Open Access Books

Information Environmentalism applies four environmental analytical frameworks – ecology, ‘the commons’, public choice theory, and welfare economics – to the information environment. The book neatly captures the metaphorical relationship between the physical environment and the information environment by alluding to the environmental philosophy of ‘social ecology’ and the emergent informational discourse of ‘cultural environmentalism’.

Beyond the text is a work that proposes a critical reflection on the distance between the formal recognition of human rights in the Ecuadorian Constitution of 2008 and their effective application in everyday life. The main objective of the book is to analyze how, despite having one of the most advanced legal frameworks in Latin America that includes “good living” (Sumak Kawsay) and the rights of nature, deep structural gaps persist that prevent their practical realization, especially for the most vulnerable sectors. The methodology used is interdisciplinary, with an analytical and comparative approach that combines tools of constitutional law, legal sociology and public policy analysis. Through a critical review of institutional indicators, the book examines five key areas: the protection of human rights, access to justice, the situation of vulnerable groups, the impact of social programs and legal security as a pillar of development. Each chapter seeks not only to identify current challenges, but also to propose lines of action for structural transformation. The text is addressed to legal professionals, students, decision-makers and committed citizens, and is presented as an open invitation to dialogue. Its central message is clear: rights must be felt and exercised, not just proclaimed in law.

Digital Semiopoetics presents the changes which have occurred in the way of existing of sign, text and discourse in the digital environment. It characterises text and discourse which have been shaped digitally. It describes and names the significant re-modellings in textual structures (e.g. narrative, figures) present in the digital representations of these structures. It presents new textual figures and strategies based on movement and interactivity. It proves that what constitutes the foundation of these changes are the creation and properties of the digital sign, which differs from other signs, although the existence of this change was possible thanks to the development and properties of digital technologies. It demonstrates that a digital sign delineates a new situation of a semiotic text, which leads to changes in its poetics, including especially those co-creating it in the aspect of communication. It points to the inseparability of the aspects of a semiotic, poetic (meaning-creating, creative) and communicative text and discourse. It characterises electronic literariness on the basis of digital pieces (e-literature in particular). It builds a theory of digital text and discourse co-creating the metaverse culture.

Depuis l’apparition de Google Maps il y a 10 ans, la cartographie a considérablement évolué. Les mutations technologiques et les changements d’usages conduisent à une profusion de données géographiques (_data deluge_). À l’origine de ces milliers de cartes, des professionnels – géographes, cartographes... mais aussi des utilisateurs nouveaux : militants associatifs, acteurs politiques, hackers, etc. Désormais, sur le web, les cartes sont donc partout. Comment interpréter cet essor et cette omniprésence ? En prenant ces nouveaux usages au sérieux ! Ainsi, le parti pris de ce livre est de faire des Petites Cartes du web un véritable objet de recherche en mobilisant la cartographie critique comme cadre théorique et en défendant une méthode d'analyse ancrée à la fois dans les infrastructures techniques et auprès des acteurs impliqués. Deux études de cas menées en Guyane – sur les activités minières et sur les toponymes amérindiens – viennent illustrer ces propositions et démêler les usages et enjeux des cartes et contre-cartes guyanaises qui circulent sur Internet. Les cartes officielles de l'État sont ici complétées, contournées, voire concurrencées par celles des communautés issues de la culture libre ou des multinationales de l'Internet mais aussi des opérateurs miniers, des associations de défense de l'environnement ou encore des représentants des peuples autochtones. Finalement, en déployant une approche critique, ce petit ouvrage de synthèse déconstruit ces nouvelles façons de lire et d’écrire l’espace, qui font renaître le mythe de l’objectivité des cartes et de leur pouvoir de changer le monde. Il est destiné aux chercheurs, enseignants et étudiants en géographie, géomatique et sciences de l’information et de la communication qui s’intéressent aux nouvelles formes d’écritures géographiques et à leurs enjeux sociopolitiques. Il vise aussi un public large intéressé par la cartographie, la géographie et les humanités numériques

The Special Issue “Morphological and Physiological Research on Fish” focuses on the application of morphological and physiological research conducted on fish, with the goal of providing information on the relevance of morphological studies and their relationships to functions. Fish are not only the largest and most diverse group of vertebrates, but they also have a wide range of applications in research and industry. Furthermore, aquaculture is one of the most efficient and environmentally friendly ways to generate high-quality protein. In addition, in recent years, fish have emerged as an intriguing model system in biomedical research, owing to their strong resemblance to mammals in terms of several fundamental systems. Morphological studies give us context for understanding the spatial organization and link between physiological and biochemical data, as well as the molecular machinery that is rapidly being explained using molecular approaches focused on the genome, transcriptome, and proteome. As a result, new morphological and physiological studies of fish would improve our comprehension of these species, with extraordinary and exciting implications for both basic and applied studies. Many authors contributed to the Special Issue with ten original pieces and four reviews. The themes covered ranged from descriptive morphology to morphometry, stress markers to toxic compounds, wild to aquaculture or model species, and involved various organs and apparatus. Morphometrical and morphological research were the most numerous contributions in this Special Issue.

