Humanities & Social Sciences

In recent decades, levels of childlessness have been increasing rapidly in most European countries. German-speaking countries seem to be at the forefront of this development, as more than 20% of the women living in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria who are now reaching the end of their reproductive period will remain childless. But other European countries, such as the UK and Finland, also report high levels of childlessness. Eastern and Southern Europe did not have high levels of childlessness a decade ago, but are now seeing steady increases. This book provides an overview of the recent trend toward a “life without children” across Europe. It seeks answers to questions like: What are the determinants of childlessness in the twenty-first century? Is there an unbroken trend in childlessness, or is there evidence of trend reversals? How does the likelihood of remaining childless differ across social strata? To what extent do economic uncertainties affect childlessness? How do fertility desires evolve over the life course? To what extent does the situation of a woman’s partner affect her fertility decisions? How far can we push the biological limits of fertility? What role can assisted reproduction play in reducing childlessness? How many men fail to have children of their own? What impact can family policies have on fertility decisions? Can governments reverse the trend toward childlessness—and, if so, should they?

Luftverkehr und Banken gehören in den USA zu jenen Bereichen, die vor der Weltwirtschaftskrise durch intensiven Wettbewerb gekennzeichnet waren. Sie wurden in den 30er Jahren in ein engmaschiges Regulierungsnetz eingebunden, das als Substitut für den wettbewerblichen Koordinierungsmechanismus dienen sollte. Seit den 60er Jahren wurden die Schwächen staatlicher Eingriffe in die Wirtschaft immer deutlicher, was in den USA Mitte der 70er Jahre zu einer von Ökonomen, Politikern, Juristen und Verbraucherschützern getragenen Gegenbewegung (Deregulation Policy) führte, die im Luftverkehrs- und Bankensektor durch Intensivierung des Wettbewerbs sehr erfolgreich war und daher ein Beispiel für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland und Europa sein sollte.

The here collected contributions relating to the 46th International Conference of the Representation Disciplines Teachers, organized jointly by Sapienza University of Rome, Roma Tre University, and San Raffaele Roma University, aim to offer the scientific community a reflection on the theoretical and methodological aspects related to the concept of èkphrasis, a term that, in the field of representation, concerns descriptive, analogical, and digital activities that generate new knowledge in several areas of application. The Conference aims to place at the center of the discussion an interpretation of the concept of research that, without neglecting an idea of study, protection, and enhancement of environmental and cultural heritage, focuses on the needs of contemporary society and its possible developments, making use of innovative theoretical, methodological, and operational activities, including those characterized by an interdisciplinary approach. According to this interpretation, research can also be seen as a foreshadowing of the definition and testing of experimental proposals aimed at exploring new areas of investigation: this opens up imaginative and utopian perspectives in the relationship between the sciences, the arts, and the disciplines that contribute to common goals, through the experimentation of methods, techniques, and languages for conceiving, prefiguring, designing, and representing.

The volume examines the epigraphic cultures of Italian communes during the High Middle Ages and their relationship to earlier epigraphic cultures in antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. It focuses especially on the question of continuity and breaks and the influence of the ancient epigraphic heritage on Medieval epigraphic practice in the cities.

Watership Down (Martin Rosen, 1978) is as controversial as it is beloved. Whether due to the tear-jerking hit song 'Bright Eyes' or its notorious representation of violence inflicted by and upon animated rabbits, the film retains the ability to move and shock audiences of all ages, remaining an important cultural touchstone decades after its original release. This open access collection unites scholars and practitioners from a diversity of perspectives to consider the ongoing legacy of this landmark of British cinema and animation history. The authors provide nuanced discussions of Watership Down’s infamous animated depictions of violence, death and its contentious relationship with child audiences, as well as examinations of understudied aspects of the film including its musical score, use of language, its increasingly relevant political and environmental themes and its difficult journey to the screen, complete with behind-the-scenes photographs, documents and production artwork. As the first substantial work on Watership Down, this book is a valuable companion on the film for scholars, students and fans alike. The eBook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0licence on bloomsburycollections.com.

