Sophie Vigneron, incoming editor of the International Journal of Cultural Property, interviewed Alex Bauer, who was the journal’s editor from 2003 to 2023. Alex is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Queens College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York, and Associate Director of the Sinop Region Archaeological Project, an interdisciplinary archaeological and heritage project on the landscapes and seascapes of the Black Sea coastal community of Sinop (Turkey).

A large literature has shown money demand functions constructed from simple-sum aggregates are unstable. We revisit the controversy surrounding the instability of money demand by examining cointegrating income-money relationships with the Divisia monetary aggregates for the U.S., and compare them with their simple-sum counterparts. We innovate by conducting a more granular analysis of various monetary assets and their associated user costs. We find characterizing money demand with simple-sum measures only works well in a period preceding 1980. Divisia aggregates, their components, and their user costs provide a more reliable interpretation of money demand. Subsample analysis across 1980 and 2008 suggests the instability of money demand is a matter of measurement rather than a consequence of a structural change in agents’ preference for monetary assets.

Why does vote buying persist under the secret ballot? We argue initiating vote-buying transactions allows politicians to undermine voter confidence in the secret ballot, and thus to induce voter compliance. Our analysis consists of three parts. First, we present evidence from a survey experiment in Mexico that shows receiving material goods from a candidate diminishes voter confidence in ballot integrity. Next, we introduce an informational theory of vote buying that explains this phenomenon. Specifically, we develop a model of vote buying as a signaling game, in which a voter who is ex ante uncertain about a politician's capacity to monitor voter behavior learns new information from the politician's actions. Finally, we test the key insights from the model in a lab experiment. Our results suggest that, under certain conditions, offering material goods to voters is sufficient to erode their confidence in ballot secrecy, making vote buying effective.

This Article uses various concepts of Husserlian phenomenology to explain the disparate opinion between the North American and Italian public in response to the prosecution and ultimate acquittal of Amanda Knox. This Article argues that the comparative difference in public opinion is due to an extensive shift in culture that is necessarily accompanied by a shift in spatial-temporal location. In this Article, the Husserlian concepts of intentionality, the Self, the Other-I, and empathy overlay the judicial opinions and media releases critical to shaping North American and Italian public perceptions of Amanda Knox. As applied, these Husserlian concepts function as interpretive lenses, providing the reader with a novel framework for analyzing the cause of interpretive difference across cultures.

First-formed shells of several species of Dalmanellidae (Brachiopoda) from the Ordovician (Katian) of North America were measured and compared: Cincinnetina multisecta, Diceromyonia tersa, Diceromyonia storeya, Paucicrura corpulenta, Paucicrura rogata, and Paucicrura sillimani. Sizes and structures of the first-formed shells suggest that members of this family had planktotrophic subadults, with some species showing indications of only an unshelled larval stage and others showing both a larval stage and a shelled juvenile stage. This differs from modern rhynchonelliformean brachiopods, which all possess only a lecithotrophic larval stage. The range of sizes of first-formed shells of most studied species are similar, but P. sillimani of Baffin Island, Canada (middle Katian), has a significantly larger first-formed shell that formed during an extended juvenile stage. This may have enabled the species to colonize newly exploitable habitats during an interval of rapid sea level rise in Laurentia during the Katian. This plasticity of developmental modes in the Dalmanellidae shows not only that using distantly related modern brachiopods as an analog for extinct Paleozoic lineages may be misleading, but also that development can vary within a single lineage and that timing of developmental stages should not be considered a reliable character for use in phylogenetic studies of brachiopods.

Artificial intelligence (AI) recently had its “iPhone moment” and adoption has drastically accelerated. Quantum computing appears poised to follow suit over the next years. However, while there has been discourse about how to use AI responsibly, there is still little appreciation and awareness among executives, managers and practitioners about the broader ethical questions and implications raised by the intersection of these emerging technologies. In this article, it is highlighted why quantum computing and AI ethics must be taken seriously by businesspersons and how these technologies affect strategic decisions; moreover, recommendations and action areas are formulated.

Let A be a rational function of one complex variable of degree at least two, and $z_0$ its repelling fixed point with the multiplier $\unicode{x3bb} .$ A Poincaré function associated with $z_0$ is a function meromorphic on ${\mathbb C}$ such that , and In this paper, we study the following problem: given Poincaré functions and , find out if there is an algebraic relation between them and, if such a relation exists, describe the corresponding algebraic curve $f(x,y)=0.$ We provide a solution, which can be viewed as a refinement of the classical theorem of Ritt about commuting rational functions. We also reprove and extend previous results concerning algebraic dependencies between Böttcher functions.

