bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Das Bild der Jüdischen Mutter zwischen Schtetl und Großstadt
Authors: Ludewig Anna-Dorothea
Published: November 2012

The Jewish Mother, or Jiddische Mamme, is one of the most popular images of the Jewess in mid-19th and 20th century. Linked to the biblical Jewish women and mothers, arises a complex negative-grotesque stereotype, which is connected to the traditional image of the Jewess as ,,home-keeper“ and was developed by the Shtetl-literature into a bitter and inapproachable ,,family provider“. Finally, the overprotective and manipulative Jewish Mother is an integral part of American literature, film and comedy. The paper will trace these changes of meaning and also analyse the Jewish Mother in the framework of the different presentations and representations of the Jewish woman.
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal in Latin America
Authors: Gooren Henri
Published: November 2012

Abstract

The Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) is the most important lay movement in the Roman Catholic Church in Latin America, yet it has received scant academic attention. After describing the start of the CCR, I discuss its expansion into Latin America, its self-understanding, outsider criticisms, responses of national bishops’ conferences, and two country case studies based on my first-hand ethnographic fieldwork: Nicaragua and Paraguay. I end with some general conclusions, chief of which is my analysis of the CCR as a globalized revitalization movement that aims to (re)connect individual Catholics to the Roman Catholic Church.
Using museum specimens to assess historical distribution and genetic diversity in an endangered butterfly
Authors: Saarinen Emily V. , Daniels Jaret C.
Published: November 2012

The Miami blue butterfly,Cyclargus thomasi bethunebakeri, is a state-endangered taxon in Florida and a candidate for federal listing. This once common butterfly saw a dramatic decline in population number and abundance in the 1970s and 1980s, but significant collections of individuals prior to this decline are deposited in natural history museums. Using museum specimens, we quantified the genetic diversity in a historical population present in Key Largo, Florida in 1940, 1960, and 1980. Genetic diversity was consistently high within this historical population, but diversity was observed to decrease over the decades sampled. A comparison of historical diversity from the Key Largo population with the extant populations on Bahia Honda State Park (BHSP) and Key West National Wildlife Refuge (KWNWR) revealed differences in allelic frequencies, but only minor differences in the overall number of alleles. The historical distribution of butterflies throughout the Florida Keys further suggests a metapopulation structure. This structure involved partially-isolated populations ofC. t. bethunebakerithat were loosely connected via gene flow and that underwent localized extinction and colonization events along the chain of suitable habitat in the Florida Keys. It appears that a “mini-metapopulation” currently exists on BHSP and KWNWR; structures that are similar to the historical metapopulation structure and distribution of populations on a larger scale. Knowledge of historical distribution helps to plan future reintroduction events with captive-bred butterflies. Additional populations of butterflies may represent undiscovered genetic diversity that, if appropriate, may be further incorporated into captive-breeding efforts.
Seasonal variations of body mass, thermogenesis and digestive tract morphology in Apodemus chevrieri in Hengduan mountain region
Authors: Wan-long Zhu , Sheng-chang Yang , Lin Zhang , Zheng-kun Wang
Published: November 2012

Seasonal changes in an animal’s morphology, physiology, and behavior are considered to be an adaptive strategy for survival and reproductive success. We hypothesize thatApodemus chevrieriwill change their thermogenesis seasonally and serum leptin will change with body mass or body fat mass. Seasonal variations in body mass (BM), basal metabolic rate (BMR), nonshivering thermogenesis (NST), digestive tract morphology, serum leptin and uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) were measured in wild-trappedA. chevrieriin Hengduan mountain region. The results showed that the body weight ofA. chevrieriwas lowest in winter and highest in summer. Decreased BM in the winter was accompanied by increased energy intake and enhanced NST and UCP1 as well as by decreased body fat mass, adjusted digestive tract morphology and reduced levels of circulating leptin. Further, serum leptin were positively correlated with body weight and body fat mass, and negatively correlated with energy intake and UCP1 contents. These data suggest that wildA. chevrierido not depend on a decrease in BM, but instead increase their thermogenic capacity to cope with cold stress. Leptin may be involved in the seasonal regulation in energy balance and thermogenesis in fieldA. chevrieri.
Factors shaping population density, demography and spatial organization of the Eurasian badger Meles meles in mountains – the Western Carpathians (Southern Poland) as a case study
Authors: Mysłajek Robert W. , Nowak Sabina , Rożen Anna , Jędrzejewska Bogumiła
Published: November 2012

We studied the socio-spatial ecology of the Eurasian badger (Meles meles) along the altitudinal gradient (250-1257 m a.s.l.) of the Western Carpathians (Southern Poland), 2004-2009. Family groups were small (mean 2.3 individuals) and home-ranges large (mean 5.42 km2, MCP 100%), which gave a low population density (2.2 individuals/10 km2). Badgers foraged mainly in the foothills, irrespective of the altitude at which their sett was located. They mostly searched for food in meadows, pastures and arable fields (34.4% of telemetry locations), or among shrubs (33.9%). Badgers were killed by hunters (0.37 individuals/10 km2annually), and by wolves (0.07 individuals/10 km2). The badger population density was influenced mostly by the abundance of earthworms and hunting pressure, while the size and shape of their territories was determined by the distribution of foraging grounds.
Evaluating the Contribution of Sentencing to Social Justice: Some Conceptual Problems
Authors: Henham Ralph
Published: November 2012

