Open Access Books

With the liberalization of gambling, since the beginning of the new millennium, not only Italy has become a sort of open-air casino, but we have also witnessed an explosion in gambling and the number of players; almost at the same time we have also witnessed a dramatic increase of poverty. The essay highlights the correlations between gambling and processes of impoverishment, pointing out how and why the regressive features of taxation on gambling produce more incisive negative consequences on the most fragile and vulnerable social classes and an inevitable increase in inequalities.

In May 1924, the Soncino Society of the Friends of the Jewish Book was founded in Berlin. Named after the Soncinos, a 15th to 16th century Jewish-Italian family of printers, it was the first society of Jewish bibliophiles, and set the goal of publishing rare Jewish books and Hebrew printings. The eight essays in this volume explore the history of the Society and its commitment to Hebrew book culture.

This Special Issue of Processes operates on the basis of a rigorous peer-review with a single-blind assessment and at least two independent reviewers, thereby ensuring a high quality final product. I would like to thank our reviewers, for providing the authors with constructive comments, and Editorial Board, for their professional advice that led to the final decision. I am sure that, in coming years, readers of this Special Issue will find the scientific manuscripts interesting and beneficial to their research.

In the educational practice of a globalised society, the targeted use of multilingualism in everyday life as an educational resource is an undeniable necessity for educational success. Aysel Kart brings together insights from the concepts of translanguaging and self-regulated learning and shows how pupils apply their multilingual resources and self-regulated learning strategies when dealing with educational language requirements in secondary school subject teaching. Based on the subjective learning experiences of the pupils, she provides translanguaging-related ideas for action for a resource-oriented and diversity-conscious multilingual educational practice.

In this groundbreaking second edition of Learning as Development, Daniel A. Wagner transforms our understanding of international development by positioning learning at its core. Through a compelling global lens, Wagner demonstrates how education shapes both individual destinies and national futures, with real consequences for income, social mobility, health and well-being. This new edition provides timely perspectives on education's role in an increasingly interconnected and challenged world. The work traces international development from pre-colonial times to today's learning equity movement, explores how people learn across different cultures and contexts, examines the intersection of education with critical global challenges including climate change, migration, civil conflict and new technologies, and presents cutting-edge research through vivid context-rich examples. Essential reading for students, practitioners, and policymakers in education, human development, sociology, anthropology and global development, Wagner's analysis offers fresh insights into human potential for those who care about improving the lives of people across the globe.

This book analyzes compliance with the application of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in coherence with cooperation practices typical of solidarity economy companies and organizations, in the Oriente Subregion, Department of Antioquia, Colombia.

High-energy consumption is a critical issue associated with seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination, although the SWRO has been regarded as one of the most energy-efficient processes for seawater desalination. This means that SWRO involves a larger amount of fossil fuel and other energy sources for water production, which imposes a negative impact on the environment such as greenhouse gas emission. Therefore, the high-energy consumption of SWRO should be addressed to minimize environmental impacts and to allow for sustainable exploitation of seawater. However, the recent trend of energy consumption in SWRO seems to have reached a saturation point, which is still higher than theoretical minimum energy. To find new and innovative strategies for lowering current energy consumption, a comprehensive understanding of energy use in SWRO plants from theoretical analysis to actual energy consumption in real SWRO plants is required. This book can provide readers with information about the current state of energy consumption in actual SWRO plants, the fundamental understanding of energy use of SWRO plants from theoretical point of view, and advanced technologies and processes that could be applied for future energy reduction. In addition, this book will offer a detailed methodology for analyzing energy issues in seawater desalination. Through this book, readers will obtain an insight into how to deal with and analyze the energy issues in SWRO desalination.

Los actos de intimidación y presión al Poder Judicial y a los diversos órganos que componen el sistema judicial durante el Gobierno del ex Presidente Mauricio Macri han socavado la independencia que debe ostentar la Justicia. Lejos de ser actos individuales, puntuales, lo que se ejecutó en la República Argentina fue un Plan Sistemático y Estructural de Cooptación del Poder Judicial argentino, para instaurar un Poder Judicial "a la carta". Este libro es el resultado de una extensa investigación que no responde a ningún móvil de orden corporativo ni político-partidario; en sus páginas se busca establecer el rol central que jueces, abogados y demás auxiliares del sistema judicial deben tener en la defensa y la preservación de los derechos humanos y, en general, de un Poder Judicial imparcial e independiente, y asimismo en la defensa de la vigencia del Estado de derecho.

"Under the Nazi regime a secret program of ‘euthanasia’ was undertaken against the sick and disabled. Known as the Krankenmorde (the murder of the sick) 300,000 people were killed. A further 400,000 were sterilised against their will. Many complicit doctors, nurses, soldiers and bureaucrats would then perpetrate the Holocaust. From eyewitness accounts, records and case files, The First into the Dark narrates a history of the victims, perpetrators, opponents to and witnesses of the Krankenmorde, and reveals deeper implications for contemporary society: moral values and ethical challenges in end of life decisions, reproduction and contemporary genetics, disability and human rights, and in remembrance and atonement for the past."

