bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Exponential decay of the critical points in a discrete model of polyacetylene
Authors: Gontier David , Kouande Adechola E K , Séré Éric
Published: November 2024

In this paper we consider stationary states of the SSH model for infinite polyacetylene chains that are homoclinic or heteroclinic connections between two-periodic dimerized states. We prove that such connections converge exponentially fast to the corresponding asymptotic periodic states.
Relaxation model for a homogeneous plasmas with spherically symmetric velocity space
Authors: Wang 王 Yanpeng 彦鹏 , Xiao 肖 Jianyuan 建元 , Rao 饶 Xianhao 贤昊 , Zhang 张 Pengfei 鹏飞 , Adil 阿 Yolbarsop 迪里 , Zhuang 庄 Ge 革
Published: November 2024

We derive the transport equations from the Vlasov–Fokker–Planck equation when the velocity space is spherically symmetric. The Shkarofsky’s form of Fokker–Planck–Rosenbluth collision operator is employed in the Vlasov–Fokker–Planck equation. A closed-form relaxation model for homogeneous plasmas could be presented in terms of Gauss hypergeometric 2F1 functions. This has been accomplished based on the Maxwellian mixture model. Furthermore, we demonstrate that classic models such as two-temperature thermal equilibrium model and thermodynamic equilibrium model are special cases of our relaxation model and the zeroth-order Braginskii heat transfer model can also be derived. The present relaxation model is a nonequilibrium model based on the hypothesis that the plasmas system possesses finitely distinguishable independent features, without relying on the conventional near-equilibrium assumption.
A Stochastic Inertial Limited Memory BFGS Algorithm Based on the Mathematical Model of Rural Pipeline Network and its Application in Machine Learning
Authors: Deng Xi , Yuan Gonglin , Yang Yuehan
Published: November 2024

Stochastic algorithms are critical in addressing complex rural pipe networks and non-convex stochastic optimization problems. With the development of artificial intelligence, large-scale optimization problems that cannot be solved effectively by traditional optimization methods have emerged. Therefore, stochastic optimization algorithms are rapidly developing in the field of optimization. This paper introduces an inertial extrapolation stochastic BFGS (IESBFGS) algorithm, an innovative amalgamation of the inertial extrapolation technique and the finite memory quasi-Newton algorithm to solve nonconvex stochastic optimization problems. Firstly, the inertial extrapolation technique is employed to track the iteration point to the optimal x-value. Second, it is combined with a finite-memory proposed Newton algorithm thereby increasing the convergence speed. Then, the superiority of IESBFGS is verified by comparing the experimental performance with other better algorithms on machine learning SVM model and ERM model. Finally, it is shown that the algorithm offers good prospects for solving nonconvex problems.
Global Error Bounds for the Extended Vertical LCP of DZ matrices and DZ-B maxtrices
Authors: Gan Mengting , Yan Gaoyan
Published: November 2024

The linear complementarity problem is a mathematical problem with important theoretical value and wide practical applications. Research on linear complementarity problems mainly focuses on algorithm improvement and innovation; Combining with fields such as machine learning and artificial intelligence to expand the application scope of linear complementarity problems; Further research on the properties of linear complementarity problems, the existence and uniqueness of solutions, and other theoretical issues. In this paper, by virtue of the properties of DZ-matrices and DZ-B matrices, error bound estimation formulas for the extended vertical linear complementarity problem are given respectively for block matrices composed of DZ-matrices and DZ-B matrices under the condition of satisfying the row W-property. At the same time, the feasibility and superiority of the results are illustrated by numerical examples.
Thermal-mechanical Coupling Model of Angular Contact Ball Bearing and the Influence of its Surface Roughness
Authors: Xin Jiajia , Xing Shunmei , Xu Hao , Wang Jiayu , Wen Baogang
Published: November 2024

A model that integrates thermal and mechanical aspects for an angular contact ball bearing (ACBB) has been introduced, considering its surface roughness. Subsequently, the analysis of friction torque, clearance, contact force, and temperature within the bearing is conducted under varying levels of surface roughness based on the established model. Additionally, the characteristics of thermal-mechanical coupling are examined under different conditions. The results indicate a significant interdependence between temperature and contact forces in the bearing system. It is observed that both friction torque and temperature increase with increasing surface roughness. This analysis provides valuable insights into the thermal-mechanical coupling characteristics of bearings.
Crowd Abnormal Event Detection Based on Crowd Density
Authors: Liu Xuelin , Fei Fengchang
Published: November 2024

