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Category: Universities

  • MIL-OSI Global: The heart is a symbol of love – things weren’t always like that

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Michelle Spear, Professor of Anatomy, University of Bristol

    Valentine’s Day is all about the hearts: heart-shaped chocolates, cards, balloons and even pizza. But the heart hasn’t always just been a symbol of romance.

    Across cultures and centuries, the heart has been revered as the seat of the soul, a source of supernatural power and a vessel of identity. From ancient Egyptian afterlife beliefs to medieval relics, from necromantic rituals to modern heart transplants, this organ has been at the centre of both scientific curiosity and deep-seated mysticism.

    Why has the heart, more than any other organ, been imbued with such deep symbolism and power? While anatomy tells us it is a muscular pump controlled by electrical impulses, history tells a more complex story – one of rituals, relics and even dark magic.

    The human heart is a remarkably efficient pump, beating about 100,000 times a day and circulating about 7,500 litres of blood. It is driven by the sinoatrial node, a cluster of pacemaker cells that spontaneously generate electrical impulses independently of the brain.

    As this intrinsic electrical system does not rely on direct nervous input but is influenced by it, the heart can continue beating for a short while even when removed from the body – provided it has an adequate supply of oxygen and electrolytes. This uncanny quality only reinforced superstitions that the heart was more than just a muscle and may explain why many early cultures viewed the heart as possessing a life force of its own.

    But to present the heart as merely a pump ignores wider influences. The heart functions as an endocrine organ, releasing hormones that regulate blood pressure, fluid balance and cardiovascular health.

    The connection between the heart and “love hormones”, such as oxytocin, extends beyond metaphor, as research suggests the heart not only responds to oxytocin but may also play a role in its release.

    Oxytocin is primarily produced in the brain by the hypothalamus and released from the pituitary gland, flooding the body during moments of affection, trust and bonding. It is the chemical catalyst behind the deep emotional connections that define human relationships.

    The heart is equipped with oxytocin receptors, and studies show that the hormone promotes vasodilation (widening of the blood vessels), reducing blood pressure and improving circulation. Beyond this, oxytocin may protect the heart, helping it repair itself and reducing inflammation after injury, such as during a heart attack.

    However, the heart’s function was not always understood. The ancient Greeks believed it was the seat of intelligence, while Aristotle dismissed the brain as a mere “cooling fluid” for the heart’s divine fire.

    Galen, a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher who lived during Roman times, described the heart as the body’s furnace, while William Harvey’s 1628 discovery of circulation reshaped our understanding of this important organ. Even so, its symbolic and mystical significance never fully waned.

    The seat of the soul

    The ancient Egyptians preserved the heart during mummification, believing it would be weighed by Anubis against the Feather of Truth, the divine measure of justice. Ironically, the brain was discarded as totally useless. An excerpt from the Book of the Dead, an ancient Egyptian funerary text, reads:

    O my heart which I had from my mother! which I had from my mother! O my heart of my different ages! Don’t stand up as a witness against me. Do not be opposed to me in the tribunal.

    This spell is intended to pacify the heart and assert dominion, ensuring it remains loyal when weighed.

    The idea that the heart carried more than just blood persisted into the Renaissance, with scholars debating whether it was the true locus of identity.

    “If indeed from the heart alone rise anger or passion, fear, terror, and sadness; if from it alone spring shame, delight, and joy, why should I say more?” Andreas de Laguna, a Spanish physician wrote in 1535.

    Even today, heart transplants fuel questions about whether a transplanted heart carries something of its donor. Some recipients report changes in personality, memories or food preferences, raising speculation about cellular memory. While no definitive scientific basis exists, such cases continue to intrigue.

    Heart of darkness

    The heart’s power was not only revered, but feared. In folk magic and necromancy, people believed that the hearts of executed criminals retained energy from their violent deaths. Some thought consuming, burning or preserving a heart could grant knowledge or strength.

    In Scotland and England, people reportedly boiled the hearts of murderers to prevent their ghosts from haunting the living. Dried hearts were sometimes ground into powders for potions, while in occult traditions, they were burned in rituals to banish spirits or bind enemies.

    More disturbing are accounts of unbaptised infants’ hearts in witchcraft traditions. Some sources claim they were used in hexes, flying ointments or dark pacts. While probably exaggerated during witch trials, such stories reflect a deep-rooted belief in the heart as a conduit of power.

    The heart has been a vessel of the soul, a source of magic and a point of conflict between science and superstition. While modern medicine has demystified much of its function, its symbolism remains deeply ingrained in human culture.

    This Valentine’s Day, as we exchange stylised hearts in celebration of love, we might pause to remember that the power of the heart has been a symbol of life, death and everything in between for millennia.

    Michelle Spear does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. The heart is a symbol of love – things weren’t always like that – https://theconversation.com/the-heart-is-a-symbol-of-love-things-werent-always-like-that-249211

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI: Huntzinger Management Group Welcomes Industry Leader Jon P. Burns as Advisor

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    DUNMORE, Pa., Feb. 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Huntzinger Management Group is thrilled to announce that accomplished healthcare IT and operations executive Jon P. Burns has joined the organization as an advisor. His decades of expertise, leadership, and transformative impact in healthcare technology and operations will further strengthen Huntzinger’s ability to deliver strategic insights and value-driven solutions to clients.

    “We are beyond excited to welcome Jon to the Huntzinger team,” said Robert Kitts, CEO and Founding Partner at Huntzinger. “His vast industry experience, innovative leadership, and ability to drive meaningful change in healthcare IT and operations align perfectly with our mission to empower organizations with expert-driven solutions.”

    About Jon P. Burns

    With an impressive career extending 48 years in healthcare leadership, Jon Burns has held senior executive roles at leading institutions, including Geisinger, UNC Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, and the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS). As UMMS’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) and later Chief Administrative Officer, he spearheaded the integration of IT and other operations across the medical system, executed a single enterprise-wide EMR, and co-developed iHarbor, an innovation center that generated marketable healthcare technology products. His expertise in operations, healthcare technology, and strategy has earned him national recognition, including being consistently named among Becker’s Health Care’s Top CIOs.

    Huntzinger is honored to have Jon as part of its growing team of industry-leading advisors. His experience and leadership will further enhance Huntzinger’s ability to deliver cutting-edge solutions, drive healthcare transformation, and optimize IT performance for clients nationwide.

    For more information about Huntzinger and its services, visit https://huntzingergroup.com

    ABOUT HUNTZINGER MANAGEMENT GROUP
    Huntzinger Management Group provides expert healthcare advisory and managed services, delivering actionable solutions that enhance performance, manage risk, and drive results. Recognized as a “Best in KLAS” organization, Huntzinger is committed to excellence in healthcare IT leadership. With a team of seasoned healthcare professionals, Huntzinger sets the standard in HIT leadership. For more information, please visit https://huntzingergroup.com/

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Valentine’s Day: why physical affection can boost your health

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Viren Swami, Professor of Social Psychology, Anglia Ruskin University

    PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock

    In the opening scene of Love, Actually, Hugh Grant’s character says how, whenever he gets gloomy with the state of the world, he thinks about the arrivals gate at Heathrow airport. The reason is on screen: we see couples kissing, old friends embracing, children smiling and laughing as they jump into the arms of their parents.

    Airports are great places to really understand the importance of physical affection – hugging, kissing, cuddling, holding hands, or even just touching. But physical affection is ubiquitous in everyday life, too – and with good reason. Science shows that non-sexual physical affection produces more than just moments of joy – it also benefits our mental and physical health.

    Physical affection is one of the most direct and important ways that people communicate intimacy in their romantic relationships. And it seems to occur in romantic relationships all over the world, despite cross-cultural differences in ideas of love and romance.

    People in romantic relationships report more intimate physical affection than singletons. They’re also more comfortable allowing their partners to touch more of their bodies than strangers or friends. For example, most people are comfortable being touched on their thighs and abdomen by their partner, but not by other people.

    Even how we touch our partners is different to how we touch other people. When participants in one study were asked to stroke their partner, a friend, a stranger, or an artificial arm, they did so more slowly with their partner. Slower strokes may may be experienced as more pleasant and erotic than quicker strokes. Even just thinking about physical affection from a partner evokes pleasant and erotic sensations.

    There is now strong evidence showing that physical contact is associated with better physical and mental health. One review of “touch interventions” – think massage – in 212 studies involving more than 13,000 participants found that physical touch benefited everything from sleep patterns to blood pressure to fatigue. Touch interventions were especially helpful in reducing pain, depression and anxiety.

    Couple’s therapy

    Before you rush off to book yourself a massage, you should know that much of the evidence suggests the strongest benefits come from physical affection with romantic partners. Several studies have found that, in couples, physical affection is associated with a range of physiological effects, including lower blood pressure and better immune responses.

    In couples, physical affection is also associated with better psychological wellbeing. One study found that couples who sleep-touched – cuddling shortly before or after sleep – felt happier and calmer in the morning, which meant they were more likely to enjoy the company of their partners.

    Physical affection – including kissing and affection after sex – is also associated with greater relationship and sexual satisfaction, and better ratings of one’s relationship overall, which in turn contribute to better psychological wellbeing. And even when conflicts do occur, hugging seems to reduce levels of negative mood in couples.

    Cuddle up, because there’s more. Receiving physical affection from a partner makes us feel psychologically stronger. One study found that women showed less activation in parts of the brain that respond to threat when holding their husband’s hand. Even just imagining touch from a partner can increase one’s willingness to take on challenging tasks.

    Another way to look at this is to examine what happens when we lose physical affection. Studies have shown that “touch deprivation” – the absence of touch – is associated with greater symptoms of depression and anxiety. Indeed, the loss of affection from others during the pandemic hit many people hard. Among couples, a lack of physical affection is associated with lower relationship satisfaction, stress, and feelings of loneliness.

    There are several ways in which physical affection provides these benefits. Affectionate touch is known to activate reward centres of the brain, which boosts our mood and promotes feelings of wellbeing. Touch also stimulates the release of oxytocin, which can strengthen social bonds and increase feelings of trust between individuals. It’s for these reasons that oxytocin is sometimes called the “cuddle chemical”.

    Physical affection also reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol and reduces perceived pain, which suppress physiological stress systems. One study found that a ten-minute neck-and-shoulder massage from one’s partner helped lower cortisol responses, helping to regulate levels of stress.

    Psychologically, physical affection in romantic relationships is an important way to keep our emotions under control. Touching one’s partner in a caring manner helps to improve their mood and makes them feel loved, secure, and safe. As feelings of connection, trust, and belonging are strengthened through non-sexual physical signs of affection, negative effect is reduced and psychological well-being is improved.

    However, not everyone likes to be touched, even if it is by their romantic partners. Some people are “touch avoidant” – and some people may actually be apprehensive about being touched. For instance, people with avoidant attachment styles – characterised by a discomfort with emotional closeness – often have very negative views about cuddling and are more hesitant to touch their partners. Conversely, people with anxious attachment styles – characterised by a fear of abandonment – may desire more touch than they receive.

    But when couples have similar touch preferences, it can lead to greater attraction, closeness, and commitment to one another. And if you’re looking for a fun way to incorporate non-sexual physical affection into your relationships, consider home massage. One study found that couples who took turns massaging each other at home felt a deeper connection with each other, and felt more relaxed and less stressed.

    Viren Swami does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Valentine’s Day: why physical affection can boost your health – https://theconversation.com/valentines-day-why-physical-affection-can-boost-your-health-247858

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: US says European security no longer its primary focus – the shift has been years in the making

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By David J. Galbreath, Professor of International Security, University of Bath

    European defence ministers left their meeting in Brussels on February 12 in shock after the new US secretary of defence, Pete Hegseth, told them they could no longer rely on the US to guarantee their security.

    Hegseth said he was there “to directly and unambiguously express that stark strategic realities prevent the United States of America from being primarily focused on the security of Europe”.

    He also insisted that European countries provide the “overwhelming” share of funding for Ukraine in the future. The US has been the biggest source of military aid to Ukraine, with its weapons, equipment and financial assistance crucial in helping Kyiv resist the Russian invasion.

    Hegseth’s comments are in keeping with the stance of the US president, Donald Trump, on the Nato transatlantic military alliance. Trump sees Nato as an excessive financial burden on the US and has repeatedly called on its members to increase their defence spending.

    But Hegseth’s remarks could also be seen as a sign of America’s waning commitment to the terms of Nato’s founding treaty. Signed in 1949 by the US, Canada and several western European nations, Article 5 of the treaty requires member states to defend each other in the event of an armed attack.

    The US has the largest military – and the biggest stockpile of nuclear weapons – in Nato. So, on the face of it, efforts to recast the alliance appear a drastic shift in Europe’s security landscape in the post-cold war era.

    However, those familiar with the political sentiment around Nato and the defence of Europe in the US will see that this move follows in the footsteps of what others have sought to do – starting from the very end of the cold war.

    Changing over time

    In 1991, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Nato was under considerable pressure to change for the new world order. A rising China was not yet on the minds of many in Washington, but the feeling was that the financial commitments the US had made to defend western Europe during the cold war could not continue.

    The so-called “peace dividend”, a slogan popularised by former US president George H.W. Bush and former UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher, allowed nearly all Nato states to reduce their military spending at this time.

    In 1992, almost as soon as European Nato countries were shrinking their forces and moving away from mass armies to professional soldiering, the alliance became actively engaged in maintaining a no-fly zone over Yugoslavia.

    A new Nato was becoming apparent. It was transitioning from being a collective defence organisation to one of collective security, where conflicts were managed on Nato’s borders.

    A US fighter jet at Aviano air base, Italy, after a mission over Bosnia to enforce the no-fly zone in 1993.
    Sgt. Janel Schroeder / Wikimedia Commons

    This collective security arrangement worked well to keep the alliance together until 2001, when the administration of George W. Bush entered the White House and involved the US in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US, Nato invoked Article 5 and returned to the principle of collective defence.

    Many European countries, including the new, smaller Nato states like Estonia and Latvia, sent troops to Iraq and Afghanistan. The persistent justification I heard in the Baltic states was “we need to be there when the US needs us so that they will be there when we need them”.

    Yet in 2011, before the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were over, the administration of Barack Obama introduced a foreign policy strategy known as the “pivot to Asia”. The implication was that the US would shift its attention from primarily the western hemisphere to China.

    By this point, China had become the second-largest economy in the world and was rapidly developing its military. The reaction to this US policy shift in European capitals was one of shock and disappointment. They saw it as the US deciding that its own security did not sit in Europe like it had since 1945.

    Then, in 2014, Russia invaded Crimea and the Donbas in eastern Ukraine. The pivot to Asia looked like it had stalled. But US interest and investment in European defence continued to decline, with American military bases across Europe closed down. The first Trump administration continued the pattern set by Obama.

    President Joe Biden, who entered office in 2021, used Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 to show European leaders that the US still saw its own security in Europe and that it would stand beside Ukraine.

    But the US continued to insist that European countries invest in their own defence. The UK, Poland and France have all committed to increase their defence spending over recent years – though spending by European Nato states as a whole continued to fall.

    There has been a long-held belief in the US that Europe is “freeriding” on American power. While the US saw its own security in Europe, this freeriding was allowed to continue.

    But as the perspective of the US has changed, with the focus now on countering China, it has been keen to suggest that European defence should increasingly become the job of Europe itself.

    Nato will not go out with a bang. It is much more likely to gradually disappear with a whimper. After all, who did Trump meet on his second day in office? Not Nato but the Quad: an alliance between Australia, India, Japan and the US in the Indo-Pacific.

    David J. Galbreath has received research funding from the UKRI.

    – ref. US says European security no longer its primary focus – the shift has been years in the making – https://theconversation.com/us-says-european-security-no-longer-its-primary-focus-the-shift-has-been-years-in-the-making-249813

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Trump phone call with Putin leaves Ukraine reeling and European leaders stunned

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By David Hastings Dunn, Professor of International Politics in the Department of Political Science and International Studies, University of Birmingham

    Donald Trump likes to portray himself as the great deal maker. Typically, his idea of the “Art of the Deal” had tended to involve outlandishly bullish opening demands – whether that’s on tariffs or trade deals – before settling on more moderate, but still exacting conditions. This context makes what happened when the US president spoke with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin about Ukraine so remarkable.

