Unifying Principle Research Articles

A unified framework for Navier–Stokes Cahn–Hilliard models with non-matching densities

Over the last decades, many diffuse-interface Navier–Stokes Cahn–Hilliard (NSCH) models with non-matching densities have appeared in the literature. These models claim to describe the same physical phenomena, yet they are distinct from one another. The overarching objective of this work is to bring all of these models together by laying down a unified framework of NSCH models with non-zero mass fluxes. Our development is based on three unifying principles: (1) there is only one system of balance laws based on continuum mixture theory that describes the physical model, (2) there is only one natural energy-dissipation law that leads to quasi-incompressible NSCH models, (3) variations between the models only appear in the constitutive choices. The framework presented in this work now completes the fundamental exploration of alternate non-matching density NSCH models that utilize a single momentum equation for the mixture velocity, but leaves open room for further sophistication in the energy functional and constitutive dependence.

Нарратив в научном познании: кинематографический метод Н.И. Жинкина

The intellectual heritage of the Russian philosopher and psychologist N.I. Zhinkin, turns out to be strikingly consonant with modern scientific research, in which scientists and philosophers are trying to identify the origins of possible syntheses and correlations in a wide variety of interdisciplinary interactions. The structure of modern science is changing, new forms of teamwork of scientists (collabo­rations) are being formed, requiring not only new methodological strategies in the study of applied problems, but also taking into account the scientific inter­ests of the participants. Interdisciplinary interactions do not develop on their own, but require mutual intellectual and existential efforts. And this means that the ways of expressing knowledge for each other must be adjusted. Thus, a form comes into the scientific consciousness, which was previously practically not taken into account in the communication of natural scientists: narrative. Under these conditions, Zhinkin’s unique historical experience acquires special signifi­cance, to which science and art, phenomenology and psychology, life and knowl­edge are connected in a special way. The unifying principle in this experience of Zhinkin was, paradoxically, the cinema, in which the scientist saw the key to expanding cognitive aspirations and enriching the cognitive abilities of a per­son. Cinematography is not just a new art form, but it is a special technical form of the embodiment of the age-old aspirations of a person who is trying to express (repeat, reproduce) life in motion, to make “the former present”. Zhinkin (fol­lowing his teacher G.G. Shpet) substantiates this idea of art as a special kind of cognition in the report Issues on Building a Scientific and Artistic Script, which was discussed on November 19, 1945 at the Moscow House of Cinema at the Section of the Scientific and Educational Film.

Unifying Principles of Cryopreservation Protocols for New Plant Materials Based on Alternative Cryoprotective Agents (CPAs) and a Systematic Approach

This review addresses a frequently encountered problem of designing an effective cryopreservation procedure for new (not previously cryopreserved) or difficult plant materials. This problem hinders worldwide efforts of applying cryopreservation across a wide genetic base of wild and a number of cultivated plants. We review recent advances in modifications of routinely applied cryoprotective solutions (CPAs) and suggest a practical approach to protocol development which embraces the physiological complexity of plant tissues as well as a wide spectrum of behaviours under CPA treatment. We suggest that vegetative plant materials are classified into four categories based on their size, structure, and the response to osmotic and chemical stresses provoked by CPA mixtures of varied composition and concentration, including alternative osmoprotection and vitrification solutions. A number of up to 15 preset protocols designed specifically for each category is then applied to the material. The protocols resulting in the best regrowth are then combined into the optimized procedure. The ma -andcryopreservation protocol is a minimal amount of starting materials required for the tests and a relatively accurate prediction of material behaviour under cryopreservation stress provided by the relatively few CPAs treatments. The unifying principles revealed by this approach could broaden a spectrum of wild species and materials which can be safely conserved by cryopreservation. Also anticipated is application of this approach to plant materials of biotechnological value as well as cultivars of agricultural and horticultural crops which do not respond well to standard protocols developed for their kind.

Embedded racism: Inequitable niche construction as a neglected evolutionary process affecting health.

Racial health disparities are a pervasive feature of modern experience and structural racism is increasingly recognized as a public health crisis. Yet evolutionary medicine has not adequately addressed the racialization of health and disease, particularly the systematic embedding of social biases in biological processes leading to disparate health outcomes delineated by socially defined race. In contrast to the sheer dominance of medical publications which still assume genetic 'race' and omit mention of its social construction, we present an alternative biological framework of racialized health. We explore the unifying evolutionary-ecological principle of niche construction as it offers critical insights on internal and external biological and behavioral feedback processes environments at every level of the organization. We Integrate insights of niche construction theory in the context of human evolutionary and social history and phenotype-genotype modification, exposing the extent to which racism is an evolutionary mismatch underlying inequitable disparities in disease. We then apply ecological models of niche exclusion and exploitation to institutional and interpersonal racial constructions of population and individual health and demonstrate how discriminatory processes of health and harm apply to evolutionarily relevant disease classes and life-history processes in which socially defined race is poorly understood and evaluated. Ultimately, we call for evolutionary and biomedical scholars to recognize the salience of racism as a pathogenic process biasing health outcomes studied across disciplines and to redress the neglect of focus on research and application related to this crucial issue.

