This dissertation discusses the legal aspects of ADR, analysing whether the current international legal framework for space activities adequately regulates ADR and if not, what the gaps are and how... Show moreThis dissertation discusses the legal aspects of ADR, analysing whether the current international legal framework for space activities adequately regulates ADR and if not, what the gaps are and how they can be filled. To answer this question, the dissertation identifies issues related to the governance of ADR that need legal answers. It then examines the two pillars of international space law: the hard law pillar, which encompasses the United Nations space treaties and other applicable rules and principles under general international law, and the soft law pillar, comprising non-legally binding instruments that set out expected behaviours and best practices in outer space. The aim is to assess whether these two pillars provide an adequate response to the regulatory needs of the identified issues. An examination of the two pillars shows that while the existing legal framework lays down fundamental rules and principles that apply to ADR activities, it falls short of adequately governing the identified issues associated with ADR. To address the regulatory gaps, this dissertation analyses initiatives undertaken at national and international levels relevant to the governance of ADR and provides recommendations for the further development of international space law to better accommodate ADR activities. Show less
There is accumulating evidence for an increase in severe global drought events. In particular, Europe experienced several severe droughts in 2003, 2015, and 2018 (unprecedented in the past 2,110... Show moreThere is accumulating evidence for an increase in severe global drought events. In particular, Europe experienced several severe droughts in 2003, 2015, and 2018 (unprecedented in the past 2,110 years). Such droughts have caused serious and far-reaching impacts on terrestrial ecosystems. As droughts are predicted to become more prolonged and intense across wide regions in the coming decades, the risks to the human system as a result of the disturbed ecosystems worldwide will increase. To mitigate these risks, it is critical to prioritize the most vulnerable ecosystems and intervene on time. Thus, the understanding of ecosystem responses and their vulnerability to intensive drought needs to be developed. This thesis reveals European-wide ecosystem vulnerability based on ecosystem responses. With more frequent and severe droughts in the future, a wide range of ecosystems will become more vulnerable and may even collapse due to high mortality. This thesis provides several suggestions for timely early warning and intervention possibilities for vulnerable ecosystems. Moreover, this thesis demonstrates the potential of remote sensing in monitoring ecosystem responses. Combining remote sensing for early and comprehensive monitoring of ecosystems will provide new possibilities and critical information for future drought prevention and management. Show less
In 2018, the nationwide action program Solid Start was launched by the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, aiming to ensure the best possible start for all children during the first... Show moreIn 2018, the nationwide action program Solid Start was launched by the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, aiming to ensure the best possible start for all children during the first thousand days of life. The 'first thousand days' refer to the period from conception to a child's second birthday, which lays the foundation for health and wellbeing in later life and across generations. The main objective of this thesis was to provide insight into the adoption of the Dutch nationwide action program Solid Start, thereby focusing on monitoring and cross-sectoral collaboration. Throughout our studies, we learned that monitoring vulnerability in early life and monitoring the action program Solid Start at local level requires a consideration of both risk and protective factors spanning across multiple sectors. This underscores the relevancy for preventive programs that connect the medical and social sector, and it implies that monitoring requires cross-sectoral longitudinal data and indicators. For future practice and policy, we advise to create a long-term perspective, integrate the action program Solid Start into everyday practice and stimulate learning processes at different levels. Despite opportunities for improvement, this thesis implies a solid start for the Dutch first thousand days-approach. Show less
In light of climate change, it is crucial to determine whether plant species can adapt to future climates to avoid extinction. Plants adapt to various conditions by altering their functional traits... Show moreIn light of climate change, it is crucial to determine whether plant species can adapt to future climates to avoid extinction. Plants adapt to various conditions by altering their functional traits, such as leaf size or photosynthetic rate. Some traits appear linked and vary together between species, suggesting resource management strategies of plants. Traits can also vary within species, known as intraspecific trait variation (ITV), and its extent varies between species. Our understanding of how and why these traits vary within species is limited.This dissertation uses newly compiled global databases of species' ITV and genetic adaptation rates. We investigate whether trait-trait relationships between species also occur within species, confirming these as true plant strategies. We then explore the drivers of components of ITV: phenotypic plasticity, allowing plants to change in response to the environment, and genetic adaptation, involving inherited changes. Each offers different benefits for species adapting to changing conditions. By combining them, we can better understand plant species' adaptive capacity. Finally, we evaluate whether plants with different growth forms and from different biomes differ in their adaptive capacity to climate change.Our results provide new insights into plant strategies and have important implications for vegetation modelling and conservation efforts. Show less
