bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Antisemitism as Anti-Jewish Racism: Reflections on an Anti-Racist Analytic
Authors: Bakan Abigail B. , Abu-Laban Yasmeen
Published: July 2024

Advancing a consistent anti-racist analytic to challenge antisemitism demands standing with all those who suffer from systemic racism, and specifically with Palestinians. However, antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism are rarely understood and opposed in a unified movement of solidarity. Here, we address what antisemitism is not, especially the false claim that equates antisemitism with criticism of the state of Israel – a claim that is reaching fever pitch at the current moment. Turning to context, we consider periodisations about how antisemitism has changed over time and place, suggesting we are in a new period of increasing supposed legitimacy for antisemitism in Western liberal-democratic capitalist states, associated with the rising influence of white nationalism. We then consider what antisemitism as anti-Jewish racism is, and how it is coded in certain ways, including: elite privilege; conspiracy claims; and symbolic marking for threats and violence. We conclude with notes on the potential for solidarity.
Rites for the Dead, Amity for the Living: the Old Assyrian nasbītum Rite and Its Relation to the Old Babylonian kispum
Authors: Nation Trey
Published: July 2024

While recent scholarship has clarified the spelling of the little-known Old Assyrian nasbītum rite, formerly glossed as naspittum, its etymology and social context have remained obscure. This paper suggests the elusive rite has its etymology in the OA verb sabā’um, “to brew/draw beer,” and refers to the act of libation. While the textual evidence for nasbītum is currently limited, an analysis of the rite as it occurs in the OA corpus suggests that nasbītum was the OA term for the care and feeding of the spirits of the dead, analogous to the better-known Old Babylonian kispum.
Khūrigān: a Recently Discovered Post-Achaemanid Rock-Cut Tomb near Naqsh-e Rostam, Iran
Authors: Ahmadinya Ehsan , Emadi Habib
Published: July 2024

Near the northwestern-southeastern foothills of the Marvdasht plain in Fars province, lie a range of ancient necropoleis which date from the reign of Darius I, the Achaemenid king and until the first century after the Muslim conquest. The well-known necropoleis of Naqsh-e Rostam and Persepolis have the most complex tombs among them. However, there are other burials in this region, although smaller and simpler or even imitative, which have considerable archeological importance, since they provide information for the social and political understanding of their time of creation, often known as the dark ages. The present study aims to introduce and analyze the structural-chronological features of the rock-cut tomb of Khūrigān, one of the recent discoveries near Naqsh-e Rostam. Regarding the architectural and stylistic characteristics of the tomb and its context, as well as considering its archeological landscape and using historical information, the period from the last century of the Achaemenid reign until the beginning of the Sassanid dynasty is considered for the general chronology of this tomb; however, through applying a more detailed perspective, we can attribute the chronology of this tomb to the first half of the 3rd until the 1st century BC.
The Happy Builders of New China
Authors: De Giorgi Laura
Published: July 2024

This paper offers an outline of the narratives and perceptions by Italian travellers about the life and social position of Chinese youth in the People’s Republic during the 1950s. Its goal is to explore how the image of Chinese youth under Socialism produced by transnational propaganda in the Socialist cosmopolis and circulating abroad intertwined with the factual observations and the personal assumptions of the Italian intellectuals on the revolutionary social transformation of China in that period. It argues that, although travellers were impressed by the apparent protagonism of the younger generation in the construction of Socialism in China in those years and read it as a symbol of new China, they also speculated on how the conditions of youth after the revolution had really implied a dramatic change in their social and cultural power and in their political emancipation.
Framing Chinese Youth in the Aftermath of the Cultural Revolution
Authors: Graziani Sofia
Published: July 2024

The launching of the reform program in 1978 went hand in hand with praising Chinese youth as the vanguard of the new struggle for modernising China. Yet, the official rhetoric projected the ideal youth, while being at odds with the complex reality of the early post-Mao era, when the experience of the Cultural Revolution (CR) turned out to be the main reason for the so-called ‘youth problem’. Both international and Chinese literature have highlighted that in the reform era, youth, intended as a social and cultural category or construct, came to be associated with less positive values, and the traditional discourse of ‘youth as hope’ proliferated along and intertwined with a negative discourse of ‘youth as trouble’. This paper looks at the re-emergence of the Communist Youth League (CYL) as a key institutional actor in setting the stage for the construction of a new social discourse on youth in the transitional period 1978–1981, when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership confronted with the need to deal with the tumultuous upheaval of the CR and its impact on youth on the one hand, and to push forward the reformist agenda on the other. By mainly relying on CYL sources (documents, internal publications and the official youth press), a part of which has been largely unexplored so far, it shows how the discourse on youth became complex and multifaceted in those historical circumstances, reflecting not just different views within the élite but also and most importantly the very tensions involved in the reform project. While the existence of the ‘youth problem’ led to establishing a causal nexus with the now condemned ultra-leftist tendencies associated with Lin Biao and the Gang of Four, the need to make sense of the complexity of youth boosted a heated debate on youth characteristics, with a number of cadres and adult experts affiliated to the CYL defining, describing and prescribing what Chinese youth were in ways that, by ensuring they had not been guilty as former Red Guards and recognising them as both victims and increasingly emancipated actors, eventually pushed forward a new idea of youth that conformed to the new modernization aims of the Party. Providing an assessment of the young generation and its inclinations in the aftermath of the CR eventually became the premise for facilitating the emergence of a new youth subjectivity, while envisioning the integration of the self within the broader collective and the coexistence of liberal values with traditional socialist ethics. The debate on youth characteristics reflected the complex changes taking place in China and was constitutive of a broader process that set the stage for rethinking the socialisation of youth in the post-Mao era.
Absolutely Disruptive: An Introduction to Josephson Storm’s Metamodernism Book Review Symposium
Authors: Ambasciano Leonardo
Published: July 2024

