This article outlines our research into granite use by the ancient Maya of the Alabama Townsite—a Late to Terminal Classic (ca. a.d. 700–900) rapid-growth community in East-Central Belize, part of the Eastern Maya Lowlands. One of our initial hypotheses regarding the seemingly sudden appearance of the town toward the end of the Late Classic period focused on granite as a staple resource exploited by its residents. We highlight current results of local geological surveys and related spatial, geochemical, and petrographic studies; preliminary analyses of surface-collected and excavated archaeological assemblages and architectural elements; and attempts at community-engaged experimental archaeology. We conclude that while ancient Alabamans did not extract granite as a staple resource for export, which could have fueled the community’s growth, they nonetheless valued granite in many ways, which we highlight in our discussion.

This 2025 supplemental issue of Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness (DMPHP) honors Dr. C. Norman (Norm) Coleman who dedicated his life to applying his expert knowledge of radiation to develop elegant, science-based solutions to incredibly complex problems such as the public health and medical response to radiological disasters and creating a corps of experts to provide quality cancer care for people in developing countries.

The paintpot cuttlefish Ascarosepion tullbergi (Appellöf, 1886) exhibits a distinctly benthic lifestyle, in contrast to the typical ontogenetic shift from benthic to nekto-benthic modes observed in most cuttlefish species. While many cuttlefish initially attach to substrates using arms IV and the ventral mantle, they generally transition to swimming-based locomotion as they mature. A. tullbergi, however, remains benthic throughout its life, relying on arms IV and the lateral edges of the ventral mantle for attachment and using an ambling gait for locomotion from hatching to adulthood. Despite the ecological significance of benthic specialisation, embryonic development in fully benthic cuttlefish remains poorly studied, as previous research has primarily focused on nekto-benthic species. To address this gap, we described the embryonic development of A. tullbergi and compared it with that of other sepiid species. Although the overall developmental pattern of A. tullbergi is broadly similar to that of other nekto-benthic cuttlefish, this species exhibits a pronounced early investment in benthic traits, particularly in the development of arms IV and the lateral edges of the mantle. Specifically, arms IV in A. tullbergi develop earlier and more prominently than in other Sepiidae species that undergo ontogenetic shifts in life mode. This early specialisation underscores the unique ecological strategy of A. tullbergi and reflects its adaptation to a lifelong benthic niche. The present study provides a description of embryonic development in A. tullbergi and contributes to a deeper understanding of cephalopod diversity.

Research on ground stone tools has expanded exponentially over the years. Here, I present the context of the initial work on granite sourcing that connected archaeological sites in Guatemala to sources in Belize. I also attempt to put into perspective the subsequent research that has been carried out, much of which is reported and elaborated in this Compact Section.

Arendt’s and Bonhoeffer’s thoughts, when reconstructed via a critical dialogue, can provide much-needed insight into applying religious truth claims to politics. Arendt emphasizes the role of plural voices for free politics. For her, a solution to the spread of misinformation is to establish and maintain a robust public sphere. For Bonhoeffer, this method is limited and incomplete. He argues that Christians must see the world as a space of solidarity among the oppressed, and a Christ-reality that resists both theocratic legalism and vulgar voluntarism must guide their actions. However, Arendt’s sharp judgment of the dangers of a modern society suggests that even a modest version of religious practice cannot remain intact in the face of modern socio-economic forces. Through a novel interpretation of their political theologies, this article investigates a way for religion to be a conscientious voice in politics yet eschew becoming a tyrannical force itself.

It has long since been accepted that where a defendant induces a primary wrongdoer to commit a tort against a claimant, the procurer may be held liable for the losses and harm thereby caused. Typically, the existence of such liability has been asserted rather than rigorously demonstrated both by judges and jurists. And while some detailed scholarly engagement with this form of liability has been proffered, the explanations on offer have tended to rely less on established principles of law, than on certain theoretical pre-commitments held by the authors in question. The Supreme Court’s decision in Lifestyle Equities v Ahmed has injected some much-needed clarity into this conspicuously underexplored area of law. Yet even now, as this article seeks to show, there is much that remains uncertain concerning the nature and scope of such liability. It therefore seeks to shed light on those matters.