This thesis investigates the interaction between syntax and information structure (IS) in Tunen, a Bantu language spoken in Cameroon by approximately 70,000-100,000 people. Tunen has previously... Show moreThis thesis investigates the interaction between syntax and information structure (IS) in Tunen, a Bantu language spoken in Cameroon by approximately 70,000-100,000 people. Tunen has previously been noted to be unusual for a Bantu language in several respects, being the only one of the 550-some Bantu languages reported to have subject-object-verb (SOV) rather than subject-verb-object (SVO) basic word order. As previous work suggested that Tunen's unusual syntax relates to IS, this thesis serves to test this relationship. The principal data source comes from fieldwork conducted by the author in Ndikiniméki/Yaoundé, Cameroon, with supplementary evidence from secondary sources and remote elicitation. The results indicate that Tunen syntax shows less influence from IS than expected from previous work on the language and the surrounding languages. Instead, Tunen's basic word order is shown to be consistent across discourse contexts, clause types, and object types. Alongside discussion of the SOV word order, the thesis investigates IS expression and the syntax of a typologically-unusual discontinuous DP construction, which is shown to be found across information-structural contexts. A first formal analysis of Tunen syntax is provided within the framework of generative syntax, and the thesis also includes an updated grammatical overview of the language and sample texts. Show less
Nocebo effects are adverse treatment outcomes that cannot be attributed to active treatment components. A common example is the experiencing of side effects after reading the side effect... Show moreNocebo effects are adverse treatment outcomes that cannot be attributed to active treatment components. A common example is the experiencing of side effects after reading the side effect description on a medication leaflet. Nocebo hyperalgesia, i.e., increased pain sensitivity due to nocebo effects, can be acquired via learning in both healthy and clinical populations, and has a large social and economic impact on healthcare. In the current dissertation, we investigated the experimental learning mechanisms behind the acquisition and recovery of nocebo hyperalgesia in healthy individuals and in patients with fibromyalgia, and the potential differences between groups. Additionally, we investigated the predictors of nocebo hyperalgesia acquisition and recovery to identify individuals who are more susceptible to these effects. Lastly, we stepped outside of the lab-settings and in an electronic diary study, examined the role of (experimentally-induced) nocebo hyperalgesia in daily pain progression of patients with fibromyalgia. The current dissertation offers insights for better understanding the expectancy and learning mechanisms behind nocebo hyperalgesia in individuals with and without chronic pain. These can be useful for the future design of personalised learning-based interventions for targeting nocebo effects on pain. Show less
A Josephson junction is a device where a thin insulating barrier or a nanostructure is placed between two superconducting leads. Such a junction is essential to superconducting qubits that store... Show moreA Josephson junction is a device where a thin insulating barrier or a nanostructure is placed between two superconducting leads. Such a junction is essential to superconducting qubits that store quantum information due to its anharmonic spectrum. Therefore, understanding the physics of these junctions is crucial for predictions of the qubit's main qualities, such as the dephasing and relaxation time. Most modern superconducting qubits use Josephson junctions with an insulating barrier (tunneling junction). One of this thesis aims is to explore other possibilities that may allow for better properties of the qubit. Show less
This study examines a single English language usage problem, number agreement in the variants of the species noun phrase ; e.g. 'these kinds of errors' vs. 'these kind of errors' vs. 'errors of... Show moreThis study examines a single English language usage problem, number agreement in the variants of the species noun phrase ; e.g. 'these kinds of errors' vs. 'these kind of errors' vs. 'errors of this kind' from three perspectives: those of linguists, prescriptivists and the general public. The study, framed by the descriptions given in modern reference grammars and theoretical analyses (the linguists), is conducted within the historical perspective of the advice given in usage guides published between 1770 and 2010 and beyond (the prescriptivists). The general public is represented in an online attitude survey of the variant forms, and by an analysis of a corpus of un-copy-edited academic writing that was compiled specifically for this study. The main findings are (i) that there is a great deal of harmony between the views of the three groups studied, and that, on the basis of these analyses, the popular view of 'descriptive' linguists in conflict with 'prescriptive' usage guides is not justified; and (ii) that the innovative use of multiple contextualised examples in the attitude survey contributes to the suggestion of - a cline of acceptability - on the part of the general public, rather than a simple - acceptable- vs. - unacceptable stance- . Show less
