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Once upon a time, failure was believed to be a very bad thing. It is now seen as a means of living happily ever after. For some fail-fans, it is a magic kingdom called Acadreamia, where missteps make marketers stronger. For others, it is a heinous haunted mansion, ReviewView, where recurring nightmares reside. An unembellished autoethnography, this essay tells the blood-curdling tale of the author's failed attempt to write a bestseller about failure. A marketing monstrosity, it has few redeeming features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Metagenomic binning, the clustering of assembled contigs that belong to the same genome, is a crucial step for recovering metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs). Contigs are linked by exploiting consistent signatures along a genome, such as read coverage patterns. Using coverage from multiple samples leads to higher-quality MAGs; however, standard pipelines require all-to-all read alignments for multiple samples to compute coverage, becoming a key computational bottleneck. Results: We present fairy (https://github.com/bluenote-1577/fairy), an approximate coverage calculation method for metagenomic binning. Fairy is a fast k-mer-based alignment-free method. For multi-sample binning, fairy can be > 250 × faster than read alignment and accurate enough for binning. Fairy is compatible with several existing binners on host and non-host-associated datasets. Using MetaBAT2, fairy recovers 98.5 % of MAGs with > 50 % completeness and < 5 % contamination relative to alignment with BWA. Notably, multi-sample binning with fairy is always better than single-sample binning using BWA ( > 1.5 × more > 50 % complete MAGs on average) while still being faster. For a public sediment metagenome project, we demonstrate that multi-sample binning recovers higher quality Asgard archaea MAGs than single-sample binning and that fairy's results are indistinguishable from read alignment. Conclusions: Fairy is a new tool for approximately and quickly calculating multi-sample coverage for binning, resolving a computational bottleneck for metagenomics. FUg-6r-bD5B9L5eToLSA3E Video Abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Societal Impact Statement Summary The discovery of a new genus within the family Thismiaceae, known as fairy lanterns, marks a significant scientific milestone in Japan, a country renowned for its botanical research. The unearthing of a new genus, especially in a well‐documented flora like Japan, is both rare and monumental. Unlike other fairy lanterns that bloom under leaf litter and can be easily overlooked, the new genus and species, Relictithismia kimotsukiensis, often does not even emerge above the surface of the soil when flowering. This captivating characteristic not only enriches our knowledge of botanical diversity but also emphasizes the importance of preserving natural habitats that harbor such rare species.The family Thismiaceae, known as “fairy lanterns”, is distinguished by its urn‐ or bell‐shaped, glasswork‐like flowers with basally fused tepals and its dependence on specific fungi for carbon. A new genus and species, Relictithismia kimotsukiensis, has been discovered in southern Japan. This species is notable for its unique anther‐stigma contact, hitherto unreported in the other Thismiaceae. Unlike typical fairy lanterns that bloom just above the leaf litter, Relictithismia often flowers beneath it. The underground habit is potentially associated with self‐pollination. The discovery of Relictithismia enhances our understanding of evolutionary pathways within the Thismiaceae, as it possesses characteristics previously thought to be unique to Thismia (the annulus with drooping stamens) as well as traits found in other genera (free stamens without expanded connectives). This paper reviews the morphology, ecology, and evolutionary history of Relictithismia, offering insights into the peculiarities of these enigmatic plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The New Zealand fairy tern/tara iti (Sternula nereis davisae; NZFT) is New Zealand's most endangered bird, with approximately 40 individuals remaining. Due to previous poor breeding success, this species is on the brink of extinction. Nest failures occur because of adverse weather, predation, and potentially nest disturbance. We observed parental behaviour of 11 nesting pairs from November 2020 to January 2021 at three sites: Mangawhai, Waipu and Pakiri. Overall, avian predator disturbance was low at all nests, and most disturbance events were by interactions between conspecifics. Responses to conspecific disturbances were lowest for the three closely nesting pairs and highest for the three solitary nests. We measured the frequency of chick feeding and found feeding rates varied considerably between nests. Defensive response rates and feeding rates varied between nests but we found no relationship between the proportion of responses to disturbance and feeding rates. We found no relationship between feeding rate and tidal state. This could be due to our small sample size and the duration of our observation period (30 min). We urge future researchers to increase observation period time. With an understanding of feeding rates and disturbance, informed decisions can be made to support the conservation of NZFT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Planning Education & Research is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Quantifying the diet of endangered species is crucial for conservation, especially for diet specialists, which can be more susceptible to environmental changes. The vulnerable fairy pitta (Pitta nympha) is considered a specialist that primarily feeds its nestlings with