Les liaisons métaphysiques: unfolding worlds and wasted pedagogies in Henry James’ The Awkward Age

This article draws on Gilles Deleuze’s Difference and Repetition (1968) and The Fold (1988) to explore the fiction of Henry James. Among James’s works that counter the legacy of American individualism with a fragmented, enfolding conception of subjectivity and temporality, The Awkward Age (1899) stands out as an experiment in Baroque imagination. Like many of James’s works that reject the prototypical Franklinian self – committed to self-affirmation and the pursuit of happiness – The Awkward Age challenges the traditional notion of growth as an inherent trait of the self, portraying it instead as a seductive illusion or comforting chimera. By disrupting the conventional etiology of the subject, the novel destabilizes its theoretical foundation, that is, the linear temporality through which both subject formation and child development are typically understood and projected. In its place, the novel depicts an epistemic and metaphysical order made of unfolding worlds and identities and of contracting temporal series. The story of Nanda, the novel’s protagonist, exemplifies the failure of any pedagogical project intended to shape her life and personality – a failure that dramatizes the impossibility of constructing the subject within traditional onto-epistemic categories

Critical re-examination and numerical verification of Sorokin and Arkhipov's approach to free transversal vibrations of beams using plane elasticity theory

The paper written by Sorokin and Arkhipov, which appeared in 1966 in a commemorative volume, and is still largely unknown to the non-Russian speaking scientific community, is here thoroughly analyzed and commented. For the convenience of potential readers, a complete, unabridged translation into English is also provided. The transverse free vibrations of a beam are analyzed in this work: the problem is formulated within the framework of plane elasticity theory, following the original approach, where the beam is considered as a two-dimensional elastic body, in plane stress conditions. The equations describing its dynamic behavior are deduced, along with the relevant boundary conditions, from the general theory by a truncated power series method. All details of the original formulation have been re-examined and verified, and a critical check of the numerical results, which are relevant to the free vibration of a simply supported beam, confirmed their correctness. New results, which extend the cases analyzed in the original paper, are presented and discussed. In particular, a promising field of investigation stems from the obtained results, which outline the need to validate such higher-order beam models both analytically and through experimental tests. Scholars interested in the dynamics of beams treated as a 2-D problem of elasticity will find a useful reference and interesting insights for their current and future work

Scalable UTXO smart contracts via fine-grained distributed state

UTXO-based smart contract platforms face an efficiency bottleneck, in that any transaction sent to a contract must specify the entire updated contract state. This requirement becomes particularly burdensome when the contract state contains dynamic data structures, as needed in many use cases to track interactions between users and the contract. The problem is twofold: on the one hand, a large state in transactions implies a large transaction fee; on the other hand, a large centralized state is detrimental to the parallelization of transactions — a feature that is often cited as a key advantage of UTXO-based blockchains over account-based ones. We propose a novel UTXO-based blockchain model, named hybrid UTXO (hUTXO), along with a technique to efficiently execute smart contracts on it. The key idea underlying hUTXO is the distribution of the contract state across multiple UTXOs, enabling transactions to access only the specific portions of the state they need, thereby reducing their size (and fees). Our hUTXO model also borrows features from account-based models (in particular, the handling of the contract balance), making it “hybrid” in nature. To simplify the development of smart contracts in hUTXO, we introduce a high-level smart contract language (named hURF), along with a compiler into hUTXO transactions. We show how to exploit our framework to parallelize the validation of transactions on multi-core CPUs. We implement our technique and provide an empirical validation of its effectiveness

SARS-CoV-2 Evolution: Implications for Diagnosis, Treatment, Vaccine Effectiveness and Development

