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Sifting the Digital Heap: A scoping study of AI for government archives – access, backlogs, and responsible practice.
No full textAI can play a decisive role in making digital government records more accessible and manageable, provided that its use is grounded in responsibility and clear purpose. Work is already underway across archives and government, where AI is being used to manage scale, improve accuracy, and enhance public access to digital records – including email, PDFs, spreadsheets, images, scanned documents, audiovisual assets, and social media posts. Building on these foundations, the GLOW study identifies four interlinked priorities for responsible and effective adoption.
First, AI should be applied where it can deliver clear, measurable benefits – particularly in appraisal and selection, sensitivity review, and metadata enrichment for both textual and audiovisual materials. Interviewees repeatedly stressed that the sheer volume of born-digital records now exceeds human capacity, making manual processing unrealistic. As John Sheridan (The National Archives UK) described, effective archival AI workflows will resemble a series of sieves: simple tools handling early filtering (e.g., filetype detection, basic entity extraction), followed by increasingly sophisticated machine learning and language model techniques that surface higher value material for expert review. Used in this layered way, automation can strengthen efficiency and consistency without displacing professional judgement. For example, AI can flag personal or confidential information, identify clusters of potentially significant correspondence, or reveal hidden risks within complex files – reducing the time specialists spend on mechanical triage and enabling them to focus on interpretive and high-stakes decision making.
Second, ChatGPT and other generative AI tools have modified users’ expectations. Users increasingly expect instant, conversational access to archival information; AI‑generated summaries rather than raw documents; cross‑collection synthesis; intelligent handling of poor metadata; and personalised research support – expectations that exceed the capabilities of many archival systems. To adapt to these changing expectations, archival institutions are experimenting with new techniques and protocols such as MCP (Model Context Protocol) and RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation). Used together, MCP and RAG align GenAI discovery with archival values of provenance, authenticity, accountability, and user trust.
Third, progress towards responsible AI depends on implementing a clear and accountable framework. Automation must operate within systems that guarantee transparency, traceability, and security, supported by training and governance that ensure ethical use. Many institutions are already developing policies and guidance, but a unified framework would help align practice across departments and institutions, and safeguard the integrity of public records. A clear and accountable framework for responsible AI should answer questions of purpose, transparency, human oversight, risk/security, and accountability/auditability.
Fourth, the study calls for a coordinated national strategy that connects these efforts. The National Archives (UK), working with ministerial departments and other administrations, is well placed to lead this work in partnership with the wider GLAM and academic sectors. International collaboration with bodies such as the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in the United States and the European Archives Group could extend these principles globally. Through this joined-up approach, which would integrate technology, policy, and human expertise, AI can strengthen public trust and ensure that the digital record remains secure and accessible.</p
Engineering Extracellular Vesicle Production Through Magnetic Ion Channel Activation for Bone Regeneration
No full textABSTRACT
Bone disorders represent a significant global health challenge. Extracellular Vesicles (EVs) are emerging as a promising nanotherapeutic approach for bone regeneration, addressing the translation barriers associated with cell‐based therapies. Despite their immense potential, the clinical application of EVs is limited by low production yields and inconsistent quality. Magnetic Ion Channel Activation (MICA) leverages remote magnetic fields to stimulate mechano‐sensitive ion channels through magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs). This study explores the potential of utilising MICA to enhance the production yield and therapeutic efficacy of EVs for bone regeneration. The findings demonstrate that MICA significantly increased the production yield of EVs from MC3T3 pre‐osteoblasts compared to magnetic stimulation or TREK1 functionalised graphene oxide‐ ‐GOMNP particles alone. The obtained EVs exhibited typical size distribution, morphology, and EV protein expression, consistent with nano‐sized vesicles. Furthermore, MICA/TREK EVs treatment considerably enhanced human bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) osteogenic differentiation and mineralization compared to EVs derived from MICA, TREK, or untreated groups. Proteomics analysis revealed the enrichment of proteins involved in mechanotransduction and osteogenic differentiation within MICA/TREK EVs. In summary, these findings highlight the substantial potential of MICA as a platform to enhance the scalable production and therapeutic application of pro‐regenerative EVs for bone augmentation strategies.</p