The sentencing practices of the courts are significant in promoting social welfare and the cohesion of communities. More particularly, the social morality which underpins punishment and its expression through sentencing is a crucial factor in balancing the interests of citizen and state. Consequently, penal policymakers face an increasingly difficult task ensuring that the rationales for punishment and sentencing decisions engage with the values, expectations and sensibilities of our increasingly diverse and morally pluralistic societies. Establishing meaningful connections between penal ideology and criminal justice outcomes is a key factor in integrating restorative justice theory and practice and in maximising the potential for trial justice to contribute constructively to transitional justice objectives. The ability to provide convincing evaluations of current and future practice is a significant precursor to this endeavour. This article analyses examples from domestic and international contexts to highlight issues surrounding sentence evaluation, drawing particular attention to the conceptual problems posed by the normative nature of sentencing. It then considers the difficulties of establishing clear parameters and methods for evaluation, and how to reconcile conflicting normative demands within a developing framework of penal accountability.
Victim-Oriented Measures at International Criminal Institutions: Participation and its Pitfalls
Authors: McGonigle Leyh Brianne
Published: November 2012

International criminal courts were created to address issues of impunity for the gravest of crimes, and undoubtedly victims are meant to be the direct beneficiaries of the justice process. Traditionally, however, victims have not always featured prominently in international criminal trials. In response to this perceived oversight, victims have been provided broad rights at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) and the International Criminal Court (ICC). After addressing the theoretical underpinnings of criminal justice and the development of the procedural role of the victim in domestic criminal jurisdictions and international human rights discourse, this article will examine the rights of victims at the ECCC and ICC and explore what challenges arise when victims are afforded a greater role in the international criminal process. To structure the analysis, the framework will focus on two central concepts, namely the unique characteristics of international criminal proceedings and human rights standards.
The Ecumenical Theology of Archbishop Rowan Williams
Authors: Tanner Mary
Published: November 2012

This essay explores the ecumenical theology of Archbishop Rowan Williams as it is expressed in his recent addresses and sermons. The Archbishop offers us a vision that is consistent with much ecumenical work done in the twentieth century and an agenda for the future. But he gives us so much more. He brings to the ecumenical conversation a profound spiritual depth which turns the ecumenical endeavour from negotiation to grace filled encounter and he challenges us to travel the way of recognition discovering and affirming Christlikeness in one another.
TELESCOPE OPTICS OF MONTANARI, CELLIO, CAMPANI AND BRUNI AT THE MUSEO DELLA SPECOLA IN BOLOGNA
Authors: MOLESINI GIUSEPPE , GRECO VINCENZO , BNOLI FABRIZIO , MINIATI MARA
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title L'articolo presenta i risultati dello studio sulle lenti da cannocchiale di Montanari, Cellio, Campani e Bruni custodite presso il Museo della Specola di Bologna. I risultati dell'indagine, condotta con strumentazione allo stato dell'arte, gettano luce sui continui perfezionamenti intervenuti nella fase di primo sviluppo delle tecnologie ottiche.
I LOMBRICHI DI SPALLANZANI. NOTOMIE INEDITE CONTRO I GARBUGLI E PASTICCI DELL'ARGOMENTO DI ANALOGIA*
Authors: MONTI MARIA TERESA
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title As though embarrassed by the huge amount of material he stored up, Spallanzani hid entire parts of his biological project. A good example is given by 25 laboratory notebooks which were to constitute the basis of a major work on regeneration he announced in the year 1768 and never published. There Spallanzani recorded anatomical observations he carried out on some annelids with a refinement of method and critical understanding only equalled by Malpighi and Lyonnet when observing caterpillars. His research on these organisms highlights how critically Spallanzani referred to the various versions of the generally accepted principle of the uniformity of composition of animal structure.
A MEDIEVAL ASTROLABE IN THE TRADITION OF JEAN FUSORIS
Authors: CASI FAUSTO
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title Il ritrovamento di un astrolabio medievale attribuito all'atelier di Jean Fusoris ha offerto l'opportunit di riesaminare la storia dell'astrolabio nei paesi occidentali e, com' naturale, di colui che in Francia organizz per primo la produzione di tale oggetto, per entrare infine nei dettagli di questo antico strumento. Su suggerimento di Emmanuel Poulle, massima autorit in materia di astrolabi, stata conseguentemente aggiornata la ricerca da lui pubblicata nel 1963, approdando a una pi ampia conoscenza degli strumenti realizzati da Jean Fusoris.
LA GEOMETRIA LOBACEVSKIANA E LA FILOSOFIA DELLA MATEMATICA DI AUGUSTE COMTE
Authors: CICENIA SALVATORE
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title In this paper we effect an historical reconstruction of the relationship between N.I. Lobacevskij's conception of the foundations of geometry and that of A. Comte. We can establish a meaningful convergence between Lobacevskian physical geometry, based on the solid bodies and the section operation, and the mathematique concrte of the positivistic philosopher, as we can note in some of Comtian writings of mathematics philosophy published posthumously, as well as in Cours de philosophie positive. By means of criticising the principles of science, in their common antimethaphysical conception of knowledge theory, Lobacevskij and Comte put the traditional core of science, which seemed to have no alternative and had had the paradigms of scientific knowledge in Euclidean geometry and in Newtonian mechanics, in a critical position. This happens by referring to Lagrange and Fourier. Moreover, the 'Fourierist core' of Comtian work has a reference in Lobacevskij's physical geometry and some of Fourier's ideas, expressed in one of his geometrical manuscripts, lead to the basic concepts of the parallel straight lines theory of the Russian geometer, surprisingly.
ODOARDO CORSINI E LA SCIENZA DELLE ACQUE: OPUSCOLI*
Authors: BARBIERI FRANCESCO , ZUCCOLI MARINA
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title The piarist Odoardo Corsini (Fanano, 1702-1765) is better known as an historian, for his studies about both numismatics and chronology. Less known is his activity in the scientific field, which led him to exchange letters with many scientists of his time. Corsini's activity in hydraulics is witnessed by booklets, not recorded in bibliographies, and by his correspondence. The article ends with the transcription of two letters by Antonio Vallisneri to Corsini, where the problem of the origin of springs is mentioned.
ALLE ORIGINI DEL MUSEO DEL COLLEGIO ROMANO
Authors: BARTOLA ALBERTO
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title At the origin of the Roman College Museum lies the scientific and experimental collection of the Jesuit Athanasius Kircher (1602-1680). Through the testamentary legacy of Alfonso Donnino (1651), the Museum was enriched by a collection of antiquities, portraits, rare and precious objects. Through Kircher's correspondence, the notarial documentation and Filippo Bonanni's Notizie circa la Galleria del Collegio Romano (1716), the paper presents the history and fortune of the famous museum from 1651 to the first half of the XVIII century.
DOCUMENTS RELATIFS L'HISTOIRE DE L'ASTRONOMIE CHINOISE ET AUX RAPPORTS SCIENTIFIQUES ENTRE L'EUROPE ET LA CHINE (XVIIE-XIXE SICLES) CONSERVS LA BIBLIOTHQUE DE L'OBSERVATOIRE DE PARIS
Authors: IANNACCONE ISAIA
Published: November 2012

