Lenin without dogmatism

A longstanding criticism of Lenin is that his epistemological contributions to the theory of scientific socialism prompted the decline of Marxism in dogmatism and despotism in the twentieth century. According to this narrative, Lenin claimed to possess the objective truth, and he therefore refused to tolerate alternative perspectives. This article subjects these claims to a textual analysis, and it argues that they are erroneous. Lenin defends a fallibilist account of science that affirms the uncertainty of knowledge in the natural, philosophical and social sciences. This fallibilism pervades the text that supposedly showcases his intolerance, Materialism and Empirio- Criticism. Lenin’s scientific socialism opposes rigid conceptions of socialism, and it encourages an atmosphere of democratic debate. Whilst Lenin’s writings have their flaws, they are not the founding documents of Marxist dogmatism that they are often portrayed as being. Lenin is not the narrowminded vulgariser of Marxism that he is routinely taken to be

Fellow Worker

Review of Peter Cole, David Struthers, and Kenyon Zimmer, Wobblies of the World. A new edited collection on the global history of the Industrial Workers of the World. &nbsp

Copper catalysed aziridination reactions.

Numerous copper complexes of differing structural types, including a wide selection of poly(pyrazolyl)borate, dithiocarbamate and phosphine complexes, were synthesised and characterised. The structural and solution properties of these complexes are discussed. The ability of each of these complexes to catalyse the aziridination of styrene by Phl=NTos was assessed, the reactivities then being related to their structural and solution properties. A selected number of the more active complexes were assessed as catalysts for the aziridination of several different substrates. Nitrene sources other than Phl=NTos were also utilised, with TosNCINa being particularly effective. After a series of aziridinations using varying equivalents of substrate and quantities of catalyst, copper triphenylphosphine complexes were shown to be the most active catalysts yet employed. In contrast to the complexes [Cu(R2dtc)2]CIO4 (R=Me, Et), the copper (III) complexes [Cu(R2dtc)2][FeCl4] (R=Me, Et, Pyd) were found to be active catalysts. This activity is suggested to result from reduction by Cl- which is produced by reaction of [FeCl4]- with Phl=NTos. Asymmetric aziridination catalysed by novel ligand-metal combinations was also investigated. Complexes of the novel amido ligands TosNSC(NR2)S and TOSNSC(NR2)SNTOS, formed by step-wise insertion of NTos groups into metal sulfur bonds, were found to be by-products of aziridination reactions using dithiocarbamate complexes as catalysts. The crystal structures of [Cu(TosNSC(NMe2)SNTos)2], [Cu(TosNSC(NEt2)S)2], [Ni(TosNSC(NEt2)S)2] and [Co(TosNSC(NEt2)SNTos)2], as well as their reactivities and abilities as aziridination catalysts are discussed. The mechanism of copper catalysed aziridination was investigated and strong evidence for the active catalyst being a copper(I) species was obtained. Evidence for alkene precoordination was gathered and a case for the existence of a mononuclear catalytic site and for a concerted transfer of nitrene to substrate is discussed. A likely catalytic cycle is then proposed

Les usagers aux manettes

Le dialogue ouvert avec les usagers et la création de services co-construits qui en découle nest pas seulement le passage à la bibliothèque inclusive, il sert également de révélateur dattitudes enracinées dans la profession et devenues une seconde nature. Cette co-construction est aussi une dé-constructio

Recruiting and Retaining Participants in Citizen Science: What Can Be Learned from the Volunteering Literature?

New citizen science projects are emerging all the time as scientists, policy-makers, and non-governmental organisations see the value of conducting research in this way. Understanding what factors influence people to take part in citizen science projects and why participants continue their involvement are important questions for the field. Here, we bring together key theories from the volunteering literature with examples from the environmental volunteering and citizen science literature to describe the factors that influence people to start and continue participating in citizen science projects. Good project organisation is key, and project organisers need to consider potential participants’ motivations; their personal attributes, circumstances and demographics; and how they will become aware of the opportunity. We discuss each of these factors with reference to both the academic and the grey (non-academic) literature, and based on this make general recommendations for those designing and running citizen science projects

RGS proteins and G protein signalling

The work within this thesis is concerned with the creation of a temperature-sensitive Schizosaccharomyces pombe marker protein, and the regulation of the pheromone communication system of Sz. pombe reporter strains by RGS proteins. There are a limited number of marker proteins available for use in the genetic manipulation of Sz. pombe, and the generation of a temperature-sensitive Ura4p was envisaged to expand the scope of carrying out sequential gene disruptions in the fission yeast. PCR-based mutagenesis was used to introduce mutations in the ura4 cassette, and a leucine to proline mutation identified at residue 261 in the ura4 open reading frame conferred a temperature-sensitive requirement for uracil. To demonstrate the use of the Ura4sp marker in gene disruption, the Sz. pombe irpl gene was disrupted with the ura4u cassette, and subsequently, the prkl gene was disrupted with the wild-type ura4 cassette. RGS proteins are a recently discovered family of proteins that negatively regulate G protein-coupled signalling pathways. This thesis describes the ability of mammalian RGS proteins to regulate the pheromone communication system of Sz. pombe reporter strains. Human RGS 1 and human RGS4 displayed the greatest ability to negatively regulate the Sz. pombe pheromone signalling pathway when expressed from multicopy expression vectors. Human RGS2, human RGS3, human RGS9-2 and murine RGS2 displayed lesser, varying abilities. Expression of human RGS 1 from single copy reduced signalling at low pheromone concentrations. Expression of human RGS4 from single copy was incapable of reducing pheromone-independent and pheromone-dependent signalling. This thesis also describes the search for gain-of-function RGS proteins. Two potential gain-of-function szRgslp mutants were previously identified, and these mutants were recreated. The two mutations identified (histidine to arginine at szRgslp residue 171 and valine to isoleucine at szRgslp residue 305) conferred gain-of-function szRgslp phenotypes in an sxa2:: ura4 reporter strain. Hydroxylamine treatment of the human RGS4 open reading frame resulted in the identification of a potential gain-of-function RGS4 mutant. The lysine to arginine mutation at huRGS4p residue 20 conferred a gain-of-function huRGS4p phenotype in an sxa2:: ura4 reporter strain

Leninism, scientific socialism, and democracy

During the twentieth century a number of accounts of Lenin’s theory and practice argued that Leninism is incompatible with democracy. In doing so, various scholars advanced the now popular belief, that the theory of scientific socialism defended by Lenin and prevalent in the Third International is undemocratic. Liberal and conservative critics of socialism are not the only proponents of this argument. Leninism has been criticised on this basis within the currents of Russian Bolshevism, Left Communism and Western Marxism. It is for this reason that the Marxism of Lenin and the Third International has been rejected as dogmatic, vulgar, and positivist: few contemporary Marxists condone dogmatism, vulgarity, or positivism. This dissertation examines and rejects the claim that Lenin’s theory of scientific socialism is anti-democratic. It argues that the Leninist conception of Marxism as a science is compatible with democratic practice, and promotes a democratic conception of socialism