Introduction: : Independence, global entanglement and the co-production of sovereignty

This article introduces a special issue, exploring some of the themes that tie the articles together and relevant conceptual issuesPostprintPeer reviewe

Those who left/are left behind : Schrödinger's refugee and the ethics of complementarity

“Those left behind” was a recurring emphasis of media depictions of the emotions surrounding the departure of those who left Afghanistan. The relationship between “those who left” and “those left behind,” which is characteristic of any context of forced displacement, relates to potentials, compelled by life and death questions. A decision to leave or stay is on the surface a binary choice, defined by the physical impossibility of doing both. The purpose of this paper is to explore how the ethical questions change when placed in a framework of quantum complementarity, by which phenomena, defined by what they are not, are also, in important respects, that which they are not, that is, the polar opposite. The first section develops Schrödinger's thought experiment and problematizes his focus on life and death as physical states of the cat, and the separateness of the observer, as a misrepresentation of the Copenhagen School arguments from which the thought experiment arose, and complementarity in particular. The second section examines the relationship between “those who left,” “those left behind,” and external observers in terms of a duality of matter and consciousness, which is complementary and mutually constituted. The third section examines the liminality that arises from a series of nested “boxes” and the various positions from which the forcefully displaced are observed within a holographic world. The final section then unpacks the ethical implications of quantum complementarity and ungrieved grief as they relate to forced displacement.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

To 'see' is to break an entanglement : quantum measurement, trauma and security

This article seeks to explore the quantum notion that to ‘see’ an entanglement is to break it in the context of an ‘experiment’ regarding the ongoing impact of traumatic political memory on the present. The analysis is a product of collaboration over the past four years between the two authors, one a scholar of international relations, the other a therapeutic practitioner with training in medical physics. Our focus is the conceptual claim that ‘seeing’ breaks an entanglement rather than the experiment itself. The first section explores a broad contrast between classical and quantum measurement, asking what this might mean at the macroscopic level. The second section categorizes Wendt’s claim about language as a form of expressive measurement and explores the relationship to discourse analysis. The third section explores the broad contours of our experiment and the role of a somewhat different form of non-linear expressive measurement. In the final section, we elaborate the relationship between redemptive measurement and breaking an entanglement, which involves a form of ‘seeing’ that witnesses to unacknowledged past trauma.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Language, entanglement and the new Silk Roads

Observers have tended to place the Silk Road proposals in the context of ‘China’s rise’, and its increasing influence and interests in Central, South and South-East Asia. From a realist perspective, China, like any expanding state, poses a potential threat. From a liberal angle, it is expanding the space for cooperation. Both models rely on an individualist ontology that highlights the interests of individual states. The potential of the Silk Roads looks somewhat different if approached from the perspective of a more relational ontology and a concept of entanglement. We draw on a few claims from Alexander Wendt’s (2015) recent book as a framework for examining the emerging reality of the new ‘Silk Roads’. What are the implications of this ontological shift for thinking about the Chinese ‘Silk Road’ proposal? We develop three specific claims as part of a reflection on this context: first, language use is a form of measurement that shapes and transforms reality; second, language use is an expression of entanglement; and third, leaders have a large role in ‘collapsing wave functions’ around specific potentials. While some of the themes that arise in this discussion are compatible with other arguments about the role of language, the quantum angle provides a more explicit point of departure for discussing the ‘physical’ dimensions of language use, the multiple layers of meaning within which the OBOR is embedded and its relational ontology.PostprintPeer reviewe

Reclaiming the political : emancipation and critique in security studies

The critical security studies literature has been marked by a shared commitment towards the politicization of security – that is, the analysis of its assumptions, implications and the practices through which it is (re)produced. In recent years, however, politicization has been accompanied by a tendency to conceive security as connected with a logic of exclusion, totalization and even violence. This has resulted in an imbalanced politicization that weakens critique. Seeking to tackle this situation, the present article engages with contributions that have advanced emancipatory versions of security. Starting with, but going beyond, the so-called Aberystwyth School of security studies, the argument reconsiders the meaning of security as emancipation by making the case for a systematic engagement with the notions of reality and power. This revised version of security as emancipation strengthens critique by addressing political dimensions that have been underplayed in the critical security literature

Fast synthesis of platinum nanopetals and nanospheres for highly-sensitive non-enzymatic detection of glucose and selective sensing of ions

