Deconstructing Decapitation in Late Roman Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, UK

The Roman conquest in Britain (AD 43) led to significant changes in indigenous settlements and agricultural systems, population diversity, social organization, economic activities, and funerary traditions. Archaeological investigations of burials from the first to fifth centuries AD in Britain have revealed a complex array of burial treatments and attitudes toward the dead, including decapitation burials, which are the most common form of differential burial represented in this period. Traditional interpretations of these burials have included infanticide, punitive execution, trophy taking, fear of the dead, and veneration practices. This project investigates a sample of decapitation burials from Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire dating to the Late Roman Period (3rd-5th c. AD) using quantitative and qualitative comparisons of skeletal remains, grave goods and other associated materials. The multi-scalar analysis of bioarchaeological and mortuary treatments demonstrated that no specific variable automatically distinguished a decapitated individual as an outlier or social deviant, reinforcing the need for the systematic application of contextual analysis, including osteological profiles, in our methodological assessments of lived experiences and the expression of identity in Late Romano-British society. This project contributes to the growing cross-disciplinary literature on how ancient populations utilized the body as an instrument in the performance of ritual violence, allowing a more nuanced interpretation of the culturally constructed body as a salient material object category in the Roman Iron Age

Functionalization Of 2d-Zno for Selective Gas Sensing: First-Principles Analysis

The scope of this MSc thesis is to theoretically search for suitable materials and relevant factors (e.g., dopants and catalysts) to induce gas sensing (GS) selectivity towards harmful gases such as H2, H2S, and CO2, under ambient conditions. We chose as material 2D-ZnO Honeycomb in the form of nanoribbon (ZnO-NR), which is very promising in the gas sensing applications. We employed a state-of-the-art computational method, based on a combination of the density-functional theory (DFT) and the Non-Equilibrium Green’s Functions (NEGF) formalism, which both are incorporated in Atomistic Toolkit (ATK) package. This package is famous for its reliability in estimating the IV characteristics. The thesis consists of three phases: (1) Effect of dopants on gas sensing: Three organic-atoms (e.g., N, C, F) were initially attempted. But selectivity towards the detection of H2 was achieved only in N-doped ZnO-NR. Special trend, discovered about the secrete of such selectivity, was the existence of negative differential resistance (NDR) in the IV characteristics of ZnONR: N. (2) Origins of NDR: the previous results led us to search for the origins of NDR in N-doped ZnO-NRs. We have investigated the effect of placing the doping atom N in three different positions across ZnO-NR, with respect to the edges (i.e.(i) at the Oric hedge, (ii) at the center, and (iii) at the Zn-rich edge.) Results show a clear trend that NDR shifts to higher energies than Fermi level, as well as both NDR and the Topto-Valley-Current Ratio (TVCR), get reduced, when N-atom is moved from O-rich to Zn-rich edges. We concluded that the unpaired electron on N-atom when it gets charged, causes the localization/curdling of the wave function at Fermi-level and consequently causes backscattering and drawback of current (so named NDR). (3) Effect of catalysts on gas sensing: Five transition-metal atoms (Pt, Pd, Au, Ag, and Fe) were used as ad-atom decorating ZnO-NR aiming to induce selectivity towards gases of interest (H2, H2S, and CO2) in existence of other gases (e.g., O2, N2, and H2O) at room temperature (RT). Results show that both Pt and Pd have poor selectivity at RT. Whereas, Fe is found to yield high selectivity toward detecting CO2, while both Au and Ag have selectivity towards H2S, at RT. All our findings are in excellent agreement with experimental data

Biokemijski učinci ivermektina na spolne hormone i homeostazu minerala u krava baladi pasmine nakon teljenja.

