bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparative analysis of Ukrainian and international standards in the context of mining tailings dam design requirements
Authors: Radchuk O
Published: August 2024

The global global mining industry produces billions of tonnes of mine tailings each year. These tailings are typically a mix of finely ground rock, chemicals in the extraction process, and water. Tailings are commonly stored in Tailings Storage Facilities (TSFs). TSFs are dynamic structures that are designed and managed to contain the tailings produced by mining operations. The construction of industrial tailings storage facilities has become widespread at the current stage of development of the mining industry in Ukraine and abroad. The focus is primarily on ensuring the reliability and safety of these facilities during their design, construction, and operation, as a failure of such structures can have catastrophic consequences. This paper presents a review and a comparative analysis of the requirements of Ukrainian standards with international standards in the design of tailings storage facilities. Comparing Ukrainian and international standards in the context of tailings design requirements can provide insights into the similarities and differences in their approaches. Ukraine has specific regulations and guidelines for tailings design, which could differ from international standards. It is important to analyze how Ukrainian standards align with international best practices.
An energy expenditure approach in mass transit commuting choice preferences
Authors: Ponkratov Denys , Kopytkov Denys , Galkin Andrii , Samchuk Ganna , Davidich Yuri
Published: August 2024

Current urban development should not be possible without public transportation. Adequate mass transportation can only be ensured by disclosing a stable commuter’s travel distribution along routes. Due to this, urban transportation improvement via applying the sustainable transport principles such as free access and path choice and minimizing the use of various types of energy is a major challenge. In this case, special attention is paid to working trips, which constitute the largest burden on urban transport and have dense directions in a short time. As with any actions, public journeys are closely taken to human energy expenditure, which is further increased when passengers then have to perform their main workplace tasks. Thus, a public transport trip can be seen as the start of a working day. Consequently, mass transport systems should therefore be presented in a way that minimizes energy consumption by passengers. This can be found by establishing an interrelation between travel energy consumption and travel choice and, this way, explaining the attractiveness of stable route options. The attractiveness obtained should enable the travel choice probabilities to be calculated and the urban mass transit system to be better organized in satisfying the needs of users.
Risk factor assessment in agricultural supply chain by fuzzy logic
Authors: Muzylyov Dmitriy , Medvediev Ievgen , Pavlenko Olexiy
Published: August 2024

Significant uncertainty characterizes the harvest period. This aspect is due to various risks impacting agrifood supply chains. The occurrence of risks is due to hazards: technological failures, technical breakdowns, or adverse weather conditions. Hence, the operational time of the agricultural supply chain during the harvest period increases due to such risk factors. In essence, some hazards are fuzzy, and the nature of most threats is characterized by significant uncertainty. Classical risk assessment methods do not allow assessing simultaneously the impact of various risks, especially those expressed fuzzy (weather conditions). Therefore, the study objective is to design a fuzzy model assessing risk factors that impact the increase in the operating time of the agrifood supply chain during the harvest period. As initial parameters in the indistinct model, three groups of risk factors were accepted: weather conditions, technological failures and technical malfunctions. The MATLAB Fuzzy Toolbox is used to design the fuzzy model, and the model architecture is implemented in Simulink. The modelling results can be used to create the necessary reserves of the harvesting and transport complex to ensure timely harvesting and reduce the negative impact of hazards on the agricultural supply chain operating.
Assessment and Forecasting of Human Resource Development in the Region considering Re-emigration Processes in the Context of Geopolitical Transformations
Authors: Kolmakova Olena , Khalina Veronika , Ustilovska Anastasiia , Matvieieva Natalia , Yesina Valeriya
Published: August 2024

Human resources research is always relevant, as their development is almost continuous. This work is dedicated to addressing issues related to the assessment, development, and strengthening of the human component of productive forces. A particular emphasis is placed on population replenishment through re-emigration. However, such programs have a nationwide scope and do not take into account the difficulties that regional leaders encounter when implementing such programs locally. Regions that receive migrants often face challenges such as housing shortages, limited space in childcare facilities and schools, and the potential strain on public transportation, as well as overloaded government services, and more. This occurs precisely because there is no forecasting of changes in the volume and structure of human resources, even in the short term. In the context of geopolitical transformations, making long-term predictions is not advantageous. Therefore, a simplified system for assessing the development of human resources, which, unlike others, considers the intensity of human resource outflows and migration processes, becomes relevant. This is why the purpose of this work is to create a mathematical model that will allow for the evaluation and prediction of the development of human resources. To achieve this goal, the author has decided on several tasks: building a mathematical model for evaluating the development of human resources, taking into account immigration and re-emigration growth, and developing coefficients for assessing the implementation of re-emigration stimulation programs.
Host–bacteria interactions: ecological and evolutionary insights from ancient, professional endosymbionts
Authors: Bontemps Zélia , Paranjape Kiran , Guy Lionel
Published: August 2024