The COVID-19 pandemic, driven by the rapid evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, presents ongoing challenges to global public health. SARS-CoV-2 is characterized by rapidly evolving mutations, especially in (but not limited to) the spike protein, complicating predictions about its evolutionary trajectory. These mutations have significantly affected transmissibility, immune evasion, and vaccine efficacy, leading to multiple pandemic waves with over half a billion cases and seven million deaths globally. Despite several strategies, from rapid vaccine development and administration to the design and availability of antivirals, including monoclonal antibodies, already having been employed, the persistent circulation of the virus and the emergence of new variants continue to result in high case numbers and fatalities. In the past four years, immense research efforts have contributed much to our understanding of the viral pathogenesis mechanism, the COVID-19 syndrome, and the host–microbe interactions, leading to the development of effective vaccines, diagnostic tools, and treatments. The focus of this review is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the functional impact of mutations on diagnosis, treatments, and vaccine effectiveness. We further discuss vaccine safety in pregnancy and the implications of hybrid immunity on long-term protection against infection, as well as the latest developments on a pan-coronavirus vaccine and nasal formulations, emphasizing the need for continued surveillance, research, and adaptive public health strategies in response to the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 evolution race

Neurophysiological Insights into the Pathophysiology of Stiff‐Person Spectrum Disorders

Background: Stiff Person Spectrum Disorders (SPSD) are classically defined by the presence of muscle stiffness, spasms and hyperactivity of the central nervous system. There is a notable correlation between neurophysiological features and the clinical hallmark of SPSD, which has greatly encouraged the use of these techniques for diagnostic purposes. Besides, electrophysiological techniques allow for a functional evaluation of the ‘hyperactivity of the CNS’, thus offering the opportunity to clarify the mechanisms underlying this disorder. This review delves into the current knowledge on the electrophysiological aspects of SPSD, highlighting the pivotal role of various studies in unravelling its pathophysiology. Methods: Literature review for studies on SPSD that included a neurophysiological evaluation. Results: We first examined the abnormal neurophysiological findings of SPSD across the central nervous system, from the spinal circuit to the motor cortex. Subsequently, we discussed their pathological implications and explored how these findings can be interpreted within the framework of an immune-mediated disorder. Conclusions: Two primary questions remain unanswered: the localization of the primary abnormality within the central nervous system and the connection between the autoimmune basis of SPSD and its neurophysiological aspects. Addressing these questions could provide invaluable insights into SPSD etiology and targeted therapeutic strategies

The UNICA sleep HRV analysis tool: an integrated open-source tool for heart rate variability analysis during sleep

Heart rate variability (HRV) analysis during sleep plays a key role for understanding autonomic nervous system function and assessing cardiovascular health. The UNICA Sleep HRV analysis (UNICA-HRV) tool is a novel, open-source MATLAB tool designed to fill the gap in current HRV analysis tools. In particular, the integration of ECG and HRV data with hypnogram information, which illustrates the progression through the different sleep stages, eases the computation of HRV metrics in polysomnographic recordings. This integration is crucial for accurate phase-specific analysis, as autonomic regulation changes markedly across different sleep stages. The tool supports single- and multiple-subject analyses and is tailored to enhance usability and accessibility for researchers and clinicians without requiring extensive technical expertise. It implements and supports a variety of data inputs and configurations, allowing for flexible, detailed HRV analyses across sleep stages, employing classical and advanced metrics, such as time-domain, frequency-domain, non-linear, complexity, and Poincaré plot indexes. Validation of the tool against established tools like Kubios and PhysioZoo indicates its robustness and precision in generating reliable HRV metrics, that are essential not only for sleep research, but also for clinical diagnostics. The introduction of UNICA-HRV represents a significant simplification for sleep studies, and its open-source nature (licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License) allows to easily extend the functionality to other needs

Stato e rivoluzione. Problemi filosofico politici della trasformazione in un mondo al collasso

