The tradition of sepulchre, the recognition that a human body has intrinsic emotional and moral worth to those left behind after death and thus should be handled with dignity and respect, is timeless and knows few cultural boundaries. Its basic tenets are codified in international humanitarian law (IHL) – but codification and interpretation are entirely different things. What does it mean to state that parties to a conflict should ensure that bodies are handled with “adequate care”? What constitutes adequate? What precisely does it mean that bodies should not be “despoiled”? US courts have wrestled with the rights of surviving family members – and the corresponding duties of society – for over 200 years and have slowly crafted a cohesive and comprehensive consensus body of law as it relates to sepulchre. This article presents some of the logic and rationale used by American jurists in the evolution of US common and statutory law controlling the management of the dead in the hope that it may provide some insight into the interpretation of IHL.

Democratic cooperation is a particularly complex type of arrangement that requires attendant institutions to ensure that the problems inherent in collective action do not subvert the public good. It is perhaps due to this complexity that historians, political scientists, and others generally associate the birth of democracy with the emergence of so-called states and center it geographically in the “West,” where it then diffused to the rest of the world. We argue that the archaeological record of the American Southeast provides a case to examine the emergence of democratic institutions and to highlight the distinctive ways in which such long-lived institutions were—and continue to be—expressed by Native Americans. Our research at the Cold Springs site in northern Georgia, USA, provides important insight into the earliest documented council houses in the American Southeast. We present new radiocarbon dating of these structures along with dates for the associated early platform mounds that place their use as early as cal AD 500. This new dating makes the institution of the Muskogean council, whose active participants have always included both men and women, at least 1,500 years old, and therefore one of the most enduring and inclusive democratic institutions in world history.

Gravitational waves from coalescing neutron stars encode information about nuclear matter at extreme densities, inaccessible by laboratory experiments. The late inspiral is influenced by the presence of tides, which depend on the neutron star equation of state. Neutron star mergers are expected to often produce rapidly rotating remnant neutron stars that emit gravitational waves. These will provide clues to the extremely hot post-merger environment. This signature of nuclear matter in gravitational waves contains most information in the 2–4 kHz frequency band, which is outside of the most sensitive band of current detectors. We present the design concept and science case for a Neutron Star Extreme Matter Observatory (NEMO): a gravitational-wave interferometer optimised to study nuclear physics with merging neutron stars. The concept uses high-circulating laser power, quantum squeezing, and a detector topology specifically designed to achieve the high-frequency sensitivity necessary to probe nuclear matter using gravitational waves. Above 1 kHz, the proposed strain sensitivity is comparable to full third-generation detectors at a fraction of the cost. Such sensitivity changes expected event rates for detection of post-merger remnants from approximately one per few decades with two A+ detectors to a few per year and potentially allow for the first gravitational-wave observations of supernovae, isolated neutron stars, and other exotica.

The SPARC tokamak is a critical next step towards commercial fusion energy. SPARC is designed as a high-field ($B_0 = 12.2$ T), compact ($R_0 = 1.85$ m, $a = 0.57$ m), superconducting, D-T tokamak with the goal of producing fusion gain $Q>2$ from a magnetically confined fusion plasma for the first time. Currently under design, SPARC will continue the high-field path of the Alcator series of tokamaks, utilizing new magnets based on rare earth barium copper oxide high-temperature superconductors to achieve high performance in a compact device. The goal of $Q>2$ is achievable with conservative physics assumptions ($H_{98,y2} = 0.7$) and, with the nominal assumption of $H_{98,y2} = 1$, SPARC is projected to attain $Q \approx 11$ and $P_{\textrm {fusion}} \approx 140$ MW. SPARC will therefore constitute a unique platform for burning plasma physics research with high density ($\langle n_{e} \rangle \approx 3 \times 10^{20}\ \textrm {m}^{-3}$), high temperature ($\langle T_e \rangle \approx 7$ keV) and high power density ($P_{\textrm {fusion}}/V_{\textrm {plasma}} \approx 7\ \textrm {MW}\,\textrm {m}^{-3}$) relevant to fusion power plants. SPARC's place in the path to commercial fusion energy, its parameters and the current status of SPARC design work are presented. This work also describes the basis for global performance projections and summarizes some of the physics analysis that is presented in greater detail in the companion articles of this collection.

