Foreign Soil Research Articles

Clonal dynamics after allogeneic haematopoietic cell transplantation.

Allogeneic haematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) replaces the stem cells responsible for blood production with those from a donor1,2. Here, to quantify dynamics of long-term stem cell engraftment, we sequenced genomes from 2,824 single-cell-derived haematopoietic colonies of ten donor-recipient pairs taken 9-31 years after HLA-matched sibling HCT3. With younger donors (18-47 years at transplant), 5,000-30,000 stem cells had engrafted and were still contributing to haematopoiesis at the time of sampling; estimates were tenfold lower with older donors (50-66 years). Engrafted cells made multilineage contributions to myeloid, B lymphoid and T lymphoid populations, although individual clones often showed biases towards one or other mature cell type. Recipients had lower clonal diversity than matched donors, equivalent to around 10-15 years of additional ageing, arising from up to 25-fold greater expansion of stem cell clones. A transplant-related population bottleneck could not explain these differences; instead, phylogenetic trees evinced two distinct modes of HCT-specific selection. In pruning selection, cell divisions underpinning recipient-enriched clonal expansions had occurred in the donor, preceding transplant-their selective advantage derived from preferential mobilization, collection, survival ex vivo or initial homing. In growth selection, cell divisions underpinning clonal expansion occurred in the recipient's marrow after engraftment, most pronounced in clones with multiple driver mutations. Uprooting stem cells from their native environment and transplanting them to foreign soil exaggerates selective pressures, distorting and accelerating the loss of clonal diversity compared to the unperturbed haematopoiesis of donors.

Use Of Medical Tools In Gaining Vital Intelligence For National Security Purposes

The definition of Medical Intelligence is by all accounts a broad and complex scientific task that needs to encompass wider ramifications of using medical and biological data to advance national security interests. The paper focuses on examples of using the medical discipline in the form of an exhaustive collection of medical data in order to arrive at very specific results significant in the pursuit of national security or political stability, albeit only from the point of view of a particular actor – the state. The three representative cases are illustrated to arrive at a fundamental understanding of how the medical data – intelligence – can be used if the medical environment is burdened by the imperative to further strategic state-devised objectives. In the organization of a fictitious inoculation campaign in rural Pakistan by the Central Intelligence Agency in 2011 to track down the whereabouts of Osama bin Ladin through mapping the DNA pattern of purported bin Ladin’s relatives, the state actor focused specifically on collection of human biological samples while deploying covert tactics – both disregarding the purported motive of the “health campaign” as well as executing the operation on the foreign soil. In another example, perceiving the potential uncontrolled population growth as a direct threat to both vital national interests, as well as the country’s public image, Uzbekistan, on the state level, has engaged in mass forced sterilization programs to curb the national birth rate. In a similar perception, the treatment of the rare disease of leprosy in Uzbekistan historically encompassed methods incompatible with medical ethics and basic human rights.The precedents will be examined as part of the wider discourse on what constitutes Medical Intelligence, and what is permissible within the framework of national security concerns.

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Use of Diplomats in Its Intelligence and Terrorist Operations against Dissidents: The Case of Assadollah Assadi

The Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) has two main intelligence organizations: the Ministry of Intelligence (MOI) and the Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The two organizations are highly active on foreign soil with malign activities like assassinations. In 2018, the third secretary of the IRI embassy in Austria, Assadollah Assadi, was arrested and later convicted of involvement in terrorism. With the help of three of his assets, they had planned to bomb a gathering in Paris arranged by the Iranian opposition to the IRI. Assadi would later be identified as the principal intelligence officer of the MOI on the European continent. Analyzing the case of Assadi shows that the IRI has the will and resources to conduct significant terrorist operations and that the regime has a vast network of assets throughout Europe. Most significant in the failed Paris plot was that evidently the IRI Intelligence Community is likely compromised and that the regime has considerable problems in trusting its own intelligence officers.