The Gastropod Shell Structure as a Blueprint for a Periodic System: A New Theory for Element Configurations

The purpose of this article is to propose a new design for the periodic table of elements. The new design is based on a three-dimensional (3D) model of the gastropod shell structure and presents a mechanism of the formation of elements that reflects the laws of nature that guide the formation of the gastropod shell, electron orbitals, and element structure. The author also identifies challenges associated with the current standard periodic table, such as the positions of hydrogen, helium, lanthanides, and actinides. The author’s research is a response to the IUPAC’s request, dating back to 2016, to settle unresolved disputes surrounding the current standard periodic table. Hence, the author proposes the “Gastropod Shell Model”, which presents the periodic system in 2D and 3D snail shells based on a hypothesized unifying principle guiding the formation of elements: the universal unified theory that considers the spiral and vortex forms as the bridge between energy and matter. The author was able to position hydrogen, helium, lanthanides, and actinides uniquely in their proposed periodic system to solve problems associated with their positions in the standard periodic table. Readers will be interested in uncovering the “hypothesized unifying principle guiding the formation of elements”.

Trīs savienoti teoloģiski “lielumi”: radīšana, Jēzus, Svētais Gar

he aim of this article is to offer a unifying element of the Christian narrative that connects creation, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The study reveals that the traditional elements of the Christian narrative are not interconnected, specifically ignoring the role and function of the Holy Spirit. Traditionally, the Christian narrative has been constructed with a focus on sin and salvation. This Christocentric approach has significant limitations, namely, it does not provide a full and correct theological understanding of the Trinity and it does not give a logical connection between the beginning and the end of the Christian message, that is, between the creation, the coming of Christ and the giving of the Holy Spirit. This article offers a new perspective, where the holiness of God is used as an adequate unifying principle that connects creation, salvation and sanctification. The approach proposed in this article not only overcomes the traditionally Christomonic orientation, but also incorporates into the Christian narrative the history of the people of Israel, including the temple and the Sabbath – centre of their religious life, the life of Jesus, and the life of Jesus’ followers.

IDEOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS AND FEATURES OF WESTERN LEGAL CULTURE

The purpose of the article is to identify and analyze the ideological foundations of Western legal culture. The main attention is paid to the philosophical and legal, socio-political, religious and moral, natural and climatic factors that determined the processes of evolution of legal culture in the West. Many scientists turn to the problem of the ideological foundations of Western legal culture. The topic is interesting not only for lawyers, but also for philosophers, political scientists, historians, sociologists, as well as for representatives of other branches of science. At each stage of the development of science, different interpretations of the problems can be found, but almost all scientists agree in assessing the common roots of modern legal culture in Western countries. Usually, scholars single out Roman private law, canon law, as well as the philosophy of natural law as unifying principles. Of course, it is difficult to dispute the obvious, but it cannot be said that from a scientific point of view, this problem has been fully studied and is no longer of research interest. This article attempts to delve into the essence of the ideological foundations of Western legal culture. The author examines the problem through the prism of the forms of Western civilization - Romano-Germanic and Anglo-American, deeply interconnected and having common roots. The importance of natural and climatic conditions, geographical space, universal connections provided by the united church, which revealed that special type of personality who sought to individualize his life, is also noted. If in the East people aspired to communality, then the isolation of the individual was characteristic of the West, but it should be noted that due to the densely populated Europe, its multinational nature, the lack of free land, people were inclined to resolve conflict cases through the conclusion of an agreement on a compromise basis. These circumstances obliged people, through compromise, to establish uniform rules, the observance of which was ensured by the state. These rules were primarily focused on respect for individual rights and freedoms, respect for private property, etc. The further development of Western civilization, which was based on the ideas of respect for individual rights and freedoms, led to the birth of the foundations of civil society, the existence of which was determined by the postulates of the rule of law. The realization of the ideas of the rule of law and civil society has determined the vector of development of Western countries, which is the basis for their development in the paradigm of liberal values.