    The very fact that Trump spoke with Putin at all was a diplomatic gift to the pariah state and its leader. For three years Russia has been diplomatically isolated by most western leaders, many of whom have called for Putin to face war crimes charges (there is currently an ICC arrest warrant out for Putin for the alleged illegal transfer of children from, Ukraine to Russia).

    Indeed, the fact that Trump spoke with Putin and only then called the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, to inform him of their conversation indicates the subordination of Ukraine’s role in the talks.

    Trumpeting the call as “highly productive” on his TruthSocial website, Trump wrote that the two leaders had spoken about the “strengths of our respective nations, and the great benefit that we will someday have in working together”. He said they had arranged to visit each other’s nations. In fact, the two will initially meet in Saudi Arabia – where Putin would not be arrested under the ICC’s warrant.

    At the same time, Trump’s new defense secretary spelled out to a meeting of European defence officials the administration’s position on some of the key issues. It was clear that several of Ukraine’s “red lines” had already fallen by the wayside as far as the US is concerned.

    Hegseth said that returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is “an unrealistic objective” and an “illusionary goal” and that any deal must be based on “a realistic assessment of the battlefield.”

    Likewise Ukraine’s future Nato membership – something the US committed to support in the 2008 Budapest Declaration, was also a non-starter. And he said the US would not only not join any international force deployed to ensure Ukrainian security, but that if such a force were constituted it would not be a Nato operation. As such, he said, it would not be covered by the alliance’s article 5 pledge for collective security. This effectively dooms this initiative to failure.

    As important as what was announced by the Trump administration on this subject, was what was omitted. Trump has never condemned Putin for his illegal invasion of Ukraine. And there has been no mention in his social media posts that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was a violation of international law. Or the inviolability of Ukraine’s borders or the issue of Russian reparations for the material and human damage inflicted on Ukraine.

    Russia celebrates

    Russia, meanwhile, is cock-a-hoop. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov reported that Putin talked about Moscow’s demands, telling Trump of “the need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict”. This suggests that while Ukraine’s red lines are going to be ignored by the US, Russia will continue to insist on its maximalist demands that the Russians intend to take in their approach to the negotiation.

    In addition to the concessions that Hegseth indicated the Trump administration has already decided to go along with, Russia is also likely to press for the demilitarisation of Ukraine. It will demand control, not just of the territory that it occupies, but of the remainder of the Ukrainian provinces that Putin has already declared to be “Russian”: Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, in the south and east of Ukraine.

    Both the Russian stock market and the ruble rose sharply on the US announcement of the talks, and the government-controlled press in Russian could hardly hide their glee, reporting that: “Russia is ready for talks. But on its terms”.

    European leaders shocked

    The pace and scale of US concessions on Ukraine seen to have caught the US’s European Nato allies off guard. Like Ukraine itself, they have been sidelined by Trump’s decision to seek direct negotiations with Putin. The UK’s defence secretary, John Healey, issued a statement appealing that “that there can be no negotiation about Ukraine without Ukraine and Ukraine’s voice must be at the heart of any talks”.

    German foreign minister, Anna Baerbock, meanwhile, said the call had come out of the blue without any consultation with Europe: “This is the way the Trump administration operates,” she said, adding: “This is not how others do foreign policy, but this is now the reality.” Baerbock said a deal must not be imposed on Ukraine and that Europe should be involved in negotiations: “This is about European peace. That’s why we Europeans must be involved.”

    The French foreign ministry put out a statement saying that: “Ukraine and Europe must be part of any negotiations. Ukraine should be provided with strong security guarantees.”

    Other commentators have been less diplomatic. Michael McFaul, who served as US ambassador to Russia under Barack Obama, took to X to question Trump’s tactics: “Diplomacy 101: Don’t give anything without getting something in return. Don’t negotiate in public. Don’t negotiate about Ukraine’s future without first coordinating your position with Ukrainians.”

    We’ll know more about what – if any – agency Volodymyr Zelensky and his diplomats have in the future of their country after US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and vice-president, JD Vance, meet with Zelensky at the Munich Security Conference on February 14-16.

    But for the present at least, it appears that negotiations will be less about pressuring Putin to bring a just end to the war he started, than forcing Ukraine to give in to the Russian leader’s demands.

    David Hastings Dunn has previously received funding from the ESRC, the Gerda Henkel Foundation, the Open Democracy Foundation and has previously been both a NATO and a Fulbright Fellow.

    – ref. Trump phone call with Putin leaves Ukraine reeling and European leaders stunned – https://theconversation.com/trump-phone-call-with-putin-leaves-ukraine-reeling-and-european-leaders-stunned-249876

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Will Lucy Letby get a retrial? Here’s what happens next with her case

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Daniel Alge, Senior Lecturer in Criminology & Criminal Justice, Brunel University of London

    Lucy Letby was convicted in two trials in 2023 and 2024 of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder six others in her care at the Countess of Chester hospital in north-west England between 2015 and 2016.

    She is currently serving 15 whole life sentences for the murders. But the case has been called into question as a result of growing concerns about the expert evidence presented at her trial. Will she get a retrial? Here’s what happens next.

    In the context of usually cautious expert opinion, the press conference held on February 4 2025 was extraordinary. An international panel of medical experts investigating the medical evidence against Lucy Letby concluded that there were alternative explanations for each of the deaths. They said they found no evidence of deliberate harm, and believe Letby did not murder any babies.

    The panel’s chair, Dr Shoo Lee, is a retired neonatal care expert. His 1989 paper on air embolisms was heavily relied on by the prosecution in the Letby trial and appeals. However, Lee has previously said that his research was misinterpreted at trial. At the press conference he said, “we did not find any murders. In all cases, death or injury were due to natural causes or just bad medical care.”

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    The panel’s findings put the case in uncharted territory, given Letby’s very recent convictions and the continuing public inquiry into the case.

    The public inquiry – the Thirlwall Inquiry into events at the Countess of Chester hospital – will operate based on the assumption, following her convictions, that Letby is guilty. Letby’s barrister has called for the inquiry to be halted pending the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) review of her case.

    Despite the findings of the expert panel, Letby’s release or even a retrial is by no means imminent, let alone guaranteed. Letby has already had two applications for leave to appeal refused. The grounds of appeal were related to what her defence argued were errors in judicial decision making during the trial, rather than the medical evidence. Nonetheless, this means that the CCRC is the only route left open to Letby to challenge her convictions.

    Letby’s defence team confirmed that a preliminary application has been made to the CCRC, with a full submission to follow. The CCRC investigates potential miscarriages of justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

    The commission is expected to treat Letby’s case as a priority given the public interest. But it is still likely to take at least a year to review the considerable evidence before a referral back to the Court of Appeal could even be considered.

    What evidence will be considered?

    The CCRC aims to complete cases within 12 months of receiving the application. But the organisation has recently come under criticism over how it handled the case of Andrew Malkinson, who was wrongly jailed for 17 years for a crime he did not commit.

    When the CCRC considers the full application, they have the power to refer the case back to the Court of Appeal. In order to do so, the commission requires new evidence or other relevant factors which would support a fresh appeal.

    The findings of the medical panel will be part of the defence submission. The CCRC will decide, with other factors, whether they constitute fresh grounds for an appeal. It is particularly compelling that the prosecution case relied on Dr Lee’s research, and yet it is in part his expertise that has become a crucial element of the defence.

    To send the case back for appeal, the CCRC would also need to conclude that there was a “real possibility” of the conviction being overturned.

    It is important to remember that the case against Letby included statistical and circumstantial evidence as well as medical opinion. However, what are alleged to be numerous fallacies in the statistical evidence have been highlighted. And circumstantial evidence is just that – circumstantial. Letby was convicted on the medical evidence.

    The evidence given as part of the Thirlwall Inquiry will be within the remit of the CCRC too. Although the inquiry has not yet formally concluded, all oral testimony has taken place. As would be expected given the inquiry’s terms of reference, much of the evidence heard has been less favourable to Letby.

    The CCRC also has the power under the Criminal Appeals Act 1995 to instruct its own expert witnesses and interview previous and potential new witnesses.

    If the CCRC ultimately decides to refer the case to the Court of Appeal, it will be treated like any other appeal. It could result either in the conviction being quashed and Letby going free, or a retrial.

    A retrial would follow if the appeal judges believed that a retrial met the criteria set out in the Criminal Appeal Act 1968 and was in the interests of justice. The likelihood of this outcome depends on the strength of the medical evidence presented to the CCRC and the Court of Appeal.



    Read more:
    Lucy Letby case: the problems with expert evidence

    As the Thirlwall Inquiry and the CCRC application are separate processes, is it technically not essential that the inquiry concludes before the CCRC makes a decision. Closing submissions to the inquiry are scheduled for March 2025, with the report expected later in the year. This should fit within the expected timeframe of the CCRC taking at least a year to consider the application.

    A further complicating factor is Lee’s assertion that the Countess of Chester hospital provided such bad care that it would have been “shut down” in his home country of Canada. This will no doubt lead to legal claims against the NHS trust, particularly if Letby is exonerated and culpability for avoidable deaths is sought elsewhere.

    Some, including Lee, have gone so far as to suggest the new evidence is so compelling that Letby should be released on house arrest pending the CCRC review. This would be highly unusual, and for the time being, Letby remains imprisoned as one of the worst child serial killers in modern British history.

    Daniel Alge does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Will Lucy Letby get a retrial? Here’s what happens next with her case – https://theconversation.com/will-lucy-letby-get-a-retrial-heres-what-happens-next-with-her-case-249415

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: School of Pharmacy Faculty Member Appointed to Board of the Cochrane Heart, Stroke and Circulation Thematic Group

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    Hernandez brings to the board expertise in systematic review methodology, cardiovascular diseases, collaborative work with researchers from South America and prior work within Cochrane. He is an expert in systematic reviews and meta-analyses and has been working for several years in the former Cochrane Heart Group as author, peer reviewer and editor. He performs collaborative work with researchers from several countries and languages, especially Peru and Brazil.

    Adrian Hernandez presenting his work

    Cardiovascular disease is one of the 12 broad topic areas of importance identified by Cochrane and the World Health Organization (WHO). Cochrane has brought together the four former Cochrane groups – Cochrane Heart, Cochrane Hypertension, Cochrane Stroke, and Cochrane Vascular – into a single Thematic Group. This group is led by Professor Gillian Mead of the University of Edinburgh, UK. It shares collective expertise and knowledge and ensures that evidence synthesis in cardiovascular disease reflects the multimorbidity paradigm, the large global burden of vascular disease (including in developing countries), and the continuous development of interventions and diagnostic tests for these conditions.

    Professor Hernandez’s work on the board will help map existing reviews and identify areas of overlap of interventions and cardiovascular diseases, identify high priority reviews and updates, provide topic, content and editorial expertise to the Cochrane central team, and create a dissemination strategy of updated and new reviews within the Group.

    C. Michael White, Pharm.D., FCP, FCCP, FASHP, Distinguished Professor and Chair of Pharmacy Practice, noted, “Cochrane is the major international body behind systematic reviews and it is wonderful that they recognized the expertise that Dr. Hernandez brings. From his stellar publication record and international presentations on cardiovascular diseases, to his high-quality reviewing for cardiovascular journals across the globe, I am sure he will provide tremendous value to the organization.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How Asian immigrants to the U.S. resisted pressures to assimilate, creating a vibrant American suburbia

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Bianca Mabute-Louie, Sociology PhD candidate, Rice University

    This article is adapted from UNASSIMILABLE: An Asian Diasporic Manifesto for the 21st Century by Bianca Mabute-Louie (HarperCollins, January 2025).

    I grew up in San Gabriel Valley — also referred to as SGV or the 626. SGV is an ethnoburb — an ethnic enclave — that grew out of the 1970s, with its own economy and ecosystem that includes banks, grocery stores, hair salons and restaurants.

    Since many early Asian immigrants to this country were barred from accessing white institutions, working together to build and protect this ethnic ecosystem was a matter of survival and necessity.

    Wei Li, a Chinese American geographer, first proposed the term “ethnoburb” to describe the hybridity of ethnic enclaves and middle-class suburbs: suburban ethnic clusters of people and businesses.

    The ethnoburb demonstrates that we can create our own power and belonging — without learning English, without participating in white institutions, and Americanizing. It is a communal endeavour, one that requires everybody’s imagination and care.

    The ‘Chinese Beverly Hills’

    Fuelled by foreign capital, ethnoburb immigrants redefined the entire landscape of the suburb and instigated an economic boom. The growth of Chinese American banking institutions, along with the political and economic factors that prompted the migration of wealthy ethnic Chinese from Taiwan and Hong Kong, played an important role in facilitating the Chinese economic growth in Monterey Park, a city in San Gabriel Valley.

    With their resources, Chinese immigrants bought homes and started businesses with distinct Chinese and Vietnamese language signs to cater to fellow Asian transplants. Valley Boulevard, which runs through 10 cities in San Gabriel Valley, became home to Asian-owned malls, commercial plazas, office complexes, shops, hotels and industrial plants, often with trilingual signage in Chinese, Vietnamese and English.

    Asian immigrants transformed neglected strip malls into prosperous Asian marketplaces and forged a sense of permanence and community. Monterey Park, and eventually the rest of San Gabriel valley, began to be referred to as “Little Taipei” or the “Chinese Beverly Hills” by journalists and Chinese diasporic media.

    By the 1980s, Monterey Park was known as “the first suburban Chinatown,” converting San Gabriel Valley from predominantly white suburbs into an Asian-majority ecosystem with a conspicuous and diverse first-generation, unassimilated immigrant presence.

    Bypassing urban Chinatowns for the suburbs

    The ethnoburb troubles the American construction of the suburbs as static sites of whiteness and socioeconomic mobility.

    The majority of new immigrants, especially those with resources, bypassed urban ethnic enclaves like Chinatown that previously served as immigrant gateway cities and settled immediately into suburbs instead.

    Min Zhou, a professor of sociology and Asian American Studies at UCLA, argues that the deliberate preservation of ethnic values, ties and institutions is what actually acclimates non-white immigrants to the U.S.

    Zhou also says the direct insertion of new Asian immigrants into traditionally white middle-class suburbs offends the conventional understanding of immigration and assimilation. Ethnoburb immigrants were non-white, didn’t always speak English, made considerably less effort to acculturate into whiteness, and many of them were already educated and affluent. They broke the bounds of the American imagination of an immigrant.

    In addition to higher levels of education and incomes, many ethnoburb immigrants also possessed expansive and transnational social networks that shaped their reluctance to acculturate. They did not need to learn English or go through the ethnic enclave to reach a middle-class dream of financial stability.

    The ethnoburb was not a “staging ground” for somewhere better or whiter. The ethnoburb was the final desired destination.

    In actuality, contrary to popular conceptions, the ethnoburb was not apolitical or insular at all. It was and remains a site of resistance against the confining, white imagination of suburbia. With the emergence of Monterey Park as an Asian ethnoburb, questions over group identity, spatial boundaries, and the character of Monterey Park became politicized.

    White hostility in an ‘all-American’ city

    Nativist white residents were at the forefront of erecting boundaries of belonging that stigmatized first-generation immigrants. In addition to Asian businesses changing the esthetic and cultural identity of Monterey Park, Asian immigrants took on local politics. This direct insertion of unassimilated Asian immigrants into traditionally white suburbs and its institutions troubled conventional American understandings of who an immigrant is, the norms they should follow, and how they should behave.

    Lily Lee Chen’s official portrait as mayor of Monterey Park, California, 1983. The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens.

    On Nov. 8, 1983, Lily Lee Chen, a first-generation immigrant from Taiwan, was inaugurated in Monterey Park as the first Chinese American mayor in the nation. Chen was relatable, charismatic, and not assimilated. The Los Angeles Times described Chen’s speech as “accented with pauses and grammatical errors, characteristic of someone speaking in their second language.”

    In another Times article from 1985, Chen told the reporter that she enjoyed dressing in bright reds and jade greens, despite being told by her consultant to look more subdued because her bright colours made her appear “aggressive.” During her campaign, she was met with fierce resistance from white residents, who commonly took down her neighbourhood campaign signs.

    As a response, Chen worked tirelessly on voter engagement among Asian Americans and Latinos, publishing multilingual voter handbooks, registering voters, and building relationships with ethnic communities, including working with Cesar Chavez to support the Latinos in Southern California.

    The same year as Chen’s election, Monterey Park’s five-member city council became multiethnic, with two Mexican Americans, one Filipino American, one Chinese American, and one white council member.

