This article concerns the practice of bed burial, a rare funerary custom found in some sixth- to early tenth-century ad graves ranging from southern Germany to Scandinavia and England. Existing research has often overlooked the diversity of bed burials, focusing mainly on the reconstruction of the beds, their style, the status of the deceased, and the objects associated with them, without examining the broader implications of the ritual. Here, the author explores the variations in bed burials, their relationship to the deceased, the artefacts linked with them, and the surrounding contexts. Her study is based on a new assessment of every aspect of the ritual, including the location of the graves, the biological and social identity of the deceased, the burial assemblage, and whether the beds were complete. This approach aims to demonstrate that the practice of bed burial should be addressed in the plural.

This paper explores the complex dynamics of using AI, particularly generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), in post-entry language assessment (PELA) at the tertiary level. Empirical data from trials with Diagnostic English Language Needs Assessment (DELNA), the University of Auckland’s PELA, are presented.

The first study examines the capability of GenAI to generate reading text and assessment items that might be suitable for use in DELNA. A trial of this GenAI-generated academic reading assessment on a group of target participants (n = 132) further evaluates its suitability. The second study investigates the use of a fine-tuned GPT-4o model for rating DELNA writing tasks, assessing whether automated writing evaluation (AWE) provides feedback of comparable quality to human raters. Findings indicate that while GenAI shows promise in generating content for reading assessments, expert evaluations reveal a need for refinement in question complexity and targeting specific subskills. In AWE, the fine-tuned GPT-4o model aligns closely with human raters in overall scoring but requires improvement in delivering detailed and actionable feedback.

A Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats analysis highlights AI’s potential to enhance PELA by increasing efficiency, adaptability, and personalization. AI could extend PELA’s scope to areas such as oral skills and dynamic assessment. However, challenges such as academic integrity and data privacy remain critical concerns. The paper proposes a collaborative model integrating human expertise and AI in PELA, emphasizing the irreplaceable value of human judgment. We also emphasize the need to establish clear guidelines for a human-centered AI approach within PELA to maintain ethical standards and uphold assessment integrity.

Disruptive behavior increases the risk of developing more severe behavior problems later in life, including antisocial and criminal behavior. Parents behavior, and possibly their genetic makeup as well, plays a key role in shaping their children’s disruptive behavior. We examined gene-environment (parenting) correlations as underlying mechanisms for disruptive child behavior in a cross-sectional study. Polygenic scores for disruptive and externalizing behavior (PGS-DB and PGS-EXT) and parent-reported harsh and warm-supportive parenting were measured in 288 Dutch parent-child pairs (Child Mage = 6.26, SD = 1.31, 48% girls) with above-average parent-reported disruptive behavior. Harsh and warm-supportive parenting and children’s PGS-DB were associated with disruptive child behavior (β = .23, .10 and .15, respectively), but no evidence emerged for gene-environment correlations or genetic nurture. However, harsh parenting was found to partially mediate the link between parental PGS-EXT and disruptive child behavior (β = .04). These findings suggest that the choice of polygenic scores may influence the ability to detect genetic nurture as a relevant mechanism underlying disruptive child behavior.

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.

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.