Large language models (LLMs) are increasingly deployed in politically sensitive contexts, raising concerns about their susceptibility to ideological biases. In this work, we examine how synthetic persona conditioning shapes ideological expression across seven open-weight instruction-tuned models (7B–72B parameters) using the Political Compass Test (62 statements) as a standardized behavioral probe. Across three studies involving 200,000 synthetic personas and more than 260 million model responses, we analyze implicit and explicit malleability, as well as theme-associated variation. We find that: (i) larger models exhibit broader implicit ideological coverage, increasing from 14%–35% for 7–8B models to up to 49% for 70B+ models; (ii) explicit ideological priming induces large and statistically significant shifts, with right-authoritarian cues moving all models in the intended direction and generally producing larger shifts than left-libertarian cues across model-axis comparisons; (iii) left-libertarian priming produces more heterogeneous responses, with counter-directional economic shifts in three of four 7–8B models and intended-direction shifts across all 70B+ models; and (iv) theme-associated semantic content in persona descriptions is linked to systematic and interpretable directional shifts in ideological space. While our results identify an upstream mechanism through which persona conditioning can alter model responses under a standardized ideological probe, we do not test whether such shifts affect users’ beliefs, decisions, or political behavior. Our findings are best understood as evidence of ideological malleability at the generation layer, highlighting the need to account for interactional factors when evaluating political neutrality, fairness, and safety in English-prompted, persona-conditioned language models.
The gastrointestinal structural fate of pectin is a key determinant of its nutritional relevance; however, most available studies rely on isolated polymers and do not account for the influence of the native food matrix. Here, we tested whether the apple tissue state governs post-digestive remodeling of an RG-I-rich pectic fraction during in vitro gastrointestinal digestion (INFOGEST), comparing intact Golden Delicious apple pulp with a processed homogenate. In undigested samples, the polymeric (>10 kDa) water-extracted RG-I-enriched pectic fraction (WERP) showed comparable RG-I fingerprints in both matrices. After digestion, a clear divergence emerged: pulp-derived WERP showed pronounced RG-I side-chain loss and an approximately order-of-magnitude decrease in apparent molecular weight, whereas homogenate-derived WERP largely retained its pre-digestive fingerprint. Digestion of isolated apple pectin did not reproduce these changes, consistent with a key role of tissue context and processing history.
Eating experiences have emerged as a popular leisure activity, frequently shared on social media or specialised review websites. Online reviews, particularly on platforms like TripAdvisor, are crucial in shaping consumer decisions by providing insight into leisure dining experiences. However, existing research relies on data from these platforms, limiting the generalisability of findings. This study addresses this gap by integrating online ratings with consumer surveys to explore the cognitive processes behind restaurant ratings. Using a sample of 1,192 individuals across 343 restaurants in Italy, multi-level structural equation modelling is applied to manage the hierarchical data structure. The findings indicate a strong relationship between TripAdvisor ratings and customers' perceptions of the service environment, validating the reliability of these ratings. These insights consolidate prior knowledge and guide consumers and practitioners, enhancing decision-making and service quality.
Sustainable expansion of global aquaculture relies on innovative alternative diets that reduce dependence on marine-derived ingredients. Poultry by-product meal (PBM) and insect meal have emerged as promising protein sources, yet their combined use under commercial farming conditions remains poorly explored. This study evaluated a plant-based finishing diet low in marine proteins and supplemented with 10% Hermetia illucens larvae meal (HIM) and 30% PBM (H10P30) and compared it with a conventional commercial diet (COM) in gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata) reared on a land-based farm for 65 days. Health and welfare indicators, product safety, fillet quality, fatty acid profile, oxidative status, and consumer acceptance were assessed. Fish fed the H10P30 diet showed a significantly higher body weight and specific growth rate and a lowered feed conversion ratio than COM-fed fish. No external or internal lesions or liver histopathological alterations related to the H10P30 diet were observed. While the diet influenced the fatty acid profile of raw fillets, differences disappeared after cooking, except for a higher C22:6n-3 content in cooked H10P30 fillets. Sensory analysis penalised COM fillets due to the perceived hard texture and low juiciness. In summary, incorporating both PBM and HIM into a plant-based finishing diet serves as a viable feeding strategy for gilthead sea bream, contributing to improved feed sustainability.
This study draws attention to the role of vegetation cover type (VGT), beyond the substrate depth, on blue-green roofs (BGRs) performances in terms of water retention capacity and maintenance requirements. The one-year study was split in two Experiments (Experiment 1: July 2020—November 2020; Experiment 2: November 2020—July 2021) performed in mesocosms built to mimicking BGRs and evaluating the contribution of two different substrate depths (8 cm and 14 cm) and 4 different vegetation cover types (cool-season turf—CT, warm-season turf—WT, wildflower meadow—WM, and Sedum mixture—SM) on water retention capacity, vegetation canopy cover of the surface and required management effort. In Experiment 1 (19 July 2020 – 12 November 2020), an overall higher retention capacity (range: 75–98