Interactions between eukaryotic hosts and their bacterial symbionts drive key ecological and evolutionary processes, from regulating ecosystems to the evolution of complex molecular machines and processes. Over time, endosymbionts generally evolve reduced genomes, and their relationship with their host tends to stabilize. However, host–bacteria relationships may be heavily influenced by environmental changes. Here, we review these effects on one of the most ancient and diverse endosymbiotic groups, formed by—among others—Legionellales, Francisellaceae, and Piscirickettsiaceae. This group is referred to as Deep-branching Intracellular Gammaproteobacteria (DIG), whose last common ancestor presumably emerged about 2 Ga ago. We show that DIGs are globally distributed, but generally at very low abundance, and are mainly identified in aquatic biomes. Most DIGs harbour a type IVB secretion system, critical for host-adaptation, but its structure and composition vary. Finally, we review the different types of microbial interactions that can occur in diverse environments, with direct or indirect effects on DIG populations. The increased use of omics technologies on environmental samples will allow a better understanding of host–bacterial interactions and help unravel the definition of DIGs as a group from an ecological, molecular, and evolutionary perspective.
2. Growth Models and European Political Economy
Authors: Johnston Alison , Regan Aidan
Published: August 2024

This chapter discusses the theoretical underpinnings of Comparative Political Economy, which range between varieties of capitalism to Growth Models. It explains that Comparative Political Economy can help explain the absence of economic convergence within the European Union, while also focusing on national economies and welfare states of Member States. Additionally, a variety of empirical indicators showcase how divergence between the EU's Growth Models became a defining feature of the EU's political economy. The chapter then mentions that the rise of anti-system politics in Europe correlates to how poorly the EU and its Member States managed the fallout from the global financial crisis. It notes that European economic integration has primarily benefited Member States with export-oriented Growth Models.
5. Monetary Integration, Crises, and Solidarity
Authors: Schelkle Waltraud
Published: August 2024

This chapter argues that the notions of monetary integration, crises, and solidarity are key issues of European integration. It explains how international payments for trade became a major concern for policymakers in Europe's war-torn economies after the Second World War. Monetary-financial integration was fuelled by the single currency, which then resulted in a boom-bust cycle of international systemic proportions. The chapter then examines the euro and euro area crisis while considering why and how monetary integration advanced or failed to move forward. It looks into different models of capitalism in the euro area before detailing several neoliberal ideas underpinning the euro area.
11. Migration
Authors: Geddes Andrew , Abdou Leila Hadj
Published: August 2024

This chapter explores the impact of international migration on the political economy of contemporary Europe. It details the definitional issues, scale, and types of migration flows to Europe. The EU and its Member States shape the political economy of migration both externally and internally as well as the causes and effects of a key dynamic in the European political economy (EPE) of migration. The chapter examines the notions of the selectivity of migration policies and the militarization of borders. Additionally, politics and policymaking are driven by two powerful trends: the heightened politicization of migration in the EU and the trend towards greater selectivity in migration policies.
13. Health and Inequality
Authors: Eckhardt Jappe
Published: August 2024

This chapter discusses the main themes defining health policy as a growing field of scholarship within the European Political Economy (EPE). It primarily focuses on following four theoretical approaches: European Open Economy Politics, Growth Models EPE, Ideational EPE, and Critical and Feminist EPE. Due to increased transnational risks of pandemics, the determinants of health started to spill over national borders and private actors started to play a more prominent role in health policy. European political economy/international political economy scholars made great progress in understanding health policy outcomes and their implications, but their research agenda on health policy is still much less developed compared to more traditional issue areas. The chapter then considers possible notions for future research, such as regime complexity, and comparative capitalism.
5. Global Trade
Authors: Trommer Silke
Published: August 2024

Across history, all successful human civilisations have engaged in one form of cross-cultural trade or another. Following decades of contested but successful trade multilateralism under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) established in 1947 and the World Trade Organization (WTO) established in 1995, hybrid governance structures characterize the global trade system of the 21st century. In this system, multilateral, regional and bilateral institutions provide overlapping and separate rules and regulations for the conduct of global trade. Meanwhile, global trade is widely perceived as a key arena within which we need to address key challenges, from climate change and big data, to economic and social inequalities within and between countries. This work reviews the history, politics, and recent trends and challenges of the global trade system.
7. Global Production and Unfree Labour
Authors: Ellie Gore
Published: August 2024