The present article offers an introduction to the Book Review Symposium dedicated to Josephson Storm’s ambitious Metamodernism: The Future of Theory (2021). Inspired by Josephson Storm’s interest in the art scene conversation about method and theory, this preamble incorporates Alan Moore’s reflections from the early 2000s on the necessity to move beyond postmodernism and proceeds to present both the main pillars of Josephson Storm’s theoretical proposal and the key concepts from the commentaries submitted by the participants to this symposium (Mattias Brand, Carmen Becker, Andrea Bardin and Marco Ferrari, and Andrea Maria Nencini). The confusing existence of a preceding, and conflictual, theoretical understanding of metamodernism is also briefly discussed, and its potential impact on the academic disciplines that study religion(s) highlighted.
Track Two Overloaded? A Model of “Linkage” and Gendered Inclusion in Peace Negotiations
Authors: Palmiano Federer Julia
Published: July 2024

This article discusses the relationship between gendered inclusion in peace processes and Track Two peacemaking. It responds to recent policy discourse that explicitly associates linking Track Two to Track One negotiations as a way to increase the inclusion of people identifying as women (United Nations Women 2015). However, the mechanisms through which Track Two leads to more “inclusive” outcomes is complex and unclear. To understand what these mechanisms are and how they can be studied, this article draws from existing theories on transfer in Track Two and inclusion literature in peace and conflict studies to present a novel conceptual model of “linkage.” This model explores the micro-dynamics of gendered inclusivity between different tracks of dialogue engagement and how transfer is facilitated between them.
Beyond Collapse: Negotiating a New World Order When the Old Breaks Down
Authors: Zartman I. William
Published: July 2024

The collapse of the existing world order and the rise of a counter order pose problems for the practice of negotiation and mediation as generally conceived. The transition will likely have problems overcoming issues faced in past transitions in 1812, 1919, and 1948 without a full-scale war, yet learn from these experiences. It is not too early to think about the processes and strategies needed to arrive productively at a better new system where negotiation processes can provide useful means to resolve conflicts. This article examines three levels of conflict and how conflict resolution and management approaches might be able to reestablish their capacities in a future system of international relations norms and institutions.
European Health Data Space, Use of Data and Data Subjects’ Control over Their Own Health Data: Can an Opt-Out Restore the Balance?
Authors: Sokol Tomislav
Published: July 2024

The creation of the European Health Data Space is a milestone. It establishes something new and makes it possible to have faster and more efficient health treatment, but also to untap the potential of unused data for policy-making and development of new technologies. However, for the EHDS to be functional, it is imperative that a balance it struck between the aim of having useful data to achieve important public objectives on one side and the goal of enabling patients to have control over their health data. The original Draft Report of the European Parliament came closest to achieving these objectives and should have represented the blueprint for the final compromise. Having a harmonised opt-out for secondary use is crucial for striking the right balance between the mentioned objectives. The end result is far from perfect regarding primary use, but represents a good balance in the area of secondary use concerning the opt-out.
Protection of Minorities under Islamic Jurisprudence
Authors: Bhat Ali Muhammad
Published: July 2024

Islam is the religion of a peace-oriented system that depends upon the duties and rights of its citizens. Any political system that fulfils the basic needs of its system lives longer than those systems that corrupt the rights of its citizens. Moreover, the soundness of any political system depends upon its provisions which govern and fulfil the basic spiritual and biological needs of human beings and its allowance for change. Aside from spiritual and moral aspects of the creed which are permanently established, Islam provides broad principles and frameworks in the area of worldly interactions which makes it possible for the Muslim community to evolve and meet the needs of every period. Its soundness lies in its protection of minorities and providing them with all basic facilities to grow up as sound human beings free from all sorts of discrimination.
Indigenous and Minority Activism under the United Nations
Authors: Toki Valmaine , Raman Durgeshree
Published: July 2024

