Isaiah Berlin and the Origins of the ‘Totalitarian’ Rousseau

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Oxford University Press via https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198783930.003.0007It is obvious that Isaiah Berlin did not like Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and it is not difficult to think of some possible reasons. But I want to begin this chapter by suggesting that we can choose to be puzzled by this dislike of Rousseau perhaps a bit more than we usually are. Jeremy Waldron elsewhere in this collection discusses Berlin’s neglect of what he calls ‘Enlightenment constitutionalism’, focusing on the ways in which he seemed to lack interest in the hard work of designing a constitutional order in which self-interested, not always virtuous, ambitious men might live together in peace, prosperity, and freedom..

Non-Intrinsic Egalitarianism, from Hobbes to Rousseau

The recent, crisp articulation of ‘Non-Intrinsic Egalitarianism’ emerged out of the critique of the influential distinction between ‘Telic’ and ‘Deontic’ egalitarianisms. Part of the promise of this approach is that it can be deployed in order to reintegrate these recent philosophical debates about equality with much older currents in the history of political thought. The paper explains how the century of argument in England and France after 1650 created the intellectual space for the kind of presentation of Non-Intrinsic Egalitarian ideas such as we find in Rousseau’s major political writings from the 1750s and afterwards. In so doing, the paper illustrates the striking extent to which fundamental political-theoretical disagreements are often driven not so much by competing normative commitments as by divergent understandings of how those commitments ramify through the sociological and institutional possibilities that disputants imagine are plausibly open to them.N/

A poem on the late massacre in Virginia. With particular mention of those men of note that suffered in that disaster

https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/engl144/1000/thumbnail.jp

Energy maximisation strategies of different African herbivores in a fire dominated and nutrient poor grassland ecosystem

Fire and herbivory are both major drivers in grassland ecosystems throughout the world. Although these two driving forces act independently from one another the relationship between fire and herbivory may be more significant than either acting on their own. Heterogeneity within the landscape as a result of fire results in herbivores having to adapt their behaviour in space and time. My research focussed on 1) characterising the fire regime on Mkambati Nature Reserve (hereafter Mkambati) and 2) determining the foraging choices and energy maximisation principles displayed by herbivores in relation to the biomass of vegetation and post fire vegetation age. Fire regimes were characterised between 2007-2016 in the low nutrient coastal grasslands of Mkambati in terms of fire season, seasonality of fire-prone weather conditions, fire return interval (FRI) and influence of poaching-related ignitions. Based on these results I then assessed foraging choices in terms of energy maximisation of four large herbivore species. I explored what energy maximisation strategy was employed, i.e. maximisation of daily digestible energy (DDE) (recently burnt low biomass vegetation) or instantaneous digestible energy (IDE) (older high biomass vegetation), by herbivore species with different morpho-physiological traits. Common reedbuck (Redunca arundinum), red hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus subsp. caama), zebra (Equus quagga) and eland (Tragelaphus oryx subsp. oryx) were fitted with GPS satellite tracking collars, and hourly GPS locations (observed) were taken between 2008 and 2016. Using mixed effects models, I compared observed and an associated set of random locations to determine the energy maximisation strategy employed by each species. Our results indicated that fires were concentrated in winter when monthly fire danger weather (FDI) was highest. The mean FRI at Mkambati was <3 years, but varied according to vegetation type, and whether censoring (for open ended FRIs) was applied to estimate mean FRIs. Poachers, with the intention of attracting ungulates, are an important source of ignition at Mkambati. Accordingly FRIs were shorter (approximately 2 years) in areas within 3 km of likely poacher entry points. Although all fires recorded at Mkambati during the study period were of anthropogenic origin, mean FRI still fell within the natural range reported for interior grasslands in South Africa. Based on these findings, underpinned by the fire regime information, I showed that red hartebeest and zebra maximised DDE inside and outside of fire seasons and frequently foraged in low biomass recently burnt grasslands. Eland generally favoured areas where they could maximise IDE outside of the fire season, however during the fire season they switched strategy to maximise DDE. Reedbuck did not maximise IDE or DDE at the same scale (patch scale) as the other species, but at a landscape (broader) scale they maximised both IDE and DDE. Through this research I have shown how regular fire affects the foraging and energy maximisation behaviour of large African herbivores and how morpho-physiological traits affect these decisions. In response to these results I recommend that the management of Mkambati implement a focused monitoring program comparing the frequently and less frequently burnt areas of the reserve in order to understand the complex effects of anthropogenic fire and its subsequent effects on the biota of Mkambati

