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Enhancing intelligence in multi-agent systems with edge-assisted causal knowledge aggregation
Get PDFDynamic and uncertain environments pose major challenges for multi-agent autonomous systems, particularly in achieving robust simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) and efficient knowledge sharing across robots. Conventional data-driven methods often overlook underlying causal structures, resulting in spurious correlations and limited generalization. To address this, we present CASK—an edge-assisted causal knowledge aggregation framework that fuses structured causal inference with data-driven learning to improve adaptive decision-making. A key feature is a time-based normalization mechanism that ensures mapping consistency across varying operational speeds, enabling speed-independent transfer of spatial knowledge between heterogeneous agents. Wevalidate CASK through simulations and real-world experiments using autonomous ground vehicles,aclassofmobilerobots.Resultsshowsubstantialgainsoverstate-of-the-artmethods:upto 20%higher success at low speeds, 40% at high speeds, 50% lower trajectory deviation, and 45% fewer re-planning steps. These findings demonstrate how causal inference combined with mobile edge computing enables scalable, reliable, and generalizable autonomy in multi-agent systems
From a Roman hoard to multivocal assemblages: Inchtuthil nails, ontological itineraries, and the making of contemporary heritage
No full textThis article examines the post-excavation trajectories of iron nails from the Roman hoard uncovered at Inchtuthil, Scotland, in 1960, using the framework of object itinerary theory. Through twenty- four semi-structured interviews and questionnaires with private collectors and institutional representatives the study traces how these artefacts have circulated globally and acquired new meanings beyond their archaeological contexts. The study introduces a dual framework of physical and ontological itineraries: the former traces the tangible dispersal of the nails, while the latter explores how their roles and values evolve through relational, representational and affective engagements. The results show that the nails have moved from utilitarian Roman tools to contemporary heritage artefacts, functioning variously as teaching aids, mementos and social connectors. Their presence in both public and private collections demonstrates how material culture mediates memory, emotion, and belonging across time and contexts. In highlighting the evolving roles of these artefacts, the article challenges static models of object interpretation and advances a more fluid understanding of heritage as shaped through ongoing human-object interactions
The rare and enigmatic trilobite Bohemilla from the Upper Ordovician of the Girvan district, SW Scotland
No full textAdvancing equity in Scotland: developing race-cognisant policy in teacher education
Get PDFIn Scotland, recent years have seen a national declaration across Higher and Further Education acknowledging the existence of racism in education and the development of various policies designed to challenge racism and promote racial diversity. This has particularly been the case in the field of teacher education policy where we have seen the publication of Teaching in a Diverse Scotland (2018) and subsequent annual targets for recruitment and retention of Black and Minority Ethnic teachers, the establishment of a national programme of professional learning to build educators’ racial literacy, and the publication of The National Anti-Racism Framework for Initial Teacher Education (2023). However, the ‘success’ or otherwise of these polices has not yet been established across the system. This article, therefore, seeks to bring together the evaluations of individual race-cognisant policies in teacher education to date, and to synthesise them, drawing on McConnell's (2010) three strands of policy analysis. Based on this analysis, the article concludes with some future-gazing as we move towards Scottish Parliament elections in 2026, and the likelihood that the long-dominant Scottish National Party will face a serious challenge
Surface stability of a layered magnetoelastic half-space
Get PDFWe evaluate the conditions for surface stability of a layered magnetoelastic half-space subjected to large deformations and a magnetic field. After reviewing the fundamental measures of deformation and summarizing the magnetostatic equations in Eulerian and Lagrangian forms, we derive the constitutive relations from a total energy function dependent on the deformation gradient and the Lagrangian magnetic induction. Energy principles yield the equilibrium equations, magnetic field equations, and boundary conditions. The second variation of the energy functional provides the incremental equations and conditions for stability analysis. Surface instability is studied by linearizing increments of deformation and magnetic induction about a finitely deformed state under a magnetic field normal to the surface. Four illustrative cases are considered: (i) a layered non-magnetizable half-space with varying stiffness contrast; (ii) the critical stretch of a magnetoelastic half-space as a function of magnetic induction; (iii) surface stability of a magneto-sensitive layer atop a non-magnetizable substrate; and (iv) bifurcation conditions of a two-layers magnetoelastic solid with different stiffness ratios. Bifurcation criteria in the form of coupled critical stretch and wavenumber is determined using a bespoke optimization protocol developed using an arc-length continuation method. Graphical results are provided throughout
Mitochondrial succinate transport is required for cardiac ischemia/reperfusion injury