    As Monterey Park became touted as a “successful suburban melting pot” by journalists and even won an “All-American City” award in 1985 for its civic engagement and racial diversity, white flight accelerated and resentment festered among the minority of white residents.

    The large influx and increasing influence of Chinese immigrants over a short period of time caused racial tension to build, with mounting struggles over cultural differences, language barriers, and explicit mistrust of immigrants. Chinese businesses, political candidates, religious institutions, and entrepreneurs became racialized targets of nativist animus.

    A particularly contentious conflict emerged over the proliferation of business signs in languages other than English. In 1986, white hostility among the remaining white residents swept the council members of colour out of office, and replaced them with three long-established white residents, who promptly launched an anti-immigrant, “English-only” campaign attacking the proliferation of business signage in Chinese.

    A scene from the 2010 play by Annette Lee about the English only movement from the 80s. 17-year-old Scarlett Wong, an ‘all-American teenager’ struggles with her neighbors who don’t speak English.
    Angry Asian Man/Annette Lee

    The “English-only” movement in Monterey Park reflects the struggle to control the identity and narrative of a built environment. It represents the tension between America’s idea of how immigrants should assimilate, and how ethnoburb immigrants instead created their own unassimilable institutions and communities.

    Frank Arcuri, one of the Monterey Park residents and community activists who started the “English-only” petition campaign, insisted, “Immigrants are welcome here, but they must realize that English is the language we use in America… They must realize they are making a negative impact on our city. They must adapt to our ways. They must use our language and respect our culture.”

    The nativist, inflammatory rhetoric Arcuri employed to speak about immigrants is as American as apple pie, comparable to replacement theory touted by white nationalist conspiracists today.

    The English-only conflict illustrates the deeper, ideological tensions behind an increasingly diverse and polyglot constituency, composed of politically active immigrants, and nostalgic white residents desperately (and at times violently) clinging on to institutional power and a homogeneous past.

    Asian immigrants defied assimilation theories

    Traditionally, sociologists of immigration and assimilation theorists believed that all immigrant groups would eventually assimilate and integrate into white Protestant American institutions, culture, and society. They argued that doing so would be in the best interests of immigrants. They were also all white scholars. For the most part, what they theorized was true for European immigrants.

    However, Asian immigrants in the ethnoburb remained proudly unassimilable and trans-national. While the ethnoburb was their final destination, they maintained diasporic ties. Many with socioeconomic privilege shuttled back and forth to their home countries.

    It is our diasporic connections to our motherlands and our ethnic communities, not necessarily our assimilation into whiteness, that help us thrive in the U.S.

    Bianca Mabute-Louie is affiliated with Asian Texans for Justice.

    – ref. How Asian immigrants to the U.S. resisted pressures to assimilate, creating a vibrant American suburbia – https://theconversation.com/how-asian-immigrants-to-the-u-s-resisted-pressures-to-assimilate-creating-a-vibrant-american-suburbia-247184

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Why skin-to-skin contact is good for parent and baby

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    By Viren Swami, Anglia Ruskin University

    In the 1950s, the American psychologist Harry Harlow provided a stark demonstration of the importance of a mother’s touch. He famously – and controversially – showed that rhesus monkeys would rather cling to a surrogate “mother” made of soft cloth than one made of metal wire that provided milk. A loving touch seemed to be more important than food, Harlow concluded.

    Today, the importance of touch has become firmly embedded in infant care. For example, UNICEF and the NHS recommend skin-to-skin contact between a parent and newborn. This involves placing a newborn on a parent’s bare chest, both of them covered in a warm blanket, for at least an hour after birth or until after the first feed.

    In fact, feeling the power of touch begins long before a baby is even born. Touch is the first sense to develop. Just eight weeks after conception, a foetus already responds to the sensation of touch in the womb – and it is crucial for people of any age.

    By 14 weeks, twins have been observed on ultrasound sucking on each other’s fingers and exploring each other’s faces. And frame-by-frame analyses of ultrasound have shown that, by 20 weeks, foetuses respond to mothers touching their bellies.

    The benefits of parental touch become clear at birth. One review of 52 studies involving over 4,000 newborns found that touch interventions – such as skin-to-skin contact and baby massage – was associated with better newborn health, including better regulation of temperature, breathing and heart rate. The review also found that touch was more beneficial when it came from a parent compared to medical staff.

    Cuddle up, because there are other benefits of skin-to-skin contact. When a parent holds their baby in skin-to-skin contact after birth, it helps to calm the newborn and stimulates an interest in feeding. In the longer-term, daily skin-to-skin contact with infants improves sleep patterns and pain tolerance, supports healthy weight gain and continued breastfeeding, and strengthens brain development.

    These benefits are also experienced by infants born prematurely. For example, one review of kangaroo care – skin-to-skin contact for premature or low birth-weight infants – found that it reduced the risk of death, infection and low body temperature, and improved weight gain and rates of breastfeeding.

    In both healthy and premature infants, skin-to-skin contact also triggers the release of the hormone oxytocin – the so-called “love hormone” – which encourages bonding between the parent and infant. Skin-to-skin contact also lowers levels of the hormone cortisol, which helps newborns to regulate levels of stress.

    In fact, the benefits of skin-to-skin contact are not exclusively experienced by the newborn. Studies have found that daily skin-to-skin contact with their babies can reduce symptoms of postpartum stress, depression and anxiety in mothers. And while most studies have focused on mothers, skin-to-skin contact also seems to reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety in fathers.

    While most of this research has focused on the short-term outcomes of touch, scientists are also following infants over time to see what impact early touch has on long-term outcomes. For example, one study found that premature babies who received at least one hour of kangaroo care for two weeks had better mother-child interactions, sleep and brain development when they were 10 years old.

    Another group of researchers followed infants and their mothers for a period of nine years. When they were only one-month-old, infants who had experienced skin-to-skin contact with their mothers already showed better emotional adjustment and attachment than infants who had no skin-to-skin contact.

    Nine years later, these children were also more willing and able to engage in emotive conversations with their mothers.

    Some of the effects of touch are more difficult to quantify. In the 1970s, for example, the psychiatrist Donald Winnicott described how a mother’s touch helps infants and young children to experience the body as “the place where one securely lives”. This idea seems to be supported by ethnographic records and anthropological studies of communities where infants are in close contact with a caregiver.

    For instance, in many communities – such as the Netsilik, !Kung, and Balinese – infants are pressed skin-to-skin with their mothers for much of the day. This means that infants are more likely to have their needs met quickly – being comforted when they cry or fed when they suckle – while also helping them develop a sensitivity to touch. These forms of “skinship” also help parents and their infants to develop deeper bonds through touch.

    While this research shows the benefits of touch in infancy, what about childhood? Studies of young children and adolescents have shown that touch – particularly caring touch like hugging from a parent or other caregivers, such as teachers – can support psychological development and wellbeing. For instance, touch can help children develop a sense of emotional security, belonging and feelings of support, especially in stressful situations.

    The anthropologist Marjorie Goodwin has described how “haptic rituals” – such as hugs between a parent and their child over the course of a day – can help the child feel loved and cared for.

    Regularly experiencing caring touch can also help children to develop their social interaction skills, including empathy toward others. Caring touch also reduces aggressive behaviour in adolescence.

    Unfortunately, even today, many parents hold on to old fashioned ideas – popularised by psychologists like John Watson – that they should avoid caring touch with their children, out of fear that hugging or cuddling will cause their children to become weak willed. The scientific evidence doesn’t support such ideas, so go hug your kids.

    Viren Swami, Professor of Social Psychology, Anglia Ruskin University

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

    The opinions expressed in VIEWPOINT articles are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARU.

    If you wish to republish this article, please follow these guidelines: https://theconversation.com/uk/republishing-guidelines

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Get moving with new ARU Writtle walking group

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    An aerial view of the ARU Writtle campus

    A new walking group aimed at getting people moving and socialising has been launched at ARU Writtle, led by popular local instructor Natasia Johnson.

    The free weekly Walk and Talk Group will centre on ARU Writtle’s campus in Lordship Lane, and also take in some of the beautiful nearby countryside.

    Natasia already leads several walks in parks around the local area which have proved popular with the Chelmsford public.

    The new walk, which takes place weekly on Mondays at 12.15pm, follows in the footsteps of the successful Nordic Walking workshops that were launched at ARU Writtle in 2024.

    “Going for a walk is one of the most underrated and underutilised activity we can do to help our physical health, mental health and overall wellbeing.

    “The club’s mission is to promote activity that encourages participants to engage in friendly conversation while enjoying the benefits of being outdoors to help support physical activity, mental health, wellbeing and social connection.

    “The walks are very casual with the pace set by the attendees, so there is no pressure to be super fit.”

    Natasia Johnson, who runs Engage Fitness Services

    “The new Walk and Talk initiative continues ARU Writtle’s stride towards supporting health and wellbeing in the community.

    “Our campus provides a fantastic natural environment for a good walk, and there are so many benefits for people taking part.”

    Greg Deacon, Head of Health at ARU Writtle

    The walks are free to join, and there is the option to purchase a drink afterwards if you wish to stay and chat. Regular attendance is encouraged to help build connections, but participants are welcome to join whenever their schedule allows. Comfortable clothing and suitable footwear are recommended, and a bottle of water is advised.

    Participants should meet at ARU Writtle’s main reception. This event will run weekly (excluding bank holidays) and booking is required. For more information and to book, visit engagefitnessservices.com

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Advancing midwifery access in Alberta

    As of January 2025, 181 midwives were practising across the province, reflecting a 26 per cent increase from 2020. Midwives play a crucial role in improving health outcomes for women, newborns and families by bringing maternal care closer to home. They build strong relationships with families, provide emotional support, help manage pregnancy risks and make referrals when needed.

    Alberta’s government is committed to ensuring Albertans can access high-quality maternal health care anywhere in the province. To help achieve this goal, $10 million is being invested over three years to implement the comprehensive new Alberta Midwifery Strategy.

    “Midwives play an important role in delivering primary health care to Albertans. Our goal is to continue leading the way in women’s and children’s health programs, and implementing initiatives through our midwifery strategy is an important part of achieving this goal.”

    Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Health

    The midwifery strategy outlines short-, medium-, and long-term goals to strengthen care and support midwifery pathways to practice. In the short term, the focus is on enhancing care for Indigenous populations through provider and community engagement. Medium-term efforts aim to address midwifery attrition and identify the supports needed to sustain the workforce. Long term, the strategy seeks to formalize guidelines and processes to integrate midwifery practice while monitoring supply and demand.

    First Nations, Métis and Inuit families have emphasized that increased access to midwifery services is critical, especially in rural and remote areas of the province. They believe that improved midwifery access will help to address physical, emotional and cultural barriers that affect health outcomes for mothers, babies and communities.

    “Implementing this strategy will support midwifery practice and improve rural Albertans’ access to the maternity services they need.”

    Martin Long, parliamentary secretary for rural health

    Funding will support engagement with Indigenous communities and birth workers, pilot innovative projects within Indigenous populations, assess data gaps and develop resources to provide midwifery services effectively. Additionally, it will help attract and retain internationally educated midwives and promote the integration of midwifery practice in team-based primary care. 

    “The Alberta Association of Midwives values the government’s commitment to supporting midwifery in Alberta through the provincial midwifery strategy. We look forward to collaborating on initiatives to grow and sustain midwifery in our province.”

    Marita Obst, president, Alberta Association of Midwives

    Midwifery services are in high demand across Alberta, and Alberta’s government recognizes the need to expand options and improve access to maternal care. This strategy will help ensure families receive the care they need, when and where they need it.

    Quick facts

    • Alberta’s government is investing $2 million for midwifery projects in 2024-25, followed by $3 million in 2025-26 and $5 million in 2026-27.
    • Alberta’s government worked with the Alberta Association of Midwives, the College of Midwives of Alberta, Mount Royal University, Alberta Health Services and internal stakeholders to develop the midwifery strategy.  
    • Midwifery is a publicly funded service in Alberta.
    • Midwives are regulated by the College of Midwives of Alberta under the Health Professions Act and must complete formal education in midwifery and pass written and practical examinations before practising in Alberta.
    • Midwives provide comprehensive care to individuals with low-risk pregnancies through labour and birth, continuing to support the health and safety of mothers and babies until six weeks after birth.

    Related information

    • Alberta Midwifery Strategy
    • Minister of Health 2023 mandate letter 

    Related news

    • Investing in women’s and children’s health (May 3, 2024)

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Fine Arts students were the first to defend their theses at the State University of Management

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    On February 12, 2025, the Institute of Distance Education of the State University of Management awarded diplomas to bachelors who completed their studies in the accelerated program “Human Resources Management”.

    The students of the Institute of Distance Education, who studied in their field after technical schools, colleges or received a second higher education, passed the final certification tests at the State University of Management earlier than others. For three and a half years, they combined their studies at the university with work in institutions and enterprises of various sectors of the economy and are now ready to continue their career in a new capacity.

    At the award ceremony, the bachelor’s degree students were congratulated by the Director of the Institute of Distance Education, Sergei Lenshin, the Institute’s staff, and representatives of the Distance Learning Student Council, who wished the graduates not to stop there, to realize themselves in their professions, and to continue their education in the university’s Master’s program.

    We wish that the acquired education will help our graduates in their career growth, and that the knowledge obtained at the State University of Management will become the basis and a serious bid for a successful life.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 02/13/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: “The role of an academic supervisor is not about a fixed schedule”

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –

    Pavel Voloshchuk has been developing and researching educational products for 14 years. Since August 2024, he has headed two master’s programs at the HSE Faculty of Computer Science:Research and Entrepreneurship in AI” And “Master of Science in Data Science” Pavel Voloshchuk spoke about his career path, time management and the specifics of academic leadership in an interview.

    — Tell us about your background.

    — I have two main interests. The first is teaching adults. For the last 14 years, I have been creating educational products: first in consulting and corporations (the Sochi-2014 organizing committee, Russian Railways, Sber), and for the last five years at HSE. The second interest is product research and product management, especially in the area of customer research and working with product hypotheses. This year, AST publishing house released my textbook, “Shake the Client: How to Create Products Inspired by Real People.”

    Thus, I have a managerial, product background.

    — What are your scientific interests?

    — I’m interested in how people learn, especially in face-to-face programs that are delivered online. How user behavior and their perception of product value change. How we can easily assess the value of a product before investing in expensive design and development stages.

    — How did you get into HSE?

    — I worked at SberUniversity, a division that trains Sber executives and develops external educational programs for partner companies. At a certain point, I was offered to transfer to the Higher School of Economics.

    — What are your responsibilities?

    — I am responsible for two master’s programs.

    “Research and Entrepreneurship in Artificial Intelligence” is a classic full-time program with 30 students. It is designed for those who want to dedicate themselves to scientific work in the field of DS – to become an employee of a corporate or university laboratory, a founder or a member of a team of a technology startup.

    The Master of Science in Data Science is a large online program, currently enrolling around 450 students. The online master’s degree is suitable for those who have no technical experience and are looking to learn the Data Scientist profession from scratch.

    These programs differ in everything from the format of study (face-to-face vs. online) to the requirements for admission (having technical experience and a desire for scientific work vs. lack of technical knowledge and mastering the profession from scratch).

    In addition, I collaborate with colleagues from Center for Continuous Education of the Faculty of Computer Science, where we are developing several new projects in the field of additional professional education.

    I also, of course, teach product research and mentor seminars in my master’s programs.

    — How does your working day go?

    — My working day can vary greatly depending on the season.

    During the admissions campaign, I conduct consultations with applicants and prepare for the new academic year. In May and June, I participate in examination committees and accept defenses from students.

    At the same time, a typical day always includes meetings – with the program team, teachers and colleagues from different departments of the HSE – communication with students, preparation of materials and much more, which ends with evening classes.

    The role of an academic director is not about a fixed schedule. The program is not just a set of tasks, but people: students, teachers, university staff, the market and the situation. This means that every day you have a variety of tasks to ensure the effective operation of the program.

    — How do you manage to combine academic leadership of two such different master’s programs?

    “It’s difficult, and without a team it would not have been possible to cope with such a workload.”

    We are implementing the program “Research and Entrepreneurship in AI” together with our partner – MTS, the guys are very helpful. And we also have an amazing manager of the training office – Ilona Yakovleva.

