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Tracing in Equity: A Constructive Approach
No full textDiscusses the requirement of a fiduciary relationship in equitable tracing claims, arguing that imposing a constructive trust on a wrongdoer who misappropriates a stranger's funds and pays them into a mixed bank account could provide an alternative basis for establishing an equitable proprietary right for the tracing claimant. Refers to relevant case law
‘Could you tell me what that means?’ : ordinary and institutional vocabulary in police interviews with rape victims.
Get PDFPerhaps the most significant outcome of the UK government’s 2021 ‘End-to-end’ review of how sexual offences are dealt with by the Criminal Justice System is Operation Soteria Bluestone (OSB), a programme of research and change which has resulted in the development of a national operating model rolled out across all 43 police forces in England and Wales in July 2023. Surprisingly, Achieving Best Evidence (ABE) interviews with victims did not form a major focus of this model, despite them being widely regarded as the most crucial link in the chain.This paper represents part of the final report on a project that aimed to begin to address this gap. The data drawn on are a set of nine ABE interviews collected from the English police force that first piloted OSB (then called Project Bluestone) but that took place during the period immediately preceding the pilot. They are thus a communicative site where potential weaknesses in investigative practice – of the type that OSB set out to tackle immediately – might be expected to be laid bare. In this paper, two issues are identified and discussed: (i) competing vocabularies and (ii) conflicting understandings of demonstrating certain concepts, e.g. lack of consent. I exemplify these conflicts as they play out in the ABE interviews, draw on the philosophical concept of hermeneutical injustice in explaining these, and conclude with some thoughts on how linguistics might usefully contribute to the new model
Shifting linguistic identity performance and the acquisition of symbolic capital in an online white nationalist forum
Get PDFThis article contributes to a small existing literature which seeks to identify linguistic power resources in harmful online communities, using a dataset taken from a long-running, high profile white nationalist forum to longitudinally explore users’ development of power resources over time. By improving understanding of the nature of power in such communities, this work can aid law enforcement in the investigative prioritisation of high-status community members. To do so, I combine Newsome-Chandler & Grant’s (2023) linguistic resource model of power with Bourdieu’s (2004) concept of symbolic capital, tying the former into a broader, more generalisable understanding of available power resources, while anchoring the latter in a more concrete model of how power may operate discursively in local contexts. My findings show that, surprisingly, users draw on fewer traditional power resources over time, producing less explicitly assertive and extreme discourse. They also begin to treat the forum as a social, rather than solely ideological, space, and increasingly focus criticism on their white (nationalist) in-group, rather than racialised out-groups. I also show that users rely on non-linguistic forms of symbolic capital as secondary, non-linguistic power resources
The power of uptake: Responses to claims to power on anonymous online fora
Get PDFMotivated by the need to better understand criminal online spaces, earlier work enabled us to identify powerful individuals on online anonymous fora as those who draw on multiple power resources in their interactions, and to show how power operates differently across three different fora; a general discussion forum, a white nationalist forum, and a Dark Web CSEA forum (Newsome-Chandler and Grant 2024). This previous work focused on how users make claims to power in order to direct or influence the beliefs or behaviour of others. Here we explore the same three datasets (a sample of 24 threads from each forum), but we have shifted our focus to the other side of the interaction; onto those who are liable to be influenced or persuaded by claims to power. The objective is to provide a small-scale analysis of the effects of claims to power on recipients – to create a pragmatics-based descriptive taxonomy of their responses to claims to power. Using a purpose specific speech act coding framework, we have devised a taxonomy of response types that can hopefully be scaled through automation to determine how influence, persuasion, and potentially radicalisation work within distinct anonymous online networks, and to potentially pick out individuals who may be more vulnerable to persuasion and influence
Choosing to stay::The Resilience-Accessibility Framework as a new perspective on immobility amidst adversity