In a world dominated by warmongering imperialism in its phase of maximum expansion, when the nationalist convulsions of the Western powers had ended up overwhelming even the International, State and Revolution once again addresses the question of the Marxist theory of the State by reiterating the impossibility of a gradual and seamless transition from bourgeois democracy to socialism. If in general terms universal suffrage was not able to undermine the substance of the class contradictions inherent in capitalist society, in a historical phase such as that, according to Lenin, the way out of the barbarism responsible for having brought humanity to collapse had to be sought with even greater determination in new, more direct and less mediated forms of popular participation. In this work, considered Lenin's last theoretical work, the Russian revolutionary raises the problem of overcoming delegated representative forms of political functions, at the time organically co-opted in defense of the monopolistic interests of the respective national capitalisms

Oxidative Stress by H2O2 as a Potential Inductor in the Switch from Commensal to Pathogen in Oncogenic Bacterium Fusobacterium nucleatum

Background: Fusobacterium nucleatum is a pathobiont that plays a dual role as both a commensal and a pathogen. The oral cavity typically harbors this anaerobic, Gram-negative bacterium. At the same time, it is closely linked to colorectal cancer due to its potential involvement in tumor progression and resistance to chemotherapy. The mechanism by which it transforms from a commensal to a pathogen remains unknown. For this reason, we investigated the role of oxidative status as an initiatory factor in changing the bacterium’s pathogenicity profile. Methods: A clinical strain of F. nucleatum subsp. animalis biofilm was exposed to different oxidative stress levels through varying subinhibitory amounts of H2O2. Subsequently, we investigated the bacterium’s behavior in vitro by infecting the HT-29 cell line. We evaluated bacterial colonization, volatile sulfur compounds production, and the infected cell’s oxidative status by analyzing HMOX1, pri-miRNA 155, and 146a gene expression. Results: The bacterial colonization rate, dimethyl sulfide production, and pri-miRNA 155 levels all increased when stressed bacteria were used, suggesting a predominant pathogenic function of these strains. Conclusions: The response of F. nucleatum to different oxidative conditions could potentially explain the increase in its pathogenic traits and the existence of environmental factors that may trigger the bacterium’s pathogenicity and virulence

Corporate social responsibility disclosure: International evidence

This dissertation explores two different but linked settings: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in executive compensation design among European countries and within European firms and the consequences of controversial industry-based CSR disclosure on Canadian cannabis firms. In Europe, the dissertation examines how firms disclose their executive compensation design when they adopt CSR criteria for the first time, studying the determinants of country-level characteristics and firm-specific factors. Meanwhile, in Canada, the dissertation explores how controversial industries, such as the cannabis sector, use CSR disclosure to gain legitimacy and societal acceptance. This study explores the effectiveness of these practices by studying the quality and consequences, whether such practices help firms improve their corporate responsibility or serve as mechanisms for corporate self-legitimation. This dissertation will provide helpful information to refine predictions on the extent of CSR criteria being disclosed in executive compensation design structures in Europe within European firms and controversial industries in Canadian cannabis firms

Riflessioni sull’estetica della tardività: lo Chevalier aux deux épées e il canone arturiano = Reflections on the aesthetics of tardiness: Le Chevalier aux deux épées and the Arthurian canon

A partire dal lavoro recente di Géraldine Toniutti (2021) sui romanzi arturiani in versi tardivi, il contributo indaga l’estetica della tardività attiva nello Chevalier aux deux épées. In questo romanzo arturiano in versi del XIII secolo, infatti, il riutilizzo della tradizione precedente non corrisponde sempre alla norma del genere, codificata dalle opere canoniche di Chrétien de Troyes, ma si attaglia, piuttosto, all’ambito dell’anomia tipica degli ultimi romanzi arturiani in versi.Building on Géraldine Toniutti’s research (2021) on late Arthurian verse romances, this paper explores the aesthetics of tardiness (tardivité) in Le Chevalier aux deux épées. In this 13th-century Arthurian verse romance, the reuse of earlier tradition does not always conform to the norm of the genre, as codified in the canonical works of Chrétien de Troyes, but rather aligns with the anomie characteristic of the last Arthurian verse romances