20th Century Research Articles

The Impact of the Anti-Foot-binding Movement on the Liberation of Chinese Women

This paper examines the historical practice of foot-binding in China, which explores its historical origins, its physical and psychological harm against women, early modern China’s effort to gradually abolish the practice and how it has ultimately contributed to the liberation of Chinese women. Foot binding, a practice that originated in the Northern Song Dynasty and wasn’t widely abolished until well into the 20th century, has been a source of multifaceted torment against women that have suppressed their social role and autonomy for generations. The anti-foot-binding movement, which gained momentum in the late Qing dynasty and continued into the 20th century, was a critical component of broader societal reforms aimed at modernizing China and uplist the appeal of feminist thoughts. By tracing the historical trajectory of foot-binding and the resistance against it, this paper highlights the significance of the movement in promoting women's rights and shaping modern feminist consciousness in China.

The Influence of Power Structures in Modern Central Asian Steppe States on Foreign Policy — A Case Study of the Diplomatic Activities of Kalmyk Khanate and the Junior jüz of Kazakh Khanate in the 18th Century

The social structure, division of political power, and operational mechanisms of modern Central Asian steppe states, dominated by nomadic peoples, are closely related to their foreign policy concepts and the formulation of diplomatic strategies. This paper uses a comparative case study method, focusing on Kalmyk Khanate and the Junior jüz of Kazakh Khanate in the 17th and 18th centuries. Through a comparative analysis of the power structures of these two states and their transformations, the study explores the causal relationship between the characteristics of state power structures and the formulation of foreign policy. The study finds that the internal cohesion formed by the social power structure of steppe states affects their military strength, the legitimacy of the ruler’s power, and the orientation of social demands, which represent the balance between “interest” and “independence” —important conditions for the stable operation of a nomadic society—thus exert practical influence on diplomatic concepts and policies.

Unpacking the ‘explorer’ narrative and its impacts on African palaeoanthropology

The concepts of explorer, expedition, and the combination of the two into the myth of the explorer have been integral parts of Western mentality for more than 200 years. Here we briefly outline the colonial origins of these ideas, and use this crystallised understanding of the explorer myth to consider how African palaeoanthropology in the 20th century and up to the present continues to carry many of these biased, outdated overtones – some more overtly than others. We examine how Raymond Dart and the discovery of the Taung Child were situated and storied within this explorer narrative. We also expand on how these outdated concepts persist in determining which scientific approaches and outcomes are valued and which are not, which in turn has perpetuated extractive approaches to palaeoanthropology and the marginalisation of Indigenous scientists. This is especially notable in fieldwork practices which, to this day, embody the explorer myth’s deeply problematic colonial ideals of Western, masculine moral and cultural superiority. By understanding the mindset behind the discovery and reporting of Dart’s work on the Taung Child, we can better understand why it still holds such sway in palaeoanthropology today, and propose important practical and cultural disciplinary changes that will allow us to move beyond these colonial and masculine ideas in a manner that creates a more equitable future for all scholars.

Mortality drives production dynamics of Atlantic cod through 1100 years of commercial fishing.

Most edible fish species have been fished for centuries or millennia, leaving little record or understanding of their population responses prior to human impact and thus no baseline for population conservation. Here, we reconstruct the population dynamics of Atlantic cod, one of the world's most harvested fish species, from the pristine state during the Viking era through more than 1100 years of fishing. Analysis of cod otoliths recovered during archaeological excavations of Icelandic fish processing sites revealed that cod in the 10th to 12th centuries were 25% larger and up to 300% older than modern, despite slower density-dependent growth rates attributed to the sixfold increase in abundance. Fishing mortality came to dominate a time-invariant natural mortality rate and other population characteristics after the 14th century, with minimal evidence of environmental effects at the century scale. Despite the absence of catch records and surveys, biological reference points based on pristine fish populations are now possible where otolith collections are available.