title ABSTRACT /title Documentsconcerning the ChineseHistoryof Astronomy and scientificrelationsbetweenEuropeand China (XVII-XIX centuries) The Library of the Astronomical Observatory of Paris contains many ancient documents relative to the scientific relation between Europe and China in the XVII-XIX centuries. These include letters, papers, notes, and astronomical observations of Jesuit scientist missionaries in China such as A. Gaubil (1689-1759), F. Verbiest (1623-1688), I. Kogler (1680-1746), etc., translations including the Bu Tian Ge (Song of Pacing the Heavens, 590 ca.), translated and annotated by A. Gaubil. The documents are important not only in the field of astronomy, but also of geography, anthropology, linguistics, uses and customs, etc., and are indispensable for the comparative study of the Europe-China scientific development. The aim of this second paper on the Paris Observatory's fond chinois is the recovery, analysis, revaluation and systematic presentation of this patrimony.
INSTRUMENTS PERFECTED FOR MEASUREMENTS OF MAN AND STATUES ILLUSTRATED IN LEON BATTISTA ALBERTI'S DE STATUA
Authors: SCAGLIA GUSTINA
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title L'articolo discute la storia e l'importanza del trattato DE STATUA di Alberti. Particolare rilievo dato agli strumenti, perfezionati da Alberti stesso, per misurare una figura umana o una statua.
ISTITUZIONI E FONTI
Authors: ARRIGONI TIZIANO
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title The archiv of Piombino's hospital contains very interesting documents about history of medicine and society in Tuscany. A brief survey of the archives is given.
TRE LETTERE DI GEMINIANO MONTANARI A GIAN DOMENICO CASSINI *
Authors: DEGANI FRANCA CATTELANI , BARBIERI FRANCESCO
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title Here are been transcribed three letters sended by Geminiano Montanari to Gian Domenico Cassini. The first two, written in 1669, deal with his experiments with different types of tempered glass and with the tears or gocciole e vermicelli di vetro che rotti in qualunque parte si stritolano d'un subito in minuta polvere. The third, dated 1673, regards mainly the inspections made by Montanari on the S. Petronio sundial in Bologna.
THEORY AND TECHNOLOGY: THE AVOGADRO MANUSCRIPTS AT THE TURIN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES
Authors: CIARDI MARCO
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title Scopo dell'articolo quello di presentare l'intera collezione dei manoscritti di Avogadro conservati presso l'Accademia delle Scienze di Torino e una nuova immagine di uno scienziato di cui generalmente nota soltanto l'attivit nel settore della teoria fisico-chimica. Avogadro, invece, partecip direttamente anche allo sviluppo artigianale e tecnologico del Regno di Sardegna attraverso la sua attivit di consulente per l'Accademia delle Scienze di Torino.
BACHI, POLLI E GRANI. APPUNTI SULLA RICEZIONE DELLA GENETICA IN ITALIA (1900-1953)
Authors: POGLIANO CLAUDIO
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title Italian geneticists managed to establish the boundaries and structures of their own community only after the Second World War, when they promoted, in the space of a few years, a series of initiatives culminating in the Ninth International Congress of Genetics (Bellagio 1953). This essay traces the ways in which, from the beginning of the century, the revolutionary and swift development of the discipline found its context and interested audience in Italy. In contrast to our standard picture, there was no shortage of naturalists to dedicate themselves enthusiastically to genetics, even launching a campaign in the 30's for its 'political' recognition. But cultural trends after the First World War, and especially the directives of the Fascist regime, tended to favour scientific practical and economic values and keep the theoretical and interpretative nature of their work to a minimum. This was ultimately futile, given the indifference with which the centres of power responded. It was the reason, too, for their extremely weak, or almost non-existent participation in the preparations for the evolutionary synthesis in which European and American scientists were involved, which changed appreciably the character and methods of biology.
PIERRE GASSENDI'S DE PHILOSOPHIA EPICURI UNIVERSE REDISCOVERED*
Authors: PALMERINO CARLA RITA
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title Fra i manoscritti della British Library stato trovato un codice contenente una copia non autografa dei libri VIII-XI del De vita et doctrina Epicuri, la prima versione manoscritta a noi pervenuta del SYNTAGMA PHILOSOPHICUM di Pierre Gassendi. Se i libri IX-XI, composti fra il 1636 ed il 1637 e dedicati alla canonica epicurea, erano gi conosciuti attraverso il Ms. Carpentras 1832, il libro VIII, terminato nel marzo del 1634, invece quel De philosophiaEpicuri universe, che Pintard, Rochot e Bloch segnalavano come perduto. Questo articolo analizza il contenuto del De philosophia Epicuri universe e mostra come le parti di esso che non furono riversate da Gassendi nel Liber promialis del SYNTAGMA PHILOSOPHICUM (De philosophia universe) vennero integrate nell'apologia De vita et moribus Epicuri pubblicata nel 1647. Contrariamente a quanto si pensava, quest'opera, scritta fra il 1633 ed il 1634, fu infatti modificata da Gassendi prima di essere data alle stampe.
Academic Debates on the Jews in Wittenberg: The Protestant Literature on Rituals, the Dissertationes and the Writings of the Hebraists Theodor Dassow and Andreas Sennert
Authors: Veltri Giuseppe
Published: November 2012