This paper proposes a crowd abnormal event detection algorithm based on the change of crowd density. This method does not use the optical flow of the traditional model, thus the algorithm is fast. The algorithm first estimates the crowd density in the scene, then uses the change of crowd density as the feature representation of the crowd and constructs 3D feature blocks by adding time axis attributes. Finally, a single classifier is used to classify the 3D feature blocks for detecting crowd abnormal events in videos. Because the algorithm uses the change of crowd density in the scene as the feature representation of the crowd, the algorithm will not be disturbed by the motion of vehicles and other objects in the scene. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm runs faster and has higher accuracy than the optical flow algorithm.
A Data Augmentation Method and the Embedding Mechanism for Detection of Pulmonary Nodules on Small Samples
Authors: Liu Y , Hou Y J , Qin C X , Li X H , Li S J , Wang B , Zhou C C
Published: November 2024

Lung Computed Tomography (CT) screening for pulmonary nodules provides an effective method for early diagnosis. The deep-learning-based computer-aided detection (CAD) system effectively identifies and precisely localizes suspicious pulmonary nodules in CT images, thereby significantly enhancing the accuracy and efficiency of CT diagnosis. In the medical field, the availability of medical data is limited, and research using small samples is of practical significance. By studying the data augmentation technology based on the generative model under the condition of small samples, and refining the model structure through the embedding mechanism, the accuracy and robustness of the deep learning model are explored. A 3D pixel-level statistical algorithm is proposed for the generation of pulmonary nodules. By combining simulated pulmonary nodules with healthy lung tissue, we can generate new samples of pulmonary nodules. The embedding mechanism is designed to enhance the comprehension of pixel meanings in pulmonary nodule samples by introducing latent variables. The results of the 3DVNET model with the augmentation method for pulmonary nodule detection under small sample conditions demonstrate that the proposed data augmentation method outperforms the method based on a generative adversarial network (GAN) framework, and the embedding mechanism for pulmonary nodules detection shows a significant improvement in accuracy. Conclusion: the proposed data augmentation method and embedding mechanism demonstrate significant potential in enhancing the accuracy and robustness of the model, thereby facilitating their application to various common imaging diagnostic tasks, and research using small samples is of practical significance.
Evaluation of Distributed Power and Electric Vehicle Grid-connected Carrying Capacity Based on Genetic Algorithm Optimisation Neural Network
Authors: Yan Guifu , Ruan Wenjun , Xu Liang , Miao Huiyu , Liao Chenglin , Wang Lifang , Wang Liye
Published: November 2024

The integration of new types of loads, such as large electric vehicles (EVs) and distributed energy sources, and the conventional structure and operation of the power distribution network have been significantly transformed. This presents a significant challenge in maintaining the network’s capacity to handle the load. To address this challenge, a carrying capacity assessment method based on a machine learning model optimized by a bionic optimization algorithm is proposed. Firstly, the assessment model’s index system is established, and the distribution network data are collected and preprocessed. Secondly, considering the complexity of the distribution network carrying capacity assessment, a backpropagation (BP) neural network is constructed within the machine learning model. The genetic algorithm, inspired by biological optimization, is used to fine-tune the machine learning model’s parameters. Subsequently, the model’s accuracy and generalization capability are evaluated, and the optimized machine learning model is used to assess the carrying capacity of EVs and distributed power sources. The results of the carrying capacity assessment can provide an effective basis for subsequent power distribution network planning. This method combines the benefits of machine learning with bionic optimization algorithms to tackle the challenges associated with incorporating new load types into the power distribution network. The model’s ability to accurately assess the carrying capacity can support effective planning and management of the evolving distribution network.
Numerical Realization of Minimum Distance Estimation for Poisson Processes
Authors: Yang L , Zhou L
Published: November 2024

The statistical inference for minimum distance parametric estimation has been well developed in recent years, concerning the asymptotic behaviors of the minimum L
1-distance estimator, minimum L
2-distance estimator and minimum Skorohod-distance estimator. The question is how to realize the numerical solution of the minimum Skorohod-distance estimator, due to its complicated analytic structure. This paper aims to discuss the minimum distance estimation problem for Poisson processes. The main contribution includes the consistency and the approximate numerical solution of the minimum Skorohod-distance estimator, accompanied with the study of the minimum L
1-distance estimator and minimum L
2-distance estimator. In the numerical examples, three estimators exhibit the consistency trend. The mean square error of the minimum L
1-distance estimator and minimum L
2-distance estimator are comparable to, or superior to the minimum Skorohod-distance estimator in the regular cases, while the results are reversed in the change-point case. The bias of the minimum Skorohod-distance estimator is either superior or comparable to the others in the regular cases.
Research on the Motion of Few Tooth Magnetic Gears with Given Initial Angular Velocity Based on Euler Method
Authors: Chen Jiyun , Gao Feng , Li Yangyang , Wang Jun , Li Changyue , Li Shensi , Li Zhihan , Sun Mengwei
Published: November 2024