Get PDFpersons fleeing adversity. As a result, the staying behaviours of communities, particularly those who choose immobility in areas affected by violent conflict and other adversities, are often overlooked. In addition, existing theoretical frameworks fail to capture the distinctive migratory processes and experiences of communities committed to remaining on their ancestral lands. This article introduces the resilience– accessibility framework, a novel analytical framework developed by integrating theoretical insights from the aspirations–capabilities framework with qualitative data from focus group discussions involving 106 respondents in conflict-affected communities in the Middle Belt region in Nigeria. While the framework primarily addresses immobility in conflict-affected areas, it also applies to collectives, such as Indigenous communities, facing challenges like climatic stress, natural disasters, environmental degradation, and governance instability. By broadening the scope of (im)mobility categories, this article offers a framework that foregrounds often-excluded experiences of immobility. It provides analytical tools to examine how resilience, resource accessibility, and structural conditions shape collective decisions to stay put, particularly in communities in the Global South. In doing so, it addresses a persistent research opportunity in migration studies, where immobility remains under-theorized, especially in conditions of adversity
Spotlight on...genomics
Get PDFGenomics has shifted from a research tool to an integral part of obstetric and gynaecological care. The wider ‘-omics’ family—genomics (DNA sequence and variation), transcriptomics (RNA expression), proteomics (protein expression) and metabolomics (metabolic profiles)—all contribute, but genomics currently has the greatest clinical relevance. Over a decade ago, Horgan and Kenny (TOG 2011;13:189-95)1 predicted that ‘-omics’ would unlock biomarkers, sharpen diagnostics and deliver personalised care. Today, that vision is taking shape: genomics is driving precision medicine, replacing one-size-fits-all models with targeted strategies that improve outcomes for women and their families..
Exploring Microphase Separation in Semi-Fluorinated Diblock Copolymers:A Combined Experimental and Modeling Investigation
Get PDFWe report the combined experimental and theoretical study of the bulk self-assembly behavior of polystyrene-block-poly(2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorostyrene) diblock copolymers. These block copolymers were designed to create highly antagonistic blocks (with a high Flory–Huggins interaction parameter, χ) with minimum disruption to the molecular construct (i.e., only replacing five hydrogen atoms with five fluorine atoms). A large library of diblock copolymers (41 samples) was synthesized by reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization to map out a major portion of the phase space. All block copolymers exhibited narrow molecular weight distributions with dispersity (D) values between 1.07 and 1.32, and subsequent thermal annealing revealed phase separation into well-defined nanoscale morphologies depending on their molecular composition, as determined from small-angle X-ray scattering and transmission electron microscopy analyses, with an experimental phase diagram being constructed. The χ value at 25 °C for this block copolymer was estimated to be 0.2 using strong segregation theory, based on trends in phase-separated domain spacing and interfacial width. When applying theoretical approaches, the majority of the domain spacing data trends were captured by a coil–coil diblock copolymer model; however, a better fit to the data for samples with shorter fluorinated blocks was obtained with a rod–coil model, indicating that the chains in these fluorinated blocks likely have a higher inherent stiffness and were thus rod-like. This observation demonstrates that, due to the very high value of χ, a transition from coil–coil to rod–coil behavior can be obtained purely by reducing the length of the stiffer of the two blocks and without varying temperature or the chemical composition of the polymers. This work showcases the presence of strong microphase separation within AB diblock copolymers despite the relatively similar chemical composition of the constituent “A” and “B” units, with a clear transition from rod–coil to coil–coil segregation behavior
Monitoring shrimp behavior in relation to feed provision, location and time of day in an experimental aquaculture pond