Abstract

Of not little interest is a phenomenon which touched upon Protestant academies in the seventeenth–eighteenth century and their teaching and research: the Protestant academic interest in Hebrew and Jewish studies as shown by the dissertationes, the typical academic place to be taken as indicator of the main stream and major trends of this era. We have a huge number of still unexplored dissertations on Jews, Judaism and Hebrew languages in university archives, a window onto the perception of Judaism and reelaboration of Jewish sources for university students, university teaching, and candidates for positions in Christian society. The article focuses on the Wittenberg dissertations in Jewish studies and about all on the archive of the professors Theodor Dassow and Andreas Sennert. A list of the archive of Sennert has been added as appendix.
We Are what We Eat: Food in the Process of Community Formation and Identity Shaping among African Traders in Guangzhou and Yiwu
Authors: Bodomo Adams , Ma Enyu
Published: November 2012

Abstract

In this paper we analyze two African communities in Guangzhou and Yiwu, China, arguing that among Guangzhou Africans on the one hand, Black Africans, particularly West Africans, have a tighter community and interact more with each other than Black Africans in Yiwu. On the other hand, Maghrebian Africans in Yiwu have a tighter community and maintain a more cohesive interaction than their counterparts in Guangzhou. Evidence for this characterization of the communities comes from food and communal food-eating habits. There are hardly any West African restaurants in Yiwu while there is an abundance of West African and other Black African restaurants in Guangzhou where there is more community patronage. In contrast, there are more concentrations of North African restaurants in Yiwu than in Guangzhou. We discuss the crucial role food and food-making and eating places play in providing structures and avenues for community bonding to promote community formation and community identity shaping.
China’s ‘Chocolate City’: An Ethnic Enclave in a Changing Landscape*
Authors: Li Zhigang , Lyons Michal , Brown Alison
Published: November 2012

Abstract

The recent rise of African communities in Guangzhou has been widely noted. To understand this ‘Chocolate City,’ with a series of field surveys in 2006-2010, we examine its different development stages and shed particular light upon its internal and external linkages. Three modalities: the emerging enclave, the prosperous enclave and the collapsing enclave, have been identified. The rise of the ‘Chocolate City’ has been mainly attributed to the rise of Sino-Africa trading and the efforts of local entrepreneurs. The prosperity of the City was backed by the local states. However, the involvement of local polices, the reform of the local immigration regime and the deterioration of economic relations resulted in its recent collapse. We argue that this ‘Chocolate City’ is a restructuring ethnic enclave underlying the impacts of ‘transient glocalization.’ The rise and fall of the ‘Chocolate City’ indicates the dynamic relations between the transient global-local nexus, immigration regime, and local geography.
One Religion, Many Identities? The Reception  of Islam Related News Items by Muslim  Women with Turkish, Moroccan and  Flemish roots in Flanders
Authors: Broos Deborah , Van den Bulck Hilde
Published: November 2012