This paper aims to investigate the motion patterns of magnetically interacting gears with a few teeth and given initial angular velocities. Based on Ampere’s molecular current hypothesis, an equivalent current model is utilized to solve the magnetic field generated by cylindrical permanent magnets. Comsol software is employed to simulate the distribution of the magnetic field, demonstrating that the magnetic field calculated by the equivalent current model is in good agreement with the actual situation. Vector analysis, field theory, and the symmetry of the magnetic field distribution are leveraged to simplify the calculations, thereby reducing the runtime of the program. The Euler method is adopted to numerically simulate the motion of the gears. Finally, a comparison with experiments shows that the motion patterns in the experiments are essentially consistent with those in the numerical simulations. It is concluded that the ratio of magnetic field intensity to resistance torque, initial magnetic potential energy, and initial angular velocity positively correlate with the motion duration; the ratio of magnetic field intensity to resistance torque and initial magnetic potential energy positively correlate with the intensity of motion; when the initial angular velocity is excessively high, the other gear exhibits slight vibrations in its original position, and only when the initial velocity decreases to a certain value do the two gears interact significantly.
Numerical Solution of Backward Problem of Distributed-order Time-space Fractional Diffusion Equation
Authors: Wang H M , Li Y S
Published: November 2024

This paper aims to determine the initial value problem in the distributed-order time-space fractional diffusion equation (DTSFDE) with Neumann boundary conditions using final data. Initially, the direct problem of the DTSFDE is computed using the Finite Difference Method (FDM), followed by applying the Tikhonov regularization method to minimize a function and regularize the inverse problem. By employing the novel Optimal Perturbation Algorithm (OPA) for the inversion of initial values, the efficiency and accuracy of solving the inverse problem are enhanced. Ultimately, the effectiveness and practicality of this approach in addressing the initial value problem in the DTSFDE are demonstrated through numerical examples in one and two dimensions.
Study of Soft Rock Anisotropy Based on Three-point Bending Experiments
Authors: Yao Guoming , Li Weiguo , Lu Yunhui , Song Xinhong , Yu Zhehan , Chen Jiancheng , Yu Wenhai , Wu Yonghong
Published: November 2024

Under the influence of its layered structure, soft rock exhibits significant non-homogeneity in its mechanical properties and a certain degree of anisotropy in its fracture characteristics. In this paper, we utilize GDEM-Pdyna to conduct numerical simulations of three-point bending experiments on soft rocks with various layered structures. The research focuses on examining the mechanical properties and anisotropic characteristics of soft rocks subjected to three-point bending tests with different prefabricated fracture angles and layered angles. The experimental results indicate that as the prefabricated crack angle increases, the peak strength required for the failure of the soft rock gradually increases. The load-displacement curves and deformation field maps for soft rocks with horizontal and vertical grain layers under three-point bending loading show a certain degree of consistency. Additionally, with an increase in the angle of the laminae, both the peak load and peak displacement during the loading process gradually decrease, along with a corresponding decrease in fracture toughness. This study provides valuable insights into the mechanical behavior and anisotropic characteristics of soft rocks, contributing to a better understanding of their response under different loading conditions and structural configurations.
Study of Collaborative Space in Rebar Tying Robotic Systems
Authors: He Jun , Niu Yuqian , Qin Ze , Yin Hao , Yang Xingyu
Published: November 2024

In the process of rebar tying operations conducted by multiple robots, the flexibility and operability of the robot’s end effector directly influence the overall performance of the rebar tying system. This reflects the crucial role of the coordinated working capability of multiple robots in the trajectory planning of the rebar tying system. Utilizing an eight degrees of freedom rebar tying system composed of two collaborative robots and a truss structure, the D-H (Denavit-Hartenberg) dynamic model for each robotic arm is established. The working area of the system is ascertained via Monte Carlo methods. Flexibility and operability are adopted as metrics to evaluate the system’s performance, subsequently leading to the formulation of a mathematical model for assessing the system’s flexibility. MATLAB is employed to delineate the robotic working range and simulate analysis of flexibility and operability when operating on the rebar tying plane, yielding an intuitive distribution of system flexibility. By analysing the distribution of flexibility and operability across the working plane at varying robot spacing intervals, an optimal robot movement distance can be determined. This ensures that during operational tasks, the rebar tying system not only possesses a larger total working area but also maintains a high level of flexibility and operability within the collaborative region, thereby fulfilling the objective of enhancing workspace utilization and improving rebar tying efficiency.
Migrant Literatures and Cultures in the Arab Gulf
Authors: Dakkak Nadeen
Published: November 2024

