The classification of the digenean genus Gogatea Lutz, 1935 has been complicated for almost a century due to morphological variability and reliance on limited diagnostic traits. This study re-evaluates the taxonomic status of Gogatea serpentum (Gogate, 1932) and Gogatea burmanicus (Chatterji, 1940) using an integrative framework combining morphology and molecular phylogenetics. Trematodes were recovered from the gallbladder and intestine of the rainbow water snake (Enhydris enhydris) in southern Thailand. Morphological investigations included morphometrics, acetocarmine-stained preparations, scanning electron microscopy and multivariate analyses, while molecular analyses used mitochondrial COI and nuclear ITS2 and 28S rRNA markers. Both gonad-bearing and gonad-less individuals exhibited identical sequences across all markers, forming a strongly supported monophyletic group. Morphological variation was restricted to the presence or absence of gonads, with no separation detected by principal component analysis. These findings support the synonymization of G. burmanicus as a junior synonym of G. serpentum (following the original spelling by Gogate, 1932, as validated under the ICZN [International Code of Zoological Nomenclature]). The occurrence of gonad-less adults represents a biologically intriguing phenomenon, the causes of which remain unresolved but may involve developmental, host-related, or ecological factors. This study underscores the importance of combining molecular and morphological approaches for accurate delimitation of morphologically plastic digeneans. Updated morphological descriptions and molecular data for G. serpentum are provided, including morphometrics, staining profiles, scanning electron microscopy micrographs and genetic sequences. These findings refine the taxonomy of Gogatea, advance knowledge of helminth diversity in semi-aquatic snakes and support broader efforts in parasite systematics, host–parasite ecology and biodiversity monitoring in Southeast Asia.

Voters and politicians often blame tallying irregularities on fraud, undermining perceptions of democratic and electoral credibility. Yet such irregularities also result from capacity failures and human error. We introduce several methods to assess competing causes of tallying irregularities leveraging the quasi-random administration of polling stations. Using these methods, we revisit the case of the 2019 Malawian presidential election which was famously canceled by the High Court due to widespread result-sheet edits and accusations of fraud. Contrary to the dominant consensus, we do not find evidence that edits were motivated by fraud or that they benefited the incumbent. Instead, we show that edits increased in proportion to the complexity of filling in result-sheets, suggesting a dominant role for human error. In addition to reinterpreting a historically important election, we also make the case that policy efforts to improve electoral credibility could productively be reallocated towards electoral administration rather than anti-fraud measures.

Two law books of the early Middle Ages stand out for their heavy reliance on the Old Testament, which was rarely quoted in legal texts of the period. The Irish Hibernensis and King Alfred’s Domboc drew not only on the Old Testament itself, but also on adapted biblical verses. An investigation into the literary roots of these legal compilations uncovers parabiblical material which formed part of a literate discourse that spanned Ireland, Wessex and Reims, raising questions about the extent to which contemporary scholars regarded the Bible as a fixed and immutable text.

During the early twentieth century, Ivy League legal scholars developed a positivist jurisprudential method known as legal realism. Concerned with the law’s relationship to social conditions, legal realism methodologically triumphed in the elite legal academy and brought to a close what one historian has described as the “decline of natural law” in American jurisprudence. Catholic legal scholars in the United States responded to this decline by invoking the natural law philosophy of Thomas Aquinas and his nineteenth-century neoscholastic disciples, arguing that legal realism irredeemably divorced law and morality. In so doing, these scholars effectively inaugurated what the author terms the neoscholastic legal revival, a decades-long period of debate between Catholic natural lawyers and their positivist contemporaries about natural law’s foundational relationship to the US legal tradition. To explain the history and significance of this debate, the author uncovers the origins the neoscholastic legal revival in particular features of nineteenth-century European Catholic intellectual culture that were transmitted to the United States through the Society of Jesus, the world’s largest Catholic religious order. The author especially examines the lives and legacies of two American Jesuits, William J. Kenealy and Francis E. Lucey, who helped to lead the neoscholastic legal revival and who illustrate how recovering the revival’s forgotten history can enrich scholars’ understanding of this important period in US legal history.

Detecting multiple structural breaks at unknown dates is a central challenge in time-series econometrics. Step-indicator saturation (SIS) addresses this challenge during model selection, and we develop its asymptotic theory for tuning parameter choice. We study its frequency gauge—the false detection rate—and show it is consistent and asymptotically normal. Simulations suggest that a smaller gauge minimizes bias in post-selection regression estimates. For the small gauge situation, we develop a complementary Poisson theory. We compare the local power of SIS to detect shifts with that of Andrews’ break test. We find that SIS excels when breaks are near the sample end or closely spaced. An application to U.K. labor productivity reveals a growth slowdown after the 2008 financial crisis.

Growing evidence has linked both the onset and symptoms of various mental disorders to lifestyle factors such as diet, exercise and sleep. The link between diet and mental health, in particular in depressive disorders, has gained interest in recent years. Previous reviews assessing the link between the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) and mental health predominantly focused on depression, whilst others failed to integrate a summary of possible underlying mechanisms related to a link between MedDiet and mental health to complement their findings. In the present review, we provide a comprehensive synthesis of evidence on the MedDiet and diverse mental health outcomes complemented by narration of the potential mechanisms involved. A literature search was conducted across MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, Cochrane library, Google Scholar, CINAHL and Embase databases. A total of 10 249 articles were found through the primary literature search and 104 articles (88 observational and 16 interventional studies) were eligible for inclusion. The MedDiet has been associated with favourable mental health outcomes in adult populations, including reduced depressive and anxiety symptoms, lower perceived stress, and improved quality of life and overall wellbeing, both in healthy individuals and those with comorbidities, across diverse geographical settings. Mechanisms involved include the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory potential of the MedDiet and its effect on gut microbiota. Further research is warranted to rigorously establish causal inferences and to guide the optimal incorporation of Mediterranean diet principles into comprehensive prevention and treatment strategies aimed at improving mental health outcomes.