This open access book bridges a gap between introductory Quantum Field Theory (QFT) courses and state-of-the-art research in scattering amplitudes. It covers the path from basic definitions of QFT to amplitudes, which are relevant for processes in the Standard Model of particle physics. The book begins with a concise yet self-contained introduction to QFT, including perturbative quantum gravity. It then presents modern methods for calculating scattering amplitudes, focusing on tree-level amplitudes, loop-level integrands and loop integration techniques. These methods help to reveal intriguing relations between gauge and gravity amplitudes and are of increasing importance for obtaining high-precision predictions for collider experiments, such as those at the Large Hadron Collider, as well as for foundational mathematical physics studies in QFT, including recent applications to gravitational wave physics.These course-tested lecture notes include numerous exercises with solutions. Requiring only minimal knowledge of QFT, they are well-suited for MSc and PhD students as a preparation for research projects in theoretical particle physics. They can be used as a one-semester graduate level course, or as a self-study guide for researchers interested in fundamental aspects of quantum field theory.

Economic policy; Economic conditions; Industrialization; China

The book deals in detail with the requirements of existing copyright exceptions, for libraries in German statutory copyright law. In Germany, the same as in all other EU member states, it is the rule that for copyright related "exploitations", such as copying, distribution, presentation or (internet-) communication to the public , there must exist a copyright exception or, if the conditions for such an exception are not met, the consent of the copyright holder must be provided. In 2018, especially for scientists, research and educational institutions, libraries and other cultural heritage institutions , new exceptions were created in §§ 60a ff. of the German Copyright Act (UrhG). At the time of publication of this version of the book, the next copyright reform is on its way, namely the implementation of the "Copyright in the Digital Single Market" Directive ("DSM Directive"). This publication refers to the provisions of the Directive from the respective passages. The DSM Directive must be implemented into German law by June 7, 2021.

The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) is the most interesting phenomenon in contemporary Indonesian politics. Not only is it growing rapidly in membership and electoral support, it is also bringing a new and markedly different approach to Islamic politics, one which has no precedent in Indonesian history. Understanding PKS and analysing its political behaviour presents challenges to scholars and observers. This is partly due to the fact that the party represents a new trend within Indonesian Islam which has few parallels with preceding movements. Yon Machmudi has rendered us a valuable service. In this book, he provides a thoughtful and authoritative context for viewing PKS. He critiques the existing categorisations for Indonesian Islam and points to their inadequacy when describing the PKS and the campus-based Tarbiyah movement from which it sprang. He reworks the santri typology, dividing it into convergent, radical and global substreams. This offers new possibilities for explaining the PKS phenomenon and assists in differentiating between various types of Islamic revivalism in contemporary Indonesia. It also allows a more understanding of the accommodatory stance which PKS has towards the state and other political forces. Yon’s text provides a good overview of the development of PKS from its Tarbiyah movement origins to its impressive success at the 2004 general elections. It considers the party’s attitude towards the issues of sharia implementation and community welfare and closes by examining the future challenges facing PKS. It is a well written and authoritative account from a scholar who has done wideranging research on the party.

Many histories of Ancient Greece center their stories on Athens, but what would that history look like if they didn’t? There is another way to tell this story, one that situates Greek history in terms of the relationships between smaller Greek cities and in contact with the wider Mediterranean. In this book, author Joshua P. Nudell offers a new history of the period from the Persian wars to wars that followed the death of Alexander the Great, from the perspective of Ionia. While recent scholarship has increasingly treated Greece through the lenses of regional, polis, and local interaction, there has not yet been a dedicated study of Classical Ionia. This book fills this clear gap in the literature while offering Ionia as a prism through which to better understand Classical Greece. This book offers a clear and accessible narrative of the period between the Persian Wars and the wars of the early Hellenistic period, two nominal liberations of the region. The volume complements existing histories of Classical Greece. Close inspection reveals that the Ionians were active partners in the imperial endeavor, even as imperial competition constrained local decision-making and exacerbated local and regional tensions. At the same time, the book offers interventions on critical issues related to Ionia such as the Athenian conquest of Samos, rhetoric about the freedom of the Greeks, the relationship between Ionian temple construction and economic activity, the status of the Panionion, Ionian poleis and their relationship with local communities beyond the circle of the dodecapolis, and the importance of historical memory to our understanding of ancient Greece. The result is a picture of an Aegean world that is more complex and less beholden narratives that give primacy to the imperial actors at the expense of local developments.

