Monuments for deserters: A particularity of German memory culture

This paper examines the changing face of deserters in Germany and the gradual entry of monuments dedicated to them into German memorial culture. The multiple changes in the perception of the Wehrmacht (united armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935-1945) deserters during the last 70 years from cowards and traitors to (anti-)heroes to victims is the result of generational shifts and changed political contexts. Deserters from the Wehrmacht were a taboo subject for a long time. Over the course of the past thirty years, their story has been reappraised. It now has a visual presence in the form of counter monuments which challenge notions of traditional heroic military virtues and the place of resistance in modern political German culture. Counter-monuments, which had their origins in Germany in the 1980s, were always intended to be provocative, for they sought to disrupt a discourse that had become anachronistic, even unbearable in the eyes of many. Whether they will continue to have a presence, whether further deserter monuments will be built, or whether a future retrospective evaluation will show these monuments to have been an ephemeral and singular phenomenon, is still uncertain.

Flying with Covid: The visual presence of the pandemic in airports

Since the beginning of 2020, with the eclosion of the Covid-19 pandemic, airports have been included among the main hotspots for the diffusion of the disease. Several limitations affected the possibility for people to travel, with diverse approaches between the countries, and with differences among who was authorized to travel and who was not. This caused a contraction on the number of passengers transiting in the airports in all the countries. However the commercial international aviation has never stopped, and despite the reduction of passengers the airports managed to implement health security protocols for the Covid-19 diffusion control. Before the pandemic, other challenges already affected airports’ security protocols, such as the “terrorist threat”, making of these places “nervous systems” (as defined by Maguire and Pétercsak). After one year and half from the beginning of the pandemic, with the vaccination campaigns accelerating in various countries (with the clear differences due to governments’ political choices and countries’ access to vaccines) the air travels have returned to a condition similar to previous one. An increasing number of planes flying and an increasing number of passengers can be registered everywhere. Meanwhile, the sanitary attention to the Covid-19 diffusion contention continues to be a concern in the space organization of airports.This ethnographic photoessay aims at describing the visual presence of the Covid in the airports. The work focuses on four airports in three countries the author passed through in June 2021. They are the airports of Salvador da Bahia (Brazil), Lisbon (Portugal), Rome and Venice (Italy). Despite the differences between the countries in the approached adopted to contain the diffusion of the pandemic, airports are subjected to standardized international protocols. These are intended to (re)produce similar safety measures in the diverse airports. Meanwhile, airports are designed not to be identitarian, historical and relational, but yes to be experienced as “non places” (as Augé defined these places). However, each airport introduces several dimensions of its specific location, of its specific local health politics, of its specific passengers’ flow, and so on, making of them a peculiar place to observe the space design for Covid diffusion control. Despite the definition of the Covid as an “invisible enemy”, used in general media in diverse countries, the thesis is that the presence of the virus is highly visible to everyone passing in some airport, independently from the specific country. Meanwhile, the diverse airports introduce their own local and specific visual modalities to achieve passengers. Pictures included in this ethnographic photoessay focus on some of these modalities, such as the hand gel dispensers, instructions and prohibitions for preventing Covid dissemination, among other. Covid’s aesthetics in airports highlights how the pandemic affected people visual and sensorial experiences of these places and of their designs.

