Analyzing the degree of conflict among belief functions.

The study of alternative combination rules in DS theory when evidence is in conflict has emerged again recently as an interesting topic, especially in data/information fusion applications. These studies have mainly focused on investigating which alternative would be appropriate for which conflicting situation, under the assumption that a conflict is identified. The issue of detection (or identification) of conflict among evidence has been ignored. In this paper, we formally define when two basic belief assignments are in conflict. This definition deploys quantitative measures of both the mass of the combined belief assigned to the emptyset before normalization and the distance between betting commitments of beliefs.We argue that only when both measures are high, it is safe to say the evidence is in conflict. This definition can be served as a prerequisite for selecting appropriate combination rules.

Spin asymmetries in spatially resolved processes of ionization of heavy atoms by relativistic electrons

The triple-differential cross section for ionization of a heavy atom is shown to depend on the spin of the incident electron even if this is polarized entirely parallel or antiparallel to its direction of propagation, the atom is unpolarized, and the spins of the ejected electrons are not resolved. Quantitative predictions for the spin asymmetry are presented in a relativistic distorted-wave Born approximation. Simple physical models are introduced to understand both these results and further symmetry properties involving the reversal of a spatial momentum component also.

Protest practice and (tree) cultures of conflict: understanding the spaces of ‘tree maiming’ in eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century England

Developing understandings of protest and cultures of resistance has been a central theme of the 'new' cultural geography of the 1990s and 2000s. But whilst geographers of the here and now have been highly sensitive to the importance of acts of protest which occur outside of the context of broader social movements, geographers concerned with past protests have tended to focus overwhelmingly upon either understanding the development of social movements or highly specific place-based studies. Through a focus upon the hitherto ignored practice of 'tree maiming', this paper demonstrates not only the value of examining specific protest practices in helping to better understand the complexity of conflict, but also how in periods of acute socio-economic change the evolving relationship between humans and the non-human – in this case trees – is a central discourse to the protest practices of the poor. Such attacks often involved complex cultural understandings about the ways in which trees should – and should not – be socially enrolled.

Reconfiguring spaces of conflict: Northern Ireland and the impact of European integration

The Irish border has historically been one of the most contested borders in Europe. In the context of the peace process and EU membership, co-operation between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland has been encouraged, supported and normalised, although internal borders of segregation stubbornly remain. This paper offers a conceptualisation of borders in conflict cases and a theoretical account of how European integration can affect their transformation. Analysis of the Northern Ireland case shows there are ambiguities within integration that allow for a ‘rebordering’ of identities at the same time as the state border diminishes in significance.