It is overdue for political science to consider the names of nation-states, the discipline’s primary unit of analysis and the world’s largest, richest, and most powerful actors. I begin this analysis by examining the descriptors used in formal country names, including empire, kingdom, Islamic, republic, democratic, socialist, and people’s. I analyze country names as independent variables, hypothesizing that they have value as signals of political characteristics. To test my hypotheses, I turn to the Varieties of Democracy dataset. I use fixed-effects panel regressions to examine whether countries’ descriptors correlate with the characteristics they name. I find that except for the democratic descriptor, all other descriptors are surprisingly accurate. This is the first step toward developing an understanding of names in political science as well as adding a new tool for comparative politics.

Archaeological interest in analyses of ground stone tools (GST) was minimal until fairly recent times. Often these typically heavy artifacts were noted, but not collected as parts of archaeological assemblages. Most archaeologists did not recognize that GST were sometimes manufactured and could be considered in light of chaîne-opératoire lithic theory, in the same manner as their flaked-stone counterparts. The articles in this Compact Section are focused on a newly discovered granite ground stone quarry and manufacturing area in Belize. The subject is exceptional for two reasons: (1) granite ground stone quarries have not yet been studied elsewhere and (2) this is the first ground stone quarry to be discovered in Belize. The Mountain Pine Ridge batholith quarries are compared with previous quarry studies in the U.S. Southwest, Mexico, and Guatemala and suggestions made for future avenues of research in Belize.

Sepsis-related deaths remain prevalent in intensive care settings, with metabolic dysregulation as a key contributor. Although amino acid supplementation has shown promise, its clinical effectiveness in sepsis is unclear. This study evaluated the impact of intravenous amino acid administration on 28-d mortality in intensive care unit (ICU) sepsis patients using retrospective cohort analysis and Mendelian randomisation (MR). We analysed data from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care-IV database, matching 726 patients (363 per group) using propensity scores. The association between amino acid supplementation and mortality was assessed using logistic regression, Cox regression and targeted maximum likelihood estimation (TMLE). Two-sample MR was used to explore causal links between twenty common amino acids and sepsis mortality. In the cohort analysis, amino acid supplementation was consistently associated with significantly reduced 28-d mortality across all analytical methods (logistic regression: OR = 0·48, P < 0·01; Cox regression: HR = 0·48, P < 0·01; TMLE: average treatment effect = −0·102, P < 0·01). In contrast, the MR analysis did not find a significant causal association for any single amino acid after correction for multiple comparisons; although glycine showed a nominal protective signal, it did not remain significant after false discovery rate correction. This dual-method study demonstrates a strong association between compound amino acid infusions and reduced mortality in sepsis but did not identify any single amino acid as a robust causal mediator. These findings suggest the benefit may arise from a synergistic effect, highlighting the need for randomised controlled trials to validate these observational results and optimise nutritional strategies.

Comment les professionnels du droit et de la médecine construisent-ils, au tribunal, le statut légal et l’état mental des patients, et comment ces derniers participent-ils à ces constructions? Cet article s’appuie sur l’analyse de 300 audiences à Paris et à New York, au cours desquelles des personnes hospitalisées sans consentement demandent leur sortie. Dans les deux villes, les tribunaux rejettent la grande majorité des requêtes. Ils le font en mobilisant, selon des modalités propres à chaque système, des répertoires juridiques et des capacités de contrôle qui transforment les patients en différents types de sujets utilisables: des personnes dont les droits sont formellement pris en compte à l’audience, mais qui sont néanmoins classées comme nécessitant les interventions sans consentement que la psychiatrie a les moyens d’assurer. À Paris, les professionnels du droit insistent sur les garanties procédurales tout en s’en remettant aux évaluations médicales du consentement des patients, entendu comme une disposition sous-jacente à accepter un traitement au long cours. À New York, les avocats contestent plus directement l’expertise psychiatrique, mais négocient avec médecins et patients autour de la compliance, comprise comme une acceptation de court terme de la médication. L’article propose ainsi de déplacer le regard des figures de sujets autonomes que les dispositifs médico-légaux et sociaux hybrides prétendent produire vers des formes plus contingentes et situées de sujets utilisables, qui rendent possible la coopération professionnelle et le traitement institutionnel dans un contexte de ressources limitées et d’extension des droits des patients.