Abstract
In the interest of full disclosure, in the past I have worked very closely with all three editors and have great respect for all of them.
This book must have taken ages to edit. It consists of multiple chapters from many different research groups, but the chapters were edited and put into a common framework. The writing style is consistent throughout. The amount of effort put into making a coherent book of this type is not to be underestimated.
The book contains all new material. Its goal is to advance the art of purposeful sensor network technologies. That is, the technologies presented are all practical steps towards fielding robust networks with distinct applications. Given the background of many of these researchers, it is clear that many of the proposed applications could be military.
The book is divided into an introductory section, a network design section, and an applications section. Design chapters look at issues like networking, power, and security. Applications considered include tracking, anomaly detection, and surveillance. I know many of the researchers from my earlier DARPA and MURI programs.
This is a unique book that I feel advances the art in unique ways. I highly recommend it.