Synergies and trade-offs of energy extractives in building resilient infrastructures in Mozambique
No full textDespite increased attention on Mozambique’s resource-rich context, there remains limited research examining the relationship between energy extractives and sustainable development. This study addresses this gap by systematically examining how energy extractive operations intersect with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in the context of building resilient infrastructures in Mozambique. The study applies the SDG mapping framework developed by Fuso Nerini et al. (2018) and Bisaga et al. (2021) to energy extractives in Mozambique. Using content analysis and secondary evidence from peer-reviewed and grey literature, this study assesses whether the SDG targets require action from the energy extractive sector, and whether synergies or trade-offs exist. Evidence is categorized into three domains of infrastructure: physical, environmental, and well-being. Findings reveal that 60% of SDG targets require actions related to energy extractives, and 65% have published evidence of either synergies or trade-offs. While more synergies (95 targets) than trade-offs (52 targets) were found, every SDG contained at least one trade-off, underscoring the complex role of extractives in contributing to sustainable development. The results emphasize that while energy extractives can catalyse infrastructure development and socioeconomic benefits, they also frequently undermine environmental sustainability and human wellbeing, particularly in the absence of strong governance, transparency, and accountability. This study contributes methodologically by demonstrating the value of systematic SDG interactions mapping in country-specific contexts. It also highlights the specific political, social, and institutional conditions that mediate the development outcomes of energy extractive operations. It concludes with recommendations for improved governance, more holistic and contextual development planning, and areas for further research. The findings are relevant for researchers, policymakers, and development practitioners aiming to leverage natural resource wealth for equitable and resilient infrastructure development aligned with the SDGs.</p
How male rape myths stop some victims of sexual assault from getting justice – new study
No full textNo description supplied</p
Supplementary information files for "The role of verbal working memory load on number order processing: evidence from an articulatory suppression paradigm."
No full textSupplementary information files for article "The role of verbal working memory load on number order processing: evidence from an articulatory suppression paradigm"Although number order processing has received increasing research attention due to its association with arithmetic skills, its underlying cognitive mechanisms remain unclear. It has been suggested that highly familiar sequences (e.g., 1–2-3, 2–4-6) are processed faster because they are retrieved from memory. However, the involvement of verbal memory retrieval has not been directly tested and is usually inferred indirectly from participants' response times. In this study, participants completed an order verification task standalone and under verbal working memory load involving articulatory suppression, where participants repeated the syllables “pa-ta-ka” throughout the task. Participants also completed arithmetic production and verification tasks to evaluate the association between order processing and arithmetic. As expected, verbal working memory load increased response times, but this effect was stronger for consecutive than non-consecutive sequences, rather than for familiar versus unfamiliar ones as initially hypothesised. This pattern suggests that articulatory suppression may disrupt sub-vocal routines such as internal counting, which may be more prominent in consecutive sequences compared to non-consecutive, although familiar, sequences. Nevertheless, a robust familiarity effect was observed overall, with familiar sequences processed faster than unfamiliar ones. These findings point to a general involvement of verbal working memory in number order processing, particularly in relation to sequences that align with common counting routines. Finally, order verification performance was more strongly associated with arithmetic production for small problems—likely reflecting greater reliance on memory retrieval—and showed trends toward stronger associations with arithmetic verification and familiar sequences.© The Author(s), CC BY 4.0</p
Editor’s introduction "Agents of connection – rethinking transatlantic book history." cluster on literary agents in a transatlantic context.
No full textThis editors’s introduction frames the Book History cluster “Literary Agents in a Transatlantic Context” by arguing for the centrality of literary agents to twentieth-century literary circulation and to the infrastructures that made transatlantic book culture possible. While agents are ubiquitous in modern publishing, they have remained comparatively marginal in book-historical narratives, which have tended to privilege authors, publishers, and institutions whose archives are more visible and stable. The cluster responds to this historiographical gap by foregrounding agents as coordinators of complex networks through which books, reputations, and rights moved across borders, often via forms of labour that were both professionalized and deliberately discreet.