earthworms. However, there have been few studies of the nestling diet provisioned by parents, and no assessments of earthworm proportion in the diet of adults. Our study aimed to fill these gaps, shedding light on crucial factors for conservation. Combining new observations with existing literature, we confirmed a consistent dominance of earthworms in the nestling diet, regardless of rainfall, nestling age, and time of day. We extrapolated the total earthworm consumption during a breeding event, accounting for potential variation in the availability of earthworms and their prevalence in the adult diet. We used literature-based earthworm densities in pitta habitats and our estimates of family earthworm consumption to calculate the habitat area that could provide a pitta family with the number of earthworms consumed during a breeding event. The predictions matched observed pitta home range sizes when assumed that the adult diet is comprised of approximately 70% earthworms. The results highlight the importance of earthworm-rich habitats for conservation planning of the fairy pitta. To mitigate the effects of habitat destruction, we discuss conservation practices that may involve enhancing earthworm abundance in natural habitats and providing vegetation cover for foraging pittas in adjacent anthropogenic habitats rich in earthworms. To guide conservation efforts effectively, future studies should investigate whether previously reported breeding in developed plantation habitats is due to high earthworm abundance there. Future studies should also quantify correlations between local earthworm densities, home range size, and the breeding success of the fairy pitta. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes and interprets the prose of Ernest Koliqi including his short story collections Hija e maleve (“The Shadow of the Mountains”, 1929), published in Zadar; Pasqyrat e Narçizit (“The Mirrors of Narcissus”, 1934), published in Bari and Rome; Tregtar flamujsh (“Flag Merchant”, 1935), published in Tirana; and the novel Shija e bukës së mbrume (“The Taste of Leavened Bread”, 1960), published in Rome. Pasqyrat e Narçizit/“The Mirrors of Narcissus” (1934) is written in a style between poetry and prose. In Hija e maleve/“The Shadow of the Mountains” (1929), the author remains truthful about Albanian traditions. The theme of this collection portrays the main elements of the Albanian way of living and their mentality. The central aspect of Koliqi’s works deals with the drama of the homeland, the struggles of the Albanian intellectuals in general and those of Shkodër in particular. Most stories present cohabitation with mythological creatures; however, there is also Tregtar flamujsh/“Flag Merchant” (1935) which shows modern symbolism with an element of psychoanalysis. In Shija e bukës së mbrume/“The Taste of Leavened Bread” (1960) Koliqi writes about life, the struggles, and the atmosphere of Albanian life. This novel is filled with patriotic, social, and moral values of the Albanian people, even though the main character of the story lives in Albania and abroad. Ernest Koliqi’s characters are typical Albanian people, and the spirit of his works is also of the typical Albanian spirit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied fairy circles 20 km west of Sesriem at one of the driest locations of fairy circles in Namibia, at the foot of the popular Sossusvlei dunes. These fairy circles lack the typical hexagonal order of the Namibian fairy circles. After years of drought, their pattern is more similar to that of vegetation rings, due to the sparse vegetation in the area between the circles. Cross-section measurements of the soil water content (SWC) show that the upper layer (12 cm) is very dry (~1%) and much below the wilting point of Stipagrostis ciliata grasses, whereas the deeper soil layer is wetter (4%). The grain size distribution of soil samples taken from inside and outside the fairy circles reveals considerable heterogeneity in the size fractions due to aeolian (wind-driven) sand sorting. The bare soil inside the fairy circles contains coarser grains, and the ground surface is covered by sand megaripples. There is a linear trend between the vertical soil moisture gradient and the median grain diameter. Fine particles trapped on the vegetated edges of the fairy circle result in small nebkhas that increase the soil water retention at the surface. The dry and loose coarser topsoil inside the fairy circles may prevent the recolonization of new seedlings with short root lengths inside the fairy circles. Our results highlight the role of aeolian sand transport and deposition in desert vegetation environments and seem to support the notion that fairy circle formation may be affected by the interplay between sand sorting and soil moisture gradients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Penistone Crags in Wuthering Heights (1847) has long and, I argue, correctly been identified with Ponden Kirk on Haworth Moor. This article compares the folklore of Ponden Kirk with the fictional folklore associated with Penistone Crags, looking at the real-world and literary traditions in relation to beliefs surrounding the South Pennines. It suggests that some details of fairylore in Wuthering Heights—both the fairies in the 'Fairy Cave' and Catherine's elf-bolts—are based on early to mid-nineteenth-century Haworth folklore. The article finishes with an appendix on the Gytrash (a legendary being familiar from Jane Eyre). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The following chapter intends to analyse what might be called the ontological status of Tolkien's non-human species, particularly concerning liminality. Remarkably, C.S. Lewis provides us with four medieval conceptions of fairies, two of which have a liminal character, while the other two are far less liminal, e.g. fairies are thought of as "a third rational species distinct from angels and men" (DI 134). Bearing in mind Tolkien's great familiarity with medieval culture, and also with Lewis's ideas, this paper will examine whether Lewis's classification of magical creatures works in the case of Tolkien's non-human and para-human species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research brings an original anthropological approach to the understanding of how the tourism industry negotiates the construction of elusive, magical geographies. Fairy tourism or 'fairy hunting' has been acknowledged since the nineteenth century, but is largely overlooked in tourism literature, despite increasing exposure to fairy motifs through multi-media platforms, including films, gaming, and literature. This study examines fairy festivals using a theoretical framework based on the novel concept of 'liminal affective technologies,' (LATS), that are designed to enhance transformative potentiality. An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis method is used to analyse how fairy festival producers generate approximations of Fairyland. To create fairyscapes, their organisers devise LATs, such as situating the events in places that are bucolic, mystical and connected to local folklore, and staging workshops, music, and activities, such as wish-making, using fairy-themed motifs, to reinforce the magical narrative. Yet several festival producers 'toned down' the troublesome or Pagan elements of the fairyscape, explaining the surreality of their events to visitors as dreamscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many mushroom-forming fungi can develop circular colonies affecting the vegetation in a phenomenon named fairy rings. Since the nineteenth century, several hypotheses have been proposed to explain how fairy ring fungi form ring-like shapes instead of disks and why they produce negative or positive effects on the surrounding vegetation. In this context, we present a novel process-based mathematical model aimed at reproducing the mycelial spatial configuration of fairy rings and test different literature-supported hypotheses explaining the suppressive and stimulating effects of fungi on plants. Simulations successfully reproduced the shape of fairy rings through the accumulation of fungal self-inhibitory compounds. Moreover, regarding the negative effects of fungi on vegetation, results suggest that fungal-induced soil hydrophobicity is sufficient to reproduce all observed types of fairy rings, while the potential production of phytotoxins is not. In relation to the positive effects of fungi on plants, results show that the release of phytostimulants is needed to reproduce the vegetation patterns associated to some fairy ring types. Model outputs can guide future experiments and field work to corroborate the considered hypotheses and provide more information for further model improvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fairy circles (FCs) are regular vegetation patterns found in drylands of Namibia and Western Australia. It is virtually unknown whether they are also present in other regions of the world and which environmental factors determine their distribution. We conducted a global systematic survey and found FC-like vegetation patterns in 263 sites from 15 countries and three continents, including the Sahel, Madagascar, and Middle-West Asia. FC-like vegetation patterns are found in environments characterized by a unique combination of soil (including low nutrient levels and high sand content) and climatic (arid regions with high temperatures and high precipitation seasonality) conditions. In addition to these factors, the presence of specific biological elements (termite nests) in certain regions also plays a role in the presence of these patterns. Furthermore, areas with FC-like vegetation patterns also showed more stable temporal productivity patterns than those of surrounding areas. Our study presents a global atlas of FCs and provides unique insights into the ecology and biogeography of these fascinating vegetation patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how everyday concerns related to Irish emigration are symbolically addressed in a range of supernatural legends documented in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It seeks to illuminate how uncanny tales that feature emigrants departing from Ireland relate to the shared worlds of meaning of those who told and listened to them, showing how legends about affliction and miraculous abundance both draw on and construct cultural scripts. It also considers stories that articulate and reinforce traditional ideas about community members who were said to be abducted by the fairies and living in their midst. This was just one aspect of supernatural beliefs that was condemned as part of a larger rationalist and religious campaign by the Catholic Church and others to root out vernacular customs or "superstition," a theme that informs a number of legends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines contemporary Pagan narratives about fairies, revealing themes of re-enchantment, environmental grief, and environmental justice. In these narratives, fairies are often portrayed as nature spirits and protectors of the environment who warn humans of impending disaster and suggest techniques for re-enchanting the physical environment through practices that create reciprocal relationships between humans and nature, change consciousness, and allow humans to experience an interconnected, ensouled universe. These narratives can be interpreted as belonging to a category of folk environmentalism in which expressive cultural forms provide resources for