Get PDFA primary challenge in penaeid shrimp farming is suboptimal feed utilization, leading to inefficiencies in production. Better insights into shrimp feeding behavior may provide pathways to address these inefficiencies. While previous studies have highlighted the influence of feed dispersal and time of day on penaeid shrimp behavior in controlled settings, comprehensive analyses of their behavior in production ponds remain limited. The aim of this study was to understand shrimp group feeding behavior in ponds, and how this relates to feed provision, location within the pond, and time of day. Three consecutive trials were performed in an experimental aquaculture pond (28 m2) in Zhuhai, China, stocked with juvenile whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei (7.1 ± 0.4 g, mean ± S.E.) at 20 ind.m−2. Each trial comprised 7 days of acclimation followed by 6 days of observation. Three underwater cameras were placed on the bottom of the pond at different locations, with feed provided at different pond locations six times a day between 07:00 and 19:00. Shrimp within the field of view for each camera were tracked using a combination of automated (YOLACT, You Only Look At CoefficienTs) and manual techniques, allowing for calculation of key behavioral metrics associated with individual and group behavior. Shrimp gathered in large numbers around the feeding area shortly after feed provision (i.e. 1 min after) and a gradient in shrimp density was found 10 min after feed provision from high densities inside the feeding area (89.8 ± 5.5 ind.m−2) to low densities on the opposite edge of the pond (11.9 ± 2.3 ind.m−2). Shrimp were more evenly distributed across the pond at night compared to daytime. Although no schooling behavior was observed, shrimp movements were on average twice as fast across the whole pond shortly after feed provision compared to before feeding. Movements inside the feeding area were less polarized (i.e. reduced alignment in the animals’ heading direction relative to that of the group) after feed provision. This study provides a first insight into shrimp feeding behavior in aquaculture ponds, which could help with inefficiencies in production of this species
Utilizing cues from developmental neurogenesis and gliogenesis for better in vitro brain models
Get PDFWith a globally ageing population, neurodegenerative disease poses an increasingly greater risk to health span, yet there are still no curative treatments. Efficient biomimetic modelling is the underlying target for improving preclinical-to-clinical translation of therapies, yet current techniques are poorly translated to clinical studies: animal models, 2D cell culture, as well as 3D spheroid and organoid cultures all have disadvantages which could be resolved by a tuneable, standardized approach. As such, 3D tissue engineered human models have huge potential, but even biomimetic, repeatable, translatable engineered tissues lack maturity in the neural networks created. Neurogenesis and gliogenesis are the processes by which new neurons and glia are created in vivo, mediated by architectural, cellular microenvironmental, and signalling cues which could be adopted in the engineering and synthesis of 3D neural models. This review will look at neurogenic and gliogenic cues and their engineered incorporation to overcome common shortcomings of in vitro 3D neural models—namely maturity, complexity, and reproducibility
Integrating Generative AI into Live Case Studies for Experiential Learning in Operations Management
Get PDFThis research-to-practice study examines how Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) can be integrated into live case studies to enhance experiential learning in higher education. It explores GenAI’s potential as an agent to learn with scaffolding reflection and engagement and addresses gaps in existing applications that often focus narrowly on content generation. To explore GenAI’s agentive potential, the methodology illustrates this approach in a UK postgraduate operations management module. Students engaged in a live case study of a local ethnic restaurant to refine its business model and operations. The data sources used to examine students’ results included module materials, outputs, and feedback surveys. Thematic analysis was employed to assess how GenAI facilitated experiential learning. The findings suggest that GenAI integration facilitated exploration, reflection, conceptualisation, and experimentation. Students reported that the activity was engaging and relevant, facilitating critical decision-making and understanding of operations management. However, the outcomes varied according to GenAI literacy and student participation. Although GenAI-enriched learning is beneficial, human agency and contextual knowledge remain crucial. Overall, this study integrates GenAI as a cognitive partner throughout Kolb’s ELC. This study offers a transferable framework for active learning, illustrating how technology can enhance critical and reflective learning in authentic educational contexts. However, limitations include uneven student participation and engagement, resource constraints, overreliance on artificial intelligence outputs, differentiated impact on learning outcomes, and a single-case report, which must be addressed before the framework can be scaled up. Future research should test this through multi-case studies while developing GenAI literacy, measuring GenAI impact, and implementing ethical practices in the field
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