Brian Warner - Böcker

The study of cataclysmic variables - interacting binary stars containing a white dwarf accreting from an orbiting companion - is undergoing an exciting renaissance, as it embraces observations at all wavelengths. Cataclysmic variables allow, in particular, the direct and detailed study of equilibrium and non-equilibrium accretion discs; in turn these developments also help in our understanding of X-ray binaries, black holes and active galactic nuclei. This timely volume provides the first comprehensive survey of cataclysmic variable stars, integrating theory and observation into a single, synthesised text. An introductory chapter gives the historical background of studies of cataclysmic variables. The author then goes on to give an up-to-date review of both the observations (at all wavelengths, and over all time-scales), the theories, the models of the structures and accretion processes believed to be involved. A very detailed bibliography is also provided to guide the reader to pertinent primary literature.

The Royal Observatory, Cape of Good Hope, was the first major astronomical observatory in the southern hemisphere, and this volume presents an account of its origin, construction and use. It describes technical aspects, such as the instruments and their makers, the installation of the instruments and their initial problems. The difficulties of founding a scientific institution in a remote colony are also detailed. There is a biography of the Cambridge-trained mathematician Fearon Fallows, the Observatory's first director. The architecture, building methods and construction techniques are analyzed. There is also a description of the social aspects of life in Cape Town in the 1820s, touching on slavery and ecclesiastical matters. This text offers emphasis to both the technical and human side of astronomy.

Explore Twisted, the Python-based event-driven networking engine, and review several of its most popular application projects. It is written by community leaders who have contributed to many of the projects covered, and share their hard-won insights and experience.Expert Twisted starts with an introduction to event-driven programming, explaining it in the context of what makes Twisted unique. It shows how Twisted's design emphasizes testability as a solution to common challenges of reliability, debugging, and start-to-finish causality that are inherent in event-driven programming. It also explains asynchronous programming, and the importance of functions, deferreds, and coroutines. It then uses two popular applications, treq and klein, to demonstrate calling and writing Web APIs with Twisted.The second part of the book dives into Twisted projects, in each case explaining how the project fits into the Twisted ecosystem and what it does, and offers several examples to bring readers up to speed, with pointers to additional resources for more depth. Examples include using Twisted with Docker, as a WSGI container, for file sharing, and more.What You'll LearnIntegrate Twisted and asyncio using adaptersAutomate software build, test, and release processes with BuildbotCreate clients and servers with AutobahnTransfer files with Magic WormholeDistribute cloud-based file storage with Tahoe LAFSUnderstand HTTP/2 with Python and TwistedSupport for asynchronous tasks using Django ChannelsWho This Book Is ForReaders should have some Python experience and understand the essentials of containers and protocols, but need not be familiar with Twisted or the associated projects covered in the book.

This book, which has been in the making for some eighteen years, would never have begun were it not for Dr. David Dewhirst in 1976 kindly having shown the author a packet of papers in the archives of the Cambridge Obser­ vatories. These letters and miscellaneous papers of Fearon Fallows sparked an interest in the history of the Royal Observatory at the Cape of Good Hope which, after the diversion of producing several books on later phases of the Observatory, has finally resulted in a detailed study of the origin and first years of the Observatory's life. Publication of this book coincides with the 175th anniversary of the founding of the Royal Observatory, e.G.H. Observatories are built for the use of astronomers. They are built through astronomers, architects, engineers and contractors acting in concert (if not always in harmony). They are constructed, with whatever techniques and skills are available, from bricks, stones and mortar; but their construction may take a toll of personal relationships, patience, and flesh and blood.