    If we talk about the Master of Data Science program, there is also a huge amount of work. Several factors help: previous experience in online education, the project team and the amazing involvement of teachers, with whom we are friends and solve all the problems together. For such a large program, connections with the industry are important. For example, in the 2024/25 academic year, through joint efforts, we found academic supervisors for 190 students in two weeks.

    — Are there any special features in managing an online master’s degree program?

    — There are many, I will give a couple of examples. First of all, it is a much larger volume of communication with students and teachers. Due to the format, they cannot simply ask questions at a meeting, it is a little more difficult for them to remain involved. Therefore, we have special curators who work with students’ questions. Special attention is also paid to community management, so that students have the opportunity to get to know those with whom they study and expand their circle of social and professional connections.

    — What are the prospects for your educational programs?

    — In 2024, we launched the first intake for the AI Research and Entrepreneurship program. On the one hand, it is difficult to be the first, on the other hand, students receive maximum attention from partners and the program team. Now we are actively preparing for the start of a new admissions campaign, analyzing feedback and preparing the program design for the next academic year. In addition, the internship season is approaching, colleagues from MTS are preparing to accept our students who have applied for an internship.

    For the Master of Data Science program, 2025 is a very important year — we are completely redesigning the program: it has become Russian-language, classes are synchronous. That is, students will be able to attend online classes, and the studies will be as similar as possible to the full-time program. This is an important transition that will improve the quality of training in the program and maintain the maximum relevance of the competencies that students receive.

    — What do you do in your free time?

    — Tennis. I also like quizzes. This fall we picked up a kitten, named her Amber, and now our family leisure time is treating the cat. She is almost healthy, we will soon choose another hobby.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: An educational project on information modeling technologies for students of secondary vocational education has been launched at SPbGASU

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering –

    From February 3 to April 4, the Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering is once again implementing the educational initiative “TIM-elective of SPbGASU for SPO”. It is being held jointly with Association SRO “OsnovaProekt” with the support of the National Association of Surveyors and Designers (NOPRIZ) and the industry Consortium of Secondary Vocational Education in Construction. The TIM elective is part of the innovative educational project of SPbGASU “Innovative Methodology for Forming Digital Professional Competencies of Students and Specialists in the Construction Industry”, implemented under the auspices of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia.

    The purpose of the elective is to develop design skills using information modeling technologies (IMT) among students majoring in construction.

    SPbGASU teachers and invited specialists conduct classes in such areas as architect, designer, heating and ventilation engineer, water supply and sanitation engineer, TIM coordinator, estimator. Training in each competency is implemented in the form of modular advanced training programs, within the framework of which teachers and students become familiar with working in specialized domestic software products (Renga, nanoCAD, Pilot-BIM, CADLib Model and Archive, SmetaWIZARD, BIM WIZARD).

    More than 750 people (including more than 140 teachers) from 31 colleges across Russia are taking part in the elective course.

    The elective will result in the qualifying TIM championships of SPbGASU in the SPO League, which each participating organization will hold on its own site according to the uniform regulations of the TIM championships of SPbGASU. Students will be able to apply the acquired knowledge and skills to solving a practical problem in a competitive format.

    After this, all participating organizations will have the opportunity to send one team to the All-Russian TIM Championship of SPbGASU, the final of which will be held at our university in person from April 22 to April 25, 2025, as part of VIII International Scientific and Practical Conference “Information Modeling in Construction and Architecture Problems” (BIMAC-2025).

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: European Law and Algorithmic Bias

    Source: Universities – Science Po in English

    Your work includes an analysis of algorithmic discrimination and of challenges in combatting it. What do you mean by this?

     Algorithmic discrimination stems from a process that may seem simple at first glance, but that raises some thorny questions. Algorithms draw on vast quantities of data (so-called big data), from which they make recommendations, predictions, rankings and risk assessments, or provide answers to questions they are asked, among other things.

    But data is obviously not neutral; it reflects existing discrimination and inequalities. Let’s take the case of hiring for a role in a traditionally male-dominated profession, such as information technology (IT). Analysis of existing data (from previous hiring, for example) would bring forth male applicants and might lead an algorithm trained on this data to favour male applicants in the future. Eliminating this bias is not impossible, but the process uncovers other biases, since the over-representation of men in IT results from their over-representation in this discipline in higher education, and it is difficult to disregard qualifications when hiring.

    The cases are legion: by using statistical data and profiling based on gender, finances, addresses, and user health and age, some algorithms might block users’ access to a given good or service, or offer them worse conditions without any examination of their actual characteristics.

    A decision not to use certain discriminating parameters generally requires the use of other parameters that appear neutral but are, in fact, strongly correlated with sensitive data. For example, even if a salary criterion is jettisoned to avoid socioeconomic discrimination, an address could provide the algorithm with indications of an individual’s social class. This phenomenon, known as redundant encoding, can create discrimination by proxy, that is, arising from data that is a priori non-discriminatory but that actually encodes certain inequalities.

    Furthermore, bias affects not only the data, but also every stage in the deployment of an algorithm, from the formulation of the problem to be addressed to the interpretation of its results. These examples, and many others, show that eschewing bias in algorithms would require freeing society as a whole of bias.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Using Digital Traces to Enforce Platform Regulation

    Source: Universities – Science Po in English

    The geometric representation of the positioning of political parties and individuals according to different dimensions, a standard feature of comparative political studies, has only recently emerged in the analysis of digital data.

    The visualisations presented here by Pedro Ramaciotti, Researcher at Sciences Po médialab and the Centre national de la recherche scientifique, Head of the European Polarisation Observatory, Jean-Philippe Cointet, Professor at the médialab and Director of Sciences Po Open Institute for Digital Transformations, and Tim Faverjon, PhD student at the médialab, are based on analyses carried out on the digital traces of X/Twitter accounts. This research opens up avenues for regulators to prevent the risk of political profiling of platform users without their knowledge.

    This article was originally published in the second issue of Understanding Our Times, Sciences Po Magazine.

    flip through the full magazine

    The proliferation of exchanges via social networks and the democratisation of automatic learning algorithms, which ‘calculate’ individuals on the basis of their behavioural traces, are giving rise to growing mistrust.

    These technologies, which define the form and rules of interaction within the digital public space, are accused of increasing the polarisation of debates, encouraging the proliferation of hate speech and spreading disinformation (fake news), among other issues. Such fears underscore the need to focus on existing regulatory mechanisms to guarantee democratic principles.

    Since the mid-2010s, Europe has created an innovative regulatory framework through a series of legal instruments such as the Artificial Intelligence Act, the Digital Services Act (DSA), the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Two of these – the GDPR and the DSA – seek to protect European Union (EU) citizens from intrusive data collection and advertising that uses personal information such as ethnic origin, sexual preference, religion and political opinion (Article 26.3 of the DSA, which refers to the list of sensitive categories from Article 9.1 of the GDPR).

    On 14 March 2024, less than a month after the DSA came into force, LinkedIn was censured by the European Commission, which suspected the platform of using sensitive data (including political preferences) from users to expose them to targeted advertising. Article 34 of the DSA also requires platform operators to assess the risk that their services, including recommendation and moderation systems, pose to ‘freedom of expression and information, including freedom and pluralism of the media’. Europe’s leading role in protecting democratic principles online is laudable.

    It is nonetheless legitimate to question the effectiveness of these legal tools. The DSA prohibits platforms from engaging in political profiling for advertising purposes, but what tools does the regulator have to detect this type of profiling? Similarly, social networks are given real responsibility for the variety of opinions visible online. However, the amplification systems that make the algorithms so addictive are also likely to produce an incomplete or biased view of opinions.

    So how to identify and quantify this deviation from the pluralist ideal? How to measure the diversity of opinions expressed on a given subject? The problem is twopronged. First, the information space to which users are exposed through the prism of the platforms needs to be observable. Second, the space in which respect for political diversity is desirable needs to be clarified. How should this diversity be measured? Should the ideological indicator be based on the right-left spectrum? Or should it be gauged in other attitudinal dimensions linked to sometimes emerging issues such as immigration, globalisation, cultural and environmental issues?

    Data collection at the Global Centre for Combating Extremist Ideology during an official visit by US President Donald Trump to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 2017. (credits: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)

    Measuring the opinions of large populations using their digital footprints

    While it is common practice in comparative politics to use geometric representation to position parties or politicians along predefined axes, this type of practice has only recently emerged in the analysis of digital data. The nature of this data, generally resulting from behavioural traces left by individuals, depends on each platform; it typically includes information on what users share, write or ‘like’. They are of particular interest when they are produced by large populations of users, enabling conclusions to be drawn about national political systems on a large scale with greater robustness.

    Using behavioural traces to estimate the positions of individuals according to ideological dimensions or spectrums (opposing right and left, for example) or positions (for or against) on various public policies is a relatively old practice. In the 1980s, pioneering work used parliamentary voting data to position legislators on ideological spectrums. The intuition was that legislators voting for the same laws were probably very close ideologically. Conversely, if their votes were rarely in agreement, then they were very far apart. Gradually, all these patterns of behaviour created a political space that enabled each player to be finely positioned in a one-, two- or even multi-dimensional space. The same is true today of digital traces, which can betray the political preferences of users when we collect the media they retweet or the accounts of politicians they follow (to mention only the case of X/Twitter). 

    The European Polarisation Observatory (EPO), led by Sciences Po, is tackling the measurement of the public opinion of large populations (from hundreds of thousands to several million users per country) based on their digital traces. While the first studies using social network traces, mainly sought to position individuals and content on spectrums opposing liberals and conservatives (particularly for political analysis in the United States), the research carried out within EPO seeks to extrapolate these studies for the different national contexts in the EU.

    Statistical inference methods are developed using various databases that have been used to characterise the political space defined by the parties in each country. For example, data from the Chapel Hill Expert Survey are used to position the political parties on dozens of ideological dimensions or public policy issues that structure each national context: right-left, European Union, immigration, confidence in institutions and elites, etc. This expert data enables validation and calibration of the results obtained by analysing digital traces and, above all, expansion of this classification to the party level across very large populations.

    Measuring online behaviour and exposure according to political preferences

    Because their political positioning has been estimated along dimensions specific to their national contexts, and because these estimates are linked to digital traces (unlike, for example, traditional survey data), these populations could become a primary source of metrics for the regulator to assess political profiling. This is illustrated by two studies published in 2023 and 2024, respectively: one on the relationship between polarisation and disinformation online, and the other on algorithmic content recommendations on social media.

    Online misinformation is one of the central issues in moderating and regulating platforms. Understanding the determinants of fake news sharing is key to fighting disinformation better. Research carried out in the United States has shown that disinformation is mainly spread by a small share of the population on the fringes of the political spectrum, and particularly on the far right. The populations produced by EPO at an EU level enable an extension of the results obtained in the United States to other countries, accounting for the specific political dimensions that structure their digital space.

    The best illustration of these results is the aforementioned 2023 study, which analysed misinformation circulating on X/Twitter. It shows that in France fake news-sharing behaviour is largely determined by the position of accounts along two independent dimensions: on the one hand, the right-left axis, and on the other (and perhaps above all), the anti-elite sentiment and distrust of institutions harboured by certain accounts.

    Analysis of algorithmic content recommendations further illustrates the challenge facing regulators. To comply with Article 34 of the DSA, platforms must assess the impact of algorithmic recommendations on plurality and freedom of access to information. In countries where X/ Twitter is the platform of choice for journalists and political figures – as is the case in almost all of Western Europe and on the other side of the Atlantic – it is easy to imagine the consequences of targeted algorithmic amplification that would favour or penalise messages and content emanating from a single party or reflecting the perspective of a single political camp.

    To analyse these issues, researchers, who are explicitly given this role by article 40 of the DSA, need to have access to both the data on platform recommendations and a political characterisation of the content recommended and the users to whom it is offered. This is the purpose of the 2024 study on algorithmic recommendations, based on digital populations produced by EPO, in collaboration with the CNRS (the ‘Horus’ project). By jointly assessing the political positions of the authors and recipients of recommended messages, this study provides the first quantitative assessment of the political diversity of recommendations to which players in the French Twittersphere are exposed.

    It clearly shows (see figure above) that recommendations obey a logic of ideological segregation: users from the left, centre and right are overexposed to messages from their respective political camps, though to a lesser extent for centrists. In other words, messages published by friends who share the same opinions are systematically amplified by the algorithm.

    The only exception to this boost for ideological proximity is that the algorithm also amplifies messages from far-left-wing users among right-wing users, to the detriment of content published by moderates. It is also interesting to note that the reverse is not true, and that left-wing users appear to be underexposed to content from the right (in almost the same way as content from moderates).

    Can artificial intelligence inadvertently generate political profiles?

    The digital traces of platforms enable building unprecedented bridges between computer science and comparative politics. A question that must be considered is whether the artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms used to recommend content on platforms might inadvertently build political profiles of users in their deep layers.

    AI technologies exploit massive quantities of data and produce complex statistical models to calculate, for example, predictions or information rankings (which feed into algorithmic recommendations). However, these models are not always comprehensible or explainable, which is why they are often referred to as black boxes. Hence the risk that recommendation algorithms may unwittingly internalise political user profiles in their calculations. If so, how can this phenomenon be detected, measured and, if necessary, protected against? These questions are justified for two reasons.

    First, the creation of profiles within AI models would constitute a breach of Article 26 of the DSA and would, in practice, mean an unwanted shift in the responsibility of platforms, which are hiding behind the opacity of the models. Detecting these profiles in AI models could also prevent intentional but stealthy breaches of Article 26.

    For example, if the operator of a platform is convinced that its AI model will provide relevant political advertising to its users (by anticipating what content will be shown to users of a particular political persuasion), without having to make this explicit in the design of its AI model, it will be able to offer targeted political advertising as a service while claiming that the users’ political profile remains unknown to the machine.

    Second, efforts to moderate the negative phenomena caused by the political diversity of the content consumed (such as exacerbated polarisation) raise complex normativity issues: what degree of content diversity should be imposed on users? Who should measure it and who should impose it?

    In addition to revealing the political profiles of users, it is conceivable that these models could be used to selectively delete information that might betray an individual’s political preferences. Is it possible to design recommendation systems that are blind to politics, that comply with legislation, but that remain relevant to the user? Developing the ability to map the political space suggested by digital traces is key to answering this question. And it is crucial in this respect that digital platform data be widely auditable by research.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Great turn out for school apprenticeship show

    Source: City of Coventry

    As part of National Apprenticeship Week 2025, the Apprenticeship Team at Coventry City Council hosted more than 25 employers for a School Apprenticeship Show.

    The event held this week at Coventry Rugby Club brought together over 300 students.

    Severn Trent, Coventry University, BUUK infrastructure, Land Rover and West Midlands Police were just a few of the organisations promoting the wealth of apprenticeship opportunities available.

    The show provided an invaluable platform for young people to explore career pathways, engage with employers, and gain insights into how apprenticeships can be a direct route into skilled employment.

    Employers from sectors such as construction, healthcare, digital, engineering, and the public sector were on hand to share information, answer questions, and inspire the next generation of apprentices.

    Cllr Richard Brown, Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources at the Council, said: “I’m really pleased that our own apprenticeship team is helping to bring together so many great organisations and so many young people.

    “Events like this are such a great way to highlight the different career options that apprenticeships can be the springboard to.”

    Zak Bhana, Apprenticeship and Career Pathways Advisor, at Coventry City Council, said: “The event was a real success. It was great to see so many Coventry-based employers getting involved and informing students about the different apprenticeship career pathways they have available.

    “Apprenticeships provide fantastic opportunities for young people to earn while they learn, and this event highlighted just how many options there are locally.”

    The Apprenticeship Show aligns with the Council’s commitment to supporting young people into meaningful careers and ensuring local businesses can connect with the talent they need.

    A huge thank you to all the employers, students, and schools who took part in making this event such a success. If you’d like to find out more about apprenticeships in Coventry, please visit our Apprenticeships Hub or contact the team at coventry.gov.uk/apprenticeships

    Thursday, 13th February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: AI in Science: Research and Development

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –

    Print version

    The Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, based on statistical data and a specialized survey called “Making Science in Russia,” analyzes the prevalence of practices in scientific organizations and universities in the country that use AI solutions to carry out research and development.