In a world where energy conservation, environmental protection and sustainable development are growing concerns, the development of electric vehicle (EV) and hybrid EV (HEV) technologies has taken on an accelerated pace. This collection entitled “Electric and Hybrid Vehicles” invites articles that address the state-of-the-art technologies and new developments for EVs and HEVs, including but not limited to energy sources, electric powertrains, hybrid powertrains, energy management systems, energy refueling systems, regenerative braking systems, system integration, system optimization and infrastructure. Articles which deal with the latest hot topics for EVs and HEVs are particularly encouraged such as advanced lithium-ion batteries, ultracapacitors, energy-efficient motor drives, bidirectional power converters, integrated-starter-generator systems, electric variable transmission systems, on-board renewable energy, inductive or wireless charging technology, and vehicle-to-grid technology. As the impact of the use of EVs and HEVs on our daily lives is utmost important, articles which deal with the relationships between the use of EVs or HEVs and the energy, environment and economy would be of particular interest.

The book on Advanced Chemical Kinetics gives insight into different aspects of chemical reactions both at the bulk and nanoscale level and covers topics from basic to high class. This book has been divided into three sections: (i) "Kinetics Modeling and Mechanism," (ii) "Kinetics of Nanomaterials," and (iii) "Kinetics Techniques." The first section consists of six chapters with a variety of topics like activation energy and complexity of chemical reactions; the measurement of reaction routes; mathematical modeling analysis and simulation of enzyme kinetics; mechanisms of homogeneous charge compression ignition combustion for the fuels; photophysical processes and photochemical changes; the mechanism of hydroxyl radical, hydrate electron, and hydrogen atom; and acceptorless alcohol dehydrogenation. The understanding of the kinetics of nanomaterials, to bridge the knowledge gap, is presented in the second section. The third section highlights an overview of experimental techniques used to study the mechanism of reactions.

Els arxius de poesia experimental són imprescindibles per conèixer una part molt important de la creació del segle XX, sovint marginada per la crítica i l’acadèmia, i absent en els currículums de l’educació obligatòria. Aquest llibre recull els punts de vista tant dels productors dels arxius com dels responsables dels centres que els acullen, amb l’objectiu de fomentar el diàleg, conèixer els fons per impulsar la creativitat i traçar línies renovadores de futur.

The field of bio-inspired approaches (also known as biomimetics or biomimicry) is a design approach in which a product or process is inspired by elements of nature, such as plants or animals. Bio-inspired approaches serve as inspiration and motivation for many engineers and designers in terms of efforts to identify unexpected solutions to problems. These approaches have made great inroads in the aerospace, marine, and automotive industries. The domains of bio-inspiration and bio-mimetics have also been the focus of a number of studies in the field of robotics. There are several examples of their use in the literature, including their implementation in snake-type robots for underwater inspection or in worm-type systems for industrial pipeline inspections. This Special Issue compiles and presents recent advancements in the domain of bio-inspired robotics and their potential applications in industry. This will help researchers from all communities understand the relevance of bio-inspiration in robotics and serve as a platform for the application of these cutting-edge approaches in other fields.

Wśród norm prawnych zawartych niemal w każdym akcie prawnym, w tym konstytucji, znajdujemy takie, które mają charakter „zasadniczy” (podstawowy), wyróżniają się ponadprzeciętną doniosłością aksjologiczną, funkcjonalną czy hierarchiczną; mają odmienny charakter wobec pozostałych norm oraz pełnią szczególną rolę. Określamy je różnym mianem, np. „normy zasady”, „zasady prawa” czy „ogólne zasady prawa”. Wyrażają one pochodzące od prawodawcy wspólne dla systemu prawa podstawowe reguły, opisujące wartości, na których ten system jest oparty. W piśmiennictwie powszechnie przyjmuje się, że przekłada się to na przyjęcie, iż system prawny oparty jest na założeniu wewnętrznej hierarchii norm prawnych, przypisaniu w tym systemie nadrzędnej pozycji norm-zasad wraz ze sformułowaniem nakazu przyznania pierwszeństwa realizacji norm-zasad w procesie tworzenia, wykładni i stosowania celem zapewnienia spójności aksjologicznej systemu prawa2. Toczone są spory i dyskusje na temat natury i sposobu rekonstruowania norm-zasad.

This book is a collection of 19 articles which reflect the courses given at the Collège de France/Summer school “Reconstruction d'images − Applications astrophysiques“ held in Nice and Fréjus, France, from June 18 to 22, 2012. The articles presented in this volume address emerging concepts and methods that are useful in the complex process of improving our knowledge of the celestial objects, including Earth.