Assembly of Endophytic Communities of Setaria viridis Plants when Grown in Different Soils and Derived from Different Seeds

The association of the plant microbiota is a successional process that starts with the seed and its intrinsic microbiota. The recently reported relevance of seeds as carriers of microbiota has encouraged investigations of the assembly of these communities in different tissues. Here, we address the contributions of both seed and soil bacterial microbiota in the assembly of communities within endospheres of adult plants by 16S ribosomal RNA gene-based Illumina sequencing. Surface-sterilized seeds of the model plant Setaria viridis were sown in sterile conditions and seedlings were transferred onto either their native soil or a foreign soil. Soil-derived bacterial colonizers contributed to the highest portion of endophytic microbiota, with varying community composition depending on the cultivation soil. In contrast, the contribution of seed microbiota in those of adult plants was less evident. Moreover, seedlings grown in their native soils resulted in plants with consistent endophytic assemblages, whereas a dramatic increase in variability was observed for rhizosphere and endophytic root communities of plants grown in foreign soils.

Research Progress on Distribution, Transportation, and Control of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Chinese Soils

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of persistent organic pollutants that have attracted much attention in recent years, which has the characteristics of diverse species, refractory degradation, long-distance transportation, easy bioaccumulation, etc. The distribution, accumulation, and potential toxicity of PFAS in water and organisms have received extensive attention worldwide. However, studies on PFAS distribution and transportation in soil are still hovering at a preliminary stage. The PFAS pollution surveys in Chinese soils are mainly concentrated in the economically developed eastern regions. The types and concentrations of PFAS in soils are directly related to the industrial types, atmospheric deposition, and human activities in these surveyed areas, which are similar to foreign soil surveys. Traditional perfluoro carboxylic acid (PFCAs) and perfluoro octane sulfonate (PFSAs) are the most important types of PFAS in Chinese soils. This study reviewed the distribution characteristics, transportation pathways, and influencing factors of PFAS in Chinese soils, as well as domestic and foreign control policies on PFAS pollution. Meanwhile, this study further pointed out the shortcomings of the current research on the distribution and control of PFAS in soil in order to provide a reference for the investigation, research, and control of PFAS pollution in Chinese soils.

Soil Improvement after Reclamation of Rare Earth Tailings in Northeast Guangdong, China

In order to explore the soil improvement effect of guest soil reclamation, the main physical and chemical properties of the soil in-situ extracted rare earth tailings after reclamation in Pingyuan County, Meizhou city were tested. Using 5 point sampling method, soil samples were taken from a 0-20 cm soil layer to detect NH4+ residues, pH value, content of organic matter, available N, available K, available P, and heavy metal in the soil. The results were shown that the NH4+ content in the soil decreased from 96.67 to 15.29 (mg·kg−1) after reclamation, the pH value increased from 4.58 to 5.40, and the organic matter increased from 2.12 to 2.75 (g·kg−1). However, the available N, P, and K decreased, and the soil fertility index also decreased from 0.55 to 0.49. The reclamation did not significantly improve soil fertility. The Nemero comprehensive index of non-rare earth heavy metal elements decreased from 0.58 to 0.44, but the pollution of non-rare earth heavy metals in the soil before and after reclamation was at a clean level, and there was no heavy metal pollution. The total RE (rare earth) content in tailings soil, reclaimed soil, and control soil was higher than the soil environmental background value in Guangdong Province. Heavy RE content in tailings soil exceeded 50% of total RE content, while light RE was mainly in the reclaimed soil. The pollution levels of total RE metals in soil before and after reclamation were non-pollution to moderate pollution level and non-pollution level, respectively. The control soil was the most severely polluted, reaching a strong pollution level. The three RE metals, Y, Sm and Ce, accounted for the highest proportion of the total soil REs, and the pollution levels of the latter two elements were above strong pollution in control soil. After 4 years of land reclamation, the NH4+-N pollution, soil acidification, and heavy metal pollution in the soil of tailings could be significantly improved, but the soil fertility was still low and required a long remediation process. In the future reclamation work, in addition to continuing to pay attention to the improvement of soil environment, the improvement of soil fertility and the control of RE pollution should also be strengthened, and when using foreign soil for reclamation and improvement, the quality of foreign soil, especially fertility, should also be considered.

Whether and to what extent does international law allow states to use military force against armed non-state actors on the territory of another state?

