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Radiocarbon dating insect samples: new data and recommendations
Get PDFRadiocarbon dating insects, whilst theoretically appealing when the environmental record is driven by changes seen in the insect record, is difficult because insects are small, fragile, and rarely found in quantities sufficient for dating. Interactions between the chitin that comprises the insect body and sources of carbon contamination are less well understood than for collagen and cellulose-based organic materials such as bone and plant remains. This means that there is as yet no single radiocarbon pretreatment that can be applied to reliably remove all contaminating carbon across all types of insect remains. In the absence of a standard pretreatment various studies have highlighted important information concerning the practicalities and applicability of different approaches to the problem of radiocarbon dating insect remains. However, this information is currently in a disparate range of sources and there are no papers that synthesise findings across different studies. Here, we present a review of previous work alongside new data to investigate different chemical approaches to sample processing and long-term storage and their impact on the chemistry of samples and contaminants. This confirms the difficulty of exhaustively removing contamination from older samples while balancing the need to retain sufficient pretreated material for subsequent measurement. It also shows that Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy does not always provide sufficient resolution to detect carbon contamination from non-insect sources with confidence. Thus, insect samples that have been in contact with paraffin or stored in ethanol for an extended period of time should not be selected for radiocarbon dating
Redox-driven mineral and organic associations in Jezero Crater, Mars
Get PDFThe Perseverance rover has explored and sampled igneous and sedimentary rocks within Jezero Crater to characterize early Martian geological processes and habitability and search for potential biosignatures1,2,3,4,5,6,7. Upon entering Neretva Vallis, on Jezero Crater’s western edge8, Perseverance investigated distinctive mudstone and conglomerate outcrops of the Bright Angel formation. Here we report a detailed geological, petrographic and geochemical survey of these rocks and show that organic-carbon-bearing mudstones in the Bright Angel formation contain submillimetre-scale nodules and millimetre-scale reaction fronts enriched in ferrous iron phosphate and sulfide minerals, likely vivianite and greigite, respectively. This organic carbon appears to have participated in post-depositional redox reactions that produced the observed iron-phosphate and iron-sulfide minerals. Geological context and petrography indicate that these reactions occurred at low temperatures. Within this context, we review the various pathways by which redox reactions that involve organic matter can produce the observed suite of iron-, sulfur- and phosphorus-bearing minerals in laboratory and natural environments on Earth. Ultimately, we conclude that analysis of the core sample collected from this unit using high-sensitivity instrumentation on Earth will enable the measurements required to determine the origin of the minerals, organics and textures it contains
Italian style, American advantage, European culture
Get PDFThe traditional ‘Italian style’, conventionally, if somewhat stereotypically, described as positivist, dogmatic and deductive, seems increasingly peripheral in a context in which law and legal culture are subject to trends of Americanisation and Europeanisation that require a more substantive and interdisciplinary approach. The question has already been asked whether the Italian style can survive or whether a new European or global style can replace the national ones. At the same time, it is well known that processes of globalisation can lead to a revival of local cultures as a form of reaction or resistance. Against this background, the article critically reflects on the role of the Italian legal style in the face of the process of Europeanisation and the dominance of American common law. Focusing in particular on the case of European private law, it notes that traditional legal cultures retain their relevance and tend to reproduce themselves in the transnational context. But it is precisely there that a critical and more substantive engagement with law becomes all the more urgent
Oracles and sublimation: fantasies of the end of the world
No full textBook synopsis: The Oracle names and honors the symbolic place from where all beings wonder about the course of life. Because we care about tomorrow, we should assume we care about staying alive, about a world in peaceful coexistence. Times of increasing insecurity and the experience of living in a world that refuses to acknowledge our needs give rise to various forms of escapism and misguided decision-making. Searching for big answers and expecting significant movements capable of undoing the damage of wars and dark forces seems unrealistic. Art assumes the existence of a tiny but meaningful spot from which to dream and demand freedom and peace. The Oracle is about this spot
Physical cognition in altered gravity: link between sensorimotor and cognitive adaptability
Get PDFA remarkable aspect of human behavior is the ability to respond quickly to changes in the environment. This behavioral adaptability—a hallmark of intelligence—is critical for survival and everyday function. However, the question remains open as to how the sensorimotor ability to recalibrate and adapt to physical environments is linked to the cognitive ability to modify
internal mental representations of the world. Here, we used altered gravity as a model system to address this question. In a within-subject experiment, 25 participants completed a virtualreality task that required them to adapt their movements to non terrestrial gravities and a computerised task in which they had to reason about physical outcomes under varied gravitational conditions. Participants' performance in these tasks was compared against their performance under normal terrestrial gravity to measure adaptability. Our findings reveal consistent individual differences in adaptability within the sensorimotor domain and the cognitive domain. We also found a significant correlation across the domains. That is, participants who adeptly adjusted their motor actions to the altered gravitational forces also demonstrated a superior ability to adapt their cognitive strategies under similar conditions. Our findings support the theory of embodied cognition, suggesting a strong link between physical interaction with the environment and high-level cognitive processing capabilities. The study raises the possibility that training sensorimotor recalibration may enhance abstract physical reasoning or vice versa