Decoding of human identity by computer vision and neuronal vision

SummaryExtracting meaning from a dynamic and variable flow of incoming information is a major goal of both natural and artificial intelligence. Computer vision (CV) guided by deep learning (DL) has made significant strides in recognizing a specific identity despite highly variable attributes1,2. This is the same challenge faced by the nervous system and partially addressed by the concept cells—neurons exhibiting selective firing in response to specific persons/places, described in the human medial temporal lobe (MTL)3–6. Yet, access to neurons representing a particular concept is limited due to these neurons’ sparse coding. It is conceivable, however, that the information required for such decoding is present in relatively small neuronal populations. To evaluate how well neuronal populations encode identity information in natural settings, we recorded neuronal activity from multiple brain regions of nine neurosurgical epilepsy patients implanted with depth electrodes, while the subjects watched an episode of the TV series “24”. We implemented DL models that used the time-varying population neural data as inputs and decoded the visual presence of the main characters in each frame. Before training and testing the DL models, we devised a minimally supervised CV algorithm (with comparable performance against manually-labelled data7) to detect and label all the important characters in each frame. This methodology allowed us to compare “computer vision” with “neuronal vision”—footprints associated with each character present in the activity of a subset of neurons—and identify the brain regions that contributed to this decoding process. We then tested the DL models during a recognition memory task following movie viewing where subjects were asked to recognize clip segments from the presented episode. DL model activations were not only modulated by the presence of the corresponding characters but also by participants’ subjective memory of whether they had seen the clip segment, and by the associative strengths of the characters in the narrative plot. The described approach can offer novel ways to probe the representation of concepts in time-evolving dynamic behavioral tasks. Further, the results suggest that the information required to robustly decode concepts is present in the population activity of only tens of neurons even in brain regions beyond MTL.

Effects of virtual learning environments: A scoping review of literature

The purpose of this scoping review is to isolate and investigate the existing data and research that identifies if the synchronous face-to-face visual presence of a teacher in a virtual learning environment (VLE) is a significant factor in a student’s ability to maintain good mental health. While the present research on this explicit interaction among VLE implementation and student mental health is limited, the material suggests a framework for strong utilization of VLEs. Overall, our research has shown that authentic, high quality VLEs are ones that have as their primary focus the communication between students and their teachers and between students and their peers. This communication is best generated through synchronous connections where there exists the ability to convey the student’s immediate needs in real-time. Our research results and discussion will outline how a team approach that brings together teachers, students, administration, counsellors, mental health support staff, instructional designers, and ICT specialists is necessary to create a genuinely enriching VLE where both learning and social-emotional needs can be met. The authors present a case for further study in order to reveal the nature of the interaction among VLEs and student mental health.

Bumble bee queen pheromones are context-dependent

Queen pheromones have long been studied as a major factor regulating reproductive division of labor in social insects. Hitherto, only a handful of queen pheromones were identified and their effects on workers have mostly been studied in isolation from the social context in which they operate. Our study examined the importance of behavioral and social context for the perception of queen semiochemicals by bumble bee workers. Our results indicate that a mature queen’s cuticular semiochemicals are capable of inhibiting worker reproduction only when accompanied by the queen’s visual presence and the offspring she produces, thus, when presented in realistic context. Queen’s chemistry, queen’s visual presence and presence of offspring all act to regulate worker reproduction, but none of these elements produces an inhibitory effect on its own. Our findings highlight the necessity to reconsider what constitutes a queen pheromone and suggest a new approach to the study of chemical ecology in social insects.

Rethinking the Eucharist in the aftermath of COVID-19 disruptions: A comparative study of Reformed and Pentecostal theology of sacraments

This contribution recommends a re-thinking of Christian traditions with regards to sacraments and use of technology in the context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. It is a comparative study that employed field observations from two congregations with different traditions: one from Protestant Reformed tradition and another from Pentecostal Charismatic background to analyse how they conducted Holy Communion services. By highlighting positive aspects of COVID-19 disruptions on traditional practices, the study challenged traditional understanding of ‘sacred space’ and re-appropriates the virtual role of a priest as symbolic embodiment of the presence of Christ extended through virtual, audio and tele-visual presence. The contribution also demonstrated how ontological questions help us discern what separates the sacred from the secular and concluded that the transformative nature of the sacrament of the Holy Communion has a uniquely power-levelling role in communities.Contribution: This article contributes to conversations on the role of technology in sacraments within the Reformed Christian tradition and presents a systematic and practical reflection on the intersecting modes of sacramental practices within different Christian traditions.

