This is a reply to Komárek’s criticism of our article “Europe’s political constitution”. We address the issues raised by our critic one by one. The topics range from the definition of the public sphere to the role that law blogs and social media play in it. The reply concludes by examining what it means to pursue truth in legal scholarship based on contrasting the views of Hans Kelsen und Stanley Fish.

Since the Paris Agreement, interest in decarbonization and sustainable finance has grown rapidly. Within the prevalent derisking regime, investment for decarbonization must come predominantly from the private sector. However, growth in ‘sustainable finance’ assets is not necessarily causing more sustainability-advancing productive investment to drive the green transition. We thus argue that sustainable finance is not exclusively about investing or providing finance, but crucially also about changing corporate practices toward greater sustainability. To shed light on how private financial actors can influence sustainability in a derisking context and to facilitate this broader research perspective on sustainable finance, we introduce the conceptual framework of ‘channels of influence’. These channels are different strategies and mechanisms used by private actors that influence the behavior of financial and non-financial corporations to increase financial flows to sustainable productive investments. We identify ten channels of influence concerning sustainable finance: (1) initial financing; (2) refinancing; (3) (re)insurance; (4) ratings; (5) climate-litigation; (6) company engagement; (7) divestment; (8) reputation; (9) coalition-building; and (10) standard-setting. These are grouped according to the specificity and breadth of their sustainability impact. Using these channels enables private actors to advance sustainability within the status quo of state-market relations and regulation.

We consider equational theories based on axioms for recursively defining functions, with rules for equality and substitution, but no form of induction—we denote such equational theories as PETS for pure equational theories with substitution. An example is Cook’s system PV without its rule for induction. We show that the Bounded Arithmetic theory $\mathrm {S}^{1}_2$ proves the consistency of PETS. Our approach employs model-theoretic constructions for PETS based on approximate values resembling notions from domain theory in Bounded Arithmetic, which may be of independent interest.

Colonization processes have resulted in the naturalization and universalization of a particular Eurocentric construction of political ordering. As a result, Indigenous claims of sovereignty – especially significant in settler colonial contexts since the 1960s and 1970s – have historically been obfuscated and are still construed as anomalies or impossibilities. Based on poststructuralist international relations theory and Indigenous political theory, as well as interviews conducted with Māori actors participating in the mobilization of sovereignty politics, this article advances two main contributions. Firstly, it develops a particular approach to the state-Indigenous contention of political ordering by calling attention to the metaphysical foundations of the particular conceptions of sovereignty they respectively deploy. Secondly, it contends that Māori political actors are enacting a ‘metaphysical revolt’ through their reconceptualization of sovereignty theory and practice; one that contains potential for a decolonial rearticulation of political ordering. Through its direct engagement with Indigenous political mobilization and the theorizing sustaining it, this article illustrates how Indigenous theories of sovereignty translate into conceptual alternatives that break away from the colonial roots and underpinnings of paradigmatic sovereignty. Therefore, this article contributes to exploring alternative models of political ordering by illuminating the links between Indigenous thought and decolonial imagination.

This paper is a contribution to a symposium on Michael Otsuka’s book, How to Pool Risk Across Generations. Following Otsuka, one may distinguish three distinct systems of cooperation within a standard pension arrangement: the retirement system, the longevity risk pool and the investment risk pool. It is important to observe, however, that only the retirement system constitutes a genuine system of intergenerational cooperation, the other two are essentially intragenerational, in that they pool risks among members of a cohort. Otsuka is faulted for being occasionally less than clear on these distinctions.

We compared two Candida auris screening strategies in high-risk patients.

The positivity rates for point prevalence survey (PPS) and admission screening were similar: 3.9% versus 3.4%, respectively, P = 1.00. Approximately 3% of high-risk patients are colonized, thus there is a need for a universal infection prevention approach for C. auris.

Michael Otsuka argues that collective pension schemes are forms of social cooperation on equal terms for mutual advantage and thus, matters of social justice. In this way Otsuka wants to understand collectively funded pensions in Rawlsian terms. I argue that not all forms of social cooperation are the same and that the specific kind of social cooperation Rawls has in mind is, in at least three central respects, different from the kind of social cooperation involved in the collective pension schemes Otsuka describes.