The presence of extremely exploitative labour conditions in the supply chains of key commodities is now widely recognized. Yet there is relatively little agreement over what causes severe labour exploitation, commonly referred to as ‘forced’ or ‘unfree labour’, in global production and how to address it. This work explores these debates by examining the patterns, prevalence, and drivers of severe labour exploitation in global production. The debate is framed through an analysis of key frameworks and concepts, focusing on the divide between proponents of the ‘modern slavery’ paradigm and their critics who prefer the conceptual framing of ‘unfree labour’. The structural drivers of labour exploitation and key factors making individual workers vulnerable to this labour exploitation are examined, followed by an evaluation of the effectiveness of current public and private initiatives to address unfree and forced labour in global production.
9. The Politics of Global Financial Stability
Authors: Pauly Louis W.
Published: August 2024

After the early 1970s, the global increase in capital flows, driven by a shift away from capital controls and heightened dependence on external financing, has interconnected national capital markets, making them more volatile and contingent on a consensus among leading states for policy collaboration during crises. In the late twentieth-century most cross-border financial crises began in emerging market economies. However, the 2008 financial crisis, which began in the United States and spread to Europe, and ongoing pressures such as COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, emerging digital technologies, and geopolitical strife between the US and China have tested the resilience and stability of the global financial system. This work examines these key events, as well as deepening domestic and international struggles over the unequal distribution of costs and benefits of financial openness in the global economy.
14. The Global Political Economy of Development
Authors: Bhagat Ali
Published: August 2024

Some major advances in the betterment of human life have been made in recent years but at the cost of accelerated climatic change and through uneven means of development. A reduction in child mortality, a rise in literacy and education, and by some measures the fewest people live in extreme poverty than they ever have before. Nevertheless, inequality on the multiple axes of health, income, environment, gender, education, technology, finance, shelter, food, water, and various other issues concerning access persist. This work examines efforts by various actors to deal with these problems with mixed and contested results. The analysis is centered around a key question: who benefits and why from globalised development? In so doing, it examines various development theories, traces the history of globalisation-led development post-WWII, and scrutinises contemporary challenges like the Great Recession and the Global Refugee Crisis, in order to understand the crisis prone tendencies of globalisation and its linkages to everyday practices in global political economy.
17. The Global Political Economy of Digital Technology
Authors: Girard Tyler
Published: August 2024

The current digital transformation of the global economy continues to create new forms of power, new political cleavages, and new coalitions to which the governance of the GPE need to adapt. This work explains the technologies and firm dynamics at the center of this transformation, as well as the new analytical tools and concepts being used to explain these changes. It explores the digital transformation across three interrelated areas. The fragmentation of national and global governance initiatives for artificial intelligence is contrasted with the emergence of the European Union (EU) as a global standard-setter in data and privacy governance. The disruption of labour markets and shifting political cleavages caused by the digitization of global trade, as well as the creation of new points of conflict in global trade governance are explored. Finally, the work provides an assessment of the disruptive impact of technology firms and cryptocurrency on global finance.
2. Realism
Authors: Brummer Klaus , Oppermann Kai
Published: August 2024

This chapter discusses the key concepts of realism in International Relations (IR) and relates this to foreign policy. It explains that realism continues to be a relevant theoretical perspective on foreign policy which informs a rich array of Foreign Policy Analysis (FPA) scholarship. Realism offers an outside-in perspective that focuses on the relative power position of states in the international system to explain foreign policy. The chapter then focuses on the neorealist model to explain foreign policy before introducing its modifications: post-classical realism and neoclassical realism. It mentions how realist FPA lacks diversity as the field continues to be dominated by male, Western authors.
4. Social Constructivism
Authors: Brummer Klaus , Oppermann Kai
Published: August 2024

This chapter explains how social constructivism views foreign policy as a norm-guided behaviour. It identifies norms as core components of social structures and as the key explanatory factor in social constructivist foreign policy analysis (FPA). Moreover, the meta-theoretical position of social constructivism indicates that the interests and identities of foreign policy actors are formed in a social context. Social constructivist FPA involves two analytical steps of establishing the extent of conformity of foreign policy and norm-compliant foreign policy actors understood as norm-guided foreign policy. The chapter then discusses four socialization mechanisms through which foreign policy actors may internalize norms. Finally, the chapter points to observable implications of norm-guided foreign policy.
8. The Bureaucratic Politics Approach
Authors: Brummer Klaus , Oppermann Kai
Published: August 2024