This thesis describes the development of a reference standard for urinary tract infection (UTI) research. It also provides cut-off values for pyuria and novel urine biomarkers to more accurately... Show moreThis thesis describes the development of a reference standard for urinary tract infection (UTI) research. It also provides cut-off values for pyuria and novel urine biomarkers to more accurately diagnose UTI in older women. Finally, this thesis investigates intravesical aminoglycoside instillations and faecal microbiota replacement as strategies to prevent urinary tract infections in patients with recurrent UTI. Show less
Damage to the endothelial glycocalyx leads to endothelial dysfunction and microvascular changes, which can progress to the development cardiovascular complications. In type 2 diabetes, the... Show moreDamage to the endothelial glycocalyx leads to endothelial dysfunction and microvascular changes, which can progress to the development cardiovascular complications. In type 2 diabetes, the pathogenic diabetic milieu induces structural changes in the endothelial glycocalyx. In this thesis, we investigate if microvascular changes can be detected and used as a diagnostic marker in individuals at risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Secondly, we show that urinary MCP-1 and HPSE-1 levels are correlated with the urinary albumin creatinine ratio in a multi-ethnic cohort of individuals with type 2 diabetes. Higher urinary MCP-1 levels can be found in individuals from Moroccan and South-Asian Surinamese descent. Lastly, we show a fasting mimicking diet is effective to reduce Hba1c end BMI in South-Asian Surinamese patients with diabetes, but did not improve the microvascular health. In the diabetic glomerulus, the loss of capillaries was prevented but increased oxidative stress was found. A supplement with glycocalyx mimetic did improve the microvascular health in South-Asian individuals and showed to preserve glomerular endothelial coverage in the experimental study. In this thesis, we show that the endothelial glycocalyx can be used as a diagnostic marker for vascular health and can be used as a therapeutic target in type 2 diabetes. Show less
This dissertation examines the digitisation and automation of Chinese courts from 2013 until 2022. Occurring in parallel with a multitude of other judicial reforms, this dissertation argues that... Show moreThis dissertation examines the digitisation and automation of Chinese courts from 2013 until 2022. Occurring in parallel with a multitude of other judicial reforms, this dissertation argues that Marxist-Leninist ideological conceptions of the role of law and courts in governance facilitate the rapid embrace of automated technologies. They shape the adoption and deployment of these technologies as well as the consequences. The principal ideological conviction that drives smart court reform (SCR) is that the technologies of automation will turn justice administration into a real science, and that science will make adjudication fairer and more efficient. The digitisation and automation of courts reveal that there exists a pervasive conviction among China's intellectual and ruling elite that governance and justice need to be scientific, to be legitimate and fair. This conviction guides the digitisation and automation of all domains in China's political-legal system.In addition, this dissertation argues that SCR has contradictory goals that seem difficult to reconcile. However, because of ideological conceptions, these goals are not seen as contradictory within the Chinese political-legal system itself. Show less
Evidence grows that standard toxicity testing might underestimate the environmental risk of neurotoxic insecticides. Behavioural endpoints such as locomotion and mobility have been suggested as... Show moreEvidence grows that standard toxicity testing might underestimate the environmental risk of neurotoxic insecticides. Behavioural endpoints such as locomotion and mobility have been suggested as sensitive and ecologically relevant additions to the standard tested endpoints. Possible interactive effects of chemicals and additional stressors are typically overlooked in standardised testing. Therefore, we aimed to investigate how concurrent exposure to environmental stressors (increased temperature and predation cues) and a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR)-modulating insecticide (‘sulfoxaflor’) impact Chironomus riparius across a range of conventional and non-conventional endpoints. We used a multifactorial experimental design encompassing three stressors, sulfoxaflor (2.0-110 µg/L), predation risk (presence/absence of predatory cues), and elevated temperature (20°C and 23°C), yielding a total of 24 distinct treatment conditions. Additional