Month: September 2024

Governance, Monumentality, and Urbanism in the Northern Maya Lowlands During the Preclassic and Classic Periods

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Abstract

This article synthesizes monumentality, governance, urbanism, and regional statecraft in the Northern Maya Lowlands during the Preclassic and Classic periods. As in some parts of the Southern Lowlands, ceremonial spaces likely predated sedentism and monumental construction predated large-scale inequality. Nevertheless, the process of construction and the resulting monuments facilitated complex societies. In the Late Preclassic, some political centers featured factional competition, and there is less evidence for individual rulers than in the Southern Lowlands. The Classic period exhibits remarkable variation in governance. Both dynastic rulership and collective governance in the form of shared decision making are common in the Northern Lowlands throughout the Classic period, with a shift toward the former in later centuries. Northern Lowland cities, while more densely settled than most Southern Lowland centers, do not follow settlement scaling expectations. Density contributed to neighborhood formation and collective action, yet minimal spatial clustering of households makes neighborhoods more difficult to identify. Intra-household inequality appears not to correlate with forms of governance. Marketplaces facilitated the both leadership strategies and household livelihoods. Scholars debate the nature or governance at Chichen Itza, yet several recent projects in its hinterlands clarify the nature of regional statecraft at Chichen, whose leaders exercised a variety of strategies, enabling the enrichment of some of its neighbors.

Clustering-based visualizations for diagnosing diseases on metagenomic data

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Abstract

Metagenomic data has recently become crucial for precision or personalized medicine. However, these data are often complex, challenging to observe and require sophisticated visualization approaches such as clustering algorithms. Additionally, leveraging the robustness of a simple deep learning architecture, such as a shallow convolutional neural network, has attracted many scientists. Therefore, this study utilized well-known clustering algorithms such as density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN), balanced iterative reducing and clustering using hierarchies (BIRCH), and ordering points to identify the clustering structure (OPTICS) to identify patterns in complex data and generate visualizations from species abundance composition of various diseases. The study then integrated a shallow convolutional neural network to perform disease prediction tasks on clustering-based visualizations. Experimental results showed that BIRCH outperformed some studies in diagnosing Type 2 diabetes, while DBSCAN performed well in diagnosing Colorectal cancer and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Mitología Griega y Discurso Ecológico

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Abstract

This article explores the use of Greek mythology in current ecological discourse. In Classical Studies, specifically in Classical Tradition studies, the ecocritical revision of Greco-Latin texts and their survival is still in its infancy. The ecological question is usually approached as a reconstruction of notions and uses of nature, with little reference to the contemporary philosophical and cultural discourse that revolves around the cultural causes of the climate crisis, its historical paradoxes, and its future projections. This has led to a situation in which ancient mythology, especially Greek mythology, is used by ecological discourse representatives for argumentative, explanatory, or informative purposes without the required textual criticism and scientific rigor. This paper insists on the need to critically review the ecological readings of Greek mythology to avoid contradictions, paradoxes, or biased interpretations that could weaken the ecocritical debate. Specifically, two predominant tendencies are analyzed: the argumentative use of myth (e.g., in the case of the adamantine chains of Prometheus or the use of Platonic myths) and its resemanticization for a specific discursive purpose (e.g., the reductionist interpretations of Gaia and Medusa) in authors such as Timothy Morton, Jane Bennett, Ursula Heise, or Donna Haraway. The results show that the treatment of Greek myths in the ecological discourse is often subordinated to argumentative needs, avoiding alternative mythographic sources that relativize what has been exposed or venturing into biased interpretations that can lead to undesired contradictions concerning the postulates of the ecological discourse itself.

Interpreting Neuroscientific Evidence in the Legal Domain: Do the Stereotypes Come In?

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Abstract

The current article explores the meaning of neuroscientific evidence in the legal domain. It takes a social-psychological perspective to discuss how group-based stereotypes affect legal decision-making critically. Examining how any interpretation is anchored and objectified is interesting as evidence is interpreted in the context. Dominantly, with the ubiquity of neuroscience in different domains, the brain is positioned as an authentic source of nurturing authenticity. It is observed that sometimes unquestionable scientific knowledge may surpass the rationality and intuition of judges. In one way, it is a boon; in another, it is shaping the whole framework of our knowledge system, where knowledge from brain studies reifies our understanding of human actions and thinking.

Indigenous Autism in Canada: A Scoping Review

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Abstract

Currently there is a severe lack of research on autism and Indigenous people in Canada. This scoping review explores this literature gap and assesses the same literature from an Indigenous perspective. Scoping reviews are an effective means to explore the literature in a specific area, in this case, autism and Indigenous people in Canada. We explored existing literature as it pertains to Indigenous populations and autism in Canada. To support this review, the Indigenous Quality Assessment Tool (QAT) was adapted to appraise the quality of literature. In total, there were a total of 212 articles identified of which 24 met the inclusion criteria: (1) some focus on autism, (2) a component specific to Indigenous people, and (3) specific to Canada. Of the 24 articles and reports, 15 were peer-reviewed and the rest considered grey literature. Most articles focused on program delivery with some literature using primary data (quantitative and/or qualitative). Overall, the quality of the research was appraised as poor, as determined by the QAT. Findings reaffirm the critical need for research that addresses autism in Indigenous communities within Canada and show the importance of having research done in full partnership with, or led by, Indigenous people.

