Cover crops are an important management tool for organic vegetable farmers, but selection of individual cover crop species can lead to a tradeoff between agroecosystem services provisioned. In contrast, cover crop mixtures may provide multiple ecosystem services simultaneously, known as multifunctionality. This study evaluated the performance of browntop millet (Urochloa ramosa; BTM), buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum; BW), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata; CP), and sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea; SH) in monocultures, two three-way mixtures (3-CP = browntop millet, buckwheat, and cowpea; 3-SH = browntop millet, buckwheat, and sunnhemp), and a four-way mixture containing all evaluated cover crop species (4-W). An autumn cabbage vegetable crop (Brassica oleracea var. Caraflex) was grown following cover crop termination. To evaluate the cover crop treatments and explore the applicability of some tenets of biodiversity theory to cover crop mixtures, we monitored the ecosystem services of weed suppression, inorganic nitrogen provisioning, vegetable yield, and habitat for microorganisms. Overall, the cover crop mixtures evaluated were able to combine the benefits of the individual species in the mixture and provision the sought ecosystem services, although they did not exceed the performance of the best monocultures. Weed suppression was similar between mixtures and the top performing monoculture, BTM in 2022 and BW in 2023. The high productivity of browntop millet in mixtures, accounting for on average 74% of 3-CP biomass and 56% of 4-W biomass, when seeded at 20% and 25% its full rate, respectively, likely drove weed suppression in mixtures. In 2022, cabbage yield following 3-SH and 4-W was similar to the legume monocultures. Due to the suppression of cowpea in 3-CP from interspecific competition, 3-CP plots had a lower cabbage yield than the legume monocultures and were similar to BTM and Control. Soil microbial biomass, used to measure habitat for microorganisms, was 18% higher following mixtures compared to monocultures in the first year, although no differences were found in the second year. The seeding rate proportions used in the three-way mixtures, 60% of the legume full rate and 20% of the full rate of both browntop millet and buckwheat, achieved the target of a C:N ratio ≤30:1 and can be recommended when based on appropriate seeding rates for a given area. Tailoring future cover crop mixture research to questions of seeding rate thresholds and interspecific competition will improve complementarity and the provisioning of multiple ecosystem services in mixtures, offering valuable, practical guidance to growers.

News sources revealed in August 2018 that Tokyo Medical University has been systematically tampering with its entrance exam scores to reduce the number of female students at the institution. This scandal led to a government investigation into medical faculties, and initial reports suggest that such gender discrimination is widespread in medical faculty admissions. This issue relates to several stubborn problems facing Japanese society today: It reflects how a more general context of gender discrimination threatens to impede new solutions to the crises facing medicine in Japan as a workplace and as a place of care, and how recent efforts to counter discriminatory practices and encourage “diversity” lack accountability. This article shows how the gender gap in the medical field points to deeper problems in the profession, how recent research suggests that gender diversity may improve medical outcomes in terms of patient care, and how this entrance-exam scandal highlights the inadequacy and lack of accountability behind recent efforts to promote “diversity.”

This article articulates a regional, diachronic approach to precontact central Andean tombs by interpreting differences in materiality and function as evidence for distinct religious traditions. I analyze a sample of 788 tombs from 30 sites in the Sacred Valley and adjacent tributary valleys (Cusco, Peru), built and used during the Late Intermediate and Inka periods (ca. AD 1000–1532). Combining primary and published datasets, this sample includes a wide variety of tombs that variably facilitated or impeded certain interactions and relationships between the living, the dead, and the environment. To understand this diversity, I develop a typology comprising six tomb types based on morphological traits, which exhibit overlapping distribution patterns at local and regional scales. In contrast to studies that emphasized commonality and timelessness in central Andean mortuary practices, these data attest to considerable diversity in belief and value systems during half a millennium. As such, this study challenges existing models and presents new interpretations of late precontact tombs, considering that central Andeans across time and space held divergent beliefs about life and death. Recognizing diversity in past and present Indigenous societies is required for an empirical and decolonial archaeology that rejects stereotypes of cultural homogeneity.