    Reference: The “Doing Science in Russia” study is a continuation of the Doing Science project (the first two waves were conducted in 2017 and 2022). As part of the third wave (October-November 2024), representatives of 719 scientific organizations and universities (heads or their deputies for research activities) were asked to rate on a five-point scale the level of provision with AI systems for research and development.

    This issue of the series “Artificial Intelligence” was prepared within the framework of the project “Monitoring scientific support for measures to achieve technological leadership of the Russian Federation” of the thematic plan of research work provided for by the State assignment of the National Research University Higher School of Economics.

    Modern AI-based technologies are changing the usual way of life in all areas of activity, and science is no exception. SurveyA 2023 Nature study found that more than a quarter of scientists already using AI in their research expect the technology to become an essential tool for their field in the next 10 years, with another 47% believing it will be very useful. Related study Oxford University Press shows that we won’t have to wait that long: 75% of surveyed scientists publishing in leading journals have already used various AI tools in 2024, including machine translation services (49%), chatbots (43%) and search engines (25%). According to respondents, AI-based solutions are useful at all stages of the research cycle and for a wide range of tasks: 41% of respondents used them to search for literature, about 35% – for its generalization and/or editing of text (e.g., an article manuscript), 25% – for idea generation, data collection and/or its analysis.

    According to statistics, the implementation of AI solutions in the field of science in Russia is only gaining momentum. In 2023, about 5% of scientific organizations and about 10% of universities used AI for their purposes, but these figures do not fully reflect the real scale of the use of this technology by scientists, since they characterize only the practices of the organizations themselves, and not their employees.

    In the future, we should expect the expansion of AI implementation in the field of science and higher education: every second organization sees prospects for further use of relevant tools in their activities here. In addition, almost 25% of scientific organizations and 38% of universities that are already using AI believe that such technologies will radically change internal processes in science in the coming years; many of them consider intelligent decision support technologies to be the most promising for these tasks (33%).

    It is obvious that the possibility of realizing these expectations largely depends on the level of development of the necessary digital infrastructure. As shown by a survey of 719 scientific organizations and universities conducted by the HSE ISSEK as part of the Doing Science in Russia project (October-November 2024), access to AI systems for research and development is still difficult. The surveyed executives rated the availability of such foreign-developed systems (ChatGPT, Trinka, Mendeley, Scite, Google Jax, etc.) at 2.71 points out of a possible five, and domestic systems (GigaChat, GitVerse, YaLM, SOVA, RAZUM AI, GOLEM, NeuroMark, AI BAUM PLATFORM, NNWizard, etc.) even lower, at 2.60 points. The situation is somewhat better in universities than in other organizations (Fig. 1).

    Against the background of restrained assessments of the current situation, forecasts for the next three years look more optimistic: organizations of all types expect a significant increase in the use of AI systems for research and development. Of course, to ensure such dynamics, it is necessary to remove barriers that hinder the spread of AI in science. Among the most significant of them, universities and scientific organizations note: a shortage of financial resources, a shortage of qualified personnel, an insufficiently developed ICT infrastructure, a shortage/low quality of big data for the implementation of AI. Half of the universities and about 40% of scientific organizations point to the influence of these restraining factors.

    Overcoming barriers to the spread of AI in Russian science could be facilitated by a special program that would provide for the development of research standards using AI; grants for young scientists and research teams studying and using AI in their work (with priority given to those areas of science where such technologies are rarely used); support for the development of AI applications for scientific tasks; compensation for the costs of universities and research organizations for the purchase of big data for the purposes of training and development of generative models.

    This HSE ISSEK material may be reproduced (copied) or distributed in full only with prior consent from HSE (please contact Issek@mse.ru). It is permitted to use parts (fragments) of the material provided that the source and an active link to the HSE ISSEK website are indicated (Issek.hse.ru), as well as the authors of the material. Use of the material beyond the permitted methods and in violation of the specified conditions will result in a violation of copyright.

    Suggested citation:

    Streltsova E. A., Popov E. V., Gershman M. A. (2025) Artificial Intelligence in Science. Moscow – ISSEK HSE. Access mode: https://issek.hse.ru/news/1015931860.html.

    Previous issue series “Artificial Intelligence”:“Big Data for AI”

     

    See also:

    Express information from ISSEK HSE

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How to cope with romantic rejection – a psychologist’s advice

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Veronica Lamarche, Senior Lecturer of Psychology, University of Essex

    Romantic rejection can be very painful. Nomad_Soul/Shutterstock

    Has a romantic partner, or someone you had a crush on, ever hurt your feelings? You’re far from alone. Very few people can boast a 100% success rate when it comes to attracting love interests. And even for those who have more “hits” than “misses”, no partner is capable of always being attentive to our needs, leading to conflicts, disappointments and breakups.

    Given the ubiquity of romantic rejection, why is it often so challenging to respond in adaptive rather than destructive ways?

    Humans are social creatures. Millennia of relying on our family and broader social communities for survival means that we have evolved complex psychological monitoring systems to track whether we are safely connected with others – or at risk of being pushed out of groups.

    The evolutionary importance of social connection with others is so significant that some researchers have gone so far as to argue that people have a fundamental need for acceptance through positive and satisfying relationships.

    If you’ve recently been rejected by someone you had feelings for, or a partner has ended your relationship, these psychology-backed tips will help you to move on.

    Looking for love this Valentine’s Day? Whether you want to improve your relationship with others or with yourself, The Quarter Life Glow-up can help.

    This six-week newsletter course from The Conversation will bring you research-backed advice and tools to help improve your relationships, your career, your free time and your mental health – no supplements or skincare required. Sign up here to start your glow-up at any time.

    Why does rejection hurt so much?

    In many societies, romantic relationships typically offer the strongest forms of connection – and consequently opportunities for rejection. From being rebuffed or ghosted by prospective partners, to having your emotional needs ignored in your relationship, through to recurring conflicts, breakups and divorces, romantic rejection can manifest at all stages of romantic life.



    Read more:
    From ghosting to ‘backburner’ relationships: the reasons people behave so badly on dating apps

    These moments of rejection amplify our need to belong. They motivate us to respond in a way that restores of feelings of safety and connection because they shine a spotlight on the psychological risks of being cast out and left vulnerable.

    While romantic rejection is always unpleasant, not everyone notices or reacts to rejection in the same way.

    People who are higher in rejection sensitivity more actively monitor for signs of rejection from their loved ones. This hypersensitivity often backfires, leading them to over-anticipate rejection and prevent others from behaving in ways that would provide reassurance.

    Different people have different sensitivity levels when it comes to rejection.
    Farknot Architect/Shutterstock

    Consider, for example, that you find out a group of friends met for coffee and didn’t invite you. It is natural to feel slighted even if this was not their intention. People lower in rejection sensitivity are more likely to conclude that the harm was unintentional, and focus instead on the positives. Perhaps, suggest that “it looks like you had a great time, I’d love to join next time”.

    People higher in rejection sensitivity are more likely to conclude that the exclusion was not only intentional, but indicative that the friend group is harbouring some kind of resentment. These assumptions can lead to withdrawal. Instead of opening the door for an invite in the future or reassurance that their presence was missed, they close it behind them.

    People who are sensitive to rejection are more likley to interpret friends getting coffee without them as a slight.
    Annika Knight/Dupe, CC BY-SA

    This preoccupation with protecting the self from rejection often contributes to self-fulfilling prophecies. For example, people with lower self esteem often over-anticipate rejection from others. Consequently, they are more likely to believe that a potential romantic partner is disinterested.

    This assumption of disinterest prevents them from even attempting to initiate a relationship with the object of their affection. Their potential partner may misinterpret reticence as disinterest, or may never even realise the door for connection was open, thus guaranteeing a “rejection”.

    The only way to break this cycle is by trying to connect, rather than hoping or assuming the other person will always make the first move.

    By contrast, people with high self esteem are less preoccupied with avoiding rejection and are therefore more likely to continue to see loved ones through rose-tinted glasses, even after experiencing rejection.

    How to cope with romantic rejection

    Being more sensitive to the warning signs of rejection does not mean that someone is immune to its sting. Experiencing rejection leads most people to feel worse about themselves and others. This can lead to aggressive and selfish actions.

    Research has even shown that some people are more likely to say that being sexually coercive against a partner is permissible if they have been reminded about time they had been recently hurt by a close other. Therefore, in a cruel twist of fate, these hurt people often hurt others, thereby reducing the likelihood of reconnection.

    So, how can you find more adaptive ways of coping with rejection? An important first step is self-reflection. People with low self-esteem or an insecure attachment style (people who have less positive self-regard and expect others to have poor regard for them as well) are more likely to be rejection sensitive. Ask yourself if this might describe you.

    Spend time reflecting on your self esteem and attachment style to understand how you cope with rejection.
    Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock

    Recognising that this is something you struggle with can help you be mindful in how you respond to experiences. Even people particularly sensitive to rejection benefit from being nonjudgmental about their inner experiences, and are less likely to report negative feelings following rejection.

    Another strategy you can work on is constructive, rather than destructive, approaches to communication. Because rejection makes us feel defensive, it can lead us to express ourselves in overly negative and indirect ways. Try to avoid focusing on your love interest’s intent.

    In a relationship, focus on how a transgression made you feel and what it would take to make it up to you now, and in the future. These sorts of positive, yet direct, approaches are more productive and increase the likelihood that your partners will be responsive to your needs in the future.

    It is not necessary to run away from rejection. It is an important social cue that can motivate you towards self-improvement and connection with others. The people who can fully embrace the potential benefits the comes from connecting with others, in spite of any potential risks, are more likely to reap the rewards.

    Veronica Lamarche has received funding from the ESRC, the British Academy, and the Royal Society.

    – ref. How to cope with romantic rejection – a psychologist’s advice – https://theconversation.com/how-to-cope-with-romantic-rejection-a-psychologists-advice-246707

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The heart is symbol of love – things weren’t always like that

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Michelle Spear, Professor of Anatomy, University of Bristol

    Valentine’s Day is all about the hearts: heart-shaped chocolates, cards, balloons and even pizza. But the heart hasn’t always just been a symbol of romance.

    Across cultures and centuries, the heart has been revered as the seat of the soul, a source of supernatural power and a vessel of identity. From ancient Egyptian afterlife beliefs to medieval relics, from necromantic rituals to modern heart transplants, this organ has been at the centre of both scientific curiosity and deep-seated mysticism.

    Why has the heart, more than any other organ, been imbued with such deep symbolism and power? While anatomy tells us it is a muscular pump controlled by electrical impulses, history tells a more complex story – one of rituals, relics and even dark magic.

    The human heart is a remarkably efficient pump, beating about 100,000 times a day and circulating about 7,500 litres of blood. It is driven by the sinoatrial node, a cluster of pacemaker cells that spontaneously generate electrical impulses independently of the brain.

    As this intrinsic electrical system does not rely on direct nervous input but is influenced by it, the heart can continue beating for a short while even when removed from the body – provided it has an adequate supply of oxygen and electrolytes. This uncanny quality only reinforced superstitions that the heart was more than just a muscle and may explain why many early cultures viewed the heart as possessing a life force of its own.

    But to present the heart as merely a pump ignores wider influences. The heart functions as an endocrine organ, releasing hormones that regulate blood pressure, fluid balance and cardiovascular health.

    The connection between the heart and “love hormones”, such as oxytocin, extends beyond metaphor, as research suggests the heart not only responds to oxytocin but may also play a role in its release.

    Oxytocin is primarily produced in the brain by the hypothalamus and released from the pituitary gland, flooding the body during moments of affection, trust and bonding. It is the chemical catalyst behind the deep emotional connections that define human relationships.

    The heart is equipped with oxytocin receptors, and studies show that the hormone promotes vasodilation (widening of the blood vessels), reducing blood pressure and improving circulation. Beyond this, oxytocin may protect the heart, helping it repair itself and reducing inflammation after injury, such as during a heart attack.

    However, the heart’s function was not always understood. The ancient Greeks believed it was the seat of intelligence, while Aristotle dismissed the brain as a mere “cooling fluid” for the heart’s divine fire.

    Galen, a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher who lived during Roman times, described the heart as the body’s furnace, while William Harvey’s 1628 discovery of circulation reshaped our understanding of this important organ. Even so, its symbolic and mystical significance never fully waned.

    The seat of the soul

    The ancient Egyptians preserved the heart during mummification, believing it would be weighed by Anubis against the Feather of Truth, the divine measure of justice. Ironically, the brain was discarded as totally useless. An excerpt from the Book of the Dead, an ancient Egyptian funerary text, reads:

    O my heart which I had from my mother! which I had from my mother! O my heart of my different ages! Don’t stand up as a witness against me. Do not be opposed to me in the tribunal.

    This spell is intended to pacify the heart and assert dominion, ensuring it remains loyal when weighed.

    The idea that the heart carried more than just blood persisted into the Renaissance, with scholars debating whether it was the true locus of identity.

    “If indeed from the heart alone rise anger or passion, fear, terror, and sadness; if from it alone spring shame, delight, and joy, why should I say more?” Andreas de Laguna, a Spanish physician wrote in 1535.

    Even today, heart transplants fuel questions about whether a transplanted heart carries something of its donor. Some recipients report changes in personality, memories or food preferences, raising speculation about cellular memory. While no definitive scientific basis exists, such cases continue to intrigue.

    Heart of darkness

    The heart’s power was not only revered, but feared. In folk magic and necromancy, people believed that the hearts of executed criminals retained energy from their violent deaths. Some thought consuming, burning or preserving a heart could grant knowledge or strength.

    In Scotland and England, people reportedly boiled the hearts of murderers to prevent their ghosts from haunting the living. Dried hearts were sometimes ground into powders for potions, while in occult traditions, they were burned in rituals to banish spirits or bind enemies.

    More disturbing are accounts of unbaptised infants’ hearts in witchcraft traditions. Some sources claim they were used in hexes, flying ointments or dark pacts. While probably exaggerated during witch trials, such stories reflect a deep-rooted belief in the heart as a conduit of power.

    The heart has been a vessel of the soul, a source of magic and a point of conflict between science and superstition. While modern medicine has demystified much of its function, its symbolism remains deeply ingrained in human culture.

    This Valentine’s Day, as we exchange stylised hearts in celebration of love, we might pause to remember that the power of the heart has been a symbol of life, death and everything in between for millennia.

    Michelle Spear does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. The heart is symbol of love – things weren’t always like that – https://theconversation.com/the-heart-is-symbol-of-love-things-werent-always-like-that-249211

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Eight of the most romantic poems to read to your love this Valentine’s Day

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ellen Howley, Assistant Professor in the School of English, DCU, Dublin City University

    Grinbox/Shutterstock

    For many of us, the run-up to Valentine’s Day is spent seeking out the least cringe-worthy card in the shop to gift to our significant other, and show them how we really feel. But, unfortunately, Hallmark rhymes rarely mine the depths of love and desire.

    So, if you’re looking for the perfect words for your loved one this year, why not share one of these poems, which attempt to express the wonder and complexities of romantic love.

    1. Sonnet 106 by William Shakespeare (1609)

    Portrait of William Shakespeare by John Taylor (1611).
    National Portrait Gallery

    If you make a list of love poems, you’re obliged to include a Shakespearean sonnet, so I’ll start with a lesser known one, Sonnet 106.

    In the poem, the bard compares the beauty of his lover to ancient poems that described beautiful knights and ladies. He declares that these older writers must have been prophets to know his lover’s true beauty. In fact, his lover is even more beautiful than these descriptions because the poets “had not skill enough your worth to sing”.

    Here, Shakespeare addresses a problem that has plagued love poets throughout the ages: how to write of the love and beauty they feel and see when words may never match up.

    Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

    2. From the Irish by Ian Duhig (1997)

    British-Irish poet, Ian Duhig confronts the same problem as Shakespeare in From the Irish. It is a poem that thinks as much about language as it does about love, but resolves in a sincere but frustrated attempt to tell his lover how he feels.

    In trying to be precise in his use of language, he ends up telling his lover that their face “is like a slice of half-boiled turnip”.

    This attempt to compare his lover’s face to the moon is not an insult, but instead part of his serious attempt to, as he says, “love you properly, according to Dinneen”.

    3. Heart to Heart by Rita Dove (2004)

    Rita Dove’s Heart to Heart likewise contemplates the relationship between love and language. In the poem, Dove, the former US poet laureate dismisses the clichéd ways in which we talk about the heart:

    It doesn’t melt

    or turn over,

    break or harden.

