The Medieval Inquisition: Scale-free Networks and the Suppression of Heresy

Qualitative evidence suggests that heresy within the medieval Catholic Church had many of the characteristics of a scale-free network. From the perspective of the Church, heresy can be seen as a virus. The virus persisted for long periods of time, breaking out again even when the Church believed it to have been eradicated. A principal mechanism of heresy was through a small number of individuals with very large numbers of social contacts. Initial attempts by the Inquisition to suppress the virus by general persecution, or even mass slaughtering, of populations thought to harbour the "disease" failed. Gradually, however, the Inquisition learned about the nature of the social networks by which heresy both spread and persisted. Eventually, a policy of targeting key individuals was implemented, which proved to be much more successful.Comment: 12 page

Building bridges - some lessons from the Middle Ages on the long-term economic impact of bridges over the Thames

This study was inspired by the proposed Thames Gateway Bridge between Beckton and Woolwich and addresses the problem of calculating the long term economic impact of major capital projects, such as bridges. The study of medieval crossings of the Thames reveals that of 18 medieval bridges, only one was allowed to fall into neglect and disappear; the others, once built, remained, and were improved and enlarged and in most cases they or their successors are still present. The conclusion is that in the long term, perhaps the very long term, such capital projects rarely fail to be economically advantageous

Slavery, Religion and the Prus

This article investigates the role of the pagan Prus in the medieval Baltic slave trade. The region initially shared in the influx of eastern silver through the Scandinavian port of Truso, but the use of silver in trade seems to have discontinued after 850, the so-called ’Prussian phenomenon’. Accounts of the brief mission of Saint Adalbert in 997 show evidence that the Prus participated in the trade, but other evidence from Ibn Ya’qub and Adam of Bremen show that the Prus were being raided by sea while Polish chroniclers such as Gallus Anonymus and Vincent Kadłubek also show evidence of raids and abductions by land.The latter using the rhetoric of the Crusades. The Roman Church grew gradually more concerned with the slave trade, shifting from Adalbert’s dislike of Christians being owned and sold by Jews to twelfth century questioning of Christians being traded at all. This may have resulted in the Prus being more targeted as an obstinately pagan people. While the central medieval text Miracula Sancti Adalberti shows an integrated world of Christian and pagan along the Baltic coast, later evidence from Jan Długosz and parallels with areas further inland show that raiding and the trade in slaves may well have led to long term depopulation and economic underdevelopment

Slavery, Religion and the Prus

No abstract available

Salinity- and population-dependent genome regulatory response during osmotic acclimation in the killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) gill

The killifish Fundulus heteroclitus is abundant in osmotically dynamic estuaries and it can quickly adjust to extremes in environmental salinity. We performed a comparative osmotic challenge experiment to track the transcriptomic and physiological responses to two salinities throughout a time course of acclimation, and to explore the genome regulatory mechanisms that enable extreme osmotic acclimation. One southern and one northern coastal population, known to differ in their tolerance to hypo-osmotic exposure, were used as our comparative model. Both populations could maintain osmotic homeostasis when transferred from 32 to 0.4 p.p.t., but diverged in their compensatory abilities when challenged down to 0.1 p.p.t., in parallel with divergent transformation of gill morphology. Genes involved in cell volume regulation, nucleosome maintenance, ion transport, energetics, mitochondrion function, transcriptional regulation and apoptosis showed population- and salinity-dependent patterns of expression during acclimation. Network analysis confirmed the role of cytokine and kinase signaling pathways in coordinating the genome regulatory response to osmotic challenge, and also posited the importance of signaling coordinated through the transcription factor HNF-4 . These genome responses support hypotheses of which regulatory mechanisms are particularly relevant for enabling extreme physiological flexibility. © 2012. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd

The effects of temporary exclusion of activity due to wind farm construction on a lobster (Homarus gammarus) fishery suggests a potential management approach

Offshore wind farms form an important part of many countries strategy for responding to the threat of climate change but their development can conflict with other offshore activities. Static gear fisheries targeting sedentary benthic species are particularly affected by spatial management that involves exclusion of fishers. Here we investigate the ecological effect of a short-term closure of a European lobster (Homarus gammarus (L.)) fishing ground, facilitated by the development of the Westermost Rough offshore wind farm located on the north-east coast of the United Kingdom. We also investigate the effects on the population when the site is reopened on completion of the construction. We find that temporary closure offers some respite for adult animals and leads to increases in abundance and size of the target species in that area. Reopening of the site to fishing exploitation saw a decrease in catch rates and size structure, this did not reach levels below that of the surrounding area. Opening the site to exploitation also allows the fishery to recuperate some of the economic loss during the closure. We suggest that our results may indicate that temporary closures of selected areas may be beneficial and offer a management option for lobster fisheries

Implementing Mindfulness Practices With Parents of Young Children in a Low-Socioeconomic Status Neighborhood

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether instruction in mindfulness practices would results in improved self-reported mindfulness and reduced depression, anxiety, and family stress in parents of young children living in a low socioeconomic status (SES) neighborhood. Methods: The study utilized a pretest-posttest group design to evaluate the effectiveness of the Mindfulness Ambassador Council-Interactive curriculum with attendees in a parent support program. Participants (n=15) were recruited from families with young children who received support from a community-based organization in one low-SES neighborhood in Atlanta. Mental health assessments, measures of family stress and parenting competency, and a demographic questionnaire with non-identifying questions were administered to all participants during the first and last session of the 8-week mindfulness program. Results: Participants reported increased mindfulness and decreased levels of anxiety and depression. Parent reports of family stressors were relatively stable across the two time points, while self-reported parenting competence decreased. Discussion: Based on the parents’ reports of program acceptability and the impact on their well-being, mindfulness training appears to be a promising strategy for addressing the stressors experienced by parents of young children

Variscan sourcing of Westphalian (Pennsylvanian) sandstones in the Canobie Coalfield, UK

The zircon age spectrum in a sample from the Canonbie Bridge Sandstone Formation (Asturian) of southern Scotland contains two main peaks. One is Early Carboniferous in age (348– 318 Ma), and corresponds to the age of igneous activity during the Variscan Orogeny. The other is of late Neoproterozoic to early Cambrian age (693–523 Ma), corresponding to the Cadomian. Together, these two groups comprise 70 % of the zircon population. The presence of these two peaks shows unequivocally that a significant proportion of the sediment was derived from the Variscides of western or central Europe. The zircon population also contains a range of older Proterozoic zircons and a small Devonian component. These could have been derived from the Variscides, but it is possible that some were locally derived through recycling of northerly derived sandstones of Devonian–Carboniferous age. The zircon age data confirm previous suggestions of Variscide sourcing to the Canonbie area, made on the basis of petrographical, heavy mineral and palaeocurrent evidence, and extend the known northward distribution of Variscan-derived Westphalian sediment in the UK