To clarify the effects of kefir in critical periods of development in adult diseases, we study the effects of kefir intake during early life on gut microbiota and prevention of colorectal carcinogenesis in adulthood. Lactating Wistar rats were divided into three groups: control (C), kefir lactation (KL), and kefir puberty (KP) groups. The C and KP groups received 1 mL of water/day; KL dams received kefir milk daily (108 CFU/mL) during lactation. After weaning (postnatal day 21), KP pups received kefir treatment until 60 days. At 67 days old, colorectal carcinogenesis was induced through intraperitoneal injection of 1, 2-dimethylhydrazine. The gut microbiota composition were analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and DESeq2 (differential abundance method), revealing significant differences in bacterial abundances between the kefir consumption periods. Maternal kefir intake strong anticancer power, suppressed tumors in adult offspring and reduced the relative risk of offspring tumor development. The gut microbiota in cecal samples of the KL group was enriched with Lactobacillus, Romboutsia, and Blautia. In contrast, control animals were enriched with Acinetobacter. The administration of kefir during critical periods of development, with emphasis on lactation, affected the gut microbial community structure to promote host benefits. Pearson analysis indicated positive correlation between tumor number with IL-1 levels. Therefore, the probiotic fermented food intake in early life may be effective as chemopreventive potential against colon tumor development, especially in lactation period.

Weed infestations have been identified as a major cause of yield reductions in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.), a vital oil crop that has gained significant prominence in Iran, especially within Fars Province. Weed management using machine learning algorithms has become a crucial approach within the framework of precision agriculture for enhancing the efficacy and efficiency of weed control strategies. The evolution of habitat suitability models for weeds represents a significant advancement in agricultural technology, offering the capability to predict weed occurrence and proliferation accurately and reliably. This study focuses on the issue of dominant weed infestation in rapeseed cultivation, particularly emphasizing the prevalence and impact of wild oat (Avena fatua L.) as the dominant weed species in rapeseed farming in 2023. We collected data on 12 environmental variables related to topography, climate, and soil properties to develop habitat suitability models. Three “machine learning techniques”, including “random forest (RF)”, “support vector machine (SVM)”, and “boosted regression tree (BRT)”, were estimated based on the “receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and area under the curve (AUC)” to model the distribution of A. fatua. Model performance was quantified using the “ROC curve and AUC” metrics to identify the best predictive algorithm. The findings indicated that “Random Forest (RF), boosted regression tree (BRT), and support vector machine (SVM)” models exhibited accuracies of 99%, 97%, and 96% for the habitat suitability of A. fatua, respectively. The Boruta feature selection method identified the slope variable as significantly influential in wild oat habitat suitability modeling, followed by plan curvature, clay, temperature, and silt. This study serves as a case study that highlights the utility of machine learning for habitat suitability predictions when information on multiple environmental variables is available. This approach supports effective weed management strategies, potentially enhancing rapeseed productivity and mitigating the ecological impacts associated with weed infestation.

With the development of radiocarbon dating methods in the last decade, the Andean archaeological community has successfully leaned into the problem of the chronology of the expansion of the Inca State. While this chronology was based on ethnohistorical accounts (Rowe 1945), it has been possible to verify its foundations precisely in the last decade. The results from the Maucallacta region are part of these discussions and are intended to add new data from the Inca province of Kuntisuyu, which was neglected in this debate until now. The project encompasses archaeological investigations near the snow-covered volcano Coropuna, frequently mentioned by chroniclers of the 16th and 17th centuries as an oracle worshiped since pre-Inca times. This includes a large complex known as Maucallacta-Pampacolca, located approximately 170 km northwest of Arequipa in the southern highlands of Peru, within the District of Pampacolca, Province of Castilla, Department of Arequipa (LS; 3750 m asl). Due to its location, it holds a unique relationship with the Coropuna landscape. The site is a vast administrative center featuring over three hundred stone buildings, tombs, and ceremonial structures. Among them, the most important is the large ceremonial platform with ushnu and the dumps deposited beneath it. The analysis of ceramics and animal bones, combined with stratigraphic analysis and the results of new calibrations and interpretations of radiocarbon dates, provides a comprehensive picture of the formation and use of ceremonial dumps at the site, making them one of the most thoroughly examined collections in this regard.

