In 1982, Springer published the English translation of the Russian book Estimation of Dependencies Based on Empirical Data which became the foundation of the statistical theory of learning and generalization (the VC theory). A number of new principles and new technologies of learning, including SVM technology, have been developed based on this theory.The second edition of this book contains two parts:- A reprint of the first edition which provides the classical foundation of Statistical Learning Theory- Four new chapters describing the latest ideas in the development of statistical inference methods. They form the second part of the book entitled Empirical Inference ScienceThe second part of the book discusses along with new models of inference the general philosophical principles of making inferences from observations. It includes new paradigms of inference that use non-inductive methods appropriate for a complex world, in contrast to inductive methods of inference developed in the classical philosophy of science for a simple world.The two parts of the book cover a wide spectrum of ideas related to the essence of intelligence: from the rigorous statistical foundation of learning models to broad philosophical imperatives for generalization.The book is intended for researchers who deal with a variety of problems in empirical inference: statisticians, mathematicians, physicists, computer scientists, and philosophers.

A new investigation, based on previously unseen KGB documents, reveals the startling truth behind Stalin's last great conspiracy.

On January 13, 1953, a stunned world learned that a vast conspiracy had been unmasked among Jewish doctors in the USSR to murder Kremlin leaders. Mass arrests quickly followed. The Doctors' Plot, as this alleged scheme came to be called, was Stalin's last crime.

In the fifty years since Stalin's death many myths have grown up about the Doctors' Plot. Did Stalin himself invent the conspiracy against the Jewish doctors or was it engineered by subordinates who wished to eliminate Kremlin rivals? Did Stalin intend a purge of all Jews from Moscow, Leningrad, and other major cities, which might lead to a Soviet Holocaust? How was this plot related to the cold war then dividing Europe, and the hot war in Korea? Finally, was the Doctors' Plot connected with Stalin's fortuitous death?

Brent and Naumov have explored an astounding arra of previously unknown, top-secret documents from the KGB, the presidential archives, and other state and party archives in order to probe the mechanism of on of Stalin's greatest intrigues -- and to tell for the first time the incredible full story of the Doctors' Plot.

The aim of this book is to discuss the fundamental ideas which lie behind the statistical theory of learning and generalization. It considers learning as a general problem of function estimation based on empirical data. Omitting proofs and technical details, the author concentrates on discussing the main results of learning theory and their connections to fundamental problems in statistics. This second edition contains three new chapters devoted to further development of the learning theory and SVM techniques. Written in a readable and concise style, the book is intended for statisticians, mathematicians, physicists, and computer scientists.