How the Slovaks Helped Count Dracula: Stereotypes of the Late 19th Century

How the Slovaks Helped Count Dracula: Stereotypes of the Late 19th Century

Inveterate individualism: Taking the individual as that around which all else revolves and resolves

ABSTRACT This contribution to a discussion about the individual and society is concerned with a deep-seated individualism: our tendency to regard human beings as not primarily social, but solitary and detached; our focusing on individual human beings rather than groups of humans or society; our assuming or being convinced that what happens in groups or societies have their source in the individuals that make up that group or society. Two examples are used to help to illustrate and discuss an individualistic perspective and its prominence in Western European history and philosophy. The focus of this contribution is psychology, psychiatry and psychotherapy. It is argued that the two most important philosophers of the 20th Century - but certainly they are not the only ones - try to move us away from our inveterate individualism to an understanding of how we are children of a culture, sets of practices, ways of being in the world with others, at a particular time and place. In this way they help us to see that we do not have to begin with the individual and take an individualistic perspective. They help us to wonder whether our insistence on keeping individuals at the centre of our thinking might be thought about as a denial and refusal, an insistence on not allowing ourselves to think about dependency, interdependency, history, politics, and how we are subject and sometimes blind to the practices we meet when and where we come to be. The argument here, then, is far from unique or unrecognisable and many other writers and works might be foregrounded, so why make this contribution at all if it repeats so much and leaves out so much? This matter is taken up explicitly in the closing remarks.

Analysis of drought and extreme precipitation events in Thailand: trends, climate modeling, and implications for climate change adaptation

Thailand is under threat from climate change, where extreme climate events are expected to intensify and increase in the coming decades. The objective is to assess extreme drought and rainfall events in Thailand based on climate modeling through an ensemble for future projections of extreme climate indices. The climate indices used were Consecutive Dry Days (CDD), Maximum Number of Consecutive Summer Days (CSU), Consecutive Wet Days (CWD), Warm Spell Duration Index (WSDI), and Maximum Number of Consecutive Wet Days (WW) derived from simulations of an ensemble composed of six models from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) via the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) with the backpropagation method. The projections were based on three scenarios: historical (20th century); intermediate forcing (RCP 4.5) and high forcing (RCP 8.5). The results of the climate indices pointed to significant regional differences in Thailand. Historically, the CDD indicated 35 consecutive dry days in the northern (N) and northeastern (NE) parts of Thailand, whereas the southern region showed CDD values of fewer than 10 consecutive dry days. In the R4.5 scenario, a meridional pattern emerged in CDD, increasing from east (E) to west (W). In the R8.5 scenario, the number of consecutive dry days increased across the entire country. The WSDI stood out in both the R4.5 and R8.5 scenarios, with an increase in the duration of warm spells in Thailand. The CSU did not perform satisfactorily in the scenarios adopted. Historically, the CWD indicated consecutive wet days in the N and NE, whereas in the R4.5 and R8.5 scenarios, this was observed only in the Central and Southern regions. Historically, the maximum number of consecutive rainy days varied in the NE and South via WW. In the R4.5 and R8.5 scenarios, there was a significant increase in the maximum number of consecutive rainy days across Thailand. Projections based on climate indices indicate that Thailand needs to adopt mitigation measures across its regions to neutralize the impacts of extreme drought and rainfall events on socioeconomic sectors, particularly in tourism, industry, agricultural production, and food security for its population.

Sacral Architecture of Czestochowa—The “Spiritual Capital of Poland” over the Centuries and Nowadays

Częstochowa is a city known as the “spiritual capital of Poland”. The reason behind this name is the sanctuary of Our Lady—”Jasna Góra” monastery—around which a settlement was established, giving rise to the city today. The first parish was established in the 14th century. The next two parishes in Częstochowa were only established at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries: St Barbara’s in 1891 and St Joseph’s in 1910. Today, Częstochowa has a population of almost 200,000, is an industrial and academic center, and has 53 parish churches. In comparison, Warsaw, Poland’s capital, with a population of 1,861,599, has 86 parishes. The vast majority of Częstochowa’s churches were built in the 1980s and 1990s. This paper presents a short history of the city’s development with particular reference to its sacred architecture. It also attempts to present the influence of church buildings on the urban layout and religious atmosphere of the city. The paper is an attempt to present the phenomenon of Częstochowa, which attracts hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from Poland and all over the world every year.

