We prove structural results for measure-preserving systems, called Furstenberg systems, naturally associated with bounded multiplicative functions. We show that for all pretentious multiplicative functions, these systems always have rational discrete spectrum and, as a consequence, zero entropy. We obtain several other refined structural and spectral results, one consequence of which is that the Archimedean characters are the only pretentious multiplicative functions that have Furstenberg systems with trivial rational spectrum, another is that a pretentious multiplicative function has ergodic Furstenberg systems if and only if it pretends to be a Dirichlet character, and a last one is that for any fixed pretentious multiplicative function, all its Furstenberg systems are isomorphic. We also study structural properties of Furstenberg systems of a class of multiplicative functions, introduced by Matomäki, Radziwiłł, and Tao, which lie in the intermediate zone between pretentiousness and strong aperiodicity. In a work of the last two authors and Gomilko, several examples of this class with exotic ergodic behavior were identified, and here we complement this study and discover some new unexpected phenomena. Lastly, we prove that Furstenberg systems of general bounded multiplicative functions have divisible spectrum. When these systems are obtained using logarithmic averages, we show that a trivial rational spectrum implies a strong dilation invariance property, called strong stationarity, but, quite surprisingly, this property fails when the systems are obtained using Cesàro averages.

Populists emerge when distrust of state institutions or dissatisfaction with democracy convince voters that claims about conspiring elites blocking the general will are valid. We propose that these dynamics change when populists are incumbents; once they command institutions, their sustained support becomes contingent upon trust in the new institutional order, and they are held accountable for making people think democracy is working well. Newly collected data on party populism and survey data from Latin America show that support for populist parties in the region is conditioned by satisfaction with democracy as well as the incumbency status of populists. Dissatisfied voters support populist opposition parties, but support for populist incumbents is higher among those satisfied with democracy and its institutions. While democratic deficits and poor governance provide openings for populists, populists are held accountable for institutional outcomes.

This article offers the first detailed study of a manuscript preserving notes from the Modern Greek course held in 1801-2 by Jean-Baptiste-Gaspard d'Ansse de Villoison in Paris. The notebook was kept by Karl Benedikt Hase, later Professor of Modern Greek at the French École de langues orientales vivantes, during his attendance of Villoison's course as a student. The article sketches first the historical context of the notebook, before an analysis of its contents, and finally a comparison with Hase's later published work on the primary text at its core, Amiras’ Greek translation of Costin's History of Moldavia.

In rural China, male offspring are traditionally regarded as the primary heirs of household assets, particularly land. This study examines the impact of offspring gender composition on long-term agricultural investment behavior, using commercial organic fertilizer application as an example of a strategic long-term investment in farmland. Based on cross-sectional data from 4090 rice farming households across 10 cities (counties) in Hubei province, collected between 2021 and 2023, this analysis identifies three key findings. First, the absence of male offspring significantly reduces long-term agricultural investments, a result that remains robust even when addressing potential endogeneity biases using instrumental variable techniques. Second, households without male heirs exhibit stronger present-oriented preferences and diminished social capital, which further hinder long-term agricultural investments. Third, the negative impact of not having male offspring is more pronounced when the current agricultural decision-maker is male and when land marketization is underdeveloped. These findings underscore the complex interplay between gender norms and agricultural behavior, revealing significant socioeconomic implications of inheritance practices. The study provides insights into addressing these challenges by emphasizing the importance of promoting gender equality and advancing land marketization to enhance equitable land use and support long-term agricultural investment.

Mango is a delicious tropical fruit with high economic value worldwide. The Forest-Savanna Transition zone of Ghana contributes significantly to the production of mangoes for both local and international markets. The zone is plagued with the fruit fly ‘menace’ like all mango-producing areas in Ghana. Not much has been done in terms of species monitoring. A 24- month fruit fly monitoring survey was conducted in eight mango orchards, to assess the composition of fruit flies associated with Mango and their damage levels. Four para-pheromone attractants (Methyl Eugenol, Terpinyl Acetate, Trimedlure, and Cuelure) were used to monitor fruit flies. Eight improvised water bottle traps (two per lure) were purposefully deployed in each orchard. A total of 18 tephritid species belonging to five genera were recorded. Bactrocera (one species), Ceratitis (six species), Dacus (eight species), Zeugodacus (one species) and Xanthaciura (two species). Bactrocera dorsalis was the most abundant species (90% of the collected samples), while the native mango fly, C. cosyra constituted 0.5%. Dacus fuscovittatus and Dacus pleuralis were for the first time captured and identified in Ghana. Dacus langi, Dacus carnesi, Dacus (diastatus?), Ceratitis silvestrii and C. quinaria were recorded for the first time in the zone. The zone recorded a diversity index of 0.41. Damage levels ranged from 41–91%. Ten out of the 18 species, are of economic importance on mango and must be watched. Periodic updates on seasonal fluctuations, species composition and new arrivals are key to the successful implementation of any management strategy.