Racially and ethnically minoritized individuals, first-generation college students, and women are significantly underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. This lack of equal representation limits creativity and progress in these fields and perpetuates systemic barriers that discourage students from pursuing STEM pathways. This special communication introduces the three-tiered mentorship model employed in the Teen Science Ambassador Program (TSAP), which incorporates senior mentors, near-peer mentors, and high school ambassadors (i.e., mentees) to promote education, hands-on research, and career development in STEM for underrepresented students. We discuss the benefits and challenges of the three-tiered model and offer recommendations for optimizing its effectiveness to enhance mentorship experiences for all participants. Findings from the TSAP program suggest that the three-tiered approach benefited all participants: high school ambassadors gained STEM skills and confidence, near-peer mentors developed leadership and communication abilities, and senior mentors improved mentorship skills. However, the effectiveness of near-peer mentorship is highly dependent on clearly defined roles and structured involvement. Thus, feedback collected from each mentorship tier was used to inform subsequent iterations of the program. The layered mentorship structure fostered a sense of community and belonging, which is crucial for retaining individuals from underrepresented groups in STEM.

The diogenid hermit crab, Calcinus morgani Rahayu & Forest, 1999, is reported from the Andaman Islands in the eastern Indian Ocean. It was previously recorded as Calcinus gaimardii (H. Milne Edwards, 1848) from the Nicobar Islands, south of the Andaman Islands, in 1865 about 160 years ago, but there were no additional records of the species in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The diagnosis of C. morgani is provided on the basis of the present specimens for helping the identification. A key to species of the genus Calcinus known from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is also provided.

The genetic diversity of Cyclanthera pedata was assessed through agro-morphological, mineral composition and biochemical traits. Field surveys across India documented its wide ecological distribution (18.66°–31.02°N, 78.05°–83.27°E, 131–3665 m AMSL) in Andhra Pradesh and northwest Himalayan region. Field evaluations were conducted during Kharif 2021 and 2022 at ICAR-Vivekananda Parvatiya Krishi Anusandhan Sansthan, Almora (1250 m AMSL). Significant genotypic variation was observed in fruit yield (195–1505 g/plant), fruit numbers (36–364 per plant), chlorophyll content (0.49–2.61 μg/g) and antioxidant activities (16.02–39.04 mM Trolox equivalent/g DW). Notable genotypes included RK-40 (highest yield of 1505 g/plant), RK-01 (early flowering) and RK-33 (early fruiting). High coefficients of variation (>23%) were noted in total chlorophyll, carotenoids and FRAP values. Genotype RK-42 excelled in antioxidant activities and carotenoids. Hierarchical cluster analysis grouped the germplasm into four clusters based on critical traits independent of geographic origin. In contrast, principal component analysis identified traits like polyphenols, antioxidants, seed weight and fruit yield as significant contributors to phenotypic variation. The biplot revealed relationships between traits, such as positive correlations between fruit yield, fruit and pulp weight, and biochemical traits like DPPH and ABTS. Genotypes such as IC 430006, IC 356007, IC 393261, IC 393308, UKAl 1 and IC 361297 display distinct profiles. These findings highlight critical traits for breeding and conservation efforts, particularly for enhancing fruit yield and biochemical attributes in C. pedata germplasm.

Humans often learn preferentially from ingroup members who share a social identity affiliation, while ignoring or rejecting information when it comes from someone perceived to be from an outgroup. This sort of bias has well-known negative consequences – exacerbating cultural divides, polarization, and conflict – while reducing the information available to learners. Why does it persist? Using evolutionary simulations, we demonstrate that similarity-biased social learning (also called parochial social learning) is adaptive when (1) individual learning is error-prone and (2) sufficient diversity inhibits the efficacy of social learning that ignores identity signals, as long as (3) those signals are sufficiently reliable indicators of adaptive behaviour. We further show that our results are robust to considerations of other social learning strategies, focusing on conformist and pay-off-biased transmission. We conclude by discussing the consequences of our analyses for understanding diversity in the modern world.