Russian-Ukrainian population of the Russian territories bordering with Ukraine: ethnocultural or transition group?

One of the new directions in ethnosociology is the study of population groups with multiple (often double) ethnic identities, which are growing quantitatively due to the spread of ethnically “mixed” marriages, migrations, etc. Among such “hybrid” ethnic groups, residents with Russian-Ukrainian identity are one of the largest bi-ethnic communities in Russia. In particular, in the Russian regions bordering with Ukraine, residents with dual Russian-Ukrainian identity make up a significant proportion of the population. Accordingly, the studies of 2017–2018 show that in Belgorod region 16 % of residents have Russian-Ukrainian ethnic identities, whereas it is 23 % in the bor-der municipalities. In this paper, the genesis and reproduction potential of a bi-ethnic Russian-Ukrainian popula-tion group at the Russian-Ukrainian borderland is discussed. The first part of the paper comprises an overview of the studies of multiethnic groups, including the Russian-Ukrainian population. The second part is based on em-pirical ethnosociological research conducted by the author and is devoted to finding the answer to the question: “Is the population with the double Russian-Ukrainian identity an independent, permanently existing ethnocultural community or a transitional group that temporarily emerged in the process of assimilation of the Ukrainians in Russia?”. Sociological data indicate that this group of population should be considered as a separate, perma-nently existing ethno-cultural community, and not a temporary, transitional group in the process of assimilation of the Ukrainians in Russia. In favor of the former speaks the fact that the population with the double Russian-Ukrainian identity consists mainly of autochthonous people, with a balanced age composition, who inherited bi-ethnicity by their “mixed” origin, rather than by assimilation. In the respondents in this group, endogenous factors of the formation of ethnic identity are dominant; they feel an inextricable ethnic connection with the population of the neighboring Ukrainian regions. At the same time, members of the Russian-Ukrainian ethnocultural group are predominantly pessimistic about possibility of inheriting their double identity by future generations.

Mitochondrial Genomes of the Genus Claassenia (Plecoptera: Perlidae) and Phylogenetic Assignment to Subfamily Perlinae

Mitochondrial genomes of three stoneflies, e.g., Claassenia magna Wu, 1948, Claassenia sp. 2 and Claassenia xucheni Chen, 2019 were sequenced in this study with 15,774, 15,777 and 15,746 bp in length, respectively. Each mitogenome contained 37 genes including 22 tRNAs, two ribosomal RNAs, 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), and a noncoding control region (CR). In general, standard ATN start and TAN termination codons were evident in the PCGs. Although the dihydrouridine arm was absent in trnSer, the remaining 21 tRNAs displayed the characteristic cloverleaf secondary structure. Stem-loop structures were identified in the CRs of all three mitogenomes, but tandem repeats were only apparent in Claassenia xucheni. The mitogenomes of three Claassenia species were analyzed and compared with mitogenomes in 21 other stoneflies from the Perlidae and three Euholognatha species (Rhopalopsole bulbifera, Capnia zijinshana and Amphinemura longispina) as outgroups. Phylogenetic analyses using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Phylogenetic analysis supported that Claassenia was recovered as the sister group of other Perlinae and Claassenia+Perlinae emerged from the paraphyletic Acroneuriinae. The final results supported that Claassenia was classified into subfamily Perlinae and proposed Claassenia represent a transitional group of the subfamilies Acroneuriinae and Perlinae. This study provided new molecular evidence for exploring the debatable taxonomic position of the genus Claassenia in Perlidae.

Antarctolichenia onofrii gen. nov. sp. nov. from Antarctic Endolithic Communities Untangles the Evolution of Rock-Inhabiting and Lichenized Fungi in Arthoniomycetes

Microbial endolithic communities are the main and most widespread life forms in the coldest and hyper-arid desert of the McMurdo Dry Valleys and other ice-free areas across Victoria Land, Antarctica. There, the lichen-dominated communities are complex and self-supporting assemblages of phototrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms, including bacteria, chlorophytes, and both free-living and lichen-forming fungi living at the edge of their physiological adaptability. In particular, among the free-living fungi, microcolonial, melanized, and anamorphic species are highly recurrent, while a few species were sometimes found to be associated with algae. One of these fungi is of paramount importance for its peculiar traits, i.e., a yeast-like habitus, co-growing with algae and being difficult to propagate in pure culture. In the present study, this taxon is herein described as the new genus Antarctolichenia and its type species is A. onofrii, which represents a transitional group between the free-living and symbiotic lifestyle in Arthoniomycetes. The phylogenetic placement of Antarctolichenia was studied using three rDNA molecular markers and morphological characters were described. In this study, we also reappraise the evolution and the connections linking the lichen-forming and rock-inhabiting lifestyles in the basal lineages of Arthoniomycetes (i.e., Lichenostigmatales) and Dothideomycetes.

