Open Access Books

Originaire de l’île de Ré, Nicolas Baudin (1754-1803) est un fameux navigateur-explorateur français. Ce volume part à la quête des différentes étapes de son périple. Après un court passage dans l’armée navale à la fin des années 1770, Nicolas Baudin rejoignit son cousin Peltier, armateur à Nantes et ami de Beaumarchais, pour le compte duquel il navigua le long des côtes nord-américaines à l’époque troublée de la guerre d’Indépendance des États-Unis.Une rencontre, dans la ville du Cap, avec le jardinier de Joseph II lui donna l’occasion de travailler pour l’empereur comme transporteur puis récolteur d’objets d’histoire naturelle. Il devint, en 1792, officier de la marine autrichienne. Après la Révolution, il passa au service de la France, plus exactement à celui du Muséum d’histoire naturelle de Paris, alors dirigé par Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu, pour lequel il mena une expédition botanique aux Antilles. Ce voyage fut un immense succès au point qu’au retour de La Belle Angélique, le vaisseau du capitaine, Jussieu déclara : « le citoyen Baudin est un des voyageurs qui a le plus mérité des sciences naturelles ». Il put ainsi convaincre le premier consul, Bonaparte, et l’Institut de France de lui confier les rênes d’un voyage de découvertes aux Terres australes. Il quitta Le Havre en octobre 1800 aux commandes de deux vaisseaux de la République, Le Géographe et Le Naturaliste. Las, ce voyage fut un enfer pour Baudin : le rejet de son autorité par les officiers, l’indiscipline des savants à bord, de multiples dissensions, une santé défaillante, tout se ligua contre lui et sa réputation en fut complètement ternie.Baudin mourut en 1803, à l’Île-de-France, sur le chemin de retour du Géographe en France, sans jamais avoir eu l’occasion d’être confronté à ses détracteurs.Les contributions rassemblées dans ce volume portent sur les différentes étapes de la vie de Baudin. Elles permettent de mieux cerner la personnalité du capitaine, personnage atypique qui aimait à dire qu’il préférait voir son nom associé à une nouvelle espèce de mollusque qu’à une île inconnue. Naturaliste récolteur plutôt que savant naturaliste, Nicolas Baudin était un homme de talent, de volonté et de passion. Cet ouvrage entend lui rendre hommage.

Enhancing catalytic efficiency through the modification of catalysts is crucial in today's global context, as this process reduces environmental harm and encourages the sustainable utilization of natural resources. A primary goal in the field of catalysis is to develop catalysts that demonstrate outstanding catalytic activity, selectivity, and longevity. Targetable properties during synthesis include controlled morphology, resistance to sintering, elevated specific surface area, optimal acid–base properties, network vacancies, interactions between metal and support, and overall catalyst design. This Special Issue, titled "Effect of the Modification of Catalysts on the Catalytic Performance, 2nd Edition", comprises nine papers, including two reviews and seven research articles, and introduces innovative strategies for catalyst modification, significantly contributing to the research progress in this area from both practical and theoretical perspectives. This Special Issue Reprint is expected to attract considerable interest from researchers involved in these scientific fields, particularly regarding the following: the synthesis and characterization of various catalysts or catalytic materials; catalytic performance; the synergetic effect; the modification of catalysts or appropriate promoters used to alter catalyst structure, thereby enhancing stability or improving catalytic reactions for better activity or selectivity; as well as the reaction mechanism and kinetic parameters (such as reaction rate and activation energy).

On July 1, 2020, reforms to the Federal Copyright Act (LFDA, for its acronym in Spanish) entered into force in Mexico responding to the primarily economic requirements of the renewed free trade agreement with the United States and Canada, the USMCA. Facing these reforms, a group of Mexican and international associations and individuals raised their voices due to the numerous implications that they entailed for free speech, due judicial process, access to culture and education, technological sovereignty and their environmental impact, among others. In order to trace the deep reaching that the LFDA has today to the detriment of other rights and already established practices, from the Centro Cultural de España in Mexico City we proposed to inscribe these concerns and debate them on a broader sociocultural plane, starting from four conceptual nodes: 1) native knowledges; 2) open knowledge; 3) digital selfediting and rewriting; 4) hacktivisms. This book brings together contributions from Alberto López Cuenca, Anamhoo, David Cuartielles, Diana Macho Morales, Domingo M. Lechón, Eduardo Aguado-López, Gabriela Méndez Cota, Irene Soria, Leandro Rodríguez Medina, Marla Gutiérrez Gutiérrez, Mónica Nepote, Nika Zhenya, Renato Bermúdez Dini and Víctor Leonel Juan-Martínez.

This rich study provides a comprehensive introduction to media philosophy while offering a new perspective on the concept and function of transmission media in all systems of exchange. Krämer uses the figure of the messenger as a key metaphor, examining a diverse range of transmission events, including the circulation of money, translation of languages, angelic visitations, spread of infectious diseases, and processes of transference and counter-transference that occur during psychoanalysis.

