Open Access Books

Clear mirrors and The Geneva Bible revolutionary innovations of the Elizabethan age, inspired Shakespeare’s drive towards a new purpose for drama. Shakespeare reversed the conventional mirror metaphor for drama, implying drama cannot reflect the substance of human nature, and developed a method of characterization, through metadrama, self-awareness and soliloquy, to project St. Paul’s idea of conscience onto the Elizabethan stage. This revolutionary method of characterization, aesthetic existence beyond performance, has long been sensed but remains frustratingly uncategorized. Shakespeare’s Mirrors charts the invention of a drama that staged the unstageable: St. Paul’s metaphysical conception of human nature glimpsed through a looking glass darkly.

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Why has the zombie become such a pervasive figure in twenty-first-century popular culture? John Vervaeke, Christopher Mastropietro and Filip Miscevic seek to answer this question by arguing that particular aspects of the zombie, common to a variety of media forms, reflect a crisis in modern Western culture. The authors examine the essential features of the zombie, including mindlessness, ugliness and homelessness, and argue that these reflect the outlook of the contemporary West and its attendant zeitgeists of anxiety, alienation, disconnection and disenfranchisement. They trace the relationship between zombies and the theme of secular apocalypse, demonstrating that the zombie draws its power from being a perversion of the Christian mythos of death and resurrection. Symbolic of a lost Christian worldview, the zombie represents a world that can no longer explain itself, nor provide us with instructions for how to live within it. The concept of 'domicide' or the destruction of home is developed to describe the modern crisis of meaning that the zombie both represents and reflects. This is illustrated using case studies including the relocation of the Anishinaabe of the Grassy Narrows First Nation, and the upheaval of population displacement in the Hellenistic period. Finally, the authors invoke and reformulate symbols of the four horseman of the apocalypse as rhetorical analogues to frame those aspects of contemporary collapse that elucidate the horror of the zombie. Zombies in Western Culture: A Twenty-First Century Crisis is required reading for anyone interested in the phenomenon of zombies in contemporary culture. It will also be of interest to an interdisciplinary audience including students and scholars of culture studies, semiotics, philosophy, religious studies, eschatology, anthropology, Jungian studies, and sociology.

Provides preliminary advice about which of the California Mental Health Services Authority’s Prevention and Early Intervention activities seem most valuable to sustain or, in some cases, enhance.

Est-il possible de donner à la métaphysique un statut scientifique tel qu’elle soit en mesure de contrôler toute la réalité ? En particulier, est-il possible d’appliquer un tel programme à la méta-ontologie néoplatonicienne, qui pose comme principe de toute réalité l’Un ineffable, au-delà de l’être ? La réponse positive à cette question se trouve au fondement de la querelle entre les Néoplatoniciens sur l’architecture de la méta-ontologie. Cette étude esquisse la première phase de ce débat qui eut comme protagonistes les philosophes les plus affirmés du IIIe et IVe siècle après J.-C. : Plotin, Porphyre et Jamblique. Elle vise à mettre en évidence le trajet épistémique que Jamblique a parcouru. La polémique qu’il conduit contre ses prédécesseurs sert ici de fil conducteur pour suivre la démarche de cette légitimation. Elle est aussi l’indice d’un programme de recherche, un paradigme implicite, qui détermine la sélection et la formulation des problèmes philosophiques et la validité des réponses, donc aussi le choix des méthodes de preuve et des procédures de persuasion. Mais reconstruire cette polémique, c’est aussi suivre le chemin qui conduit à l’échec, car si Jamblique arrive à gagner sur ses prédécesseurs, il n’arrive pas à légitimer totalement son modèle théorique. Celui-ci ne résistera pas aux critiques de la génération suivante, qui proposera d’autres changements internes au système. Toutefois, la querelle sur l’architecture de la méta-ontologie ne sera jamais résolue de manière définitive.

The conference proceedings for the third edition of Gender & Crime unites interdisciplinary contributions on violence and power in partnerships, state institutions, and contexts of war, under the main theme "Structural Causes and Conditions of Gender-Specific Violence." From an intersectional perspective, gender-specific power relations and structural gender differences are examined and discussed in various areas, including armed conflicts, radicalization, prevention, sexual violence, the prosecution of domestic violence, and women in prison. The conference took place in April 2024 and was organized by the Criminological Research Institute of Lower Saxony and the German Women Lawyers Association.