This chapter provides an overview of the bureaucratic politics approach when it operates in line with foreign policy. The chapter considers an approach which looks at governments and their operations within foreign policy as the outcome of political bargaining between different government bureaucracies. The bureaucratic politics approach uses the concept of action channels to identify the bureaucratic actors who participate in government foreign policymaking. The chapter explains how different bureaucratic actors in the same government may advocate different foreign policy positions which can cause conflict in the decision-making process. The chapter finally presents the basic assumptions and key arguments of the bureaucratic politics approach while showing how it can be used in empirical Foreign Policy Analysis (FPA) research.
2. Realism and foreign policy
Authors: Wohlforth William C.
Published: August 2024

This chapter shows how familiarity with realist theory improves foreign policy analysis (FPA). The main challenge is to exploit two features of realism that are often in tension with each other: its firm grounding in centuries of real foreign policy practice, and its aspiration to create powerful general theories that help to simplify and explain the international setting in which foreign policy takes place. The chapter identifies a branch of realist theory—neoclassical realism—which bridges the gap between these two aspects of the realist tradition and thus is most useful for the analysis of foreign policy.
11. Economic statecraft
Authors: Mastanduno Michael
Published: August 2024

This chapter focuses on the relation between economic instruments of statecraft and broader foreign policy goals and strategies of states. In general, it is difficult for economic sanctions to achieve major foreign policy objectives, despite their popularity as a foreign policy strategy. The end of the Cold War led to an increase in the use of sanctions, but not necessarily in their relative effectiveness. However, even if sanctions do not always succeed, governments still find them useful as part of a broader foreign policy strategy to signal their intentions, send important messages, and complement military action or diplomacy. The chapter also argues that the positive use of economic incentives has considerable promise as an instrument of statecraft and deserves more systematic attention in the study of foreign policy. It concludes with the enduring question of whether economic interdependence leads to harmony, as liberals expect, or conflict among states, as realists expect, and finds that it depends on the future expectations of policy makers, the nature of the military balance, and the form that economic interdependence takes.
12. Public diplomacy
Authors: Byrne Caitlin
Published: August 2024

Public diplomacy—simply described as diplomatic engagement with people—continues to evolve to fit and reflect the needs of twenty-first century statecraft. Most nations—large or small, liberal or authoritarian—understand that image, narrative and reputation underpin influence in today’s globalized world. Governments realize that to generate and exert this power they must inform, influence, and mobilize public opinion. This means engaging public audiences—including civil society representatives, opinion leaders, journalists, scholars, students, and ordinary citizens—both at home and abroad and increasingly through digital means, in the conduct of foreign policy.
15. The Cuban Missile Crisis
Authors: Allison Graham
Published: August 2024

The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 remains the defining event of the nuclear age and the most dangerous moment in recorded history. It has become the textbook case not just for nuclear diplomacy but for statecraft in relations between nuclear-weapon states. In the ongoing confrontation with Russia’s President Putin, American leaders have reviewed what President John F. Kennedy did in this crisis for lessons and clues that can be applied to the challenge of the day. For students of international affairs, the Missile Crisis offers the best-documented crisis in history, thanks in particular to tape recordings of most of the White House meetings. This makes it possible to vicariously experience the deliberations of those who considered choices they knew could lead to nuclear war. It also allows us to reconstruct the calculations of both nations as they made choices. Three decision-making models provide lenses for students of foreign policy seeking to understand the behaviour of governments as rational, organizational, and governmental actors.
16. Neoconservatism and the domestic sources of US foreign policy
Authors: Khong Yuen Foong
Published: August 2024

Do ideas affect foreign policy, and if so, how? This chapter examines the claim that neoconservative ideas about foreign policy were decisive in persuading the George W. Bush administration to launch a preventive war against Iraq in March 2003. It identifies the key tenets of neoconservative foreign policy thought and shows that some of its major advocates won key positions in the Bush administration. However, the argument of the chapter is that, by itself, neoconservatism provides only a partial explanation of Operation Iraqi Freedom. A more satisfactory explanation would need to incorporate the following: the 9/11 attacks, the strategic placement of neoconservative ideas by its advocates in calmer times, the assumption that the United States would have no trouble waging a successful war, and the one percent doctrine. It is the combination of these events, ideas, and probability estimates that tipped the balance in favour of war.
Introduction
Authors: Smith Steve , Hadfield Amelia , Dunne Tim , Kitchen Nicholas
Published: August 2024