stressors did not change the sensitivity of C. riparius to sulfoxaflor. To assess potential additive effects, we applied an Independent Action (IA) model to predict the impact on eight endpoints, including conventional endpoints (growth, survival, total emergence, and emergence time) and less conventional endpoints (the size of the adults, swimming abilities and exploration behaviour). For the conventional endpoints, observed effects were either lower than expected or well-predicted by the IA model. In contrast, we found greater than predicted effects of predation cues and temperature in combination with sulfoxaflor on adult size, larval exploration, and swimming behaviour. However, in contrast to the non-conventional endpoints, no conventional endpoints detected interactive effects of the neurotoxic insecticide and the environmental stressors. Acknowledging these interactions, increasing ecological context of ecotoxicological test systems may, therefore, advance environmental risk analysis and interpretation as the safe environmental concentrations of neurotoxic insecticides depend on the context of both the test organism and its environment. Show less
The term “virtual photography,” which gives this book its title, is simultaneously axiomatic and obfuscating as it conveys an idea that is both banal and novel. It refers to a kind of photography... Show moreThe term “virtual photography,” which gives this book its title, is simultaneously axiomatic and obfuscating as it conveys an idea that is both banal and novel. It refers to a kind of photography that is practiced ubiquitously but is defined only elusively—everybody seems to know about the virtualization of photography, but nobody knows what a virtual photograph actually is. Virtual photography has already found its place in common parlance; however, its conceptual territory is still uncharted for researchers and practitioners of photography. Obviously, as isolated terms, “virtual” and “photography” have their histories, theories, and discourses. Their combination, though, causes indecision that oscillates between immanent orthodoxy and imminent heresy because it stitches a virtuality-inducing crux onto the reality-infusing medium of photography. In other words, due to the reluctance of photography to be virtualized and the resistance of the virtual to be realized, the term “virtual photography” appears to be oxymoronic. Thus, one might ask: What is virtual photography? And what can be considered a virtual photograph? Show less
While it has traditionally been seen as a means of documenting an external reality or expressing an internal feeling, photography is now capable of actualizing never-existed pasts and never-lived... Show moreWhile it has traditionally been seen as a means of documenting an external reality or expressing an internal feeling, photography is now capable of actualizing never-existed pasts and never-lived experiences. Thanks to the latest photographic technologies, we can now take photos in computer games, interpolate them in extended reality platforms, or synthesize them via artificial intelligence. To account for the most recent shifts in conceptualizations of photography, this book proposes the term virtual photography as a binding theoretical framework, defined as a photography that retains the efficiency and function of real photography (made with or without a camera) while manifesting these in an unfamiliar or noncustomary form. Show less
Thanks to the virtualization of photography enabled by AI, we can now actualize a memory that has never existed factually. Previously, it was the indexicality of photography that authorized the... Show moreThanks to the virtualization of photography enabled by AI, we can now actualize a memory that has never existed factually. Previously, it was the indexicality of photography that authorized the reality of recollection; today, AI photography is erasing the boundary between the present and (memories of) the past. By feeding AI software with existing photographs, one can materialize a memory that is simultaneously authentic and inauthentic, and thus both legitimate and illegitimate in its embodiment of the past. This paradigm shift challenges not only our conception of recollection but also our very perception of photographic representation. It raises the question whether AI-generated photographs can present us with possible memories of the past. If so, what is the ontological status of an AI-generated memory whose nature is synthetic? Simply put, can we assign any mnemonic value to memories actualized through AI photography? To answer these questions, I will draw on the conjunction of memory and photography in the AI-generated photos of visual artist Alexey Yurenev. Show less