This chapter differs from others in this monograph in its focus on two political organisations, the EU and the COE, and their top-down efforts to engage with issues of heritage and identity. These organisations represent the two most visible post-1945 political efforts to transform Europe as a region, by promoting further integration; both are driven by a fluid collective memory of the impact made by world wars, genocide, economic deprivation and other forms of societal disruption. By their very nature, both organisations have sought to engage with the construction and reconstruction of history and identity, both to pursue a vision of a common Europe and to build a sense of purpose and value in their organisational efforts to build integration (and therefore justify their existence). They have selected particular policy instruments, which Hood (1983) defines as the tools by which actors implement their governance strategies. The core research question is: how do these two institutions seek to intervene and make people engage with memories, histories and identities by creating cultural heritage institutions and instruments?

Modern agriculture is a significant contributor to climate change and environmental degradation, and various environmental stressors—significantly exacerbated by climate change—affect cropping systems, decreasing yields and product quality. Therefore, it is imperative to identify innovative, biobased approaches to improve the sustainability of cropping systems, reduce their contribution to climate change, and make agriculture more resilient and productive. In this context, the valorization of agro-industrial waste represents a strategic and relevant way to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture and increase its productivity. Some recent studies have focused on producing biostimulants and biofertilizers from agro-industrial wastes, thereby advancing a circular economy paradigm. Furthermore, within the scope of promoting third-generation biorefinery, following pretreatment for the extraction/production of valuable substances, this kind of biomass can be utilized for anaerobic digestion for energy production and finally converted into (bio)fertilizers. This Special Issue provides an overview of innovative and cutting-edge research on the potentialities of biomass, including the research on obtaining biostimulants, biofertilizers, and composting from natural resources and waste. The studies also focused on producing biogas or biomethane from agro-industrial waste for energy production.

« Je suis un ouvrier du théâtre. Le côté artisanal du théâtre me ravit », déclare Jean Anouilh (1910-1987). Auteur à succès d'une cinquantaine de pièces représentées, ce dramaturge se vante, non sans provocation, d'avoir du métier, de connaître les ficelles de son art – qu'il exhibe à plaisir dans des arabesques métadramatiques. Cette posture lui a valu une réputation de faiseur, de boulevardier, utilisant inlassablement les mêmes trucs pour produire des pièces « bien faites ». Or le savoir-faire d'Anouilh est loin de se limiter à un ensemble de recettes éprouvées qui produiraient un succès facile : il est mis au service d'une œuvre personnelle et d'une dramaturgie joyeusement et efficacement bancale. Ce volume, qui constitue les actes du premier colloque consacré à l'œuvre de cet auteur, est une plongée dans l'atelier du maître, une exploration des coulisses de sa création, une traversée de son répertoire. Quant à la façon elle-même, Anouilh apparaît comme un couturier dramatique : il taille, il coupe, il rapièce. De patrons connus, il fait des modèles neufs. L'étude de la « griffe » dramatique d'Anouilh, ici entreprise, passe d'abord par la redécouverte des maîtres qui ont inspiré et façonné son œuvre : la mémoire du métier et son réemploi. Elle se poursuit par l'analyse du « bâti » : Anouilh ne cesse de varier les tons, d'hybrider les genres, de marier les imprimés, de changer de mode ; il se renouvelle en restant fidèle à lui-même. Elle se termine par un retour sur les représentations de l'artisan dans son théâtre et ailleurs : Anouilh au miroir. En abordant cette œuvre multicolore avec un nouveau regard, ces articles permettent de vérifier des acquis sur l'art d'Anouilh mais aussi de nuancer certaines idées reçues et peut-être de leur tordre le cou. Haute couture, basse couture ? Au lecteur d'en décider. Les actes du colloque sont complétés par deux inédits : La Traversée et Charlemagne.

It has been more than 25 years since the identification of the FMR1 gene and the demonstration of the causative role of CGG-repeat expansion in the disease pathology of fragile X syndrome (FXS), but the underlying mechanisms involved in the expansion mutation and the resulting gene silencing still remain elusive. Our understanding of the pathways impacted by the loss of FMRP function has grown tremendously, and has opened new avenues for targeted treatments for FXS. However, the failure of recent clinical trials that were based on successful preclinical studies using the Fmr1 knockout mouse model has forced the scientific community to revisit clinical trial design and identify objective outcome measures. There has also been a renewed interest in restoring FMR1 gene expression as a possible treatment approach for FXS. This special issue of Brain Sciences highlights the progress that has been made towards understanding the disease mechanisms and how this has informed the development of treatment strategies that are being explored for FXS.

In recent years, empathy has received considerable research attention as a means of understanding a range of psychological phenomena, and it is fast drawing attention within the fields of music psychology and music education. This volume seeks to promote and stimulate further research in music and empathy, with contributions from many of the leading scholars in the fields of music psychology, neuroscience, music philosophy and education. It exposes current developmental, cognitive, social and philosophical perspectives on research in music and empathy, and considers the notion in relation to our engagement with different types of music and media. Following a Prologue, the volume presents twelve chapters organised into two main areas of enquiry. The first section, entitled 'Empathy and Musical Engagement', explores empathy in music education and therapy settings, and provides social, cognitive and philosophical perspectives about empathy in relation to our interaction with music. The second section, entitled 'Empathy in Performing Together', provides insights into the role of empathy across non-Western, classical, jazz and popular performance domains. This book will be of interest to music educators, musicologists, performers and practitioners, as well as scholars from other disciplines with an interest in empathy research.

Toxic Heritage addresses the heritage value of contamination and toxic sites and provides the first in-depth examination of toxic heritage as a global issue. Bringing together case studies, visual essays, and substantive chapters written by leading scholars from around the world, the volume provides a critical framing of the globally expanding field of toxic heritage. Authors from a variety of disciplinary perspectives and methodologies examine toxic heritage as both a material phenomenon and a concept. Organized into five thematic sections, the book explores the meaning and significance of toxic heritage, politics, narratives, affected communities, and activist approaches and interventions. It identifies critical issues and highlights areas of emerging research on the intersections of environmental harm with formal and informal memory practices, while also highlighting the resilience, advocacy, and creativity of communities, scholars, and heritage professionals in responding to the current environmental crises. Toxic Heritage is useful and relevant to scholars and students working across a range of disciplines, including heritage studies, environmental science, archaeology, anthropology, and geography.

This report uses a cost-benefit framework to classify the potential impacts of specific state-level immigration policies, identifying the potential domains of impact and how different stakeholders in the public and private sectors would be affected; assembles empirical evidence of the expected impacts; and assesses the rigor and relevance of existing studies of the fiscal and economic impacts of specific state-level immigration policy actions.

Il volume, che raccoglie gli atti del convegno internazionale tenutosi a Firenze nella primavera del 2005, riprende una tematica, quella delle rivolte urbane e rurali del XIV secolo, che aveva conosciuto un certo oblio negli ultimi tempi rispetto alla straordinaria fortuna di cui aveva goduto soprattutto negli anni '60 e '70 del secolo scorso, sulla spinta delle vicende tormentate di quei decenni. I sedici saggi che lo compongono, opera di specialisti di cinque diversi paesi europei, sviluppano tre diverse forme di analisi all'interno di un taglio cronologico che fa riferimento a un Trecento largo, che va dagli ultimi decenni del XIII secolo sino ai primi del XV, secondo una cronologia consolidata e condivisa.

Composites have been increasingly used in various structural components in the aerospace, marine, automotive, and wind energy sectors. Composites’ material characterization is a vital part of the product development and production process. Physical, mechanical, and chemical characterization helps developers to further their understanding of products and materials, thus ensuring quality control. Achieving an in-depth understanding and consequent improvement of the general performance of these materials, however, still requires complex material modeling and simulation tools, which are often multiscale and encompass multiphysics. This Special Issue is aimed at soliciting promising, recent developments in composite modeling, simulation, and characterization, in both design and manufacturing areas, including experimental as well as industrial-scale case studies. All submitted manuscripts will undergo a rigorous review and will only be considered for publication if they meet journal standards.