This article looks at the classification and treatment of indigenous peoples and minorities’ rights under the United Nations. In particular, it explores what the differences between indigenous and minorities, and the differences and similarities between activism for indigenous and minority rights under the United Nations umbrella are. It concludes by proposing recommendations for change so that advocacy for these rights and implementation of them can be better addressed especially in the current climate where conflicts and the associated displacements pose more urgent risks to those rights.
The United States of America and International Criminal Justice
Authors: Brandon Emma
Published: July 2024

This article provides a summary and reflection on the results relating to the United States of America (United States or US) in the EU cost Action ca18228 (the Action) and the Scoping Survey on states’ experiences with international criminal justice. It looks at how the United States has engaged or not engaged with international criminal justice in its law, policy, institutions, civil society, and culture. The data demonstrates that the United States’ relationship with international criminal justice has been complex and, at times, controversial. More specifically, it shows the importance of framing international criminal justice as within the United States’ national interest to ensure US support for the project.
Surfacing Harmful Speech Against Women—Proposals for Gender-Sensitive Fact-Finding and Interpretation in International Criminal Law
Authors: Fino Audrey
Published: July 2024

This article identifies how, and to what extent, harmful speech, such as, gender-based incitement and threats against women, are addressed in international criminal law and practice. It delves into the jurisprudence on direct and public incitement to genocide, genocide and persecution, a crime against humanity, to identify trends. Finding that the law overlooks the issue and that the practice only marginally refers to it, the article resorts to international human rights law as an interpretative aid and to fill the gaps. In this regard, inspired by feminist theories, it proposes interpretative methods that can be applied by judges to surface, fairly label and ultimately sanction harmful speech targeted at women. As such, this article contributes to the doctrinal discourse on what gendered crimes are, and what gender-sensitive judging in international courts should look like.
International Criminal Justice and Lithuanian Experience
Authors: Švedas Gintaras , Vosyliūtė Andželika
Published: July 2024

The article deals with the laws of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, and the status of victims of occupations in Lithuania. In addition, the article discloses Lithuanian state policy, society’s cultural approach to atrocity crimes, and support for victims. The article draws attention to how the concept of genocide has been constantly expanded in Lithuania. The international role of Lithuania in the fight against genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes is emphasized.
Assessing International Criminal Justice in Guatemala: Evolutions and Ongoing Challenges
Authors: Calvet-Martínez Elisenda , Mejía Gretel , Agosto Luis De León
Published: July 2024

This article examines the codification of international crimes in domestic law, the prosecution of international crimes committed during Guatemala’s Internal Armed Conflict, and the challenges in implementing the Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court (icc). It underscores the essential role of civil society in the fight against impunity through strategic litigation and memory initiatives, thus contributing to advances in justice. It exposes the impact of Inter-American Court of Human Rights’ rulings demanding reparations for victims of international crimes as a catalyst for domestic prosecution efforts. Furthermore, the establishment of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (cicig) with the support of the UN represented a significant advance in justice. However, the abrupt end by the Guatemalan government of the cicig was a significant setback. Ongoing challenges involve maintaining progress within Guatemala’s criminal justice system, as many justice operators who had worked alongside cicig faced criminalization and were forced into exile.
Italy and International Criminal Justice: Mapping the Present and Charting the Path Ahead
Authors: Mancini Marina
Published: July 2024

The present article investigates Italy’s posture on international criminal justice and identifies gaps and obstacles whose overcoming is essential to make the country effectively contribute to its efficient functioning. To this end, firstly, the Italian Government’s attitude towards international criminal justice institutions is surveyed. Secondly, domestic legislation and case law on international crimes are carefully analysed. Thirdly, the public perception of international crimes in Italy is critically assessed. The author finds that a major legislative reform is urgently needed and cannot be postponed any longer, so as to remove any ambiguity about the Italian Government’s commitment to ensuring accountability for all international crimes listed in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. She also advises that such reform should be complemented with the assumption of additional international obligations bringing Italy at the forefront of the supporters of the Rome Statute system.
Taking Stock of the EU-Turkey Statement in 2024
Authors: Ovacık Gamze , Ineli-Ciger Meltem , Ulusoy Orçun
Published: July 2024

The EU-Turkey Statement of March 2016 aimed to end irregular migration from Turkey to the European Union (EU). Since 2016, the relationship between Turkey and the EU has undergone significant changes. While the EU fulfilled only two of its promises under the Statement, Turkey suspended the implementation of the return component of the Statement in 2020 and stopped readmitting third-country nationals from Greece. Meanwhile, recent judgments delivered by the European Court of Human Rights, such as Akkad v. Turkey and G.B. and others v. Turkey, have shed new light on conditions facing refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants in Turkey. This article aims to analyse the implementation of the EU-Turkey Statement as of 2024 by examining to what extent Turkey and the European Union, as well as its Member States, have fulfilled their pledges and acted in line with the course of action agreed under the Statement. It also aims to investigate to what extent Turkey’s assumed status as a safe third country has changed over the years. Given that the number of irregular passages towards the EU through Turkey has decreased considerably and that the return component of the Statement is not currently implemented, we argue that the assessment of whether Turkey is safe should be made with reference to refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants contained in Turkey as a result of the EU-Turkey Statement arrangements not just those returned under the EU-Turkey Statement.
Cooperation within Reason: Tunisia’s Approach to Asylum and Readmission
Authors: Sha’ath Hiba , Raach Fatma
Published: July 2024

