The evolution of Palaeolake Flixton and the environmental context of Star Carr:An oxygen and carbon isotopic record of environmental change for the early Holocene

This paper presents δ18O and δ13C values from three early Holocene lacustrine carbonate sequences from Palaeolake Flixton in northeastern England. The δ13C values are typical of carbonates precipitating in an open lake system with the exception of samples from the very uppermost parts of these sequences which have values more typical of palustrine or tufaceous carbonates and, therefore, indicate the progressive contraction and shrinkage of the lake system overtime. The δ18O values record an initial increase to an early peak at the onset of the Holocene but a subsequent decline in values of such a magnitude that by ca 8000 yrs B.P. the δ18O value of the precipitated carbonate is consistent with carbonates that precipitated at the end of the Loch Lomond Stadial. The early increase and peak in δ18O values is suggested to reflect the climatic amelioration at the onset of the Holocene, as temperatures progressively rose. The decline cannot be explained by any known temperature shifts, however, this “depletion trend” is seen in several other early Holocene lacustrine records from across the British Isles. This decline is suggested to reflect a shift in the seasonality of precipitation from a more seasonal precipitation regime typical of a “continental” climate, with strong seasonal contrasts in rainfall, to a more “maritime” climate which was characterised by consistent levels of rainfall occurring across the year. The relative timing of human activity at Star Carr suggests human occupation occurred after this isotopic decline under “maritime” rather than “continental” climates

Wait Up!: Attachment and Sovereign Power.

Sociologists and feminist scholars have, over many decades, characterised attachment as a social construction that functions to support political and gender conservatism. We accept that attachment theory has seen use to these ends and consider recent deployments of attachment theory as justification for a minimal State within conservative political discourse in the UK since 2009. However, we contest that attachment is reducible to its discursive construction. We consider Judith Butler's depiction of the infant attached to an abusive caregiver as a foundation and parallel to the position of the adult citizen subjected to punitive cultural norms and political institutions. We develop and qualify Butler's account, drawing on the insights offered by the work of Lauren Berlant. We also return to Foucault's Psychiatric Power lectures, in which familial relations are situated as an island of sovereign power within the sea of modern disciplinary institutions. These reflections help advance analysis of three important issues: the social and political implications of attachment research; the relationship between disciplinary and sovereign power in the affective dynamic of subjection; and the political and ethical status of professional activity within the psy disciplines.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10767-014-9192-

Two centuries of masting data for European beech and Norway spruce across the European continent

Tree masting is one of the most intensively studied ecological processes. It affects nutrient fluxes of trees, regeneration dynamics in forests, animal population densities, and ultimately influences ecosystem services. Despite a large volume of research focused on masting, its evolutionary ecology, spatial and temporal variability and environmental drivers are still matter of debate. Understanding the proximate and ultimate causes of masting at broad spatial and temporal scales will enable us to predict tree reproductive strategies and their response to changing environment. Here we provide broad spatial (distribution range-wide) and temporal (century) masting data for the two main masting tree species in Europe, European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.). We collected masting data from a total of 359 sources through an extensive literature review and from unpublished surveys. The dataset has a total of 1747 series and 18348 yearly observations from 28 countries and covering a time span of years 1677-2016 and 1791-2016 for beech and spruce, respectively. For each record, the following information is available: identification code; species; year of observation; proxy of masting (flower, pollen, fruit, seed, dendrochronological reconstructions); statistical data type (ordinal, continuous); data value; unit of measurement (only in case of continuous data); geographical location (country, Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics NUTS-1 level, municipality, coordinates); first and last record year and related length; type of data source (field survey, peer reviewed scientific literature, grey literature, personal observation); source identification code; date when data were added to the database; comments. To provide a ready-to-use masting index we harmonized ordinal data into five classes. Furthermore, we computed an additional field where continuous series with length >4 years where converted into a five classes ordinal index. To our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive published database on species-specific masting behaviour. It is useful to study spatial and temporal patterns of masting and its proximate and ultimate causes, to refine studies based on tree-ring chronologies, to understand dynamics of animal species and pests vectored by these animals affecting human health, and it may serve as calibration-validation data for dynamic forest models.The paper was partly funded by the “Fondo di Ricerca Locale 2015-2016” of the University of Torino and by the Stiftelsen Stina Werners fond (grant SSWF 10-1/29-3 to I.D.)

El fundamento democrático de la soberanía en Francisco Giner, según el <em>Corpus Mysticum</em> de Francisco Suárez

The present article seeks to offer a detailed analysis of the similarities and differences that may be established between the concepts of sovereignty that formulate F. Giner and F. Suarez. In the first place, we will analyze the shades that present the concept of <em>corpus mysticum</em>, in order to go deeply into the democratic base that implies this idea. In the second place, we will try to make a short work of this phenomenon of recovery of the legacy of the classic Hispanic iusnaturalists that was carried out, paradoxically, not by those who presented themselves as traditionalists, but by the reformed and liberal Krausist premises, which supported an innovative lecture, in part essentially egalitarian and democratic, by its doctrines. Finally, we will dig into its common effort to increase the value of the social and democratic role of the traditional political Hispanic institutions, whose lecture gives us back a politically pluralist and democratic landscape.<br><br>El presente artículo trata de ofrecer un análisis detenido de las similitudes y diferencias que pueden establecerse entre el concepto de soberanía que formulan F. Giner y F. Suárez. En primer lugar, analizaremos los matices que presenta el concepto de <em>corpus mysticum</em> a fin de ahondar en el fondo democrático que implica esta idea. En segundo lugar, trataremos de dar cuenta de este fenómeno de recuperación del legado de los iusnaturalistas clásicos hispanos que fue llevado a cabo, paradójicamente, no desde quienes se presentaban como tradicionalistas, sino desde las premisas reformadoras y liberales krausistas, lo cual auspició una lectura renovadora, en clave esencialmente igualitaria y democrática, de sus doctrinas. Por último, ahondaremos en su empeño común por revalorizar el papel social y democrático de las instituciones políticas tradicionales hispanas, cuya lectura nos devuelve un paisaje políticamente pluralista y democrático

National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic

Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g., spatial distancing and stricter hygiene) and endorsed public policy interventions (e.g., closing bars and restaurants) during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic (April-May 2020). Respondents who reported identifying more strongly with their nation consistently reported greater engagement in public health behaviours and support for public health policies. Results were similar for representative and non-representative national samples. Study 2 (N = 42 countries) conceptually replicated the central finding using aggregate indices of national identity (obtained using the World Values Survey) and a measure of actual behaviour change during the pandemic (obtained from Google mobility reports). Higher levels of national identification prior to the pandemic predicted lower mobility during the early stage of the pandemic (r = -0.40). We discuss the potential implications of links between national identity, leadership, and public health for managing COVID-19 and future pandemics

Social and moral psychology of COVID-19 across 69 countries

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all domains of human life, including the economic and social fabric of societies. One of the central strategies for managing public health throughout the pandemic has been through persuasive messaging and collective behaviour change. To help scholars better understand the social and moral psychology behind public health behaviour, we present a dataset comprising of 51,404 individuals from 69 countries. This dataset was collected for the International Collaboration on Social & Moral Psychology of COVID-19 project (ICSMP COVID-19). This social science survey invited participants around the world to complete a series of moral and psychological measures and public health attitudes about COVID-19 during an early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic (between April and June 2020). The survey included seven broad categories of questions: COVID-19 beliefs and compliance behaviours; identity and social attitudes; ideology; health and well-being; moral beliefs and motivation; personality traits; and demographic variables. We report both raw and cleaned data, along with all survey materials, data visualisations, and psychometric evaluations of key variables