Sentiment analysis and stance detection are key tasks in text analysis, with applications ranging from understanding political opinions to tracking policy positions. Recent advances in large language models (LLMs) offer significant potential to enhance sentiment analysis techniques and to evolve them into the more nuanced task of detecting stances expressed toward specific subjects. In this study, we evaluate lexicon-based models, supervised models, and LLMs for stance detection using two corpuses of social media data—a large corpus of tweets posted by members of the U.S. Congress on Twitter and a smaller sample of tweets from general users—which both focus on opinions concerning presidential candidates during the 2020 election. We consider several fine-tuning strategies to improve performance—including cross-target tuning using an assumption of congressmembers’ stance based on party affiliation—and strategies for fine-tuning LLMs, including few shot and chain-of-thought prompting. Our findings demonstrate that: 1) LLMs can distinguish stance on a specific target even when multiple subjects are mentioned, 2) tuning leads to notable improvements over pretrained models, 3) cross-target tuning can provide a viable alternative to in-target tuning in some settings, and 4) complex prompting strategies lead to improvements over pretrained models but underperform tuning approaches.

The war of 1578–1590 marked a turning point in Ottoman-Safavid relations. It followed thirty-three years of peace and ushered in over half a century of nearly continuous crisis and bloodshed. Militarily, the conflict was centered primarily in the Caucasus, where the Ottomans achieved significant territorial gains, formalized in the Treaty of Constantinople (1590). This war is among the better documented of the Ottoman-Safavid conflicts thanks to a wealth of contemporary sources, particularly from the Ottoman side. However, the lack of contemporary Safavid sources, as well as the neglect of local and global perspectives, has led to a biased and partial understanding, which the present special section seeks to address. Two of this section’s articles focus on the Caucasus campaign of 1578–1579, emphasizing Ottoman interactions with local populations and the daily experiences of ordinary soldiers (Alsancakli and Stevens). Two other articles examine Safavid relations with Russia and the Italian states in the context of a potential anti-Ottoman alliance (Rybar and Trentacoste). All four contributions are based on the presentation and publication or translation of previously unknown or overlooked primary sources.

The Hyphantria cunea (Drury) is a highly polyphagous invasive pest that has become widespread and destructive in China. Although sex pheromone components of H. cunea have been identified, the weak field attraction of synthetic sex pheromone has hindered the application of sex pheromone-based lures in efficient monitoring and management of this pest. In this study, the electroantennographic (EAG) and field responses of H. cunea male adults to three synthetic sex pheromone components, including Z9, Z12, Z15-18Ald (C18:Ald), Z3, Z6-9S,10 R-epoxy-21Hy (C21-2Epo), and 1, Z3, Z6-9S,10 R-epoxy-21Hy (C21-3Epo), were evaluated. Male antennae exhibited significant dose-dependent response to three individual components and a ternary mixtures. The younger and virgin male moths showed stronger electrophysiological activity to synthetic compounds, whereas sensitivity decreased significantly after mating. Among the three components, C21-3Epo elicited the strongest antennal responses. Field trapping revealed that neither single compounds nor binary blends attracted males, whereas only the ternary blend of C18:3Ald, C21-2Epo, and C21-3Epo (ratio 8:1:1; 10 mg total load) effectively captured large numbers of males. In addition, the field trapping indicated that the green rubber septum functioned as a practical dispenser for synthetic pheromones. The Unitraps baited with the green rubber septum showed significantly higher trapping efficiency than cotton wicks, highlighting the septum as a promising dispenser for field deployment of synthetic sex pheromones. Finally, the green rubber septum baited with a ternary blend monitored the dynamics of H. cunea occurrence and detected that the emergence period overlapped with the commercially available synthetic lure. In general, the bioactivity of the synthetic sex pheromone of H. cunea was validated. It could effectively capture H. cunea male adults, be used to monitor and control H. cunea, and further be incorporated into the integrated pest management programme.

