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The Roman emperor Caligula issued the same type of quadrans throughout his reign, where the obverse depicted a pileus, a type of cap given to former slaves upon their manumission, and the reverse the letters RCC. Eckhel suggested that the obverse referred to the restoration of liberty as represented by his return of the elections to the popular assembly from the Senate, and the reverse referred to a remission of the sales-tax. Barrett has recently argued that both sides probably referred to the execution in late 39 of Cornelius Lentulus Gaetulicus, the governor of Upper Germany. This note argues that Caligula chose to depict the pileus on his quadrans in order to celebrate his new policy of strictly enforcing the rules for granting citizenship and that he aimed the design at the urban mob in particular in order to emphasise that he was protecting them against those seeking to encroach upon their privileges

Embarking on a research project is always exciting, although a large number are not completed. One study of pharmacotherapy projects submitted to a research ethics committee found that after 5 years more than a quarter had not been completed and almost a sixth were considered unpublishable (Winther & Hole, 1997).

In this study we report the underlying reasons to why bacteria are present on banknotes and coins. Despite the use of credit cards, mobile phone apps, near-field-communication systems, and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoins which are replacing the use of hard currencies, cash exchanges still make up a significant means of exchange for a wide range of purchases. The literature is awash with data that highlights that both coins and banknotes are frequently identified as fomites for a wide range of microorganisms. However, most of these publications fail to provide any insight into the extent to which bacteria adhere and persist on money. We treated the various currencies used in this study as microcosms, and the bacterial loading from human hands as the corresponding microbiome. We show that the substrate from which banknotes are produced have a significant influence on both the survival and adherence of bacteria to banknotes. Smooth, polymer surfaces provide a poor means of adherence and survival, while coarser and more fibrous surfaces provide strong bacterial adherence and an environment to survive on. Coins were found to be strongly inhibitory to bacteria with a relatively rapid decline in survival on almost all coin surfaces tested. The inhibitory influence of coins was demonstrated through the use of antimicrobial disks made from coins. Despite the toxic effects of coins on many bacteria, bacteria do have the ability to adapt to the presence of coins in their environment which goes some way to explain the persistent presence of low levels of bacteria on coins in circulation.

Abstract included in the text.

"I will focus on Edward Said’s handling of the work of the British geographer Halford Mackinder...in Culture and Imperialism.... In 1904, Mackinder published an influential paper in The Geographical Journal...in which he labelled all of European and Asian Russia and much of Central Asia, then also under Russian rule, as 'The Geographical Pivot of History.' Mackinder’s views represented what we would now, following Heidegger’s coining of the term, and especially the use Said himself and Gayatri Spivak have made of it, call a 'worlding' of the world according to the dictates of colonialism and imperialism prevalent at the time. My argument will be that Said’s reading of Mackinder likewise amounts to a specific worlding for a specific moment in time, and that perhaps now we should move on from there."

The ongoing development of Titanic Quarter in Belfast, Northern Ireland, has already made significant changes to the area. The site on which the Titanic was built has been redeveloped as an area for tourism, business, education and the creative industries. The site has been developed following a significant inflow of private capital, and with the additional support of local government and public finance. This article outlines how economic and political forces have coalesced in Belfast to the point that the violent period of the ‘Troubles’ in Northern Ireland can be said to have created a ‘pleasingly blank canvas for regeneration’.

Abstract Rationale: Foreign body (FB) aspiration in adults is occasionally encountered. The aspiration and impaction of a coin in the lower respiratory tract is an unusual accident. This report presents 2 rare adult cases of FB aspiration with coin impaction in larynx and trachea, respectively. Patient concerns: Two patients presented to the emergency department separately. Both had a similar history of inadvertent ingestion of a 5-jiao coin that was accidentally enveloped in dumplings. The ingestion was immediately followed by violent cough. Diagnosis: The diagnosis of foreign body aspiration was confirmed by chest x-ray. In the first patient, chest computed tomography (CT) confirmed the shape of the coin and it was located in the laryngeal area, facing C5. In the second patient, CT revealed a metal-density FB located in the tracheal carina. Interventions: In the first patient, direct laryngoscopy was performed and the 5-Jiao coin was removed in a direction parallel to the vocal cords. In the second patient, rigid bronchoscopy was used to remove the coin. Outcomes: The postoperative period was uneventful in both the patients. Lessons: During FB removal, the coin should be positioned parallel to the vocal cords during its retrieval through the glottis. Due attention must be paid to avoid asphyxia due to positional changes of the coin in the trachea. Early diagnosis and intervention is the key in such cases as delay can cause catastrophic complications.

AbstractWith transformative evolution involving crypto-assets, machine learning applications and data-driven finance models, complex regulatory and policy issues are emerging. Inadequate frameworks in FinTech markets create regulatory friction and regulatory fragmentation. These limitations continue to feature when piecemeal regulatory transition occurs. The danger of EU Member States being left behind in the FinTech innovation race if the regulatory landscape is cumbersome or incomplete for new business models is real. Regulatory lag and regulatory friction also act as a ‘disenabler’ for ease of cross-border FinTech trade in the EU. This article critically engages with the manner in which the regulatory sandbox has rapidly gained critical mass in Member States as a valuable adaptive measure supporting a route to market for FinTech entrepreneurs. Against the backdrop of the European Commission’s Digital Finance Strategy, the article further advances scholarship on FinTech in the EU by probing the EU’s resulting regulatory dilemma, undertaking a systematic evaluation of the continuum of complex policy options available to the European Union in response to the spreading regulatory sandbox phenomenon.