Hernando de Soto's expedition through the southeastern United States between 1539 and 1543 is often regarded as a watershed moment for the collapse of Indigenous societies across the region. Historical narratives have proposed that extreme depopulation as a result of early contact destabilized Indigenous economies, politics, networks, and traditions. Although processes of depopulation and transformation were certainly set in motion by this and earlier colonial encounters, the timing, temporality, and heterogeneous rhythms of postcontact Indigenous histories remain unclear. Through the integration of radiocarbon and archaeological data from the Mississippian earthen platform mound at Dyar (9GE5) in central Georgia, we present a case of Indigenous endurance and resilience in the Oconee Valley that has long been obfuscated by materially based chronologies and typologies. Bayesian chronological modeling suggests that Indigenous Mississippian traditions persisted for up to 130 years beyond contact with European colonizers. We argue that advances in modeling radiocarbon dates, along with meaningful consultation/collaboration with descendant communities, can contribute to efforts that move us beyond a reliance on materially based chronologies that can distort and erase Indigenous histories.

A striking new species of Begonia, B. joshii, is described from Amazonas Region, Peru. The new species is unusual among the South American members of the genus both in its combination of tuberous habit with peltate leaves and in living in a seasonally dry tropical forest environment. A phylogeny of this and closely related species is presented, and its sectional affiliation and IUCN conservation status are discussed. A key to the peltate Peruvian species of Begonia is provided.

This paper describes a new, environmentally friendly drilling technique for making short-and long-term access boreholes in shelf glaciers using lightweight drills. The new drilling technique was successfully developed for installation of small-diameter sensors under the Ross Ice Shelf through ~ 193 m thick ice at Windless Bight, McMurdo Ice Shelf, Antarctica. The two access boreholes were drilled and sensors installed in 110 working hours. The total weight of the drilling equipment including the power system and fuel is <400 kg. Installation of small-diameter sensors was possible for 1.8– 6 hours after penetration through the glacier into the sea water beneath. The new drilling technique does not require drilling fluid and therefore has minimal environmental impact. It should permit access through ice-shelf ice up to 350 m thick, or glaciers on grounded ice or subglacial lakes if there is no water-permeable interface at the base. Modifications, presented in this work, of the drilling equipment and protocol will allow for (1) ~ 21 working hours for penetration through 200 m of ice, (2) installation of sensors up to 120 mm in diameter and (3) drilling long-term open boreholes through 400 m thick ice in 100 working hours.

Crop phenotype is usually expressed in terms of characteristics like plant height, leaf architecture and leaf area index (LAI). In the case of maize, stalk diameter is seldom quantified because its measurement does not readily lend itself to automation. Justification for automating the measurement of stalk diameter and plant spacing is based on the finding that stalk diameter was able to account for about 65% of the variability in maize yield per plant in three irrigated field studies. A high-speed reflectance sensor and simulation apparatus was developed to explore the potential for automating maize stalk diameter assessment. The prototyped system accurately measured both stalk diameter and plant spacing in the laboratory at simulated velocities up to 12 km/h.