This reprint is tightly related to minerals engineering. The solution mining (heap leaching, in situ leaching, etc.) offers an environmentally friendly, low-cost, and efficient method to extract these minerals, especially copper sulfides (chalcopyrite, chalcocite, etc.), sandstone uranium, and sandstone gold deposits. After years of development, solution mining has made great progress, but it has also encountered some technical bottlenecks. To better understand the current status of low-grade minerals and mine wastes recovery, we carefully collected 13 contributions in this Special Issue, which are mainly divided into following three aspects:· Reaction mechanisms of chemical/bio-leaching—includes the leaching kinetics of copper sulfides, assisted leaching (chloride acidic leaching, iodide assisted leaching, etc.), in situ leaching of uranium and salt deposits, etc.· Process detection, characterization, and visualization—includes the detection of reaction products, visualization of fluid flow and mass transfer, pore strucutre characterization of leaching systems (ore-packed beds, etc.), microbial successions of leaching bacteria, etc.· Recovery, recycle, and reuse of mine wastes—includes cleaner leaching, disposal or production methods (dump leaching, etc.), the recovery of mine waste (waste rock, tailings, etc.), assessment of operations problems, etc.

This chapter studies the monumental immovable heritage from an ethical perspective. It analyzes its role in society as a mechanism of identity of the communities with which it coexists, as well as the mechanisms that act for its social acceptance. In addition, the universal values they possess and the procedures used today for their restoration are presented.

This study has two main aims. The first is to inform about approaches to painting among the poets and critics who, during the years 1885-95, were associated with the French Symbolist movement. The second is to examine the relevance of the work of certain painters to the poetic theory and practice of Mallarmé, Kahn, and Jarry. The first aim may be called synchronic, for its focus is Albert Aurier's 1891 definition of Symbolism in painting, the needs to which it responded and the controversies to which it gave rise. But the second may be called diachronic, for the poetry and criticism of these poets are produced at three distinct moments in the movement's history: Mallarmé's break with the Parnassians in 1875; Kahn's involvement in the emerging Symbolism of 1886; and Jarry's deconstruction of Symbolist theories in 1894. This book, originally published in paperback in 1989 under the ISBN 978-0-947623-23-4, was made Open Access in 2024 as part of the MHRA Revivals programme.

In an epoch marked by the collapse of paradigms of unbounded growth and the pressing imperative to rethink our inherited legacies, this volume explores the territories of contraction – liminal, suspended, underutilized, and abandoned spaces – as sites of potentiality, capable of nurturing novel forms of inhabitation within the ecological, social, and cultural thresholds of our time. At the heart of this reflection lies a fundamental shift in perspective: crisis is reimagined as an opportunity for design, and absence as a sensitive, generative material. Transition, understood as both a spatial and temporal condition, is investigated in its manifold expressions – mutation, movement, passage – and embraced as a critical lens for reinterpreting these territories as spaces poised for an imminent and emergent future. Within such contexts, new logics of transformation arise, grounded in principles of circularity and the forging of local alliances – settings in which public space, urban metabolism, resilience, and risk management intertwine within a comprehensive and profound reflection oriented towards the cultivation of open, inclusive, and sustainable futures. Here, design is conceived not merely as an act of creation but as an adaptive process, capable of evolving, accumulating, and layering meaning over time. Within this framework, the case of the former industrial area of Bagnoli-Coroglio emerges as a compelling paradigm, encapsulating a long and intricate history of deindustrialization, setbacks, deferred ambitions, and unrealized visions. This volume brings together the findings of an interdisciplinary and multiscalar research and teaching initiative conducted across nine design studios, translating into territorial strategies, spatial visions, and project hypotheses for an ecologically attuned and socially conscious regeneration. Territories of Co[ntr]Action thus serves as an invitation to reconsider transformation projects as open, adaptive practices – endeavors capable of fostering shared pathways of value creation through the collaboration of diverse forms of knowledge, communities, and institutions.

