Before beginning the critical, scientific inquiry into the history of Saul, David, and Solomon in the rest of the book, this chapter offers a simple run-through of the main elements of the biblical story itself. It begins with the biblical depiction of the time of the Judges, before there were kings in Israel, and then tells the story of Saul, leading to the rise of the monarchy. It outlines the biblical depiction of his reign as Israel’s first king, along with his later interactions with David, who became his successor. It briefly lays out how David took the throne and expanded the kingdom, and the troubles he experienced within the royal family, including the battles of succession first with Absalom then between Solomon and Adonijah. Finally, the chapter lays out the story of Solomon’s glorious rule, and then his death and the division of his kingdom in the time of his son Rehoboam.

Mixed-phenotype acute leukaemia is a generic classification item collecting leukaemias with two clones of different lineage or really abnormal cells expressing markers of several lineages. Their identification relies on both morphological and immunophenotypic features. From a cytogenetic/molecular point of view, their heterogeneity is amazing. Clinical management of such patients is getting progressively better stratified, allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation remaining the best option, with a possibly better approach for patients with Philadelphia chromosome. This is a typical example of the need for integrated diagnosis.

This chapter collates the archaeological evidence presented in Part II. It begins with a reassessment of the evidence put forward to refute the historical plausibility of the United Monarchy, showing that it did not stand the test of time and that in the long run, the challenges raised failed to shake the kingdom’s foundations. The chapter then moves on to integrate the archaeological evidence into a coherent picture of the United Monarchy’s establishment, expansion, and solidification. Finally, it reviews the theoretical underpinning of the discussion, arguing that much of the debate was based on a red herring, leading to an evaluation of the United Monarchy in comparison to well-established empires such as Assyria and Rome, rather than short-lived empires, which is further developed in Chapter 14.

We have met the Philistines in practically all previous chapters and noted their significant impact on the political and cultural landscape of the Iron Age I. In this chapter, we focus on their settlement in Philistia and analyze the drastic changes the region experienced during the Iron I–Iron II transition. While in the Iron I, this was the densest region in the country, boasting the largest settlements, in the Iron IIA, Philistia was transformed; most of the Philistine megacities shrank (Gath being an exception), whereas the mid-sized and small settlements were mostly abandoned. Even the material culture in the region was dramatically altered, as expressed, for example, by the complete cessation in the production of the so-called Philistine pottery (see Chapter 5). What happened to the Philistines in this transitional period? They lost the battle for hegemony and the power shifted to the new highland polity, leading to demographic changes. Subsequently, the Philistines became increasingly drawn into the Phoenician sphere and the Mediterranean trade, which had a major impact on their material culture and symbols. From the neighborhood bully, the Philistines became just one of the neighbors.

This chapter explores gender dimensions of biodiversity and nature conservation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It sheds light on the nature, scope, meaning, and barriers to gender-responsive implementation of biodiversity treaties in the region, and strategies to overcome these barriers and promote inclusive and equitable conservation efforts. Furthermore, the chapter will address the barriers to implementing gender-responsive biodiversity policies, such as societal norms, limited awareness, and institutional challenges. It will examine the importance of capacity building, stakeholder engagement, and knowledge-sharing platforms in overcoming these barriers and fostering an enabling environment for gender-responsive conservation practices. By emphasizing the value of gender equality and inclusivity in biodiversity governance, this chapter seeks to contribute to the ongoing discourse on integrating gender perspectives into environmental law and policymaking. The findings and recommendations presented aim to inform policymakers, practitioners, and researchers, providing actionable insights for promoting gender-responsive implementation of biodiversity and nature conservation treaties in the MENA region and beyond.

Chapter 6 discusses the policies of colonization in India in a comparative perspective with Korea and Taiwan under Japanese rule. In this chapter, I consider the differences in policies of colonization. At the time of independence, the share of industry in total GDP was not very different in the three countries. Modern industries had developed in India, Korea and Taiwan during the colonial period. The two big differences in colonial policies were with respect to agriculture and education. Japan imported essential food grains from the colonies. This prompted investment in improvements in agriculture to raise productivity. A large proportion of land came under irrigation in both colonies enabling introduction of new varieties of seeds. The British government in India did little to raise agricultural productivity. Second, the Japan as a colonizer expanded primary education, helping to create a literate workforce. A large proportion of industrial workers became literate. In India as a result of the emphasis on higher education, mainly the service sector occupations benefitted in terms of human capital.

There are myriad open questions and challenges for the Unified Patent Court (UPC) system and the unitary patent, which constitute a new layer to the European patent landscape on top of the existing courts and types of patents. One of those is the question of how this new system will interact with utility models, which seems to have mostly escaped academic scrutiny so far. This chapter explores this interaction, focusing predominantly on the consequences of the new unitary patent and the UPC for strategies surrounding patents and utility models, including the division of judicial competence. By considering, amongst other things, the complicated relationship and overlap of these rights, the limited but influential mandate of the UPC, the fragmented landscape for utility models, and the different sources of law governing a unitary patent, this chapter examines how litigation before the UPC may affect (strategies involving) utility models.