Migrants in the Arab Gulf states have, since the mid-2000s, become the subject of increasing research attempting to understand how their lives are shaped by migration policies that systematically marginalize them and, in turn, how their everyday practices allow them to navigate structures of legal and social marginalization and assert their agency and presence beyond their status as temporary economic actors. Less attention has been paid to the cultural implications of decades of Gulf migration and the role of literary and cultural productions in narrating migrant stories. The success of Malayalam-, Arabic- and English-language novels, like Benyamin’s Aatujeevitham (2008; Goat Days, 2012), Ḥajjī Jābir’s (Haji Jaber’s) Samrāwīt (2012), Saʿūd al-Sanʿūsī’s Sāq al-Bāmbū (2012; Saud Alsanousi’s The Bamboo Stalk, 2015), and Deepak Unnikrishnan’s Temporary People (2017), respectively, has revealed the need for a cultural space for addressing issues of labor exploitation, exclusion, citizenship, identity, and belonging in the unequal and multicultural societies of the Gulf. The scarcity of literary writings on and by migrants can itself be attributed to the definitive role of structural exclusion and socioeconomic divisions between citizens and noncitizens in hindering the creation of such a cultural space. At the same time, a lack of attention to the cultural effects of migration in Gulf spaces and the home countries of migrants is a symptom of the marginality of global South migrations and the centrality of the South–North axis in literary approaches to migration narratives. The thematic and formal features of literary writings on Gulf migration speak to world migration literature, but they are a product of the particular political, economic, and social realities that have from the 1970s onward characterized the transient lives of migrants in the region from different national groups and socioeconomic backgrounds. Herein lies the value of Gulf migration literatures as cultural responses to such realities, as imaginative depictions of everyday affects and embodied individual experiences that are often unacknowledged both in official national narratives on migration in the home and host country and in macroscopic scholarly understandings of these realities.
Followership
Authors: Uhl-Bien Mary , Carsten Melissa , Newstead Toby
Published: November 2024

Followership is a subtopic of leadership studies that represents the role of followers and following in the co-creation of the leadership/followership relation and outcomes. The focus on followership emerged with the shift in leadership research toward relational perspectives aimed at counteracting the predominant “leader-centric” bias that views leadership as initiated, directed, and largely controlled by leaders. Leader-centric approaches attribute outcomes to the differential influence and superior capabilities of leaders, with little to no recognition of the contribution of followers. They treat followers as passive participants who submit to the direction and goals of leaders. To counter this, followership perspectives view followers as active and essential participants in the co-creation of leadership/followership.

Followership approaches argue that there is no leadership without followership: It is in the willingness of someone to follow or defer to another that leadership and followership are co-created. Followership is always present when leadership is occurring, and overlooking or disregarding it does not reduce or diminish its importance. Followership scholars draw attention to the necessary presence of followership by repositioning leadership and followership into a joint construct in which leadership and followership are two sides of the same coin. In this relation, leadership is the study of the agency, behaviors, identity, and characteristics of leaders in the co-creation process, and followership is the study of the agency, behaviors, identity, and characteristics of followers in the co-creation.

Followership is formally defined as followers’ agency, position, identity, characteristics, and behavioral choices in the co-creation of leadership/followership. It can occur in formal relations, such as those seen in hierarchical organizations (i.e., manager–subordinate relations), or it can be seen in informal relations, where individuals choose who will lead and who will follow. Topics addressed in followership research include things such as the nature or style of those who are more or less effective at following or being a follower; what it is like to be in a state or condition of followership; and the characteristics, experiences, or factors associated with holding a followership position. In all cases, followership is fluid and affected by myriad factors such that having the role of follower does not mean that the individual only follows. In many cases, the best followership occurs when followers work in coordination with leaders to support the leader’s role and help attain the leader’s goals.
Funk “Proibido” Music and Communication of Criminal Commands in Brazil
Authors: Fernández Moretti Luciana
Published: November 2024

Brazil holds one of the highest mortality rates by firearms. Criminal commands operate on the outskirts of Brazilian cities, emerging as instances of sociability and parallel power, becoming a reference in values supporting community life. Violence in Brazil is a relational problem, inscribed in a conflict rooted in long-lasting inequality that opposes “crime” as a social world to socially established “citizens.” People who live in territories subjected to the logics of crime need to develop coexistence strategies that include adaptive communication practices, which thrive as they help ensure survival. The anonymous voice of crime uses “forbidden funk” (funk proibido), a subgenre of funk music in Rio de Janeiro protected as cultural heritage and pursued by the courts for an apology for crime, to communicate. Adapting funk music as an interactional device, voices situated in a precarious and vulnerable social place use the communicative power of “proibido” to reiterate strategic communication practices to coexist with crime, within it or side by side. One of these practices is “representing crime” in “proibido,” through which the anonymous voice of crime borrows the voices of the MCs to not only claim for themselves the ethical responsibility of speaking on behalf of the “world of crime” but also request a new social place, aiming to break the cycle of isolation and incommunicability of life within the criminal commands, in a lasting social conflict. The complexity of the problem requires a robust and open methodology to observe communicative practices in their production context, without enclosing them in established aprioristic theories and concepts. Here a model of proibido communicative power is depicted from an articulation between (a) an understanding of communication as a tentative and probabilistic process, (b) the idea of interactional devices and language games as heuristics, and (c) situational analysis, a variant of grounded theory for the situated analysis of communicational practices.
Synoptic-Scale Cyclones Affecting South America and the South Atlantic Ocean
Authors: Reboita Michelle Simões , Crespo Natália Machado , da Rocha Rosmeri Porfírio , Gozzo Luiz Felippe
Published: November 2024