communities coping with environmental grief. They also reflect emergent vernacular ontologies which reflect contemporary Pagan efforts to re-enchant the world and shift perceptions from a naturalistic frame to one that is more animistic, in which otherthan- human beings are thought to have consciousness and interiority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Social Sciences Institute / Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi is the property of Bingol University / Rectorate and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Imidazole-4-carboxamide (ICA), which is one of the groups of "fairy chemicals" (FCs) that cause the fairy ring phenomena, has plant growth inhibitory activity. FCs have the potential as candidates for a new family of plant hormones as they have been found endogenously in all plant species tested and show growth-regulating activities against the plants. While basic research on FCs is progressing, they are also expected to be applied not only to agrochemicals but also as pharmaceuticals. Derivatization of one of the FCs, 2-azahypoxanthine, and the structure–activity relationship (SAR) studies have clarified its activity as a plant growth promoter. Yet, ICA has not been derivatized at all and SAR regarding its activity remains unknown. In this study, we synthesized the derivatives of ICA by direct C–H arylation of ICA precursors and evaluated its activity in rice. The 12 total compounds including the arylated ICAs and their precursors were evaluated for root and shoot elongation in rice, resulting in the discovery that a number of compounds unexpectedly have an elongation activity in the root and shoot. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Asrai is a nocturnal fairy popularly attributed to British folklore, most memorable for the fact that any exposure to sunlight will cause it to melt into water. Rather than developing from oral folk tradition, like most legendary creatures, the Asrai may have originated and evolved through literary sources, beginning with the poetry of the Scottish author Robert Buchanan in the 1870s. Since appearing in a folklore account of uncertain provenance in 1970, the Asrai has come into use as a fantasy creature with international spread, developing in a dialogue between print media and the Internet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fairy of Charlotte-Rose de Caumont La Force's fairy tale Persinette (Rapunzel) is a complex and ambiguous figure that does not fit into a simple binary of victims and aggressors. I argue that La Force's adaptation of the fairy tale of the girl in the tower gives the fairy prominent status as one of the main characters instead of being relegated to the usual secondary role. Of the different versions of this fairy tale, La Force's is the only one with a powerful multidimensional female figure in the fairy role where she is in fact the most dynamic and fascinating character. La Force thereby gives an exceptionally positive view of a powerful female figure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fairy shrimp genus Parartemiopsis Rogers, 2005 currently contains a single species reported from Russia and Mongolia. In 2013, an unidentified Parartemiopsis population was reported from the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau in China's Yunnan Province, from Patatson National Park in Shangri-La County. Here, we describe the Chinese populations as a new species, Parartemiopsis shangrilaensis sp. nov. This new species is distinguished from its congener, P. longicornis (Smirnov, 1930), by the form of the male second antennae and the gonopod. The discovery of P. shangrilaensis sp. nov. extends the known distribution of the genus, and more Parartemiopsis species may be found in the future. We present a key to the genera and species of Chirocephalidae in China as an aid to future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

She made Enid stay up playing cards and smoking cigarettes into the wee hours of the morning to keep her company, so Enid would not get homework done and would be exhausted the next day. Marie-Louise von Franz, I Interpretation of Fairy Tales i (1996, viii) Enid, an analytic patient, loved the fairy tale Cinderella. She hated Enid's vivacity, and I wondered if she envied Enid her future, as her own future when she was eighteen was curtailed by the pregnancy and the speedy marriage. [Extracted from the article]

Understanding how stories of human-elf marriages are portrayed is very crucial because such stories can influence the public's opinion regarding people who claim to have such relationships. Therefore, a study on human-elf marriage as a formula in popular fantasy contributes to a better understanding of the function and role of popular fantasy in society. Using Cawelti's theory of formula (Cawelti, 1977) as starting point, this study tries to see how human-elf marriage as a formula may be portrayed differently in English fantasy works and popular Javanese stories. Several English fantasy works are presented as data for this study, along with Javanese stories collected from social media, television, and the box office that have strong influences from urban legends. Stories from the Arabian peninsula are also considered for their strong affinity to the predominantly Islamic society of Java. Miles & Huberman (1992) qualitative methods are applied interactively and continuously to optimize the data collection and analysis. The analysis shows that the portrayal of marriages between humans and Other beings, such as elves, fairies, or jinns, hugely depends on the manner of the depiction of Other beings involved. The elves of Tolkien are strongly associated with the heavenly light that humans long for, while the jinns in the Islamic and Javanese traditions are generally considered bearers of turmoil in human society. Consequently, the human-elf marriages of Tolkien are celebrated. All kinds of contact between humans and the jinns, however, fairy-like they may be, are avoided and even condemned in Javanese stories. This conclusion confirms that the formula in popular fantasy serves as both an endorsement or a condemnation of certain notions a particular society upholds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Fairy Snake" is a peculiar expression that has been used by Sanayi Ghaznavi and Khaghani-e Shervani among other Persian poets. They have likened beautiful and disloyal lovers to it. The exegetes and commentators of the poems of Sanayi Ghaznavi and Khaghani-e Shervani have not yet given the correct meaning to and a true concept about this expression and composition, thus being confused about its analysis. According to the author, the combination of fairy with snake showed a mythical and legendary fate because by examining and studying the myths and legends, it could be said that the fate of the fairy as Goddess of debauch and fertility and that of the snake as a mysterious animal were caused by their very natures attributed to the moon, their correlation with debauch and fertility, and their connection with water, as well as magic and witches from the earliest times. This relationship, which continued after the Zoroastrian Religion and Zoroaster's religious reform caused the creation of a mythological-legendary expression called the "Fairy Snake" in the form of one of the mixed myths of transformation, which is a symbol of both debauch and devil. Sanayi Ghaznavi likened the beautiful and disloyal lovers to that strange and hybrid creature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article traces the history of scholarly analysis of the South Slavic vila. By asking a simple question, 'where does the vila live?', I return to that scholarship to weed out problematic older theories and clarify historical conjecture. I offer a refinement of the analysis of origin by returning to the art and assertions of nineteenth- and twentieth-century peasant storytellers, singers, and other tradition-bearers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Wool Textile Journal is the property of National Wool Textile Science & Technology Information Center and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Very little is known about the feeding of naupliar and juvenile life stages of omnivorous fairy shrimps (Crustacea: Anostraca). Here, we aim to reveal whether the fairy shrimp Branchinecta orientalis is an ontogenetic omnivore and at which age and ontogenetic stage they gain the ability to feed on zooplankton. We assess how food uptake rates change with age until reaching maturity by providing algae (pico- and nanoplanktonic unicellular algae) and zooplankton (rotifers and copepod nauplii) as food in individual experiments. We found that the fairy shrimp B. orientalis started to feed on both types of algal prey immediately after hatching. Nanoplanktonic algae likely represented the most important food source until reaching maturity. Moreover, fairy shrimps started to feed on zooplankton already when they were 7 days old. Slow-moving rotifers gradually gained importance in the fairy shrimp diet with time. Our results reveal an ontogenetic change in the prey spectrum of fairy shrimp. The systematic shift towards omnivory likely affects both phyto- and zooplankton community composition, possibly contributing to temporal changes in food web dynamics in fairy shrimp habitats, and temporary ponds, which may warrant more detailed investigations in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of women image in text creativity and drawing of Lar Fairies by Rajaa Alem and Shadia Alem as a model aims to reveal women image dimensions in Raja’a Alem’s narration and Shadia Alam’s drawing.As women are the artistic work nerve in Lar Fairies. It traces its formation semantically at reality and fantasy level in the texts .It also embodies it in the accompanying paintings artistically as a name and Color. .It has been done through defining women image dimensions between reality and fantasy in Rajaa Alem’s narration, the dimensions of women image formation of Shadia Alem’s drawing, and revealing women representations between the text and drawing in their work .The research adopted the semiotic approach in dealing with the texts. The study came in two sections and four demands, the first of which deals with: the semantic dimensions of the image of women in the fairies of Lar in two requirements: the human equivalent and the realism of perception, and the fantasy equivalent and the symbolism of perception. The second section deals with: the formation of the image of women in the fairies of Lar in two requirements: the names of the fairies, and the colors of the fairies. Among the most prominent results: Drawing women image dimensions from Arab women reality in Raja Alem’s narration, the emergence of symbolic perception of the fairies idea in references to ancient mythology, and the enhancement of colors in Shadia Alem's drawings of the emotional connotations of each character of Lar Fairies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Wool Textile Journal is the property of National Wool Textile Science & Technology Information Center and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

These poems form part of a sequence on the life of Bridget Cleary (1867-1895). Cleary was killed by her husband, who claimed at trial to be acting under the belief that his wife had been abducted by fairies and replaced with a changeling. A conversation with Joe Lines establishes the poems' context and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]