Past and recent farming degrades aquatic insect genetic diversity.

Recent declines in once-common species are triggering concern that an environmental crisis point has been reached. Yet, the lack of long abundance time series data for most species can make it difficult to attribute these changes to anthropogenic causes, and to separate them from normal cycles. Genetic diversity, on the other hand, is sensitive to past and recent environmental changes, and reflects a measure of a populations' potential to adapt to future stressors. Here, we consider whether patterns of genetic diversity among aquatic insects can be linked to historical and recent patterns of land use change. We collated mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) variation for >700 aquatic insect species across the United States, where patterns of agricultural expansion and intensification have been documented since the 1800s. We found that genetic diversity was lowest in regions where cropland was historically (pre-1950) most extensive, suggesting a legacy of past environmental harm. Genetic diversity further declined where cropland has since expanded, even after accounting for climate and sampling effects. Notably though, genetic diversity also appeared to rebound where cropland has diminished. Our study suggests that genetic diversity at the community level can be a powerful tool to infer potential population declines and rebounds over longer time spans than is typically possible with ecological data. For the aquatic insects that we considered, patterns of land use many decades ago appear to have left long-lasting damage to genetic diversity that could threaten evolutionary responses to rapid global change.

Climate-driven divergent long-term trends of forest beetles in Japan.

Concerning declines in insect populations have been reported from Europe and the United States, yet there are gaps in our knowledge of the drivers of insect trends and their distribution across the world. We report on our analysis of a spatially extensive, 14-year study of ground-dwelling beetles in four natural forest biomes spanning Japan's entire latitudinal range (3000 km). Beetle species richness, abundance and biomass declined in evergreen coniferous forests but increased in broadleaf-coniferous mixed forests. Further, beetles in evergreen coniferous forests responded negatively to increased temperature and precipitation anomalies, which have both risen over the study's timespan. These significant changes parallel reports of climate-driven changes in forest tree species, providing further evidence that climate change is altering forest ecosystems fundamentally. Given the enormous biodiversity and ecosystem services that forests support globally, the implications for biodiversity change resulting from climate change could be profound.

Embodied apocalypse: or the native cosmology of late modern social theory.

The Brethren communities of Scotland's northeast coast inhabit a world that is both modern and enchanted; a state of affairs made possible due to the ways in which life as a deep sea fishermen relate to life as a millenarian Protestant. This article argues that the connection between a life at sea and life in the Brethren is a search for 'signs of the times' - in storms, hauls of prawns, EU fisheries legislation, and so on - which, when taken together, collectively evidence to the Brethren the fact that the end of the world is near. More than this, by extending the eschatological observations of my informants, I want to suggest that this kind of apocalyptic sign searching can also be seen as a feature of what some social theorists - most prominent among them, Ulrich Beck, Anthony Giddens, Scott Lash, and Zygmunt Bauman - refer to as 'late' or 'liquid' modernity, whereby, in its most radical formulation, the cosmos is effectively reduced to the size of the individual.

Pentecostal preaching and prophetic politics: when the 'End' really does justify the means.

Alongside the ferocious debates in the final months before the 2016 EU Referendum, some Pentecostal Premillennialists throughout Ulster were conducting their own prophetico-politico-religious crusades. Yet unlike the Leave/Remain campaigns, which used apocalyptic language in a metaphorical fashion, these Protestant preachers constructed an 'enchantment tale' aimed at delaying a very real, and catastrophic, 'End.' This paper focuses upon three pastors who used their pulpits to rally support for the Brexit campaign. It suggests that the clergymen's justification of political activism as biblically based, prophetically inspired and divinely endowed points to what happens when political ideas about national 'well-being' become 'enchanted' by biblical language, and devotees become 'semiotically aroused' by what they hear. The rhetoric of these religious leaders also illustrates how tightly the language of the apocalypse is woven into the historical fabric of Northern Irish politics. Finally, this study argues that their activities eclipse some of the ways in which local politicians and clergy continue to manipulate religious vocabulary, to evoke a politically productive affective response in their audiences.

Covid-19 and the Apocalypse: Religious and Secular Perspectives.

The current Covid-19 pandemic has led to existential crises. One way of finding meaning in this is through apocalyptic narratives. We differentiate between religious (based upon eschatology) and secular apocalypticism (based upon radical political and economic change) and argue that both are to be found in the wake of Covid-19 infection. For religious believers, the apocalypse signifies the rapture of the faithful into heaven while those on earth will undergo the tribulations. For secular believers, the apocalypse signifies sociopolitical change. The paper ends by speculating upon the socio-political and economic changes during and after the pandemic- the New Jerusalem.

