Epilogue

2020 ◽  
pp. 277-280
Author(s):  
Kevin Vallier

The epilogue reviews the argument of the book and explores how to restore trust and contain polarization. We can interrupt the negative feedback loop between distrust and partisan divergence through policies firmly within the liberal democratic toolkit. Freedom of association, markets, the welfare state, democratic governance, and elections have all been shown to promote trust for the right reasons. The epilogue also argues against right-wing and left-wing populism on the grounds that departures from liberalism are likely to make matters worse; the trust-generating properties of liberal institutions may be lost in a transition to a more populist regime, be it left-wing or right-wing.

Author(s):  
Kevin Vallier

Based on recent research, there is probably a negative feedback loop between falling social and political trust and rising political polarization, which this book calls the distrust-divergence hypothesis. The goal of the book, as outlined in the introduction, is to show how liberal institutions can interrupt the feedback loop through policies that increase trust, and that do so in the right way. They do so by recognizing and protecting a range of basic rights that give rise to trust-generating institutions and practices, such as freedom of association, markets, social welfare programs, and democratic governance. Liberal institutions can thereby increase trust, and reduce the destructive aspects of political polarization as a result.


Genealogy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Anna Miglietta ◽  
Barbara Loera

We analyzed the relationship between modern forms of populism and citizen support for exclusive welfare policies and proposals, and we focused on support for left-wing- and right-wing-oriented welfare policies enacted or proposed during the Lega Nord (LN)–Five Star Movement (FSM) government in Italy (2018–2019). In light of the theoretical perspective of political ideology as motivated by social cognition, we examined citizens’ support for the two policies considering adherence to populist attitudes, agreement on the criteria useful to define ingroup membership, and personal values. We also took into account the role of cognitive sophistication in populism avoidance. A total of 785 Italian adults (F = 56.6; mean age = 35.8) completed an online survey in the summer of 2019 based on the following: support for populist policies and proposals, political ideologies and positioning, personal values, and ingroup boundaries. We used correlation and regression analyses. The results highlight the relationships between populism and political conservatism. Populism was related to the vertical and horizontal borders defining the “people”; cognitive sophistication was not a relevant driver. We identified some facilitating factors that could promote adherence to and support for public policies inspired by the values of the right or of the left, without a true ideological connotation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (16) ◽  
pp. 8472
Author(s):  
Senem Aykul ◽  
Jordan Maust ◽  
Vijayalakshmi Thamilselvan ◽  
Monique Floer ◽  
Erik Martinez-Hackert

Adipose tissues (AT) expand in response to energy surplus through adipocyte hypertrophy and hyperplasia. The latter, also known as adipogenesis, is a process by which multipotent precursors differentiate to form mature adipocytes. This process is directed by developmental cues that include members of the TGF-β family. Our goal here was to elucidate, using the 3T3-L1 adipogenesis model, how TGF-β family growth factors and inhibitors regulate adipocyte development. We show that ligands of the Activin and TGF-β families, several ligand traps, and the SMAD1/5/8 signaling inhibitor LDN-193189 profoundly suppressed 3T3-L1 adipogenesis. Strikingly, anti-adipogenic traps and ligands engaged the same mechanism of action involving the simultaneous activation of SMAD2/3 and inhibition of SMAD1/5/8 signaling. This effect was rescued by the SMAD2/3 signaling inhibitor SB-431542. By contrast, although LDN-193189 also suppressed SMAD1/5/8 signaling and adipogenesis, its effect could not be rescued by SB-431542. Collectively, these findings reveal the fundamental role of SMAD1/5/8 for 3T3-L1 adipogenesis, and potentially identify a negative feedback loop that links SMAD2/3 activation with SMAD1/5/8 inhibition in adipogenic precursors.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zicong Guo ◽  
Kunhua Wen ◽  
Yuwen Qin ◽  
Yihong Fang ◽  
Zhengfeng Li ◽  
...  

AbstractIn this paper, a sub-wavelength metal-insulator-metal (MIM) waveguide structure is proposed by using a cross-shape rectangular cavity, of which wings are coupled with two rectangular cavities. Firstly, a cross-shape rectangular cavity is placed between the input and output MIM waveguides. According to the mutual interference between bright and dark modes, three Fano resonant peaks are generated. Secondly, by adding a rectangular cavity on the left wing of the cross shaped one, five asymmetric Fano resonance peaks are obtained. Thirdly, six asymmetric Fano resonance peaks are achieved after adding another cavity on the right wing. Finally, the finite-difference-time-domain (FDTD) method and multimode interference coupled-mode theory (MICMT) are used to simulate and analyze the coupled plasmonic resonant system, respectively. The highest sensitivity of 1 000nm/RIU is achieved.


2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 421-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanbo Wang ◽  
Hongwei Liang ◽  
Geyu Zhou ◽  
Xiuting Hu ◽  
Zhengya Liu ◽  
...  

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