Potassium (K) is a macronutrient which plays a vital role on crop growth and metabolism. After N the requirements for K are greatest for most arable crops and so the availability of K is of critical importance to optimise production. The precision nutrient management of arable crops requires accurate and timely assessment of crop nutrient status. Much research and practice has focused on crop N status, while there has been a lack of focus on other important nutrients such as K. Therefore, in this study we assess the robustness of 12 fluorescence channels and several indices to predict nutrient status (K, Mg and Ca) across two cereal crops with different row management and lime status on an acidic K deficient soil. A multi-factorial experiment was used with the following treatment factors: crop (barley, wheat), K fertilizer rates (0, 25, 50, 100 kg K/ ha), lime (nil, 1 t/ ha) and two management factors (inter-row, windrow). At flowering the crop was sampled for biomass and nutrient content and proximal sensing (using a Multiplex fluorometer) undertaken of the crop canopy. Crop variables showed significant treatment effects. For instance, all crop variables were greater under the windrow treatment than the inter-row, K rate significantly increased grain yield and TGW, but K rate decreased protein and grain Ca and Mg content, also the grain yield was significantly greater under lime compared with the nil treatment. These crop effects enabled the identification of significant crop-fluorescence relationships. For instance, SFR_R (a chlorophyll index) predicted crop biomass (regardless of crop species) and FLAV predicted with the grain protein of windrow-grown barley. These results are promising and suggest crop-fluorescence relationships can be used to inform crop nutrient status which could be used to aid management decisions. Thus, there is good potential for fluorescence sensing to quantify crop K status and the opportunity to improve the timing and precision of K management for application within a precision agriculture system.

This paper reports the first large-sample investigation of the maltreatment-related correlates of low-income adolescents’ narratives about their childhood experiences with primary caregivers, as assessed with a modified version of the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) and based on official reports of abuse and neglect (maltreated n = 214, nonmaltreated n = 140; M age = 16.7 years). Drawing on factor-analytic and taxometric evidence indicating that AAI narratives vary along two state of mind (i.e., dismissing and preoccupied) and two inferred childhood experience (i.e., maternal and paternal) dimensions, here we demonstrate that the experience of maltreatment, particularly when chronic, is associated with increased risk for dismissing and preoccupied states of mind and more negative inferred childhood experiences. Although such maltreatment-related associations were generally not specific to any of the four AAI dimensions, the experience of physical and/or sexual abuse was uniquely associated with preoccupied states of mind and negative inferred paternal experiences even after controlling for the other AAI dimensions. More extensive paternal perpetration of maltreatment also was uniquely related to more negative inferred paternal experiences.

Archaeological materials in several prairie mounds in the northern Western Lowlands of southeastern Missouri indicate that mounds began forming prior to ca. 5000-3000 yr B.P. The mounds subsequently were inundated and built up to their modern configuration by aggradational and reworking processes. Human use of the mounds may have been tied to exploitation of aquatic animals residing in backwater habitats during periods of prolonged flooding. Principal features of the sampled portion of the mound field include preoccupation topographic highs, early occupation (ca. 5000-3000 yr B.P.) layers that drape the topographic highs, and later occupation (ca. 3000-950 yr B.P.) layers that drape earlier occupation layers and extend onto intermound areas.

Three studies were conducted to develop pollen tests for the screening of acetyl coenzyme-A carboxylase (ACCase) target-site resistance in a biotype of johnsongrass. The assays were based on germination of johnsongrass pollen in media supplemented with clethodim. Two different methods were used to evaluate pollen germination—a visual assessment and a spectrophotometric assay. The response of pollen to the germination media was linear for 16 h. At 6 h after treatment, absorbance at 500 nm was nearly 0.5; consequently, 6 h was chosen to conduct the pollen assays using the spectrophotometer. Both assessment methods differentiated the susceptible (S) and resistant (R) biotypes. Pollen from the susceptible biotype of johnsongrass was strongly inhibited by increasing concentrations of clethodim, with a GR50 of 25.8 ± 0.6 (SE) µM and GR50 of 16.4 ± 1.7 (SE) µM clethodim by visual assessment and spectrophotometric assessment, respectively. Minimum R/S values were > 3.9 by visual assessment and > 6.1 by spectrophotometric assessment. ACCase target-site resistance is expressed in johnsongrass pollen.