Common sense morality follows – in many cases – the prescriptions of threshold deontology. Governments, for example, are expected to follow their own rules, but in the face of an extreme price increase, public opinion has often supported changing the rules ex post to increase tax revenues. Such moral license in extreme situations is puzzling from a philosophical and an economic point of view. We present a simple contractualist solution to this puzzle using a game-theoretic model. We argue that allowing for deviations from the social contract in extreme circumstances is a necessary condition for the stability of any social contract.

This paper focuses on the averaging principle concerning the fast–slow McKean–Vlasov stochastic differential equations driven by mixed fractional Brownian motion with Hurst parameter $\tfrac{1}{2} < H < 1$. The integral associated with Brownian motion is the standard Itô integral, while the integral with respect to fractional Brownian motion is a generalized Riemann–Stieltjes integral. Under the non-Lipschitz condition and certain appropriate assumptions regarding the coefficients, we initially establish the existence and uniqueness theorem for the fast–slow McKean–Vlasov stochastic differential equation driven by mixed fractional Brownian motion. Subsequently, we demonstrate the averaging principle of the fast–slow McKean–Vlasov stochastic differential equations, signifying that the slow stochastic differential equation converges to the associated averaged equation in terms of mean-square convergence.

This article highlights the state’s labor coercion practices and their perpetual characteristic in defining the history of migration and migrants’ experiences in the city. It underlines the internal relationship between production processes and relations on the one hand and the mobility of workers and their families on the other. For this purpose, it focuses on the migration dynamics of shipbuilding workers in mid-nineteenth-century İstanbul, most of whom worked in the Imperial Arsenal (Tersane-i Amire) and dwelled in the neighborhoods of the surrounding quarter of Kasımpaşa. I will utilize the population records of one of these neighborhoods, the Seyyid Ali Çelebi, where the relationship between the worksite and the residential community was evident, and the wage records of the Imperial Arsenal to understand the relationality of migration and work processes. Based on an analysis of these sources, I will point to the connections between the configuration of migration networks built in or through the Arsenal and the settlement patterns in the neighborhood. I will particularly argue that relations at the workplace and the coercive dynamics that underlined these relations significantly impacted the migration and settlement patterns in the nineteenth century.

If all of the entries of a large $S_n$ character table are covered up and you are allowed to uncover one entry at a time, then how can you quickly identify all of the indexing characters and conjugacy classes? We present a fast algorithmic solution that works even when n is so large that almost none of the entries of the character table can be computed. The fraction of the character table that needs to be uncovered is $O( n^2 \exp({-}2\pi\sqrt{n/6}))$, and for many of these entries we are only interested in whether the entry is zero.

This paper elaborates the design and analysis of cross-aperture-coupled twin port ceramic radiator. Stimulation of alumina ceramic using a cross slot helps to produce circular waves within 7.35–7.8 GHz. The polarization diversity concept helps to improve the separation level by above 25 dB. Loading of double negative unit cell made metasurface (MS) improves the antenna gain over 11.5 dBi within the working spectrum. Machine learning (ML) techniques, i.e. Decision Tree and Random Forest are utilized to predict the |S11|/Axial ratio parameters. Experimental verification/ML prediction and optimized simulated consequences confirm that the structured radiator works efficiently between 7.21 and 8.2 GHz with over 25 dB isolation between the ports. Directive pattern and decent values of (MIMO) parameters make the radiator applicable for the 6G communication system.