This text examines the dynamics that shape foreign policy using international relations (IR) theory. Combining theories and case studies with actors, it explores the grand principles at work in foreign policy, both as a form of state behaviour and as an intellectual field. Chapters illustrate the complementarity between individual, state, and structural dynamics of IR, and levels of analysis found in foreign policy analysis. They discuss the relevance to foreign policy of the main IR theories: realism, liberalism, and constructivism, alongside the tool of discourse analysis. This introduction provides an overview of the contemporary relevance of the study of foreign policy; some of the definitional issues concerning the study of foreign policy; and the book’s updated organization.
Comparative European Politics
Authors: Costello Rory , Robinson Neil
Published: August 2024

This book provides a broad and accessible introduction to contemporary European politics, covering the fundamental elements of European democracies, institutions, and practices of government. The book is organized thematically and is divided into three parts. Part 1 focuses on democratic representation, examining the core features of electoral politics in European democracies. Part 2 turns to the institutions and practices of government, focusing in particular on how institutional design shapes political outcomes. Part 3 examines a number of contemporary issues and challenges, including migration, economic crises, climate change, populism, European integration, and defence and security, and examines the effects that these issues have had on politics in European countries. Each chapter is written by subject specialists and draws on examples from the full range of established European democracies (the twenty-seven member states of the European Union, the UK, Switzerland, Norway, and Iceland) plus selected consolidating democracies (Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina). Throughout, up-to-date examples on issues such as Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and growing instability in Europe are used to help students understand the real-world context of European politics.
2. Electoral Systems
Authors: Pilet Jean-Benoit , Renwick Alan
Published: August 2024

This chapter examines the variety of electoral systems in Europe. Electoral systems lie at the heart of democratic politics, influencing who citizens’ representatives are and having profound effects upon politics at large. The authors start by presenting the variety of electoral systems used across Europe, focusing on three key dimensions: electoral formulas, district magnitudes, and ballot structures. Then they discuss some of the main developments in electoral systems in Europe since 1945, highlighting shifts towards limited proportional systems and more ‘personalized’ systems. Finally, they probe deeper into the consequences of electoral systems, looking at effects on the nature of competition both between and within political parties.
5. Political Participation
Authors: Bernhagen Patrick , Vetter Angelika
Published: August 2024

This chapter provides an overview of political participation in Europe, ranging from conventional forms such as voting at elections to less conventional forms such as attending a demonstration or boycotting a brand for political reasons. The authors look at how participation has changed in recent decades, including a decline in election turnout in many countries, and analyze differences in participation between social groups and across European democracies. The main theoretical explanations for political participation that can account for these empirical patterns are presented and evaluated. The chapter also considers new opportunities for participation at the local level and asks whether these have the potential to ameliorate or exacerbate existing problems of unequal participation.
6. Beyond Electoral Representation
Authors: Farrell David M. , Field Luke
Published: August 2024

This chapter examines some of the main alternatives to representative methods of democratic decision-making practised in contemporary Europe. The chapter first focuses on referendums, providing an overview of their use across Europe’s democracies and examining how much scope is given to citizens to control when they are held and what they are about. The chapter then reviews the wider panoply of democratic innovations that, in combination, see democracies move beyond being merely ‘vote-centred’ representative processes. This includes the relatively recent emergence of deliberative forms of democracy, in which citizens are brought into the heart of debates on key policy issues through their involvement in ‘deliberative mini-publics’ such as citizens’ assemblies.
13. Politics and Markets
Authors: Robinson Neil , Worth Owen
Published: August 2024

The political economy of Europe has changed significantly in the last four decades because of globalization, the collapse of communism, and financial crises. This chapter first discusses the different varieties of capitalism that emerged in Europe after World War II. It looks at how they have been put under pressure by economic internationalization and the dominance of neoliberal ideas, which together have weakened economic management at nation-state level. Finally, the chapter considers the challenges to the management of Europe’s political economy posed by the international financial crisis that dominated much of Europe’s politics after 2007, and the Covid-19 pandemic.
15. Climate Politics and Policy
Authors: Carter Neil , Little Conor
Published: August 2024

Climate change is a global crisis that requires far-reaching and immediate action from governments, yet there are considerable differences in the political and policy responses of European countries. This chapter describes and explains this diversity. It first examines public attitudes towards climate action in European countries. It then turns to environmental civil society organisations, examining their methods and influence. The policy preferences of political parties on the issue climate change are then analysed, and the growth and influence of Green parties is assessed. Finally, the chapter compares the government policies adopted by European countries and evaluates the impacts of these policies. The chapter concludes by discussing the role of domestic politics in responding to the challenges of climate change.
16. Defence and Security
Authors: Smith Simon J. , Tomić Nikola
Published: August 2024