This paper contributes to the existing body of knowledge regarding the relationship between media and diasporic identity formation by moving beyond the notion of Muslim women as a uniform group and questioning the dichotomy of the West versus Islam. To investigate the (versatility of the) relationship between media, culture and (re)created collective identities, focus group interviews were carried out with Muslim women with Turkish, Moroccan and Flemish roots, all living in Flanders. They were shown a number of news items representative of public service broadcasting and commercial television newscasts that were analyzed for the representation of ethnic minorities, followed by focus group discussions. The results demonstrate the diversity and hybridity within the Muslim women’s identities—with religious, ethnic and cultural aspects mediating the reception of these media texts resulting in a ‘polyphony’ of Muslim identities.
Memory, Experience and the Clash of Cosmologies: The Encounter between British Protestant Missionaries and Buddhism in Nineteenth Century Sri Lanka
Authors: Harris Elizabeth J.
Published: November 2012

This paper examines the encounter between Protestant missionaries and Buddhists in nineteenth century Sri Lanka as a case study that illustrates the importance of situating twentieth century postcolonial inter-faith tensions against their nineteenth century precedents. The central question within this encounter concerns how Buddhists and Christians in nineteenth century Sri Lanka could reach a point where mutual demonization was deemed acceptable and appropriate. This paper argues that the key to this lies in a clash of cosmologies, codes of conduct and affective frameworks, informed by memory and experience, within the power relationships of imperialism. Using these categories, the paper examines what Buddhists and Protestant missionaries brought to their encounter with each other and then surveys the contours of the encounter throughout the century. It concludes that the Protestant missionaries enlivened within Buddhism, rather than created, a competitive paradigm of inter-religious relationships that continued into the postcolonial period.
Pollen nutrition affects honey bee stress resistance
Authors: Huang Zachary
Published: November 2012

The honey bee,Apis, is perhaps the most beneficial insect to humans because most of our fruits and vegetables depend on them for pollination. Yet these iconic insects have been plagued by many types of stresses. This paper reviews many lines of evidence pointing to the importance of pollen nutrition in honey bee health. In laboratory studies that used caged honey bees, poor pollen nutrition led to a reduction of worker bees’ resistance to the microsporidian,Nosema apis, an increase of bee’s sensitivity to pesticides, and an increased titer of bee virus. On the other hand, polyfloral pollen made bees more resistant to stresses by enhancing their immune related enzyme activities. At the colony level, good pollen nutrition increased honey bee’s resistance toNosema ceranaeor the ectoparasitic mite,Varroa destructor. The effects of both transportation and habitat changes on honey bees seem most likely mediated via decreased diversity, or amount, of pollen to the colonies. Pollen nutrition, therefore, might work together with other factors in reducing the bees’ resistance and exacerbate the effects of viruses, pesticides, or parasites, eventually resulting in Colony Collapse Disorder. Besides paying attention to all of these other factors, pollen nutrition should be an important focus in the future for maintaining healthy bee colonies.
Responsibility to Protect or Prevent? Victims and Perpetrators of Sexual Violence Crimes in Armed Conflicts
Authors: Skjelsbæk Inger
Published: November 2012

The main argument in this article is that the academic as well as policy related focus on sexual violence has brought women’s concerns to the table of international security concerns, namely to the United Nations Security Council through a number of resolutions in recent years. This has been important in order to create better protection measures and bring women’s agency to the forefront of political concern. However, the woman centered focus on protection measures might have overshadowed the role of the perpetrators of sexual violence crimes and the need to focus on prevention measures.
Recent Developments in EU Environmental Policy and Law
Authors: Mertens Kathleen
Published: November 2012

This section briefly describes the significant political initiatives and acts of legislation in the environmental field adopted from 1 July 2011 until 29 February 2012.
Speeding up Infringement Procedures: Recent Developments Designed to Make Infringement Procedures More Effective
Authors: Hadroušek David
Published: November 2012

Recent years have witnessed a number of developments with a potential to make infringement procedures quicker, more serious and thus, arguably, more effective. The developments include the possibility to impose a double sanction on the Member State concerned, a pair of novelties introduced by the Lisbon Treaty and the introduction of a new mechanism for dealing with issues of compliance with the EU law (EU Pilot). But do these developments really make infringement procedures more effective?
Ion Antonescu and the Holocaust in Romania
Authors: Deletant Dennis
Published: November 2012