Evidence suggests that nutrition interventions produce beneficial effects for people with major depressive disorder. However, limited research is published about their feasibility and acceptability from patient’s perspective. This 8-week randomised controlled pilot study with two parallel groups aimed to assess recruitment capability, intervention acceptability and effect on diet quality and depressive symptoms. In total, fifty-one people aged 20–64 years with moderate or severe depression were randomised either into a group-based nutrition intervention (n 26) or a social support intervention (n 25). Recruitment capability was evaluated from the participant flow data, acceptability with a questionnaire based on Sekhon’s Theoretical Framework of Acceptability, diet with the Index of Diet Quality (IDQ) and depressive symptoms with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale. Mann–Whitney U tests and linear mixed models were used to analyse outcomes. Recruitment proved extremely challenging despite using multiple recruitment channels and collaboration with healthcare organisations. Five groups in each arm completed the intervention. Only 23 % of the participants in the nutrition and 16 % in the social support intervention attended all sessions. The nutrition intervention was considered acceptable, with higher acceptability ratings than the social support intervention (mean 4·41 v. 3·66, P < 0·001). The mean IDQ at baseline was 8·37 (sd 2·0) and CES-D 30·0 (sd 10·9, range 4–50), with no statistically significant changes post-intervention in either intervention arm. Future research should focus on co-designing the interventions and targeted recruitment strategies and considering new approaches for delivering interventions to promote participant engagement and lifestyle changes.

The analytical framework, “policy innovation through bureaucratic reorganization,” elucidates how the policy implementation process can be restructured to affect its outputs. Three steps from the framework are applied to the case of Republican officeholders between 1906 and 1913, who centralized their control over immigration, by adding naturalization and enforcement in the new Bureau of Immigration & Naturalization. The Roosevelt and Taft administrations used budgeting, staffing, and infrastructure to regulate immigration and naturalization laws, pivoting between easing and tightening them (resource adjustment). The shifts responded to coalitions for and against immigration (coalition management). Until the Bureau became obsolete and was reconfigured (system redesign). Although immigration was open in the Progressive Era, this study reveals how Republicans managed inflows with mixed results, leading to the structural foundation for the restrictive laws that followed. This furthers the immigration history and political control literatures as they emphasize policymaking through legislative and procedural, not structural, means.

In situ observation of cephalopods is crucial for understanding their behaviour, ecology, and natural interactions. Scientific diving offers a minimally invasive approach to studying these elusive organisms, especially in shallow waters. This systematic review evaluates the application of scientific diving in cephalopod research over the past five decades, analysing trends, methodologies, and global representation. An initial database search was conducted, followed by a second, more targeted search to improve accuracy and coverage. This two-stage process significantly increased the capture rate of relevant studies, from an estimated 28% to 57%, of 225 publications meeting inclusion criteria since 1973. In total, 83 different species were studied, with Octopus cf vulgaris being the most recurrent complex species. Most studies were conducted within recreational and non-decompression diving limits, resulting in a higher representation of orders typically found within these depth ranges: Octopoda (52.7%), Sepiida (19.8%), and Myopsida (18.7%). Orders often inhabiting greater depths, such as Nautilida (4.9%) and Oegopsida (3.8%), were studied primarily through video recordings, egg collections, or specimen release. Manual collection (44%) and direct observations (35%) were the primary goal for diving uses. Publications concentrated in regions such as the West Coast of North and South America and the Mediterranean, with the United States leading contributions (21.2%). The initial under-representation of studies was largely due to inconsistent terminology and lack of direct reference to diving methods in titles, abstracts, or keywords. These findings highlight the need for standardized reporting to fully leverage scientific diving’s potential in cephalopod research.

Conflict among missionary societies and missioners in Asia and Africa has been a defining feature in the history of missionary work. In 1879/80, German missionary Ernst Faber and three others were expelled from the Rhenish Missionary Society (RMG) due to a leadership dispute over the Canton Central missionary school. This conflict involved RMG inspectors, missionaries and institutional power distribution, differences in dogmatic Lutheran and liberal confession, knowledge perceptions and missionary methods within the colonial context. The expulsion of Faber had a lasting impact on RMG’s missionary course in China. However, there is a research gap concerning the causes and consequences of this conflict. Guided by the theoretical framework of entangled history, this study employs a historical material qualitative research method, drawing on the source An die General-Versammlung der Rheinisch-Westfaelischen Missions-Gesellschaft to analyze the reciprocal competition among the parties involved. It aims to examine this historical event as a microcosm of the entanglement between missionary, church and colonial histories.

