are changing rapidly. Accomplishments have led us into the information age and fueled broad technological and economic development. The pace of discovery is quickening and stronger links with other fields such as the biological sciences are being developed. The intellectual reach has never been greater, and the questions being asked are more ambitious than ever before. Physics in a New Era is the final report of the NRC's six-volume decadal physics survey. The book reviews the frontiers of physics research, examines the role of physics in our society, and makes recommendations designed to strengthen physics and its ability to serve important needs such as national security, the economy, information technology, and education.




The Myth of the Paperless Office


Book Description

An examination of why paper continues to fill our offices and a proposal for better coordination of the paper and digital worlds. Over the past thirty years, many people have proclaimed the imminent arrival of the paperless office. Yet even the World Wide Web, which allows almost any computer to read and display another computer's documents, has increased the amount of printing done. The use of e-mail in an organization causes an average 40 percent increase in paper consumption. In The Myth of the Paperless Office, Abigail Sellen and Richard Harper use the study of paper as a way to understand the work that people do and the reasons they do it the way they do. Using the tools of ethnography and cognitive psychology, they look at paper use from the level of the individual up to that of organizational culture. Central to Sellen and Harper's investigation is the concept of "affordances"—the activities that an object allows, or affords. The physical properties of paper (its being thin, light, porous, opaque, and flexible) afford the human actions of grasping, carrying, folding, writing, and so on. The concept of affordance allows them to compare the affordances of paper with those of existing digital devices. They can then ask what kinds of devices or systems would make new kinds of activities possible or better support current activities. The authors argue that paper will continue to play an important role in office life. Rather than pursue the ideal of the paperless office, we should work toward a future in which paper and electronic document tools work in concert and organizational processes make optimal use of both.




Children's Active Transportation


Book Description

Children's Active Transportation is a rigorous and comprehensive examination of the current research and interventions on active transportation for children and youth. As the travel behaviors of these groups tend to be highly routinized, and their mobility faces unique constraints, such as parental restrictions, mandatory school attendance, and the inability to drive a motor vehicle before late adolescence, this book examines the key factors that influence travel behavior among children and youth, providing key insights into lessons learned from current interventions. Readers will find a resource that clearly demonstrates how critical it is for children to develop strong, active transportation habits that carry into adulthood. - Discusses the correlates that exist between children's active transportation using a social and ecological model - Summarizes active transportation interventions that show what works to increase non-motorized modes of travel in children - Describes the factors that influence the implementation and effectiveness of interventions




After the Information Age


Book Description

Textbook







Evolving Global Information Infrastructure and Information Transfer


Book Description

This book explains the rapidly changing, complex flow of information in the context of 21st-century culture, policy, technology, and economics—an essential resource for librarians and information specialists in all types of settings. The role of information professionals today is to interact creatively with clientele: to help them navigate the information infrastructure. Shattering the concept of the library as a place, Evolving Global Information Infrastructure and Information Transfer describes "the library" as transformed to a dynamic virtual presence in the information infrastructure, where people are the most important resources in a digital library or information center—not the collections. Instead of focusing on specific technologies, which are always changing, this book examines the "big picture" of how information is created, recorded, mass produced, distributed, and utilized in society. This unique approach enables readers to better understand how they fit into this changing world, to envision their place in the digital age, and to assume a leadership role that ensures the success of their clients as well as themselves. This standout work is ideally suited for all types of librarians, educators, information workers, members of the research community, and policymakers in public and private sector organizations.







Technology for Adaptive Aging


Book Description

Emerging and currently available technologies offer great promise for helping older adults, even those without serious disabilities, to live healthy, comfortable, and productive lives. What technologies offer the most potential benefit? What challenges must be overcome, what problems must be solved, for this promise to be fulfilled? How can federal agencies like the National Institute on Aging best use their resources to support the translation from laboratory findings to useful, marketable products and services? Technology for Adaptive Aging is the product of a workshop that brought together distinguished experts in aging research and in technology to discuss applications of technology to communication, education and learning, employment, health, living environments, and transportation for older adults. It includes all of the workshop papers and the report of the committee that organized the workshop. The committee report synthesizes and evaluates the points made in the workshop papers and recommends priorities for federal support of translational research in technology for older adults.







International Handbook on Transport and Development


Book Description

In the last forty years or so the research field exploring the relationship and interaction between transport and development has developed rapidly. While sophistication in analysis has increased, understanding the effective integration of transport and development often remains poor in theory and in practice - with sometimes devastating effects. This Handbookprovides a comprehensive analysis of both the current and emerging thinking in this field, drawing on multidisciplinary thinking in transport planning, transport, urban and spatial economics, and the wider social sciences. With 45 chapters from leading international authors, the book is organised around three main themes: - urban structure and travel - transport and spatial impacts - wider dimensions in transport and development. The chapters each present commentary on key issues within these themes, presenting the debate on the impacts of urban structure on travel, the impacts of transport investment on development, and social and cultural change on travel. A multitude of competing inter-disciplinary perspectives are considered - leaving the reader with an invaluably comprehensive and critical understanding of the field. This major Handbookwill serve as a guide for undergraduates and graduate students, researchers, consultants, and also practitioners and policy makers, wishing to find a comprehensive and original reference to research on transport and development. Contributors: J.A. Annema, F. Avelino, D. Banister, D. Bonilla, F. Bruinsma, C.C. Cantarelli, X. (Jason) Cao, C.-L. Chen, G. Cohen-Blankshtain, C. Curtis, G. Dane, J. Dodson, A. Donald, R. Dowling, M. Echenique, A. El-Geneidy, R. Ewing, E. Feitelson, B. Flyvbjerg, N. Garrick, H. Geerlings, K. Geurs, M. Givoni, A.R. Goetz, P. Gordon, A. Grigolon, D. Halden, P. Hall, I. Hamiduddin, S. Handy, P. Headicar, D.A. Hensher, D. Hidalgo, R. Hickman, R. Hjorthol, M. Hillman, E. Holden, T. Holvad, H. Holzapfel, M. Iacono, O.B. Jensen, P. Jones, J. Kenworthy, S. Kenyon, C.A. Klöckner, K.J. Krizek, B. Lee, S. Leleur, D. Levinson, T. Li, Z. Li, K. Linnerud, S. Marshall, W. Marshall, E. Matthies, L. Meija Dorantes, R. Meyfahrt, P. Mokhtarian, J.C. Muñoz, P. Naess, P. Newman, S. Nordbakke, S. Petheram, S. Rasouli, P. Rietveld, O. Rotem-Mindali, T. Schwanen, N. Sipe, D. Stead, P. Stoker, G. Stokes, H. Timmermans, B. Van Wee, R. Wilson, D. Yang