Novel Approaches for Species Concepts and Delimitation in Polyploids and Hybrids

Hybridization and polyploidization are important processes for plant evolution. However, classification of hybrid or polyploid species has been notoriously difficult because of the complexity of processes and different evolutionary scenarios that do not fit with classical species concepts. Polyploid complexes are formed via combinations of allopolyploidy, autopolyploidy and homoploid hybridization with persisting sexual reproduction, resulting in many discrete lineages that have been classified as species. Polyploid complexes with facultative apomixis result in complicated net-work like clusters, or rarely in agamospecies. Various case studies illustrate the problems that apply to traditional species concepts to hybrids and polyploids. Conceptual progress can be made if lineage formation is accepted as an inevitable consequence of meiotic sex, which is established already in the first eukaryotes as a DNA restoration tool. The turnaround of the viewpoint that sex forms species as lineages helps to overcome traditional thinking of species as “units”. Lineage formation and self-sustainability is the prerequisite for speciation and can also be applied to hybrids and polyploids. Species delimitation is aided by the improved recognition of lineages via various novel -omics methods, by understanding meiosis functions, and by recognizing functional phenotypes by considering morphological-physiological-ecological adaptations.

NAD + Metabolism in Cardiac Health, Aging, and Disease

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD + ) is a central metabolite involved in energy and redox homeostasis as well as in DNA repair and protein deacetylation reactions. Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of NAD + -degrading enzymes, external supplementation of NAD + precursors, and transgenic overexpression of NAD + -generating enzymes have wide positive effects on metabolic health and age-associated diseases. NAD + pools tend to decline with normal aging, obesity, and hypertension, which are all major risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and NAD + replenishment extends healthspan, avoids metabolic syndrome, and reduces blood pressure in preclinical models. In addition, experimental elevation of NAD + improves atherosclerosis, ischemic, diabetic, arrhythmogenic, hypertrophic, or dilated cardiomyopathies, as well as different modalities of heart failure. Here, we critically discuss cardiomyocyte-specific circuitries of NAD + metabolism, comparatively evaluate distinct NAD + precursors for their preclinical efficacy, and raise outstanding questions on the optimal design of clinical trials in which NAD + replenishment or supraphysiological NAD + elevations are assessed for the prevention or treatment of major cardiac diseases. We surmise that patients with hitherto intractable cardiac diseases such as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction may profit from the administration of NAD + precursors. The development of such NAD + -centered treatments will rely on technological and conceptual progress on the fine regulation of NAD + metabolism.

Axiological contexts of geographical cognition.

The paper reasons about value consciousness, which plays a special role in the study and development of geographical space. The understanding of geographical space is based on multidimensional analytical features of this subject category. Geographical space is represented as an area of mutual penetration of a unique natural shell and an original anthroposphere. In this fusion of nature and society, the predominant role of humans in the surrounding reality is highlighted. It is suggested that the urgent task of geographical knowledge is the need to unite knowledge about people, nature and society in the conditions of spatial interaction. It is emphasized that the main vector of modern geographical research is the conceptual progress from "Earth" to "Person" as the only reliable wealth that the world possesses. The dominant role of a person in the surrounding reality is determined by the moral consciousness and reasonable practice of an individual in specific spatial circumstances. The authors illustrate that in modern conditions it is impossible to do this without appealing to humanitarian values, which become the fundamental basis of the entire world "Dasein” (by M. Heidegger) as an existing being.

The Corn Laws and the Casuistry of Free Trade, 1813–1815

This chapter examines the Corn Laws debate from 1813 to 1815, focusing on the contributions of Malthus, Ricardo, and Robert Torrens. This episode has traditionally been studied as a moment of conceptual progress for political economy, above all through the emergence of the concepts of diminishing returns and comparative advantage. The account here produces different results by returning the texts of Malthus, Ricardo, and Torrens to their historical context, which is shown to be one where casuistical argument was deployed to counsel Parliament on how to resolve a policy question. In particular, the issue was whether or not Parliament ought to diverge from the principle of free trade in the pursuit of other principles of statecraft, the stability and security of the food supply preeminently. Once the texts are read as instances of casuistry, Ricardo’s famed theoretical brilliance instead appears as clumsiness and detachment from the needs of Parliament.

#MeToo and testimonial injustice: An investigation of moral and conceptual knowledge

Two decades ago, Tarana Burke started using the phrase ‘me too’ to release victims of sexual abuse and rape from their shame and to empower girls from minority communities. In 2017, actress Alyssa Milano made the hashtag #MeToo go viral. This article’s concern is with the role of testimonial practices in the context of sexual violence. While many feminists have claimed that the word of those who claim to being sexually violated by others (should) have political and/or epistemic priority, others have failed to recognize the harm and injury of instances of sexual violence that are not yet acknowledged as such and failed to listen to victims from marginalized social groups. In fact, some feminists have attacked #MeToo for mingling accounts of ‘proper’ sexual violence and accounts that are not ‘proper’ experiences of sexual violence. My aim in this article is to show why this critique is problematic and find a philosophically fruitful way to understand the #MeToo-movement as a movement that strives for moral and conceptual progress.