    The poet cannot tell her lover from “the bottom of it / how I feel” but gives it to them all the same.

    Rita Dove reads her poem Heart to Heart.

    4. He Seemed to Me Equal to the Gods by Sappho (translated by Anne Carson in 2002)

    Closely aligned to the theme of romantic love is that of desire, and across the centuries poets have written about the torture of yearning. The Greek poet Sappho knew this even 2,600 years ago. Women are the objects of desire in her erotic poetry.

    Sappho by Enrique Simonet (1864).
    Wiki Commons

    This poem, translated by the Canadian poet, Anne Carson, finds the poet watching her lover, which, says Sappho, “puts the heart in my chest on wings” but also renders her speechless. She describes the intensity and agony of desire:

    fire is racing under skin

    and in eyes no sight and drumming

    fills ears.

    These lines are a surviving fragment of a larger, lost poem, so what the poet might have “dared” at the end remains a mystery.

    5. His Mistress Going to Bed by John Donne (circa 1590)

    John Donne by Isaac Oliver (1622).
    National Portrait Gallery

    Perhaps more daring is John Donne’s His Mistress Going to Bed. Donne, an English poet who began writing in the 16th century, is considered one of the great love poets.

    His Mistress Going to Bed is his attempt at seduction, undressing his lover across the poem’s lines: “Now off with those shoes, and then safely tread / In this love’s hallow’d temple, this soft bed.” The sexual act is seen as one of union: “As souls unbodied, bodies uncloth’d must be, / To taste whole joys.”

    So prepared is the poet, we discover by the poem’s end, that he is already naked and ready to go to bed with his love.

    6. Poem II by Adrienne Rich (1978)

    As partnerships evolve, the initial intensity of sexual passion morphs into a more everyday, although no less exciting kind of love.

    Poem II from Adrienne Rich’s sequence Twenty-One Love Poems describes the poet waking in her lover’s bed following a dream. She tenderly writes: “You’ve kissed my hair / to wake me.”

    Adrienne Rich (right) with Audre Lorde (left) and Meridel Lesueur in 1980.
    K. Kendall/flickr, CC BY

    The poem is a warm and intimate portrait of the love between two women, with Rich declaring:

    I laugh and fall dreaming again

    or the desire to show you to everyone I love,

    to move openly together.

    In this, the poet acknowledges the ease and depth of her love but also makes subtle reference to the lack of acceptance of homosexual relationships in the 1970s, when the poems were first published.

    7. An Amish Rug by Michael Longley (1991)

    Michael Longley, the Irish poet who passed away in January, presents a similarly private scene of an established relationship in his poem, An Amish Rug.

    Describing the handmade rug he gifts to his wife, the poet contrasts the simplicity of the Amish lifestyle with its vivid woven colours.

    If hung on the wall, the rug will become a stained-glass “cathedral window”. Or, it may be placed on the floor so that “whenever we undress for sleep or love / We shall step over it as over a flowerbed”.

    There’s a Valentine’s gift to live up to.

    8. The Orange by Wendy Cope (1992)

    Wendy Cope’s The Orange almost unexpectedly turn into a love poem, as the poet describes the increasing “peace and contentment” that comes from sharing a “huge orange” with her colleagues. This, she says, “made me so happy, / As ordinary things often do”.

    The Orange by Wendy Cope.

    Its description of a lovely but ordinary day ends with the affirming line “I love you. I’m glad I exist,” revealing that profound reflections can come from small moments.

    Ellen Howley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Eight of the most romantic poems to read to your love this Valentine’s Day – https://theconversation.com/eight-of-the-most-romantic-poems-to-read-to-your-love-this-valentines-day-248479

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: What to do if your partner wants to speak to your baby in a language you don’t understand

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Una Cunningham, Professor emerita, Department of Teaching and Learning, Stockholm University

    Mladen Zivkovic/Shutterstock

    Finding out you and your partner are expecting a baby throws many discussions that might have once been hypothetical into stark relief. This certainly may be the case if your partner speaks another language beyond the one spoken where you live and that the two of you communicate in.

    “I’d like to bring the baby up to speak my language”, they say, and suddenly what seemed a wonderful idea – a bilingual child – might throw up panicked visions of being left out of private jokes and conversations at the dinner table. But growing up with two or more languages can be hugely beneficial for children, and there’s plenty you can do to help out and get involved.

    When children acquire a minority language – a language other than the dominant language or languages in the place they live – spoken by one or both parents, they have the key to that culture. It offers the possibility of a deep relationship with extended family and others they might otherwise not be able to talk to at all. You really want to do everything in your power to support your partner and your child in this venture.

    Learning something of your partner’s language will effectively solve your problem. You may be able to join a class to learn the language or even just use a language app such as Duolingo to get a head start on vocabulary and basic phrases. This becomes more challenging if the language in question is not a standard variety or is a language not spoken by many people.

    If a parent is proficient in a lower-status and higher-status variety of a language – such as Cypriot Greek and standard Greek, or colloquial Singapore English and standard English – it may be tempting to want the child to learn the high-status variety. But the lower-status variety might be the one that the child will need to be able to visit family and feel like an insider. The higher-status variety can be added later if and when your child needs or wants it.

    Even if you’re learning a non-standard language, and it takes time to achieve proficiency, you can learn a lot of useful language along with your baby. You just need to understand the gist of a conversation to be able to join in in your own language, and honestly, most conversations with a baby are not difficult to follow.

    Even minimal effort towards learning to understand the language is worthwhile for the goodwill it encompasses. Just accepting that your partner will use another language with your child is really enough.

    Family language policy

    If your partner is speaking their language most of the time with your child, you don’t need to aspire to do that. Your job is to speak the other language.

    Together you, your partner and your child will develop a family language policy about who speaks which language to whom. A popular approach is one-person-one-language: you speak your language to your child, your partner speaks theirs to them, and as parents you communicate in any available language, usually what you spoke together before you became parents.

    This leads to dinner-table conversations with two or more languages, but children manage this easily. A major advantage of each parent mostly sticking to one language is that it is easier to get into the habit of using the languages, particularly a minority language that might not have had a place in your life as a couple before your baby was born.

    The family linguistic repertoire can be said to be partially shared, with your child as the winner of the jackpot, developing skills in at least a couple of the languages spoken by their parents.

    Learning the language spoken by extended family will help children build a relationship with them.
    Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock

    Welcoming your partner’s language into your home means that you are preparing the ground for them and their extended family to support your child’s language development.

    Grandparents are a powerful resource, especially if they have limited proficiency in the majority language – the language most commonly spoken where you live. They are often very motivated to help your child develop proficiency in their language so that they can have a relationship with them.

    Your partner will face challenges, particularly as the child gets older and has more opportunity to hear and use the majority language with other children. It is likely that the child will at some point answer your partner in the majority language. Help them both to persevere with using the minority language.

    Encourage your partner and child to make trips without you to environments where the minority language is spoken. You can help your partner create a linguistic landscape in your home: put up alphabet posters, and get books and children’s TV shows and films in their language.

    Don’t worry about the majority language – your child has you and the surrounding community to support their majority language development. There is zero risk that your child will end up monolingual in the minority language if they have the opportunity to use the majority language with you and outside the home. Together, you and your partner can give your baby the gift of bilingualism.

    Una Cunningham does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. What to do if your partner wants to speak to your baby in a language you don’t understand – https://theconversation.com/what-to-do-if-your-partner-wants-to-speak-to-your-baby-in-a-language-you-dont-understand-248588

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Lake Victoria is turning green – the deadly bacteria behind it

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Lauren Hart, PhD candidate, Michigan Geomicrobiology Lab, University of Michigan

    Lakes, natural and man-made, provide water, food and habitats for wildlife, as well as supporting local economies. Around the world, though, there’s a growing threat to lakes: toxic bacteria which turn the water green.

    This is the same green as you see on stagnant ponds. It’s caused by tiny organisms called cyanobacteria and can be deadly.

    Cyanobacteria thrive in warm, sunny lakes and ponds that contain excess nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients derived from fertiliser, manure and sewage. When conditions are right, cyanobacteria multiply rapidly and form smelly green scums on the water’s surface.

    Known to science as cyanoHABs (cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms), the scums are harmful to livestock, wildlife, pets, people and aquatic organisms like fish. Toxins make untreated water unsafe to drink, swim in, or even touch. Sometimes they can become suspended in air and be inhaled. The cyanoHABs also harm ecosystems by depleting oxygen, killing off whatever lives in the water, and disrupting food webs and fisheries.

    CyanoHABs are a global threat and receive considerable scientific attention in North America and Europe. Blooms are becoming more widespread worldwide because rising temperatures promote cyanobacterial growth and more intense rainfall delivers nutrients from the landscape. Only effective management of nutrients can reverse this trend.

    The problem is understudied in Africa’s main lakes, including its largest – Lake Victoria. Past research on cyanoHABs has mostly used microscopy to study the kinds found there, but microscopy cannot differentiate between toxic and non-toxic cyanobacterial cells.

    We are on a large project team of scientists who have been studying the socioeconomic and environmental effects of cyanoHABs in the Winam Gulf region of Lake Victoria in south-western Kenya.

    Our latest study identified which cyanobacteria were the most abundant in the gulf and which ones were producing the main toxin of concern.

    These findings can improve public safety:

    • local authorities can monitor for specific cyanobacteria and warn residents to stay away when blooms are present

    • cyanoHAB prevention practices (nutrient reduction, land-use practices) can target the cyanobacteria that cause the problem.

    Greening of lakes

    Lake Victoria now receives large influxes of nutrients because of growing lakeside populations and land-use changes. Nutrients from agriculture, industry and urbanisation fuel the growth of cyanoHABs.

    CyanoHABs occur in many basins in Lake Victoria but are highly concentrated in Kenya’s shallow Winam/Nyanza Gulf. Changing nutrient and temperature conditions can also alter which types of cyanobacteria dominate the gulf and the types and levels of toxins in the water. Lakeside communities that rely on the gulf for drinking water and domestic tasks are at risk of exposure to cyanoHAB toxins.

    CyanoHAB in the Winam Gulf. Photo by George Bullerjahn (BGSU)

    Past research on cyanoHABs has mostly used the oldest of microbiological techniques — microscopy — to classify the types of cyanobacteria in the gulf. This cannot differentiate between toxic and non-toxic cyanobacterial cells.

    Modern genome sequencing technologies can identify genes encoding the production of known and novel toxins and other molecules of interest, such as those with medicinal properties. Genomic data from African Great Lakes is scarce, so the chemical capabilities of bacteria in this region are largely unexplored. But this is beginning to change.

    Our latest study adds to a growing number of recent studies our team has carried out in and around Lake Victoria. In this study, our research vessel stopped at over 31 sites to collect scientific samples and data. The samples were later analysed for DNA, the biological “instruction manual” inside every living thing. DNA tells an organism how to grow, function, reproduce, and – in the case of cyanobacteria – make deadly toxins. This analysis produced near-complete genome sequences – that is, the set of all genes in the DNA – for organisms at each sampling site.

    Past reports identified Microcystis as the dominant cyanobacteria in the Winam Gulf. Our research, however, found Dolichospermum was the most abundant type in major cyanoHAB events there. This finding might be due to recent environmental changes in the region.

    But we linked Microcystis to microcystin. This is a liver-damaging toxin that can kill livestock, wildlife and humans, especially those whose immune system isn’t working well. In Winam Gulf, it’s often more abundant than the health limits set by the WHO.

    Our study also found that Microcystis occurs mainly in murkier river mouths where green scums are not visible, making scientific monitoring and public alerts even more important.

    Local authorities can now monitor for these cyanobacteria and warn residents to stay away when blooms are present.

    The findings also mean that authorities know which cyanobacteria to target in prevention efforts like reducing the amount of phosphorus and other nutrients entering the gulf.

    Lastly, our genomic study uncovered over 300 uncharacterised genes that may produce novel cyanobacterial molecules. These molecules could have toxic or therapeutic effects, and provide an opportunity for future investigators to explore.

    A model for what is to come

    Rapid human population growth and settlement around lakes and their watersheds is leading to high levels nutrients in lakes around the world. This results in excessive growth of algae and aquatic plants. This danger is likely to increase with global warming because warm temperatures promote algal blooms.

    Our data provides a foundation for remedying this in Lake Victoria – and possibly discovering beneficial properties in cyanoHABs.

    – Lake Victoria is turning green – the deadly bacteria behind it
    – https://theconversation.com/lake-victoria-is-turning-green-the-deadly-bacteria-behind-it-249298

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Sam Kerr verdict: what it means for law in the UK and the star athlete’s soccer career

    Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Megan McElhone, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Monash University

    A London court has found Sam Kerr not guilty of the racially aggravated harassment of Metropolitan Police officer Stephen Lovell.

    As captain of the Australian women’s national soccer team, Kerr was widely condemned when news broke she had used a “racial slur” against an officer during an altercation.

    The high-profile incident sparked debate across the globe.

    Initially, former Australian soccer player Craig Foster criticised Kerr’s behaviour before retracting it and publicly apologising to her.

    Meanwhile, politicians and academics argued her comments did not amount to racism given the power dynamics at play: not only is Kerr of Indian descent, but official inquiries have found the Metropolitan Police to be institutionally racist.

    Historically, police have played a role in sustaining colonialism, racism and white supremacy. Calling Kerr’s words racist overlooks that they don’t accord with an entrenched, global system of power.

    What happened that night?

    Kerr has maintained she and her partner – United States’ women’s national team player Kristie Mewis – believed they were being kidnapped by a cab driver.

    He refused to let them out of the cab after Kerr vomited, taking them to Twickenham police station instead of their destination.

    There, Mewis broke the cab window in an attempt to get out of the vehicle.

    At the station, Kerr reportedly appealed to officers to “understand the emergency that both of us felt”, referencing the 2021 abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a Metropolitan Police officer.

    The commissioned inquiry into Everard’s murder characterised the Metropolitan Police as institutionally racist, misogynistic and homophobic.

    However, Kerr soon faced an allegation of racism after becoming distressed and antagonistic towards the officers.

    Believing they were siding with the cab driver after forming negative preconceptions because of her skin colour, she repeated “you guys are stupid and white, you guys are fucking stupid and white”.

    What are the legal ramifications in the UK?

    Kerr pleaded not guilty to the offence of intentionally causing harassment, alarm, or distress to another by using threatening, abusive, or insulting words under Section 4A of the Public Order Act 1986, and to the racial aggravation of the offence per the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.

    She faced a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment and an unlimited fine.

    Kerr accepted she used the words “fucking stupid and white”. But it still had to be proven she intended and caused harassment, alarm, or distress to Lovell and that the offence was racially motivated.

    Initially, the Crown Prosecution Service concluded there was not enough evidence to charge Kerr.

    But after receiving a request from the Metropolitan Police to review the case, and a new statement from Lovell about Kerr’s words making him feel “belittled” and “upset”, they authorised police to charge the athlete.

    A jury found her not guilty after a seven-day trial.

    Broadly speaking, public order offences criminalise words and behaviour that might breach the peace. Police have significant discretion to use these offences as tools to regulate people’s uses of public space.

    In Australia and the UK, police have been shown to use these powers in discriminatory ways.

    Kerr has conceded her behaviour was regrettable but the charge against her is difficult to align with the purpose of public order legislation.

    What does it mean for Kerr’s soccer career?

    It is unclear what this verdict means for Kerr’s career.

    Her English club, Chelsea, is anticipating she will return from a long-term knee injury soon.

    It is possible the club was kept in the loop about Kerr’s altercation with police from the beginning, as she reportedly threatened to involve its lawyers in the body-cam footage shown at trial.

    The club is yet to make a statement about the trial or verdict.

    Football Australia is in a different position though, having been blindsided by the news Kerr had been charged by police.

    The fact Kerr is the captain of the Matildas, and the sport’s highest-profile marketing asset, adds layers of complexity to Football Australia’s decision-making.

    CEO of Football Australia James Johnson declined to weigh in on Kerr’s captaincy until her trial concluded.

    It is possible the governing body will impose a sanction, with Kerr falling afoul of clause 2.14 of their national code of conduct and ethics after being charged with a criminal offence.

    Kerr could return to the pitch later this month, but has been left out of the Matildas squad for the SheBelieves Cup in the US because of her fitness.

