«Un Historia over Annali del Seminario Romano»: gesuiti e celebrazione storiografica nella Roma barocca (1640-47)

The article intends to explore the theme of historiographical celebration withinthe Society of Jesus through the specific case of the Seminario Romano, foundedby the Pope but managed by the order. The main source analyzed is the unpublishedmanuscript of the Annali del Seminario Romano, written by the JesuitGirolamo Nappi between 1640 and 1647. The work, which provides a verydetailed depiction of the institute, is part of the broader phenomenon of the historiographyof religious orders in the post-tridentine age. Particular attentionhas been paid to the section of the Annali concerning the vite of model formerstudents, through which the author illustrates the values of the Societas Iesu

Myrmecophilus baronii Baccetti, 1966: biogeography and genetics (Orthoptera: Myrmecophilidae)

The presence of the ant cricket Myrmecophilus baronii Baccetti, 1966 is reconfirmed from the island of Pantelleria (Italy, Sicilian Channel), while new evidence of population clusters from northwest Malta is brought to light. The species is known from three separate geographical areas within the Mediterranean, spatially isolated from one another by the sea. Malta and Tunisia lie on opposite flanks of the Strait of Sicily, while Pantelleria, an island volcano of Quaternary age, lies on the graben that bisects the central Mediterranean area. The occurrence of the species in these three locations underscores the relevance of island biogeography in respect to taxa that lack the capacity to disperse over long  distances unaided, as is the case of myrmecophilous crickets. The study considers passive dispersal, including sweepstakes routes, as a potential means of dispersal by M. baronii. It also includes an integrative systematics approach using both morphology and barcode sequencing of the 16S ribosomal RNA region and the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene. Subsequent phylogenetic analyses reveal that Myrmecophilus baronii, M. orientalis and M. ochraceus do not cluster with other Myrmecophilus species that had been DNA barcoded thus far. Given the species’ conservation status, notably its Habitats Directive designation as a priority species within European territory, this work provides new insight into habitat preferences and thus provides an important basis for conservation of this species

A new population of Polyommatus ripartii (Freyer, 1830) in South Italy (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)

In the present study, we recorded the presence of Polyommatus ripartii (Freyer, 1830) in a new area, enlarging the range of this species in southern Italy. Previously recorded only in the Pollino National Park, where it was initially described as a different species, a new population was discovered northward in the Appennino Lucano-Val d’Agri-Lagonegrese National Park

Disseminare il centro: artefatti otomì tra esposizione e disgregazione

The Otomi of the Sierra Madre Orientale organize their ritual actions around the construction of ceremonial deposits (also named offerings) set up in oratories, private or communal, or in the landscape itself. Such deposits represent the core of the ritual act: the nerve centre in which the gesture turns into effective action on the world. A plural, mobile centre scattered in space and in a longtemporality. This article aims to rethink the logic expressed by the centre/periphery pair by highlighting its inadequacy in  accounting for indigenous notions of spatiality and temporality. Beginning with the Otomi case and the native conception of artefacts as living beings, it then analyses the processes of constituting ethnographic collections: a movement that proceeds from the source communities toward the museum as the central, and authoritative, institution of staging Otherness

What’s on the menu today? First report of nectarivory for Rhynocoris cuspidatus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae)

This study reports the first observation of nectarivory in the predator reduviid Rhynocoris cuspidatus (Ribaut, 1921) in Spain. One individual of R. cuspidatus was observed sucking nectar from a Jacobaea vulgaris Gaertn. inflorescence in a grassland meadow in Berrecil de la Sierra (Spain). Our observation suggested that R. cuspidatus can use floral resources to obtain sugar or moisture during extreme climate conditions, such as can occur during Mediterranean summer

Dangerous prey: a case of cannibalism between workers of Polistes jokahamae (Hymenoptera: Vespidae, Polistinae)

Workers of paper wasps (Polistinae) typically hunt insects, such as caterpillars, to provision their larvae and rarely attack conspecific workers when foraging. In an urban park in central Japan, a worker of Polistes jokahamae Radoszkowski, 1887 was observed disarticulating the body of a conspecific worker. This observation represents a rare case of cannibalism between workers in paper wasps

Corruption and market competition. From macro to micro: a critical review

This study critically reviews the relationship between corruption and competition, offering a unique perspective compared to previous reviews by examining theoretical assumptions, observation units, and data over different periods. The research identifies four major periods, beginning with the 1960s and development theory when corruption is “grease in the wheel”. The second period, starting in the 1990s, adopts an institutionalist approach, viewing corruption as rent-seeking. The third period focuses on objective measures at the regional level and the last on microlevel analysis. The review highlights differences in findings based on space scale and lack of research on time trends with respect to differences in levels. The study emphasizes the importance of extendible measures and definitions, especially at the local level. Ultimately, it suggests critical tools and open research questions for future analysis aimed at identifying and combating corruption more effectively

Geografie della memoria. La Shoah tra centri catalizzatori e periferie sommerse

The Vernichtungslagern, real places, but “humanly and ethically impossible to conceive” as defined by Georges Didi-Huberman,  have produced a centripetal force capable of conditioning and reshaping the role of any other element necessary for the creation of public discourse on the Holocaust. This essay aims to critically analyze the relationship between these sites and the human specimens found in anatomical collections used for educational purposes until a few decades ago, preserved by institutions that participated in medical experimentation on victims during the Nazi period and actively contributed to their deaths. Conceivable as submerged sites, carriers of unexpected hybrid memories that are certainly external to the official discourse, these findings challenge the institutional narrative and alter the geographical network of Holocaust memory, fragmenting it and  establishing complex and uncomfortable connections between the centres and peripheries they represent

Revision of the genus Nesosteropus Ganglbauer, 1891 (Coleoptera: Carabidae, Pterostichini)

The genus Nesosteropus Ganglbauer, 1891, which is part of the Speluncarius + Tapinopterus complex, is taxonomically reviewed and four new species from Greece are described: Nesosteropus euboicus n. sp., N. confusus n. sp., N. montisochae n. sp. and N. breiti n. sp. Nesosteropus diadochos (Lutschnik, 1915) has to be considered the type species of the genus

La protezione spagnola su Ferrara estense: un tentativo (seconda metà del XVI secolo)

The talks for the Spanish protection upon the Este dukedom (1570-72) were one of the most important negotiations of the Este diplomacy in the Seventies of the 16th century. Although failed, due especially to the hubris and opportunistic temporizing of duke Alphonse II of Este and the well-known prudence of Philip II, these negotiations are an interesting subject of study, because they show the main characteristics of the Este diplomacy in Spain between the peace of Cateau-Cambrésis (1559) and the devolution of the capital Ferrara to the Papacy (1598)