Christine Parent is a full professor, at the Computer ScienceDepartment, University of Burgundy at Dijon, France. She is part-time professor at HEC INFORGE of the University of Lausanne. She got her Ph.D. from the University of Paris VI, in 1987. She has been teaching and researching in data management systems since 1970. She authored many papers in well-known journals and conferences on the development of an extended entity-relationship approach, on schema integration methodologies and spatio-temporal database modeling. She gave several tutorials on these topics and served on many program committees of international conferences. Her current research interests include a cooperative design methodology relying on the integration of existing heterogeneous databases, modeling of spatio-temporal databases, and ontologies. Stefano Spaccapietra is a full professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland, where he heads the database laboratory. He has been in an academic position all along his career. He got his PhD from the university of Paris VI, in 1978, where he first had his master in computer science in 1969. He moved to the university of Burgundy, Dijon, in 1983 to occupy a professor position at the Institute of Technology. He left Dijon for EPFL in 1988. His current research interests include conceptual modelling, visual user interfaces, ontologies and location-based services. Esteban Zimanyi is a Professor of Computer Science at the Engineering Department of the Universite Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Belgium. He started his studies at the Universidad Autonoma de Centro America, Costa Rica. He received the BSc degree and the doctorate degree in computer science from the Faculte des Sciences at the ULB. During 1997, he was a visiting researcher at the Database Laboratory of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland. His current research interests include conceptual modelling, semantic web, bio-informatics, geographic information systems, and temporal databases.

From the reviews: "For anyone thinking of doing research in this field, or who is developing a system based on spatio-temporal data, this text is essential reading." (Mike Worboys, U Maine, Orono, ME, USA) "The high-level semantic model presented and validated in this book provides essential guidance to researchers and implementers when improving the capabilities of data systems to serve the actual needs of applications and their users in the temporal and spatial domains that are so prevalent today." (Gio Wiederhold, Stanford U, CA, USA) "Written by a group of well-known researchers ... this book relates the results of a project funded by the European Union. It presents original theoretical developments for database design ... . This is an important book which documents the implementation of standard concepts in the spatial and the temporal modelling of geographical information ... . This book is reasonably priced and it has all the ingredients for an excellent textbook. So I would encourage lecturers ... to consider using this as their text." (Peter Fisher, Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design, Vol. 34 (1), 2007)

• The MADS Data Model.- The Risks Management Application.- MADS Data Types.- The MADS Query and Manipulation Languages.- From Conceptual Design to Logical Design.- Related Works.- Conclusion.

Christine Parent is a full professor, at the Computer ScienceDepartment, University of Burgundy at Dijon, France. She is part-time professor at HEC INFORGE of the University of Lausanne. She got her Ph.D. from the University of Paris VI, in 1987. She has been teaching and researching in data management systems since 1970. She authored many papers in well-known journals and conferences on the development of an extended entity-relationship approach, on schema integration methodologies and spatio-temporal database modeling. She gave several tutorials on these topics and served on many program committees of international conferences. Her current research interests include a cooperative design methodology relying on the integration of existing heterogeneous databases, modeling of spatio-temporal databases, and ontologies. Stefano Spaccapietra is a full professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland, where he heads the database laboratory. He has been in an academic position all along his career. He got his PhD from the university of Paris VI, in 1978, where he first had his master in computer science in 1969. He moved to the university of Burgundy, Dijon, in 1983 to occupy a professor position at the Institute of Technology. He left Dijon for EPFL in 1988. His current research interests include conceptual modelling, visual user interfaces, ontologies and location-based services. Esteban Zimanyi is a Professor of Computer Science at the Engineering Department of the Universite Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Belgium. He started his studies at the Universidad Autonoma de Centro America, Costa Rica. He received the BSc degree and the doctorate degree in computer science from the Faculte des Sciences at the ULB. During 1997, he was a visiting researcher at the Database Laboratory of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland. His current research interests include conceptual modelling, semantic web, bio-informatics, geographic information systems, and temporal databases.

From the reviews: "For anyone thinking of doing research in this field, or who is developing a system based on spatio-temporal data, this text is essential reading." (Mike Worboys, U Maine, Orono, ME, USA) "The high-level semantic model presented and validated in this book provides essential guidance to researchers and implementers when improving the capabilities of data systems to serve the actual needs of applications and their users in the temporal and spatial domains that are so prevalent today." (Gio Wiederhold, Stanford U, CA, USA) "Written by a group of well-known researchers ... this book relates the results of a project funded by the European Union. It presents original theoretical developments for database design ... . This is an important book which documents the implementation of standard concepts in the spatial and the temporal modelling of geographical information ... . This book is reasonably priced and it has all the ingredients for an excellent textbook. So I would encourage lecturers ... to consider using this as their text." (Peter Fisher, Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design, Vol. 34 (1), 2007)

• The MADS Data Model.- The Risks Management Application.- MADS Data Types.- The MADS Query and Manipulation Languages.- From Conceptual Design to Logical Design.- Related Works.- Conclusion.

Christine Parent is a full professor, at the Computer ScienceDepartment, University of Burgundy at Dijon, France. She is part-time professor at HEC INFORGE of the University of Lausanne. She got her Ph.D. from the University of Paris VI, in 1987. She has been teaching and researching in data management systems since 1970. She authored many papers in well-known journals and conferences on the development of an extended entity-relationship approach, on schema integration methodologies and spatio-temporal database modeling. She gave several tutorials on these topics and served on many program committees of international conferences. Her current research interests include a cooperative design methodology relying on the integration of existing heterogeneous databases, modeling of spatio-temporal databases, and ontologies. Stefano Spaccapietra is a full professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland, where he heads the database laboratory. He has been in an academic position all along his career. He got his PhD from the university of Paris VI, in 1978, where he first had his master in computer science in 1969. He moved to the university of Burgundy, Dijon, in 1983 to occupy a professor position at the Institute of Technology. He left Dijon for EPFL in 1988. His current research interests include conceptual modelling, visual user interfaces, ontologies and location-based services. Esteban Zimanyi is a Professor of Computer Science at the Engineering Department of the Universite Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Belgium. He started his studies at the Universidad Autonoma de Centro America, Costa Rica. He received the BSc degree and the doctorate degree in computer science from the Faculte des Sciences at the ULB. During 1997, he was a visiting researcher at the Database Laboratory of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland. His current research interests include conceptual modelling, semantic web, bio-informatics, geographic information systems, and temporal databases.

From the reviews: "For anyone thinking of doing research in this field, or who is developing a system based on spatio-temporal data, this text is essential reading." (Mike Worboys, U Maine, Orono, ME, USA) "The high-level semantic model presented and validated in this book provides essential guidance to researchers and implementers when improving the capabilities of data systems to serve the actual needs of applications and their users in the temporal and spatial domains that are so prevalent today." (Gio Wiederhold, Stanford U, CA, USA) "Written by a group of well-known researchers ... this book relates the results of a project funded by the European Union. It presents original theoretical developments for database design ... . This is an important book which documents the implementation of standard concepts in the spatial and the temporal modelling of geographical information ... . This book is reasonably priced and it has all the ingredients for an excellent textbook. So I would encourage lecturers ... to consider using this as their text." (Peter Fisher, Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design, Vol. 34 (1), 2007)

• The MADS Data Model.- The Risks Management Application.- MADS Data Types.- The MADS Query and Manipulation Languages.- From Conceptual Design to Logical Design.- Related Works.- Conclusion.