    With the AFC Women’s Asian Cup on the horizon, interim Matildas head coach Tom Sermanni no doubt hopes her recovery stays on track.

    Meanwhile, Kerr is yet to play under Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor. She could prove crucial as the club chases an elusive UEFA Women’s Champions League title, but faces competition for her spot.

    Megan McElhone does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Sam Kerr verdict: what it means for law in the UK and the star athlete’s soccer career – https://theconversation.com/sam-kerr-verdict-what-it-means-for-law-in-the-uk-and-the-star-athletes-soccer-career-249153

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Hate speech on X surged for at least 8 months after Elon Musk takeover – new research

    Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Michael Jensen, Associate professor, Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis, University of Canberra, University of Canberra

    Kemarrravv13/Shutterstock

    Hate speech on X was consistently 50% higher for at least eight months after tech billionaire Elon Musk bought the social media platform, new research has found.

    The research looked at the prevalence of overt hate speech including a wide range of racist, homophobic and transphobic slurs.

    The study, published today in PLOS ONE, was conducted by a team of researchers led by Daniel Hickney from the University of California, Berkeley.

    It clearly demonstrates how a platform initially invented to help friends and family stay in touch has now metamorphosed into a place where hate speech is prolific. This is especially concerning given hate speech online has been linked to violent hate crimes offline.

    A long list of promises

    On October 27 2022, Musk officially purchased X (then known as Twitter) for US$44 billion and became its CEO. His takeover was accompanied by promises to reduce hate speech on the platform and tackle bots and other inauthentic accounts.

    But after he bought X, Musk made several changes to the platform to reduce content moderation. For example, in November 2022 he fired much of the company’s full time workforce. He also fired outsourced content moderators who tracked abuse on X, despite research showing social medial platforms with high levels of content moderation contain less hate speech.

    The following month, Musk also disbanded the platform’s Trust and Safety Council – a volunteer advisory group of independent human rights leaders and academics formed in 2016 to fight hate speech and other problems on the platform.

    Previous research has shown hate speech increased on X immediately after Musk took over. So too did the prevalence of most types of bots.

    This new study is the first to show that this wasn’t an anomaly.

    Hate speech including homophobic, racist and transphobic slurs was significantly higher on X after Elon Musk bought the platform. The black lines represent standard errors.
    Hickey et al., 2025 / PLOS One

    More than 4 million posts

    The study examined 4.7 million English language posts on X from the beginning of 2022 through to June 9 2023. This period includes the ten months before Musk bought X and the eight months afterwards.

    The study measured overt hate speech, the meaning of which was clear to anyone who saw it – speech attacking identity groups or using toxic language. It did not measure covert types of hate speech, such as coded language used by some extremist groups to spread hate but plausibly deny doing so.

    As well as measuring the amount of hate speech on X, the study also measured how much other users engaged with this material by liking it.

    The researchers’ access to X data was cut off during the study due to a policy change by the platform, replacing free access to approved academic researchers with payment options which are generally unaffordable. This significantly hampered their ability to collect sample posts. But they don’t mention whether it affected their results.

    A clear increase in hate

    The study found “a clear increase” in the average number of posts containing hate speech following Musk’s purchase of X. Specifically, the volume of posts containing hate speech was “consistently” 50% higher after Musk took over X compared to beforehand – a jump from an estimated average of 2,179 to 3,246 posts containing hate speech per week.

    Transphobic slurs saw the highest increase, rising from an average of roughly 115 posts per week before Musk’s acquisition to an average of 418 afterwards.

    The level of user engagement with posts containing hate speech also increased under Musk’s watch. For example, the weekly rate at which hate speech content was liked by users jumped by 70%.

    The researchers say these results suggest either hate speech wasn’t taken down, hateful users became more active, the platform’s algorithm unintentionally promoted hate speech to users who like such content – or a combination of these possibilities.

    The study also detected no decrease in the activity of inauthentic accounts on X. In fact, it found a “potential increase” in the number of bot accounts partly based on a large upswing in posts promoting cryptocurrency, which are typically associated with bots.

    An important data-driving deep dive

    There were a number of limitations to the study. For example, it only measured hate speech posts in English, which accounts for only 31% of posts on the platform.

    Even so, the study is an important, data-driven deep dive into the state of X. It shows it is a platform where hate speech is prolific. It also shows Musk has failed to fulfil his earlier promises to address problems on X such as hate speech and bot activity.

    As Musk himself said at the White House earlier this week: “Some of the things I say will be incorrect and should be corrected”.

    Michael Jensen receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Bayer, and the Australian Department of Defence Science and Technology Group.

    – ref. Hate speech on X surged for at least 8 months after Elon Musk takeover – new research – https://theconversation.com/hate-speech-on-x-surged-for-at-least-8-months-after-elon-musk-takeover-new-research-249603

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Lake Victoria is turning green – the deadly bacteria behind it

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Lauren Hart, PhD candidate, Michigan Geomicrobiology Lab, University of Michigan

    Lakes, natural and man-made, provide water, food and habitats for wildlife, as well as supporting local economies. Around the world, though, there’s a growing threat to lakes: toxic bacteria which turn the water green.

    This is the same green as you see on stagnant ponds. It’s caused by tiny organisms called cyanobacteria and can be deadly.

    Cyanobacteria thrive in warm, sunny lakes and ponds that contain excess nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients derived from fertiliser, manure and sewage. When conditions are right, cyanobacteria multiply rapidly and form smelly green scums on the water’s surface.

    Known to science as cyanoHABs (cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms), the scums are harmful to livestock, wildlife, pets, people and aquatic organisms like fish. Toxins make untreated water unsafe to drink, swim in, or even touch. Sometimes they can become suspended in air and be inhaled. The cyanoHABs also harm ecosystems by depleting oxygen, killing off whatever lives in the water, and disrupting food webs and fisheries.

    CyanoHABs are a global threat and receive considerable scientific attention in North America and Europe. Blooms are becoming more widespread worldwide because rising temperatures promote cyanobacterial growth and more intense rainfall delivers nutrients from the landscape. Only effective management of nutrients can reverse this trend.

    The problem is understudied in Africa’s main lakes, including its largest – Lake Victoria. Past research on cyanoHABs has mostly used microscopy to study the kinds found there, but microscopy cannot differentiate between toxic and non-toxic cyanobacterial cells.

    We are on a large project team of scientists who have been studying the socioeconomic and environmental effects of cyanoHABs in the Winam Gulf region of Lake Victoria in south-western Kenya.

    Our latest study identified which cyanobacteria were the most abundant in the gulf and which ones were producing the main toxin of concern.

    These findings can improve public safety:

    • local authorities can monitor for specific cyanobacteria and warn residents to stay away when blooms are present

    • cyanoHAB prevention practices (nutrient reduction, land-use practices) can target the cyanobacteria that cause the problem.

    Greening of lakes

    Lake Victoria now receives large influxes of nutrients because of growing lakeside populations and land-use changes. Nutrients from agriculture, industry and urbanisation fuel the growth of cyanoHABs.

    CyanoHABs occur in many basins in Lake Victoria but are highly concentrated in Kenya’s shallow Winam/Nyanza Gulf. Changing nutrient and temperature conditions can also alter which types of cyanobacteria dominate the gulf and the types and levels of toxins in the water. Lakeside communities that rely on the gulf for drinking water and domestic tasks are at risk of exposure to cyanoHAB toxins.

    Past research on cyanoHABs has mostly used the oldest of microbiological techniques — microscopy — to classify the types of cyanobacteria in the gulf. This cannot differentiate between toxic and non-toxic cyanobacterial cells.

    Modern genome sequencing technologies can identify genes encoding the production of known and novel toxins and other molecules of interest, such as those with medicinal properties. Genomic data from African Great Lakes is scarce, so the chemical capabilities of bacteria in this region are largely unexplored. But this is beginning to change.

    Our latest study adds to a growing number of recent studies our team has carried out in and around Lake Victoria. In this study, our research vessel stopped at over 31 sites to collect scientific samples and data. The samples were later analysed for DNA, the biological “instruction manual” inside every living thing. DNA tells an organism how to grow, function, reproduce, and – in the case of cyanobacteria – make deadly toxins. This analysis produced near-complete genome sequences – that is, the set of all genes in the DNA – for organisms at each sampling site.

    Past reports identified Microcystis as the dominant cyanobacteria in the Winam Gulf. Our research, however, found Dolichospermum was the most abundant type in major cyanoHAB events there. This finding might be due to recent environmental changes in the region.

    But we linked Microcystis to microcystin. This is a liver-damaging toxin that can kill livestock, wildlife and humans, especially those whose immune system isn’t working well. In Winam Gulf, it’s often more abundant than the health limits set by the WHO.

    Our study also found that Microcystis occurs mainly in murkier river mouths where green scums are not visible, making scientific monitoring and public alerts even more important.

    Local authorities can now monitor for these cyanobacteria and warn residents to stay away when blooms are present.

    The findings also mean that authorities know which cyanobacteria to target in prevention efforts like reducing the amount of phosphorus and other nutrients entering the gulf.

    Lastly, our genomic study uncovered over 300 uncharacterised genes that may produce novel cyanobacterial molecules. These molecules could have toxic or therapeutic effects, and provide an opportunity for future investigators to explore.

    A model for what is to come

    Rapid human population growth and settlement around lakes and their watersheds is leading to high levels nutrients in lakes around the world. This results in excessive growth of algae and aquatic plants. This danger is likely to increase with global warming because warm temperatures promote algal blooms.

    Our data provides a foundation for remedying this in Lake Victoria – and possibly discovering beneficial properties in cyanoHABs.

    Lauren Hart receives funding from National Institute of Health.

    George S Bullerjahn receives funding from the National Science Foundation.

    Gregory J. Dick receives funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Institutes for Health, and the US Geological Survey.

    Kefa M. Otiso receives funding from the US National Science Foundation.

    – ref. Lake Victoria is turning green – the deadly bacteria behind it – https://theconversation.com/lake-victoria-is-turning-green-the-deadly-bacteria-behind-it-249298

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Michael Mosoeu Moerane was a pioneering composer in South Africa. A new book is restoring his place in history

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Gwen Ansell, Associate of the Gordon Institute for Business Science, University of Pretoria

    Composer and educator Michael Mosoeu Moerane (1904-1980) is probably best known for a few evergreen choral works, including Della and Sylvia, still sung by choirs across South Africa today.

    And, of course, for his orchestral piece FatŠe laHeso (My Country). It had the distinction of being recorded by both the British and South African public broadcasters in an era when white minority rule denied even the existence of Black classical musicians.

    Moerane teaches his son to play piano. Wits University Press

    Apartheid held the identity of Black people in South Africa to be unchangeingly simple, rural and tribal. Sophisticated activities such as orchestral composing were both beyond their capacity and dangerously subversive.

    But, as South African author and music scholar Christine Lucia’s biography of Moerane, The Times Do Not Permit, reveals, there was more to Moerane’s work than those few compositions. And a far more nuanced relationship with his oppressive political times. Moerane was vocal against the system, yet secured white university supervision. He was consulted by white ethnomusicologists. Yet still he was stereotyped and confined by apartheid rules.

    I am a researcher into South African jazz and other genres and a teacher of writing. (Jazz, incidentally, was a genre that Moerane detested.) From my own work, I recognise many similarities between his story and the lives of jazz musicians I have studied: genteel homes with a piano in the parlour; after-dinner family music hours; the risk of instant dismissal for schoolteachers heard discussing anti-apartheid politics.

    I recognise, too, the gaps in his music story that Lucia finds: the questions that scholars did not ask while more people were still alive to answer them.

    Read more: Mzilikazi Khumalo: a stellar Zulu, African, Pan African and cosmopolitan composer

    Her book matters because, at last, it asks and answers those questions. In how it assembles the answers, it helps us to start mapping the undiscovered continent of Black classical music under apartheid.

    The book’s nearly 300 pages offer a detailed account of Moerane’s life, based on research and conversations with family and still-living contemporaries.

    Lucia takes us through Moerane’s various roles in turn (student, teacher, choralist and more). It also analyses his compositions and their treatment of themes that range from spirituality and tradition to love and loss.

    A reader can view Moerane’s life though these different lenses; together they add up to an intricate, multidimensional portrait.

    Who was Michael Moerane?

    Born in the Eastern Cape province and educated there and in neighbouring Basutoland (today Lesotho), Moerane stitched a music-teaching career together that moved between the two countries.

    The Peka High School Orchestra and Moerane (front centre) in 1965. Courtesy Sophia Metsekae Moerane/Marumo Moerane

    His own radical Africanist politics, the activism of family members, his marriage across apartheid-defined ethnic barriers (he was Sotho, his wife Xhosa) and the simple fact of being a Black composer exploring unconventional, modernist music meant he was often in the sights of repressive authorities in both countries. Lowering his profile every now and then (a new school, a more obscure place to live) was his best protection.

    There’s real fear in some of his letters that all these moves would mean his written compositions would be lost or scattered. Yet remarkably, through all this, he managed to hold a family together, establish music ensembles and a reputation, and graduate with a music degree from the University of South Africa in 1941, a time when it was almost unknown for Black South Africans to receive a university education outside segregated black colleges. He was supported, through a unique arrangement, by supervision from the all-white Rhodes University College in his home province.

    His external examiner, William Henry Bell, said of FatŠe laHeso (Moerane’s examination piece) that he “never had expected such a work to be written in South Africa and less so by a Native”.

    Moerane’s A General Note on Modern Music, in his own handwriting. Courtesy Neo Mahase Moerane

    Lucia’s account of how Moerane got there, and of the many compositions and long music teaching career that followed, is made even clearer through a rich variety of material. There are geographical, historical and musical road-maps, extracts from his manuscripts, evocative photographs of people and places, and probably the most complete catalogue of Moerane’s works to date.

    The catalogue was put together from both archive records and fragments of sheet music surviving in the family piano-stool, where they were stored. It’s a poignant reminder of how much Black South African history is no longer available because of how apartheid repeatedly uprooted people and communities, with little chance to save family memorabilia.

    White minority rule didn’t only restrict where Black South Africans could live and work but even how they could learn music. Tuition for Black music students was limited to writing in tonic sol-fa (doh-re-mi) notation. Excluded from the notation used in classical music, composers and performers who would have occupied concert stages were limited to community choirs and brass bands. That was part of Moerane’s story too.

    Moerane’s Sylvia is still performed by choirs today.

    His life matters because of all this.

    A masterful book

    The book traces the defiant survival and originality of this important figure and restores him in the country’s history. It adds detail and clarification to what was already known. It corrects confusions about dates and place names. If that were all the book had done, it would already have been a worthwhile contribution.

    But Lucia’s way of telling the story adds significantly more. It brings Moerane alive through the texture of human voices and human detail, creating a read that is academic but far from dry. We hear, for example, his children recalling how strict he was during daily piano practice: “You would scramble to get a slot when my father wasn’t at home.”

    The African Springtime Orchestra, 1952. Moerane stands at the back, his wife Betty seated. Courtesy Sophia Metsekae Moerane/Marumo Moerane/Jonathan Ball Publishers

    But more: South African music under apartheid is often shown as the “soundtrack” to history. Or often the history is seen as mere “background” to the music. But Moerane’s music was not a soundtrack to history: it was part of history. His times were not a background to his music, they were an ingredient. Not so much because of the work but because of who he chose to be – and who he could not be.

    The title, The Times Do Not Permit, is taken from a 1966 letter written by Moerane to music academic Percival Kirby, in polite response to a request for detailed information about his life:

    Please be satisfied with the bare statement that the times do not permit.

    That may seem cryptic to anybody who has not felt the iron heel of state repression. For those who have, it’s obvious: the more the authorities know about you, the more power they have over you.

    Read more: An African violin? New study tests which indigenous woods could make one

    So Lucia’s book allows us to enter a world that is distant from today’s experience and rejoice that such a full life was led and that now we know about it. But it also forces us to mourn the opportunities lost for him – and by earlier scholars looking into his life. How many other Black South African musicians have had their lives and legacies obscured like Michael Mosoeu Moerane’s was?

    – Michael Mosoeu Moerane was a pioneering composer in South Africa. A new book is restoring his place in history
    – https://theconversation.com/michael-mosoeu-moerane-was-a-pioneering-composer-in-south-africa-a-new-book-is-restoring-his-place-in-history-248948

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Michael Mosoeu Moerane was a pioneering composer in South Africa. A new book is restoring his place in history

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Gwen Ansell, Associate of the Gordon Institute for Business Science, University of Pretoria

    Composer and educator Michael Mosoeu Moerane (1904-1980) is probably best known for a few evergreen choral works, including Della and Sylvia, still sung by choirs across South Africa today.

