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This article examines objections to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in decisions affecting humans and argues that most objections rest on anthropocentric assumptions rather than evidence about decision quality. Critics often presume that human decision makers are uniquely capable of moral and contextual judgment, while AI systems are inferior, opaque or hostile. The article challenges this view arguing that modern AI systems are an expression of collective human intelligence and ethics, built on the image of human cognition, trained on curated human decisions and operating on best decision making frameworks. Drawing on empirical studies the article shows that modern AI systems offer unique advantages in decision-making, thus may already in some domains be as good at making good decisions as an average individual human. The article deconstructs main criticisms of AI decision-making and introduces the novel argument of inseparability between human and AI decisions. Human and AI contributions are increasingly intertwined, AI involvement is latent and appropriated by humans, making existing accountability frameworks based on a clear human–AI boundary obsolete. The article advocates for the development of agnostic decision-making frameworks that apply universal accountability to both human and non-human agents and provide a path to better decisions.

Objective We examined the prevalence of different types of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) in Lithuania focusing on how these experiences were related to victim's age and relationship to the perpetrator. Methods The participants came from a representative household survey of youth aged 18–29 and the sample consisted of 2000 participants (47.7 % women) with a mean age of 23.9 years (SD = 3.6). The ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tool Retrospective version (ICAST-R, Dunne et al., 2009) for young adults was used to investigate childhood exposure to CSA. Both current sociodemographic information and information on circumstances during childhood (e.g., number of siblings, family members with whom the participant lived between 7 and 12 year of age) were collected. Results The prevalence of any CSA experience before the age of 18 was 15.9 %, with higher rates for women (13.5 % and 18.5 % for men and women, respectively). Being spoken to in a sexual way or sexual things being written about the person was the most prevalent form of CSA. In contrast, number of victims that reported sexual intercourse was much lower. The most common type of perpetrator was another young person. Intrafamilial CSA was rare with higher risk in step-relationships. Conclusions Our study provides representative prevalence estimates of the CSA in a region for which such estimates were not previously available. These Lithuanian estimates correspond well with previous literature. Importantly, the findings point to peers being an important perpetrator group in CSA cases. This and other findings can inform the planning of relevant policy measures and actions to both prevent CSA and investigate cases effectively.

Intensive agricultural practices increase agrochemical pollution, particularly nitrogen (N) based fertilizers, which present an environmental risk. This study aims to evaluate long-term (2009–2020) data on soil water regime and nitrate dynamics at an agricultural experimental site on fine-textured soils and to better understand the implications of N management in relation to groundwater pollution. The field site is located in the Biđ field (eastern Croatia), in the proximity of the Sava river. Zero-tension lysimeters were installed at six selected locations. Lysimeters were used to monitor the water regime, i.e., outflows in which nitrate concentration was measured, while additional soil-water samples were collected via 4 and 15-meter-deep monitoring wells. Soil hydraulic parameters were estimated by combining the laboratory measurements, and estimation in RETC software. Water regime and nitrate leaching in lysimeters were simulated using HYDRUS-1D for each year to allow crop rotation and to evaluate their effects individually. The HYDRUS-1D model successfully reproduced lysimeter outflows and nitrate dynamics, which was confirmed with high R2 values (water: 93% above 0.7, and nitrate: 73% above 0.7) indicating the good performance of the model simulating nitrification chain reactions. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to identify the relationships among all soil properties and environmental characteristics. The results showed the complex interaction of soil hydraulic properties, precipitation patterns, plant uptake, and N application. All locations have a decreasing trend of nitrate leaching over the investigation period. Most of the lysimeter outflows and elevated nitrate concentrations were connected to the wet period of the year when the soil was saturated, and evapotranspiration was low. The results of this study show that it is important to optimize N fertilizer applications for each particular environmental condition to reduce nitrate loss. The study indicates the importance of long-term field studies, key for agro-hydrological modeling and the improvement of agricultural practices.

Floods are recurrent events that are expected to increase in a climate change context. Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly used in flood risk management, as they offer multiple co-benefits. Different policies and strategies, such as the European Union Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, advocate for implementing NBS. However, they require more land than grey infrastructure. The needed land often belongs to private persons and is thus protected from unlawful, disproportional state interference. Therefore, state authorities should establish a suitable legal framework to enforce the adoption of NBS on privately owned land. These provisions could stem from national or EU regulations concerning disaster risk management, environmental protection, or spatial planning. For those provisions to be successful, it is important to establish a strong partnership with stakeholders.