III. From performance to mastery: rethinking diverse writing assessments across disciplines
No full textDiversifying assessments to include forms of communication beyond the academic essay is thought to provide students with more ways of demonstrating their knowledge, leading to improved student outcomes. This essay explores the underlying assumptions of this premise, with reference to the adoption of a policy brief assignment in an environmental policy module. Far from being less demanding than an essay, assessments such as presentations, policy briefs, podcasts, etc. have nuanced purposes, requiring careful crafting. As assessment styles multiply, some students may adopt a maladaptive performance-orientated approach rather than mastering new forms of writing, such that offering more choice could paradoxically lead to negative impacts on student outcomes. We explore how educators can support students to succeed when completing diverse assessments, questioning whether the social function of popular writing is diminished in the ‘sandbox’ setting of the classroom, impacting students’ comprehension of such assignments and their motivation to engage with them
Statistical learning dynamically shapes auditory perception
Get PDFHumans implicitly pick up on probabilities of stimuli and events, yet it remains unclear how statistical learning builds expectations that affect perception. Across 29 experiments, we examine the influence of task-irrelevant distributions—defined across acoustic frequency—on both tone detection in noise and tone duration judgments. The shape and range of the frequency distributions impact suppression and enhancement effects, as does a given tone's position within the range. Perception adapts quickly to changing distributions, but past distributions influence future judgments. Massed exposure to a single frequency impacts perception along a range of subsequently encountered frequencies. A novel bias emerges as well: lower frequencies are perceived as longer and higher ones as shorter. Probability-driven learning dynamically shapes perception, driven by interacting influences of sensory processing, distributional learning, and selective attention that sculpt a gain function involving modest enhancement of more-likely stimuli, and robust suppression of less-likely stimuli
Dual-process theory and decision-making in large language models
No full textLarge language models (LLMs) are increasingly embedded in everyday decision-making scenarios, transforming how people make choices and interact with technology. Despite their seemingly ‘superhuman’ capabilities, LLMs can exhibit pitfalls in their decision-making abilities if not deployed with caution. In this Review, we examine LLM decision-making through the lens of dual-process theory and compare their abilities to human cognition. Guided by this framework, we detail how LLMs mimic both human-like System 1 thinking – exhibiting cognitive biases and employing heuristics – and slower System 2 reasoning through prompting methods like chain-of-thought prompting and reasoning tokens. However, their reasoning is not fully analogous to human cognition; for example, the biases observed in LLMs often reflect patterns in their training data rather than arising from underlying cognitive or neurobiological mechanisms. Furthermore, LLMs can also exhibit their own unique, nonhuman biases, such as hallucinations, that currently limit their application to real-world decision-making applications. Despite these limitations, LLMs hold potential to augment human decision-making when deployed responsibly. Thus, we conclude with recommendations for mitigating biases and improving reliability to help ensure LLMs serve as effective decision-support systems
A multi-analytical study of Nanolignin/Methylcellulose-coated groundwood and cotton Linter Model Papers
Get PDFThis paper presents the synthesis of sustainable lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) and their application in methylcellulose (MC) as LNP/MC coatings for handmade papers. LNPs were produced from bulk kraft lignin via an acetone/water and sonication method, then incorporated into a 1 wt% methylcellulose (MC) matrix at concentrations of 0.4, 1, and 2 wt%. Groundwood and cotton linter papers were coated and exposed to 90 ◦C and 45% relative humidity (RH) for 16 days and the samples’ response to ageing at different concentrations of nanolignin was tested using a multi-analytical approach. The morphology of the LNPs was revealed with scanning electron microscopy, and most LNPs measured below a diameter of 30.8 nm. Colourimetry showed coated samples were inherently darker than uncoated samples but mostly stable in colour. pH remained near neutral for coated groundwood papers during ageing, but cotton papers were consistently acidic. Fourier Academic Editors: Debora Puglia and Florian Zikeli Received: 6 October 2025 Revised: 25 October 2025 Accepted: 28 October 2025 Published: 31 October 2025 Citation: Bloss, M.; Odlyha, M.; Theodorakopoulos, C. A Multi-Analytical Study of Nanolignin/Methylcellulose-Coated Groundwood and Cotton Linter Model Papers. Polymers 2025, 17, 2934. https://doi.org/10.3390/ polym17212934 Copyright: © 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/4.0/). transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy identified spectral similarities between uncoated and coated groundwood samples at approximately 1635 cm−1 and 1725 cm−1, attributed to carbonyl and carboxyl groups, suggesting that LNPs did not contribute to the formation of these groups during ageing. Controlled environment dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA RH)foundimprovedconsolidationandlowerelongationinmostLNP/MC-treatedsamples. These results indicate that there may be potential for LNPs within paper conservatio
The significance of context in diversity-related research
Get PDFThis chapter outlines my background as a diversity researcher and addresses the following questions:
1) What are the research questions you are pursuing and how did you get interested in this area of diversity-related research?
2) Is there a study or finding that you are proud of that sheds light on the importance of having a more global study of diversity scholarship?
3) What advice would you give to make diversity-related research more internationally inclusive?
4) What advice would you give to young people around the globe who want to study diversity?
5) What do you think are the hot topics (related to diversity) for the future
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