Ion Antonescu’s obsession with what he saw as the Bolshevik menace drove his policy towards the Jews. The vast majority of those living in the provinces bordering on, and occupied by, the Soviet Union between 1940 and 1941—Bessarabia and Bukovina—were deported to Transnistria, where more than seventy percent of them were murdered or died of disease and starvation. Ukrainian militias and ethnic German Selbstschutz played a major role in the massacres, the former under the direction of Romanian gendarmes in Bogdanovka camp in the winter of 1941/1942, and the latter, independently, in southeastern Transnistria. This paper, based on the author’s research in the archives and library of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC and upon primary sources in Romania, seeks to bring into sharper focus Antonescu’s anti-Semitic actions, thereby highlighting the distinctive nature of the Holocaust in Romania and Antonescu’s part in it.
Annexations in Europe and the Persecution of Jews, 1939–1944
Authors: Gerlach Christian
Published: November 2012

This contribution tries to explain why Jews were persecuted earlier or more fiercely in territories annexed by a state during World War II than in the mainland of that state. The case-studies covered are Nazi Germany, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and the USSR. It is argued that internationally, similar policies of incorporation, especially the replacement of existing elites and the process of bringing in new settlers, worked against the Jews. Aside from focusing on governmental policies, the contribution also sketches the manner in which individual actions by state functionaries (who did not merely implement state policies) and by non-state actors had adverse effects on the Jewish population, impacting their survival chances. Finally, the article places the persecution of Jews in annexed areas in the context of the concerted violence conducted, at the same time, against other ethnically defined, religious, and social groups.
NOREPRESENTATIONWITHOUT TAXATION: TRADINGRIGHTSFOR REVENUE IN THE POST-COMMUNIST WORD·
Authors: MLLER JRGEN
Published: November 2012

Summary: Almost a century ago, the academic current of fiscal sociology voiced a very strong claim about the relationship between rights and revenue. Rights, the argument went, have historically been traded for revenue in a grand "quid-pro-quo." In other words, rights have only become effective where the rulers have been dependent upon broad-based taxation. If we let this insight travel to the post-communist countries - where we find an empirical tripartition between democracies, hybrid regimes, and autocracies locking in over the 1990s - we discern an interesting result. The statistical relationship between rights and revenue, or democracy and taxation to phrase it in a different way, is very significant in this quarter. The variance on the "fiscal" variable accounts for close to three fifths of the variance on the "democratic" equivalent - and this figure rises to almost four fifths if we eliminate the one salient outlier of Belarus. Rights and revenue go hand in hand, just as they did in early modern Europe.
INNOVATIONS IN THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN THE BALKAN REGION'
Authors: NIKOLOV DIMCE
Published: November 2012

Summary This article offers an overview of the innovation efforts and opportunities in the public administration in the Western Balkans. It focuses particularly on the relation between the public administration reform processes in the countries of this sub-region and the innovations in the public sector. The case by case review on the current situation in public administration and innovations shows that in spite of the similarities, there are significant differences among these countries. The final section of this article indicates that both the reforms and innovations in public administration in the Western Balkans is a difficult task for all governments in this region. Nevertheless, the innovation process has started and it must continue.
IDENTITY-FORMATION AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE "NEW SERBIA": BLENDING TRADITIONS WITH A "EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE"
Authors: COHEN LENARD
Published: November 2012

Summary: Serbia has been undergoing a persistent identity crisis throughout most of the 200 years of its existence as an emergent and then independent polity. Recently, the visibility of issues relating to identity-building and statebuilding in Serbian political life have been heightened owing to Montenegro's referendum on sovereignty, the possibility of Kosovo obtaining independence, and Serbia's "new" position as an independent state. Drawing extensively on Serbian research, the article explores the transformation of political culture and political identities in post-Milosevic Serbia. The author contends that progress towards Europeanization and democratic consolidation in Serbia will require another major democratic breakthrough or at least a catalytic realignment of political forces (only partially obtained in the wake of the January 2007 Serbian elections). Serbia's future democratization remains contingent on the emergence of broad elite and public consensus around notions which blend a liberal and civic orientation with the positive aspects of Serbian tradition.
Working memory span for pictures, names, and touched objects
Authors: Fernandes Alexandra M. , Albuquerque Pedro B.
Published: November 2012

Through an immediate serial recall task, working memory for objects’ pictures, objects’ names and touched objects was evaluated with and without a simultaneous articulatory suppression task. Each group performed the task in one modality: seeing object pictures presented on a computer screen, reading out loud two-syllabic object names presented in a computer screen, or touching real objects without sight. The task was performed twice by the participants, once with articulatory suppression and once without articulatory suppression. The objects were presented sequentially for three seconds each, starting with lists of two items and progressively increasing the number of items by one, according to the participant’s performance, until a maximum of 10 items. The results showed that span values were similar in the three modalities, with an average of five items being recalled without articulatory suppression and about four items being recalled with articulatory suppression. This study suggests similar performance in immediate serial recall tasks regardless of presentation modality. Articulatory suppression presented an equivalent effect in all groups, impairing recall performance in average by one item. Results are discussed attending to the verbal nature of the task, which implies the recall of the object’s name, and the impact of articulatory suppression in common object’s encoding.
The categorical perception of tactile distance: A difference in acuity at anatomical landmarks?
Authors: Le Cornu Knight Frances , Longo Matthew , Bremner Andrew J.
Published: November 2012