The joint effects of forest habitat area and fragmentation on dung beetles.

Habitat loss and habitat fragmentation usually occur together, at the same time and place. However, while there is a consensus that habitat loss is the preeminent threat to biodiversity, the effects of fragmentation are contentious. Some argue that habitat fragmentation is not bad for biodiversity, and even that it is good. Generally, the studies that find no harm or positive outcomes of fragmentation invariably assume that it is independent of habitat loss. However, dissociating the effects of habitat fragmentation from habitat loss is questionable because the two are essentially coupled. Accordingly, we evaluated how forest area and fragmentation (via edge effects) influenced dung beetles per se, and through their effects on the abundance of mammals, using structural equation modeling (SEM). Dung beetles are very sensitive to forest habitat loss and fragmentation and to changes in the abundance of mammals on which they depend for dung. Our study area was in the Tana River, Kenya, where forest fragments are depauperated of mammals except for two endemic species of monkeys. We mapped 12 forests, counted the resident monkeys, and sampled 113,955 beetles from 288 plots. Most of the 87 species of beetles found were small tunnellers. After implementing a fully latent Structural Regression SEM, the optimal model explained a significant 26% of the variance in abundance, and 89% of diversity. The main drivers of beetle abundance were positive, direct, effects of forest area and number of monkeys, and negative edge effects. The main drivers of diversity were the direct effects of the beetle abundance, indirect effects of forest area and abundance of mammals, and indirect negative edge effects. Thus, forest area, fragmentation (via edge effects), and the number of monkeys jointly influenced the abundance and diversity of the beetles directly and indirectly.

The archetype of the apocalypse. Analysing the pandemics of racism, COVID-19 and climate change.

What we are witnessing in the present time in human history, in the 2020's, is a vortex of intersecting pandemics - jolting revelations that are unfolding with a terrific energy and force - so much so that we cannot ignore them or escape them. These include the world-wide pandemics of racism, COVID-19 and climate change. This paper argues that all of these swirling pandemics are manifestations of the archetype of the apocalypse, which is constellating now in a very powerful way. Any one of these phenomena could swallow humanity whole as a species. Together they represent a seemingly overwhelming challenge for us to meet over the next century of life on earth. If humanity cannot meet the challenge of these combined negative forces, it could simply perish. A multi-layered intersecting set of challenges such as this has never yet occurred in human history. We must therefore be very alert to what is going on, and as to how we can consciously mediate these threats, both individually and collectively. It also presents an unprecedented opportunity for humanity to evolve and grow psychologically both individually and collectively, nationally and globally.

Ce dont nous sommes témoins à l'heure actuelle dans l'histoire de l'humanité, dans les années 2020, est un vortex de pandémies qui s'entrecroisent - des révélations choquantes qui se déploient avec une énergie et une force formidables - tellement que l'on ne peut les ignorer ou leur échapper. Cela inclue la pandémie mondiale de racisme, la COVID-19, et le changement climatique. Cet article soutient que toutes ces pandémies tourbillonnantes sont des manifestations de l'archétype de l'apocalypse, qui se constelle en ce moment de manière très puissante. Chacun de ces phénomènes pourrait avaler l'humanité toute entière en tant qu'espèce. Ensembles ils représentent un défi apparemment insurmontable auquel nous avons à faire face durant le siècle à venir de la vie sur terre. Si l'humanité ne peut pas faire face au défi de ces forces négatives combinées, elle pourrait tout simplement périr. Un tel ensemble - de défis qui s'entrecroisent sur plusieurs niveaux - ne s'est encore jamais produit dans l'histoire humaine. Ainsi nous devons être très vigilants à ce qui se passe, et à comment nous pouvons consciemment opérer une médiation de ces menaces, à la fois individuellement et collectivement. Cela représente également une opportunité sans précédent pour que l'humanité évolue et grandisse psychologiquement à la fois individuellement et collectivement, au niveau de la nation et globalement.