This chapter takes a comparative state-centric approach to illustrate the core issues of defence in Europe. The chapter reviews the influence of history, size, and geography on defence in Europe. It assesses the external threats facing European countries, including territorial threats from neighbouring countries such as Russia (in the light of the ongoing conflict with Ukraine), but also looking at other threats like energy security and cyber security. The chapter compares the how European states respond to these threats, examining their differences and similarities in terms of their strategic culture, defence capabilities, and military alliances. We examine the ongoing efforts to build defence cooperation between countries, including NATO expansion and the emergence of common defence policies at the EU level.
3. International Relations and Social Science
Authors: Kurki Milja , Wight Colin
Published: August 2024

This chapter focuses on the major debates within International Relations (IR) theory with regard to the philosophy of social science. The philosophy of social science has played a key role in the formation, development, and practice of IR as an academic discipline. Issues concerning the philosophy of social science are frequently described as meta-theoretical debates. Meta-theory primarily deals with the underlying assumptions of all theory and attempts to understand the consequences of such assumptions on the act of theorizing and the practice of empirical research. The chapter first provides an historical overview of the philosophy of social science in IR before discussing both the implicit and explicit roles played by meta-theoretical assumptions in IR. It then considers the contemporary disciplinary debates surrounding the philosophy of social science and concludes by analysing how theoretical approaches to the study of world politics have been shaped by meta-theoretical ideas.
4. Classical Realism
Authors: Williams Michael C.
Published: August 2024

This chapter examines the central assumptions of classical realism and its significance for analysis of international politics. Classical realism draws on a wide range of historical figures, from the Greek historian Thucydides, through Renaissance thinkers such as Nicolo Machiavelli, the early modern philosopher Thomas Hobbes, and prominent post-war thinkers such as E. H. Carr and Hans Morgenthau. This chapter examines classical realists’ understandings of the idea of human nature, the state and its role in international politics, the role of power and great powers, and also realism’s relationship with ‘modernity’. The case study discusses classical realism in relation to the Ukraine war. The chapter emphasizes the way in which classical realism recognizes the complexity of international politics and dilemmas which inhere in it.
8. The English School
Authors: Dunne Tim
Published: August 2024

This chapter examines the main assumptions of the English School, the principal alternative to mainstream North American theorizations of International Relations. It first provides an overview of what the English School is and how it emerged before discussing its methodology as well as its master-concept of international society. It then considers three concepts that are the primary theoretical contribution of the English School: the social order established by states and embodied in the activities of practitioners must be understood alongside the dynamics of the international system and world society. The chapter proceeds by exploring the English School’s position on the issue of human rights and its implications for justice in international relations.
10. Critical Theories
Authors: Kušić Katarina
Published: August 2024

This chapter introduces critical perspectives on international relations: it shows what they have in common, and how they differ from other IR theories. While situating the origins of critical IR theories in the Critical Theory tradition of the Frankfurt School, the chapter takes a broader view and showcases a wide range of critical theories used today. They share the aim of understanding and challenging relations of oppression, and an awareness of their own involvement in the worlds they study. The chapter traces two avenues through which these aims are pursued: making the familiar strange, and moving to unknown terrains. In addition to a case study that illustrates different types and dimensions of critique in statebuliding and peacebuilding projects, the chapter shows how a focus on race and gender is making the familiar contours of IR strange and moving it to new thinkers and themes.
12. Feminism
Authors: Sjoberg Laura , Tickner J. Ann
Published: August 2024

This chapter examines feminist perspectives on international relations. It first provides a historical background on the development of feminist IR, paying attention to different kinds of feminist analyses of gender. It then considers feminist perspectives on international security and global politics, along with developments in feminist reanalyses and reformulations of security theory. It illustrates feminist security theory by analysing the contemporary Russia–Ukraine war. It concludes by discussing the contributions that feminist IR can make to the discipline of IR, specifically, and to the practice of international politics, more generally.
14. Postcolonialism
Authors: Biswas Shampa
Published: August 2024

This chapter examines postcolonial approaches to International Relations (IR) and their foregrounding of the history and politics of colonialism in the making of the modern world. It first considers the concerns, issues, and preoccupations highlighted by postcolonial theory, along with some of the central debates that have shaped its intellectual terrain, and the normative and political commitments that distinguish it from other related fields such as Marxism and poststructuralism. It then discusses the relevance of postcolonialism to the study of international relations and proposes three different ways of engaging with the insights of postcolonial theory within IR that open up new questions, alternative methodologies, and a range of possibilities for narrating a postcolonial IR. Finally, it analyses international concerns about Iran’s nuclear weapons programme from a postcolonial perspective.
1. Making Sense Of Today’s World
Authors: Lawler Peter
Published: August 2024