The relevance of the article is due to the importance of understanding the legal boundaries of state actions in the context of the growth of transnational terrorism, insurgent movements and asymmetric wars. Recent conflicts and military interventions highlight the urgent need to clarify international law regarding the acceptable use of force against armed non-state actors located in the territory of another state. Finding the delicate balance between respecting state sovereignty and ensuring the right to self-defence poses a significant challenge. The subject of the research is primarily the contemporary attribution concepts that may be used during the justification of the use of military force by states against armed non-state actors on the territory of another sovereign state. The purpose of the research is to critically examine legal aspects and state practice relating to the aforementioned concepts. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that by bringing together legal developments, state practice and some issues in using force sphere, the article offers new insights into the complex interralation between state sovereignty and the right to self-defence. Brief conclusions: 1) According to some states and experts, using military force against armed non-state actors on the territory of another state violates the sovereignty of that state, whereas others claim that it may be justified under the right of self-defence. In this regard, state practices have been inconsistent. 2) Nowadays, the «effective control» test is the only legally justified approach that triggers the right to self-defence against armed non-state actors on foreign soil. 3) There is no well-established state practice and opinio juris relating to other examinded attribution tests or the «Unable or Unwilling» doctrine.

다문화가정 여성과 자녀의 유튜브에 대한 인식 및 활용 경험에 대한 이해: 생애사 이야기식 접근으로

This study conducted in-depth interviews using Schütze's(1983) biographical narrative approach to explore the perceptions and experiences of YouTube among three multicultural women and three children in K County, within the context of their life stories. The research findings are as follows. First, they discerned the value of watching YouTube videos and perceived YouTube as an active companion and a realm of engagement in their lives. The participants of the study perceived YouTube as a source of solace, joy, and hopeful future. YouTube was a space where individuals could enjoy their native culture and music while on foreign soil, simultaneously facilitating inter-generational communication and shared joy among different cultures and generations. Furthermore, multicultural women with insufficient educational backgrounds envisioned becoming cultural exchange YouTubers on a platform where formal education was not a necessity. In the meantime, the counter productive aspects of YouTube were also mentioned, which make them compare their lives with those of successful multicultural women on YouTube. However, during YouTube viewing, they demonstrated a discerning attitude toward the economic value and commercial aspects, making efforts to distinguish between the fictitious and genuine aspects of videos. Secondly, regarding the utilisation experience of YouTube, multicultural women and children use YouTube in their daily lives, sometimes becoming addicted to it, but prioritising privacy protection and professionalism regarding video creation and sharing. YouTube deeply integrated into their lives, fostering a sense of intimacy and connection with others. While multicultural children possessed video creation skills, women felt a sense of regret due to a lack of opportunities and time for learning. Furthermore, although some participants expressed concerns about privacy exposure in video creation and sharing, some women aimed to help others through video production and sharing. Therefore, this study suggests developing and implementing programs by social welfare facilities and educational institutions to enhance the YouTube literacy competence of multicultural women and children. These programs should focus on helping them distinguish the commercial and fictitious aspects of YouTube while enabling them to accumulate collective knowledge through video viewing, communication, video creation, and sharing activities, thereby preparing them for the future and utilising YouTube as a platform for economic engagement.

Racial Hierarchy and Jurisdiction in U.S. Status of Forces Agreements

Status of Forces Agreements (SOFAs) establish when and how the domestic laws of host governments are applied to American soldiers. Why does the United States share jurisdiction under some SOFAs but not others? I argue that U.S. SOFAs project a racialized conception of host state capacity for governance over American troops on foreign soil. It is through the notion of “capacity” that non-white host partners are stereotyped as possessing inferior courts and legal values. The United States is less likely to share jurisdiction with non-white majority host countries. I motivate my argument with primary accounts of racial discrimination in debates over U.S. SOFA policy. Then, I code U.S. SOFA jurisdiction and estimate its determinants. The results suggest that the United States imposes concurrent jurisdiction to govern its interactions with predominantly white host states, allowing these peer countries to try U.S. personnel, while withholding this same right from most non-white host partners, ceteris paribus. I conclude with a discussion of implications for understanding international law and security from its racial underpinnings.

