Styliani Kyrikou, E. Marinova, Ines J. E. Bludau
et al.
Abstract The Balkan Peninsula is considered to have acted as a glacial refugium as well as a biogeographic crossroads during the Pleistocene, playing an important role in the survival of biota and population dynamics through time. Furthermore, rather than being a homogeneous habitat, it is thought to have hosted a number of diverse, isolated “refugia within refugia,” providing suitable conditions for the persistence of different plant and animal species, as well as, potentially, Pleistocene hominins. We present the first palynological and charcoal record, although discontinuous, from the middle Pleistocene archaeological site Marathousa 1 (MAR-1; Megalopolis Basin) to reconstruct the local environment along with the first multispecies record of coprophilous fungal spores from Greece to track herbivore activity during the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 12. Our data show that during the early and late MIS 12, when the forest cover substantially decreased, mesophilous trees and aquatic vegetation persisted, reflecting wetter and milder conditions at MAR-1. Herbivore presence is documented by ∼473 ka, while its intensification coincides with increased vegetation biomass and local fire activity during the late MIS 12. Our findings suggest that MAR-1 likely served as a glacial refugium for middle Pleistocene hominins, providing essential resources for their survival during MIS 12.
Throughout its history, the Balkan Peninsula has been encompassed within various expansive cultural and historical spheres, as well as state-like political formations. The most prominent among these include the ancient world, the Roman Empire, the Byzantine commonwealth, the Ottoman Empire, modern Europe, the Soviet bloc, and the European Union. Additionally, the region has experienced influences from less dominant spheres such as the Eurasian steppe, the Arab world, and the maritime empires of the Italian city-states and Dubrovnik. Within these broader frameworks, the Balkans have frequently occupied a peripheral position, characterized by frequent interactions with neighbouring cultural zones and limited control from the normative centre. These interactions, coupled with the region’s unique relationship to cultural and political centers, have contributed to the formation of distinct cultural hybrids. This paper explores several examples that substantiate the thesis of the Balkan Peninsula as a site of cultural hybridity. Original title in Bulgarian: Хибридните Балкани като ‘център на периферии’ – една скица.
Slavic languages. Baltic languages. Albanian languages
Vidya Venkatesan, Aomawa L. Shields, Russell Deitrick
et al.
Eccentric planets may spend a significant portion of their orbits at large distances from their host stars, where low temperatures can cause atmospheric CO2 to condense out onto the surface, similar to the polar ice caps on Mars. The radiative effects on the climates of these planets throughout their orbits would depend on the wavelength-dependent albedo of surface CO2 ice that may accumulate at or near apoastron and vary according to the spectral energy distribution of the host star. To explore these possible effects, we incorporated a CO2 ice-albedo parameterization into a one-dimensional energy balance climate model. With the inclusion of this parameterization, our simulations demonstrated that F-dwarf planets require 29% more orbit-averaged flux to thaw out of global water ice cover compared with simulations that solely use a traditional pure water ice-albedo parameterization. When no eccentricity is assumed, and host stars are varied, F-dwarf planets with higher bond albedos relative to their M-dwarf planet counterparts require 30% more orbit-averaged flux to exit a water snowball state. Additionally, the intense heat experienced at periastron aids eccentric planets in exiting a snowball state with a smaller increase in instellation compared with planets on circular orbits; this enables eccentric planets to exhibit warmer conditions along a broad range of instellation. This study emphasizes the significance of incorporating an albedo parameterization for the formation of CO2 ice into climate models to accurately assess the habitability of eccentric planets, as we show that, even at moderate eccentricities, planets with Earth-like atmospheres can reach surface temperatures cold enough for the condensation of CO2 onto their surfaces, as can planets receiving low amounts of instellation on circular orbits.
On a centennial timescale, solar activity was quantified based on records of instrumental sunspot observations. This article briefly discusses several aspects of the recent archival investigations of historical sunspot records in the 17th to 18th centuries. This article also reviews the recent updates for the active day fraction and positions of the reported sunspot groups of the Maunder Minimum to show their significance within the observational history. These archival investigations serve as base datasets for reconstructing solar activity.