Beyond the Energy Poor/Non Energy Poor Divide: Energy Vulnerability and Mindsets on Energy Generation Modes in Hungary

In the Hungarian as well as the international literature, debates regarding the methodology used for measuring energy poverty are ongoing. Our contribution sought to develop a methodology that would be relatively easy to measure via survey and have the potential to identify households’ energy vulnerability status beyond the energy poor/non energy poor divide. Based on a representative survey that was carried out in Hungary in 2018, we identified three groups of households: energy poor, non energy poor households, and a so-called transitional group, potentially at risk of energy poverty. In addition to socioeconomic differences, we analysed differences in the mindsets of respondents belonging to these three household groups concerning different aspects of heating energy generation (macrolevel aspects, such as environmental sustainability and energy supply system issues, and microlevel aspects, such as economic and technical issues). By this, the article aims to provide input for further research on factors, beyond the social and economic background, related to energy vulnerability.

Large-scale comparative genomics unravels great genomic diversity across the Rickettsia and Ca. Megaira genera and identifies Torix group as an evolutionarily distinct clade.

Rickettsia are intracellular bacteria originally described as arthropod borne pathogens that are emerging as a diverse group of often biologically important, non-pathogenic symbionts of invertebrates and microeukaryotes. However, sparse genomic resources for symbiotic strains and for the sister genus (Candidatus Megaira) inhibit our understanding of Rickettsia evolution and biology. Here, we present the first closed genomes of Ca. Megaira from an alga (Mesostigma viride), and Torix Rickettsia from midge (Culicoides impunctatus) and bed bug (Cimex lectularius) hosts. Additionally, we sequenced and constructed draft genomes for Ca. Megaira from another alga (Carteria cerasiformis), Transitional group Rickettsia from tsetse fly (Glossina morsitans submorsitans), and Torix Rickettsia from a spider mite (Bryobia graminum). We further extract 22 draft genomes from arthropod genome sequencing projects, including 1 Adalia, 4 Transitional, 1 Spotted Fever, 7 Torix, 7 Belli and the first Rhyzobius and Meloidae Rickettsia group genomes. We used new and existing Rickettsia genomes to estimate the phylogeny and metabolic potential across groups and reveal transitions in genomic properties. These data reveal Torix as unique amongst currently described Rickettsia, with highly distinct and diverse accessory genomes. We confirm the presence of a third subclade of Torix, previously only known from gene marker sequences. Further, Torix share an intact pentose phosphate pathway with Ca. Megaira, not observed in other Rickettsia. Considering the distinctness and diversity of Torix, we propose that the group be named Candidatus Tisiphia. The wide host range of Ca. Tisiphia symbionts necessitates onward research to understand the biological and physiological bases of Ca. Tisiphia-host interactions.

Effects of Transition Element Additions on the Interfacial Interaction and Electronic Structure of Al(111)/6H-SiC(0001) Interface: A First-Principles Study

In this work, the effects of 20 transition element additions on the interfacial adhesion energy and electronic structure of Al(111)/6H-SiC(0001) interfaces have been studied by the first-principles method. For pristine Al(111)/6H-SiC(0001) interfaces, both Si-terminated and C-terminated interfaces have covalent bond characteristics. The C-terminated interface has higher binding energy, which is mainly due to the stronger covalent bond formed by the larger charge transfer between C and Al. The results show that the introduction of many transition elements, such as 3d transitional group Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and 4d transitional group Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, can improve the interfacial adhesion energy of the Si-terminated Al(111)/6H-SiC(0001) interface. However, for the C-terminated Al(111)/6H-SiC(0001) interface, only the addition of Co element can improve the interfacial adhesion energy. Bader charge analysis shows that the increase of interfacial binding energy is mainly attributed to more charge transfer.

Molecular Evidence of Rickettsia felis in Phereoeca sp.

Rickettsia felis is an obligate intracellular bacterium capable of infecting ticks, fleas, lice, and other arthropods. This bacterium is classified as a member of the Transitional Group (TRG) Rickettsia. It is known the evidence of R. felis mutualistic and obligatory relationship with some eukaryote organisms. However, there aren’t scientific accounts of R. felis and moths of the order Lepidoptera association. The current work reports the first identification of the bacteria R. felis in Phereoeca sp. For that, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay using gltA, ompA, and ompB genes was used. The nucleotide sequences showed 100% of identity with other Rickettsia felis sequences. The genus-level identification of the moth larvae was performed by morphological taxonomic keys and PCR analysis of the cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene. The nucleotide sequenced showed 94.94% similarity with the species Phereoeca praecox. However, with the low number of sequences deposited in the databases, the species was classified as Phereoeca sp. The results suggest that R. felis may develop in an organism without blood-feeding behavior (Lepidoptera), as it has been demonstrated for booklice (Psocoptera). Further investigation is necessary in order to confirm pathogenic or mutualistic association with moths.

