Using information and scale as central themes, this comprehensive survey explains how to handle real problems in astronomical data analysis through a modern arsenal of powerful techniques. The coverage includes chapters or appendices on: detection and filtering; image compression; multichannel, multiscale, and catalog data analytical methods; wavelets transforms, Picard iteration, and software tools.

DEXA 2005, the 16th International Conference on Database and Expert Systems Applications, was held at the Copenhagen Business School, Copenhagen, Denmark, from August 22 to 26, 2005. The success of the DEXA series has partly been due to the way in which it has kept abreast of recent developments by spawning specialized workshops and conferences each with its own proceedings. In 2005 the DEXA programme was co-located with the 7th International Conference on Data Warehousing and Knowledge Discovery [DaWaK 2005], the 6th International Conference on Electronic Commerce and Web Technologies [EC-Web 2005], the 4th International Conference on Electronic Government [EGOV 2005], the 2nd International Conference on Trust, Privacy, and Security in Digital Business [TrustBus 2005], the 2nd International Conference on Industrial Applications of Holonic and Multi-agent Systems [HoloMAS 2005], as well as 19 specialized workshops. These proceedings are the result of a considerable amount of hard work. Beginning with the preparation of submitted papers, the papers went through the reviewing process. This process was supported by online discussion between the reviewers to determine the final conference program. The authors of accepted papers revised their manuscripts to produce this fine collection. DEXA 2005 received 390 submissions, and from those the Program Committee selected the 92 papers in these proceedings. This year the reviewing process generated more than 1000 referee reports. The hard work of the authors, the referees and the Program Committee is gratefully acknowledged.

Much work has been done on trying to gain insight into the dynamics of accreting systems, such as black hole and neutron star binaries, by analyzing timing measurements from X-ray telescopes. In this thesis we present a novel approach to this problem using a kurtosis measure of the wavelet distribution obtained from the light curve to quantify the presence of intermittent activity. This method is applied to large RXTE data sets for GRS 1915+105, and Cygnus X-1. We demonstrate a new approach to reveal bursting modes. Negative correlation between the presence of a low frequency QPO in the Cygnus X-1 Fourier power spectrum and a wavelet kurtosis indicator of temporal intermittency is observed. A possible interpretation of this anti-correlation is developed using a "dripping handrail" transient chaos model.

Neutrinos are one of the most abundant particles in the universe. Because they have very little interaction with matter, however, they are incredibly difficult to detect. Neutrinos are similar to the more familiar electron, with one crucial difference: neutrinos do not carry electric charge. Because neutrinos are electrically neutral, they are not affected by the electromagnetic forces which act on electrons. Three types of neutrinos are known. Each type or 'flavour' of neutrino is related to a charged particle (which gives the corresponding neutrino its name). Hence, the 'electron neutrino' is associated with the electron, and two other neutrinos are associated with heavier versions of the electron called the muon and the tau. The book presents citations from the literature for the last three years from the journal literature and the existent book literature. Access is provided by subject, author and title indexes.

The use of data to guide action is growing. Even the public uses data to guide everyday decisions! How do we develop data acumen across a broad range of fields and varying levels of expertise? How do we foster the development of effective data translators? This book explores these questions, presenting an interdisciplinary collection of edited contributions across fields such as education, health sciences, natural sciences, politics, economics, business and management studies, social sciences, and humanities. Authors illustrate how to use data within a discipline, including visualization and analysis, translating and communicating results, and pedagogical considerations. This book is of interest to scholars and anyone looking to understand the use of data science across disciplines. It is ideal in a course for non-data science majors exploring how data translation occurs in various contexts and for professionals looking to engage in roles requiring data translation.

The book is the first thorough overview of the first important steps to develop a worldwide virtual observatory so that, in the future, it could be easier to "dial-up" a part of the sky than wait many months to access a telescope. The articles in this book present details on the status of the first efforts to develop a standardized framework for the virtual observatory, including steps towards completion and deployment of technical infrastructure, uptake by data providers worldwide, and utilization by the scientific community.

After developing his Law of Gravitation, Newton came to believe that the Universe was infinite and homogeneous on a large scale. Einstein's original intuition was similar to Newton's in that he thought our Universe was static, infinite, isotropic and homogeneous. The field equations of Einstein's general relativity are solved for this universe. One of the three solutions found, the "infinite closed universe", traps light within a finite portion of the universe. This infinite closed universe model is shown to fit all the data of the Hubble diagram better than the Big Bang, and it fits the recent supernova data without having to postulate mysterious dark energy. Using general relativity and the physics which evolved from Newton, the author finds the force of gravity between two point particles. Utilizing this force and the infinite closed universe model, the net force of gravity on a point particle, in arbitrary motion, due to the uniform mass distribution of the universe is calculated by an integration. This net force of gravity is found to be equal to the force of inertia. These calculations explain Newton's First Law, Newton's Second Law, and the equivalence of inertial and gravitational mass. In addition, by the extension of Einstein's general relativity to two-body interactions Newton's Third Law is elicited. These results show that the cosmological redshift and the physics that we know are likely the result of the uniform mass distribution of our infinite closed universe and gravity alone.

Awarded the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Rodger Doxsey Travel Prize, and with a foreword by thesis supervisor Professor Shardha Jogee at the University of Texas at Austin, this thesis discusses one of the primary outstanding problems in extragalactic astronomy: how galaxies form and evolve. Galaxies consist of two fundamental kinds of structure: rotationally supported disks and spheroidal/triaxial structures supported by random stellar motions. Understanding the balance between these galaxy components is vital to comprehending the relative importance of the different mechanisms (galaxy collisions, gas accretion and internal secular processes) that assemble and shape galaxies. Using panchromatic imaging from some of the largest and deepest space-based galaxy surveys, an empirical census of galaxy structure is made for galaxies at different cosmic epochs and in environments spanning low to extremely high galaxy number densities. An important result of this work is that disk structures are far more prevalent in massive galaxies than previously thought. The associated challenges raised for contemporary theoretical models of galaxy formation are discussed. The method of galaxy structural decomposition is treated thoroughly since it is relevant for future studies of galaxy structure using next-generation facilities, like the James Webb Space Telescope and the ground-based Giant Magellan Telescope with adaptive optics.