The extraordinary wealth of archival documents, chronicles, travel reports, archaeological sites and monuments, still for the most part to be studied, makes the privileged relationship between Venice and the Peloponnese a key element for the study of Venetian society, with reference to choices made by Venetians in the search for an ethical relationship with the Other in the geopolitical pursuit of their constitutional aim, i.e. far la marchadantia pacifichamente (to trade peacefully). In an almost millenary chronology (992-1718), the Peloponnese – a land on the maritime border between the Ionian and the Aegean Seas, a cultural and commercial link between the Latin-Roman West and the Hellenistic East – is a privileged laboratory for the training of the next generation of interdisciplinary and cross-cultural historians, and for staunch supporters of peace among peoples.

"Migration, Equality and Racism trigger ever more salient societal debates. More than 80 VUB academics and co-authors joined forces for this book. Philosophers, lawyers, psychologists, health scientists, sociologists, geographers, criminologists, communication and political scientists … look at migration, equality and racism from different disciplinary angles. Together they aim to contribute to an exercise of humanism as a praxis of criticism or a ‘technique of trouble-making’, in the words of Edward Said. Through 44 thought-provoking and informed opinion pieces, they question widespread beliefs on migration, equality and racism and propose solutions that might disturb. Let this book be a source of inspiration for those who want to spark an informed debate on the ever more salient issues of migration, equality and racism, for those who want to learn more on how and why humanism has often remained an empty box for migrants and racialized groups. Or for those who are in search of inspiration for a just future for all. Migration, Equality and Racism is the work of Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) think tank POINcaré and was created under the direction of Ilke Adam, Tundé Adefioye, Serena D’Agostino, Nick Schuermans and Florian Trauner."

This book studies the more than 6000 graduates of the Benedictine University of the Abbey of Irache from 1613 to 1700. It was a University in which only Arts and Theology were taught. However, degrees were also awarded in Medicine, Civil Law and Canon Law. That University was not only frequented by students from Navarra, but it received candidates from different points of the Iberian Peninsula. Likewise, in Irache the elite of the Benedictine Congregation of Valladolid (Aguirre, Lardito, Espinosa, Sala…) was graduated. A collection of notable people parade through the pages of the book, which provides data for further research.--- Este libro es un estudio de los más de seis mil graduados de la Universidad benedictina de la Abadía de Irache desde 1613 hasta 1700. Fue una sede universitaria en la que solamente se enseñó Artes y Teología. Sin embargo, se concedieron grados también en Medicina, Derecho civil y Derecho Canónico. Esa Universidad no solamente fue frecuentada por alumnos de Navarra, sino que a ella acudieron a graduarse estudiantes desde los diversos puntos de la Península Ibérica. Asimismo, en Irache se graduó la élite de la Congregación benedictina de Valladolid (Aguirre, Lardito, Espinosa, Sala…). Una retahíla de personajes célebres desfila por las páginas del libro, que suministra datos para ulteriores investigaciones.

The transfer of expert knowledge to an unlearned audience is a highly complex process. It is not only dependant on subject-specific requirements, but also on institutional and media requirements. The early modern period proves to be a time of upheaval due to book printing, during which transfer processes can be studied in a special way. The adaptation of scientific knowledge, for example of law, medicine, theology or artes , to the reception conditions of laypersons requires differentiated communication strategies that link theoretical concepts of the sciences to the requirements of technical expertise and are able to translate scholarship into practice. This volume brings together interdisciplinary contributions from the history of law, historical book studies, general rhetoric and Germanic medieval studies.

The steady ageing of the population poses growing challenges for welfare systems, given the rising number of older individuals living with compromised health. In this context, the concept of “frailty” plays a crucial role: being able to identify frail individuals means detecting early signs of vulnerability and guiding targeted preventive interventions. This volume explores the theoretical and methodological foundations of the various perspectives on frailty, offering a comprehensive and structured overview of the tools currently available for its measurement. Readers are guided through a structured journey that encompasses key definitions, measurement tools, and methodological approaches. Each element is examined with regard to its strengths, limitations, and empirical applicability, through a statistical and methodological lens and with careful attention to data sources. In addition to physical frailty, significant attention is given to cognitive and social frailty – dimensions often overlooked but essential to an integrated and multidimensional understanding of the phenomenon. This resource is designed for healthcare professionals, social workers, statisticians, researchers, and policy makers who aim to study, measure, and address frailty through a rigorous, quantitative approach.