Line lists for the A2PI-X2Sigma+ (red) and {B2Sigma+-X2Sigma} (violet) Systems of CN, 13C14N, and 12C15N, and Application to Astronomical Spectra

New red and violet system line lists for the CN isotopologues 13C14N and 12C15N have been generated. These new transition data are combined with those previously derived for 12C14N, and applied to the determination of CNO abundances in the solar photosphere and in four red giant stars: Arcturus, the bright very low-metallicity star HD 122563, and carbon-enhanced metal-poor stars HD 196944 and HD 201626. When lines of both red and violet system lines are detectable in a star, their derived N abundances are in good agreement. The mean N abundances determined in this work generally are also in accord with published values.Comment: ApJS, in press, 37 pages, 7 figures, 3 table

Line Strengths of Rovibrational and Rotational Transitions in the X2Π^2\Pi Ground State of OH

A new line list including positions and absolute intensities (in the form of Einstein $A$ values and oscillator strengths) has been produced for the OH ground X\DP\ state rovibrational (Meinel system) and pure rotational transitions. All possible transitions are included with v\primed and v\Dprimed up to 13, and $J$ up to between 9.5 and 59.5, depending on the band. An updated fit to determine molecular constants has been performed, which includes some new rotational data and a simultaneous fitting of all molecular constants. The absolute line intensities are based on a new dipole moment function, which is a combination of two high level ab initio calculations. The calculations show good agreement with an experimental v=1 lifetime, experimental $\mu_\mathrm{v}$ values, and $\Delta$v=2 line intensity ratios from an observed spectrum. To achieve this good agreement, an alteration in the method of converting matrix elements from Hund's case (b) to (a) was made. Partitions sums have been calculated using the new energy levels, for the temperature range 5-6000 K, which extends the previously available (in HITRAN) 70-3000 K range. The resulting absolute intensities have been used to calculate O abundances in the Sun, Arcturus, and two red giants in the Galactic open and globular clusters M67 and M71. Literature data based mainly on [O I] lines are available for the Sun and Arcturus, and excellent agreement is found.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figues. 7 supplementary files: dipole moment functions (OH-X-DMFs.txt), equilibrium constants (OH-X-Equilibrium_Constants.txt), partition function (OH-X-Q_5-6000K.dat), PGOPHER file with molecular constants and transition matric elements (OH-XX.pgo), vibrational Einstein A and f values (OH-XX-Avv_fvv.txt), line list (OH-XX-Line_list.txt), and OH-Transformation_Equation_Extra.doc

Evaluation of the protective roles of complement activation and T cells during Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus infection

Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is a mosquito-borne alphavirus that can cause a potentially lethal encephalomyelitis in humans and equids. There is currently no licensed vaccine available for use in humans. Efforts to understand the host requirements for successfully controlling VEEV infection have been limited by the extreme lethality of the virus in small animal models. Here we describe the use of the V3533 mutant of VEEV as a model for successful control of VEEV infection. Following peripheral inoculation of a mouse, V3533 behaves similarly to lethal strains of VEEV. Rapid replication of V3533 in secondary lymphoid organs results in the development of a serum viremia, followed by viral invasion of the central nervous system (CNS). The infection is short-lived, however, as the development of an adaptive immune response results in clearance of infectious virus from all tissues by day 8 post-infection. Using this model we identified previously unappreciated roles for complement activation and T cells in promoting recovery from VEEV infection. Complement activation within the first 24 hours of infection enhanced serum clearance and delayed viral invasion of the CNS, preventing the development of overt encephalomyelitis. This effect was independent of anti-VEEV antibody induction or inflammatory cell recruitment. In addition, we showed that T cells, particularly CD4+ T cells, were capable of controlling V3533 infection in the CNS and facilitating recovery from severe encephalomyelitis in the absence of antibody. Together, these results provide a starting point for future efforts to identify the requirements of a protective host response to VEEV infection

Raman spectroscopic analysis of an early 20th century English painted organ case by Temple Moore

An organ case from Lincoln, England, designed by the architect Temple Moore in 1907 was examined during conservation work using Raman spectroscopy in order to analyze the decorative paint composition. Samples from the six principal colours were extracted and examined using a Bruker Senterra R200-L spectrometer. The results are the first known formal analysis of a painted scheme by this architect, and they reveal a mixture of commonly used pigments for the period and the unexpected use of simpler, earth pigments, along with an unusual admixture in the red, along with an organic additive. The findings are of importance to both the conservation of Temple Moore’s artwork, in understanding the experimentation used in early twentieth-century England, and in furthering our knowledge of ecclesiastical decorative artwork of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries