Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in the UK (1-2). Low exposure to the sun in winter months, as well as higher risk of deficiency amongst some ethnic minority populations (1), means that fortification of food and beverages remains an important potential route to ensure optimal vitamin D status. However, it is unclear as to whether type of fortified food affects ability to raise vitamin D status. Animal foods (e.g. dairy foods) would be expected to lead to higher vitamin D absorption than would non-animal-based foods (e.g. bread, juice), due to their higher fat content. The primary aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to investigate the effectiveness of animal and non-animal-based vitamin D fortified foods on raising serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D).

The literature search was conducted using PubMed on 23 January 2024. Inclusion criteria were as follows: data on non-pregnant/non-lactating adults or data on children, randomised controlled trial; data for 25(OH)D measurement. Initial search results retrieved 701 publications, and 593 ineligible records were removed. Next, 108 records were screened by title and abstract, with 63 records excluded, for the following reasons: off topic (n=54); pregnant or breastfeeding (n=6); non-human (n=1); preterm infants (n=1) and duration <4 weeks (n=1). After full text eligibility screening, 28 publications remained for systematic review and meta-analysis. Ethical approval was not required as this was a literature review.

The end point data meta-analysis showed (for all studies combined) a significant increase in 25(OH)D (+23.4 (95% CI 17.0, 29.7) nmol/L (24 studies)). For specific food types, results were as follows: ‘animal’ +21.7 (95% CI 14.1, 29.3) nmol/L (17 studies); mixture of ‘animal’ and ‘non-animal’ +26.1 (95% CI 10.8, 41.4) nmol/L (1 study); ‘non-animal’ +28.1 (95% 12.0, 44.2) nmol/L (6 studies).

Contrary to what would be expected, non-animal mode of fortification (e.g. bread, juice) had a similar effect size to animal modes (e.g. dairy), so can be considered equivalent in effectiveness in raising 25(OH)D concentration. Differences in dose, duration and population groups between the non-animal and animal modes (in terms of health and baseline vitamin D status) mean the results should be taken with caution, and future studies where these factors are standardised could be useful to provide further evidence of effectiveness.

The global population and status of Snowy Owls Bubo scandiacus are particularly challenging to assess because individuals are irruptive and nomadic, and the breeding range is restricted to the remote circumpolar Arctic tundra. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) uplisted the Snowy Owl to “Vulnerable” in 2017 because the suggested population estimates appeared considerably lower than historical estimates, and it recommended actions to clarify the population size, structure, and trends. Here we present a broad review and status assessment, an effort led by the International Snowy Owl Working Group (ISOWG) and researchers from around the world, to estimate population trends and the current global status of the Snowy Owl. We use long-term breeding data, genetic studies, satellite-GPS tracking, and survival estimates to assess current population trends at several monitoring sites in the Arctic and we review the ecology and threats throughout the Snowy Owl range. An assessment of the available data suggests that current estimates of a worldwide population of 14,000–28,000 breeding adults are plausible. Our assessment of population trends at five long-term monitoring sites suggests that breeding populations of Snowy Owls in the Arctic have decreased by more than 30% over the past three generations and the species should continue to be categorised as Vulnerable under the IUCN Red List Criterion A2. We offer research recommendations to improve our understanding of Snowy Owl biology and future population assessments in a changing world.

The aviation industry’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions have driven the rapid development and scale-up of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs). SAFs have the potential to significantly reduce CO2 lifecycle emissions by up to 80% in comparison to Jet A and other conventional fossil-derived jet fuels. For multiple logistical and practical reasons, it is preferable to ensure that SAFs are ‘essentially identical’ (also referred to as ‘drop-in SAF’) to conventional jet fuel in terms of their performance, durability and compatibility with existing hardware systems. Because the majority of SAFs are not identical (non-drop-in) to conventional jet fuel, they have not been approved for use in their neat (100%) form. Instead, these non-identical SAFs are named synthetic blend components (SBC) as they are blended with conventional fuels to different extents per ASTM D7566-23a. It should be noted that there are on-going efforts to develop non-drop in SAF specifications to broaden their proliferation and maximise the aviation industries’ ability to reduce CO2 lifecycle emissions. One very important area of focus is the compatibility of SAFs with engine and fuel system seals, specifically understanding the dynamics of elastomeric seals. To address this, a novel approach has been developed to measure seal dynamics in flowing fuel. This technique has been applied to study the dynamic seal behaviour of four industrially relevant elastomer seals commonly employed in aviation fuel systems. The study involved three test fuels: (i) conventional fossil-derived Jet A, neat hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) SAF, and neat alcohol to jet (ATJ) SAF. Notably, both HEFA and ATJ fuels contain 0% aromatics, in contrast to Jet A, which typically contains around 17% aromatics by volume. The novel fuel-elastomer test rig used in this study was designed to simulate a practical scenario in which fuel flows through the inner surface of a pre-loaded static O-ring. The results of these tests demonstrate that the behaviour of different nitrile elastomers is unique to their formulation, and in all cases, the behaviour in HEFA and ATJ SAF differs significantly from that in Jet A. However, new fuel approval tests may only list one type of elastomer for evaluation, for example the ‘Fit-for-Purpose’ test in ASTM D4054-22 Tier 2 lists one specific nitrile. The findings of this study highlight the complexities of fuel-elastomer interactions within nominally identical chemical families and emphasise the potential risks of assessing compatibility based on tests conducted with a single member of a chemical family.

Inhibitory control plays an important role in children’s cognitive and socioemotional development, including their psychopathology. It has been established that contextual factors such as socioeconomic status (SES) and parents’ psychopathology are associated with children’s inhibitory control. However, the relations between the neural correlates of inhibitory control and contextual factors have been rarely examined in longitudinal studies. In the present study, we used both event-related potential (ERP) components and time-frequency measures of inhibitory control to evaluate the neural pathways between contextual factors, including prenatal SES and maternal psychopathology, and children’s behavioral and emotional problems in a large sample of children (N = 560; 51.75% females; Mage = 7.13 years; Rangeage = 4–11 years). Results showed that theta power, which was positively predicted by prenatal SES and was negatively related to children’s externalizing problems, mediated the longitudinal and negative relation between them. ERP amplitudes and latencies did not mediate the longitudinal association between prenatal risk factors (i.e., prenatal SES and maternal psychopathology) and children’s internalizing and externalizing problems. Our findings increase our understanding of the neural pathways linking early risk factors to children’s psychopathology.

Phyllosilicates are hypothesized to be primarily of pedogenic origin in shallowly buried paleosols (≤3 km depth), regardless of the age of the paleosol. To test this hypothesis, this work evaluates the possible presence of detrital and diagenetic phyllosilicates in middle and upper Pennsylvanian paleosols, collected from three drill cores along a north–south transect in the Illinois Basin. The abundances of 2M1 muscovite, quartz, and K-feldspar are greater in a morphologically immature Protosol from the southernmost core; 1Md illite and interstratified illite-smectite with R1 and R0 stacking orders are more abundant in the more mature Vertisols of the central and northern cores. K-Ar age values of multiple clay-size fractions from each paleosol averaged ~260 Ma in the northern core, 270 Ma in the central core, and 295 Ma in the southern core. While considering the complex tectonic and thermal history of the Illinois Basin, detrital minerals are more abundant in immature paleosols that experienced relatively greater maximum burial depths and thus greater sediment supply whereas illitization in more mature paleosols was probably initiated primarily during protracted burial diagenesis. As the present study found evidence for diagenetic and detrital minerals in clay-size fractions of shallowly buried, deep-time paleosols, caution is advised when using paleosol minerals for ancient climate and environment reconstructions.

The thermal effects, as well as the survivability and origins of microorganisms in Cretaceous rocks, are evaluated from the timing and extent of the smectite to illite transformation in Cretaceous bentonites collected from cores outside the thermal aureole of the Pliocene Cerro Negro volcanic neck. Overall, randomly ordered mixed-layered illite-smectite (I-S) is the predominant clay mineral in these bentonites, and the K-Ar ages of I-S range from 36 to 48 Ma (21 analyses, two additional analyses were outside this range). Increased temperature from burial is thought to be the primary factor forming I-S in these bentonites. Kinetic model calculations of the smectite to illite transformation are also consistent with I-S formed by burial without any appreciable thermal effects due to the emplacement of Cerro Negro. In a core angled toward Cerro Negro, the percentages of illite layers in I-S from the bentonite closest to Cerro Negro are slightly higher (32-37%) than in most other bentonites in this study. The K-Ar ages of the closest I-S are slightly younger as a group (38-43 Ma; Average = 41 Ma; N = 4) than those of I-S further from Cerro Negro in the same core (41-48 Ma; Average = 44 Ma; N = 6). A small amount of illite in this I-S may have formed by heat from the emplacement of Cerro Negro, but most illite formed from burial. Vitrinite reflectance, however, appears to record the effects of heating from Cerro Negro better than I-S. Tentatively, the temperature of this heat pulse, based on vitrinite data alone, ranged from 100 to 125°C and this is most evident in the CNAR core. The upper temperature, 125°C, approximates the sterilization temperatures for most microorganisms, and these temperatures probably reduced a significant portion of the microbial population. Thermophiles may have survived the increased temperatures from the combined effects of burial and the intrusion of Cerro Negro.

The hypothesis that chemical remanent magnetization (CRM) in argillaceous rocks may be due to release of Fe during smectite illitization has been tested by study of spatial and temporal relationships of CRM acquisition, smectite illitization, and organic-matter maturation to deformation in the Montana Disturbed Belt. New K-Ar ages and stacking order and percentages of illite layers in illite-smectite (I-S) are consistent with conclusions from previous studies that smectite illitization of bentonites in Subbelts I and II of the Disturbed Belt was produced by thrust-sheet burial resulting from the Laramide Orogeny. Internally concordant, early Paleogene, K-Ar age values (55–57 Ma) were obtained from clay subfractions of thick bentonites which were significantly different in terms of their ages (i.e. Jurassic Ellis Formation and late Cretaceous Marias River Shale), further supporting a model of smectite illitization as a result of the Laramide Orogeny. Internally concordant K-Ar ages were found also for clay sub-fractions from a thick bentonite at Pishkun Canal (54 Ma) and from an undeformed bentonite near Vaughn on the Sweetgrass Arch (48 Ma). In Subbelts I and II, a greater degree of smectite illitization corresponds to increased thermal maturation, increased natural remanent magnetization intensity, and increased deformation (dip of beds). A dissolution-precipitation model over a short duration is proposed for the formation of illite layers in Subbelts I and II. A characteristic remanent magnetization was developed before or just after folding began in the early Paleogene. More smectite-rich I-S, low thermal maturity, and the absence of a CRM were noted in one outcrop of an undeformed rock on the Sweetgrass Arch. Strontium isotope data allow for the possibility that internal or externally derived fluids may have influenced illitization, but the K-Ar age values suggest that illitization was probably in response to conductive heating after the overthrusting had occurred. The differences in K-Ar dates among the bentonites studied herein may be due to differences in the timing of peak temperature related to differences in distance below the overthrust slab, in rates of burial and exhumation, and in initial temperature.