This volume brings together international experts to address the policy, legal, and technological dimensions of governing Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite broadband infrastructure. Global Governance of Low Earth Orbit Satellites is grounded in a multi-year, interdisciplinary research project generously supported by the Internet Society Foundation as part of its “Decolonizing the Internet” program. The contributions presented in this book were developed through a combination of scholarly inquiry, open-access reports, and sustained engagement at key international forums—including the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), the European Society of International Law (ESIL), ICANN, RightsCon, and IETF. Together, these chapters reflect on how multistakeholder institutions can respond to urgent global challenges related to transnational data governance, cybersecurity, digital inclusion, and infrastructural equity. The volume serves as both a scholarly compendium and a practical policy guide for advancing sustainable, inclusive, and secure governance of emerging space-based internet systems.

This work presents preliminary numerical simulation results on wave interaction with a fixed Bottom-Detached Breakwater (BDB). The purpose of developing fixed BDB is to provide a safe offshore zone for human activities, such as energy production and docking of large vessels, even in extreme weather. The transmission coefficient (kt) is used to assess the protection performance of the BDB. A two-dimensional Numerical Wave Flume (NWF) was developed by using ANSYS Fluent, validated with existing data and then used for studying the interaction between extreme waves and the BDB. The role of BDB design parameters such as its width and draft, and wave height and wavelength on kt was investigated. The reliability of the results of kt was verified by previous experimental study. This study demonstrates the development of a reliable NWF for conducting parametric analysis of BDBs and is a kick-off study for further developing the numerical and experimental study of floating breakwaters.

Detailed information on the gravitational effect of the Earth’s topographic and isostatic masses can be calculated by gravity forward modeling. Within this book, the tesseroid-based Rock-Water-Ice (RWI) approach is developed, which allows a rigorous separate modeling of the Earth’s rock, water, and ice masses with variable density values. Besides a discussion and evaluation of the RWI approach, applications in the context of the GOCE satellite mission and height system unification are presented.

La biologie évolutionnaire soulève une question fondamentale, celle du statut de la (ou des) théorie(s) biologique(s), explorée ici par Jean Gayon. Doit-on envisager une théorie biologique ou une pluralité de théories biologiques ? Cette question engage celle de l’originalité du concept de théorie lorsqu’il est investi dans le champ de la biologie. Se plaçant sur le plan pratique, Isabelle Olivieri interroge la fécondité et les problèmes éthiques soulevés par ses applications (gestion des résistances aux insecticides, utilisation des OGM, explication évolutionniste de comportements sociaux…). Jean-Sébastien Bolduc, Christian Sachse, Marc Kirsch et Olivier Morin discutent ces analyses.

The transformation of the cultural technique of calculation into a computational environment for the whole planet Earth requires media studies to undergo fundamental changes that go beyond mere reflection on the transformation of global political and economic structures. The becoming environmental of computing confronts us with the fact that the map is the territory: map and territory, media and nature, the Symbolic and the Real, are not distinguished in any categorical way but rather temporarily stabilized results of recursive processes by which they differentiate themselves from each other and call each other into being.However, the cultural technique of calculation has not only become “environmental” since the ubiquity of computation turned cultural techniques into environing techniques. Computation must and has always had to “reckon with everything,” with the materialities of the media that define the environmental conditions of computability, as well as with practices of extracting, storing and transferring data. This volume brings together contributions that seek to describe the environmentality of computation based on selected settings.

The volume, dedicated to the 44th International Conference of the Italian Union for Drawing, investigates the theme of ‘Transitions’, which particularly effectively represents our time and the current condition of the discipline of Drawing. The term, beyond its generic meaning of an intermediate stage in a process in which a condition changes from one state to another, has always been used in various fields, from music to geophysics. In fact, the disciplines of drawing have always been confronted with themes and issues relating to transitions from one condition to another. The history of representation tells us of transformations, even epochal ones, relating to ‘drawing’, with all that such transitions entail: suffice it to think of the evolution of forms of representation, of instrumental apparatuses, of the mutability of supports, of the analogical-digital transition underway, of the new modes of communication on platforms, of the hypertrophic offer of images also on the net that confirms Guy Debord’s intuitions relating to the new spectacularisation of society. Similarly, representation triggers transitions in the prefiguration and communication of design, the anticipation and foreshadowing of future events.The challenges posed by the digital pose open questions whose scope can only be glimpsed, such as the relationship between drawing and the act of modelling, and the construction of new paradigms of visual language and communication. ‘Transitions’, almost implicitly, points to possible futures, the evolution of technique and the search for new modes of expression; at the same time, however, it can suggest silences and reflections in a process of connection between history, theory, criticism and construction.