Microbial, anoxygenic phototrophic ferrous iron (Fe(II)) oxidation (pFeOx) plays an important role in biological iron cycling. The uptake and oxidation of dissolved Fe(II) species (Fe2+aq) as an electron donor for pFeOx bacteria is well understood. In contrast, the oxidation of solid Fe(II)-bearing minerals by pFeOx is less well studied, with possible mechanisms including dissolution of the minerals followed by uptake and intracellular oxidation of Fe2+aq or extracellular electron transfer from solid Fe(II) minerals to the bacterial cells. We investigated the oxidation of the Fe(II)-bearing carbonate mineral siderite (FeCO3) by an anoxygenic phototrophic Fe(II) oxidiser Rhodopseudomonas palustris TIE-1. We aimed to explain if oxidation was controlled by chemical dissolution kinetics or whether direct electron transfer was involved. Controlled dissolution experiments using increasing dissolved bicarbonate concentrations (0–300 mM HCO3–), supported by geochemical modelling, demonstrated that R. palustris TIE-1 can oxidise up to 5-fold more Fe(II) when cells are in direct contact with siderite than would be expected if oxidation occurred through dissolution alone. These results suggest that anoxygenic phototrophic Fe(II)-oxidising bacteria have the capability to enhance carbonate dissolution or even access solid-phase Fe(II) in siderite as a source of electrons, especially when siderite dissolution is limited or suppressed by geochemical constraints.

Microbial mineral weathering has been predominantly investigated at shallow depths in humid and tropical environments. Much less is understood about its role in the deeper subsurface of arid and semi-arid environments where microbial weathering is limited by the availability of water and energy sources for microbial metabolism. However, the deep subsurface in these climate zones may host a microbial community that thrives on weathering of iron (Fe)-bearing minerals that serve as electron donors or acceptors.

To investigate the role of microorganisms in weathering of Fe-bearing minerals in a dry climate, we recovered a >80 m deep weathering profile in a semi-arid region of the Chilean Coastal Cordillera. The bedrock is rich in Fe-bearing minerals (hornblende, biotite, chlorite, magnetite and hematite) but lacks detectable organic carbon. We evaluated the bioavailability of Fe(III)-bearing minerals that may serve as an electron acceptor for Fe(III)-reducing microorganisms. Using geochemical, mineralogical and cultivation-based methods, we found enhanced Fe bioavailability and more in vitro microbial Fe(III) reduction at increased depth. We obtained an Fe(III)-reducing enrichment culture from the deepest weathered rock found at 77 m depth. This enrichment culture is capable of reducing ferrihydrite (up to 0.6 mM d–1) using lactate or dihydrogen as an electron donor and grows at circumneutral pH. The main organism in the enrichment culture is the spore-forming Desulfotomaculum ruminis (abundance of 98.5%) as revealed by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing.

Our findings provide evidence for a microbial contribution to the weathering of Fe-bearing minerals in semi-arid environments. While microorganisms are probably not contributing to the weathering of Fe(II)-bearing silicate minerals, they are most likely of importance regarding reductive dissolution of secondary weathering products. The Fe(III) reduction quantified in this weathering profile by the in situ microbial community suggests that microorganisms are active weathering agents in semi-arid climates.

In a recent article in the Diplomat, Michael Green and Jeffrey Hornung claimed that critics of the Abe government's “reinterpretation” of Japan's constitution, to end the ban on the use of force for the purposes of collective self-defense, were “basing their opposition on myths about the change.” This allegation that resistance to the “reinterpretation” of Article 9 is based on nothing but “myths” is increasingly heard, and so it is worth examining their arguments, and the so-called myths that they purport to dismiss.

Recognizing the justice data deficit across Canada, we undertook a multi-faceted project to better understand access to justice (A2J) issues and legal needs of individuals and communities in Saskatchewan. This paper describes the 2021-2022 Saskatchewan Legal Needs Survey, a multiple perspective service provider legal-needs survey intended to complement user-centred surveys and designed to capture the experiences of justice system users via perceptions of service providers. Comprised of two online self-report questionnaires (Community Agency Survey and Lawyer Survey), data were collected from a provincially representative sample of community agencies (n = 67) and lawyers (n = 272). Results generally highlight respondents’ perceptions of A2J issues and priority legal needs based on their experiences with the communities and clients they serve. Overall, a multiple perspective service provider approach affords greater insight into justice system gaps and serves as a viable model for future person-centered justice data collection projects, nationally and internationally.

This article introduces a new analytical category to provide a more accurate, comprehensive, and nuanced account of universal jurisdiction defendants: defendants living in fear. In contrast to defendants living with impunity, defendants living in fear are defendants whose home state is very much willing and able to prosecute and punish them. Using an original database, this article shows that there is a substantial number of universal jurisdiction defendants who live in fear, and that their percentage has increased since the early 2000s. The article also shows that defendants living in fear are more than ten times more likely to be arrested and more than 30 times more likely to be tried than defendants living with impunity.

In addition, this article argues that the function and justification of universal jurisdiction for defendants living in fear is not (only) the traditional justification of avoiding impunity, but (also) providing a fair trial that prevents wrongful convictions, and then assigning proportionate punishment if the defendant is found guilty.

Finally, this article discusses what democracies should do with living-in-fear cases to avoid being instruments of autocratic regimes that often prompt or encourage universal jurisdiction cases in other states against their military and political opponents.

Sleep health is a multidimensional construct that is essential for general health and well-being. Sleep value, the amount of worth an individual places on their sleep, and sleep resilience, the ability to function emotionally, cognitively, and physically in the presence of sleep disturbances, are overlooked dimensions of sleep health. To study these sleep health dimensions, we developed the Sleep Valuation Item Bank 2.0, Values Inventory, Monetary Sleep Value Questionnaire, and Sleep Resilience Questionnaire. This paper describes the methods for the Sleep Resilience and Variance in Sleep Valuation (SRVIV) Study. The SRVIV study was conducted to explore the factor structure of sleep value and sleep resilience and determine how they relate to demographic, sleep, and psychological variables. This study resulted in an analysis sample of 455 participants who were recruited by a Qualtrics team and completed a Qualtrics survey consisting of demographic, anxiety, depression, and sleep-related questionnaires, in addition to sleep value and sleep resilience questionnaires. Adult participants were recruited throughout the continental United States and were predominately female (53%), white (82%), married (50%), and had an average age of 45.4 years. The data resulting from this study can be used to address important questions in the field of sleep psychology.

Archaeological sites in Northwest Africa are rich in human fossils and artefacts providing proxies for behavioural and evolutionary studies. However, these records are difficult to underpin on a precise chronology, which can prevent robust assessments of the drivers of cultural/behavioural transitions. Past investigations have revealed that numerous volcanic ash (tephra) layers are interbedded within the Palaeolithic sequences and likely originate from large volcanic eruptions in the North Atlantic (e.g. the Azores, Canary Islands, Cape Verde). Critically, these ash layers offer a unique opportunity to provide new relative and absolute dating constraints (via tephrochronology) to synchronise key archaeological and palaeoenvironmental records in this region. Here, we provide an overview of the known eruptive histories of the potential source volcanoes capable of widespread ashfall in the region during the last ~300,000 years, and discuss the diagnostic glass compositions essential for robust tephra correlations. To investigate the eruption source parameters and weather patterns required for ash dispersal towards NW Africa, we simulate plausible ashfall distributions using the Ash3D model. This work constitutes the first step in developing a more robust tephrostratigraphic framework for distal ash layers in NW Africa and highlights how tephrochronology may be used to reliably synchronise and date key climatic and cultural transitions during the Palaeolithic.