Paolo Odorico, ed. Études byzantines et post-byzantines, Nouvelle série, Tome II (IX), La culture écrite des périphéries byzantines du Moyen-Âge à l’époque moderne

Paolo Odorico, ed. <i>Études byzantines et post-byzantines, Nouvelle série, Tome II (IX), La culture écrite des périphéries byzantines du Moyen-Âge à l’époque moderne</i>

The Art of the State [From the Editor

Deep learning is impacting control in many ways, if not all deep. For more than a decade, it has reinstated the state-space concept as a central and unifying modeling principle. The magical equation <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">x+ = f</i> ( <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">x, u</i> ) currently dominates IEEE Control Systems Society publications, workshops, and conferences. Once confined to specialized circles of dynamic programming and nonlinear control, it has emerged over the last decade as a lingua franca shared by roboticists, optimizers, machine learners, computer programmers, and pretty much every scientist upgraded with the adjective “computational.” It celebrates the definite victory of computation over modeling in science and engineering.

Intracellular common gardens reveal niche differentiation in transposable element community during bacterial adaptive evolution

The distribution and abundance of transposable elements across the tree of life have significantly shaped the evolution of cellular organisms, but the underlying mechanisms shaping these ecological patterns remain elusive. Here we establish a “common garden” approach to study causal ecological interactions between a xenogeneic conditional lethal sacB gene and the community of transposable insertion sequences (ISs) in a multipartite prokaryote genome. Xenogeneic sacB of low, medium, or high GC content was individually inserted into three replicons of a model bacterium Sinorhizobium fredii, and exhibited replicon- and GC-dependent variation in genetic stability. This variation was largely attributable to multidimensional niche differentiation for IS community members. The transposition efficiency of major active ISs depended on the nucleoid-associated xenogeneic silencer MucR. Experimentally eliminating insertion activity of specific ISs by deleting MucR strongly demonstrated a dominant role of niche differentiation among ISs. This intracellular common garden approach in the experimental evolution context allows not only for evaluating genetic stability of natural and synthetic xenogeneic genes of different sequence signatures in host cells but also for tracking and testing causal relationships in unifying ecological principles in genome ecology.

The nexus between RNA-binding proteins and their effectors.

RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) regulate essentially every event in the lifetime of an RNA molecule, from its production to its destruction. Whereas much has been learned about RNA sequence specificity and general functions of individual RBPs, the ways in which numerous RBPs instruct a much smaller number of effector molecules, that is, the core engines of RNA processing, as to where, when and how to act remain largely speculative. Here, we survey the known modes of communication between RBPs and their effectors with a particular focus on converging RBP-effector interactions and their roles in reducing the complexity of RNA networks. We discern the emerging unifying principles and discuss their utility in our understanding of RBP function, regulation of biological processes and contribution to human disease.

The molecular diversity of plasticity mechanisms underlying memory: An evolutionary perspective.

Experience triggers molecular cascades in organisms (learning) that lead to alterations (memory) to allow the organism to change its behavior based on experience. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying memory, particularly in the nervous system of animals, has been an exciting scientific challenge for neuroscience. We review what is known about forms of neuronal plasticity that underlie memory highlighting important issues in the field: (1) the importance of being able to measure how neurons are activated during learning to identify the form of plasticity that underlies memory, (2) the many distinct forms of plasticity important for memories that naturally decay both within and between organisms, and (3) unifying principles underlying the formation and maintenance of long-term memories. Overall, the diversity of molecular mechanisms underlying memories that naturally decay contrasts with more unified molecular mechanisms implicated in long-lasting changes. Despite many advances, important questions remain as to which mechanisms of neuronal plasticity underlie memory.

Dynamics of protein condensates in weak-binding regime.

Weak complementary interactions between proteins and nucleic acids are the main driving forces of intracellular liquid-liquid phase separation. The sticker-spacer model has emerged as a unifying principle for understanding the phase behavior of these multivalent molecules. It remains elusive how specific interactions mediated by stickers contribute to the rheological properties of the liquid condensates. Previous studies have revealed that for strong binding strength ɛ_{b}, the bulk diffusivity D depends on the effective bond lifetime τ, viz., D∝τ^{-1}. Consequently, equal concentrations of the complementary stickers induce a slow down in the dynamics of the condensates D∝e^{-1.5ɛ_{b}}. However, for weak-binding strength, it is expected that the resulting condensates are dynamic, loose network liquids rather than kinetically arrested, compact clusters. We develop a mean-field theory using the thermodynamics of the associative polymers and perform molecular-dynamics simulations based on the sticker-spacer model to study the controlling factors in the structure and dynamics of such condensates in the weak-binding regime. Through scaling analysis, we delineate how the free sticker fraction W_{f} and the bulk diffusivity D decrease with increasing binding energy and find that the internal dynamics of such network liquids are controlled by the free sticker fraction D∝W_{f}∝e^{-0.5ɛ_{b}} rather than the effective bond lifetime. Referred to as the free-sticker-dominated diffusivity, the microscopic slowdown due to a gradual loss of the free stickers affects the viscosity of the condensates as well, with the scaling of the zero-shear viscosity η∝e^{0.5ɛ_{b}}. Therefore, the way of controlling the structure, diffusivity, and viscosity of the condensates through the binding energy can be tested experimentally.

Kant’s Account of Epistemic Normativity

Abstract According to a common interpretation, most explicitly defended by Onora O’Neill and Patricia Kitcher, Kant held that epistemic obligations normatively depend on moral obligations. That is, were a rational agent not bound by any moral obligation, then she would not be bound by any epistemic obligation either. By contrast, in this paper, I argue that, according to Kant, some epistemic obligations are normatively independent from moral obligations, and are indeed normatively absolute. This view, which I call epistemicism, has two parts. First, it claims that in the absence of other kinds of obligations, rational agents would still be bound by these epistemic obligations, i. e., that the latter are normatively independent. Second, it claims that, no matter what other obligations are at stake, rational agents are bound by these epistemic obligations, i. e., the normativity of these epistemic obligations is absolute in that it cannot be undercut by any moral or other sort of obligation. The argument turns on an exploratory reading of Kant’s remarks in “What Is Orientation in Thinking?” (1786) about the maxim of “thinking for oneself” as the “supreme touchstone of truth”. In contrast to O’Neill and Kitcher, I argue that if we interpret this maxim as stating the unifying principle of theoretical and practical reason, then we must interpret it as stating an epistemic, and not merely practical imperative. This result, I argue, vindicates epistemicism and illuminates interesting lessons about Kant’s conception of the category of “epistemic” norms. Further, it helps us make headway with Kant’s enigmatic remarks about the unity of practical and theoretical reason in the Groundwork, the first and second Critiques, and the Lectures on Logic. On my proposal, principles of the practical and theoretical uses of reason are unified through a formal epistemic principle.

A Step Forward: Functional Diversity and Emerging Themes of Slow-Speed Locomotion in Vertebrates.

Walking can be defined broadly as a slow-speed movement produced when appendages interact with the ground to generate forward propulsion. Until recently, most studies of walking have focused on humans and a handful of domesticated vertebrates moving at a steady rate over highly simplified, static surfaces, which may bias our understanding of the unifying principles that underlie vertebrate locomotion. In the last few decades, studies have expanded to include a range of environmental contexts (e.g., uneven terrain, perturbations, deformable substrates) and greater phylogenetic breadth (e.g., non-domesticated species, small and/or ectothermic tetrapods and fishes); these studies have revealed that even a gait as superficially simple as walking is far more complex than previously thought. In addition, technological advances and accessibility of imaging systems and computational power have recently expanded our capabilities to test hypotheses about the locomotor movements of extant and extinct organisms in silico. In this symposium, scientists showcased diverse taxa (from extant fishes to extinct dinosaurs) moving through a range of variable conditions (speed perturbations, inclines, and deformable substrates) to address the causes and consequences of functional diversity in locomotor systems and discuss nascent research areas and techniques. From the symposium contributions, several themes emerged: (1) slow-speed, appendage-based movements in fishes are best described as walking-like movements rather than true walking gaits, (2) environmental variation (e.g., deformable substrates) and dynamic stimuli (e.g., perturbations) trigger kinematic and neuromuscular changes in animals that make defining a single gait or the transition between gaits more complicated than originally thought, and (3) computational advances have increased the ability to process large data sets, emulate the 3D motions of extant and extinct taxa, and even model species interactions in ancient ecosystems. Although this symposium allowed us to make great strides forward in our understanding of vertebrate walking, much ground remains to be covered. First, there is a much greater range of vertebrate appendage-based locomotor behaviors than has been previously recognized and existing terminology fails to accurately capture and describe this diversity. Second, despite recent efforts, the mechanisms that vertebrates use modify locomotor behaviors in response to predictable and unpredictable locomotor challenges are still poorly understood. Third, while computer-based models and simulations facilitate a greater understanding of the kinetics and kinematics of movement in both extant and extinct animals, a universal, one-size-fits-all, predictive model of appendage-based movement in vertebrates remains elusive.

Inflammatory signalling in atrial cardiomyocytes: a novel unifying principle in atrial fibrillation pathophysiology.