No full textAims: Succinate accumulates significantly during myocardial ischaemia, and its rapid oxidation upon reperfusion is a critical driver of ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. The transport of succinate across the mitochondrial inner membrane, particularly by the dicarboxylate carrier (DIC; SLC25A10), is hypothesized to play a crucial role in mediating these pathological succinate dynamics. However, tools to test this hypothesis by modulating mitochondrial succinate transport in biological systems are lacking. Methods and results: C57BL/6J mice, isolated Wistar Rat heart mitochondria, bovine heart mitochondrial membranes, C2C12 mouse myoblasts, and primary adult mouse cardiomyocytes were used as in vitro and in vivo models. Butylmalonate prodrugs were synthesized and tested. Isolated mitochondria were used to assess succinate-dependent respiration and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Cells were treated with succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) inhibitors or exposed to anoxia and butylmalonate esters. Mouse hearts were subjected to in vivo left anterior descending coronary artery ligation. Succinate and butylmalonate levels were measured by targeted liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, and infarct size by TTC (23,5-triphenyl-2H-tetrazolium chloride) staining. Knockdown of DIC, but not of the oxoglutarate carrier OGC, in C2C12 cells prevented succinate accumulation by SDH inhibition and anoxia. The only extant DIC inhibitor butylmalonate, is limited by poor cell permeability. We synthesized diacetoxymethyl butylmalonate (DAB), which efficiently delivers butylmalonate intramitochondrially in isolated heart mitochondria and cells. DAB inhibited succinate-dependent respiration and ROS production. DAB prevented succinate accumulation in cells treated with SDH inhibitors. DAB delivered butylmalonate to cardiac mitochondria when administered to mice in vivo and reduced infarct size by perturbing mitochondrial succinate transport. Conclusion: The DIC is a key node in the cellular distribution of succinate, controlling its transport between mitochondria and the cytosol. These findings highlight the potential of DIC as a promising therapeutic target for conditions where succinate elevation contributes to pathogenesis, such as cardiac I/R injury
A near-Earth object model calibrated to Earth impactors
Get PDFThe population of Earth-impacting meteoroids and their size-dependent orbital elements are key to understanding the origin of meteorites and informing planetary defense efforts. Outstanding questions include the role of collisions in depleting meteoroids on highly evolved orbits and the relative importance of delivery resonances. Those depend on size, with current dynamical models considering only asteroids larger than 10 m in diameter. Based on 1202 sporadic meteoroids observed by the Global Fireball Observatory, we created a debiased model of the near-Earth meteoroid population in the 10 g–150 kg size range (approximately 1 cm–0.5 m in diameter) as they dynamically evolved from the main asteroid belt onto Earth-crossing orbits. The observed impact population is best matched with a collisional half-life decreasing from 3 Myr for meteoroids of 0.6 kg (7 cm) or higher to 1 Myr below this size, extending to the model lower bound of 10 g. Placing our results in context with near-Earth object models for larger sizes, we find that the inner main belt continues to dominate feeding the small 1–10 m diameter population primarily via the ν6 secular resonance and the 3:1J mean-motion resonance. We also evaluated the potential significance of physical processes other than collisions on Earth-impacting meteoroids, such as low-perihelion disruptions from thermal stresses
Strategies of political control and regime survival in autocracies
Get PDFHow do autocrats establish political control? Understanding the strategies autocrats use to generate mass compliance and elite loyalty remains a central question in comparative politics. Despite substantial scholarship on this topic, ongoing research highlights the need for more comprehensive accounts of how autocrats combine different political control strategies, and which strategies are most important for explaining regime durability across diverse contexts and time periods. This article advances this line of research by integrating data from the Varieties of Democracy and Varieties of Indoctrination datasets to systematically map the use of six key strategies of repression, co-optation, and indoctrination across 229 regimes from 1946 to 2010. We then apply model-based clustering and Bayesian model stacking methods to uncover common patterns in the deployment of these strategies and identify which strategies best predict regime breakdown. The article's rich data, empirical approach, and findings lay the groundwork for more integrated inquiries into autocratic regime performance and longevity
Tracing the flow of money to reveal spatial effects and inequalities in cash transfer programmes
Get PDFThis study investigates how municipal cash transfer programmes influence intra-urban inequality through the case of Maricá, Brazil. Using over 3.4 million transactions from a local digital currency, we trace the spatial flow of social benefits and assess economic spillovers via local multiplier (LM3) and urban scaling models. Despite a strong multiplier effect, spending is highly concentrated in a few retailers (Gini = 0.80), while neighbourhood-level business revenue scales superlinearly with social benefits (β = 1.15). These findings reveal how redistributive policies interact with spatial inequalities, offering new insights into the geography of welfare and the design of inclusive urban policy
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