An important strand of argument in Alastair Norcross's Morality by Degrees: Reasons without Demands is the rejection of the standard account of harm, which underwrites non-comparative statements of the form “act A harms person X.” According to Norcross, the correct account of harm is a contextualist one that only underwrites comparative statements of the form “act A results in a worse world for X than alternative act B, and a better world than alternative act C.” This article criticizes Norcross's contextualist account and his rejection of the standard account. It follows that moral theorists of all kinds should not be deterred by Norcross's arguments from continuing to rely on the standard account and using it to non-comparatively categorize some acts as harmings.

Off-target herbicide drift away from rice is historically a concern in California, where susceptible crops such as orchards and vineyards are nearby. Tetflupyrolimet is a potent inhibitor of dihydroorotate dehydrogenase that provides excellent grass weed control in rice cropping systems. In efforts to steward tetflupyrolimet before its registration in California, this research was conducted to compare the onset of foliar symptoms from tetflupyrolimet applications onto almond, grapevine, peach, pistachio, plum, and walnut. Tetflupyrolimet was applied to these tree and vine crops at fractional rates of 1/200×, 1/100×, 1/33×, and 1/10× of the 125 g ai ha–1 recommended use rate on rice. Almond, pistachio, and walnut trees also received 1× of the use rate. Tetflupyrolimet treatments were applied on one side of 3- to 4-yr-old almond, peach, pistachio, plum, and walnut trees, and on one side of 25- to 26-yr-old grapevines in 2022 and 2023. Visible injury ratings were carried out weekly to assess symptomology throughout the growing seasons and at leaf-out the following springs. Tree trunk diameter was recorded before and after herbicide applications. No injury was observed to any tested crops, regardless of the tetflupyrolimet application rate. In all orchard crops, tree trunk diameter was not affected by tetflupyrolimet treatments. Likewise, grape yield was not reduced even at the 1/10× tetflupyrolimet fractional rate. Since no injury symptoms were recorded, this research suggests that tetflupyrolimet can be safely used on nearby rice fields and might be a target for future registration consideration for use on orchard and vineyard crops.

This paper presents the results of new research on two sarsen stones, known as the Cuckoo Stone and Tor Stone, both former standing stones that lie on opposite banks of the River Avon and straddle the eastern border of the Stonehenge and Avebury World Heritage Site. Geochemical analysis indicates that both stones were probably transported to their present site from West Woods on the Marlborough Downs in north Wiltshire, a source that likely also supplied the large sarsen monoliths at Stonehenge. The paper examines the geological conditions necessary for the formation of sarsen across the site of the present-day Salisbury Plain to address the apparent absence of natural sarsen in the area. The results are integrated with those of archaeological fieldwork from nearby contemporaneous sites to suggest that the Cuckoo Stone and Tor Stone were probably introduced into the Stonehenge landscape in the early part of the Late Neolithic period, ie, contemporary with Phase 1 of Stonehenge and some 400–500 years before the construction of the principal sarsen settings at the monument. Visibility analysis indicates that the two stones were probably intervisible and likely to have formed part of a planned landscape and were positioned to create a formal portal to the Stonehenge area on either bank of the River Avon.

All biochemical reactions directly involve structural changes that may occur over a very wide range of timescales from femtoseconds to seconds. Understanding the mechanism of action thus requires determination of both the static structures of the macromolecule involved and short-lived intermediates between reactant and product. This requires either freeze-trapping of intermediates, for example by cryo-electron microscopy, or direct determination of structures in active systems at near-physiological temperature by time-resolved X-ray crystallography. Storage ring X-ray sources effectively cover the time range down to around 100 ps that reveal tertiary and quaternary structural changes in proteins. The briefer pulses emitted by hard X-ray free electron laser sources extend that range to femtoseconds, which covers critical chemical reactions such as electron transfer, isomerization, breaking of covalent bonds, and ultrafast structural changes in light-sensitive protein chromophores and their protein environment. These reactions are exemplified by the time-resolved X-ray studies by two groups of the FAD-based DNA repair enzyme, DNA photolyase, over the time range from 1 ps to 100 μs.