South America (SA) is affected by different types of synoptic-scale cyclones (i.e., extratropical, subtropical, and tropical cyclones), which impact both the western and eastern coasts of the continent. These cyclone types are primarily distinguished by their thermal characteristics. Extratropical cyclones exhibit a cold core, where the temperature decreases with height, while tropical cyclones have a warm core that extends throughout the entire troposphere, generally becoming warmer at the mid-to-upper levels due to the intense latent heat release from condensation. Subtropical cyclones, however, have a warm core near the surface, similar to tropical cyclones, but feature a cold core at the mid-to-upper levels, similar to extratropical cyclones. To understand the evolution of knowledge about cyclones in SA and its surroundings, it is important to consider the historical background of advances in meteorological computation and the generation of long-term global analyses and reanalyses. This history begins with the first visual climatologies produced in the 1960s and extends to the use of diverse automated tracking algorithms and modern reanalyses in the 2000s.

On the eastern side of SA and in the western part of the South Atlantic Ocean, there are three main cyclogenetic regions: (a) the south-southeastern coast of Brazil, (b) the extreme south of Brazil and Uruguay, and (c) the southeastern coast of Argentina. On the western side of SA, particularly south of 35°S, the continent is more affected by extratropical cyclones. Northward of this latitude, a distinct type of cyclones known as coastal lows (stationary nature) predominates.

These diverse types of cyclones are often associated with strong winds and heavy precipitation and play a significant role on the climate of SA. Therefore, studies focusing on climate projections of how cyclones would develop in a future warmer climate are crucial for providing useful information to decision-makers.
Religious Expression in Schools in the United States
Authors: Blankenship-Knox Ann E.
Published: November 2024

In public schools in the United States, the landscape of religious expression is an ever-changing terrain where individual rights intersect with institutional responsibilities. Students attending public schools enjoy First Amendment rights, including the freedom to exercise their religion and express their beliefs. While the Establishment Clause prohibits schools from endorsing specific religions, students can engage in non-disruptive religious activities on campus. These activities may encompass praying, distributing religious literature, and forming religious clubs, provided they are initiated by students rather than sponsored by the school. Striking a balance is crucial, and administrators must navigate potential conflicts by ensuring that any restrictions are content-neutral and applied consistently to all expressive activities. Public school employees face more nuanced boundaries concerning religious expression due to their roles as government representatives. The Establishment Clause restricts employees from using their positions to endorse or promote religious beliefs. Despite this, employees retain the right to practice their religion both inside and outside the school environment. Teachers, for example, can address students’ questions about religion within an academic context but must avoid proselytizing or imposing personal beliefs. Schools are expected to accommodate reasonable requests for religious practices, such as prayer breaks or dress code modifications, unless they create an undue burden on the school’s operations.

Public schools must delicately balance upholding individuals’ constitutional rights with maintaining a neutral and inclusive educational environment. The Supreme Court has, for decades, grappled with what test(s) to apply when analyzing alleged Establishment Clause violations. Two of the three tests relied upon, in some fashion or another, have been cast aside by the current Supreme Court. They have instead opted to rely on an analysis focusing on the intent of the founding fathers. What appears to be a huge win for advocates of prayer in public schools will surely be a continued legal battle for decades to come.
Resisting Anti-Black Racism in U.S. Schools and Implications for Global Leadership
Authors: Grace Jennifer
Published: November 2024

The legacy of European colonialism and White supremacy in the field of education persists, affecting countless lives across the African and Black diaspora. Anti-Blackness is a particularly insidious form of racism that has undergirded racial inequity and the quality of life for Black people throughout the world. This article provides an overview from 18th-century chattel slavery anti-literacy laws to present-day curriculum bans, exclusionary discipline, disparate outcomes, and how anti-Black racism has been embedded in the fabric of educational institutions. In addition, a discussion of how anti-Blackness operates in local contexts globally is included, with recommendations for leaders abroad. Collectively, educational leaders are uniquely positioned to disrupt centuries of deeply rooted systems of inequity impacting Black people throughout the world. Educational leaders are urged to engage in racial literacy, critical reflective praxis, and institutional anti-racism to disrupt centuries-old structures that perpetuate racial inequity.
Hagia Sophia: Church, Mosque, Museum
Authors: Anderson Benjamin
Published: November 2024

Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, the Great Church of the emperors of Rome and the patriarchs of Constantinople, assumed its definitive form in the 6th century ce, the work of the architects Anthemios of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus. A dichotomy between East and West, Rome and Persia, was built into its fabric and determined its rhetorical presentation from the start. This oppositional view coexisted alongside a universalist view of the building, whose geometric perfection evokes an ecumenical divinity. The tension between the two views has informed the use and reception of the building ever since. The oppositional view is evident in its many conversions: from Orthodox cathedral to Catholic (1204) and back again (1261), then from mosque (1453) to museum (1934) and back again (2020). These ideologically charged moments of rupture exist alongside a continuous admiration for the architects’ structural achievement, especially the massive span of the dome, and the solemn beauty of the interior, especially the luminous space under the dome. The goal of pilgrims from Asia and from Europe—Christian, Muslim, and secular—Hagia Sophia remains a key monument both for the global history of architecture and for the concept of world heritage.
Pentecostal Political Thought
Authors: Afolayan Adeshina
Published: November 2024

Pentecostal political thought refers to the relationship between Pentecostal Christianity and the constitution of a political order. It speaks to the evolution of the relationship between politics and theology in world history; the nature, constitution, and meaning of political theology; and how Pentecostalism mediates the understanding of the relationship between politics and theology, especially in Africa. Since political theology does not answer to any straightforward description or definition, a historical analysis reveals how its contours have been molded since the ancient times (in the works, e.g., of Marcus Terentius Varro), in the 20th century (fundamentally through the intervention of Carl Schmitt), and in contemporary time through Pentecostalism’s intervention in various societies, from the Western liberal societies to postcolonial African societies. Due to its theology of the spontaneous Spirit, Pentecostalism has consolidated its hold on societies—postsecular and postcolonial—that are undergoing a crisis of social and political order. The Pentecostal social imaginary, at least the type this article focuses on, therefore constitutes a significant challenge to the state everywhere, especially in its understanding of politics as a mode of being for those who have been shortchanged by the state. The question, however, is how to understand African Pentecostalism’s understanding of politics and its aspiration to become a political community when its spirituality is constituted on an individualist and friend-enemy basis that fragments Pentecostalism itself, as well as its relationship with non-Pentecostal faiths.
Search and Matching, and Price Formation in Real Estate Markets
Authors: Genesove David
Published: November 2024

Search models rationalize housing market dynamics where perfect asset models fail to, by incorporating the time and cost of identifying attractive opportunities to trade. They have been used to consider housing market responses to external shocks, such as widespread foreclosure, transaction taxes, seasonal mobility, improved information on listed homes, and endogenous cyclicality. They provide a framework for time to trade, list prices, and trading volume, which have no role in standard frictionless models. Empirically, time to trade offers an intensive margin as an alternative to studying the extensive margin of trade.

Search models are composed of a number of common components: typically, a meeting function, specifying how many buyers visit a seller as a function of the number of buyers and sellers in the market; a match quality distribution; a sale mechanism that determines when trade occurs and, if so, at what price; and a specification of the number of households entering the market as buyers, sellers, or both. The precise form of each of these components will vary according to the research focus, with those less central to the issue at hand being simplified if necessary.

Usually, the researcher has more information on seller search than buyer search, as the attributes of the home are listed and those of the buyer household are not, because coding property attributes is much easier than coding household attributes. However, the internet now gives researchers access to digital traces left by searching buyers. Common empirical difficulties include incomplete information on home quality and missing information on visits that do not end in trade and rejected offers. Difficulties in separating out state-dependence from seller heterogeneity, whether from impatience, search cost, or some other factor, impede the empirical analysis of stigmatization of long-searching sellers, stock-flow matching, finite horizons, and learning.
Social Media and Finance
Authors: Cookson J. Anthony , Mullins William , Niessner Marina
Published: November 2024