DEVELOPMENT OF PUBLIC LIBRARIES IN RELATION TO THE SOCIO-CULTURAL PROGRESS OF SOCIETY SINCE THE 19TH CENTURY: WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO BENGAL

During the 19th and 20th centuries, Bengal emerged as a vibrant center for socio-cultural and religious reform movements, driven by its early exposure to secular and liberal Western education. The establishment of modern institutions of higher learning—initiated by colonial authorities, European missionaries, and forward-thinking social reformers—sparked an intellectual awakening among Bengal's educated classes. This era, often referred to as the Bengal Renaissance, profoundly influenced the evolution of Bengali literature and language.Prominent social reformers of the period took the initiative to establish community libraries in their localities, creating accessible spaces for education and intellectual growth. Many of these historic libraries continue to serve communities today, providing valuable resources to youth, students, industrial workers, and lifelong learners.This paper seeks to explore how the legacy of the Bengal Renaissance shaped the development of public libraries in India during British colonial rule, while also examining the impact of gradual social changes on the public libraries of West Bengal.

The Rage of the Dog Star: Spatio-Temporal Risk of Malaria in the Eastern Mediterranean During the Crusader Period (c. 1000–c. 1250)

Multiple forms of endemic malaria existed in the Mediterranean Basin from the 3rd millennium BCE until eradication regimes were imposed in the 20th century, with major societal health impacts across the history of the region. Little attention has been paid to the role endemic malaria played during the high medieval period, especially during the Crusades, when large Christian armies transited the Mediterranean to conquer the Levant, forging new states, trade lanes and pilgrimage routes in the process. This study utilizes a recent GIS-enabled malaria risk model validated for the pre-modern Mediterranean to re-evaluate contemporary accounts of illness and epidemics in the Crusader Levant. While medieval sources often provide ambiguous descriptions of disease, careful consideration of these accounts in light of the demonstrable spatial and temporal risk of malaria infection provides substantial evidence of these kinds of epidemics. The resulting evidence suggests that several malaria species, either on their own or in concert with other pathogens, afflicted numerous Crusade campaigns in low-lying landscapes during the warmest periods of the summer and fall in the Levant. In turn, these malaria epidemics had a major impact on the history of the Crusades and the Crusader States.

HISTORICAL ASPECTS OF PECTUS EXCAVATUM

Pectus excavatum (PE), also known as "funnel chest," is the most common congenital malformation of the chest wall, with historical references dating back to ancient Egypt. This article explores the historical evolution of PE, tracing its recognition, terminology, and medical interpretations over time. Early descriptions emerged in the 16th century, with significant developments in understanding its etiology and treatment occurring in the 19th and 20th centuries. Various hypotheses have been proposed regarding its causes, ranging from genetic predisposition to diaphragmatic contracture and skeletal abnormalities. The surgical treatment of PE has evolved from early attempts at costal cartilage resection to modern minimally invasive techniques, particularly the Nuss procedure. This review highlights key historical milestones, influential figures in the field, and the progressive refinement of surgical interventions that have shaped the current approach to managing pectus excavatum.

Introduction to “Protestant Christianity in South Korea: The Dynamic Relationship Between Church and State”

The study of Korean Protestantism can be traced back to the writings of missionaries in the late 19th century [...]