When the Treaty of Rome (the Treaty) was signed, the legal profession believed it had no impact on its organisation. Yet, from the very beginning, the Directorate General (DG) Internal Market started to work on a directive that would facilitate the circulation of lawyers within the European market. This article is based on the analysis of the 16-year debates leading up to the adoption of the 1977 Directive, which facilitate the effective exercise by lawyers of freedom to provide services. It adopts a bottom-up, actor-centered approach, to understand the role of lawyers and the importance of legal professions in the construction of the common market. Using archival study, interviews and legal analysis, the article shows that the integration of European legal professions cannot be understood without studying the historical structures of each national profession. Moreover, the rallying of lawyers to the European project can only be attributed to the active interpretative work of multipositioned actors.

Invasive M. spicatum sensu lato strains can differ in their growth, spread, impacts, and herbicide response. For example, strains of Eurasian (Myriophyllum spicatum L.) and hybrid (Myriophyllum spicatum × Myriophyllum sibiricum Kom.) watermilfoil have been characterized as resistant or susceptible to specific herbicides (e.g., fluridone and 2,4-D). Identifying resistant and susceptible strains can inform managers as to whether a specific herbicide should be used to treat a water body. However, to date, no centralized location existed to house and share M. spicatum and M. spicatum × M. sibiricum strain and herbicide response information. To address this need, we built MilfoilMapper, a publicly available, user-friendly R Shiny application that houses invasive M. spicatum sensu lato strain distribution and herbicide response information. To date, we have identified 290 strains from more than 300 lakes across the United States sent by state agencies, aquatic plant managers, and citizen scientists. Although some strains are found only in a single lake, some strains have been found in multiple lakes. Therefore, strain information obtained from either the field or the lab can be applied to additional lakes where these strains are found. We encourage people to incorporate genetic surveying and monitoring into their M. spicatum management plans to help identify strains that should be prioritized for herbicide characterization. We believe MilfoilMapper will facilitate and encourage these actions by providing a centralized, interactive platform for tracking M. spicatum and M. spicatum × M. sibiricum strain data, enabling lake managers, stakeholders, and state agencies to share experiences and resources to improve the efficacy and efficiency of invasive M. spicatum sensu lato management.

Grey-headed flying-foxes, frequently-spotted residents of the greater Sydney region, Australia, play a key role in native ecosystems. Knowledge of local wildlife may increase interest in conserving and protecting wildlife. We assessed baseline knowledge in a year 3 class regarding common features and habits of grey-headed flying-foxes, and feasibility and impact of a classmate-peer-developed educational intervention. Pre- and post-intervention paper questionnaires were administered to a single class in a single school. The focussed educational intervention comprised an interactive presentation with slide-show, developed by a classmate-peer with stakeholder consultation. Simple descriptive and comparative statistical analyses were applied.

The same 29 students participated in both pre- and post-intervention questionnaires. The intervention proved feasible in a classroom setting. The pre-intervention survey indicated suboptimal knowledge regarding grey-headed flying-foxes in relation to categorisation, appearance, habitat, activity, diet and travel patterns. Post-intervention knowledge had generally improved.

This pilot study indicated that a simple peer-developed educational intervention was feasible and improved knowledge gaps, at least in the short term. Future research might assess the potential for initiatives like this to improve young people’s knowledge at a wider level, and explore the relationship between improvements in knowledge and efforts to conserve vulnerable species such as the grey-headed flying-fox.

The study of populism has started to permeate international relations (IR) and foreign policy analysis (FPA). This literature is still characterised by a frequent focus on individual states’ foreign policies, (therefore) dearth of generalisable findings, and lack of integration with existing IR/FPA theory. This means that it struggles to explain recent findings that, in contrast to earlier assumptions that populist governments consistently disrupt international order, some populist governments are quite willing to compromise internationally and may switch between confrontation and compromise vis-à-vis those trappings of international order they perceive as representing a corrupt liberal elite. I suggest that a neoclassical realist model of populist foreign policy can help address both the larger theoretical as well as the particular empirical challenge. It explains the foreign policy of populist governments primarily by the permissiveness and threat level characterising the respective state’s international environment. However, the effect of these systemic constraints is mediated by the degree to which populist politics capture the state. Such capture is dependent on (1) decision-makers’ depth of commitment to populist ideas and their ability to (2) transform state institutions to remove checks on executive power.

Socio-environmental challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss necessitate political action and transformative educational responses. Education for Environmental Citizenship (EEC) offers a promising framework for addressing these issues in school settings. However, there is a lack of reported structured teacher professional development (TPD) programmes that support EEC. This study presents a systematic literature review (SLR) of empirical studies and supranational frameworks, synthesising the results into a model for in-service TPD in EEC. The analysis identified core competencies such as critical thinking, systems thinking and global citizenship alongside with dimensions including socio-emotional and cultural-territorial competencies, which address context-specific educational needs. These are mapped to pedagogical strategies such as outdoor learning, reflective practice and community-based learning. The resulting model seeks to align global sustainability goals with local realities. This research lays the groundwork for fostering EEC by providing educators with the competencies and strategies essential to drive social and environmental change.