Norms for Outer Space: A Small Step or a Giant Leap for Policymaking?

Space is increasingly critical to modern life on Earth. But there is growing concern that, as it becomes more economically and strategically important, tensions between different space actors are heightening in a manner that could lead to conflict. The accelerating proliferation of counterspace capabilities, as well as the enactment of national policies that deem space an operational or warfighting domain, underlines the very real nature of threats that exist and highlights the importance of keeping space peaceful. To address these challenges, some experts in space security have called for more robust norms of behaviour in outer space. This report explores the role of norms as a tool for outer space governance, as well as their challenges and limitations.

The funeral cave of Laang Spean | ល្អា ងបញច្ុះសពនៃស្ថា ៃីយល្អា ងស្ពា ៃ

Discovered in 1965 by Cécile and Roland Mourer in the limestone massifs of the Battambang region in Cambodia, the Lang Spean cave is a karstic cavity with three main chambers with a floor area of about 1000 m2 and a vault height of thirty metres. The archaeological sequence of Laang Spean now includes several meters thick level of ancient activity dated between 71,000 and 26,000 years ago surmounted by a Hoabinhian occupation (11,000-5,000 BP), with a third summit level characterized by Neolithic tombs. Cemeteries and funeral spaces are major sites in Southeast Asia still used to reconstruct the chrono-cultural sequence of the region. However, their studies present a failure to take into account the funerary nature of the studied sites. Archeothanatology, although partly known by colleagues working in Southeast Asian has not been developed sufficiently leading to numerous problems linked to the real nature of the sites. A burial site where individuals chosen by a community have been placed presents an altered vision of the population, whereas a study of funerary gestures and recruitment makes possible to understand these choices. Thus, the discovery of Neolithic burials at Laang Spean was the opportunity to implement an excavation protocol that follows the principles of archeothantology including to determine the positioning of the defunct at the time of burial in order to illustrate the funerary practice carried out by its original population. Despite the fragility of the bones we carried out observations and measurements useful for determining the biological characteristics, including sex, age, stature or pathologies of the individuals uncovered and, direct dating were successful. Finally, the Laang Spean cave appears to be a Neolithic funerary cave according to its dating but showing some characteristics found in the Metal age on the nearby Khorat plateau.

Olfactory sensory preconditioning in Drosophila: role of memory forgetting in gating S1/S2 associations

Learning and memory storage is a complex process that has proven challenging to tackle. It is likely that, in real nature, the instructive value of reinforcing experiences is acquired rather than innate. The association between seemingly neutral stimuli increases the gamut of possibilities to create meaningful associations and increases the predictive power of moment-by-moment experiences. Here we report physiological and behavioral evidence of olfactory unimodal sensory preconditioning in fruit flies. We show that the presentation of a pair of odors (S1 and S2) before one of them (S1) is associated with electric shocks elicits a conditional response not only to the trained odor (S1) but to the odor previously paired with it (S2). This occurs even if the S2 odor was never presented in contiguity with the aversive stimulus. In addition, we show that inhibition of the small G protein and known forgetting regulator Rac1 facilitates the association between S1/S2 odors. These results indicate that flies can infer value to non-paired odor based on the previous associative structure between odors, and inhibition of Rac1 lengthens the time of olfactory sensory buffer, allowing linking of neutral odors presented in sequence.

The role of innovation in our accelerating future

According to the original idea, a sustainable future is expected to keep humanity and our habitat on Earth free from drastic, catastrophic changes, while also allowing ideology-free progress with beneficial scientific, technological, and cultural advancements of society. Changes in human society have occurred throughout history, sometimes rather slowly, some other times with dramatical speed, even by revolutions. Nevertheless, in our recent past many processes have accelerated to levels never experienced earlier, achieved primarily through a staggering range of scientific and technological advances, followed by cultural changes, some of which have not been anticipated. This was a consequence of associated better living standards for many, which also resulted in a major population growth on our planet. Although a pandemic like Covid-19 or other major international events may temporarily reduce the pace of some global changes, as of now, such events do not appear to cause major slowdowns of fundamental changes in the main trends. Therefore, while facing an accelerating future, there is today a much more urgent need for purpose-focused innovations and for their most important sources: real, nature-based science, and truth-committed scientists and technologists. Ramifications for culture and society in general are also essential. More action would be required to counter the cultural pandemic of the information-avalanche of trendy simplicities dressed up as “know-it-all” excuses, used by many in our society. Their intent is to skip the effort needed for real, science-based education and for logic-respecting thinking with responsibility. Especially, in the age of WWW and Internet, it would be highly important to formulate reasonable expectations for a code of “Internet-Integrity”, as a Cultural Innovation, that would help to provide better focus on truthfulness and fact-based understanding of nature, society, and culture in our rapidly evolving Information Age. In turn, such a “Cultural Innovation” could also lead to a more broadly-based participation, hence more successes in the development of new, purpose-focused technological innovations, and at a deeper level, in the enhanced, further development of their scientific foundations.

Fuzzy Logic Control with PSO Tuning

Several applications of artificial intelligence in the area of control of dynamic systems have proven to be an efficient tool for process improvement. In this context, control systems based on fuzzy logic - Fuzzy Logic Control (FLC) are part of a series of advances in the areas of control systems. Fuzzy control is based on natural language and therefore has the ability to make approximations closer to the real nature of the problems. The use of metaheuristic algorithms such as the particle swarm optimization (PSO) allows it to provide adequate adjustments to the fuzzy controller in an optimized manner. This technique allows to adjust the FLC in a simple way according to the performance desired by the designer, without the need for a long time of conventional tests.

The Theological Importance of Prof. Uwe’s Christian Poems

Prof. Heinz-Uwe Haus is an internationally renowned director and is considered one of the world’s leading authorities on Bertolt Brecht. Besides his theatrical achievements, he proves to have a profound knowledge of Christian doctrines, which is significantly well portrayed in his Christian poems. His poetic lines unveil the essential spirit of the New Testament. In this paper, a few poems are chosen to illustrate his theological thoughts, which are intricately connected with the core value of the New Testament, including Jesus’ crucifixion, salvation, man’s real nature, fundamental faith, and so on.

Authoritarian Populism, Environmentalism and Exceptional Governance in Hungary

This paper analyzes how the incumbent authoritarian populist Orbán government started to navi­gate itself from an anti-climate to a conservative green position. First, the theoretical background of environmentalism and democracy/autocracy will be investigated. It is to say that the relationship between democracy and the environment is quite contradictory, although democracy has a demonstrable effect on the quality of the environment and sustainability, it is not worth absolutizing. That is why we should put an emphasis on the environmental approach of authoritarian regimes, here as a case study of the Hungarian regime. From 2010, the Orbán regime elaborated an ambiguous attitude toward the environment and green politics; on the on hand, it was characterized by climate denialism and demolition of environmental institutions, on the other hand, the super-majority behind the regime accepted the Fundamental Law with several green elements. In the second half of 2019 and early 2020, the regime started to create a new conservative green agenda. This authoritarian populist greening is not based on eco-authoritarian traditions. This paper challenges the notion that authoritarian populist actors are hostile to environmental policies. The Orbán regime proved adaptive in the case of the climate emergency and is about to elaborate its own climate agenda. At the same time, the regime is unable to face the real nature of the climate and ecological emergencies. The crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has been used by the regime to rule by decree based on exceptional powers. In fact, the regime relied on exceptional governance before the COVID-19 crisis, ever since the migration crisis of 2015. The authoritarian populist regime recognized the political opportunities of exceptional governance in terms of overlapping crises and that is why it is characterized by authoritarian climate populism.

Pyrrhonism and the Value of Law

The aim of this paper is to determine how a Pyrrhonian (as she/he is described by Sextus Empiricus) considers the Law and can respond to Aristocles’ objection that a Pyrrhonian is unable to obey laws. First (1), we analyze the function of the Law in the 10th Mode of Aenesidemus, in order to show laws as a dogmatic source of value. But (2) Sextus shows also that the Sceptic can live in a human society by following laws and customs, according to so-called ‘sceptical conformism’. In the light of Pyrrhonian Hypotyposes (Pyr.) 1.23–24 and Against the Mathematicians (Math.) 11.162–164, I discuss the validity of the label ‘conformism’ in order to understand the nature of the political effect of the suspension of judgement. (3) The real nature of the political position of Pyrrhonian Scepticism – that lack of commitment does not mean indifference to politics but rather a criticism of fanaticism and praise for political cautiousness – appears by comparison with the Scepticism of the New Academy.

Vaccine Protection Efficiency Compared with the Smart Application of Common-Sense Pandemic Control Measures

Most recent NIH studies and CDC publication were able to estimate the vaccine efficacy variation overtime, and to remove the previous vail of ultimate and absolute protection against SARS-CoV-2, known as COVID-19 with respect to delta variant, propagated in the USA. The statistical data shows clear that Vaccines as Pfizer ad Moderna works, in spite their efficacies are decreasing with about 5%/month, are still able to protect in a more complex manner than masks and nano-engineered aerodynamics based protection measures. If these measures are referring to preventing inhalation of any hazardous material, no matter the type of viruses, the vaccine is dealing with the effects of virus inside the body after the intake took place. These vaccines were considered an ultimate protection and praised as such, as being in fact big pharma business, easy to be understood by masses with a real nature hazard mitigation IQ level much lower than the one made at national level based on the actual IQ tests customized to keep happy Caucasians, but fit well on Pacific Rim Asians. The problem with engineered protection is that one needs a smart population, cooperating synergistically, and be knowledgeable on when and how to use the protection in order to stop pandemic, insulate aggressor virus, create a vaccine and terminate the hazard. The current US practice is dominated by high-level mis-information and politicization of pandemic, where the actual spike in delta variant is due to CDC suppression of masks, without reaching a heard immunity, praising and enforcing vaccination aggravated by the incompetence of conservatives, who do not understand that a sick or dead person cannot enjoy constitutional freedoms, and do not distinguish between a life threat and a right, simply opposing to government without coming with alternate measures, having a disastrous effect on US population which with only 4% of world’s population delivered more than 25% of world’s causalities. The current milestone of 610,000 deaths and 40 million infected made the world leery about US exceptionalism and its planetary leadership.

In quest of higher dimensions – Superstring Theory and the Calabi – Yau manifolds

Higher dimensions are impossible to visualize as the size of dimension varies inversely proportional to its level. The more the dimension ranges, the least its size. We are a set of points living in a particular point of space and a particular frame of time. i.e, we live in space-time. The space has more dimensions that meets the human eye. We are living in a world of hyper-space. Our world being a smaller dimension is floating in higher dimensions. The quest for the visually of higher dimensions has been a fantasy to mankind but this aspect of nature is completely locked. We can transform dimensions i.e., from higher to lower dimensions, or from lower to higher dimensions, but only through mathematics. The relative notion of mathematics helps us to do the thing, which is perhaps impossible in the experimental part of physical reality. Humans being an element of 3 Dimensions – length, breath, height can only perceive one higher dimensions, that is space-time. but beyond that the notion of dimension itself changes. The dimensions got curled up in every intersection of the coordinates of space in such a way that the higher dimensions remain stable to us. But in reality it is highly unstable. In the higher dimensions, above 4, the space is tearing apart and joining again spontaneously, but the tearing portion itself covered by 2 dimensional Branes which acts as a stabilizer for the unstable dimensions. Dimensions will get smaller and smaller with the space-time interwoven in it. But at Planks length that is 10^-33 meter, the notion of space-time itself breaks down thereby making impossible for the higher dimensions to coexist along with space. Without space, there will be no identity of any dimension. The space itself is the fabric for the milestone of residing higher dimensions. Imagine our room, which is 3 dimensional. But what is there inside the room. The space and of course the time. Space-time being a totally separate entity is not quite separate when compared with other dimensions because it makes the residing place for the higher dimensions or the hyperspace itself. We all are confined within a lower dimensional world within a randomness of higher dimensions. Time being alike like space is an arrow which has the capability of slicing space into different forms. Thereby taking a snapshot of our every nano-second we vibrate within space-time. As each slice of time represents each slice of space, similarly each slice of space represents each slice of time. The nature of space-time is beyond human consciousness. It is the identity by which we breathe, we play, we survive. It is the whole localization of species that encompasses itself with space thereby making space-time a relative quantity depending upon the reference frame. The only thing that can encompass space-time or even change the relative definition of space-time is the speed, the speed far beyond the speed of light. The more the speed, the less the array of time flows. Space-time being an invisible entity makes the other dimensions visible residing in it only into the level of 3, that is l, b, h. After that there is a infamous structure formed by the curling of higher dimensions called CALABI-YAU manifold. This manifold depicts the usual nature of the dimensional quadrants of the higher order by containing a number of small spherical spheres inside it. The mathematics of string theory is still unable to solve the genus and the containing spheres of the manifold which can be the ultimate quest for the hidden dimensions. Hidden, as, the higher dimensions are hidden from human perspective of macro level but if we probe deeper into the fabric of the space-time of General Relativity then we will find the 5th dimension according to the Kaluza-Klein theory. And if we probe even deeper into it at the perspective of string theory we will be amazed to see the real nature of quantum world. They are so marvelously beautiful, they contain so many forms of higher dimensions ranging from 6 to 10. And even many more of that, but we are still not sure about it where they may exist in a ghost state. After all, the quantum nature is far more beautiful that one can even imagine with a full faze of weirdness.