Depression has been associated with subclinical hypothyroidism and altered hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis functioning. Adequate iodine nutrition is essential for healthy thyroid functioning. We therefore determined associations of iodine and thyroid status with paediatric major depressive disorder (pMDD) among Swiss adolescents and explored whether associations are sex-specific and mediated by stress. We conducted a matched case–control study in 95 adolescents with diagnosed pMDD and 95 healthy controls. We assessed depression severity using the Children’s Depression Rating Scale-Revised and stress using the perceived stress scale (PSS) and measuring hair cortisol levels. We determined iodine status by measuring urinary iodine concentrations (UIC) and thyroid status by thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (FT4) in serum. Median (IQR) UIC did not differ between cases (121 (87, 174) µg/l) and controls (114 (66, 183) μg/l, P = 0·3). Median TSH and FT4 were lower in cases than controls (TSH: 1·36 (0·91, 2·00) mlU/l v. 1·50 (1·18, 2·06) mlU/l, P = 0·039; FT4: 14·7 (12·9, 16·9) pmol/l v. 15·7 (14·3, 17·2) pmol/l, P = 0·004). The prevalence of hypothyroxinaemia (normal TSH; low FT4) was higher among female cases than controls (21 % v. 4%, P = 0·006). PSS scores were higher while hair cortisol was lower in cases than controls (PSS: 25 (20, 28) v. 11 (7, 15), P < 0·001; cortisol: 2·50 (1·34, 3·57) pg/mg v. 3·23 (1·79, 4·43) pg/mg, P = 0·044). After adjusting for confounders, the associations of TSH and hair cortisol with pMDD were no longer significant. Furthermore, TSH and FT4 were not associated with PSS scores and hair cortisol levels. Summarising, iodine nutrition was adequate for adolescents with and without pMDD. However, FT4 concentrations were lower in those with pMDD, and 1 in 5 female adolescents with pMDD were hypothyroxinaemic.

High dietary salt intake is a known risk factor for hypertension. However, Australians continue to consume excessive amounts of salt. The purpose of this study was to identify barriers, enablers and strategies to reduce salt in a sample of Australian adults with hypertension. This was a qualitative study. Participants were asked a set of open-ended questions during focus groups conducted between October 2020 and April 2021. Sessions were recorded and transcribed. Using an inductive approach, the transcript data from the focus groups were thematically analysed. This involved checking accuracy, becoming familiar with the data, coding responses based on questions, identifying themes through common patterns and validating themes by grouping similar questions that represented the data and study aim effectively. Thirty-one adults (55 % females) with high blood pressure participated in the focus group discussions. Participants demonstrated good knowledge of high blood pressure risk factors but lacked an understanding of recommended salt intake levels and sources of hidden salt. Challenges in reducing salt intake included the limited availability of low-salt commercial foods. Participants suggested improved food labelling and the use of technology-based interventions to promote healthier choices. Findings highlight the need for behavioural interventions, policy reforms and collaborations between the government, food industries and health organisations to address high salt intake in the population.

Deficiency of vitamin B12 (B12 or cobalamin), an essential water-soluble vitamin, leads to neurological damage, which can be irreversible and anaemia, and is sometimes associated with chronic disorders such as osteoporosis and cardiovascular diseases. Clinical tests to detect B12 deficiency lack specificity and sensitivity. Delays in detecting B12 deficiency pose a major threat because the progressive decline in organ functions may go unnoticed until the damage is advanced or irreversible. Here, using targeted unbiased metabolomic profiling in the sera of subjects with low B12 levels v control individuals, we set out to identify biomarker(s) of B12 insufficiency. Metabolomic profiling identified seventy-seven metabolites, and partial least squares discriminant analysis and hierarchical clustering analysis showed a differential abundance of taurine, xanthine, hypoxanthine, chenodeoxycholic acid, neopterin and glycocholic acid in subjects with low B12 levels. Random forest multivariate analysis identified a taurine/chenodeoxycholic acid ratio, with an AUC score of 1, to be the best biomarker to predict low B12 levels. Mechanistic studies using a mouse model of B12 deficiency showed that B12 deficiency reshaped the transcriptomic and metabolomic landscape of the cell, identifying a downregulation of methionine, taurine, urea cycle and nucleotide metabolism and an upregulation of Krebs cycle. Thus, we propose taurine/chenodeoxycholic acid ratio in serum as a potential biomarker of low B12 levels in humans and elucidate using a mouse model of cellular metabolic pathways regulated by B12 deficiency.

Reduced appetite with ageing is a key factor that may increase risk of undernutrition. The objective of this study is to determine the impact of innovative plant protein fibre (PPF) products within a personalised optimised diet (PD), a physical activity (PA) programme, and their combination on appetite, and other nutritional, functional and clinical outcomes in community-dwelling older adults in a multi-country randomised controlled intervention trial. One hundred and eighty community-dwelling adults (approximately sixty per trial centre in Germany, Ireland and Italy) aged 65 years and over will be recruited to participate in a 12-week, parallel-group, controlled trial. Participants will be randomised into one of four groups: 1, PD (incorporating two PPF products): 2, PA; 3, PD + PA; and 4, no intervention (control). The primary outcome is appetite measured by visual analogue scales and energy intake from an ad libitum test meal. Secondary outcomes include fasting and postprandial appetite-related gut hormones, Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire score, body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, muscle strength, physical function and PA. In addition, self-efficacy, cognitive status, dietary restraint, depressive symptoms and compliance and acceptability of the intervention will be assessed. Metabolomic profiles, RMR, muscle motor unit properties and gut microbiome will also be assessed to explore potential underlying mechanisms. This multi-centre randomised controlled trial will advance knowledge on how PD (incorporating PPF products), PA and their combination influence appetite, nutritional status and related health outcomes in community-dwelling older adults and contribute to the prevention of undernutrition. Trial registration: Clinical Trials.gov Registry NCT05608707 (registered on 2 November 2022). Protocol Version: NCT05608707 Version 4 (registered on 29 September 2023).