Entry modes for Chinese enterprises in Latin America

AbstractThe Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been an important project for President Xi Jinping on foreign soil. The initiative gained momentum through colossal investments in Eurasia and Africa, mainly through infrastructure projects, backed by generous funding from Chinese financial institutions. A few years later, Latin America emerged as a new target for geographically extending the BRI. The region provides sufficient motivation to entice Chinese investors; it is well endowed with natural resources, offers a market of approximately 670 million people, and has many unmet needs. In addition, recent geopolitical reasons such as the ongoing trade war between the United States and China may give Chinese enterprises indirect access to the world's largest consumer market. We present a brief overview of the relationship between China and Latin America, focusing on the mode of entry of Asian companies into these territories. We analyze the primary entry mode of Chinese enterprises and whether they do so through Greenfield Investment (GI) or Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A). For this purpose, we use data from the China Global Investment Tracker. Thus, we intend to provide a complete picture of how public and private Chinese organizations are gaining a foothold in Latin America, and present its managerial implications.

King Harold’s Sister Gunhild (d. 1087), a Royal Exile in Flanders

Abstract This article is a study of the life of Gunhild (d. 1087), sister of King Harold, who, together with her mother Gytha, sought exile in Flanders after the Norman Conquest; it is set in the wider context of the fate of high-status elite or royal women in post-Conquest England. Gunhild’s lead burial plaque with inscription (found in her tomb in the church of St Donatian in Bruges) constitutes a unique testimony to the fate of a royal sister in the aftermath of the Norman Conquest. Her Latin obituary, the longest known on a lead plaque for an eleventh-century woman, consists of a biographical sketch of her and her family, including her brother’s death, and her itinerary in exile, while the second half is a near-hagiographical account of her as a woman religious; a new edition and English translation are included in an appendix. The article analyses the historical, literary and material aspects of Gunhild’s life, including evidence from the archive of St Donatian as to the considerable wealth she bequeathed to the canons in return for her burial in the church’s wall. It is suggested that as a woman religious she lived a penitential life on foreign soil not least to pay for the sins of the English defeated by the Normans. Comparison with other English royal or high-status elite women (and men) suggests that, defiantly and uniquely, Gunhild and her mother Gytha rejected accommodation with the Conqueror and instead followed the path of exile abroad, more commonly chosen by men.

Naufragés aux portes du Japon d’Edo (1603–1867) : Des frontières « infranchissables » et un espoir de retour

Abstract It is often surmised that the Tokugawa shogunate (1603–1867) was obsessed with the notion of rigorous border control. During the first half a century of its existence, it had expelled from the country all Westerners but the Dutch, prohibited the Japanese from ever setting foot on foreign soil and banned the return of those abroad. Though, were the borders as impenetrable as they seemed to be? Historians agree nowadays that the bakufu maintained relations with the outside world and, even if international trade was restricted to certain nations and ports, it prospered still. The archipelago as well was far from lifeless. It was undergoing an intense urbanisation, centred mainly on the cities of Edo and Ōsaka. Before long, hosts of transport craft became a crucial part of the booming Japanese economy. However, shipwrecks were extremely common, and several hundred castaways ended up in Europe, in the United States or in their colonies in Asia, a fate that they viewed as worse than death, since they were theoretically forbidden from coming back. Many shipwrecked sailors chose to remain abroad, but some did return to their home country. This paper examines how they tried to cross a border that was reputed to be impossible to cross.