Tactile distance judgments are prone to a number of physiological and perceptual distortions. One such distortion concerns tactile distances over the wrist being perceptually elongated relative to those within the hand or arm. This has been interpreted as a categorical segmentation effect: The wrist implicitly serves as a partition between two body part categories so that stimuli crossing the wrist appear further apart. The effect could alternatively be explained in terms of specialized acuity at anatomical landmarks (i.e., the wrist). To test these opposing explanations we presented participants with two tactile distances sequentially for comparison (one mediolaterally, across the arm, and the other proximodistally, along the arm). Points-of-Subjective-Equality (DV) were compared on the hand, wrist and arm, on dorsal and ventral surfaces between subjects. If the acuity account were true distances would be elongated in both axes at the wrist. If the categorical segmentation account were true there would be a selective perceived increase of the proximodistal distance at the wrist. A previously reported mediolateral bias was found on all body parts but, consistent with the categorical account, at the wrist the magnitude of the bias was either reduced (dorsally) or not found (ventrally) suggesting a selective proximodistal elongation. We found no evidence of increased acuity in the vicinity of the wrist in this task. Therefore we conclude that the segmentation of the body into discrete parts induces categorical perception of tactile distance.
Crossmodal correspondences
Authors: Parise Cesare V.
Published: November 2012

For more than a century now, researchers have acknowledged the existence of crossmodal congruency effects between dimensions of sensory stimuli in the general (i.e., non-synesthetic) population. Such phenomena, known by a variety of terms including ‘crossmodal correspondences’, involve individual stimulus properties, rely on a crossmodal mapping of unisensory features, and appear to be shared by the majority of individuals. Over the last few years, a number of studies have shed light on many key aspects of crossmodal correspondences, ranging from their role in multisensory integration, their developmental trajectories, their occurrence in non-human mammals, their neural underpinning and the role of learning. I will present a brief overview of the latest findings on crossmodal correspondences, highlight standing questions and provide direction for future research.
Spatial and temporal dynamics of visual processing during movement preparation: ERP evidence from adults with and without Developmental Coordination Disorder
Authors: van Velzen Jose
Published: November 2012

Experimental evidence has shown that the actions we intend to perform influence the way our visual system processes information in the environment, consistent with the considerable overlap observed between brain circuits involved in action and attention. Conceptual thinking about action-perception links in cognitive science is heavily influenced by earlier work that has established that motor preparation causes a shift of attention to the goal of a movement. This sensory enhancement is characterised on a behavioural level by improved detection and discrimination performance at that location, and neurally by larger responses in visual cortex to stimuli presented there. In a series of experiments we examined electrophysiological visual cortex responses (ERPs) to task-irrelevant visual probe stimuli presented at various locations in movement space during preparation of manual reaching movements. The data from these experiments show simultaneous enhanced visual processing of stimuli at the location of the effector about to perform the movement and at the goal of the movement. Further, our data demonstrates that compared to controls, adults with Developmental Coordination Disorder show a markedly different pattern of enhanced visual processing during preparation of more complex reaching movement, i.e., across the body midline. This suggests a specific difficulty in this group in recruiting appropriate preparatory visual mechanism for manual movements, which may be related to the difficulties this group experiences in their daily life.
Moved by stills: Kinesthetic sensory experiences in viewing dance photographs
Authors: Jola Corinne , Clements Lucie , Christensen Julia F.
Published: November 2012

Fine art can be visually pleasing or displeasing; moreover, it can touch us, move us, make us shiver or think. Thus, when looking at a piece of art, different sensory experiences may occur altogether in a multisensory cocktail. Still little is known about what evokes such particular multisensory experience in the art spectator. For instance, Calvo-Merino et al. (2008) found enhanced activity in visual and motor brain areas for dance movements that were liked more; however, these movements mostly consisted of vertical displacements of the dancers’ body. Therefore, we conducted a behavioural experiment to study the effect of apparent movement direction on the kinesthetic experience to visual stimuli. We further enquired where in the body participants felt their reactions. Participants rated their responses to a piloted collection of dance photographs which showed snapshots of either vertical or horizontal dance movements. Ratings were made on Likert-scales from 0–10, referring to the participants’ subjective experience (visual, kinesthetic, arousal, liking) and perception (difficulty, motion). We expected vertical displacements to enhance the kinesthetic experience in the passive viewer. Further, we compared dancers with non-dancers and Spanish with UK students. Our results confirmed that looking at stills of vertical movements increases kinesthetic sensation. We also found predicted cultural enhancement of the levels of subjective arousal responses in the Spanish sample. The differences between dancers and non-dancers were, however, smaller than expected. We will discuss these findings in view of the existing neuro-aesthetics (Calvo-Merino et al., 2010; Cross et al., 2011) and neuroscientific studies (Sedvalis and Keller, 2011) using dance to probe the mirror mechanism in action observation.
Watching touch increases people’s alertness to tactile stimuli presented on the body surface
Authors: Bellan Valeria , Reverberi Carlo , Gallace Alberto
Published: November 2012