This paper is situated within the context of the onset of British imperialism in Nigeria at the end of the nineteenth century, with a particular focus on the conquest of the Ijebu Kingdom. The episode, as discussed in the paper, is intended for stage or screen theatrical adaptation. It demonstrates the value of historical dramatization based on data foregrounded by standard historical and relevant research methodologies. The principal text in the paper, derived from primary and research-based sources, is outlined in a chronological narrative. The general idea is to enable the development of a script to create a historical drama.

L-carnitine is essential for myocardial metabolism, and its depletion may compromise heart function. We conducted a prospective observational study to assess serum carnitine profiles in 26 children under 36 months of age undergoing elective open-heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass. Measurements included free carnitine, acylcarnitine, and the acylcarnitine-to-free carnitine ratio, recorded preoperatively and at multiple postoperative time points up to 24 hours. We observed a significant postoperative decline in free carnitine and an increase in the acylcarnitine-to-free carnitine ratio, both of which correlated with cardiopulmonary bypass duration. These results highlight a perioperative disturbance in carnitine metabolism, suggesting potential relevance for postoperative cardiac recovery.

We propose an evolutionary competition model to investigate the green transition of firms, highlighting the role of adjustment costs, state-dependent transition risk, and positive externalities in green technology adoption. Firms base their decisions to adopt either green or brown technologies on relative performance. To incorporate the costs of switching to another technology into their decision-making process, we adopt a novel, ad hoc crafted, replicator dynamics. Our global analysis reveals that increasing transition risk, e.g., by threatening to impose stricter environmental regulations, effectively incentivizes the green transition. Economic policy recommendations derived from our model further suggest maintaining high transition risk regardless of the industry’s level of greenness. Subsidizing the costs of adopting green technologies can reduce the risk of a failed green transition. While positive externalities in green technology adoption can amplify the effects of green policies, they do not completely eliminate the possibility of a failed green transition. Finally, evolutionary pressure reduces the extent of green economic policies required to ensure a successful green transition.

This study examines public-private partnerships (PPPs) in home- and community-based services (HCBS) for older adults in Guangzhou, China, amid growing efforts to increase non-state actor participation and market mechanisms in welfare provision. Based on semi-structured interviews with non-state actors, this research examines both contractual and relational dimensions of PPPs and why achieving their full potential remains challenging. Findings reveal that state actors maintain a leading role in PPPs, with non-state actors primarily positioned as implementers of predefined welfare objectives. The power imbalance embedded in China’s sociopolitical context blurs the boundaries among the Party, state, and society, shaping coordination challenges in PPPs. These structural constraints hinder integrated service delivery and limit the extent to which PPPs can meaningfully leverage the expertise of various actors. This study enhances understanding of PPPs in China’s authoritarian, state-led market context and offers insights into the evolving landscape of welfare socialisation reforms.

Divine simplicity is plausibly seen as a biblical doctrine, given a standard account of the way doctrine is derived from Scripture. The polemic of Jeremiah 10 against ancient Near Eastern mis pî or ‘mouth opening’ rituals involves a commitment to a radical account of divine aseity. In dialogue with Thomas Aquinas and a number of contemporary figures, I suggest this view of divine aseity might plausibly be thought to lead to the inference to divine simplicity.

Political misinformation represents a challenge to contemporary democracies. It is widely acknowledged that misinformation is not only spread by individual users on social media, but also by politicians employing both digital and legacy media to disseminate biased or misleading content to advance their political agendas. This study explores the mechanisms through which misinformed statements made by politicians influence public opinion and examines the effectiveness of corrections from academic/official sources or fact-checking websites, also focusing on the role of partisanship. We investigate whether agreement with a misinformed statement on key policy issues – minimum wage, COVID-19 vaccination, and working hours – increases when it is attributed to a politician, and whether corrections by academic/official sources or fact-checkers reduce agreement. Through survey experiments conducted in Italy, we find that while misinformation from politicians does not always affect agreement with false statements, corrections generally decrease agreement. However, partisanship plays a crucial role, with individuals more likely to resist correction when misinformation comes from politicians they have more positive feelings toward. These findings shed light on the complex relationship between misinformation, the effectiveness of corrective messages, and political identity in shaping public opinion.