Click beetles from the Maltese Islands (Coleoptera, Elateridae)

Eleven species of click beetles are reported for the Maltese Islands. Of these, two species represent new records for this territory and include Melanotus dichrous and Conoderus posticus. The latter is an invasive species of Neotropical origin. Two species seem to be endemic to these islands and are represented by Haterumelater schembrii, so far known only from the holotype collected in 1979 and the rather common Cardiophorus belonis.peer-reviewe

Structuring music collections by exploiting peers' processing

Music collections are structured in very different ways by different useres. There is not one general taxonomy, but individual, user-specific structures exist. Most users appreciate some support in structering their collection. A large variety of methods has been developed for textual collections. However, audio data are completely different. In this paper, we present a peer to peer scenario where a music collection is enhanced a set of audio data in a node of the user's taxonomy by retrieving (partial) taxonomies of peers. In order to classify audio data into a taxonomy features need to be extracted. Adopting feature extraction to a particular set of classes is effective but not efficient. Hence, we propose again to exploit what has allready been done. Wellsuited feature extraction for one classification task is transferred to similar tasks using a new distance measures. --

Aufgaben und Zielsetzungen von Sakyadhita im Westen

1. Vorstellung von Sakyadhita International Sakyadhita International, das internationale Netzwerk buddhistischer Frauen, wurde auf Initiative von Ayya Khema, von Bhiksuni Karma Lekshe Tsomo, Dr. Chatsumarn Kabilsingh, und Carola Roloff bzw. Bhiksuni Jampa Tsedroen, auf der ersten Konferenz buddhistischer Nonnen 1987 in Bodhgaya, Indien, gegründet. Ayya Khema ist Nonne in der Theravada - Tradition und Leiterin des Buddha - Hauses im Allgäu. Die Amerikanerin Bhiksuni Karma Lekshe Tsomo ist Nonne in der tibetischen Tradition. Dr. Chatsumarn Kabilsingh ist Professorin an der Thammasat University in Bangkok, beteiligt am Netzwerk Engagierter Buddhisten und Repräsentantin von Sakyadhita Thailand. Carola Roloff ist Nonne in der tibetischen Gelugpa - Tradition und war bis 1995 Repräsentantin für Sakyadhita Deutschland. Unter Schirmherrschaft S. H. des Dalai Lama organisierten sie die erste "Conference on Buddhist Nuns". ..

Evaluation of Warm Mix Open Graded Friction Course Mixtures

The goal of this study was to evaluate EvothermTM (a chemical package) and foaming (a water-injection method) warm mix asphalt (WMA) technologies to determine their effectiveness in producing high quality open graded friction course (OGFC) mixes. Specifically, this study focused on the effect of the removal of stabilizing additives (fibers and polymers) on the optimum binder content and performance of WMA OGFC mixtures. By focusing on additive removal, this study attempted to evaluate practical production concerns and the possible benefits of WMA technologies combined with OGFC. The EvothermTM WMA and foaming WMA mixes were compared to traditional HMA OGFC by evaluating four main mix design criteria: draindown, moisture susceptibility, permeability, and abrasion resistance. Overall, 10 different mix designs were tested and evaluated for use in OGFC pavements. Both volumetric and performance properties were analyzed to assess the performance of each mix design. The results suggested that WMA technologies have the ability to enable the removal of fiber from OGFC mix designs without significant draindown and to improve the performance properties of OGFC mix designs. This study suggests that there is a high potential for the use of warm mix technologies in OGFC

Bread and Plots: Conspiracy Theories and the Rhetorical Style of Political Influencer Communities on YouTube

Based on the assumption that social media encourages a populist style of politics in online communities and the proposition that populism and conspiracy theories tend to co-occur, this article investigates whether this holds true for YouTube influencers, particularly on the less investigated left-wing spectrum. The article provides qualitative case studies of four different groups of political content creators on YouTube whose content makes use of or analyzes popular culture. The article concludes that a populist style plays a far less central role in left-wing communities on YouTube than on other platforms or within right-wing communities