Armed conflicts disturb the environment and impair land productivity. Afghanistan has been submerged in conflict for >20 years, affecting the environment dramatically. In this study, we used the Normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) to investigate vegetation's spatial and temporal changes and the potential underpinned mechanisms. We found a 16.44 % increase in NDVI in Afghanistan from 2000 to 2021. The average NDVI growth rate was 11.33 % (within 5 km distance from the armed conflict), higher in the conflict group than in the non-conflict group. People migration may have reduced the human impacts on the environment. The relative contribution of armed conflict to vegetation growth was 3.17 %. Our results showed that the vegetation in Afghanistan increased, confirming the idea that depopulation increase greenness. Despite the reduced variance explained by the war (R2 values around 0.3), our study provides empirical evidence on the linkages between the war and vegetation change in Afghanistan.

Previous studies reported that acquiring computer programming skills is challenging and might result in high dropout rates. A quasi-experimental design was used to examine the role of different factors in dropping out of an e-based computer programming course. This study applied a knowledge in programming assessment test (20 multiple-choice questions covering the following topics: variables, loops, conditionals, functions, and general knowledge of Python), The Learning Motivating Factors Questionnaire, The Big Five-2, and The Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction & Frustration Scale. Ninety-four participants (38 males and 56 females) completed the course, while 305 participants started it. The mean age of e-learners was 29.96 years (SD 8.27), age range = 18 to 54. The results showed that e-learners who completed the course had higher initial knowledge assessment scores than those who dropped out after the first assessment. Reward and recognition as a motivator were significantly higher in males who completed the course than those who dropped out after the second knowledge assessment. Extraversion was significantly lower in females who completed the course than those who dropped after the first or second knowledge assessment test. Relatedness frustration was significantly higher in those who dropped out after the first knowledge assessment. Due to significant limitations of the sample size, cultural context, measures applied, and research design, the findings would preferably be regarded with caution.

In October 2015, the 12th Conference of the Parties (COP12) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) proposed a definition for land degradation neutrality (LDN). In the same year, the United Nations made LDN one of the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 15 (Life on Land, 15.3 By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world). LDN has critical to global environmental change and sustainable development research. The available LDN reviews mainly focus on the concept of LDN and do not sufficiently elaborate on the progress of LDN research. The objectives of our work aim (1) to summarise the overview of articles on LDN (number of articles, countries of publication, and research hotspots); (2) to outline LDN assessment indicators; (3) to clarify the analysis methods of LDN driver factors; (4) to understand the research progress of predicting LDN; and (5) to assess the relation between LDN and land degradation, land restoration, and SDGs. To achieve our objectives, we searched articles focused on “land degradation neutrality” between 2013 and 2021 on the Web of Science. In total, we found 183 articles. By reviewing these papers, We found that (1) the number of articles on “land degradation neutrality” increased from 2013 to 2021; the articles on LDN mainly originate from Australia, Germany, the UK, Russia, Switzerland, and the USA; the research hotspots are focused on land degradation, desertification, sustainable land management, conservation, climate change, and land cover; (2) most of the research methods adopt the three indicators stipulated by the UNCCD (productivity, land cover, and soil organic carbon), and sole studies have improved the indicators; (3) there are few studies on the drivers and future projections of LDN, which have broad research prospects; and (4) LDN is a dynamic balance between land degradation and restoration, and there are trade-offs and synergies between LDN and other SDGs. The review revealed the need to (1) identify the LDN indicators in different regions and develop a method to qualitatively and quantitatively monitor LDN changes; (2) quantify LDN drivers and clarify the factors that affect LDN; and (3) clarify future LDN trends and promote SDG 15.3 implementation.

This work aims to map and assess the recreational culture ecosystem services (CES) supply and demand in Vilnius. A novel framework individually assessed natural recreational CES supply and cultural recreational CES supply dimensions. So far, the previous works did not consider both CES components individually. Also, the validation of CES models is scarce and challenging. This work aims to map and assess natural recreational supply CES, cultural recreational CES supply, natural + cultural recreational CES supply, and cultural recreational CES demand. The results showed that the natural recreational CES supply dimension was the highest in protected areas. In contrast, the cultural, recreational CES supply dimension had the highest scores in the city centre. Natural + cultural recreational CES supply was high in the areas where the previous models had the highest values (e.g., protected areas and the city centre). The natural + cultural recreational CES supply model was validated using an online survey. Recreational CES demand was the highest in the areas near the city centre. There was a mismatch between the natural recreational CES supply and recreational demand. Nevertheless, we identified a match between cultural recreational CES supply dimension, Natural + cultural recreational CES supply and recreation CES demand. All the studied parameters had a clustered pattern. The natural recreational CES supply dimension had a hot spot in the northern part of the city. In contrast, cultural recreational CES supply dimension, Natural + cultural recreational CES supply and recreational CES demand were clustered in the city centre. Overall, it is vital to preserve the areas with maximum natural recreation CES supply and limit the urban expansion in these areas. Also, it is essential to reduce the car traffic to the centre and improve public transport accessibility to increase air quality and the impact of pollutants on cultural heritage sites.