Social media platforms have become a common source of information about financial markets. There is a growing academic literature on financial social media—mainly focused on StockTwits, Twitter, Seeking Alpha, and Reddit’s WallStreetBets—and the related areas of social economics and information economics. Social media has been publicly linked to major market events, such as the GameStop short squeeze and the run on Silicon Valley Bank, further intensifying interest in the topic. Two major strands of research on financial social media have emerged: research that uses social media as a lens to examine more general economic behavior and research that directly investigates the effects of social media on financial markets. The social media as a lens approach uses social media platforms to study investor beliefs, investment approaches, and information acquisition that are typically impossible to observe in other data environments. The second strand of social media research investigates social media’s effects on the information environment of financial markets. While most research projects combine these two approaches, they often lean towards one or the other. Studies using social media as a lens have provided insights into questions about how investors update their beliefs, the measurement and consequences of investor disagreement, and even how social networks transmit information. Research on the effects of social media on financial markets has examined whether there is useful information in social media for financial markets, how social media affects information efficiency, and whether social media disseminates incomplete or false information. Many open questions remain, especially as new social media formats emerge.
The Space Asset Protocol
Authors: Schmidt-Tedd Bernhard , Hameed Hazma
Published: November 2024

The Space Asset Protocol forms part of the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment, the so-called Cape Town Convention of 2001, and was developed under the auspices of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) as a new secured transactions legal instrument to support asset-based financing of high-value, uniquely identifiable, mobile equipment in different sectors, offering an international approach independent from national legal instruments relating to the creation, registrations, priority, and enforcement of security rights in specific categories of assets. UNIDROIT has a long tradition in harmonization civil law instruments, but with the Space Asset Protocol it was the first time it was applied to space law matters. The overlap of classical property law aspects and international space law has turned out to be a particular challenge.

The Space Asset Protocol was opened for signature on March 9, 2012, the concluding day of the Diplomatic Conference held for its adoption in Berlin; therefore, it is also called the Berlin Protocol. Since then, the space sector has undergone several fundamental changes. The rise of the so-called “new space economy” (NewSpace) opens up new fields of application for the Berlin Protocol. It is an option that is independent from the classical project-based financing of space projects. One of its aims is to make it easier for newcomers to the space sector to obtain financing. The Cape Town Convention entered into force in 2006, together with the Aircraft Protocol. The Space Asset Protocol was adopted in 2012, with ten ratifications necessary for its entry into force.
Bread as a Social Indicator in Egypt
Authors: Naguib Nefissa
Published: November 2024

Bread plays a crucial role in Egypt, profoundly impacting identity, family, and public interactions. Made from wheat, bread is not only a vital component of the national diet but also a focal point of Egypt’s social policy. Ensuring its affordability remains a central aim of the government. Despite these efforts, the availability and affordability of bread have continued to be points of debate and tension within Egyptian society. More than just a material good, bread in Egypt functions as a significant social indicator that affects and establishes relationships between people. It signals various states such as prosperity, distress, anxiety, and social and political mobilization. Bread is a remarkable commodity that provides nourishment while also serving as a potent symbol, encompassing spiritual, cultural, social, political, and economic dimensions.

Throughout Egypt’s political history, bread has emerged as a potent symbol in political discourse. Bread-related protests and movements have often signaled dissatisfaction with food policies and government actions. Shortages or price fluctuations in bread have frequently triggered public outcry and served as catalysts for social and political change. The political history of bread in Egypt encapsulates themes of division and cruelty as much as generosity and fulfillment. This was starkly evident during the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, when bread became a powerful symbol of protest. Women held up pieces of bread, and men made helmets from it, emphasizing the slogan, “Bread, Dignity, and Social Justice.” Though bread may appear mundane, it is far from trivial. It represents power structures, human agency, and patterns of social relations. Bread is a gift that satisfies hunger, provides pleasure, evokes memory, and creates attachments. It acts as a link between the powerful and the powerless and between abundance and scarcity on family dining tables across Egypt. Bread’s presence at the core of daily life, the desperate measures families take to secure it, and its role in moments of crisis all underscore its significance.
Food and Literature
Authors: Shahani Gitanjali
Published: November 2024

Writers from different historical periods and literary traditions have turned to food as a symbol, a metaphor, a thematic element, a plot mechanism, a polemic, or a point of departure for the exploration of identities, relationships, and locales. The analysis and exploration of these literary devices in secondary texts is referred to as literary food studies. This type of reading and writing about food may approach food as theme or form in relation to a particular body of literature, a time period, a genre, or another conceptual framework. Conversely, this field may also approach food genres as literature, examining thematic concerns, literary devices, or narrative techniques in the writing of recipes, menus, travelogues, or dietary literature. Any consideration of food and literature thus entails thinking of food in different genres, just as much as it calls for an engagement with food genres themselves.
Islamic Bioethics: Sufi Ethics
Authors: Picken Gavin N.
Published: November 2024

Sufism is most often referred to as Islamic mysticism and indicates a dimension of spiritual development and experience within that particular religious context. Many people consider Sufi ethics to function primarily as practical ethics, which is a person’s behavior in a given situation. Sufi ethics revolves around the notions of etiquette (adab) and moral character (khuluq). However, as time progressed it was adopted to imply etiquette, polite manners, and a refined and cultured behavior associated with Ibn Muqaffa’s innovative genre of Arabic prose writing. Although Sufi ethics may appear merely to be little more than an outward application of “rules of conduct” to an individual’s behavior, Sufi theoretical ethics also linked this outward manifestation with an inward spiritual state.
Islamic Bioethics: The Sunnah
Authors: Eido Issam
Published: November 2024

