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It seems a travesty to reiterate exactly what we mean by ‘Mesopotamia’. The tautological qualities of Greek mésos (‘middle’, ‘in between’) and potamós (‘stream’, ‘river’) often rule out further elaboration of its origins and the assumed self-evident nature of its current application. Yet regional concepts are not stable. Their delineation may be defined according to a complex set of attributes not

Accelerated biodiversity loss has destabilized functional links within and between ecosystems. Species that cross different ecosystems during migration between breeding and nonbreeding sites are particularly sensitive to global change because they are exposed to various, often ecosystem-specific, threats. Because these threats have lethal and nonlethal effects on populations, many migratory specie

BACKGROUND: The degree to which avian migrants revisit the same sites to replicate routes from previous years has received more and more attention as the possibilities of tracking small to medium-size birds over multiple annual cycles have improved. Repeated measurements of individuals with an appropriate sampling resolution can potentially inform about their navigation and migration strategies an

Anthropogenic activities threaten many wildlife populations by increasing mortality rates, making it crucial to identify the locations and causes of mortality to inform conservation actions. Technological advancements, such as GPS satellite tracking, enable precise recording of wildlife movements. High-resolution data from such devices can facilitate rapid carcass recovery and provide insights int

Robins captured as passage migrants by the Baltic Sea in Sweden at Falsterbo and Ottenby Bird Observatories, respectively, differ with respect to body mass, fat load and orientation behaviour. Relatively more birds with large visual fat deposits are captured at Ottenby than at Falsterbo, but robins at Falsterbo carry more fat than robins at Ottenby. Robins with small fat loads at Ottenby probably

The possibility that albatrosses use a geomagnetic bi-coordinate map for long-distance navigation at sea was investigated by evaluating how five different geomagnetic parameters (i.e. total field intensity, horizontal and vertical field intensity, inclination and declination) vary in areas where foraging albatrosses have been recorded by satellite telemetry in the Southern Ocean. Our objective was

The Eleonora's Falcon Falco eleonorae breeds on islands and islets in the Mediterranean region and feeds its young on migratory birds caught in the air. The breeding season is scheduled to coincide with the peak of bird migration. Between 12 and 20 September 1997 we measured flight tracks of falcons within a range of 4 km from their breeding cliffs on Isola di San Pietro 6 km off the south-west co

We propose symmetrical cationic trimethine cyanine dyes with β-substituents in the polymethine chain based on modified benzothiazole and benzoxazole heterocycles as probes for the detection and visualization of live and fixed cells by fluorescence microscopy. The spectral-luminescent properties of trimethine cyanines have been characterized for free dyes and in the presence of nucleic acids (NA) a

The unicellular eukaryote Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an invaluable resource for the study of basic eukaryotic cellular and molecular processes. However, its small size compared to other eukaryotic organisms the study of subcellular structures is challenging. Expansion microscopy (ExM) holds great potential to study the intracellular architecture of yeast, especially when paired with pan-labelling

DNMT3A/3L heterotetramers contain two active centers binding CpG sites at 12 bp distance, however their interaction with DNA not containing this feature is unclear. Using randomized substrates, we observed preferential co-methylation of CpG sites with 6, 9 and 12 bp spacing by DNMT3A and DNMT3A/3L. Co-methylation was favored by AT bases between the 12 bp spaced CpG sites consistent with their incr

Base excision repair is the dominant DNA repair pathway of chemical modifications such as deamination, oxidation, or alkylation of DNA bases, which endanger genome integrity due to their high mutagenic potential. Detection and excision of these base lesions is achieved by DNA glycosylases. To investigate the remarkably high efficiency in target site search and recognition by these enzymes, we appl

Store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) is the major route of Ca2+ influx in platelets. The Ca2+ sensor stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1) triggers SOCE by forming punctate structures with the Ca2+ channel Orai1 and the inositol trisphosphate receptor (IP3R), thereby linking the endo-/sarcoplasmic reticulum to the plasma membrane. Here, we identified the BAR domain superfamily member bridging integra

Fluorescence microscopy allows specific and selective imaging of biological samples. Unfortunately, unspecific background due to auto-fluorescence, scattering, and non-ideal labeling efficiency often adversely affect imaging. Surface plasmon-coupled emission (SPCE) is known to selectively mediate fluorescence that spatially originates from regions close to the metal interface. However, SPCE combin

The G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) superfamily mediates cellular responses and communication across cellular membranes and is the largest known class of molecular targets with proven therapeutic value. For probing conformational changes of GPCRs and others in a live cell setting, fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) is usually the method of choice. FRET probes often require careful lab

This study investigates the ignitability of hydrogen in an optical heavy-duty SI engine. While the ignition energy of hydrogen is exceptionally low, the high load and lean mixtures used in heavy-duty hydrogen engines lead to a high gas density, resulting in a much higher breakdown voltage than in light-duty SI engines. Spark plug wear is a concern, so there is a need to minimise the spark energy w

In 2025, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health celebrates 75 years of leadership in diabetes research. The NIDDK serves people of the U.S. affected by or at risk for many chronic diseases, including diabetes and other endocrine, metabolic, and digestive disorders, by funding innovative research to develop better treatment

Recent years witnessed mass migration towards Europe, from Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the 2015 Migrant Crisis linked to war in Syria. This article explores UK government discussion around these two significant crises, focussing on the challenges they present and the portrayal of refugees. It asks how far ministers' language differentiated between Ukrainians and Syrians regarding welfare

SCAS Talks Podcast: Episode 64.Theme: Knowledge, Epistemes, Universities

This paper proposes an alternative semi-analytical Fourier modal method adapted for general periodic anisotropic gratings made of dielectrics with moderate to low index profiles corresponding to materials ranging from conventional dielectric 3D printing materials to ceramic materials. The proposed method is closely related to classical Rigorous Coupled-Wave Analysis built on scattering matrices, h

This paper analyses the effects of new public management governance on academics’ job choices. Based on a choice experiment carried out with faculty from a sample of Germany’s leading technical universities, we find that working environments characterized by varying levels of administrative burdens and high expectations concerning third-party funding acquisition are detrimental to self-actualizati