The “landscape history” of rivalry over the power capacities necessary for territorial possession on the Balkan Peninsula unfolded in two dimensions – at the level of local actors and at that of macro-regional powers. Strategic processes were shaped by the morphological features of the Balkans: the vertical and horizontal characteristics of the geographical landscape determined the framework within which political and cultural space evolved. The cohesive potential of empires proved capable of counterbalancing the centrifugal forces of physical-geographical factors, leading the peninsula to become “dissolved” into an imperial space. The collapse of the bipolar world order highlighted the geopolitical complexity of the Balkans and the weaknesses in the spatial-retentive and cohesive capacities of its political entities. From the nineteenth century onwards – with the strengthening of regional nationalism and the decline of the Ottoman-Turkish Empire –, the strand of historiography analyzing modern great-power relations increasingly focused on the Balkan region. The so-called “Eastern Question” encompassed not only regional spatial-organizational ambitions but also the (geo)political perceptions of external powers regarding the peninsula. As one consequence of the mutually negating perceptions of rival state spaces, the emerging Balkan political entities came to rely on the support of geopolitical and geo-economic patrons. Following the disintegration of the European Concert of Great Powers, the “distant” great powers were, in certain situations, unable to keep their small-state allies under strategic control due to their conflicting interests. In the historical periods of the so-called imperial interregna, the balance of power in the region had (or would have had) to be maintained by the small states themselves, which defined one another as geo-strategic rivals. The ambitions of regional competitors could only be realized in part, and then only insofar as they aligned with the geopolitical support and current objectives of their respective great-power patrons. In certain phases of Balkan fragmentation, the relatively overt presence of intersecting interest-articulations by external powers was a defining feature. This remains partly true today, as numerous analysts in the twenty-first century continue to apply the classical Great Game theory when examining the spatial hierarchy of global power. The Western Balkans – primarily through the challenges arising from the fragmentation of the Yugoslav space – came to the fore in the aftermath of the disintegration of the post-bipolar world order.
In this paper, we propose fitting unobserved component models to represent the dynamic evolution of bivariate systems of centre and log-range temperatures obtained monthly from minimum/maximum temperatures observed at a given location. In doing so, the centre and log-range temperature are decomposed into potentially stochastic trends, seasonal, and transitory components. Since our model encompasses deterministic trends and seasonal components as limiting cases, we contribute to the debate on whether stochastic or deterministic components better represent the trend and seasonal components. The methodology is implemented to centre and log-range temperature observed in four locations in the Iberian Peninsula, namely, Barcelona, Coruña, Madrid, and Seville. We show that, at each location, the centre temperature can be represented by a smooth integrated random walk with time-varying slope, while a stochastic level better represents the log-range. We also show that centre and log-range temperature are unrelated. The methodology is then extended to simultaneously model centre and log-range temperature observed at several locations in the Iberian Peninsula. We fit a multi-level dynamic factor model to extract potential commonalities among centre (log-range) temperature while also allowing for heterogeneity in different areas in the Iberian Peninsula. We show that, although the commonality in trends of average temperature is considerable, the regional components are also relevant.
The predictive power of the deformed relativistic Hartree-Bogoliubov theory in continuum (DRHBc) with density functional PC-PK1 is demonstrated for superheavy region ($101 \leqslant Z \leqslant 120$) by comparing with available experimental and evaluated data in the AME2020. The DRHBc theory predicts 93 bound nuclei beyond the drip line $N = 258$ in the region of $106 \leqslant Z \leqslant 112$, which form a stability peninsula. The odd-even differences between odd-$N$ and even-$N$ nuclei are remarkable in the stability peninsula; the number of bound odd-$N$ nuclei is less than that of bound even-$N$ nuclei, and the one-neutron separation energy of an odd-$N$ nucleus is smaller than those of its neighboring even-$N$ nuclei due to the blocking effect. The deformation effect is indispensable for the reentrant stability beyond the drip line by significantly affecting the structure of single-particle levels around the Fermi energy. The interplay between deformation and pairing effects affects the position where the odd-$N$ nucleus becomes bound in the stability peninsula. By examining the deformation effect at different orders, it is found that quadrupole deformation makes leading contribution to the appearance of stability peninsula and the effects of hexadecapole and hexacontatetrapole deformations are nonnegligible.
Fumiyasu Makinoshima, Saki Yotsui, Shosuke Sato
et al.