The word Sunnah refers to the classical Islamic texts that portray the way or custom the Prophet Muḥammad followed during his life. The word then developed gradually and was used in Islamic texts to convey various ideas. In the ḥadīth corpus, the term indicates the way or the custom that was followed by the Prophet and his companions, particularly the first four Caliphs. Moreover, in the field of Islamic bioethics, the role of Sunnah as a way of the Prophet can be seen through two verses in the Qurʾān. Connecting the lexical meaning of Sunnah and the two verses of “excellent model” and “mighty morality” is important for examining how Sunnah serves as a significant source which can guide Muslims on the ways to approach and conceive Islamic ethics and bioethics.
Islamic Bioethics: Environmental Ethics
Authors: Shah Haneef Sayed Sikandar
Published: November 2024

Environmental ethics has emerged as one of the most topical issues in modern studies. Islamic ethical foundations and their specific guidelines aim to inspire and sensitize Muslims to become active participants in humanity’s efforts toward curbing the problem of environmental degradation, climate change, and global warming. The Islamic outlook strives for equilibrium between moral and spiritual responsibility and an equilibrated approach to nature and its exploitation. The guiding ethical norms about the significance of the different components of the environment integrate secular concern with spiritual aspects. Islam encourages Muslims to participate and collaborate with others in engineering technical measures to rectify the inflicted damages to the well-being of the ecosystem.
Islamic Bioethics: Palliative Sedation
Authors: al-Awamer Ahmed , Alfayyad Isamme , Abosoudah Mohammed F.
Published: November 2024

Palliative care aims to relieve the suffering of terminally ill patients and their families through the effective management of pain and other distressing symptoms. Depending on symptom severity, different levels of sedation are required to palliate symptoms effectively. However, Islamic jurisprudence forbids and criminalizes any act intended to terminate a patient’s life. Jurists have attempted to determine the permissibility of palliative sedation from an Islamic perspective while referencing the ethical principles and legal maxims of the Islamic jurisprudence (Al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyah). Palliative sedation may be permissible as a last resort for imminently dying Muslim patients based on the principle of necessity.
Visual Arts: Islamic Art
Authors: Denny Walter B.
Published: November 2024

The visual arts of western Islam in the early modern period begin as discrete styles characteristic of political entities: Nasrid Spain and the Maghreb, Mamluk Egypt and Syria, and the early Ottoman Empire. By the end of the 15th century ce, with the end of Muslim rule in Spain, the Ottoman Empire gradually established a Mediterranean hegemony that had varying impacts on the pre-existing regional artistic styles of the Islamic West. The Maghreb, while divided into different dynastic political units, showed a remarkable unity of style that had formed in the 14th century ce under both Nasrids and Marinids in Spain and northwest Africa, respectively. Even during the period of maximum Ottoman political power, the distinctive Maghreb style has continued to reflect the visual characteristics of its 14th-century apogee into the early 21st century. The Ottoman conquest of Syria and Egypt in 1517 resulted in a stylistic mixture of pre-existing Mamluk art and architecture coupled with Ottoman efforts to effect what Oleg Grabar has termed the “visual appropriation of the land.” In the core Ottoman lands and southeastern Europe, the Ottoman imperial artistic style, under court patronage in Istanbul, formed an essential visual element of symbolic rulership, including the emblematic lead-covered domes and pencil-shaped minarets found throughout the former Ottoman lands in the early 21st century, and the visual decorative vocabulary developed in the Istanbul design atelier. With the passage of time, various elements of European styles began to appear in Ottoman visual arts, but the essential elements of the 16th-century Ottoman style were subject to continual and self-conscious revival, a process that outlived the empire and can still be seen in the art of the Republic of Türkiye in the early 21st century.
Patterns of Anti-Semitism in Contemporary Argentina: A Reassessment
Authors: Senkman Leonardo
Published: November 2024

Anti-Semitism has deep roots in Argentina, which has the largest Jewish community in Latin America. Its violent and rhetorical manifestations have shifted over time. The so-called Jewish question that fueled anti-Semitism in Argentina gained momentum during changing local and international sociopolitical constellations. Three constellations in which the Jewish question was exacerbated by local and external factors need to be addressed: the impact of European fascisms, World War II, and the emergence of populist nationalist movements; the use of anti-Semitism associated with anticommunism during the first Cold War; and implications for the security of Jews in Argentina due to the unresolved conflict in the Middle East.