32151 research outputs found
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Between macrosociolinguistics and microsociolinguistics through the lens of bookstores
Get PDFDrawing on my quarter-of-a-century-long experience with interdisciplinary research on language politics and the social and political history of languages in Central and Eastern Europe, I sketch examples of macro and micro approaches of how social scientists (including historians) may fruitfully probe into matters linguistics. At the same time, these examples can be also of use to (socio)linguists, who wish to integrate their findings with relevant socio-political, economic and cultural developments of the present moment or from the past. I range from the rarely noticed divide in language politics between Eurasia and the ‘Rest’ of the world to the politics of the global translation market, ethnolinguistic nationalism, Holocaust denial, and to the politics of script. As the article’s title announces, I adopted bookstores in the role of a unifying lens of observation. The physicality of bookstores constitutes a tangible ‘crystallization’ of technology and power relations in a given society or polity, as expressed through the medium of (or symbolized by) a language or languages.Peer reviewe
Why does community ownership foster greater acceptance of renewable projects? Investigating energy justice explanations
Get PDFFunding: This work was supported by the Rothermere Foundation, the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Centennial Scholarship Fund and the School of Geography and Sustainable Development at the University of St Andrews.The fact that community ownership increases the social acceptability of renewable energy projects is well established, but there is a lack of empirical evidence to explain why this is the case. This study examines whether energy justice factors (fair involvement, fair distribution of benefits and perceived impacts from wind turbines) can help explain this relationship, whether these factors are interrelated, and whether different ownership structures (community, shared or private ownership) change these associations. Using a postal survey of residents in Scotland (n = 320), the study employs a novel method, Multigroup-Structural Equation Modelling, to investigate these questions. This modelling reveals that acceptance of these projects was influenced by factors of energy justice (i.e. fair involvement, fair benefits and perceived impacts), but the influence from each factor depended on the ownership structure. Specifically, those near the community-owned project prioritised involvement, those near the privately-owned valued fair benefits, and those near the shared ownership prioritised both. By examining the relationships amongst energy justice factors, the real-life complexity of people’s responses to wind energy projects is revealed, whereby factors can have knock-on effects. Importantly, this study finds that the community and shared ownership projects fostered greater community acceptance than the privately-owned because they had more instances where fair involvement influenced other factors, which led to greater overall acceptance. Although community involvement may seem time-consuming, a more inclusive approach can prevent long-term issues caused by local opposition.Peer reviewe
Minimal generating sets for matrix monoids
Get PDFFunding: Supported by EPSRC funding (EP/N509759/1).In this paper, we determine minimal generating sets for several well-known monoids of matrices over certain semirings. In particular, we find minimal generating sets for the monoids consisting of: all n × n boolean matrices when n ≤ 8; the n × n boolean matrices containing the identity matrix (the reflexive boolean matrices) when n ≤ 7; the n × n boolean matrices containing a permutation (the Hall matrices) when n ≤ 8; the upper, and lower, triangular boolean matrices of every dimension; the 2 × 2 matrices over the semiring ℕ ∪ {−∞} with addition ⊕ defined by x ⊕ y = max(x, y) and multiplication ⊗ given by x ⊗ y = x + y (the max-plus semiring); the 2 × 2 matrices over any quotient of the max-plus semiring by the congruence generated by t = t + 1 where t ∈ ℕ; the 2 × 2 matrices over the min-plus semiring and its finite quotients by the congruences generated by t = t + 1 for all t ∈ ℕ; and the n × n matrices over ℤ/nℤ relative to their group of units.Peer reviewe
A model ODE for the exponential asymptotics of nonlinear parasitic capillary ripples
Get PDFFunding: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC grant no. EP/V012479/1 to J.S. and P.H.T.); Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC grant no. EP/W522491/1 to J.S.).In this work, we develop a linear model ordinary differential equation (ODE) to study the parasitic capillary ripples present on steep Stokes waves when a small amount of surface tension is included in the formulation. Our methodology builds upon the exponential asymptotic theory of Shelton & Trinh (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 939, 2022, A17), who demonstrated that these ripples occur beyond-all-orders of a small-surface-tension expansion. Our model equation, a linear ODE forced by solutions of the Stokes wave equation, forms a convenient tool to calculate numerical and asymptotic solutions. We show analytically that the parasitic capillary ripples that emerge in solutions to this linear model have the same asymptotic scaling and functional behaviour as those in the fully nonlinear problem. It is expected that this work will lead to the study of parasitic capillary ripples that occur in more general formulations involving viscosity or time-dependence.Peer reviewe