Metaphors and phraseological expressions should be given greater attention (not only) in first-, second-, or foreign-language education, as they harbor a special, yet largely untapped potential for enhancing learning, both linguistically and culturally. The contributions in this edited volume therefore explore, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the fundamental role that metaphors and phraseological expressions play (or can play) in the educational process and shed light on the diverse possibilities of using these linguistic-cultural phenomena as content- and learner-oriented didactic tools. On the one hand, they examine the implementation of metaphors and phraseological expressions in primary-language instruction at elementary schools and their cross-curricular potential, particularly in social and science studies, thereby providing empirically grounded insights into the challenges and opportunities of developing metaphorical and phraseological competence among young learners. On the other hand, didactic materials and their suitability for fostering metaphorical-phraseological competence are put to the test. In this context, the need for a differentiated phraseodidactics for various language-learning settings, including German as a Second Language (DaZ) and German as a Foreign Language (DaF), becomes evident, underscoring the importance of specific learning resources. Finally, practice-oriented examples demonstrate how phraseological expressions and metaphors can be used to develop linguistic and cultural as well as multilingual and intercultural competencies. Overall, it remains important to emphasize that the multidimensional significance of language (linguistic and metalinguistic, cultural, intercultural, multilingual and communicative, specialized-language-related, cognitive, etc.) as an object of learning in educational practice must be acknowledged through innovative and integrative language teaching.

L'imposition de nombreuses sanctions par les Nations Unies durant les années 1990 a mis au grand jour leurs effets dommageables sur la population civile de l'État-cible et les autres États. Ces effets secondaires posent d'importantes questions liées non seulement au droit constitutionnel de l'ONU et à son mécanisme de maintien de la paix et de la sécurité internationales, mais aussi aux droits fondamentaux de la personne humaine. L'ouvrage étudie en profondeur les aspects juridiques de ces q...

Ces vingt dernières années ont marqué le retour de l’individu comme acteur de l’histoire et la prosopographie, démarche fondée sur l’analyse croisée de données biographiques, a suscité un intérêt renouvelé dont atteste le présent ouvrage consacré aux praticiens du droit. Fruit du colloque international qui s’est tenu à Namur en décembre 2006, il rassemble les contributions d’une vingtaine de chercheur(se)s - historien(ne)s, juristes et sociologues - qui interrogent la structuration du champ juridique et le processus de construction des « identités » judiciaires entre les xiiie et xxe siècles. Ces regards croisés constituent un apport important à l’histoire de la justice et de ses acteurs. Ils attestent la vitalité et la fécondité des travaux qui, en sciences humaines et sociales, investissent à l’heure actuelle ce champ de recherches.

Tens of thousands of Eritreans make perilous voyages across Africa and the Mediterranean Sea every year. Why do they risk their lives to reach European countries where so many more hardships await them? By visiting family homes in Eritrea and living with refugees in camps and urban peripheries across Ethiopia, Sudan, and Italy, Milena Belloni untangles the reasons behind one of the most under-researched refugee populations today. Balancing encounters with refugees and their families, smugglers, and visa officers, The Big Gamble contributes to ongoing debates about blurred boundaries between forced and voluntary migration, the complications of transnational marriages, the social matrix of smuggling, and the role of family expectations, emotions, and values in migrants’ choices of destinations. “Milena Belloni’s engrossing ethnography—carried out across time, space, and place— is particularly commendable because of her scholarly commitment to ‘getting things right.’ The Eritrean women and men whose lives provided its empirical ground will see their pain, joy, and contradictions reflected back at them. This is scholar activism at its finest.” LAURA BISAILLON, Professor of Health and Society, University of Toronto Scarborough “The Big Gamble is a study of a migrant group that has received very little scholarly attention. Its focus on the Eritrea to Europe corridor is a novel approach, and Milena Belloni has produced a compelling and courageous account.” PETER KIVISTO, Augustana College and University of Helsinki “A monumental and perceptive story of migration, taking the reader on a journey not just from Africa to Europe but through reflections on moralities, risk, and trust that are central to contemporary mobility and immobility. Belloni’s account of Eritrean migration experiences is powered by formidable fieldwork and written with warmth and wisdom.” JØRGEN CARLING, Peace Research Institute Oslo MILENA BELLONI is a sociologist at the University of Trento. Her doctoral research on Eritrean migration received the 2016 IMISCOE Award. Belloni has published in the Journal of Refugee Studies and the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies.

This article focuses on Tolstoy’s attitude towards the European writers he reads. From what he says about them (in his Diary, notes, letters, prefaces), we can characterize his attitude towards the Western cultural tradition in terms of independence and appropriation, and understand what conception of literature and philosophy emerges from his criteria of appreciation. It seems that Tolstoy places himself as a judge and as a mediator, through whom western writers must arrive to Russian readers, and that sincerity appears to be the most significant criterium in his conception.

The Australian Continent: A Geophysical Synthesis is designed to provide a summary of the character of the Australian continent through the extensive information available at the continental scale, as a contribution to the understanding of Australia's lithospheric architecture and its evolution.The results build on the extensive databases assembled at Geoscience Australia, particularly for potential fields, supplemented by the full range of seismological information, mostly from The Australian National University. To aid in cross comparison of results from different disciplines, information is presented with a common projection and scales.