From Servant to Savant: Musical Privilege, Property, and the French Revolution

During the Reign of Terror, the rhetoric of liberation served as cover for conquest. When it came to artistic masterworks belonging to ‘tyrannical’ regimes, revolutionary freedom justified confiscation. The painter Jacques Luc Barbier was one of many who provided a justification. Such masterpieces, Barbier said of paintings by Rubens, were ‘sullied by traces of servitude’ and in need of liberation. The revolutionary Temporary Arts Commission commissioned a convoy to retrieve other paintings, manuscripts and musical scores duly liberated by French troops in Belgium. Soldiers returned from Piedmont to great acclaim with works they had ‘conquered’ on foreign soil. Napoleon continued the plunder across Italy with similar confiscations, first authorized by the Directory and later justified as a fitting reward for spreading civilization. The role of music and musicians in this appropriation is a major theme of Rebecca Dowd Geoffroy-Schwinden’s From Servant to Savant: Musical Privilege, Property, and the French Revolution. ‘[M]usical “works” and composers’, she writes, ‘became cantered in a modern system of musical production destined to support nationalist, imperialist, and colonialist endeavors’. The examples she produces are telling. French musicians eagerly endorsed taking scores, manuscripts and instruments from other countries by force. Luigi Cherubini, the Italian-born Inspector of the new Paris Conservatory, imagined the core of its library coming from Italian cities. The ‘enemy’s contributions’, he wrote to the Director of Public Instruction, were ‘too important to be neglected’. The new musical order, writes Geoffroy-Schwinden, was complicit in an imperial project that would eventually encircle the globe.

Diasporic Interface of Colliding Minds and Cultures: Psychological and Emotive Dimensions of Two Ways to Belong in America

Bharati Mukherjee demonstrates the complexity of the effects of immigration by underlining the universally acknowledged importance of the nation of immigration, America. The country and the immigrant establish a bond that enables the former to develop as a result of the latter’s migration, rather than just upsetting or altering it. The transformation is brought about through interaction with the outside world, and consequently energizing and revitalizing the host nation. The immigrant, as a recent arrival from a foreign culture, clashes with American culture and pinpoints the flaws underlying its past and present giving rise to the cultural interface. He traverses the borders of the new terrain and tries to assimilate in the foreign soil lending his own cultural aroma to it. According to her, cultural exchange between natives and immigrants in a country fosters a fusion and growth for both the groups. Unlike other migration authors who go nuts over the loss and degradation of the home culture, Bharati Mukherjee ardently defends the advantages of shifting to a new region or greener pasture. She urges the immigrants to break free from the bonds of cultural conflict and alienation and to embrace and establish their new identity as citizens of the United States. For her, it really simply boils down to attitude and propensity. Everyone may flourish and realise their aspirations in America, a nation of chances. Two Ways to Belong in America, which appeared in The New York Times in 1996 is a tale of two sisters, Meera and Bharati, who move to America largely for their education. Bharti Mukherjee addresses the topic of multiple identities in the immigrant community throughout the narrative. This story explores the personal changes that being in America has made on the author as she embraced it as her new home, as well as Meera's determined resistance to those changes, who wishes to take advantage of the benefits that living in America has to offer while remaining steadfast to her country of origin. As it addresses the two distinct ways in which the immigrants in America establish their sense of identity, the story's title is self-explanatory.

Experience in Providing Ambulatory Surgery From an Expeditionary Fast Transport Mobile and Rapidly Deployable Expeditionary Medical Unit During Continuing Promise 2018.

This article describes the surgical component of the Continuing Promise 2018 (CP-18) medical training and military cooperation mission. We report on the surgical experience and lessons learned from performing peacetime ambulatory surgeries in a tent-based facility constructed on partner nation territory. This CP mission was unique in utilizing a land-based expeditionary surgical facility. Institutional Review Board approval was obtained to collect prospective deidentified patient data and aggregate information on all surgical cases performed. Specific aims of this study included describing surgical patient characteristics and evaluating conservatively selected cases performed in this environment. Body mass index (BMI) was used as a crude screening tool for perioperative risk to assist patient selection. Our secondary aim was to report lessons learned from preparation, logistics, and host nation exchanges. The team coordinated medical credentialing and documentation of all medical supplies with each host nation. Advance teams collaborated with local physicians in country to arrange training exchanges and identify surgical candidates. The mission was conducted from February to April 2018. Only two of five planned partner nation visits were completed. The surgical facility supported 78 procedures over 14 surgical days, averaging over six cases performed per core surgical day. Patients were predominantly female, with a mean age of 25.4 and a mean BMI of 31.1. The average surgical time was 37.5 minutes, the average anesthesia time was 70 minutes, and the average recovery time was 47.6 minutes. No significant complications or adverse events were noted. CP-18 was the first CP mission to perform elective ambulatory surgery on foreign soil using a tent-based facility in a noncombat, nondisaster environment instead of a hospital or amphibious ship. This mission demonstrated that such a facility may be employed to safely perform low-risk ambulatory surgeries on carefully selected patients. The Expeditionary Medical Unit, coupled with the fast transport vessel enabled rapid expeditionary surgical facility setup with significant military and disaster relief applications. Expansion of surgical indications should be performed carefully and deliberately to avoid complications and damage to international relationships.