On 1 January 2024, devastating tsunamis caused by the Noto Peninsula earthquake hit coastal areas within several minutes, but only two tsunami casualties were officially reported. Despite its importance, the cause of this unexpectedly low human loss was unclear because of the limited access to the peninsula and the presence of many visitors during the holiday, which made conducting conventional surveys infeasible. Here, we reveal evacuation behaviour during the 2024 Noto Peninsula tsunami using massive geolocation data collected from a smartphone app. By analysing these massive data, which include over 1.5 million records collected on this day, we find that the evacuation was extremely fast, occurring within 2--6 minutes after the origin time. Further analyses suggest that these fast departures were driven mainly by strong ground shaking; the fact that the tsunami occurred during the family-oriented New Year holiday was also a key factor. Additionally, the long-term analysis of the data reveals that people started returning to the coastal area 20--100 minutes after the origin time, which was long before the downgrading and cancellation of the tsunami warnings. These results highlight the utility of the innovative data-driven approach to evacuation surveys, which addresses the limitations of conventional evacuation surveys.
Not only motivated by the fact that the publication of the GAFT first appeared 60 years ago in print we reconstruct its history and so show that it is no exaggeration to claim that it has appeared already 75 years ago!
Andrii Voshchepynets, Oleksiy Agapitov, Lynn Wilson
et al.
We present the results of processing the effects of the powerful Gamma Ray Burst GRB221009A captured by the charged particle detectors (electrostatic analyzers and solid-state detectors) onboard spacecraft at different points in the heliosphere on October 9, 2022. To follow the GRB221009A propagation through the heliosphere we used the electron and proton flux measurements from solar missions Solar Orbiter and STEREO-A; Earth magnetosphere and the solar wind missions THEMIS and Wind; meteorological satellites POES15, POES19, MetOp3; and MAVEN - a NASA mission orbiting Mars. GRB221009A had a structure of four bursts: less intense Pulse 1 - the triggering impulse - was detected by gamma-ray observatories at 131659 UT (near the Earth); the most intense Pulses 2 and 3 were detected on board all the spacecraft from the list, and Pulse 4 detected in more than 500 s after Pulse 1. Due to their different scientific objectives, the spacecraft, which data was used in this study, were separated by more than 1 AU (Solar Orbiter and MAVEN). This enabled tracking GRB221009A as it was propagating across the heliosphere. STEREO-A was the first to register Pulse 2 and 3 of the GRB, almost 100 seconds before their detection by spacecraft in the vicinity of Earth. MAVEN detected GRB221009A Pulses 2, 3, and 4 at the orbit of Mars about 237 seconds after their detection near Earth. By processing the time delays observed we show that the source location of the GRB221009A was at RA 288.5 degrees, Dec 18.5 degrees (J2000) with an error cone of 2 degrees
Phosphorus (P) is considered to be one of the key elements for life, making it an important element to look for in the abundance analysis of spectra of stellar systems. Yet, there exists only a handful of spectroscopic studies to estimate the P abundances and investigate its trend across a range of metallicities. We have observed full HK band spectra at a spectral resolving power of R=45,000 with IGRINS instrument. Abundances are determined using SME in combination with 1D MARCS stellar atmosphere models. The investigated sample of stars have reliable stellar parameters estimated using optical FIES spectra (GILD; Jönsson et al. in prep.). In order to determine the P abundances from the 16482.92 Angstrom P line, we take special care of the CO($ν=7-4$) blend. We determine the C, N, O abundances from atomic carbon and a range of non-blended molecular lines (CO, CN, OH) which are aplenty in the H band region of K giant stars, assuring an appropriate modelling of the blending CO($ν=7-4$) line. We present [P/Fe] vs [Fe/H] trend for 38 K giant stars in the metallicity range of -1.2 dex $<$ [Fe/H] $<$ 0.4 dex. We find that our trend matches well with the compiled literature sample of prominently dwarf stars and limited number of giant stars. Our trend is found to be higher by $\sim$ 0.05 - 0.1 dex compared to the theoretical chemical evolution trend in Cescutti et al. 2012 resulting from core collapse supernova (type II) of massive stars with the P yields from Kobayashi et al. (2006) arbitrarily increased by a factor of 2.75. Thus the enhancement factor might need to be $\sim$ 0.05 - 0.1 dex higher to match our trend. We also find an empirically determined primary behaviour for phosphorus. Furthermore, the phosphorus abundance is found to be elevated by $\sim$ 0.6 - 0.9 dex in two metal poor s-enriched stars compared to the theoretical chemical evolution trend.