The high-density siliciclastic minerals (e.g. zircon) in the coarse fractions (>44 mm, informally known as grit) of the mined Georgia kaolins are potential and significant sources of the rare-earth elements (REE). The abundances and provenance of the REE signature have not been studied extensively for the Georgia kaolins. The objective of the present study was, therefore, to define the contribution of these heavy minerals (e.g. zircon) to the REE inventory of the coarse fractions of Georgia kaolins. Heavy-mineral subfractions separated from the coarse fractions contained 1647 mg/kg REE from the Jeffersonville Member of the Lower Tertiary Huber Formation and 5012 mg/kg REE from the Buffalo Creek Kaolin Member of the Upper Cretaceous Galliard Formation, respectively. These heavy-mineral subfractions were enriched 10–100 times in the heavy rare-earth elements (HREE, Gd—Lu,), Hf, and Zr relative to the concentrations of these elements in Upper Continental Crust. The heavy-mineral subfractions comprised 5% of the coarse fractions (grit) of these two kaolin-producing formations. The heavy-mineral subfractions consisted of zircon, anatase, rutile, kaolinite, and minor amounts of muscovite, trace ilmenite, and staurolite. The large concentrations of REE were obtained by separating the dense heavy minerals from the coarse fraction (grit) obtained during the typical production of kaolin-group minerals (kaolinite) from kaolin ore. The amount of zircon (estimated from the 6–11 wt.% Zr) and the absence of monazite did not explain the high concentrations of REE in the heavy-mineral subfractions. The large amounts of REE could have resulted from the sorption of REE released during weathering reactions, or from the presence of small amounts (0.025 wt.%) each of monazite and xenotime in addition to the presence of zircon. This heavymineral subfraction represented a novel domestic resource of extractable REE, especially the HREE, of a grade as high as 0.50 wt.% total REE.

Sorption and fixation of Cs by the upland soils of the US Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site (SRS) have been attributed to micaceous grains consisting mostly of hydroxy-interlayered vermiculite (HIV). Results of experiments to characterize SRS soil samples, to examine aspects of their radiocesium sorption, and to determine how much of their natural Cs is accessible for chemical extraction and isotope dilution are presented in support of mechanistic hypotheses to explain Cs sorption and fixation in HIV grains. The HIV is responsible for most of the soil cation exchange capacity, and concentrations of naturally occurring Cs, Rb, and K in soil samples are closely related to the concentration of HIV. Experiments with 137Cs to examine (1) sorption kinetics, (2) blocking of exchange sites with silver thiourea, and (3) susceptibility of sorbed 137Cs to chemical extraction, support the idea that added Cs is sorbed at different kinds of cation exchange sites in HIV grains. Sites highly selective for Cs but relatively few in number are inferred to exist in interlayer wedge zones within such grains. Little of the naturally occurring Cs in the soil samples was extractable by chemical agents that would remove Cs from ordinary cation-exchange sites and from within non-silicate soil components. Furthermore, most of the natural Cs was inaccessible for isotope dilution under slightly acidic conditions approximating the natural soil environment. These observations support the idea that most of the Cs in these soils has become effectively fixed in the narrower parts of interlayer wedge zones. Control of Cs uptake and fixation by highly Csselective interlayer wedge sites would account for the large distribution coefficients found for 137Cs at the low aqueous Cs concentrations typical of environmental systems and also for the relatively large concentrations of stable Cs in the SRS soils.