Since 2011, migration and asylum have grown in salience in EU-Tunisia international cooperation. Through various agreements, the EU has provided technical and financial support to Tunisia to strengthen its border management capabilities, develop a national migration strategy, legislate a national asylum framework, and re-integrate Tunisians who were returned from Europe. However, among the points of contention between Tunisia and the EU, two key issues stand out: the continued absence of a national law governing asylum in Tunisia, and Tunisia’s refusal to include clauses related to readmission (of its own nationals and third-country nationals) in its agreements with the EU. Drawing on an analysis of cooperation on asylum and readmission between the EU and Tunisia from 2011 to 2021, this article argues that the EU’s perceptions of a lack of cooperation from its Tunisian counterparts are misplaced. Rather, Tunisia is willing to work cooperatively with the EU as long as it does not see this cooperation serve the sole purpose of supporting the EU’s externalization agenda. We see this attitude as a form of resistance to EU pressure, with the unfortunate consequence being the undermining of protection for vulnerable populations in Tunisia and in the EU. Tunisian authorities see the adoption of an asylum law as paving the way for disembarkation platforms, the use of the safe third country concept to return foreign nationals and contain them to Tunisia. This has been fueled by issue linkage in negotiations with the EU between the passing of the asylum act and the return of third-country nationals to Tunisia. Similarly, while Tunisia has concluded agreements with some EU countries regarding the readmission of its nationals, its priorities with respect to facilitating returns lie in the protection of its nationals’ social rights rather than in meeting quantitative targets set by the EU.
Negotiated Agreements as an Alternative to Criminal Trials: Policy Lessons from the Hungarian Example
Authors: Budaházi Árpád , Fantoly Zsanett
Published: July 2024

This paper looks at ways of speeding up domestic criminal proceedings. Both the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg encourage Member States to ensure that their courts deliver judgments within a reasonable time. The present paper deals with the new Hungarian cooperation system, including the trial waiver and the preparatory session, which is a pre-trial meeting in the court phase. These have achieved significant results in speeding up and simplifying proceedings without limiting the rights of the accused and offer a genuine rule of law solution for efficient criminal proceedings, all while preventing unjustified delays in proceedings. Initial experience in practice has shown that these Hungarian legal instruments could serve as an excellent example for countries facing similar challenges in developing criminal politics and criminal justice policies.
EU Cross-Border Gathering and Admissibility of Electronic Content Data
Authors: Kusak Martyna
Published: July 2024

Electronic content data is a goldmine of data and information that may be relevant for a criminal investigation. Yet, these data are difficult to fit into the traditional set of evidence, and Member States use various approaches to its gathering and use. This makes the EU cross-border exchange of electronic content data context-sensitive, multilayered, ambiguous; as well as it involves the risks of privacy violations and inadmissibility concerns. Therefore, in order to achieve smooth collection and use of electronic content data, the EU needs to underpin the trust basis required for mutual recognition in this area. This study builds upon the line of research on art. 82.2 tfeu and its potential for implementing a real and multi-directional free movement of evidence regime. In this respect, it is aimed to identify common EU minimum standards for electronic content data, complemented with per se admissibility of evidence gathered accordingly. The study also advocates that with regard to electronic content data, the focus should switch from the specific measure to an overall data category. Such an approach does not intend to harmonise the methods of collecting electronic content data. Instead, any measure targeted at any electronic content data would have to meet an EU common minimum standard.
Biometric Encryption of Smart Devices and the Prohibition against Self-incrimination in Criminal Procedure. Old Guarantees in the New World
Authors: Zontek Witold
Published: July 2024

Whether we realize it or not, our smartphones/tablets store an extremely rich amount of information about ourselves, our daily activities, secrets, preferences, and plans. To talk about professional or purely private matters, we use communicators. For this data, modern technology gives us a sense of security. We are reassured by encryption based on alphanumeric codes. But remembering passwords that are too complex is inconvenient. That’s why we often use biometric security - fingerprint readers or facial recognition. Not only for the unlocking of the device, but also for the effective use of many applications (e.g. mobile banking). But evidence of a crime could be a file, document, photo or conversation stored only on our device. Our crime. If law enforcement demands that we unlock the device, what should we do? Looking at modern legal solutions in this area, the international standard of not incriminating oneself is clear - we cannot be forced to reveal information stored only in memory (e.g. passcode). However, when it comes to whether we are required to place our thumb on a reader or look into a Face id camera, the law is silent or extremely inconsistent. Paradoxically, the technology that makes our data more secure seems to have the opposite effect of diminishing our fundamental rights as potential suspects. The most troubling threads in this area will be addressed in this paper. Where do we stand? What’s next for our fair trial rights?
Provincializing European Christianity? Constructing and Collapsing the “Grand Narrative” of Modern Christian Europe
Authors: Robert Dana L.
Published: July 2024