This compact book offers a closely researched account of the early years of the Qajar dynasty and state, whose political development was permanently marked by the territorial struggle with the Russian Empire in the South Caucasus in its first three decades. Behrooz's work builds on Muriel Atkin's classic Russia and Iran 1780–1928 (1980), and although unlike Atkin he does not make use of any sources in Russian, the range of Persian-language material he draws upon is much greater, and the two books complement each other well. The first two chapters effectively set the political scene, providing a review of the circumstances of Aqa Muhammad Khan's rise to power, his struggle with the Zand rulers of Shiraz, and the extensive preparations he made to secure the succession of his nephew, Baba Khan Jahanbani, the future Fath Ali Shah. These bore fruit when Aqa Muhammad Shah was murdered by his own servants in Shusha in 1797. Significantly, this took place during a campaign to subdue Qarabagh. The central figure of the book, and of the wars against Russia, is Fath Ali's son Abbas Mirza, but a particular strength of Behrooz's account is his close understanding of the family and intertribal relationships among the Qajar elite, as well as of the petty dynasties that ruled in Qarabagh, Iravan, Badkubeh (Baku), and Derbent in this period.

We have conducted a widefield, wideband, snapshot survey using the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP) referred to as the Rapid ASKAP Continuum Survey (RACS). RACS covers ≈ 90% of the sky, with multiple observing epochs in three frequency bands sampling the ASKAP frequency range of 700–1 800 MHz. This paper describes the third major epoch at 1 655.5 MHz, RACS-high, and the subsequent imaging and catalogue data release. The RACS-high observations at 1 655.5MHz are otherwise similar to the previously released RACS-mid (at 1367.5 MHz), and were calibrated and imaged with minimal changes. From the 1 493 images covering the sky up to declination ≈ +48°, we present a catalogue of 2 677 509 radio sources. The catalogue is constructed from images with a median root-mean-square noise of ≈ 195 μJy PSF−1 (point-spread function) and a median angular resolution of 11″. 8 × 8″. 1. The overall reliability of the catalogue is estimated to be 99.18 %, and we find a decrease in reliability as angular resolution improves. We estimate the brightness scale to be accurate to 10 %, and the astrometric accuracy to be within ≈ 0″. 6 in right ascension and ≈ 0″. 7 in declination after correction of a systematic declination-dependent offset. All data products from RACS-high, including calibrated visibility datasets, images from individual observations, full-sensitivity mosaics, and the all-sky catalogue are available at the CSIRO ASKAP Science Data Archive.

This paper reports on the experiences of using an early assessment intervention, specifically employing a Use-Modify-Create scaffold, to teach first-year undergraduate functional programming. The particular intervention that was trialled was the use of an early assessment instrument, in which students had to use code given to them, or slightly modify it, to achieve certain goals. The intended outcome was that the students would thus engage earlier with the functional language, enabling them to be better prepared for the second piece of assessment, where they create code to solve given problems. This intervention showed promise: the difference between a student’s score on the Create assignment improved by an average of 9% in the year after the intervention was implemented, a small effect.

The generation of an autoresonantly phase-locked high-amplitude plasma waves to the chirped beat frequency of two driving lasers is studied in two dimensions using particle-in-cell simulations. The two-dimensional plasma and laser parameters correspond to those that optimized the plasma wave amplitude in one-dimensional simulations. Near the start of autoresonant locking, the two-dimensional simulations appear similar to one-dimensional particle-in-cell results (Luo et al., Phys. Rev. Res., vol. 6, 2024, p. 013338) with plasma wave amplitudes above the Rosenbluth–Liu limit. Later, just below wave breaking, the two-dimensional simulation exhibits a Weibel-like instability and eventually laser beam filamentation. These limit the coherence of the plasma oscillation after the peak plasma wave field is obtained. In spite of the reduction of spatial coherence of the accelerating density structure, the acceleration of self-injected electrons in the case studied remains at $70\,\%$ to $80\,\%$ of that observed in one dimension. Other effects such as plasma wave bowing are discussed.