Lower Limb Exoskeletons, Application‐Centric Classifications: A Review

ABSTRACTExoskeletons are a relatively new field of technology used as assistive devices. Since the first development of the exoskeleton in the late 19th century, this field has seen significant advancements, as it has potential in numerous applications. Although this field is rapidly growing, it remains unable to be fully implemented in various applications. It is due to the limitations in the existing technology used to develop the exoskeleton, the lack of standardization, and the rapid growth in the exoskeleton field. To address the existing challenge, this review paper attempts to develop a classification model of lower limb exoskeletons (LLEs), which researchers and engineers can use to understand the relation between various application scenarios and different design aspects while developing an LLE. The classification model has been divided into two levels: application and design aspects of an exoskeleton. In this paper, 53 LLEs have been analyzed and classified into a flexible model, allowing future exoskeletons also to be added. It has also been discussed why each exoskeleton is classified into various categories.

The emergence of last I checked fragments: a story of shifting allegiance

Abstract This paper traces the formal and functional development of evidential extra-clausal fragments of the form (the) last I/we + VERB in American English. Using data from the Corpus of Historical American English and the Corpus of Contemporary American English, the study shows that these fragments are first attested in the late 19th century as a truncation of specificational structures (e.g. The last thing I remember is…). In the course of the 20th century, however, they exhibit a shift in allegiance by becoming increasingly associated with a temporal adjuncts template (e.g. The last time I checked…). Functionally, these evidential fragments are used as downtoners with additional functions being added in the course of the 20th century, viz. booster function and ironic use. The processes identified for their development are cooptation and subsequent grammaticalization, together with semantic specialization and constructional contamination. More generally, the fragmentary form (the) last I/we + VERB is shown to specialize in evidential use, with non-evidential verbs becoming increasingly rare in this string, while the full form remains firmly non-evidential. Fragmentary form thus has become an important marker for evidential (and, by extension, epistemic) function.

EEG Signal Analysis for Numerical Digit Classification: Methodologies and Challenges

Electroencephalography (EEG) has existed since the early 20th century. It has proven to be a vital tool for electrophysiological studies of conditions like epilepsy. Recently, it has been revitalized as the field of machine learning has been developing, widening its usefulness among a plethora of neurological conditions and in brain–computer interface (BCI) applications. This study delves into the intricate process of classifying EEG signals elicited by the visual stimuli of subjects viewing the digits 0 and 1 and a blank screen. We focus on developing a comprehensive workflow for EEG preprocessing, as well as feature extraction and signal classification. We achieve strong differentiation capabilities between digit and non-digit values in all classification algorithms. However, our study also highlights the profound neurological challenges encountered in distinguishing between the digit values, as our model, inspired by the related bibliography, was unable to differentiate between digit values 0 and 1. These findings underscore the complexity of numerical processing in the brain, revealing critical insights into the limitations and potential of EEG-based digit classification and the need for clarity in the bioinformatics community.

Marxism and Terrorism: The Intellectual Roots of New-Left Terrorism

ABSTRACT The early 20th century witnessed the emergence of an orthodox Marxist-Leninist doctrine against terrorism. However, the 1970s, began to witness a wave of terrorism launched in the name of Marxist-Leninism. How can we explain this paradox? This article traces the intellectual roots of Marxist-Leninist terrorism to three incidents: the 1959 Cuban Revolution, the foco theory formulated with reference to the success of this Revolution, and finally, the relocation of the foco in urban centres. The initial doctrine against terrorism was based on tactical considerations and was consequently undermined by the successful deployment of small-scale asymmetric tactics and the ensuing socialist revolution in Cuba.

Identification of anthropogenic activities interference in the seismic catalog for Banat and Danubian region, Romania

Abstract Banat and Danubian regions are among the most active zones in terms of crustal seismicity in Romania. Even though active seismic monitoring started in the early 20th century, the data sets got more performant with the development and expansion of seismic network monitoring in the late 1970’s. One particularity regarding seismic data acquisition is that in many cases anthropogenic activity, such as mining and quarry exploitation, interferes with natural seismicity. We aim to bring forward a series of data extracted from the ROMPLUS catalog to identify anthropogenic interference. To this aim, we propose a procedure based on multiple discrimination criteria, such as local time of event occurrence, magnitude, location concerning the nearest exploitation site, depth, and P wave input analysis (polarity and waveform). Identifying and filtering the anthropogenic events from the catalog will result in better imaging and characterizing of the natural seismic phenomenon in Banat and Danubian zones, improving the regional seismic hazard assessment this way.