This article applies selected aspects of Depesh Chakrabarty’s concept of “Provincializing Europe” to the discourse of world Christianity studies. It argues that colonial-era mission scholars constructed a grand narrative of a united Christian Europe to justify European missions to the rest of the world. Contemporary postcolonial efforts to de-center Europe now contrast a vitiated European Christianity with a vibrant nonwestern Christianity that is required to re-evangelize Europe. Paradoxically, the trope of a formerly Christian Europe merges with a caricature of its numerical failure to make European Christianity the permanent foil for world Christianity studies. The article urges that European Christianity be studied in its diverse contexts, that the distinction between migrant and missionary be queried, and that European Christianity be considered essential to world Christianity studies.
Islamic Constitutionalism in Pakistan
Authors: Waseem Mohammad
Published: July 2024

This article questions the lumpy character of understanding Islamic constitutionalism through all-pervasive models operating across time and space and reliance on classical texts as the ultimate reference for jurisprudence. It focuses on conflict and compromise among stakeholders in individual Muslim countries. Pakistan represents a ‘differentiated social formation’ underscored by dichotomy between modernity and tradition. The former is defined by a secular legal-institutional mechanism of authority inherited from British India, which seeks to accommodate the latter’s Islamic agenda through ideological symbolism, legal formalism and — under Gen. Zia’s martial law — cultivation of a divine source of legitimacy to counter the constitutional source of legitimacy in the form of mass mandate. In the face of outcry from modernists, the ulema fell back on a defensive strategy to safeguard their gains.
Plato’s Dietetics for Intellectuals in Timaeus 86b–90d
Authors: Bartoš Hynek
Published: July 2024

In this paper I focus on the dietetic discussion at the end of the Timaeus (86b–90d) and read it against the background of the medical dietetics of its day. I try to show that Plato’s version of dietetics is deeply rooted in the preceding medical tradition and that it draws in particular on ideas attested in the Hippocratic treatises On Regimen and Airs, Waters, Places. On the other hand, I also argue that Plato is most likely the first author ever to identify intellectuals as a specific dietetic category and to propose a preventive regimen adapted to the specific needs of mathematicians, philosophers, and other men of letters. Therefore, his dietetic discussion in the Timaeus deserves recognition as an important contribution to the history of dietetic therapy and prevention.
Form and Matter of Regular Geometrical Bodies in Luca Pacioli’s Summa (1494) and Compendium de divina proportione (1498)
Authors: Damiani Giacomo
Published: July 2024

Luca Pacioli (ca. 1447–1517) is widely considered a central figure in the Italian Renaissance, particularly in the history of practical mathematics. The perspectival representations of geometrical bodies that Leonardo da Vinci drew for Pacioli’s Compendium de divina proportione are, in turn, often singled out to illustrate the relationships between the visual arts and mathematics in the late fifteenth century. Yet despite increasing scholarly attention, the philosophical framework of Pacioli’s works deserves to be further explored. This paper discusses how Pacioli ably developed his arguments on regular geometrical bodies by relying on a predominantly Aristotelian philosophical framework. In this way, Pacioli established correlations among the quantitative, material, and formal properties of regular geometrical bodies, concluding with the visualisation of their (geometrically defined) form at the level of the intellect.
Gradients of Trust in Vaccines
Authors: Elliott Elizabeth M. , Kubota Shogo , Robinson Dimbintsoa Rakotomalala , Tengbriacheu Chankham
Published: July 2024

COVID-19 vaccination in Laos has been affected by challenges in reaching the whole population and preexisting mistrust in the health system. Vaccination rates are low among the Hmong, whose healing epistemologies are rooted in animism and Christianity, while most healthcare staff are from the lowland Buddhist majority. However, local notions of immunity and religious practices are not the main factors influencing confidence in vaccines, as these are flexible and pragmatic in incorporating different approaches to curing illness. Instead, the root causes are patterns of mistrust and inequity enacted through Hmong peoples’ experiences with health services. An innovative government-led initiative focusing on trust-building and local ownership through relational community engagement, utilizing existing village, family, ethnic, and religious structures and promoting effective communication and cultural sensitivity led to a rapid increase in vaccine uptake. Trust in vaccines is therefore not an abstract concept but highly relational, and so can be intentionally developed.
Building National Identity via Immunity
Authors: Tan Xuanxuan
Published: July 2024

