Walking mechanisms offer advantages over wheels or tracks for locomotion but often require complex designs. This paper presents the kinematic design and analysis of a novel overconstrained spatial a single degree-of-freedom leg mechanism for walking robots. The mechanism is generated by combining spherical four-bar linkages into two interconnecting loops, resulting in an overconstrained design with compact scalability. Kinematic analysis is applied using recurrent unit vector methods. Dimensional synthesis is performed using the Firefly optimization algorithm to achieve a near-straight trajectory during the stance phase for efficient walking. Constraints for mobility, singularity avoidance, and transmission angle are also implemented. The optimized design solution is manufactured using 3D printing and experimentally tested. Results verify the kinematic properties including near-straight-line motion during stance. The velocity profile shows low perpendicular vibrations. Advantages of the mechanism include compact scalability allowing variable stride lengths, smooth motion from overconstraint, and simplicity of a single actuator. The proposed overconstrained topology provides an effective option for the leg design of walking robots and mechanisms.

This paper poses a rationalist account of the American Revolution that locates the turn to war in problems of credible commitment on both sides of the Atlantic. On the one hand, Britain could not commit credibly to restrain its authority, especially once the political equipoise that had prevailed before the Seven Years War was broken. To render a new colonial bargain credible required tying the hands of Parliament, but any form of colonial representation would have severely disrupted politics in Britain in a period of political change and conflict. On the other hand, Americans could not credibly commit to follow rules set in London, especially those restricting trade and Westward expansion. Neither settlers nor elites had an incentive to comply with imperial edicts and, more importantly, the colonies lacked any means to enforce any potential agreement.

Current literature has shown that poor sleep patterns and social jet lag (SJL) are associated with obesity and weight gain. However, this area remains underexplored in patients who have undergone bariatric surgery. We hypothesized that higher levels of SJL and poorer sleep patterns are associated with lower weight loss, greater caloric/nutrient intake, and poorer metabolic outcomes following surgery. This study aims to assess the associations of SJL and subjective sleep with anthropometric, metabolic, and dietary parameters during the first year following bariatric surgery. SJL, sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness were measured in 122 patients (77% women; median age 33.0 [28.0 – 41.7]). SJL was estimated by the absolute difference between the midpoint of sleep and wake times on weekdays and weekends. Daytime sleepiness and sleep quality were evaluated using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (Epworth) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), respectively. Multiple linear regressions were employed to evaluate the associations of SJL, sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness with weight loss, metabolic, and dietary outcomes. Independent variables were negatively associated with weight loss after surgery: SJL at 6 months and one year; sleep quality at all time points; and sleepiness after one year (p< 0.05). SJL was positively associated with calorie and protein intake after one-year post-surgery (p< 0.05). Our results show that higher SJL and poorer sleep patterns are associated with worse anthropometric, metabolic, and dietary outcomes after bariatric surgery. These findings reinforce the importance of addressing variables related to biological rhythms to optimize post-surgical outcomes in bariatric patients.

Teaching ancient literature in translation is increasingly common across schools and universities; however, there has been limited discussion of pedagogical approaches towards, specifically, translated literature. I discuss the findings of a study conducted on first-year undergraduates at Oxford University, who analysed translations of the Iliad as part of a taught course. The publication of Wilson (2023) offers an opportunity to see how students respond to very recent translations. I explore the pitfalls students encounter when analysing poetry in translation and the ways educators, whether in high schools or universities, can help students negotiate these pitfalls and develop a more sophisticated understanding of literary translation. In particular, I discuss how a student’s level of familiarity with the Greek language affects the ways they analyse translations, and how educators can encourage students with little or no Greek to engage with translations successfully.

Corruption is observed in various processes of human activities, from governance to private life. An important element of preventing corruption is the implementation of codes of ethics, which by the very nature of these codes declare high ethical standards and principles and are consistent with the applicable laws. The effectiveness of codes of ethics in the field of labour relations as a tool for preventing corruption is also reinforced by other auxiliary anti-corruption instruments. The purpose of this article is to determine the role of codes of ethics in shaping corporate culture, outline the importance of ethical principles in labour relations, conduct a detailed analysis of the effectiveness of codes of ethics in the field of labour relations in the framework of corruption prevention, and analyse the application of comprehensive codes of ethics and disciplinary codes as a stimulating tool for the effectiveness of the codes of ethics. As a result, we have drawn conclusions about the importance of using other auxiliary tools alongside codes of ethics to increase efficiency, and in the course of studying the problematic aspects of implementing codes of ethics in the framework of corruption prevention, we have formulated recommendations for their elimination.

Since the first Trump administration, historically marginalized groups in the United States have been subjected to greater instances of bigotry and discrimination due to conservative influence on sociopolitical institutions. These actions suggest a shift in the “Overton Window,” whereby policy preferences previously deemed “unacceptable” are given consideration in the mainstream, especially by conservative policy actors. “Project 2025” is a comprehensive plan to restructure the federal government according to conservative dictates in the second Trump administration. This article is an examination of how higher education may be impacted by this plan, especially as it relates to LGBTQ+1 faculty, administration, staff, and students.

A recurring issue of debate for scholars of Central Europe has been the extent to which analyses of European colonialism apply to Austria-Hungary and its successor states. This article considers this issue in relation to the theologian, archeologist, and scholar of Arabic culture, Alois Musil (1868–1940). Long celebrated in Austria and Czechoslovakia, he has seldom been subject to critical analysis. A loyal Habsburg subject—and confessor to the Empress Zita until 1918—then an enthusiastic promoter of Czechoslovakia and co-founder of the Institute of Oriental Studies in Prague, Musil was a striking example of how individuals in Central Europe adapted to changing political realities. The article focuses in particular on his attitudes to European colonialism. On the one hand, he was critical of British and Italian colonialism, but he worked to further Habsburg imperial interests in the Middle East. When discussing Japanese ambitions in the 1930s, he emphasized the superiority of European colonial rule. He illustrates the complex stance of many Czechs (and other Central Europeans) toward colonialism. They imagined they were innocent of its taint but were in fact enmeshed in it, often endorsing it or acting as agents of the schemes of the European powers.

Farmers make pest and disease management decisions without facing the social costs derived from their input choices. But given the sizable externalities involved, there is a rationale for government intervention. We model the profit-maximizing problem of a representative farmer by specifying a functional form for the damage function that incorporates the biological impact of the pathogen-vector system on yield as well as the abating impact of insecticides on the vector population. We use citrus greening disease in Florida as a case study because farmers there adopted an insecticide program that caused toxicity per acre to increase by 472%. Our simulation results show that a tax rate based on toxicity provides farmers with a strong incentive to substitute highly toxic chemicals with less toxic alternatives. Such a tax is also more efficient relative to a quantity-based tax that achieves a similar reduction in toxicity because it results in a significantly lower reduction in farmers’ yield and profit.