The revolution of 1848–1849 had a significant effect on the Serbs in the Habsburg Monarchy, who established their own self-governing entity, the Serbian Vojvodina, within the monarchy. These events also attracted the attention of Serbs living outside the monarchy’s borders, especially those in Montenegro and, in particular, the Metropolitan of Cetinje, Petar II Petrović Njegoš. He wanted to assist his compatriots in the monarchy, and considered this action to be only the first step, albeit a very important one, in the ultimate fight for the liberation and unification of all Serbs within two independent countries: Serbia and Montenegro.
Dragana Šnjegota, Astrid Vik Stronen, Barbara Boljte
et al.
Abstract The Balkan Peninsula and the Dinaric Mountains possess extraordinary biodiversity and support one of the largest and most diverse wolf (Canis lupus) populations in Europe. Results obtained with diverse genetic markers show west‐east substructure, also seen in various other species, despite the absence of obvious barriers to movement. However, the spatial extent of the genetic clusters remains unresolved, and our aim was to combine fine‐scale sampling with population and spatial genetic analyses to improve resolution of wolf genetic clusters. We analyzed 16 autosomal microsatellites from 255 wolves sampled in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH), and Serbia and documented three genetic clusters. These comprised (1) Slovenia and the regions of Gorski kotar and Lika in Croatia, (2) the region of Dalmatia in southern Croatia and BIH, and (3) Serbia. When we mapped the clusters geographically, we observed west‐east genetic structure across the study area, together with some specific structure in BIH–Dalmatia. We observed that cluster 1 had a smaller effective population size, consistent with earlier reports of population recovery since the 1980s. Our results provide foundation for future genomic studies that would further resolve the observed west‐east population structure and its evolutionary history in wolves and other taxa in the region and identify focal areas for habitat conservation. They also have immediate importance for conservation planning for the wolves in one of the most important parts of the species’ European range.
String theorists are certain that they are practicing physicists. Yet, some of their recent critics deny this. This paper argues that this conflict is really about who holds authority in making rational judgment in theoretical physics. At bottom, the conflict centers on the question: who is a proper physicist? To illustrate and understand the differing opinions about proper practice and identity, we discuss different appreciations of epistemic virtues and explanation among string theorists and their critics, and how these have been sourced in accounts of Einstein's biography. Just as Einstein is claimed by both sides, historiography offers examples of both successful and unsuccessful non-empirical science. History of science also teaches that times of conflict are often times of innovation, in which novel scholarly identities may come into being. At the same time, since the contributions of Thomas Kuhn historians have developed a critical attitude towards formal attempts and methodological recipes for epistemic demarcation and justification of scientific practice. These are now, however, being considered in the debate on non-empirical physics.
A. C. Umuhire, J. Uwamahoro, K. Sasikumar Raja
et al.
Solar radio type II bursts serve as early indicators of incoming geo-effective space weather events such as coronal mass ejections (CMEs). In order to investigate the origin of high-frequency type II bursts (HF type II bursts), we have identified 51 of them (among 180 type II bursts from SWPC reports) that are observed by ground-based Compound Astronomical Low-cost Low-frequency Instrument for Spectroscopy and Transportable Observatory (CALLISTO) spectrometers and whose upper-frequency cutoff (of either fundamental or harmonic emission) lies in between 150 MHz-450 MHz during 2010-2019. We found that 60% of HF type II bursts, whose upper-frequency cutoff $\geq$ 300 MHz originate from the western longitudes. Further, our study finds a good correlation $\sim $ 0.73 between the average shock speed derived from the radio dynamic spectra and the corresponding speed from CME data. Also, we found that analyzed HF type II bursts are associated with wide and fast CMEs located near the solar disk. In addition, we have analyzed the spatio-temporal characteristics of two of these high-frequency type II bursts and compared the derived from radio observations with those derived from multi-spacecraft CME observations from SOHO/LASCO and STEREO coronagraphs.