This research investigates the impact of “not burdening the state” as a practice of national identity on vaccine implementation in China’s response to COVID-19. The study shows how vaccination provides a pathway for some Chinese citizens to practice “immunity national identity,” creating solidarity by invoking individual obligation toward the collective and the state. In this process, the science of vaccines is politicized, contributing to the building of a sense of belonging to and identification with the state. By showing how the immunized and vaccinated body works as a site generating the community of the nation-state, this research argues that immunity, residing beyond the healthy body and entangled with national identity, becomes a means of strengthening and imagining “us.” This paper shows how the sense of belonging to the nation interacts with vaccine-related information, influencing individuals’ willingness to accept vaccines, and how the act of vaccination and public knowledge about vaccines further shape national identity.
Viral Drugs and Antiviral Politics
Authors: Chudakova Tatiana
Published: July 2024

This article focuses on the social biography of the Soviet-made antiviral pharmaceutical “Arbidol” (umifenovir), used in Russia as a popular medication to treat influenza. Despite doubts cast on its efficacy, the drug remained a staple for treating upper respiratory infections in Russia. When H1N1 arrived in Siberia in 2009, a shortage of medicine on pharmacy shelves caused by Arbidol’s rapid bulk purchasing led to a social outcry, as well as to discussions about the political corruption underpinning the drug’s production, promotion, and supply chain. By tracking the ways in which Arbidol endured over time through different epidemic waves, this article explores how both viruses and antiviral medicines weave medical and political efficacies together. By using Arbidol as a productive hinge, I analyze the ways in which conspiracy in times of social and medical crisis demonstrate how pharmaceutical and political efficacies are mutually co-constituted.
Defying Disease, Deifying Disease
Authors: Dasgupta Deepsikha
Published: July 2024

With the advent of biomedicine in India, vaccination has been studied in tandem with the colonial commitment to exercise control over imperial subjects. The history of smallpox vaccination in India is entangled with the Goddess Śītalā – “controller” of epidemics. Despite the eradication of the epidemic, faith in the goddess reigns among her devotees. This ethnographic study suggests that Śītalā devotees are informed by a plurality of understandings of body, disease, and prophylaxis in the Covidian age; I argue that Śītalā practices and the irreducible faith in the goddess aid in sustaining trust in biomedical interventions like vaccines among her devotees. Based on fieldwork conducted in West Bengal, I further argue that Śītalā’s place as a “lesser” or “lower-caste” deity worshipped mostly by marginalized sections of society makes their active demand for vaccination an act of assertion.
Canon Lists of Church Fathers in Early Christianity
Authors: Edwards Robert G.T.
Published: July 2024

This article examines how the names of “church fathers” were compiled into lists from the end of the fourth century to the middle of the sixth century. Although not as common as biblical canon lists, these lists of church fathers attempt to vest ecclesiastical authority in the figures listed. Surveying Greek and Latin Christian literature, it finds that there are two overarching strategies for listing church fathers: (1) linking individual fathers’ authority to their involvement in authoritative church councils; (2) compiling lists of names that are meant to be representative of the church’s antiquity and catholicity.
Social Welfare in Iberian Corporatism: a Comparative Approach to the Organic Structures of the Guardianship Bodies
Authors: Torres Jorge Mano
Published: July 2024

This article aims to analyze the internal and organic structures of the social welfare management and tutelage bodies under the authoritarian Iberian regimes of the twentieth century.

Both the Instituto Nacional do Trabalho e Previdência (INTP-1933-1974) and the Instituto Nacional de Previsión (INP-1908-1978) played central roles in social welfare in Portugal and Spain, respectively. Therefore, it is important to compare their structures, competences, and attributions and the roles they actually played within these regimes. This further seeks to demonstrate the divergences in their nature, while also bearing in mind the corporatism adopted by the different regimes.
“Independencia total, ça quá pôvô mêcê”
Authors: Seibert Gerhard
Published: July 2024

In 1960, a small group of nationalists from São Tomé and Príncipe founded the archipelago’s first organization that demanded independence. As any activity within the islands was impossible, the activists remained abroad from where they pursued a modest anti-colonial struggle. When the Portuguese Revolution of 25 April 1974 created space for the struggle in the islands, Sãotomean students in Portugal were sent back home to wage the fight for total independence. This article traces these endeavours from the years in exile until the turbulent months in 1974 that paved the way for the archipelago’s independence on 12 July 1975.
Singularities of Timor-Leste’s Process of Self-Determination (1974–2002)
Authors: Pereira Zélia , Feijó Rui Graça
Published: July 2024

The self-determination of Timor-Leste presents singular features in contexts of Portuguese decolonization and global politics. It spans three periods: Portugal’s territorial reconfiguration after the Carnation Revolution; re-colonization under a major international player in global decolonization; and direct involvement of the United Nations in final phases leading to independence. It distinctively combines struggle for self-determination with a plight for broad human rights. A transnational multitude of actors, from colonial and neo-colonial powers to the UN and leading regional and world powers, blended state diplomacy with “citizens diplomacy” arising from the mobilization of civil society and the impact of international public opinion.
A Decolonisation Delayed and a Case for the Local Approach
Authors: Cerdeira Pedro
Published: July 2024

