The last ten years have seen rapid advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology, allowing unprecedented manipulation of nanoscale structures controlling solar capture, conversion, and storage.

A typical engineering task during the development of any system is, among others, to improve its performance in terms of cost and response. Improvements can be achieved either by simply using design rules based on the experience or in an automated way by using optimization methods that lead to optimum designs.

Like the anti-lock brakes system of a car, real-time systems are time-vital technologies put in place to react under a certain set of circumstances, often vital to security of data, information, or other resources.

Emergent technologies, including ambient intelligence and pervasive computing, promise a considerable advance in the way people use virtual communities, and new, innovative applications are making virtual communities more dynamic and usable than ever.

Streaming media is one of the most exciting and active research topics with continuing significant progress in the multimedia area, where streaming media has been experiencing dramatic growth and stepped into mainstream media communications.

Though once considered purely for their entertainment value, computer and online games have applications as learning tools in learning in a variety of different environments.

Engineering and design are often a necessary steps for an industry to become effective. Industry modeling can help to bridge the communication gap among engineers and system designers.