With recent advancements in video surveillance that can autonomously recognize people, detect movements, and identify targeted activities in real time, this volume examines the fundamental principles of current intelligent video surveillance systems, their algorithmic design, and system implementation issues, for new and experienced practitioners and researchers, educators, and students. Ma, a research scientist and electrical engineer, and Qian (electrical engineering, Arizona State U., Tempe) compile 17 chapters by electrical engineers, computer scientists, and others working in industry and academia in the US and Europe, who discuss background modeling, object-people detection, and tracking; techniques for activity recognition; multi-camera systems; and applications of intelligent video surveillance systems such as searching for people, soft biometrics, target tracking and geo-localization from an airborne platform, and 3D urban surveillance site reconstruction. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

The AutoCAD® 3D Modeling Exercise Workbook is designed for classroom instruction and self-study alike, and is suitable for both inch and metric users. There are 8 lessons and 4 modeling projects, all of which are heavily illustrated, for visual learners. Each lesson starts with step-by-step instructions on how to create 3D solid models, followed by exercises designed for practicing the commands readers learned within that lesson. The modeling projects are designed so that users can create complex 3D models by combining many of the commands learned within the previous lessons. Downloadable sample files are provided to accompany some of the lessons and modeling projects, so readers can follow along and customize their creations to suit their own needs. Written by Steve Heather, bestselling author and official Beta Tester of AutoCAD software, this is an invaluable resource for the thousands of designers, architects, and manufacturers who are using AutoCAD to create their own 3D models and transfer them to a 3D printer for manufacturing and use in the real world.

Exploring the role of engineers in transforming and shaping the modern world, the author of The Evolution of Useful Things elucidates the principles of engineering as he looks at such achievements as the English Channel tunnel, the Panama Canal, and the Hoover Dam. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.

Welcome to the world of drones! Complete customizable with your needs, budget, and sense of adventure. This book will show you everything you could ever want to know about buying and flying your first drones. From getting to grips with the jargon you'll need to speak to other flyers, to how you can design and build your own drone with advanced features like live video feedback and programmable autopilot. You'll even learn how to read a sectional chart (that's a pilot's map-see, you're learning already!) This book is your gateway to the fun (and the learning) that awaits, and it'll keep you safe in the skies too.

Where do our things really come from? China is the most common answer, but Thomas Thwaites decided he wanted to know more. In The Toaster Project, Thwaites asks what lies behind the smooth buttons on a mobile phone or the cushioned soles of running sneakers. What is involved in extracting and processing materials? To answer these questions, Thwaites set out to construct, from scratch, one of the most commonplace appliances in our kitchens today: a toaster. The Toaster Project takes the reader on Thwaites s journey from dismantling the cheapest toaster he can find in London to researching how to smelt metal in a fifteenth-century treatise. His incisive restrictions all parts of the toaster must be made from scratch and Thwaites had to make the toaster himself made his task difficult, but not impossible. It took nine months and cost 250 times more than the toaster he bought at the store. In the end, Thwaites reveals the true ingredients in the products we use every day. Most interesting is not the final creation but the lesson learned. The Toaster Project helps us reflect on the costs and perils of our cheap consumer culture and the ridiculousness of churning out millions of toasters and other products at the expense of the environment. If products were designed more efficiently, with fewer parts that are easier to recycle, we would end up with objects that last longer and we would generate less waste altogether. Foreword by David Crowley, head of critical writing at the Royal College of Art and curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

An environmental journalist traces the historical war against rust, revealing how rust-related damage costs more than all other natural disasters combined and how it is combated by industrial workers, the government, universities, and everyday people.

An illustrated field guide to the technology that keeps our cities and towns working. The Spotter's Guide to Urban Engineering is a useful identification tool to the mysteries of how our cities are built and work. Each spread identifies an example of urban engineering and describes what it is, how it works and why it is there. Annotated diagrams explain the technology, and location maps indicate noteworthy real-world examples. Most importantly for spotters, the book gives advice on how to identify these features and tips on where to spot them. The book covers the main areas of engineering infrastructure. Concise descriptions begin with a brief introduction, a timeline tracing that area's development and a synopsis of facts and figures. More than 300 illustrations and a durable flexibound format allow for easy reference in the field. The book covers: - Managing raw materials, including mining, agriculture, waterworks and manufacturing - Making power, including electricity grids, oil and gas extraction and distribution, and renewable energy - Transport, including highways, railways, bridges, tunnels, canals and aviation - Communications, including telephone, radio, television, satellites and digital technology - Waste, including sewers, industrial and residential waste management, recycling. The Spotter's Guide to Urban Engineering provides lay readers with a fascinating introduction to the technology that underpins modern life. Those contemplating a career in civil engineering will find the book of particular interest.

In a visual history of the electronic age, the brilliant innovations of the 20th century are brought to life through art and images of electronics, tracing the advances and practical revolutions in automation, bionics, computer language and cybernetics.

Presents step-by-step instructions for repurposing a variety of electronic appliances and equipment, including computers, cell phones, and scanners, into other items.