An enthalpy-based model for the physics of ice-crystal icing
Get PDFFunding: T.P. acknowledges support from the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Statistical Applied Mathematics at Bath (EPSRC grant no. EP/S022945/1). J.S. and P.H.T. acknowledge support from EP/V012479/1, and J.S. is additionally supported by EP/W522491/1.Ice-crystal icing (ICI) in aircraft engines is a major threat to flight safety. Due to the complex thermodynamic and phase-change conditions involved in ICI, rigorous modelling of the accretion process remains limited. The present study proposes a novel modelling approach based on the physically observed mixed-phase nature of the accretion layers. The mathematical model, which is derived from the enthalpy change after accretion (the enthalpy model), is compared with an existing pure-phase layer model (the three-layer model). Scaling laws and asymptotic solutions are developed for both models. The onset of ice accretion, the icing layer thickness and solid ice fraction within the layer are determined by a set of non-dimensional parameters including the Péclet number, the Stefan number, the Biot number, the melt ratio and the evaporative rate. Thresholds for freezing and non-freezing conditions are developed. The asymptotic solutions present good agreement with numerical solutions at low Péclet numbers. Both the asymptotic and numerical solutions show that, when compared with the three-layer model, the enthalpy model presents a thicker icing layer and a thicker water layer above the substrate due to mixed-phased features and modified Stefan conditions. Modelling in terms of the enthalpy poses significant advantages in the development of numerical methods to complex three-dimensional geometrical and flow configurations. These results improve understanding of the accretion process and provide a novel, rigorous mathematical framework for accurate modelling of ICI.Peer reviewe
'A slashing review is a thing that they like’ : vivisection and Victorian literary criticism
Get PDFIn nineteenth-century Britain, the antivivisection movement attracted a striking number of authors, poets, and playwrights, who attended meetings, signed petitions, contributed funds, and lent their pens to the cause. However, the language of vivisection extended far beyond literature with a purpose, seeping into the heart of late-Victorian literary debates. This article explores analogies of writing as vivisection in literary-critical discourse. Surveying the newspapers and periodicals of the period demonstrates that such terminology was remarkably sprawling in terms of the genres and authors it was applied to and the meanings it conveyed. Essayists and reviewers also used metaphors relating to experimental physiology’s modus operandi to shape and articulate key methodological and ideological principles that were emerging in late-Victorian literary-critical theory and practice. These included discussions of how to analyse living authors and contemporary works, conceptualizations of whether critical operations should produce social benefits, and considerations of the aesthetic and technical opportunities that literary or critical vivisection offered or, indeed, prevented.Peer reviewe
Inequalities in disability-free and disabling multimorbid life expectancy in Costa Rica, Mexico, and the United States
Get PDFFunding: This work was supported by a St Andrews-Max Planck PhD Studentship in Population Health (to A. Lam); the Academy of Medical Sciences, the Wellcome Trust, the Government Department of Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy, the British Heart Foundation Diabetes UK, and the Global Challenges Research Fund (SBF004\1093 to K. Keenan); and the Economic and Social Research Council Centre for Population Change and the Economic and Social Research Council Connecting Generations Centre (ES/K007394/1 and ES/W002116/1 to H. Kulu). The original CRELES pre-1945 cohort was funded by the Wellcome Trust (072406), and the CRELES 1945–1955 Retirement Cohort was funded by the U.S. National Institute on Aging (R01AG031716). The development of the Harmonized MHAS was funded by the National Institute on Ageing (R01 AG030153). The MHAS is partly sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (NIH R01AG018016) in the United States and the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía in Mexico. The Health and Retirement Study is sponsored by the National Institute on Aging (NIA U01AG009740) and is conducted by the University of Michigan. The RAND HRS Longitudinal File was developed at RAND with funding from the National Institute on Aging and the Social Security Administration.Objectives To better understand variations in multimorbidity severity over time, we estimate disability-free and disabling multimorbid life expectancy (MMLE), comparing Costa Rica, Mexico, and the United States (US). We also assess MMLE inequalities by sex and education. Methods Data come from the Costa Rican Study on Longevity and Healthy Aging (2005–2009), the Mexican Health and Aging Study (2012–2018), and the Health and Retirement Study (2004–2018). We apply an incidence-based multistate Markov approach to estimate disability-free and disabling MMLE and stratify models by sex and education to study within-country heterogeneity. Multimorbidity is defined as a count of 2 or more chronic diseases. Disability is defined using limitations in activities of daily living. Results Costa Ricans have the lowest MMLE, followed by Mexicans, then individuals from the US. Individuals from the US spend about twice as long with disability-free multimorbidity compared with individuals from Costa Rica or Mexico. Females generally have longer MMLE than males, with particularly stark differences in disabling MMLE. In the US, higher education was associated with longer disability-free MMLE and shorter disabling MMLE. We identified evidence for cumulative disadvantage in Mexico and the US, where sex differences in MMLE were larger among the lower educated. Discussion Substantial sex and educational inequalities in MMLE exist within and between these countries. Estimating disability-free and disabling MMLE reveals another layer of health inequality not captured when examining disability and multimorbidity separately. MMLE is a flexible population health measure that can be used to better understand the aging process across contexts.Peer reviewe