The introduction situates the three essays within a transatlantic frame and emphasises their shared methodological and historiographical interventions. Cécile Cottenet examines U.S. literary agents’ foreign-rights practices in the 1950s and 1960s, showing how mid-century professional infrastructures shaped the internationalisation of American literature well before later “revolutions” in agenting. Laurence Cossu-Beaumont draws on extensive archival research on the William A. Bradley Literary Agency to demonstrate how agent archives can reshape accounts of production, dissemination, and reception in international contexts, and to recover women’s labour within the agency’s transatlantic operations. Lise Jaillant uses newly rediscovered family papers to recover the French agent Denyse Clairouin and to connect biographical reconstruction to broader questions about interwar translation markets, transatlantic distribution networks, and archival survival.
Across these essays, the introduction proposes a “networked microhistory” approach that complements established models such as Darnton’s communications circuit by emphasising relationships among agents, authors, publishers, translators, and legal regimes. It also sheds light on the gendered dimensions of mediation, arguing that agenting offered opportunities to women in part because it was under-defined and undervalued, and that recovering agents’ work advances feminist book history. Finally, it highlights the methodological challenges and possibilities of dispersed agent archives, and points to the emergence of an interdisciplinary perspective sometimes termed “agent studies.”</p
A fully automated low pressure gas collection method for laboratory use using low-cost hardware
No full textA novel gas collection test rig has been developed. The associated code andis presented. The code is available as an installer, exe, or open source in LabVIEW.© the authors</p
Children (and animals) in Nozick's political philosophy
No full textAccording to Susan Moller Okin, Robert Nozick’s libertarianism leads to a matriarchal dystopia: mothers own their children and may dispose of them as they please. This challenge rests on the claim that Nozick doesn’t extend rights to infants. In this paper, to respond to Okin, we examine Nozick’s account of rights possession; explore Nozick’s work beyond Anarchy, State, and Utopia; and link children’s rights and animals’ rights. We propose three possible responses to Okin, grounded in Nozick’s own words. First, Nozick could grant rights to infants, but not animals, on account of their membership in the human species. Second, Nozick could grant rights to infants, but not animals, on account of their potentiality. Third, Nozick could grant rights to both infants and animals. We suggest that the third option is the most promising.</p
Media making as peacemaking: Israel/Palestine
No full textThe horrific events of October 7 and the devastating war in Gaza have brought Israel/Palestine to the headlines once again. We have seen this all play out before: another ambitious peace plan, which secured a ceasefire, is imagined as the dawn of a new era of peace in the Middle East. But is it? Critiquing traditional state-centered approaches to peace, which usually highlight the work of diplomats and politicians, and which historically failed miserably in Israel/Palestine, this book shifts our attention to the experiences of ordinary people. Investigating the idea of media encounters, it shows how the spontaneous collaboration of Palestinian and Jewish media practitioners and the popular texts they create together in television dramas, digital activism and mainstream journalism offer a new and exciting way to think about peace anew. A peace which does not maintain a repressive status quo, but seeks to deliver equality and justice to all people, Palestinians and Jews, living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.</p
Greening Cambodia: alternative journeys for youth participation in climate action
No full textChapter from Routledge handbook of young people and environmental action. This chapter documents the journey of Peach, a young environmental leader from Cambodia, focusing on her story into climate action to inform and support other aspiring youth about to embark upon their own journey into environmental action. Amidst the rich cultural tapestry and economic dynamism of Cambodia, a burgeoning generation is awakening to the pressing need for improved environmental stewardship. The chapter explores this multifaceted landscape reflected in a journey that defines these experiences.The chapter highlights how youth can find a multitude of safe spaces in which they can explore the opportunities to be part of a global climate movement, including harnessing technological advances such as social media platforms, alongside engagement with grassroots initiatives that empower young climate leaders to amplify their voices and thus influence change. Additionally, the chapter will explore other opportunities that support their action, including international collaborations, skill development and policy discussions.The journey towards taking environmental action for global youth is not without its challenges, however. We therefore discuss the pervasive, place-based barriers that face youth, ranging from socio-economic constraints and educational gaps to political obstacles and cultural nuances. The chapter reflects on the resilience and resourcefulness that is required to navigate these challenges, drawing attention to the innovative strategies that have been employed by Peach. We provide insights that will act as a valuable resource for academics, policymakers and youth themselves as a way of engendering solidarity and hope and fostering a deeper comprehension of the unique dynamics that influence the opportunities to engage in environmental action in Cambodia.</p