AI Governance in a Complex and Rapidly Changing Regulatory Landscape: A Global Perspective

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Abstract

The rapid advancement and deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) poses significant regulatory challenges for societies. While it has the potential to bring many benefits, the risks of commercial exploitation or unknown technological dangers have led many jurisdictions to seek a legal response before measurable harm occurs. However, the lack of technical capabilities to regulate this sector despite the urgency to do so resulted in regulatory inertia. Given the borderless nature of this issue, an internationally coordinated response is necessary. This article focuses on the theoretical framework being established in relation to the development of international law applicable to AI and the regulatory authority to create and monitor enforcement of said law. The authors argue that the road ahead remains full of obstacles that must be tackled before the above-mentioned elements see the light despite the attempts being made currently to that end.

Relationship Between Identity Affirmation, Autonomy and Successful Aging in Chilean Urban Mapuche Indigenous Older Adults

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Abstract

Despite increased interest in the topic, the global rise in life expectancy has not been associated with better aging. This is influenced by the quality of life at the different stages of the life cycle in older adults. Less attention is paid to aging in urban indigenous older adults who, as in other Latin American contexts, have built their identity facing historically diverse cultural, social and political difficulties associated with an old age with greater vulnerability. Using a quantitative, crosssectional and correlational methodology, this study sought to evaluate direct relationships between identity affirmation, autonomy and successful aging in a sample of 355 urban Mapuche indigenous older adults. The results showed that identity affirmation and autonomy are associated with successful aging. These findings offer empirical and theoretical support for the formulation of social policies such as the implementation of favorable conditions for successful aging and well-being of urban indigenous older adults.

The agency of greenwashing

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Abstract

As climate change increasingly challenges business models, the disclosure of firm environmental performance casts growing attention by corporate stakeholders. This creates wider opportunities and incentives for greenwash behaviors. We propose a novel set of measures to capture greenwashing and we investigate the association between greenwashing and corporate governance features that traditionally mitigate agency problems. We show that board characteristics are variously associated with the apparent degree of corporate greenwashing. Firms with more independent directors tend to greenwash more, the presence of female board directors seems to have a positive impact on the degree of greenwashing, while the effect of board size on greenwashing remains ambiguous. Importantly, we find that greenwashing reduces firm value.

The Predictability Limit of Oceanic Mesoscale Eddy Tracks in the South China Sea

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Abstract

Employing the nonlinear local Lyapunov exponent (NLLE) technique, this study assesses the quantitative predictability limit of oceanic mesoscale eddy (OME) tracks utilizing three eddy datasets for both annual and seasonal means. Our findings reveal a discernible predictability limit of approximately 39 days for cyclonic eddies (CEs) and 44 days for anticyclonic eddies (AEs) within the South China Sea (SCS). The predictability limit is related to the OME properties and seasons. The long-lived, large-amplitude, and large-radius OMEs tend to have a higher predictability limit. The predictability limit of AE (CE) tracks is highest in autumn (winter) with 52 (53) days and lowest in spring (summer) with 40 (30) days. The spatial distribution of the predictability limit of OME tracks also has seasonal variations, further finding that the area of higher predictability limits often overlaps with periodic OMEs. Additionally, the predictability limit of periodic OME tracks is about 49 days for both CEs and AEs, which is 5–10 days higher than the mean values. Usually, in the SCS, OMEs characterized by high predictability limit values exhibit more extended and smoother trajectories and often move along the northern slope of the SCS.

Centennial Changes of Salt Marsh Area in Coastal Georgia (USA) Related to Large-Scale Sediment Dynamics by River, Waves, and Tides

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Abstract

Marsh lateral expansion and retreat are often attributed to sediment availability, but a causal link is difficult to establish. To shed light on this problem, we analyzed changes in salt marsh area along the ~ 200-km-long Georgia coast (USA) from the 1850s to 2010s in relation to total suspended sediment (TSS) and to proxies for river sediment input and local sediment resuspension. Marsh area is characterized by large gains and losses (up to 200 m2/m/yr), but relatively small net change (-50 to 50 m2/m/yr or -0.1 to 0.1%/yr). This has resulted in a general loss of marsh area, except close to the mouths of major rivers, where there is net gain. Net expansion rates decreased in the Savannah Estuary but increased in the Altamaha Estuary from the 1850s–1930s period to the 1930s–2010s period, which are consistent with observed decreases and likely increases in sediment discharge in the two estuaries, respectively. To explain the spatial patterns in the 1930s–2010s marsh area change, we estimated TSS from satellite measurements (2003 to 2020). Along the northern part of the Georgia coast, net marsh gain is positively correlated to the average TSS within the estuarine region. However, this correlation breaks down in more southern areas (Cumberland Sound). Coast-wide, there is a better correlation between TSS associated with new input from the rivers, estimated as the TSS difference between high-discharge (Jan–Mar) and low-discharge (Sept–Nov) months. To identify the effect of wave resuspension in the nearshore, we consider the TSS difference between high-wave, low-discharge (Sept–Nov) and low-wave, low-discharge periods (Jun–Aug). Wave resuspension is relatively uniform along the coast and does not explain spatial patterns of marsh area change. Sediment input from the nearshore is likely contributing to the estuarine sediment budget in Georgia, but it is not sufficient to prevent marsh lateral retreat. To identify the role of tidal resuspension and advection, we consider differences in TSS between low and high tide. This differential is relatively constant along most of the coast, but it is much lower in the southern part of the coast, suggesting a lower tidal action in this region. Sediment resuspended by tides is likely originating from internal recycling (i.e., erosion) within the estuary, and thus does not contribute to marsh lateral expansion. The proposed approach to partition TSS is a general demonstration and could be applied to other coastal regions.