Das slowenische Volk war auch im 17. und 18. Jh. keine staatsbildende Nation und hat in kulturhistorischer Hinsicht eine nicht typische Entwicklung durchgemacht. Beides verursachte schwere Krisen und forderte von der Praxis des alltäglichen Lebens die Lösung weitgehender und verwickelter Probleme. Unter diesen Problemen stand die Frage der Schriftsprache an erster Stelle. Unter diesen Problemen stand die Frage der Schriftsprache an erster Stelle. Die protestantische Grundlage verblich mehr und mehr. Sie wurde nur noch von verschiedenen Ausgaben des Evangeliums und der Episteln am Leben erhalten. Während des Protestantismus und der Aufklärung erschienen ihrer acht. Ihre Verfasser verblieben in sprachlichen Fragen bei der Sprachtradition. Diese Bewahrung der Überlieferung war jene Kraft in der Sprache, die sie vor dem Eindringen verschiedener Tendenzen bewahrte.

Japan's Failed Revolution: Koizumi and the Politics of Economic Reform asks why, despite all the high expectations, the Japanese public's desire for economic reform, and leadership of a majority coalition in a parliamentary democracy, the reformer Prime Minister Koizumi has not achieved the economic reforms expected of him since he surprisingly attained power over a year ago. To unravel this 'puzzle’, Aurelia George Mulgan eschews the simplicities of both cultural and rational choice explanations and systematically tests the propositions in the comparative literature on 'failed reform’. The result is one of the best books ever written about contemporary Japanese politics. It explains how, despite British-style parliamentary institutions, Japan’s very ‘un-Westminster’ traditional policymaking process involving the ruling party and the bureaucracy’s structure and linkage has stymied and will probably continue to stymie even a sincere and active Prime Minister’s best reform intentions. This book should be read by all political scientists, journalists, economists, and students interested in contemporary Japan. Ellis S. Krauss Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies University of California, San Diego. The author takes a scalpel to dissect Japan’s dysfunctional political system. She shows with wonderful clarity and depth of knowledge why the Koizumi reforms are not succeeding, and why revolutionary political change is needed as a precondition for economic recovery. The book should be required reading for anyone involved with contemporary Japan. J.A.A. Stockwin University of Oxford.

Amsterdam painter Dirk Valkenburg (1675–1721) created early depictions of Indigenous and enslaved people on Surinamese sugar plantations, as well as ornate hunting still lifes and portraits of colonial elites. Edited by Willem de Rooij and Karwan Fatah Black, this volume combines a catalogue raisonné developed in collaboration with the RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History in The Hague – and a critical reader featuring newly commissioned essays by leading international scholars. It is conceived as a pendant to De Rooij’s installation Valkenburg, which opened at the Centraal Museum Utrecht in September 2025. This book and the exhibition together invite reflection on how 18th-century visual culture helped normalize colonial ideology.

The most important (in)determinacy theses in international law since the 1920s are scrutinised in this book. As Severin Meier demonstrates, the extent of legal determinacy depends neither on some linguistic essence found in the text nor on theories that allegedly stand above practice. Instead, the (in)determinacy of law is shown to arise purely from practice. This reconceptualisation of a key discussion in legal philosophy provides a new perspective on the frame of meaning of legal norms.

Abiayalan Pluriverses: Bridging Indigenous Studies and Hispanic Studies looks for pathways that better connect two often siloed disciplines. This edited collection brings together different disciplinary experiences and perspectives to this objective, weaving together researchers, artists, instructors, and authors who have found ways of bridging Indigenous and Hispanic studies through trans-Indigenous reading methods, intercultural dialogues, and reflections on translation and epistemology. Each chapter brings rich context that bears on some aspect of the Indigenous Americas and its crossroads with Hispanic studies, from Canada to Chile. Such a hemispheric and interdisciplinary approach offers innovative and significant means of challenging the coloniality of Hispanic studies.