As the UNCITRAL Working Group III is deliberating on an appellate mechanism for investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), this article analyzes the debate surrounding the necessity and feasibility of such an appellate mechanism. It highlights the political and practical issues in establishing such an appellate mechanism, drawing on its comparison with the WTO Appellate Body. Emphasizing the need to balance the interests of developed and developing countries, this article argues that the absence of a structured method in the existing proposals to evaluate equal representation and fairness in the institutional design for the appellate mechanism poses significant challenges. The article makes specific proposals to address such challenges as the financial burden on developing countries, the risk of procedural delays, and the requirement for impartial and diverse tribunal composition. These considerations underscore the critical need to balance party autonomy with centralized oversight and ensure that procedural reforms do not unintentionally disadvantage developing nations.

Most people believe that animal agriculture for food production is permissible. At the same time, bestiality enjoys neither widespread social endorsement nor practice. It would be surprising, then, if it turned out that a commitment to the permissibility of one implied the permissibility of the other. This is the case that I make in this paper. Given the truth of some very plausible moral premises, I show that in a wide range of possible instantiations, if a social practice of raising animals for food is permissible, then so too is a social practice of raising animals for sex. While I don’t explicitly argue for this, my hope is that this compels readers to reject the permissibility of animal agriculture rather than endorse the social practice of bestiality.

The Puerto Rico Plain Pigeon Patagioenas inornata wetmorei suffered a severe population decline after hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017. We used distance sampling to estimate abundance (density and population size) in April–June 1986−2024, accounting for changes in detection probability. We used the distance-sampling abundance estimates to populate a Bayesian state–space logistic model and update posterior estimates of population carrying capacity, maximum population growth rate, population recovery time, and predicted abundance in April–June 2025−2034, accounting for observation and process variances. In addition, we used predicted abundance to assess potential extinction risk (probability Pr[N2025−2034 = 0|data]), population self-sustainability above 5,000 individuals (Pr[N2025−2034 >5,000|data]), and population surpassing the 2.5th percentile of carrying capacity (Pr[N2025−2034 >30,000|data]). The population has not recovered from the hurricanes, with estimated density averaging 0.0015 individuals/ha (bootstrapped standard error [SE] = 0.0006) and population size averaging 1,097 individuals (SE = 455) at the 749,000-ha survey region in April–June 2018−2024. Posterior mean estimates were 41,580 individuals (Markov Chain Monte Carlo standard deviation [SD] = 8,052) for population carrying capacity, 0.183 (SD = 0.056) for maximum population growth rate, six years (SD = 2) for recovery time, and 7,173 individuals (SD = 12,309) for predicted abundance in April–June 2025−2034. The population may reach self-sustainability levels (range Pr[N2025−2034 >5,000|data] = 0.326−0.631) but currently is undergoing a prolonged bottleneck and may become extinct (range Pr[N2025−2034 = 0|data] = 0.199−0.332), particularly if reproduction continues to be mostly unsuccessful, anthropogenic disturbances remain unabated, and on top of that another devastating hurricane makes landfall during the next 10 years. The Puerto Rico Plain Pigeon subspecies is in urgent need of management aiming to increase and maintain abundance above 5,000 individuals but preferably surpassing the 2.5th percentile of population carrying capacity as in the late 1990s (range Pr[N2025−2034 >30,000|data] = 0.000−0.181).

1911 to 1935 was a chaotic, yet foundational, period in the transformation of the police force in Tehran and Iran more broadly. The nationalization of modern Iranian policing can be traced back to this time period. This article explores the role of nationalism and anti-imperialism on policing, how the structure and process of policing underwent transformation, including how police were recruited, trained, and deployed. Localized and decentralized policing was slowly abandoned in favor of an integrated national force, with policing through mediation being replaced with the exercise of power in a top-down and center to periphery manner. Education of police officers also underwent transformation, as new strategies were pursued to create a modern nationalist Iranian police force.