Bumble bee queen pheromones are context-dependent

Queen pheromones have long been studied as a major factor regulating reproductive division of labor in social insects. Hitherto, only a handful of queen pheromones were identified and their effects on workers have mostly been studied in isolation from the social context in which they operate. Our study examined the importance of behavioral and social context for the perception of queen semiochemicals by bumble bee workers. Our results indicate that a mature queen’s semiochemicals are capable of inhibiting worker reproduction only when accompanied by the queen’s visual presence and the offspring she produces, thus, when presented in realistic context. Queen’s chemistry, queen’s visual presence and presence of offspring all act in synergy to regulate worker reproduction, but none of these elements produces an inhibitory effect on its own. Our findings highlight the necessity to reconsider what constitutes a queen pheromone and suggest a new approach to the study of chemical ecology in social insects.

Localization of ST-elevation on ECG is associated with regional myocardial fibrosis in acute myocarditis

Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: None. Introduction Both ST elevation (STE) on ECG and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) are related to poor outcome in myocarditis. Purpose We evaluated if there is an association between regional STE and LGE pattern in patients with suspected myocarditis. Methods 51 patients (42 male, 32 ± 13 years old) underwent 12-lead ECG and CMR with LGE due to suspected myocarditis. >1mm STE was assessed in the antero-septal (V1-V4, aVR), inferior (II, III, aVF) and lateral (I, aVL, V5-V6) localizations. LGE was quantified as visual presence score (VPS) (1-17) and visual transmurality score (VTS) (1-68) on CMR, according to the 17-segment AHA model. STE and LGE were correlated using linear regression analysis. Results 31% of the patients had STE on admission ECG and a median VPS of 3 (IQR: 1-5) and VTS of 6 (IQR: 3-11) on CMR. STE showed an association with VPS and VTS in univariate and multivariate analysis (p < 0.001 all). STE was most frequent in the lateral and inferior leads (48% and 31%) which correlated with regional VPS and VTS in univariate model (p < 0.05 all), and remained significant in multivariate analysis for VPS (p < 0.05 both). STE was less frequent in the antero-septal region (21%, where no association between LGE and STE could be revealed (p > 0.05 all). Conclusions Inferior and lateral STE in myocarditis is associated with regional LGE on CMR, which is an indicator of myocardial fibrosis and possible poor outcome. Our results need not be validated on larger cohorts with follow-up.

The revived street names of Piliscsév

The characteristics of linguistic landscape are significantly impacted by the legal status of a language in question. Not all Slovak settlements in Hungary equally exploit the opportunities provided by law. Public space is a constantly transforming phenomenon which is in continuous motion; therefore, research in linguistic landscape always reflects a certain state or moment. Signboards and street signs appearing in the public space, the objects of our study, reveal a great deal of the linguistic dominance of a particular milieu, Piliscsév in this case. In case of bilingual street names, the most dominant practice is the Hungarian-Slovak bilingualism; thus, in most cases Hungarian signs are determining. Concerning the visual representation of street signs in Piliscsév, we have observed an interesting phenomenon which is unique and untraditional in the Slovak community in Hungary. The visual presence of Slovak language in street names indicates not only the representation of the ethnic language but also the local and ethnic bonds of the town.

Voices from women’s wardrobes: midlife and self-image

Current fashion research has not explored women’s perceptions of available clothing choices during the biological and physical transformations of midlife. Instabilities such as menopause, family breakups, or a loved one’s death augment women’s diminishing visual presence amid Western society’s beauty ideal. In response, clothing may become vital for self-expression, but also measurable in the terms of dress success, or a wardrobe impasse. A reflective Photovoice approach required participants (n=11) to take 7 full-body selfies over the course of a week, while wearing their favourite daywear outfits. The photographs prompted in-depth discussions during one-on-one interviews. Photovoice’s debut in fashion research reveals the common philosophies and strategies used by women in midlife to navigate a quick-response fashion system and establish a wardrobe that reflects their self-image. Women’s personal perspectives and selfevaluated dressing choices reveal whether their everyday wardrobe supports or compromises their desired self-image, promoting dress success or causing a wardrobe impasse.