This chapter introduces the concept of international relations (IR) theory. It highlights the importance of the historical context in understanding the different theories of international relations that have emerged over the years and why they fall in and out of favour. New theoretical perspectives are constantly coming to the fore and they tend to develop as a result of intellectual reasoning. However, quite often there will be practical consequences of implementing such intellectually grounded theories. The chapter then explores the interplay between international relations, international politics, and world politics and looks at the key concepts of ontology, epistemology, and methodology. It then provides an outline of a number of IR theories, such as liberalism and realism, before acknowledging that there is no right or best IR theory and it is important to keep an open mind.
Software Testingin Space
Authors: Clarke Beth
Published: August 2024

Beth Clarke MBCS, a BCS SIGiST committee member and PhD student, tells Martin Cooper MBCS how she discovered a love for software testing, how software makes Earth and space safer and why diversity across test teams is critically important.
Creating a Digital Skills Framework
Authors: Phillips-Mahon Amy
Published: August 2024

Flight Lieutenant Amy Phillips-Mahon CEng MIET MBCS of the Cyberspace Professions Implementation Team, RAF Digital, explains how organisational transformation in line with SFIA is helping the RAF face its challenges against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Defence Equipment and Support in the Digital Age
Authors: Powell Grant
Published: August 2024

Gioacchino Musmeci, Head of Digital Service Integration, and Daniel England, Digital Solutions Architect, both of Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S), explain to Grant Powell MBCS how digital transformation, cloud computing and AI are improving their ability to deliver frontline services to our armed forces.
Business Analysis in the Age of AI
Authors: Smith Georgia
Published: August 2024

Following the release of her book Business Analysis in the Era of Generative Artificial Intelligence, Dr Kitty Hung speaks to Georgia Smith MBCS about her predictions for the role of business analysis in the age of AI and gives us a flavour of what she plans to talk about at the Business Analysis Conference Europe 2024.
Why Blended Learning Must be Inclusive
Authors: Quek Freddie
Published: August 2024

Freddie Quek FBCS, Chair of the BCS Digital Divide Specialist Group, discusses the digital divide, how he became fascinated by the topic, and how blended learning can benefi t students of all backgrounds.
A New Book to Provide Tech Career Insight
Authors: Powell Grant
Published: August 2024

Regular ITNOW business analysis columnist, Christina Lovelock, has just published a new book to help people gain more information about tech careers and specialisms. She recently spoke to Grant Powell MBCS to explain.
Computer Chess: A Historical Perspective
Authors: Lea Andrew
Published: August 2024

Andrew Lea FBCS explains the different approaches to programming chess computers. Along the way, he explores the many historical attempts at creating a chess playing machine and asks philosophical questions about the nature of artificial intelligence.
The Wuhan Alarm
Authors: Yang Dali L.
Published: August 2024

This chapter reviews the initial response to the emergence of COVID-19 cases in Wuhan, highlighting the contributions of clinicians, independent clinical laboratories, and hospital administrators. Contrary to popular belief, several clinicians, including Dr. Zhang Jixian, reported the early instances of pneumonia of uncertain etiology to local CDCs. Commercial diagnostic labs, notably Vision Medicals, played a pivotal role in identifying the causative pathogen as a SARS-like novel coronavirus. The chapter gives special emphasis to “Patient A,” whose inter-hospital transfer facilitated the dissemination of crucial disease information. It also reveals the non-utilization of the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System for reporting these cases, which had significant implications for responding to the outbreak. Additionally, this chapter scrutinizes an unpublished joint investigation report that had a substantial impact on the official response to the epidemic.
The Decision to Seal Off Wuhan
Authors: Yang Dali L.
Published: August 2024

This chapter explores key events leading to the historic lockdown of Wuhan, a city of over 10 million people. It starts with the pivotal visit of the Senior Advisory Panel, led by Dr. Zhong Nanshan, on January 19, 2020, which confirmed extensive medical staff infections in Wuhan. It then discusses the State Council Executive Meeting on January 20, which recognized novel coronavirus pneumonia as a new infectious disease. Faced with escalating cases and insufficient response from Wuhan and Hubei authorities, Chinese leader Xi Jinping intervened, leading to the enforcement of a cordon sanitaire on January 23. The chapter emphasizes the strategic decision by China’s national health leadership to use experts like Dr. Zhong Nanshan to communicate the epidemic’s severity and enforce containment measures. It also elucidates how the Wuhan lockdown aimed to avert an immediate World Health Organization declaration of a public health emergency of international concern.
The Real Wuhan Lockdown
Authors: Yang Dali L.
Published: August 2024