Power, Punk, and Performance: A Critical Analysis of Hooligan Laws in Russia

This paper presents the argument that the criminal charge of hooliganism in Russia is a political tool used to suppress dissent and uphold the authoritarian ideals of Putin’s regime. The background of this analysis includes a broad overview of the development of the hooligan laws over time and how they have been used to advance elite interests. In addition, the key policies, institutions, and rhetoric that surround hooliganism in present-day Russia are identified. The legitimacy of the hooligan laws is then tested against both domestic and international law, especially in regards to norms on freedoms of speech

Continuously Variable Transmission Design

Continuously variable transmissions (CVT\u27s) have been an alternative to traditional transmissions for internal combustion gas or diesel engines. They allow for an infinite number of gear ratios for better fuel economy and performance. One drawback to the CVT is that the belt between the two pulleys often wears or fails prematurely causing the entire CVT to need to be replaced. An alternative method for creating infinite gear ratios within a certain range without the need for a belt is the main objective of this project. The goal of the alternative design is to provide a concept that proves a CVT is possible without a belt. It will also improve the long term reliability of the CVT as the belt is the main cause of premature failure

Breaking The Frames of the Past: Photography and Literature in Contemporary Argentina, Chile, and Peru

Breaking the Frames of the Past examines recent visual and literary work about the periods of historical violence in Argentina, Chile, and Peru. In my dissertation, I argue that these cultural productions can challenge the linear conception of historical time, and reveal the existent tensions and blind spots present within the cultural memory realm of each nation. By examining the specificity of the materials and the aesthetic strategies present in the works, I hope to elucidate a necessary introspective turn in memory- what I have nominated metamemory, present in works that not only seek to interrogate official national paradigms, discourses of the past, productions of knowledge, and memorial imperatives, but also works that are profoundly aware of their condition as memory objects within a cultural memory realms. Breaking the Frames of the Past is divided into two parts, Part One: Images, engages with memory at a broader collective level, and analyzes the different ways the photographic medium has been used to represent the past and craft a sense of national belonging. Part Two: Texts is concerned with subjective memory, and the overlap between childhood memories lived simultaneously within the frame of a period of historical violence. I discuss literary work written by those born during these periods of violence in order to see how from their subjective experience and through their works they can assert to the existing tensions within cultural memory paradigms. In examining novels by those who are “the Secondary Characters” of history, I argue that their use of metafictional strategies is able to counter the feeling of displacement and sense of belatedness that is present in postmemory works

Dildoshops, Gritty, and Bernie’s Mittens: The Framing of American Politics Through Pop Cultural Memes

An unprecedented number of memes emerged in response to the 2020 U.S. presidential elections. This article offers a thematic analysis of a corpus of memes published on Twitter between November 3, 2020 and January 20 2021 in relation to the U.S. presidential election. By further employing a qualitative discourse analysis and close readings of selected examples, this article explores the stances and intertextual references expressed in the memetic discourse. I illustrate which events users engage with, how they frame them using the elements of American pop culture, and the different functions such memes served for different publics. Central events – such as Donald Trump’s press conference in a Four Seasons Total Landscaping parking lot, Joe Biden’s victory and rumors about the Russian president Putin resigning – were commented upon both with broad references to widely popular franchises such as Star Wars and with multi-layered intertextual references to iconography of meme culture such as the Hockey mascot Gritty. Memes exaggerated events for comedic purposes, providing relief after a long time of tension, as well as possibly trivializing and distorting public perception of events.  While meme activity peaked on November 6th and 7th, a singular viral meme of Bernie Sanders emerged after Joe Biden’s inauguration, illustrating a different genre of meme as a response to a different political situation in which the political figure serves a wide variety of purposes in commenting upon popular culture. Such memes served to establish a sense of community, agency, and catharsis after the anxieties many Democratic voters experienced prior to the election. These findings present the growing role of popular and fan culture to political discourse on mainstream social media platforms and their varied and highly flexible expression