K-Ar measurements were used in this study of upland Savannah River Site soils to distinguish between sorbed K and the K remaining in remnants of primary minerals. Study of sorbed K contributes to understanding further the interaction of alkali metals (Cs in particular) with the soils. Primary mineral K and the associated radiogenic Ar were studied to characterize soil mica with respect to its provenance and its relationship to hydroxy-interlayered vermiculite. K-Ar age values of Na-saturated clay fractions from five samples of these soils range in age from 270 to 370 Ma. After a moderate acid treatment (6% HNO3 v/v, ~1 mol dm-3, 3 h, 80°C) of the clay fractions, K-Ar age values (270-325 Ma) were little changed on the whole, but they were more closely grouped near 300 Ma. Earlier work had shown that most of the K in these soils is found in material resistant to moderate acid extraction. The K-Ar age values show that this acid-resistant material is much older than any pedogenic minerals could be, even much older than the sedimentary parent rocks from which the soils were derived. These observations support earlier inferences by others that the K in these well leached soils is largely in remnants of primary muscovite from the parent sediments. Age values near 300 Ma suggest that the muscovite is largely from proximal Piedmont terranes of the Appalachian orogen, where the K-Ar relationship in most micas was set by Alleghanian tectonic processes late in the Paleozoic Era. The structural location of the K within mica, shown by the retention of the associated radiogenic Ar, is in contrast to the sorption-dominated behavior of the Cs and most of the Rb in these soils during pedogenesis. Stronger acid treatment (~6 mol dm-3 HNO3, 3 h, 100°C) extracted substantial fractions of both the K and the radiogenic Ar from bulk-soil portions, indicating destruction of some of the primary mica. K-Ar age values for the sand-rich bulk soils were not useful for this study because the sand contains excess radiogenic Ar, probably in sand-sized vein quartz.

The clay fractions of Jurassic marls in the Great Estuarine Group in southern Isle of Skye are composed of mixed-layered illite-smectite (I-S) with large percentages (>85%) of illite layers, kaolinite, and generally smaller amounts of chlorite. These marls have not been buried to the depths normally required to convert smectite to illite-rich I-S, so it is possible that the conversion was in response to heat and hydrothermal fluids from nearby early Tertiary igneous activity ∼55 Ma ago. The large percentages of illite layers in I-S, the Środoń intensity ratios, and the Kübler index values appear to be consistent with the formation of diagenetic I-S as a result of relatively brief heating caused by igneous activity. The Jurassic rocks in southern Skye contain a secondary chemical remanent magnetization (CRM) that resides in magnetite and formed at approximately the same time as the Tertiary igneous rocks on Skye. K-Ar age values for I-S based on illite age analysis have been determined to test the hypothesis that the CRM was acquired coincidently with the smectite-to-illite conversion. However, linear extrapolation of K-Ar age vs. percentage of 2M1 polytype (detrital illite) from one marl (EL-6) yields an estimate for the age of diagenetic illite of 106 Ma, which is close to the measured age of the finest subfraction (108 Ma). These estimated and measured age values, however, could be substantially greater than the true age of the diagenetic illite in I-S because of the presence of detrital 1Md illite that was recycled from early Paleozoic shales and whose abundance relative to the diagenetic I-S may have been enhanced because the diagenetic fluid had a low K/Na ratio, limiting the amount of diagenetic illite formed. Nevertheless, most of the illite in the Elgol marls (80% or more in the finest fractions) must be diagenetic and probably formed in response to the early Tertiary magmatism.

What is it like to be a partisan? How do individuals experience their relationship to political parties? The most common answer today, both in popular discourse and much political science, is identity, but many individuals do not identify with parties. Rather, they relate to parties in terms of psychological closeness or affinity—they do not say “we” about the party, as do identifiers, but rather “they.” In this article, I argue that both the empirical and normative study of partisanship would be improved by recognizing that these are two fundamentally different ways for individuals to be attached to parties and that these distinct experiences coexist within most democracies today. Acknowledging this basic plurality of partisanships would remedy the current tendency among empirical studies to homogenize partisanship as either identity or closeness and so would avoid falsifying the experience of many citizens who fall into the opposite category. In polarized contexts, moreover, it could help break up dualistic and antagonistic thinking about how to perform partisanship and diversify public understandings of how to be a partisan. Recognizing the plurality of partisanships would also improve the explosion of normative theorizing about partisanship found in the ground-breaking work of scholars like Nancy Rosenblum, Russell Muirhead, and Jonathan White and Lea Ypi. I show how identity and closeness partisanship—and the interaction between them—have transformative consequences for each of these scholars’ theories of partisanship, either furthering or threatening them. The article aims to improve the conceptualization of partisanship and to model a salutary engagement between normative and empirical inquiry within political science.