The Alien Tort Statute of 1789 is no longer available to foreigners toclaim for wrongdoings on foreign soil

The Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) of 1789 was part of the first law to be enacted by the First Congress of the USA. Its original purpose was primarily to remedy harms suffered by aliens at the hands of US citizens. For two centuries it remained dormant. Then it became a vehicle to advance human rights. Sosa v Humberto Alvarez-Machain 542 US 692 (2004) was the first of four ATS cases decided by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS). Kiobel v Royal Dutch Petroleum Co 569 US 108 (2013) followed and with it, the court limited the application of the ATS. It coined the term “touch and concern” whereby only those with a nexus with the US could pursue grievances. It also enforced the principle of extraterritoriality. Jesner v Arab Bank, PLC 584 US ___ (2018); 138 S Ct 1386 (2018) brought further clarity by imposing clear limits on which parties may be defendants in ATS cases. Nestlé USA, Inc v John Doe I; Cargill, Inc v John Doe I 593 US ___ (2021); 141 S Ct 1931 (2021) precluded future cases of human rights abuses against corporations when allegations can only be made that general corporate decision-making occurred in the US. In future, plaintiffs will have to establish a strong domestic nexus with the US for a claim under the ATS to be successful. Eventually the statute lost its attractiveness for foreign plaintiffs wanting to settle in US courts human rights scores committed in foreign places. Yet some aggrieved Namibians tried to pursue a case against Germany in an attempt to extricate monetary compensation from the former colonial power as restitutional compensation on the basis of the provisions in the ATS. Their attempts failed. Compensation for German atrocities committed during the colonial era in German South West Africa was pursued by the Namibian government outside of the courts. This article illustrates that, at the hand of decisions by the highest court in the US involving particular groups of foreigners, legal avenues using the ATS as a basis have now been closed.

AESTHETIC VALUE OF SOILS

The article highlights the problem of interaction between society and nature (in particular, soils) through the prism of the aesthetics of world perception as the highest manifestation of valuable awareness of objective reality. The presented results of the research prove that the aesthetic thinking and perception of the role of soils in the life of society was and remains an important element of knowledge and development of the concept of beauty not only in literary, but also in scientific circles.
 Soils are one of the most important aesthetic values among natural objects and are an integral part of the landscape. It has its own location, like other geographical bodies. Namely the specific natural environment in which it functions. It is important to distinguish between different manifestations of the quality when you consider the beauty of the agricultural landscape not as a general aesthetic category, but as a quality of the landscape. A human is not only physically dependent on his environment, but also emotionally. The quality of human life depends significantly on what aesthetic feelings the landscape evokes in a person, how pleasant it is to be in it, and how much a person likes the landscape. It must be noted that the aesthetic image of the soils is an integral aspect of the development of society with deep agricultural traditions.
 The aesthetic value of soils is not limited to the spiritual sphere of human activity. It largely affects material processes. Therefore, the preservation and further restoration of the natural environment can only be a product of purposeful, scientifically organized activities of society. It is important to develop the principles of organization and use of natural resources taking into account aesthetic requirements. According to this approach a lot depends on the level and form of a human's aesthetic attitude towards nature, and especially the soils.
 The analysis of applied aspects of preserving the aesthetic value of soils showed that soil fulfills the role of utility, morality and beauty for humans. The aesthetic value of soils is an important factor in the life of humanity in connection with the development of scientific achievements, as it is one of the most well-known forms of social consciousness. Nowadays, the aesthetic potential of soils is distinguished by an insufficient level of study, which to a certain extent does not allow a full assessment of human attitude to the soils and the evolution of value attitude in the process of historical and cultural changes.
 The purpose of the study is to substantiate the aesthetic aspects of the interaction of society and nature, to reveal the problems of harmony of purposeful regulation of the processes of human-soil interaction. The work uses comparative and historical analysis of literary sources, materials of poetic and artistic works, works of thinkers of ancient Rome and Greece, works of Ukrainian and foreign soil scientists. For all the versatility and multifaceted research on the interaction of society and nature, related to the spiritual, aesthetic aspects of this issue, often go out of sight of the researcher, generating a certain homogeneity of conclusions. Substantiation of the idea of preserving the aesthetic integrity of nature as a necessary factor in human life, as well as the study of the most common patterns of industrial and creative activities of people to transform the natural world in modern conditions is important. Studies of the problem of aesthetic organization of the environment show that activities in this area are characterized by the transition from random tasks of aesthetic design of individual natural objects to solving problems of aesthetic design of landscapes affected by human production, especially agricultural. Soils are one of the most important aesthetic factors among natural objects, especially chornozems. They, like other geographical bodies, have their own location, form chornozem space, have a special habit (appearance, constitution, posture), color, structure, etc. Based on the role and importance of chornozem in nature and social life, its aesthetic value, humanity appreciates this natural phenomenon. The practical value of the obtained results is that it allows to clarify the role of aesthetic perception of the image of the soil by man to determine its value and to establish harmonious relationships in everyday life.
 Key words: soils, aesthetic value, natural phenomenon, soil ideal.

