First published originally in German in 1921, "Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus" is the only book-length philosophical work by Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein published during his lifetime. Based upon notes made during his time serving in World War I, the treatise is composed of 526 numbered declarative statements that are presented without argument and were seen by Wittgenstein as being self-evident. Wittgenstein's style is succinct and sparse and his ideas are presented in a highly logical, organized, and scientific manner. Wittgenstein proposes that the solution to all major philosophical problems can be solved only with logic and a scientific analysis of language and its meaning. His idea that philosophy is not about metaphysics and mysticism, but about critical and rational thought led to a massive shift in philosophical theories after its publication. The treatise was influential with many of the "logical positivists" of the Vienna Circle, such as Rudolf Carnap and Friedrich Waismann, and to philosophers such as Bertrand Russell. Considered one of the most significant and influential philosophical works of the twentieth century, this treatise is an important read for any student of the history of language and ideas. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.

In these essays Heinz von Foerster discusses some of the fundamental principles that govern how we know the world and how we process the information from which we derive that knowledge. Included are path- breaking articles concerning the principles of computation in neural nets (1967), the definition of self-organizing systems (1960), the nature of cognition (1970), as well as recent expansions on these themes (e.g. "How recursive is communication," 1993). Working with Norbert Wiener, Warren McCullough, and others in the 1960s and 1970s, von Foerster was one of the founders of the science of cybernetics, which has had profound effects both on modern systems theory and on the philosophy of cognition. At the Biological Computer Laboratory at the University of Illinois he produced the first parallel computers and contributed to many other developments in the theory of computation and cognition.

In 1945, Dr. Ernst Weber founded, and was the first Director of, the Microwave Research Institute (MRI) at POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY (at that time named the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn). MRI gained world-wide recognition in the 50's and 60's for its research in electromagnetic theory, antennas and radiation, network theory and microwave networks, microwave components and devices. It was also known through its series of topical symposia and the widely distributed hard bound MRI Symposium Proceedings. Rededicated as the Weber Research Institute (WRI) in 1986, the research focus today is on such areas as electromagnetic propagation and antennas, ultra broadband electromagnetics, pulse power, acoustics, gaseous electronics, plasma physics, solid state materials, quantum electronics, electromagnetic launchers, and networks. Following the MRI tradition, WRI has launched its own series of in-depth topical conferences with published proceedings. The first conference was held in October, 1990 and was entitled Directions in Electromagnetic Wave Modeling. The proceedings of the conference were published under that title by Plenum Press. This volume constitutes the Proceedings of the second WRI International Conference dealing with Ultra·Wideband Short·Pulse Electromagnetics.

From the reviews: “The first volume is devoted to ergodic theory and dynamical systems. It contains 19 papers divided into four groups ... . The reader will find a wealth of information and ideas that can still ignite inspiration and motivate students as well as senior researchers. The reader will also have a touch of Sinai’s personality, his taste, enthusiasm, and optimism, which are just as invaluable as his mathematical results.” (Nikolai Chernov, Mathematical Reviews, Issue 2012 e)