I F we consider Zuse’s Plankalktil the first programming language, research on computer languages is about half a century old now. During this period, languages have always been in the mainstream of computer science research. The focus of the research has perhaps shifted somewhat from efficiency (1950s) to expressivity (196Os), portability (197Os), and handling complexity (198Os), but the inter...

The concept of acute renal failure (ARF) has undergone significant re-examination in recent years. Mounting evidence suggests that acute, relatively mild injury to the kidney or impairment of kidney function, manifest by changes in urine output and blood chemistries, portend serious clinical consequences. Traditionally, most reviews and textbook chapters emphasize the most severe reduction in k...

As soon as the aim of natural language systems extends beyond the mere processing of isolated sentences or interaction with the user through isolated questionanswer pairs, it becomes necessary for the system to maintain some sort of record of both the user's and the system's previous dialog contributions. In its simplest form, such a record would contain the objects being mentioned, and the rec...

Human Ecology Review, Vol. 16, No. 1, 2009 © Society for Human Ecology The collection of articles for this special section is primarily the result of a symposium organized by Dr. Tom Dietz that took place at the XIV International Conference of the Society for Human Ecology. The symposium as well as this collection of papers represents a unique cross-section of scholars at various stages in thei...

ystem identification refers broadly to the problem of developing empirical mathematical models of systems based on excitation and response measurements. Such models are useful for enhancing physical understanding; analyzing system properties; and performing simulation, prediction, filtering, state estimation, monitoring, and fault diagnosis as well as control. Practical interest in system ident...