Novel methods to obtain Pt nanostructured electrodes have raised particular interest due to their high performance in electrochemistry. Several nanostructuration methods proposed in the literature use costly and bulky equipment or are time-consuming due to the numerous steps they involve. Here, Pt nanostructures were produced for the first time by one-step template-free electrodeposition on Pt bare electrodes. The change in size and shape of the nanostructures is proven to be dependent on the deposition parameters and on the ratio between sulphuric acid and chloride-complexes (i.e., hexachloroplatinate or tetrachloroplatinate). To further improve the electrochemical properties of electrodes, depositions of Pt nanostructures on previously synthesised Pt nanostructures are also performed. The electroactive surface areas exhibit a two order of magnitude improvement when Pt nanostructures with the smallest size are used. All the biosensors based on Pt nanostructures and immobilised glucose oxidase display higher sensitivity as compared to bare Pt electrodes. Pt nanostructures retained an excellent electrocatalytic activity towards the direct oxidation of glucose. Finally, the nanodeposits were proven to be an excellent solid contact for ion measurements, significantly improving the time-stability of the potential. The use of these new nanostructured coatings in electrochemical sensors opens new perspectives for multipanel monitoring of human metabolism

Introduction: Interrogating the 'everyday' politics of emotions in international relations

The focus on the everyday in this Special Issue reveals different kinds of emotional practices, their political effects and their political contestation within both micro- and macro-politics in international relations. The articles in this Special Issue address the everyday negotiation of emotions, shifting between the reproduction of hegemonic structures of feelings and emancipation from them. In other words, the everyday politics of emotions allows an exploration of who gets to express emotions, what emotions are perceived as (il)legitimate or (un)desirable, how emotions are circulated and under what circumstances. Consequently, we identify two thematic strands which emerge as central to an interrogation of ‘everyday’ emotions in international relations and which run through each of the contributions: first, an exploration of the relationship between individual and collective emotions and, second, a focus on the role of embodiment within emotions research and its relationship with the dynamics and structures of power

Re-visualising international relations:Audio-visual projects and direct encounters with the political in security studies tla

In this paper we discuss how an innovative audio-visual project was adopted to foster active, rather than declarative learning, in critical International Relations (IR). First, we explore the aesthetic turn in IR, to contrast this with forms of representation that have dominated IR scholarship. Second, we describe how students were asked to record short audio or video projects to explore their own insights through aesthetic and non-written formats. Third, we explain how these projects are understood to be deeply embedded in social science methodologies. We cite our inspiration from applying a personal sociological imagination, as a way to counterbalance a ‘marketised’ slant in higher education, in a global economy where students are often encouraged to consume, rather than produce knowledge. Finally, we draw conclusions in terms of deeper forms of student engagement leading to new ways of thinking and presenting new skills and new connections between theory and practice

Loop Interactions during Catalysis by Dihydrofolate Reductase fromMoritella profunda

Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) is often used as a model system to study the relation between protein dynamics and catalysis. We have studied a number of variants of the cold-adapted DHFR from Moritella profunda (MpDHFR), in which the catalytically important M20 and FG loops have been altered, and present a comparison with the corresponding variants of the wellstudied DHFR from Escherichia coli (EcDHFR). Mutations in the M20 loop do not affect the actual chemical step of transfer of hydride from reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate to the substrate 7,8-dihydrofolate in the catalytic cycle in either enzyme; they affect the steady state turnover rate in EcDHFR but not in MpDHFR. Mutations in the FG loop also have different effects on catalysis by the two DHFRs. Despite the two enzymes most likely sharing a common catalytic cycle at pH 7, motions of these loops, known to be important for progression through the catalytic cycle in EcDHFR, appear not to play a significant role in MpDHFR

Thermal Adaptation of Dihydrofolate Reductase from the Moderate ThermophileGeobacillus stearothermophilus

The thermal melting temperature of dihydrofolate reductase from Geobacillus stearothermophilus (BsDHFR) is 30 °C higher than that of its homologue from the psychrophile Moritella profunda. Additional proline residues in the loop regions of BsDHFR have been proposed to enhance the thermostability of BsDHFR, but site-directed mutagenesis studies reveal that these proline residues contribute only minimally. Instead, the high thermal stability of BsDHFR is partly due to removal of water-accessible thermolabile residues such as glutamine and methionine, which are prone to hydrolysis or oxidation at high temperatures. The extra thermostability of BsDHFR can be obtained by ligand binding, or in the presence of salts or cosolvents such as glycerol and sucrose. The sum of all these incremental factors allows BsDHFR to function efficiently in the natural habitat of G. stearothermophilus, which is characterized by temperatures that can reach 75 °C