Children’s comprehension of the verbal aspect in Serbian

The aim of the study was to investigate how Serbian native speaking preschool children comprehend perfective and imperfective aspect in comparison to adults. After watching animated movies with complete, incomplete and unstarted actions, the participants were asked questions with a perfective or imperfective verb form and responded by pointing to the event(s) that corresponded to each question. The results converged to a clear developmental trend in understanding of aspectual forms. The data indicate that the acquisition of perfective precedes the acquisition of imperfective: 3-year-olds typically understand only the meaning of perfective; most 5-year-olds have almost adult-like understanding of both aspectual forms, while 4-year-olds are a transitional group. Our results support the viewpoint that children's and adults? representations of this language category differ qualitatively, and we argue that mastering of aspect semantics is a long-term process that presupposes a certain level of cognitive and pragmatic development, and lasts throughout the preschool period.

Effects of Transition Element Additions on the Mechanical and Electronic Structure Properties of Al (111)/6H-SiC (0001) Interface: A First Principles Study

In this work, effects of 20 transition element additives on the interfacial adhesion energy and electronic structure of Al (111)/6H-SiC (0001) interfaces have been studied by first principles method. For clean Al (111)/6H–SiC (0001) interfaces, both Si-terminated and C-terminated interfaces have covalent bond characteristics. The C-terminated interface has stronger binding energy, which is mainly due to the stronger covalent bond formed by the larger charge transfer between C and Al. The results show that the introduction of many transition elements, such as 3d transitional group Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and 4d transitional group Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, can improve the interfacial adhesion energy of the Si-terminated Al (111)/6H-SiC (0001) interface. However, for the C-terminated Al (111)/6H-SiC (0001) interface, only the addition of Co element can improve the interfacial adhesion energy. Bader charge analysis shows that the increase of interfacial binding energy is mainly attributed to more charge transfer.

A new emerald occurrence from Kruta Balka, Western Peri-Azovian region, Ukraine: Implications for understanding the crystal chemistry of emerald

We investigated emerald, the bright-green gem variety of beryl, from a new locality at Kruta Balka, Ukraine, and compare its chemical characteristics with those of emeralds from selected occurrences worldwide (Austria, Australia, Colombia, South Africa, Russia) to clarify the types and amounts of substitutions as well as the factors controlling such substitutions. For selected crystals, Be and Li were determined by secondary ion mass spectrometry, which showed that the generally assumed value of 3 Be atoms per formula unit (apfu) is valid; only some samples such as the emerald from Kruta Balka deviate from this value (2.944 Be apfu). An important substitution in emerald (expressed as an exchange vector with the additive component Al2Be3Si6O18) is (Mg,Fe2+)NaAl–1☐–1, leading to a hypothetical end-member NaAl(Mg,Fe2+)[Be3Si6O18] called femag-beryl with Na occupying a vacancy position (☐) in the structural channels of beryl. Based on both our results and data from the literature, emeralds worldwide can be characterized based on the amount of femag-substitution. Other minor substitutions in Li-bearing emerald include the exchange vectors LiNa2Al–1☐–2 and LiNaBe–1☐–1, where the former is unique to the Kruta Balka emeralds. Rarely, some Li can also be situated at a channel site, based on stoichiometric considerations. Both Cr- and V-distribution can be very heterogeneous in individual crystals, as shown in the samples from Kruta Balka, Madagascar, and Zimbabwe. Nevertheless, taking average values available for emerald occurrences, the Cr/(Cr+V) ratio (Cr#) in combination with the Mg/(Mg+Fe) ratio (Mg#) and the amount of femag-substitution allows emerald occurrences to be characterized. The “ultramafic” schist-type emeralds with high Cr# and Mg# come from occur-rences where the Fe-Mg-Cr-V component is controlled by the presence of ultramafic meta-igneous rocks. Emeralds with highly variable Mg# come from “sedimentary” localities, where the Fe-Mg-Cr-V component is controlled by metamorphosed sediments such as black shales and carbonates. A “transitional” group has both metasediments and ultramafic rocks as country rocks. Most “ultramafic” schist type occurrences are characterized by a high amount of femag-component, whereas those from the “sedimentary” and “transitional” groups have low femag contents. Growth conditions derived from the zoning pattern—combined replacement, sector, and oscillatory zoning—in the Kruta Balka emeralds indicate disequilibrium growth from a fluid along with late-stage Na-infiltration. Inclusions in Kruta Balka emeralds (zircon with up to 11 wt% Hf, tourmaline, albite, Sc-bearing apatite) point to a pegmatitic origin.