The Eighth International Symposium of Robotics Research was held in Kanagawa, Japan, on October 4-7 1997; Robotics Research presents the findings of this symposium. The papers, written by international specialists in the field, cover the many topics concerning advanced robotics today, ranging from practical system design to theoretical reasoning and planning. They assess the state of the field and discuss all the current and emerging trends dealing with, amongst many other topics, mobile robotics, manufacturing, learning from humans, autonomous land vehicles, humanoid robots, future robots, and new components. The reader will share with the attendees the meaningful steps forward in building the emerging body of concepts, methods, scientific and technical knowledge that shape modern day robotics.

An engaging narrative of the small-unit actions near Sedan during the 1940 campaign for France.

This volume is based on the lecture notes of six courses delivered at a CIMPA Summer School in Temuco, Chile, in January 2001. The courses are: asymptotic of the heat kernel in unbounded domains; spin systems with long range interactions; non-linear Dirichlet problem and non-linear integration; first-passage percolation; central limit theorem for Markov processes; stochastic orders and stopping times in Brownian motion. The level of each course is that of a graduate course, but the material will also be of interest for the specialist.

In Advanced Dressage Training, Grand Prix rider/trainer Angela Niemeyer Eastwood outlines the hows and whys of advanced training in a practical, logical fashion, with the aim of helping you to create harmonious partnerships with your horses. Dressage has moved beyond the basics of just riding and training a horse, and now encompasses many complementary disciplines, including psychology. This has always been part of the most successful athletes' repertoires and is now acknowledged as being one of the main contributory factors to excellence in any sport. Technical skills need to go hand in hand with mental commitment, discipline, dedication and resilience. Mindsets can be changed - what is needed is knowledge, support, imagination and perseverance. This book introduces the idea that aids are just that: they let the horse know what the rider wants. When this is understood, the horse should be allowed to do whatever has been asked of him - alone and unaided - until something else is required or the horse needs a reminder. The pursuit of excellence - not perfection - is what dressage is all about. Advanced Dressage Training offers advice and encouragement towards the improvement and development of you and your horse as an advanced partnership, taking you towards excellence in the process. This book will be of great interest to dressage riders and trainers and dressage professionals, and is superbly illustrated with 300 colour photographs.