Inflammation has been implicated in atrial fibrillation (AF), a very common and clinically significant cardiac rhythm disturbance, but its precise role remains poorly understood. Work performed over the past 5 years suggests that atrial cardiomyocytes have inflammatory signalling machinery — in particular, components of the NLRP3 (NACHT-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing 3) inflammasome — that is activated in animal models and patients with AF. Furthermore, work in animal models suggests that NLRP3 inflammasome activation in atrial cardiomyocytes might be a sufficient and necessary condition for AF occurrence. In this Review, we evaluate the evidence for the role and pathophysiological significance of cardiomyocyte NLRP3 signalling in AF. We first summarize the evidence for a role of inflammation in AF and review the biochemical properties of the NLRP3 inflammasome, as defined primarily in studies of classic inflammation. We then briefly consider the broader evidence for a role of inflammatory signalling in heart disease, particularly conditions that predispose individuals to develop AF. We provide a detailed discussion of the available information about atrial cardiomyocyte NLRP3 inflammasome signalling in AF and related conditions and evaluate the possibility that similar signalling might be important in non-myocyte cardiac cells. We then review the evidence on the role of active resolution of inflammation and its potential importance in suppressing AF-related inflammatory signalling. Finally, we consider the therapeutic potential and broader implications of this new knowledge and highlight crucial questions to be addressed in future research.

Opinion Dynamics and Unifying Principles: A Global Unifying Frame.

I review and extend the set of unifying principles that allow comparing all models of opinion dynamics within one single frame. Within the Global Unifying Frame (GUF), any specific update rule chosen to study opinion dynamics for discrete individual choices is recast into a probabilistic update formula. The associated dynamics is deployed using a general probabilistic sequential process, which is iterated via the repeated reshuffling of agents between successive rounds of local updates. The related driving attractors and tipping points are obtained with non-conservative regimes featuring both threshold and threshold-less dynamics. Most stationary states are symmetry broken, but fifty–fifty coexistence may also occur. A practical procedure is exhibited for several versions of Galam and Sznajd models when restricted to the use of three agents for the local updates. Comparing these various models, some are found to be identical within the GUF. Possible discrepancies with numerical simulations are discussed together with the difference between the GUF procedure and a mean field approach.

The Philosophical Significance of Secondary Uses of Language in Wittgenstein’s Later Philosophy

This paper aims to provide an account of Wittgenstein’s employment of the distinction between primary and secondary use of words. Against views that circumscribe its relevance to aesthetics and ethics, the paper demonstrates that there are many instances of secondary uses in Wittgenstein’s work that are not reducible to those limited applications. Additionally, as secondary uses are often interpreted as having an expressive function, the paper argues that we cannot reduce secondariness to a single unifying principle, because the distinction is philosophical, as it works as a powerful device to tackle different, often unrelated, philosophical issues.

TROPIC AND SEMANTIC DISPLACEMENT AS MODERNIST COMPLEXITY IN WALLACE STEVENS POETRY

The American symbolist Wallace Stevens (1879-1955) is widely accepted as one of the most complicated poets of twentieth-century modernism. Due to his contribution to poetry through a genuinely innovative style that has inspired many, he has been recognized as one of the most notable and revered American poets. The present study aims to attempt a discussion on Stevens’ poetics by focusing on a number of poems that exemplify its semantic and linguistic complexity in terms of symbolic structures, imagery, and other tropic qualities. It limits itself to a number of poems that apparently accommodate Stevens’ favorite theme—the relationship between imagination and reality—and simultaneously reconstruct and deconstruct their own aesthetic delineations. Moreover, this study rests on the idea that Stevens’ body of work is itself deconstructive and that poststructuralist philosophy and deconstructionist criticism may come to aid when one attempts to demonstrate how those semantic and linguistic complexities become the coinages of modernist poems in their attempt to present themselves as organic and coherent entities, organized around a unifying principle. Keywords: Wallace Stevens, Modernist Poetry, Deconstruction, Symbolism, Jacques Derrida, J. Hillis Miller

Stranger than metals.

In traditional metals, the temperature (T) dependence of electrical resistivity vanishes at low or high T, albeit for different reasons. Here, we review a class of materials, known as "strange" metals, that can violate both of these principles. In strange metals, the change in slope of the resistivity as the mean free path drops below the lattice constant, or as T → 0, can be imperceptible, suggesting continuity between the charge carriers at low and high T. We focus on transport and spectroscopic data on candidate strange metals in an effort to isolate and identify a unifying physical principle. Special attention is paid to quantum criticality, Planckian dissipation, Mottness, and whether a new gauge principle is needed to account for the nonlocal transport seen in these materials.