The current use of chemicals puts pressure on human and ecological health. Based on the Aarhus Convention, citizens have the right to have access to information on substances in their local... Show moreThe current use of chemicals puts pressure on human and ecological health. Based on the Aarhus Convention, citizens have the right to have access to information on substances in their local environment. Providing this information is a major challenge, especially considering complex mixtures, as the current substance-by-substance risk assessment may not adequately address the risk of co-exposure to multiple substances. Here, we provide an overview of the currently available indicators in the Netherlands to explore current scientific possibilities to indicate the impacts of complex chemical mixtures in the environment on human health and ecology at the local scale. This is limited to impact estimates on freshwater species for 701 substances, impact estimates of four metals on soil organisms, and impacts on human health for particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in air. The main limiting factors in developing and expanding these indicators to cover more compartments and substances are the availability of emission and concentration data of substances and dose-response relationships at the population (human health) or community (ecology) level. As ways forward, we propose; 1) developing cumulative assessment groups (CAGs) for substances on the European Pollutant Transfer and Release Register and Water Framework Directive substance lists, to enable the development of mixture indicators based on mixture risk assessment and concentration addition principles; 2) to gain insight into local mixtures by also applying these CAGs to emission data, which is available for soil and air for more substances than concentrations data; 3) the application of analytical non-target screening methods as well as effect-based methods for whole-mixture assessment. Show less
Weird times call for weird narratives. The language of reason and facts or technological fixes do not adequately help people make sense of a disorienting present and unpredictable future, under the... Show moreWeird times call for weird narratives. The language of reason and facts or technological fixes do not adequately help people make sense of a disorienting present and unpredictable future, under the looming specter of environmental catastrophe. In the search for alternative responses to this condition, in this article (in Dutch) I turn to the ways in which speculative fiction, and weird fiction particularly, can help us navigate our ‘postnormal’ realities in the 21st century. On the occasion of the publication of Kate Marshall’s study Novels by Aliens (2023), I discuss Marshall’s book and reflect on the ways in which monsters, nonhuman scales and perspectives, and ‘weirded’ variants of realism can play, in Marshall’s words, a key role “in the conceptual work of the present.” Show less
Deze uitspraak is een annotatie waard omdat het de eerste uitspraak is waarin de Afdeling bestuursrechtspraak van de Raad van State beoordeelt of een bestuursorgaan het openbaar maken van... Show moreDeze uitspraak is een annotatie waard omdat het de eerste uitspraak is waarin de Afdeling bestuursrechtspraak van de Raad van State beoordeelt of een bestuursorgaan het openbaar maken van informatie op grond van de Wet open overheid (Woo) mocht weigeren vanwege de zogenaamde i-grond. Deze uitzonderingsgrond is een relatieve uitzonderingsgrond. Het bepaalt dat het openbaar maken van informatie achterwege blijft voor zover het belang daarvan niet opweegt tegen het belang van het goed functioneren van de Staat, andere publiekrechtelijke lichamen of bestuursorganen. Deze uitzonderingsgrond is nieuw ten opzichte van de Wob en sinds de inwerkingtreding van de Woo is de vrees geuit dat deze grond een ‘duizenddingendoekje’ zou worden voor bestuursorganen om openbaarmaking te weigeren. Jurisprudentie van de Afdeling over deze grond is daarom van groot belang om de kaders van deze nieuwe uitzonderingsgrond duidelijk te krijgen. Uit de uitspraak blijkt (kort samengevat) dat (i) tijdsverloop in acht moet worden genomen bij het bepalen of het goed functioneren in het geding is; en (ii) een belangenafweging op het niveau van een document(onderdeel) moet plaatsvinden, tenzij sprake is van een crisis. Show less
Computer tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous core biopsies are currently the gold standard in diagnostic procedures for patients with bone lesions of unknown kind. CT-guided biopsies can lead to... Show moreComputer tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous core biopsies are currently the gold standard in diagnostic procedures for patients with bone lesions of unknown kind. CT-guided biopsies can lead to misdiagnosis or repetition of biopsies in case of small or heterogeneous lesions. We hypothesize that molecular image guidance could be used to optimize the biopsy strategy, by supporting the detection of heterogeneous lesions or lesions without radiographic substrate. To evaluate this hypothesis, we investigated if and how the addition of 2-deoxy-2-18F-fluoro-D-glucose-positron emission tomography (18F-FDG-PET)/CT could augment routine CT-guided bone biopsies. To this end, 106 patients who underwent a CT-guided bone biopsy between April 2019 and April 2020, obtained from either a vertebral or peripheral bone, were included. Patients were divided into 2 groups: 36 patients received an 18F-FDG-PET/CT scan prior to their CT-guided bone biopsy (PET group), while 70 patients only had a morphological CT scan (CT group). Histopathology was used to categorize biopsies into five subgroups (inconclusive, benign, malignant or infectious disease, or normal tissue). In the PET group, the number of conclusive biopsies was significantly higher compared to the CT group (N = 33/36 (92%) versus N = 53/70 (76%); p < 0.05). Furthermore, the number of first-try biopsies was lower in the PET group compared to the CT group (1.9 vs. 2.54, p = 0.051). In conclusion, 18F-FDG-PET/CT imaging significantly increased the success rate of first-try CT-guided bone biopsies by showing less inconclusive biopsies and misdiagnosis. Show less