Several studies have shown that watching one’s own body part improves tactile acuity and discrimination abilities for stimuli presented on that location. In a series of experiments we asked the participants to localize tactile stimuli presented on the left or right arm. In Experiment 1 the participants were not allowed to watch their body, but they could see another person’s left arm via a LCD display. This arm could be touched or not during the presentation of the stimuli. We found that when the participants saw the arm on the screen being touched, their responses to the tactile stimuli presented on the left and on the right arm were faster and more accurate than when the arm on the screen was approached but not touched. Critically, we did not find any illusion of ownership related to the hand seen on the screen. In Experiments 2 and 3 we varied the position of the screen with respect to the participant’s body midline and the image displayed on it (an arm or an object of equal size). The participants gave faster responses when an object rather than a hand was displayed on the screen. Moreover, the responses were slower when the hand on the screen was placed in front of the participants, as compared to any other position. Taken together the results of our experiments would seem to suggest that watching touch activates multisensory mechanisms responsible for alerting people regarding the possible presence of tactile stimuli on the body surface.
An interaction between body orientation and gravity produces a novel illusion in visual distance perception
Authors: Mander Charles M. , Harris Laurence R.
Published: November 2012

Does perceived distance depend on gravity? The moon illusion, in which the moon looks smaller when viewed overhead, suggests that it might, although so many factors are involved in this complex illusion. Prior research assessing perceived distance had blindfolded observers walk to a remembered location. However, this precludes altering an observer’s orientation relative to gravity. Here, a crossmodal comparison of a visual line and a standard-length tactile rod provided a novel means for assessing the perception of distance by exploiting size constancy — a shorter perceptual visual length (measured in rod lengths) corresponds to a shorter perceived distance from the observer. Experiments were conducted in a fully decorated room that was oriented at 90° with respect to gravity (the York University tumbled room) and in an identical normally oriented control room. Observers maintained an upright orientation with respect to the rooms. Observers judged the length of a variable visual line, projected with a laser and a pair of galvanometers, and varied by a QUEST procedure, relative to a fixed length tactile rod. The length of the visual line matched to the reference length was significantly longer — compatible with being perceived as further away — in the tumbled room than in the control room. A separate experiment failed to replicate this change in distance perception when the observer’s orientation relative to gravity was changed outside the tumbled room, suggesting that the effect is due to a conflict between visually- and gravitationally-defined reference frames.
Evaluative similarity hypothesis of crossmodal correspondences: A developmental view
Authors: Jankovic Dragan
Published: November 2012

Crossmodal correspondences have been widely demonstrated, although mechanisms that stand behind the phenomenon have not been fully established yet. According to the Evaluative similarity hypothesis crossmodal correspondences are influenced by evaluative (affective) similarity of stimuli from different sensory modalities (Jankovic, 2010, Journal of Vision 10(7), 859). From this view, detection of similar evaluative information in stimulation from different sensory modalities facilitates crossmodal correspondences and multisensory integration. The aim of this study was to explore the evaluative similarity hypothesis of crossmodal correspondences in children. In Experiment 1 two groups of participants (nine- and thirteen-year-olds) were asked to make explicit matches between presented auditory stimuli (1 s long sound clips) and abstract visual patterns. In Experiment 2 the same participants judged abstract visual patterns and auditory stimuli on the set of evaluative attributes measuring affective valence and arousal. The results showed that crossmodal correspondences are mostly influenced by evaluative similarity of visual and auditory stimuli in both age groups. The most frequently matched were visual and auditory stimuli congruent in both valence and arousal, followed by stimuli congruent in valence, and finally stimuli congruent in arousal. Evaluatively incongruent stimuli demonstrated low crossmodal associations especially in older group.
An invisible speaker can facilitate auditory speech perception
Authors: Grabowecky Marcia , Guzman-Martinez Emmanuel , Ortega Laura , Suzuki Satoru
Published: November 2012

Watching moving lips facilitates auditory speech perception when the mouth is attended. However, recent evidence suggests that visual attention and awareness are mediated by separate mechanisms. We investigated whether lip movements suppressed from visual awareness can facilitate speech perception. We used a word categorization task in which participants listened to spoken words and determined as quickly and accurately as possible whether or not each word named a tool. While participants listened to the words they watched a visual display that presented a video clip of the speaker synchronously speaking the auditorily presented words, or the same speaker articulating different words. Critically, the speaker’s face was either visible (the aware trials), or suppressed from awareness using continuous flash suppression. Aware and suppressed trials were randomly intermixed. A secondary probe-detection task ensured that participants attended to the mouth region regardless of whether the face was visible or suppressed. On the aware trials responses to the tool targets were no faster with the synchronous than asynchronous lip movements, perhaps because the visual information was inconsistent with the auditory information on 50% of the trials. However, on the suppressed trials responses to the tool targets were significantly faster with the synchronous than asynchronous lip movements. These results demonstrate that even when a random dynamic mask renders a face invisible, lip movements are processed by the visual system with sufficiently high temporal resolution to facilitate speech perception.