Blockchain System in the Higher Education

Blockchain has emerged as an important concept at the interface of ICT and higher education. It is a system in which a record of transactions is maintained across several computers that are linked in a peer-to-peer network. Hence, it allows the creation of a decentralized environment, where data are not under the control of any third-party organization. This study presents a Systematic Bibliometric Literature Review (LRSB in further text) of research on blockchain applications in the higher education field. The review integrated 37 articles presenting up-to-date knowledge on current implications pertaining to the use of blockchain technology for improving higher education processes. The LRSB findings indicate that blockchain is being used to build up new interventions to improve the prevailing ways of sharing, delivering and securing knowledge data and personal student records. The application of blockchain technology is carrying on a conceptual progress in the higher education sector where it has added substantial value by ameliorated efficiency, effectiveness, privacy control, technological improvement and security of data management mechanisms. Challenges posed by current literature and further research directions are suggested.

Moving forward with isoprostanes, neuroprostanes and phytoprostanes: where are we now?

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are essential components in eukaryotic cell membrane. They take part in the regulation of cell signalling pathways and act as precursors in inflammatory metabolism. Beside these, PUFAs auto-oxidize through free radical initiated mechanism and release key products that have various physiological functions. These products surfaced in the early nineties and were classified as prostaglandin isomers or isoprostanes, neuroprostanes and phytoprostanes. Although these molecules are considered robust biomarkers of oxidative damage in diseases, they also contain biological activities in humans. Conceptual progress in the last 3 years has added more understanding about the importance of these molecules in different fields. In this chapter, a brief overview of the past 30 years and the recent scope of these molecules, including their biological activities, biosynthetic pathways and analytical approaches are discussed.

Retooling methods for approaching discourse–materiality relations: a new materialist framework of multimodal sensitivity

PurposeWhile recent theoretical discussions around discourse–material relationality have facilitated important conceptual and analytical advancements within the broader field of CMS, less progress has been made methodologically with regard to innovating empirical methods and data modes. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to contribute to strengthening the methodological focus in the literature when grappling with the relationality of discourse–materiality and co-constitution. This includes a method-retooling framework inspired by new materialism.Design/methodology/approachIn this article, the authors engage at the methodological level by developing a method-retooling framework that combines insights from organizational discourse studies and new materialist thinking. This framework enables a retooling of existing methods to become sensitive to multimodality and offers two concrete examples that were developed during fieldwork for a multi-sited and multi-method case study in 2018.FindingsBased on the framework for retooling methods for multimodality, two illustrations are offered. These include retooling interviews by employing multimodal vignettes and retooling observations by using multimodal mappings. They are unfolded and discussed regarding their appropriation of discourse–material relationality.Originality/valueThis paper includes original research and method developments – adding a critical focus on the methodological aspects and potential advancements that are necessary in the wake of the ongoing debates around discourse–materiality across CMS and specifically within studies of organizational discourse and CCO. By suggesting a framework, the authors stimulate methodological explorations and contribute to furthering method developments that are equal to the rich conceptual progress made within the field.

How fear of violence drives intergroup conflict: Evidence from a panel survey in India

Earlier research on ethnic and religious conflict has identified fear as an important motivation. While theoretically sound, this expectation has never been tested at larger scales in ongoing episodes of political violence. Instead, conceptual progress has been made in lab experiments. Combining insights from observational research and stylized experiments, we predict that fear for personal safety due to witnessed violence causes prejudice against out-groups, enhanced internal cohesion, and support for extremist actors. To test these predictions, we conducted surveys in the Indian State of Uttar Pradesh over three waves involving the same 783 respondents starting in January 2017. the surveys continued during the tense Legislative Assembly elections in the Spring. The results largely corroborate the theoretical expectations and present a hard in-vivo test of long-standing conjectures.

Learning Needs Assessment at Work (LNA): Past, Present and Future

The aim of this study was to describe and discuss the scientific production on Learning Needs Assessment at work (LNA) in the last five decades (1970 – 2019) through a bibliometric study. Bibliometric and longitudinal reviews on LNA are virtually nonexistent. Therefore, little is known about how LNA knowledge was in the past, is in the present and can be in the future. A survey of scientific articles was conducted in eight globally indexed databases between 2007 and 2019. Only blind review peer journals were utilized. After the application of sample selection criteria, 282 articles were considered valid for analysis. The three quantitative analysis dimensions were demographical, methodological and theoretical, and they were measured by twenty categorical and descriptive variables. In sum, results show that there is a substantial increment in the number of papers on LNA published in the last decade around the world, especially in Africa. Methodologically, it can be said that the studies have made important advances, mainly when it comes to learning needs processes and measures improvements, but there is still an extensive research agenda. On the other hand, it seems that the LNA still have made little conceptual progress since the 1960s. The predominant use of the term “training needs” to refer to skills gaps at work needs to be discussed and reviewed. In the near future, studies need to further investigate innovative theories and methods on LNA, as the application of multilevel modeling, alignment of needs and context/organizational strategy, the use of learning taxonomies, among others.