The Legacy of a ‘Living Library’: On the Reception of John Smith

John Smith was among the first of the Cambridge Platonists. He was therefore in a position to influence not only his contemporaries but all those who followed after him well into the twentieth century and beyond. Well established lines of influence both to and from Whichcote, Cudworth, and More are explored first before moving on to less well-known connections to Bishop Simon Patrick and mathematician Isaac Barrow. Smith’s continued significance for eighteenth century theology is demonstrated through discussion of his inspiration of the doctrines of spiritual sensation developed by Jonathan Edwards and John Wesley. Special notice is also given to Smith’s authority as an interpreter of Biblical prophecy through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The chapter concludes with looks at Smith’s influence on Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Ralph Waldo Emerson, William Ralph Inge, Rufus Jones, Pierre Hadot, and others. This chapter, offers a broad, but highly selective, overview of the reception and influence of Smith’s life and work. It is intended, however, as a call for future research more than as an authoritative presentation of Smith’s legacy. For, if the Cambridge Platonists have been underappreciated until recently, none of them have been unjustly ignored as consistently as Smith

Interpersonal and Affective Psychopathy Traits Can Enhance Human Fitness

Recently, attempts have been made to determine the evolutionary status of psychopathy. However, there is still a gap in empirical literature regarding the connection between psychopathy and fitness. In the present study, we explored the relations between the four-factor model of psychopathy and reproductive success as a fitness indicator in a sample of male convicts (N = 181). Direct relations were analyzed, together with the interaction effects between psychopathy and family risk factors (presence of criminality, substance abuse, and maltreatment in participants’ families). Basic regression models showed that the facet of interpersonal style is positively related to fitness, while other psychopathic characteristics had a negative connection with the criterion measure. Additionally, we found three significant interactions, which further clarified the relation between psychopathy and reproductive success. One of the interactions showed that affective traits can facilitate fertility in unfavorable environmental conditions. Results support a hypothesis of a possible adaptive function of psychopathy, broaden the concept of “successful psychopathy,” and confirm a view of psychopathy as a heterogeneous and complex construct, consisting of facets with distinct content

Immunogenicity of an Electron Beam Inactivated <i>Rhodococcus equi</i> Vaccine in Neonatal Foals

<div><p><i>Rhodococcus equi</i> is an important pathogen of foals that causes severe pneumonia. To date, there is no licensed vaccine effective against <i>R. equi</i> pneumonia of foals. The objectives of our study were to develop an electron beam (eBeam) inactivated vaccine against <i>R. equi</i> and evaluate its immunogenicity. A dose of eBeam irradiation that inactivated replication of <i>R. equi</i> while maintaining outer cell wall integrity was identified. Enteral administration of eBeam inactivated <i>R. equi</i> increased interferon-γ production by peripheral blood mononuclear cells in response to stimulation with virulent <i>R. equi</i> and generated naso-pharyngeal <i>R. equi</i>-specific IgA in newborn foals. Our results indicate that eBeam irradiated <i>R. equi</i> administered enterally produce cell-mediated and upper respiratory mucosal immune responses, in the face of passively transferred maternal antibodies, similar to those produced in response to enteral administration of live organisms (a strategy which previously has been documented to protect foals against intrabronchial infection with virulent <i>R. equi</i>). No evidence of adverse effects was noted among vaccinated foals.</p></div