China’s Global Maritime Access: Alternatives to Overseas Military Bases in the Twenty-First Century

China lacks the network of foreign military bases that typically attends great-power expansion, yet its armed forces operate at an increasingly global scale. How has the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) managed this feat without a significant footprint on foreign soil? Why has Chinese leadership not (yet) established a network of bases to address security threats to China’s overseas interests? This article analyzes the structural constraints facing China’s military basing abroad and then examines the methods by which the PLA has nonetheless achieved significant global power-projection capability. It highlights the capacity provided by international maritime transport infrastructure owned and operated by Chinese firms as a viable—yet limited—means of securing national interests overseas with military power. The study demonstrates that the structural setting and historical sequence of China’s rise render foreign military bases relatively costly, incentivizing alternative modes of access and power projection in the maritime domain.

Emigrate out of National Borders, Immigrate into Diasporic Spaces

Abstract The article explores the ways in which Vietnamese international doctoral students participated in and influenced social spaces to produce diasporic subjectivity among Vietnamese diasporic communities in the study countries, and how this diasporic subjectivity was produced in what I term ‘diasporised moments’. Guided by theory of space, I look at how Vietnamese doctoral students negotiated their ‘membership’ of those communities, how their national identity was challenged and contested, and how their nostalgia was triggered against the backdrop of their transnational life, leading to their diasporic subjectivity in the making. I argue that the theoretical bearings of space allow us to expand our understanding of the integration of international students into life on foreign soil beyond the common assumption of integration into the local culture only. I further argue that international students do not purely experience homesickness but actually produce diasporic subjectivity in their temporary migration for academic pursuits.

Representation of Diasporic Identity in Nadeem Aslam's Maps For Lost Lovers and Kamila Shamsie's Home Fire

The current research analyzes Nadeem Aslam’s Maps for Lost Lovers and Kamila Shamsie’s Home Fire in the light of the concept of ambivalence, hybridity, and mimicry, and the way these texts establish a connection with trans-culturalism, terrorism, and Islamophobia. If Shamsie’s novel Home Fire highlights the issue of fundamentalism and its effect on the distorted image of Muslim immigrants, similarly, Aslam's counsels cultural hybridity among diversity and heterogeneity for lasting peace and prosperity in diasporic societies. The present study not only explores the feelings of alienation, ambivalence and interdependency of trans-culturalism but also sheds impartial light on the clash of cultures and the subsequent issues, such as subjugation, exploitation, victimization, and injustice meted out to the Muslim Community across the globe on foreign soil. The researchers have adapted qualitative and descriptive methods while relying on the thorough reading of the selected British-Asian novels as well as the related critical reviews.