Recent event of ousting Rohingyas from Rakhine State by the Tatmadaw provoked worldwide public-and-academic interest in history and social evolution of the Rohingyas, and this is to what the article is devoted. As the existing literature presents a debate over Who are the Rohingyas?, and How legitimate is their claim over Rakhine State?, the paper reinvestigates the issues using a qualitative research method. Compiling a detailed history, the paper finds that Rohingya community developed through historically complicated processes marked by invasions and counter-invasions. The paper argues many people entered Bengal from Arakan before British brought people into Rakhine state. The Rohingyas believe Rakhine State is their ancestral homeland and they developed a sense of Ethnic Nationalism. Their right over Rakhine State is as significant as other groups. The paper concludes that the UN must pursue solution to the crisis and the government should accept the Rohingyas as it did the land or territory.
Hantavirus infection is a zoonosis rare in the Balkan Peninsula but with increasing frequency and geographic spread, causing two major syndromes, depending on the viral serotype: hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) and cardiopulmonary syndrome (CPS). Because there is no specific treatment or vaccine for this condition, the key for minimizing the progression to chronic kidney disease, secondary hypertension or death is early diagnosis and prompt therapy. This paper presents a case of HFSR in which needle kidney biopsy played a major role in diagnosis and draws attention on this zoonosis that might be highly underdiagnosed in Balkan Peninsula. A 26-year-old female with no medical history was admitted in our department with acute kidney injury (AKI), nephritic syndrome with nephrotic range proteinuria, high blood pressure, hepatic cytolysis, severe thrombocytopenia, anemia and leukocytosis, elevated LDH, normal haptoglobin, positive Coombs test (Table 1). Immunological testing (C3, C4, ANA, ANCA, antiGBM), viral infection markers (hepatitis B/C, HIV, Epstein-Barr, Cytomegalovirus), IgA/M/G were all negative and ADAMTS13 activity was normal. Abdominal sonography showed both kidneys of normal size and shape. A kidney biopsy was performed. The biopsy specimen showed macroscopic features of hemorrhage in the renal medulla. In immunofluorescence the staining was negative for IgA, IgG, IgM, C1q, C3c, k and λ chains, albumin and fibrinogen. Light microscopy (LM) revealed normal glomeruli and arterioles, dilated proximal tubules with resorption droplets at the apical pole and erythrocytes in the lumen, important interstitial hemorrhage in the medulla, with no inflammation or interstitial fibrosis. The electron microscopy (EM) showed segmental foot process effacement, endotheliosis of the peritubular capillaries, rare plasmocytes and macrophages in the interstitium (Figure 1). The aspect of hemorrhagic interstitial nephritis suggested Hantavirus infection. Serological testing revealed both IgM and IgG antibodies for the Hantaan serotype (HTNV). The final diagnosis was HTNV hemorrhagic interstitial nephritis with intrinsic AKI and secondary hypertension. MO426 Figure 1: LM, Toluidine Blue staining. Normal glomerulus. Resorption droplets in the proximal tubular cells. LM, Toluidine Blue staining. Extensive interstitial hemorrhage in medulla, tubulitis. EM. Interstitial extravasation of erythrocytes. EM. Endothelial swelling, foot process effacement. The patient was treated with oral methylprednisolone 16mg/d for 2 weeks, with progressive tampering of the dose and removal after 2 months. She received antihypertensive and antiproteinuric treatment with ramipril. The evolution was good, with creatinine and liver enzymes returning to normal. HFRS belongs to a group of rare zoonoses in Balkan Peninsula, the most involved serotypes being Dobrava and Puumala. This case had positive serology for HTNV usually being found in China and Russia, but our patient didn’t travel abroad before she got ill, so we can’t consider the case as being an imported infection. That highlights a possible underdiagnosis of the disease in this region and also the need to re-evaluate geographic distribution of different strains and changes in ecological aspects given that they may pose a major risk to public health. The disease begins with flu-like symptoms and progresses to AKI with severe thrombocytopenia, anemia and coagulation disorders, being easily mistaken for haemolytic uremic syndrome. In a region with sporadic cases, we face diagnosis difficulties related especially to the absence of initial diagnosis suspicion, so we emphasize the need to include this pathology in the differential diagnosis algorithm of diseases evolving with thrombocytopenia, anemia, hepatic cytolysis and renal injury.