Delayed fertilization facilitates flowering time diversity in Fagaceae

Fagaceae includes typical masting species that exhibit highly synchronized and fluctuating acorn production. Fagaceae shows an interesting feature in that fertilization is delayed by several weeks to more than 1 year after pollination. Although delayed fertilization was recorded over a century ago, the evolutionary advantage of delayed fertilization is still poorly understood. Here, we present a new hypothesis that delayed fertilization facilitates temporal niche differentiation via non-overlapping flowering times among species. Comparing flowering and fruiting times in 228 species from five genera in Fagaceae, we first show that there is a close association between a wider spread of flowering times and the likelihood of a 2-year fruiting habit in which there is a long delay from pollination to fertilization. To study the coevolution of flowering time and delayed fertilization, we developed a mathematical model that incorporates the effects of competition for pollinators, seed predator satiation and unfavourable season for reproduction on fitness. The model shows that delayed fertilization facilitates the diversification of flowering time in a population, which is advantageous for animal-pollinated trees that compete over pollinators. Our new hypothesis about the coevolution of delayed fertilization and flowering time will provide new insight into the evolution of masting. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The ecology and evolution of synchronized seed production in plants’.

Multicultural Awareness of Al-Qur'an Perspective and Prevention of Religious Radicalism-Liberalism

Diversity has existed for a long time. Diversity is not a tool to cause conflict between humans. However, improper multicultural management can lead to conflict. Multicultural awareness is needed for humans with various differences, so that humans can live side by side and respect each other. This study is a normative qualitative through library research. The research is oriented towards discovering the conception of multicultural awareness as the Isyarah of Al-Qur'an. Primary data sources are taken from the Al-Qur'an and secondary data are taken from Tafsir books. This result shows that multicultural awareness in the Al-Qur’an perspective is essentially an attitude of glorifying humans regardless of background differences. A society that has multicultural awareness can be seen from the suitability of its attitude with characteristics and ethics. Multicultural awareness can build wasaṭiyyah attitude. With these characteristics, a person's multicultural awareness will be able to prevent radical-liberal behavior.

Tooth morphology elucidates shark evolution across the end-Cretaceous mass extinction

Sharks (Selachimorpha) are iconic marine predators that have survived multiple mass extinctions over geologic time. Their prolific fossil record is represented mainly by isolated shed teeth, which provide the basis for reconstructing deep time diversity changes affecting different selachimorph clades. By contrast, corresponding shifts in shark ecology, as measured through morphological disparity, have received comparatively limited analytical attention. Here, we use a geometric morphometric approach to comprehensively examine tooth morphologies in multiple shark lineages traversing the catastrophic end-Cretaceous mass extinction—this event terminated the Mesozoic Era 66 million years ago. Our results show that selachimorphs maintained virtually static levels of dental disparity in most of their constituent clades across the Cretaceous–Paleogene interval. Nevertheless, selective extinctions did impact apex predator species characterized by triangular blade-like teeth. This is particularly evident among lamniforms, which included the dominant Cretaceous anacoracids. Conversely, other groups, such as carcharhiniforms and orectolobiforms, experienced disparity modifications, while heterodontiforms, hexanchiforms, squaliforms, squatiniforms, and †synechodontiforms were not overtly affected. Finally, while some lamniform lineages disappeared, others underwent postextinction disparity increases, especially odontaspidids, which are typified by narrow-cusped teeth adapted for feeding on fishes. Notably, this increase coincides with the early Paleogene radiation of teleosts as a possible prey source, and the geographic relocation of disparity sampling “hotspots,” perhaps indicating a regionally disjunct extinction recovery. Ultimately, our study reveals a complex morphological response to the end-Cretaceous mass extinction and highlights an event that influenced the evolution of modern sharks.

Work-Time, Male-Breadwinning and the Division of Domestic Labour: Male Part-Time and Full-Time Workers in Unsettled Times

The majority of male workers spend full-time hours in the labour market while part-time employment is heavily female dominated. A decade of economic unrest in the UK following the recession of 2008–2009 was accompanied by a considerable expansion in the numbers of men working part-time. Growing male part-time employment is a significant phenomenon, with potential for narrowing gender inequalities in ways of working, inside and outside the home. Applying a gendered lens to men’s working lives, the article focuses upon the ramifications of this growing male work-time diversity. Unsettled times can create the circumstances for opening up acceptable behaviours, for ‘undoing’ gender roles. The financial circumstances of male part- and full-timers, and men’s engagement in unpaid domestic work, are compared. Part-time jobs are associated with more financial hardship than are full-time, but they offer up the potential for narrowing gender inequality in the sharing of core domestic work tasks.

Diversity-sensitive social platforms and responsibility

There is an ongoing debate on how algorithms and machine learning can and should deal with human diversity while avoiding the pitfalls of statistical stereotyping, the re-enforcement of clichés and the perpetuation of unjust discrimination. Computer scientists try to tackle these issues by developing algorithms and social-interaction protocols for mediating diversity-aware interactions between people, for instance on diversity-sensitive social platforms. At the same time, diversity-related data often comprise sensitive personal data, and their collection, storage and management increases the vulnerability of users to various misuse scenarios. Already this observation leads to the question, how do we need to conceptualize responsibility to do justice to the increased vulnerability? In this paper, I thus focus on the questions a diversity-sensitive social platform raises with regard to responsibility, and propose a tentative ethical framework of responsibility for these platforms.

Mission Statements of Japanese Civil Society Organizations Supporting International Students in the Kansai Area

This study is applying critical discourse analysis (CDA) to mission statements of civil society organizations (CSOs) in the Kansai area of Japan to examine how those texts may be reflecting their views on migration and impacting their practices related to international students. The analysis shows similarities across CSO types in choosing organizational names, using vague and bureaucratic vocabulary for formulating their mission statements, as well as confusing and contradictory style of some statements and event announcements that may be misleading or discouraging for potential members. At the same time, diversity of vocabulary referring to their target audience demonstrates shifting perspectives of CSOs on international students and more generally, on foreigners living in Japan.