Lo que estamos atestiguando en el presente de la historia humana, en el año 2020, es un vórtice de pandemias entrecruzadas - revelaciones que sacuden y se despliegan con tremenda fuerza y energía - tanto que no podemos ignorarlas ni escapar de éstas. Estas incluyen la pandemia mundial del racismo, el COVID-19 y el cambio climático. El presente trabajo argumenta que todas estas turbulentas pandemias son manifestaciones del arquetipo del apocalipsis, el cual se está constelando en la actualidad de manera poderosa. Cualquiera de estos fenómenos podría tragarse a la humanidad entera como especie. Juntas representen un aparentemente abrumador desafío para nosotros, a confrontar durante el próximo siglo de vida en la tierra. Si la humanidad no puede afrontar los desafíos de estas fuerzas negativas combinadas, podría simplemente perecer. Nunca ha ocurrido en la historia humana, una intersección de desafíos como éstos, en múltiples niveles. Tenemos que estar muy alertas respecto a lo que está pasando, y sobre cómo podemos conscientemente mediar estas amenazas, ambas individual y colectivamente. También presenta una oportunidad sin precedentes para que la humanidad pueda evolucionar y crecer psicológicamente, tanto individual, como colectivamente, nacional y globalmente.

Apocalyptic themes in times of trouble: when young men are deeply alienated.

Boys and young men more frequently live out aspects of their psychic and social alienation online. This paper explores some of the risks and dangers that can arise from retreats into the two-dimensional world of cyberspace. It focuses more specifically on videogaming called MOBA, multi-player online battle arena games, in which players point and shoot at others. A case example emphasizes the clinical problems emerging from violent fantasies that seek a false form of containment in cyberspace. Themes of destructive fantasizing are further amplified through images of apocalypse, which are often prevalent in combat arena videogames. Textual sources from the Book of Revelation offer possible understanding for various elements of destructiveness as it appears in vulnerable male psyches. Therapeutic contact that combines a relational, containing approach and a broadly spiritual and soulful perspective can provide a path to healing such violent splits within the psyches of boys and young men.

Les garçons et les jeunes hommes vivent de manière plus fréquente par internet leur aliénation psychique et sociale. Cet article explore certains des risques et dangers qui peuvent provenir de retraites dans le monde bidimensionnel du cyberespace. Il porte plus spécifiquement sur les jeux vidéo MOBA, des jeux de combats multi-joueurs en ligne, dans lesquels les joueurs se visent et se tirent dessus. Un cas clinique souligne les problèmes cliniques qui émergent des fantasmes violents cherchant une fausse forme de contenance (containment) dans le cyberespace. Les thèmes de fantasmes destructifs sont amplifiés par des images d'apocalypse, qui sont souvent largement répandues dans les jeux vidéo de zone de combat. Des sources textuelles venant du Livre de la Révélation apportent des possibilités de compréhension de plusieurs éléments de destructivité telle qu'elle apparait dans les psychés masculines vulnérables. Le contact thérapeutique qui combine une approche relationnelle et contenante ainsi qu'une perspective spirituelle au sens large du terme peut fournir un chemin pour guérir de tels clivages à l'intérieur de la psyché de garçons et de jeunes hommes.

Niños y jóvenes, cada vez más frecuentemente, viven aspectos de su alienación psíquica y social, en el mundo virtual. El presente trabajo explora algunos de los riesgos y peligros que pueden emerger a partir del retiro al mundo bidimensional del ciber-espacio. Se focaliza más específicamente en un juego virtual llamado MOBA, batallas online de jugadores múltiples, en las cuales, los jugadores apuntan y disparan a otros. Un ejemplo clínico enfatiza los problemas clínicos que emergen a partir de las violentas fantasías que buscan una contención falsa en el ciber-espacio. Temas de fantasías destructivas son amplificadas a través de imágenes de apocalipsis, las cuales prevalecen a menudos en los combates virtuales. Fuentes textuales del Libro de las Revelaciones ofrecen una posible comprensión a los varios elementos de destructividad tal como se manifiestan en las psiques masculinas vulnerables. Un contacto terapéutico que combina un abordaje relacional contenedor y una perspectiva espiritual más amplia puede proveer un camino hacia la curación de semejantes disociaciones violentas en las psiques de niños y de jóvenes.

The 'Antibiotic Apocalypse' - Scaremongering or Scientific Reporting?

Antimicrobial resistance is dominating scientific media. We are warned of an impending 'antibiotic apocalypse', where mankind faces its biggest threat, untreatable microbes. However, the world is not ending. Scientists are responding to the threat; new knowledge and chemotherapeutics are being created to safeguard our future. The future is bright, not gloomy.