Pregnancy weight gain standards are charts describing percentiles of weight gain among participants with no risk factors that could adversely affect weight gain. This detailed information is burdensome to collect. We investigated the extent to which exclusion of various pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and postpartum factors impacted the values of pregnancy weight gain percentiles. We examined pregnancy weight gain (kg) among 3178 participants of the US nuMoM2b-Heart Health Study (HHS). We identified five groups of potential exclusion criteria for pregnancy weight gain standards: socio-economic characteristics (group 1), maternal morbidities (group 2), lifestyle/behaviour factors (group 3), adverse neonatal outcomes (group 4) and longer-term adverse outcomes (group 5). We established the impact of different exclusion criteria by comparing the median, 25th and 75th percentiles of weight gain in the full cohort with the values after applying each of the five exclusion criteria groups. Differences > 0·75 kg were considered meaningful. Excluding participants with group 1, 2, 3 or 4 exclusion criteria had no impact on the 25th, median or 75th percentiles of pregnancy weight gain. Percentiles were only meaningfully different after excluding participants in group 5 (longer-term adverse outcomes), which shifted the upper end of the weight gain distribution to lower values (e.g. 75th percentile decreased from 19·6 kg to 17·8 kg). This shift was due to exclusion of participants with excess postpartum weight retention > 5 kg or > 10 kg. Except for excess postpartum weight retention, most potential exclusion criteria for pregnancy weight gain standards did not meaningfully impact chart percentiles.

Adequate fruit and vegetable consumption is essential for healthy ageing and prevention and management of chronic disease. This study aimed to examine characteristics associated with fruit and vegetable consumption in Chinese men and women aged 50 years and over. Data from the first wave of the Chinese cohort (2008–2010) of the WHO’s Study on global AGEing and adult health (SAGE) survey was used. Fruit and vegetable consumption was assessed by self-reported typical consumption in serves/day. Characteristics examined were age, education, financial security, home ownership, marital status, social cohesion and rural location. Associations with fruit and vegetable consumption were assessed using multiple linear regression adjusted for confounders and stratified by sex. Overall, women consumed more serves of fruit per day than men (mean (standard deviation): 2·6 (2·2) and 2·2 (2·1) serves/day, respectively) whereas men consumed more serves of vegetables than women (7·2 (4·0) and 6·7 (3·7)). Lower fruit consumption was associated with lower education, lower social participation, income insecurity, renting, being un-partnered and rural residency in men and women, as well as older age in women. Lower vegetable consumption was associated with older age, lower education and urban residency in men and women and lower social participation in men and being unpartnered in women. This study has identified characteristics associated with fruit and vegetable intake in a sample of mid aged and older Chinese men and women. Further research on the interrelationships between these characteristics and fruit and vegetable intake as well as longitudinal relationships is warranted.

Plant-derived proteins are often deficient in essential amino acids and have lower rates of digestibility than animal-derived proteins. Blending different plant-derived proteins could compensate for these deficiencies and may augment postprandial aminoacidemia over single-source plant proteins. This study assessed plasma amino acids and appetite hormones, appetite sensations and ad libitum energy intake following ingestion of a pea-rice protein blend (BLEND), compared with pea-only (PEA) and whey (WHEY) protein. In a randomised, double-blind, crossover design, ten healthy adults (M n 4, F n 6; mean (sd) age 22 (sd 3) years; BMI 24 (sd 3) kg·m2) ingested 0·3 g·kg·body mass–1 of BLEND, PEA or WHEY. Arterialised venous blood samples and appetite ratings were obtained in the fasted state and over 240 min postprandially. Energy intake was measured via an ad libitum buffet-style test meal. Mean plasma essential amino acid incremental AUC was higher in WHEY, compared with PEA (P < 0·01; mean diff (95 % CI): 44 218 (15 806, 72 631) μmol·240 min·l–1) and BLEND (P < 0·01; 14 358 (16 031, 101 121) μmol·240 min·l–1), with no differences between PEA and BLEND (P = 0·67). Plasma ghrelin and glucagon-like peptide-1, appetite ratings and ad libitum energy intake responses did not differ between treatments (P > 0·05 for all). Ingestion of a pea-rice protein blend did not augment postprandial aminoacidemia above pea protein, perhaps attributable to marginal differences in essential amino acid composition. No between-treatment differences in appetite or energy intake responses were apparent, suggesting that the influence of protein ingestion on perceived appetite ratings and orexigenic hormonal responses may not be solely determined by postprandial plasma aminoacidemia.