The Nationalism of Sensibility from the Viewpoint of Meiji Art and Literature: Sublime Land and Picturesque Landscape

Associate Professor Takako Morimoto, Department of Language and Culture, Shizuoka University, Japan, is exploring modern Japanese literature and Meiji landscape literature education to answer questions about the relationship between individuals and society. She is interested in how individuals relate to the times and society in which they are in and how they challenge the related constraints. She believes modern Japanese literature and Meiji landscape literature education may hold the answers. She is exploring nationalism in the Meiji period, during which time Shigetaka Shiga’s ‘Japanese Landscape Theory’ brought about a sense of nationalism that transformed into patriotic nationalism used to constrain people. A key part of Morimoto’s research is nationalism related to the ‘sublime-picturesque’ aesthetic found in the 18th and 19th centuries in Western Europe. The ‘sublime’ is a concept which originated in Edmund Burke’s 1757 book ‘A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful’. She has found that nationalism is not necessarily formed only from a national system consisting of laws and institutions, it is formed from the complementary relation between a national system and national sensitivity. She wants social sciences and humanities researchers to further explore this idea, prompting recognition of the complementary nature of the two fields. She wants her readings of Tōson’s ‘Hakai’ and Sōseki’s ‘Gubijinso’ to spark further academic conversations.

John Barton and debates on economic policy in the first half of nineteenth century England

Professor Jou Ishii from the College of Economics, Kanto Gakuin University in Japan is an expert in the history of economics. He is building on his knowledge on economic thought to expand understanding on the social security of citizens. He is interested in expanding his knowledge on 19th century English economist John Barton. Barton studied the effects of the introduction of machinery during the period when the term ‘Luddite’ was coined, referring to English textile workers who rioted and destroyed machinery, believing it to be a threat to their jobs. Ishii is studying Barton’s thoughts on the issue of economic policy in the first half of the 19th century in England to fill gaps in knowledge and further expand understanding of Barton’s progressive thoughts. Ishii’s focus is on Barton’s thoughts on economic policy, specifically, with a view to thoroughly evaluating him and his thoughts. Ishii is also exploring debates on policy issues in the first half of the 19th century with consideration of the influence of classical political economy on the modernisation and westernisation of Japan after the second half of the 19th century. Ishii was initially interested in how small riots grew to become nationwide movements, but later interested in the economic and social structure underlying them. He is also exploring the difference between the situation in England and Japanese society, which had gone through a process of modernisation in the second half of the 19th century without overcoming the semi-feudal system of land ownership.

The impact of the introduction of industrial robots on workplace injury risk and mortality

In the 19th century, the Luddites protested against the introduction of new technology into the wool and cotton industries, concerned that this would mean a reduction in the quality of their work, less need for their skill and a lower pay. Nowadays, luddite is used to refer to someone who dislikes technology. In modern society, there are similar concerns regarding artificial intelligence (AI) and what its introduction and evolution means for the human workforce. Despite these fears of past and present society, there is no doubt that there are significant benefits associated with the introduction of new technologies. For example, industrial robots play an important role in reducing workplace injury and mortality risk. Associate Professor Masahiro Yoshida, Department of Political Science and Economics, Waseda University, Japan has a background in economics and is interested in the socio-economic drivers and impacts of injuries in the workplace. While the nationwide injury rate improved before the Great Recession, it subsequently began to stagnate. Given accelerated investment in industrial robots, Yoshida found this puzzling and, through his work in this area, found that most industrial robots are utilised in innately safe sectors rather than in more risky sectors, suggesting a profit-seeking reasoning behind investment in robots rather than the prioritisation of workplace safety. He also found that these sectors tend to have a higher dependency on immigrants. This led Yoshida to explore the relationship between the dependency on immigration and the progress of robot adoption across industries.