This article investigates the possibilities of the local approach in revisiting traditional historiographical narratives on the decolonisation of Guinea-Bissau, a process which has mostly been analysed from national and imperial standpoints. Drawing from local archival sources from the region of Cacheu, it argues that the transition process at the local level was rather complex, with a new administration that took time to be installed and colonial officials who assured the continuity of administrative tasks. Moreover, local sources demonstrate that the Guinean liberation movement did not have a good knowledge of the region and mobilised local structures to collect information.
Correlation between lumbo-pelvic shock attenuation and ankle range of motion of horse riders during extended trot: a pilot study
Authors: Elmeua González M. , Šarabon N.
Published: July 2024

The lumbo-pelvic hip complex (LPHC) plays a pivotal role in equestrian sports, connecting the rider’s body to the horse’s back and influencing rider-horse interaction. Achieving an ideal ‘independence of seat’ characterised by balanced, elastic, and upright posture is representative of rider expertise. While previous studies have examined aspects of rider-horse coordination, the relationship between rider ankle range of motion (ROM) and shock attenuation at the LPHC remains mostly unexplored. Eight experienced dressage dyads participated, and their ankle ROM was measured using a goniometer while accelerometers recorded saddle and rider sacrum accelerations during 20 extended sitting trot strides. A strong positive correlation (r = 0.71, ) was observed between ankle ROM and saddle-rider’s sacrum increase in shock signal strength, indicating that greater ankle ROMs correlated to worse dampening capacities of experienced riders. Ankle ROM may have implications for the rider’s and horse welfare and performance. Understanding the role of ankle mobility provides valuable insights for coaching and training programs in equestrian sports.
Use of acoustic myography in evaluation of biceps brachii and triceps brachii muscle function in nine skijoring dogs
Authors: Talbert C. , Manfredi J. , Tomlinson J.
Published: July 2024

Studies have found pain and inflammation in the shoulder region of working sled dogs. As skijoring is a comparable, competitive winter sport, this act may result in injuries similar to those seen in sled dogs. The purpose of this study was to assess the duration of muscle contraction, temporal, and spatial summation (E-, S-, and T-scores) of the biceps and triceps brachii muscles and compare between skijoring and free-running. Nine skijoring dogs completed a free-run and skijoring trial on the same trail in random order. Acoustic myography (AMG), measuring on:off ratio (E-score), spatial summation (S-score), and temporal summation (T-score) of the biceps and triceps brachii was performed comparing the muscle work during skijoring and free-running tasks ensuring minimal acceleration during each recording period. Statistical analyses included Shapiro-Wilk tests, paired Student’s t-tests, two-way ANOVAs, and Mann-Whitney U tests. Significance was set at . When comparing the E-, S- and T-scores of the experienced dogs, the E-score of the triceps brachii was significantly lower during skijoring compared to free-running. When comparing the biceps versus the triceps in all dogs, T-score for the biceps was significantly lower than that of the triceps during skijoring. Males were significantly faster than the females during both the free-running and skijoring tasks. Males all fell in the experienced dog group. In experienced dogs, the increase in triceps workload during the task of skijoring with no apparent change in its antagonist, the biceps, could result in excess tension on the musculotendinous unit of the biceps. The relative workload of the biceps versus the triceps appears higher regarding temporal summation during skijoring.
Endurance exercise boosts Sirtuin 1 and PGC1α in mouse skeletal muscle amid nitric oxide synthesis inhibition
Authors: Sakita M. , Isobe W. , Nonaka K. , Murakami S. , Miyachi R. , Tsuji M. , Tsujimoto H. , Nomura H. , Honda A.
Published: July 2024

Sarcopenia is an age-related condition characterised by muscle atrophy and loss of muscle mass. The degradation of myofibrils (atrophy) caused by the activation of myofibrillar degradation proteins, e.g. due to a decrease in nitric oxide (NO) associated with aging, contributes to sarcopenia. NO is involved in glucose and lipid metabolism and mitochondrial proliferation; however, whether endurance exercise increases NO production remains unclear. Therefore, in this study, we examined whether endurance exercise promotes metabolic signalling in muscles during continuous suppression of NO production. Mice were assigned to three groups: control, nitric oxide synthase inhibitor administration (L-NAME), and L-NAME administration plus endurance exercise (L-NAME + Ex). The L-NAME group was administered an NO synthesis inhibitor, and the L-NAME + Ex group was administered the inhibitor and performed exercise. The relative amounts of calmodulin (CaM) and nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) in the soleus muscle were significantly increased in the L-NAME + Ex group compared with those in the control and L-NAME groups. In addition, the relative amounts of Sirtuin 1 (Sirt1) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha (PGC1α) in the L-NAME + Ex group were significantly higher than those in the L-NAME group and similar to those in the control group. CaM and nNOS are involved in NO production, whereas Sirt1 and PGC1α play facilitatory roles in glucose and lipid metabolism. These findings suggest that endurance exercise may enhance muscle metabolic signalling by increasing NO production, even with the suppression of NO synthesis.
The Status of Strategic Environmental Assessment in Tanzania
Authors: Pauline Noah M.
Published: July 2024

Tanzania is one of the few African countries to formally adopt strategic environmental assessment (SEA) to integrate environmental factors into strategic actions and foster sustainable development. However, nearly two decades later, SEA development remains premature. This paper investigated the current state of the Tanzanian SEA system. More specifically, it examined the extent of practice and analyzed the SEA’s systems strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT s). Data were gathered through in-depth interviews, policy documents, literature review, and a workshop and analyzed thematically. The analysis reveals limited SEA use between 2004 and 2021. The SWOT analysis provides insights into the internal and external conditions driving SEA implementation in Tanzania, opening a window for SEA stakeholders to grasp the challenges and prospects. Based on the SWOT s identified, the author has proposed policy actions to advance SEA in Tanzania. The research contributes to the global SEA stocktaking efforts and ongoing refinement and continuous improvement of SEA systems in Tanzania and comparable jurisdictions.
Touching Female Memories in the Purification Funerary Chapel in Burgos (c. 1482–1531)
Authors: Paulino Montero Elena
Published: July 2024

Late medieval women were able to promote highly sophisticated funerary ensembles, which included architecture, painting, sculpture, liturgy, textiles, lighting and other ephemeral elements, and to adapt them to their specific ideas and needs. These material and ephemeral elements were manipulated to create complex spaces so as to generate sensory experience. This article will focus on the Purification Chapel in the Cathedral of Burgos (Spain) built by the Countess of Haro, Mencía de Mendoza, at the end of the fifteenth century. We will use art historical analysis to understand the relation between gender and the senses, and the ways in which intersensorial interaction shapes experience and memory. The analysis of the construction and design of spaces by actors like Mencía de Mendoza shows that robust models of perception and cognition were tacitly operating in the medieval era in ways that are not adequately captured by textually-focused approaches.
Contact Groups as Diplomatic Intervention Tools in Civil Wars: US Diplomacy
Authors: Nabil Ahmed
Published: July 2024

American diplomacy employs contact groups to secure the United States’ national interests and fulfil its role as a superpower in several regions worldwide. This article explores three examples of contact groups formed by US diplomacy to intervene in the civil wars in Libya, Syria and Yemen. It tracks the groups’ formation process, meetings’ content and the US assessment of their influence on American interests and the course of the conflicts. The article concludes that the formation process was developed under sensitive compromises among the stakeholders of each conflict and led to the exclusion of some essential actors. The contact groups were influential at the tactical level and impacted the course of the conflicts in the short term, preventing humanitarian disasters, taking de-escalation steps and securing American interests, but they failed to achieve successful settlements.
Intuition Is Not Enough
Authors: Kuukkanen Jouni-Matti
Published: July 2024

This comment discusses Branko Mitrović’s view of historical anti-realism and realism. It identifies several interpretative errors and philosophical infelicities in Mitrović’s account, in particular regarding colligation, and realism itself. It is suggested that the debate between the realist and the anti-realist pertains to the statuses attributed to scientific and historical claims. Provided that anti-realism is not general skepticism about them, the burden of proof to show that such notions as ‘real,’ ‘fact,’ and ‘counterpart’ contribute to the philosophical discussion about the statuses of the claims rests on the shoulders of the realist. Furthermore, the realist should establish that the historian’s colligations can be uniquely correct and yet independent of the historian. This comment also is a plea for a more measured and rigorous philosophy of historiography.
Hebrew Manuscripts as a Source of Knowledge
Authors: Prebor Gila
Published: July 2024

The Hebrew Manuscripts Catalogue of the National Library of Israel holds a wealth of information about Jewish history, literature, and culture. However, its complex structure and limited accessibility have resulted in underutilized data. This study aims to harness new digital approaches to unlock the potential of this valuable resource. Specifically, we focus on 275 Yemenite Jewish manuscripts related to ‘sciences’ to explore complex relationships within the data. We began by consolidating metadata from the Hebrew Manuscripts Catalogue, often found scattered within the ‘notes’ field of the records. We supplemented this data with information from linked open data (LOD) entities as well as previous research. This comprehensive approach reveals details about copyists, authors, and owners, even identifying lesser-known figures. Our methodology involved using Nodegoat for data management and visualization. This platform allowed us to create a comprehensive data model for manuscript provenance and explore relationships between objects, transactions, persons, and organizations, along with geographical data.