Coordination, sensemaking, and idea work : how founding teams pivot their venture ideas
Get PDFFunding: The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the German Research Foundation (DFG) under grant number BR 3889/2-1.This study offers novel insights into how team structure and flexibility affect pivoting. It details how founding team coordination practices shape individual and collective sensemaking of feedback and efforts to improve a venture idea. Following seven founding teams, we identified how teams with overlapping responsibilities enjoyed the flexibility of both fragmented and holistic sensemaking. This enabled them to pivot when needed but otherwise persevere with their venture idea. In contrast, teams with clear separation of responsibilities engaged in fragmented sensemaking and only persevered with their idea. Our findings advance research on founding team coordination, pivoting, and teams' understanding of their venture ideas.Peer reviewe
A mythological study of the conceptions of kingship in the Iranian imagination : the double-natured king-priest from Jamshid and Zahhāk to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and Ruhollah Khomeini
No full textThis thesis examines the myth of Jamshid and Zahhāk as a narrative that has reflected and influenced the depictions of the ideals and pitfalls of rulership in Persian literature from historical times to the modern era. It posits that Iranians’ collective desires and fears have shaped and, in turn, have been informed by the story of a sun-like benevolent king and his overthrow by a malevolent dragon-like tyrant. The study scrutinises the evolution of these mythic figures as doppelgängers and their metaphorical reappearance in literary depictions that cast ruling figures in their image or use them to warn about the pitfalls of power.
A review of various sources, including the Avesta, the Shahnameh, and several medieval texts, such as mirrors for princes, provides an exhaustive view of the influence of the myth and its versions on Iranian perceptions of leadership and authority. The detailed examination of the medieval texts and a romance recorded in the nineteenth century reveals the recurring narrative of these mythic figures and their symbolic significance in shaping conceptions of kingship. The thesis further examines the repercussions of the myth in modern and contemporary literature by explaining how Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (r. 1941–79), the last shah of Iran, and Ruhollah Khomeini (r. 1979–1989), the founder of the Islamic Republic, have been cast within this mythological framework.
Incorporating theoretical lenses from Carl Gustav Jung, post-Jungian scholars, Northrop Frye, and Ernst Cassirer, this research analyses the myth’s complex linguistic, psychological, theological, political, and aesthetic dimensions. The transformation of the Jamshid-Zahhāk myth reflects the transition from a double-natured king-priest in ancient Iranian mythology to a Perso-Semitic priest-king in today’s political and literary discourse in Iran.
In its conclusion, the thesis asserts the need for innovative perspectives in the study of ancient myths and their adaptations, emphasising the Jamshid-Zahhāk myth’s relevance today
Russophones and the Estonian state, 1991-2004
No full textAfter Estonia regained independence in 1991, its Russian-speaking community deeply resented the loss of Soviet-era privileges. Despite initial resistance, most of the Russophones reconciled themselves to the new democratic order by 2004, when Estonia joined both the European Union and NATO. This dissertation investigates how Estonian governments during this transition period employed the socioeconomic benefits associated with the shift towards a market economy and European Union (EU) membership to preserve national unity.
Estonian Russophones’ sense of insecurity and a desire to maintain their former privileges informed their politics over the past three decades. Once the post-Soviet economic reforms’ benefits extended to all Estonian residents, Russophones viewed the government’s efforts more favourably. The Russophone reaction to Estonia’s core policy objectives – maintaining the free market and joining the Euro-Atlantic security structures – serves as a litmus test for Estonian Russophones’ civic integration.
The dissertation consists of four parts. First, it covers the events leading to the restoration of Estonian independence. It then surveys early post-independence reforms and the Russian government’s manipulation of Russophone socio-economic grievances to reassert control over the former Soviet empire. The third part analyses the policies implemented by the Estonian government to encourage Russophone adaptation to the post-1991 order. Finally, the dissertation examines the process of Estonia’s EU accession, focusing on the Russophones’ crucial support for EU membership
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