This study investigated the effect of an antiparasitic ivermectin (IVM) drug on the endocrine reproductive hormones of twenty healthy adult 250-350 kg Baladi cows that were 4-7 years of age. The cows were divided into two groups (n = 10 each). The first was a control group injected with physiological saline; the second group was treated with the recommended therapeutic dose of IVM (0.2 mg/kg, s/c) one day after parturition. Blood samples were taken on the 1st, 15th, 30th and 90th day after IVM treatment. The results revealed that IVM injection at one day after parturition delayed estrous for up to 3 months (absence of estrous signs and rectal palpation revealed no ovarian structures). IVM significantly (P<0.05) decreased serum follicular stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH) and estradiol for up to 3 months. In addition, IVM significantly (P<0.05) increased serum progesterone, prolactin and cortisol for up to 3 months. Further, IVM caused unobservable changes in serum testosterone and sex hormones binding globulin. Serum calcium levels significantly increased on the 1st day of IVM injection, while serum phosphorus significantly decreased on the15th and 30th day of IVM injection. It was concluded that IVM delayed estrous in cows for three months via disturbances in the female reproductive hormones and calcium/phosphorus homeostasis. Therefore, it is recommended that IVM should not be injected directly after parturition. Furthermore, the increased calcium after IVM indicates that an overdose of IVM should not be counteracted by calcium therapy; instead, any other antiallergic preparation could be used.Kod 20 zdravih i odraslih krava baladi pasmine, čija se tjelesna masa kretala od 250 do 350 kg, a dob od 4 do 7 godina, istražen je učinak antiparazitika ivermektina (IVM) na spolne hormone. Krave su bile podijeljene u dvije skupine (10 u svakoj skupini). Prvoj, kontrolnoj skupini bila je prvog dana nakon teljenja ubrizgana fiziološka otopina soli natrijeva klorida, a drugoj preporučena terapijska doza ivermektina (0,2 mg/kg, s/c). Uzorci krvi bili su prikupljeni 1., 15., 30. i 90. dana nakon primjene ivermektina. Rezultati su pokazali da je njegova primjena dan nakon teljenja dovela do odgode estrusa u trajanju do 3 mjeseca (izostali znakovi estrusa i strukture pri rektalnoj palpaciji jajnika). U razdoblju od 3 mjeseca došlo je do signifikantnog (P<0,05) sniženja razine folikulostimulirajućeg hormona (FSH), luteinizirajućeg hormona (LH) i estradiola u serumu. U istom razdoblju ivermektin je uzrokovao signifikantan (P<0,05) porast serumskog progesterona, prolaktina i kortizola, te slabo uočljive promjene razine serumskog testosterona i globulina koji veže spolne hormone. Razina kalcija u serumu značajno je porasla 1. dana, dok je razina fosfora u serumu signifikantno pala 15. i 30. dana od primjene ivermektina. Zaključeno je da ivermektin odgađa estrus kod krava u trajanju od 3 mjeseca putem narušavanja ravnoteže spolnih hormona odnosno poremećaja homeostaze kalcija i fosfora. Zbog toga se ne preporučuje njegovo davanje netom nakon teljenja. Nadalje, povišena razina kalcija nakon njegove prekomjerne primjene ne bi se smjela suzbijati davanjem kalcija, već upotrebom drugih antialergijskih pripravaka

The graduate student experience in the neoliberal academy

This commentary discusses graduate student perspectives on the disjuncture between the neoliberal framing of value as pursuit of economic profit and the academic community’s pursuit of knowledge. Declining opportunities and the devaluing of different frames of knowledge and practice in the academy suppress graduate students’ ability to contribute to their chosen fields of study and to create value in novel ways. Our participation as graduate students in the academic community, including organizations such as American Association of University Professors, has been instrumental in articulating the interconnectedness of the systemic consequences that the neoliberal constitution of value has on the campus and community.This commentary discusses graduate student perspectives on the disjuncture between the neoliberal framing of value as pursuit of economic profit and the academic community’s pursuit of knowledge. Declining opportunities and the devaluing of different frames of knowledge and practice in the academy suppress graduate students’ ability to contribute to their chosen fields of study and to create value in novel ways. Our participation as graduate students in the academic community, including organizations such as American Association of University Professors, has been instrumental in articulating the interconnectedness of the systemic consequences that the neoliberal constitution of value has on the campus and community

Khaya Cellulose Supported Copper Nanoparticles for Chemo Selective Aza-Michael Reactions

We prepared a highly active Khaya cellulose supported poly(hydroxamic acid) copper nanoparticles by the surface modification of Khaya cellulose through graft copolymerization and subsequently amidoximation. The Cunanoparticle (0.05 mol% to 50 mol ppm) was selectively promoted Aza-Michael reaction of aliphatic amines to give the corresponding alkylated products at room temperature in methanol. The supported nanoparticle was easy to recover and reused seven times without significance loss of its activity