  Non-linear state estimation and some related topics, like parametric
estimation, fault diagnosis, and perturbation attenuation, are tackled here via
a new methodology in numerical differentiation. The corresponding basic system
theoretic definitions and properties are presented within the framework of
differential algebra, which permits to handle system variables and their
derivatives of any order. Several academic examples and their computer
simulations, with on-line estimations, are illustrating our viewpoint.