This chapter delves into the critical role of community-level measures during the Wuhan lockdown. Contrary to popular perception, the initial phase of the lockdown was not strictly implemented as communities experienced chaos and difficulties. However, in February 2020, a shift in approach occurred when Xi Jinping and the national leadership replaced the top leaders in Wuhan and Hubei, redirecting the battle against the virus toward community engagement. The grassroots governance structure, as part of the Communist Party–led system, became instrumental in enforcing stringent home confinement rules and curtailing virus transmission concurrent with substantial improvements in hospital and quarantine capacities. Despite the challenges in execution, these measures found widespread acceptance within Chinese society, facilitated by a pervasive fear of the virus, advanced digital communication networks, and efficient supply chain logistics. Many of these strategies were adopted in other cities during China’s pursuit of the zero-COVID strategy.
Was the COVID-19 Pandemic Inevitable?
Authors: Yang Dali L.
Published: August 2024

This concluding chapter posits the complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic as a “wicked problem,” challenging existing governance frameworks and notions of regime type and governance quality. It notes that effective governance in responding to the pandemic necessitates rapid adaptation to evolving knowledge about the virus, advances in technology, and maintaining public trust. This chapter highlights two inter-related aspects of China’s outbreak response that undermined effectiveness. First are the fissures and tensions of fragmented authoritarianism in the Chinese party-state that prioritized stability and information control. Second was the weakness in strategic leadership during the early weeks of the outbreak. Noting China’s extraordinary capabilities evident in containing the virus post-lockdown, the final section considers the thought experiment of whether the COVID-19 pandemic could have been prevented had China had a transparent and open information environment.
Impact of Gender-confirming Chest Surgery on Sexual Health: A Prospective Study
Authors: de Schoulepnikoff Camille , Bauquis Olivier , di Summa Pietro G.
Published: August 2024

Background:

Few studies have evaluated the improvement of the sexual well-being of transgender patients after breast augmentation or bilateral mastectomy. This prospective study aims to assess the potential improvement in body awareness during sexual intercourse, as well as the nipple-areolar complex (NAC) sensitivity recovery after gender-confirming chest surgery.

Methods:

From October 2019 up to April 2021, all transgender patients eligible for gender-confirming chest surgery in our institution were asked to fill out two questionnaires, namely BREAST-Q (a patient-reported outcome measure for use in reconstructive breast surgery and clinical practice) and Body Exposure during Sexual Activities Questionnaire (scientifically validated self-report assessments of body-image experiences in the context of sexual relations). The Semmes-Weinstein monofilament test was used to evaluate NAC sensitivity recovery. Different follow-ups were considered: preoperative and 4 and 12 months postoperative.

Results:

Twenty-one transmasculine and 12 transfeminine patients met the inclusion criteria. For both groups, the preliminary 4-month postoperative evaluations showed significant improvement in psychological well-being and chest/breast satisfaction compared with preoperative values. Body awareness during sexual intercourse improved significantly at 4 months postoperative in the transmasculine groups (P ≤ 0.001) and at 12 months postoperative in the transfeminine group (P ≤ 0.01). No correlation between body awareness during sexual intercourse and NAC sensitivity was observed among either group, transmasculine and transfeminine patients.

Conclusions:

Although aesthetic and psychological well-being increased quickly postoperatively, sexual health remained low among transfeminine patients until they completed their transition with vaginoplasty. NAC sensitivity recovery was found to not contribute to the improvement of the sexual health of transgender patients.
Multilayered Silver-containing Polyurethane-foam (Mepilex Ag) for Tie-over Bolster Fixation of a Skin Graft
Authors: Saijo Yusaku , Cho Hoyu , Mitsuwa Hideyuki , Ogawa Rei
Published: August 2024

Tie-over bolster fixation is the most common method of securing a skin graft. The bolster material can consist of various materials, including sterilized polyurethane foam. Mepilex Ag is a silver-containing polyurethane-foam wound-dressing material that has a broad-spectrum antibiotic effect. The use of a silver-containing polyurethane foam as bolster material in tie-over bolster fixation has not been reported previously. We report here our method of a multilayered silver-containing polyurethane-foam tie-over bolster fixation and its outcomes when used during reconstruction of a relatively small skin defect on the nasal dorsum with a full-thickness skin graft. The skin graft was completely viable, and there were no complications such as infection, hematoma, or necrosis.