    And, of course, for his orchestral piece FatŠe laHeso (My Country). It had the distinction of being recorded by both the British and South African public broadcasters in an era when white minority rule denied even the existence of Black classical musicians.

    Apartheid held the identity of Black people in South Africa to be unchangeingly simple, rural and tribal. Sophisticated activities such as orchestral composing were both beyond their capacity and dangerously subversive.

    But, as South African author and music scholar Christine Lucia’s biography of Moerane, The Times Do Not Permit, reveals, there was more to Moerane’s work than those few compositions. And a far more nuanced relationship with his oppressive political times. Moerane was vocal against the system, yet secured white university supervision. He was consulted by white ethnomusicologists. Yet still he was stereotyped and confined by apartheid rules.

    I am a researcher into South African jazz and other genres and a teacher of writing. (Jazz, incidentally, was a genre that Moerane detested.) From my own work, I recognise many similarities between his story and the lives of jazz musicians I have studied: genteel homes with a piano in the parlour; after-dinner family music hours; the risk of instant dismissal for schoolteachers heard discussing anti-apartheid politics.

    I recognise, too, the gaps in his music story that Lucia finds: the questions that scholars did not ask while more people were still alive to answer them.



    Read more:
    Mzilikazi Khumalo: a stellar Zulu, African, Pan African and cosmopolitan composer

    Her book matters because, at last, it asks and answers those questions. In how it assembles the answers, it helps us to start mapping the undiscovered continent of Black classical music under apartheid.

    The book’s nearly 300 pages offer a detailed account of Moerane’s life, based on research and conversations with family and still-living contemporaries.

    Lucia takes us through Moerane’s various roles in turn (student, teacher, choralist and more). It also analyses his compositions and their treatment of themes that range from spirituality and tradition to love and loss.

    A reader can view Moerane’s life though these different lenses; together they add up to an intricate, multidimensional portrait.

    Who was Michael Moerane?

    Born in the Eastern Cape province and educated there and in neighbouring Basutoland (today Lesotho), Moerane stitched a music-teaching career together that moved between the two countries.

    His own radical Africanist politics, the activism of family members, his marriage across apartheid-defined ethnic barriers (he was Sotho, his wife Xhosa) and the simple fact of being a Black composer exploring unconventional, modernist music meant he was often in the sights of repressive authorities in both countries. Lowering his profile every now and then (a new school, a more obscure place to live) was his best protection.

    There’s real fear in some of his letters that all these moves would mean his written compositions would be lost or scattered. Yet remarkably, through all this, he managed to hold a family together, establish music ensembles and a reputation, and graduate with a music degree from the University of South Africa in 1941, a time when it was almost unknown for Black South Africans to receive a university education outside segregated black colleges. He was supported, through a unique arrangement, by supervision from the all-white Rhodes University College in his home province.

    His external examiner, William Henry Bell, said of FatŠe laHeso (Moerane’s examination piece) that he “never had expected such a work to be written in South Africa and less so by a Native”.

    Lucia’s account of how Moerane got there, and of the many compositions and long music teaching career that followed, is made even clearer through a rich variety of material. There are geographical, historical and musical road-maps, extracts from his manuscripts, evocative photographs of people and places, and probably the most complete catalogue of Moerane’s works to date.

    The catalogue was put together from both archive records and fragments of sheet music surviving in the family piano-stool, where they were stored. It’s a poignant reminder of how much Black South African history is no longer available because of how apartheid repeatedly uprooted people and communities, with little chance to save family memorabilia.

    White minority rule didn’t only restrict where Black South Africans could live and work but even how they could learn music. Tuition for Black music students was limited to writing in tonic sol-fa (doh-re-mi) notation. Excluded from the notation used in classical music, composers and performers who would have occupied concert stages were limited to community choirs and brass bands. That was part of Moerane’s story too.

    Moerane’s Sylvia is still performed by choirs today.

    His life matters because of all this.

    A masterful book

    The book traces the defiant survival and originality of this important figure and restores him in the country’s history. It adds detail and clarification to what was already known. It corrects confusions about dates and place names. If that were all the book had done, it would already have been a worthwhile contribution.

    But Lucia’s way of telling the story adds significantly more. It brings Moerane alive through the texture of human voices and human detail, creating a read that is academic but far from dry. We hear, for example, his children recalling how strict he was during daily piano practice: “You would scramble to get a slot when my father wasn’t at home.”

    But more: South African music under apartheid is often shown as the “soundtrack” to history. Or often the history is seen as mere “background” to the music. But Moerane’s music was not a soundtrack to history: it was part of history. His times were not a background to his music, they were an ingredient. Not so much because of the work but because of who he chose to be – and who he could not be.

    The title, The Times Do Not Permit, is taken from a 1966 letter written by Moerane to music academic Percival Kirby, in polite response to a request for detailed information about his life:

    Please be satisfied with the bare statement that the times do not permit.

    That may seem cryptic to anybody who has not felt the iron heel of state repression. For those who have, it’s obvious: the more the authorities know about you, the more power they have over you.



    Read more:
    An African violin? New study tests which indigenous woods could make one

    So Lucia’s book allows us to enter a world that is distant from today’s experience and rejoice that such a full life was led and that now we know about it. But it also forces us to mourn the opportunities lost for him – and by earlier scholars looking into his life. How many other Black South African musicians have had their lives and legacies obscured like Michael Mosoeu Moerane’s was?

    Gwen Ansell does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Michael Mosoeu Moerane was a pioneering composer in South Africa. A new book is restoring his place in history – https://theconversation.com/michael-mosoeu-moerane-was-a-pioneering-composer-in-south-africa-a-new-book-is-restoring-his-place-in-history-248948

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Can the president really kill off the penny – and should he?

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jay L. Zagorsky, Associate Professor Questrom School of Business, Boston University

    In the middle of Super Bowl LIX, President Donald Trump posted on social media that he was getting rid of the penny. Since the lowly penny in 2024 cost about 3.7 cents to make – meaning the government loses money on every coin – the announcement might seem practical at first glance. But does the president have the power to kill off the penny?

    I’m a business school professor and a longtime advocate for physical money who has written op-eds supporting the penny in The Wall Street Journal and CNN. My forthcoming book, “The Power of Cash,” explores the many advantages of using old-fashioned currency. Yet inflation has slashed the value of the penny by a third in just the past decade, and even I now admit that its time is up.

    But eliminating the penny via a social media post isn’t just legally dubious. It could cause more problems than it solves.

    The penny problem

    Critics see the penny as a shining example of government waste. Last year, the U.S. Mint lost US$85 million making pennies, according to the bureau’s annual report. It also lost about $18 million minting nickels. Now, to be clear, just because the mint didn’t make money on pennies or nickels doesn’t mean it’s losing money overall. In 2024, the mint earned a profit of about $100 million making the country’s pocket change. Still, $85 million is no small sum.

    Meanwhile, public opinion on the penny is split. Some surveys show support for it, but it has plenty of opponents. Many of my students cite carrying around “nuisance coins” like the penny as a reason for switching away from using cash.

    The good news, for those who dislike the penny, is that the coin is disappearing on its own. The U.S. Mint has made about 5 billion pennies annually throughout the 2020s — down from about 11 billion each year in the 1990s. So far in 2025, it has only made about a quarter of a million pennies.

    But is it legal?

    Setting aside people’s feelings toward the penny, the problem with the president’s order, I think, is that only Congress can change the type of coins the mint produces.

    To be fair, some defenders of the president’s order believe his actions are legal. But the U.S. Constitution’s Article 1, Section 8 – which gives Congress the power to do important things like levy taxes, pay debts and declare war – also authorizes Congress “to coin money.”

    Now the phrase “to coin money” is vague. To fix that, the United States’ second Congress passed the Coinage Act of 1792, which was signed into law by President George Washington. The act, which lays out how the mint operates and what it produces, says it must produce “Cents – each to be of the value of the one hundredth part of a dollar, and to contain eleven penny-weights of copper.”

    Congress can modify this act anytime it wants – and it has. The 1792 act also required the mint to produce “Half Cents – each to be of the value of half a cent.” These coins were eliminated in 1857 by an act of Congress. Similarly, before 1965, many U.S. coins were made out of silver. After a 1965 congressional amendment to the act passed, they were made out of a cheaper composite.

    And lawmakers have tried several times to eliminate the penny. In 1989, for example, Arizona Rep. Jim Hayes proposed the Price Rounding Act, which called for cash purchases to be rounded to the nearest nickel. It didn’t pass. More recently, in 2017, Republican Senator John McCain introduced the COINS act, which would have eliminated the minting of pennies. The bill also proposed switching the paper one-dollar bill to a metal coin. It, too, didn’t pass.

    What happens if pennies go?

    Since Congress has failed to eliminate the penny in the past, Trump is trying to do so via a direct order to the Treasury secretary. However, many of Trump’s actions are being challenged in court. For the sake of argument, let’s assume no one challenges the order to kill off production of the penny.

    A big problem remains. Even if the U.S. stopped making pennies, they’d remain legal tender and people would still need them as change. In simple terms, the supply would change, but not the demand.

    Past efforts to phase out the penny have tried to deal with this problem by requiring rounding, but Trump’s effort doesn’t do this. I think it’s entirely possible that people opposed to Trump would organize national “Demand your penny in change” days in an attempt to embarrass the president.

    The U.S. government loses less than $10 million a month minting pennies. In theory, Congress could pass legislation eliminating the penny and requiring rounding within a month or two. The cost to the government for doing things legally is low. If the penny has to go, let Congress do it the right way.

    Jay L. Zagorsky does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Can the president really kill off the penny – and should he? – https://theconversation.com/can-the-president-really-kill-off-the-penny-and-should-he-249825

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Syria’s mass graves: Accounting for the dead and disappeared is crucial for the nation to heal

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Stefan Schmitt, Project Lead for International Technical Forensic Services Global Forensic Justice Center, Florida International University

    Shortly after the fall of Bashar Assad in Syria in December 2024, reports emerged of mass graves being uncovered in liberated areas.

    Grim as such discoveries are, they should come as little surprise. The scale of the regime’s torture and killings in its detention facilities became evident years earlier, when in January 2014 a forensic photographer defected and left the country with a cache of 55,000 photos of people who had been tortured and died in detention.

    As an expert in forensic anthropology and mass casualties in conflict, I was asked to evaluate what became known as the “Caesar photographs.” What was clear to me then, and is even more so now, is that those photos represented a systematic approach to torturing, killing and disappearing massive numbers of people by the Assad regime.

    With Assad now gone, the newly formed government of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has vowed to seek justice for the crimes Syrians suffered under Assad. Doing so will be difficult, even with the civil war in Syria being one of the better monitored conflicts in recent history. Yet it is a task that is imperative for the sake of pursuing justice in a shattered country and reducing the likelihood of violence returning to Syria.

    Holding perpetrators to account

    Since Syria erupted into violence in 2011, several groups have been collecting evidence of human rights violations. These include the Syrian Justice and Accountability Center, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the Syrian Emergency Task Force and the Commission for International Justice and Accountability. Internationally, the United Nations established an International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism for Syria in 2016 to assist any investigations and prosecutions of those responsible for serious violations of international law in Syria since March 2011.

    Estimates of those killed since the start of civil conflict in 2011 range anywhere from 100,000 to over 600,000, with civilian deaths accounting for at least 160,000.

    Many of these deaths have been at the hands of the Assad regime. But different armed groups, including the al-Nusra Front and Islamic State group, have also been accused of atrocities.

    From the perspective of holding perpetrators accountable, that could complicate matters. The leader of now ruling Hayat Tahrir al-Sham is the founder of the al-Nusra Front and might not be willing to hold his group or others accountable or acknowledge the crimes of that group.

    An uncovered mass grave believed to contain the remains of civilians killed by the ousted Assad regime in Daraa, Syria.
    Bekir Kasim/Anadolu via Getty Images

    Who investigates?

    There are three dimensions of accounting for the missing following conflict. First, there is the task of identifying and repatriating the remains of those in mass graves to allow family and friends to grieve. Second, the rights of victims to know the truth about what happened to their loved ones needs to be addressed. And finally, the process needs to provide justice, accountability and reconciliation, regardless of who was responsible.

    But before this can take place, the question of who is responsible for the accounting needs to be addressed.

    Countries coming out of civil conflict have turned to different mechanisms, from truth commissions to criminal tribunals. In the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, special U.N. courts were set up to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of grievous crimes. These tribunals were created as independent judicial bodies dedicated to investigating and prosecuting those most responsible for the crimes that had been committed during conflict.

    Guatemala, which emerged from a decades-long civil war in 1996, turned to national human rights and victim organizations to take the lead in a process of “transitional justice.” This included the Commission for Historical Clarification, which through its investigation concluded that an estimated 200,000 people had been killed.

    The nongovernmental Forensic Anthropology Foundation of Guatemala, or FAFG, has since 1993 formed a fundamental part of searching, identifying and repatriating the missing. FAFG collects personal information, DNA profiles and witness statements and is responsible for protecting the rights of victims’ families in Guatemala’s judicial system.

    Its work continues to this day.

    What crimes to include

    As to the Syrian civil war, a decision over the scope of any investigation into the disappeared and dead will likewise have to be made.

    Will it include all those missing and in mass graves in areas held by al-Nusra, the Islamic State group and other armed groups, as well as those killed by Assad? The fact that groups and individuals that now form the government could have been involved in human rights violations may risk future investigations being skewed toward just the victims of Assad.

    Even if the scope was narrowed to Assad’s crimes, it’s unclear how far back one should go. Assad rule in Syria began more than 50 years ago under Assad’s father, Hafez al Assad. And killings and disappearances date back to the elder’s time in power, including the 1982 massacre in the city of Hama in which an estimated 20,000 to 40,000 were killed.

    The role of the state

    Another fact-finding question concerns the sharing of information between civil society groups and the state.

    The information gathered on the war by various NGOs so far is technically held or “owned” by such groups, not the Syrian state. This is for a good reason, as victims trust these organizations to protect information from the perpetrators, some of whom might form part of the new government.

    The International Commission on Missing Persons, an NGO with its seat in the Netherlands, gained its reputation while identifying the dead from the conflict in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s and early 2000s. It has already collected and stored testimonies from over 76,200 Syrian relatives of more than 28,000 missing persons and has identified 66 mass grave locations. Other organizations have similar testimonies.

    But to what extent will these groups share their data and analysis with a future Syrian state led by a rebel group that itself is accused of human rights violations, such as arbitrary detentions and torture?

    At some point, the state of Syria will need to be involved in the process. Legally and in practice, the state issues a citizen’s “civil identity” through things such as a birth certificate that establish a person with rights and responsibilities. In the same manner, the state issues death certificates in which the manner of death determines any judicial reactions – such as a criminal investigation in cases where the death is due to homicide.

    The state is also important in resolving issues such as inheritance and widower status.

    Identifying the remains from the mass graves is therefore not just a “technical” issue dependent on cutting-edge DNA laboratories and missing-persons databases. It is also something that any future Syrian state should work toward, and then own and take responsibility for.

    Shifting responsibility away from the state to an international body would not really help Syria develop its own accountability mechanisms or hold the government to delivering justice for the victims and their families.

    In my view, empowering victims in this transitional justice process needs to be a priority for the Syrian state. This includes the establishment of a transparent forensic and investigative effort to address the concerns of families searching for loved ones.

    It should not, I believe, be outsourced. From my experience with similar processes elsewhere, it is important that Syrians become “experts” in all aspects of this process. No doubt, the task will take time and searching for the truth about what happened, and will involve perpetrators and victims alike.

    It might well be a painful and painstaking process. But it is a necessary one if postconflict Syrian is to hold to account those who attempted to “erase” the identity of victims by disappearing them, burying them in mass graves, or leaving them under the bombed rubble of their neighborhoods.

    Stefan Schmitt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Syria’s mass graves: Accounting for the dead and disappeared is crucial for the nation to heal – https://theconversation.com/syrias-mass-graves-accounting-for-the-dead-and-disappeared-is-crucial-for-the-nation-to-heal-246400

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –