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The icosahedral non-hydrostatic large eddy model (ICON-LEM) was applied around the drift track of the Multidisciplinary Observatory Study of the Arctic (MOSAiC) in 2019 and 2020. The model was set up with horizontal grid-scales between 100m and 800m on areas with radii of 17.5km and 140 km. At its lateral boundaries, the model was driven by analysis data from the German Weather Service (DWD), downscaled by ICON in limited area mode (ICON-LAM) with horizontal grid-scale of 3 km.
The aim of this thesis was the investigation of the atmospheric boundary layer near the surface in the central Arctic during polar winter with a high-resolution mesoscale model. The default settings in ICON-LEM prevent the model from representing the exchange processes in the Arctic boundary layer in accordance to the MOSAiC observations. The implemented sea-ice scheme in ICON does not include a snow layer on sea-ice, which causes a too slow response of the sea-ice surface temperature to atmospheric changes. To allow the sea-ice surface to respond faster to changes in the atmosphere, the implemented sea-ice parameterization in ICON was extended with an adapted heat capacity term.
The adapted sea-ice parameterization resulted in better agreement with the MOSAiC observations. However, the sea-ice surface temperature in the model is generally lower than observed due to biases in the downwelling long-wave radiation and the lack of complex surface structures, like leads. The large eddy resolving turbulence closure yielded a better representation of the lower boundary layer under strongly stable stratification than the non-eddy-resolving turbulence closure. Furthermore, the integration of leads into the sea-ice surface reduced the overestimation of the sensible heat flux for different weather conditions.
The results of this work help to better understand boundary layer processes in the central Arctic during the polar night. High-resolving mesoscale simulations are able to represent temporally and spatially small interactions and help to further develop parameterizations also for the application in regional and global models.
This dissertation examines the lack of clarity in the scientific literature regarding gender and negotiation performance. It is often claimed that men negotiate better than women, yet it is simultaneously emphasized that results strongly depend on context. Through the use of qualitative methods such as content analysis and critical mixed-methods review, the research question: "Are women truly inferior negotiators compared to men?" is addressed. The study comprises a descriptive and an interpretive part. The descriptive section illuminates various interpretations of gender-specific negotiation theory among citing authors, with 67% arguing for a general superiority of men. However, given the high variance in gender-specific differences, the focus should instead be on the context-dependency of negotiation performance. Generalized statements can be made within contexts, but not across them. In the interpretive section, several factors contributing to this misinterpretation are highlighted, including discrepancies in the definition of negotiation performance and distortions in research communication.. From a scientific perspective, this study underscores the need for a nuanced sociological analysis and warns against the one-sided acceptance of inaccurate scientific interpretations. From a practical standpoint, it amplifies the voices of women affected by biased research paradigms. Overall, the dissertation clarifies the theory of gender-specific negotiation performance and advocates for the elimination of biases in scientific discourse.
With Arctic ground as a huge and temperature-sensitive carbon reservoir, maintaining low ground temperatures and frozen conditions to prevent further carbon emissions that contrib-ute to global climate warming is a key element in humankind’s fight to maintain habitable con-ditions on earth. Former studies showed that during the late Pleistocene, Arctic ground condi-tions were generally colder and more stable as the result of an ecosystem dominated by large herbivorous mammals and vast extents of graminoid vegetation – the mammoth steppe. Characterised by high plant productivity (grassland) and low ground insulation due to animal-caused compression and removal of snow, this ecosystem enabled deep permafrost aggrad-ation. Now, with tundra and shrub vegetation common in the terrestrial Arctic, these effects are not in place anymore. However, it appears to be possible to recreate this ecosystem local-ly by artificially increasing animal numbers, and hence keep Arctic ground cold to reduce or-ganic matter decomposition and carbon release into the atmosphere.
By measuring thaw depth, total organic carbon and total nitrogen content, stable carbon iso-tope ratio, radiocarbon age, n-alkane and alcohol characteristics and assessing dominant vegetation types along grazing intensity transects in two contrasting Arctic areas, it was found that recreating conditions locally, similar to the mammoth steppe, seems to be possible. For permafrost-affected soil, it was shown that intensive grazing in direct comparison to non-grazed areas reduces active layer depth and leads to higher TOC contents in the active layer soil. For soil only frozen on top in winter, an increase of TOC with grazing intensity could not be found, most likely because of confounding factors such as vertical water and carbon movement, which is not possible with an impermeable layer in permafrost. In both areas, high animal activity led to a vegetation transformation towards species-poor graminoid-dominated landscapes with less shrubs. Lipid biomarker analysis revealed that, even though the available organic material is different between the study areas, in both permafrost-affected and sea-sonally frozen soils the organic material in sites affected by high animal activity was less de-composed than under less intensive grazing pressure. In conclusion, high animal activity af-fects decomposition processes in Arctic soils and the ground thermal regime, visible from reduced active layer depth in permafrost areas. Therefore, grazing management might be utilised to locally stabilise permafrost and reduce Arctic carbon emissions in the future, but is likely not scalable to the entire permafrost region.
Arachidonsäurelipoxygenasen (ALOX-Isoformen) sind Lipid-peroxidierenden Enzyme, die bei der Zelldifferenzierung und bei der Pathogenese verschiedener Erkrankungen bedeutsam sind. Im menschlichen Genom gibt es sechs funktionelle ALOX-Gene, die als Einzelkopiegene vorliegen. Für jedes humane ALOX-Gen gibt es ein orthologes Mausgen. Obwohl sich die sechs humanen ALOX-Isoformen strukturell sehr ähnlich sind, unterscheiden sich ihre funktionellen Eigenschaften deutlich voneinander. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurden vier unterschiedliche Fragestellungen zum Vorkommen, zur biologischen Rolle und zur Evolutionsabhängigkeit der enzymatischen Eigenschaften von Säugetier-ALOX-Isoformen untersucht:
1) Spitzhörnchen (Tupaiidae) sind evolutionär näher mit dem Menschen verwandt als Nagetiere und wurden deshalb als Alternativmodelle für die Untersuchung menschlicher Erkrankungen vorgeschlagen. In dieser Arbeit wurde erstmals der Arachidonsäurestoffwechsel von Spitzhörnchen untersucht. Dabei wurde festgestellt, dass im Genom von Tupaia belangeri vier unterschiedliche ALOX15-Gene vorkommen und die Enzyme sich hinsichtlich ihrer katalytischen Eigenschaften ähneln. Diese genomische Vielfalt, die weder beim Menschen noch bei Mäusen vorhanden ist, erschwert die funktionellen Untersuchungen zur biologischen Rolle des ALOX15-Weges. Damit scheint Tupaia belangeri kein geeigneteres Tiermodel für die Untersuchung des ALOX15-Weges des Menschen zu sein.
2) Entsprechend der Evolutionshypothese können Säugetier-ALOX15-Orthologe in Arachidonsäure-12-lipoxygenierende- und Arachidonsäure-15-lipoxygenierende Enzyme eingeteilt werden. Dabei exprimieren Säugetierspezies, die einen höheren Evolutionsgrad als Gibbons aufweisen, Arachidonsäure-15-lipoxygenierende ALOX15-Orthologe, während evolutionär weniger weit entwickelte Säugetiere Arachidonsäure-12 lipoxygenierende Enzyme besitzen. In dieser Arbeit wurden elf neue ALOX15-Orthologe als rekombinante Proteine exprimiert und funktionell charakterisiert. Die erhaltenen Ergebnisse fügen sich widerspruchsfrei in die Evolutionshypothese ein und verbreitern deren experimentelle Basis. Die experimentellen Daten bestätigen auch das Triadenkonzept.
3) Da humane und murine ALOX15B-Orthologe unterschiedliche funktionelle Eigenschaften aufweisen, können Ergebnisse aus murinen Krankheitsmodellen zur biologischen Rolle der ALOX15B nicht direkt auf den Menschen übertragen werden. Um die ALOX15B-Orthologen von Maus und Mensch funktionell einander anzugleichen, wurden im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit Knock-in Mäuse durch die In vivo Mutagenese mittels CRISPR/Cas9-Technik hergestellt. Diese exprimieren eine humanisierte Mutante (Doppelmutation von Tyrosin603Asparaginsäure+Histidin604Valin) der murinen Alox15b. Diese Mäuse waren lebens- und fortpflanzungsfähig, zeigten aber geschlechtsspezifische Unterschiede zu ausgekreuzten Wildtyp-Kontrolltieren im Rahmen ihre Individualentwicklung.
4) In vorhergehenden Untersuchungen zur Rolle der ALOX15B in Rahmen der Entzündungsreaktion wurde eine antiinflammatorische Wirkung des Enzyms postuliert. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde untersucht, ob eine Humanisierung der murinen Alox15b die Entzündungsreaktion in zwei verschiedenen murinen Entzündungsmodellen beeinflusst. Eine Humanisierung der murinen Alox15b führte zu einer verstärkten Ausbildung von Entzündungssymptomen im induzierten Dextran-Natrium-Sulfat-Kolitismodell. Im Gegensatz dazu bewirkte die Humanisierung der Alox15b eine Abschwächung der Entzündungssymptome im Freund‘schen Adjuvans Pfotenödemmodell. Diese Daten deuten darauf hin, dass sich die Rolle der ALOX15B in verschiedenen Entzündungsmodellen unterscheidet.
Du sollst nicht essen
(2024)
Zwar sind Menschen biologisch gesehen Allesesser, dennoch gibt es keine Gemeinschaft, die alle ihr zur Verfügung stehenden Nahrungsmittel voll ausschöpft. Immer wird etwas nicht gegessen. Warum wir nicht essen, was wir nicht essen – das beleuchtet dieser Sammelband aus neuro-, ernährungs-, gesellschafts- und religionswissenschaftlicher Perspektive. Ein „religiöser Nutriscore“ gibt Auskunft über die wichtigsten Verzichtsregeln in Judentum, Christentum und Islam. Eine Fotostrecke veranschaulicht, wie bestimmte Speisen zu Festen und Feiertagen zu einem heiligen Essen werden. Nicht zuletzt werden Wege aufgezeigt, wie Menschen, die verschiedene Speiseregeln befolgen, dennoch zusammen essen können – inklusive Praxistest in der Unimensa.
I need to move it, move It!
(2024)
Purpose
Student interest and learning success is an important component of teaching learning research. However, while the impact of emotions and psychological needs on students' achievements has been a focus of research, the impact of their physiological needs has been under studied. In this explorative study, I examine what impact the physiological and psychological needs of student teachers have on their feelings, motivation, and interest in different learning settings.
Approach
The research method used was the daily reconstruction method and included the Felix-App, a new digital research and feedback tool that allows the measurement of feelings, needs, motivation, and interest in real time.
Findings
The results suggest the importance of physiological needs for perceived emotions, motivation, and interest in the learning subject. The psychological needs, on the other hand, are of less importance.
Originality
The Felix-App is an innovative tool to learn more about learners' emotions and needs in real learning settings. The importance of physiological needs has been known since Maslow, but should be considered much more in the context of teaching and learning research in the future. There is a need for further research on the importance of physical aspects in learning.
In many churches nowadays, there has been a standardized approach to premarital counseling for couples involving social, pastoral, and psychological perspectives. In contrast, many rabbis and other Jewish officials still concentrate on legal aspects alone. The need for resolving important issues on the verge of wedlock is too often left to secular experts in law, psychology, or counseling. However, in recent years, this lack of formal training for marriage preparation has also been acknowledged by the Jewish clergy in order to incorporate it in the preparatory period before the bond is tied. This case study focuses on Jewish and Roman Catholic conceptions of marriage, past and present. We intend to do a comparative analysis of the prerequisites of religious marriage based on the assumption that both Judaism and the Roman Catholic Church have a distinct legal framework to assess marriage preparation.
Volcanic hydrothermal systems are an integral part of most volcanoes and typically involve a heat source, adequate fluid supply, and fracture or pore systems through which the fluids can circulate within the volcanic edifice. Associated with this are subtle but powerful processes that can significantly influence the evolution of volcanic activity or the stability of the near-surface volcanic system through mechanical weakening, permeability reduction, and sealing of the affected volcanic rock. These processes are well constrained for rock samples by laboratory analyses but are still difficult to extrapolate and evaluate at the scale of an entire volcano. Advances in unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), sensor technology, and photogrammetric processing routines now allow us to image volcanic surfaces at the centimeter scale and thus study volcanic hydrothermal systems in great detail. This thesis aims to explore the potential of UAS approaches for studying the structures, processes, and dynamics of volcanic hydrothermal systems but also to develop methodological approaches to uncover secondary information hidden in the data, capable of indicating spatiotemporal dynamics or potentially critical developments associated with hydrothermal alteration. To accomplish this, the thesis describes the investigation of two near-surface volcanic hydrothermal systems, the El Tatio geyser field in Chile and the fumarole field of La Fossa di Vulcano (Italy), both of which are among the best-studied sites of their kind. Through image analysis, statistical, and spatial analyses we have been able to provide the most detailed structural images of both study sites to date, with new insights into the driving forces of such systems but also revealing new potential controls, which are summarized in conceptual site-specific models. Furthermore, the thesis explores methodological remote sensing approaches to detect, classify and constrain hydrothermal alteration and surface degassing from UAS-derived data, evaluated them by mineralogical and chemical ground-truthing, and compares the alteration pattern with the present-day degassing activity. A significant contribution of the often neglected diffuse degassing activity to the total amount of degassing is revealed and constrains secondary processes and dynamics associated with hydrothermal alteration that lead to potentially critical developments like surface sealing. The results and methods used provide new approaches for alteration research, for the monitoring of degassing and alteration effects, and for thermal monitoring of fumarole fields, with the potential to be incorporated into volcano monitoring routines.
Electricity production contributes to a significant share of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe and is thus an important driver of climate change. To fulfil the Paris Agreement, the European Union (EU) needs a rapid transition to a fully decarbonised power production system. Presumably, such a system will be largely based on renewables. So far, many EU countries have supported a shift towards renewables such as solar and wind power using support schemes, but the economic and political context is changing. Renewables are now cheaper than ever before and have become cost-competitive with conventional technologies. Therefore, European policymakers are striving to better integrate renewables into a competitive market and to increase the cost-effectiveness of the expansion of renewables. The first step was to replace previous fixed-price schemes with competitive auctions. In a second step, these auctions have become more technology-open. Finally, some governments may phase out any support for renewables and fully expose them to the competitive power market.
However, such policy changes may be at odds with the need to rapidly expand renewables and meet national targets due to market characteristics and investors’ risk perception. Without support, price risks are higher, and it may be difficult to meet an investor’s income expectations. Furthermore, policy changes across different countries could have unexpected effects if power markets are interconnected and investors able to shift their investments. Finally, in multi-technology auctions, technologies may dominate, which can be a risk for long-term power system reliability. Therefore, in my thesis, I explore the effects of phasing out support policies for renewables, of coordinating these phase-outs across countries, and of using multi-technology designs. I expand the public policy literature about investment behaviour and policy design as well as policy change and coordination, and I further develop an agent-based model.
The main questions of my thesis are what the cost and deployment effects of gradually exposing renewables to market forces would be and how coordination between countries affects investors’ decisions and market prices.. In my three contributions to the academic literature, I use different methods and come to the following results. In the first contribution, I use a conjoint analysis and market simulation to evaluate the effects of phasing out support or reintroducing feed-in tariffs from the perspective of investors. I find that a phase-out leads to investment shifts, either to other still-supported technologies or to other countries that continue to offer support. I conclude that the coordination of policy changes avoids such shifts.. In the second contribution, I integrate the empirically-derived preferences from the first contribution in to an agent-based power system model of two countries to simulate the effects of ending auctions for renewables. I find that this slows the energy transition, and that cross-border effects are relevant. Consequently, continued support is necessary to meet the national renewables targets. In the third contribution, I analyse the outcome of past multi-technology auctions using descriptive statistics, regression analysis as well as case study comparisons. I find that the outcomes are skewed towards single technologies. This cannot be explained by individual design elements of the auctions, but rather results from context-specific and country-specific characteristics. Based on this, I discuss potential implications for long-term power system reliability.
The main conclusions of my thesis are that a complete phase-out of renewables support would slow down the energy transition and thus jeopardize climate targets, and that multi-technology auctions may pose a risk for some countries, especially those that cannot regulate an unbalanced power plant portfolio in the long term. If policymakers decide to continue supporting renewables, they may consider adopting technology-specific auctions to better steer their portfolio. In contrast, if policymakers still want to phase out support, they should coordinate these policy changes with other countries. Otherwise, overall transition costs can be higher, because investment decisions shift to still-supported but more expensive technologies.
Eskalation des Commitments in Wirtschaftsinformatik Projekten: eine kognitiv-affektive Perspektive
(2024)
Projekte im Bereich der Wirtschaftsinformatik (IS-Projekte) sind von zentraler Bedeutung für die Steuerung von Unternehmensstrategien und die Aufrechterhaltung von Wettbewerbsvorteilen, überschreiten jedoch häufig das Budget, sprengen den Zeitrahmen und weisen eine hohe Misserfolgsquote auf. Diese Dissertation befasst sich mit den psychologischen Grundlagen menschlichen Verhaltens - insbesondere Kognition und Emotion - im Zusammenhang mit einem weit verbreiteten Problem im IS-Projektmanagement: der Tendenz, an fehlgehenden Handlungssträngen festzuhalten, auch Eskalation des Commitments (Englisch: “escalation of commitment” - EoC) genannt.
Mit einem kombinierten Forschungsansatz (dem Mix von qualitativen und quantitativen Methoden) untersuche ich in meiner Dissertation die emotionalen und kognitiven Grundlagen der Entscheidungsfindung hinter eskalierendem Commitment zu scheiternden IS-Projekten und deren Entwicklung über die Zeit. Die Ergebnisse eines psychophysiologischen Laborexperiments liefern Belege auf die Vorhersagen bezüglich der Rolle von negativen und komplexen situativen Emotionen der kognitiven Dissonanz Theorie gegenüber der Coping-Theorie und trägt zu einem besseren Verständnis dafür bei, wie sich Eskalationstendenzen während sequenzieller Entscheidungsfindung aufgrund kognitiver Lerneffekte verändern. Mit Hilfe psychophysiologischer Messungen, einschließlich der Daten-Triangulation zwischen elektrodermaler und kardiovaskulärer Aktivität sowie künstliche Intelligenz-basierter Analyse von Gesichtsmikroexpressionen, enthüllt diese Forschung physiologische Marker für eskalierendes Commitment. Ergänzend zu dem Experiment zeigt eine qualitative Analyse text-basierter Reflexionen während der Eskalationssituationen, dass Entscheidungsträger verschiedene kognitive Begründungsmuster verwenden, um eskalierende Verhaltensweisen zu rechtfertigen, die auf eine Sequenz von vier unterschiedlichen kognitiven Phasen schließen lassen.
Durch die Integration von qualitativen und quantitativen Erkenntnissen entwickelt diese Dissertation ein umfassendes theoretisches Model dafür, wie Kognition und Emotion eskalierendes Commitment über die Zeit beeinflussen. Ich schlage vor, dass eskalierendes Commitment eine zyklische Anpassung von Denkmodellen ist, die sich durch Veränderungen in kognitiven Begründungsmustern, Variationen im zeitlichen Kognitionsmodus und Interaktionen mit situativen Emotionen und deren Erwartung auszeichnet. Der Hauptbeitrag dieser Arbeit liegt in der Entflechtung der emotionalen und kognitiven Mechanismen, die eskalierendes Commitment im Kontext von IS-Projekten antreiben. Die Erkenntnisse tragen dazu bei, die Qualität von Entscheidungen unter Unsicherheit zu verbessern und liefern die Grundlage für die Entwicklung von Deeskalationsstrategien. Beteiligte an „in Schieflage geratenden“ IS-Projekten sollten sich der Tendenz auf fehlgeschlagenen Aktionen zu beharren und der Bedeutung der zugrundeliegenden emotionalen und kognitiven Dynamiken bewusst sein.
In der DDR sollte die Rechtsprechung den Zielen der Politik und dem Aufbau sowie der Sicherung des Sozialismus dienen. Zur Verwirklichung dieser Ziele unternahm das SED-Regime insbesondere den Versuch, auf die Ausbildung des juristischen Nachwuchses Einfluss zu nehmen. Die Arbeit untersucht anhand der im Bundesarchiv verwahrten Originalquellen die Anforderungen, die an das juristische Studium in der DDR gestellt wurden, und die Umstände, unter denen die juristische Ausbildung erfolgte. Unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Auswahl, Aus- und Weiterbildung der Staatsanwälte beleuchtet die Arbeit die sog. »Kaderarbeit« der DDR-Justiz sowie die wesentlichen Zulassungs-, Prüfungs-, Studien- und Weiterbildungsbedingungen. Die Auswertung des überlieferten Archivmaterials führt zu der Erkenntnis, dass die Aus- und Weiterbildung der DDR-Juristen zur Sicherstellung der Ziele der sozialistischen Partei durch eine planmäßige und systematische politisch-ideologische Erziehung und Kontrolle bestimmt war.
This dissertation examines the integration of incongruent visual-scene and morphological-case information (“cues”) in building thematic-role representations of spoken relative clauses in German.
Addressing the mutual influence of visual and linguistic processing, the Coordinated Interplay Account (CIA) describes a mechanism in two steps supporting visuo-linguistic integration (Knoeferle & Crocker, 2006, Cog Sci). However, the outcomes and dynamics of integrating incongruent thematic-role representations from distinct sources have been investigated scarcely. Further, there is evidence that both second-language (L2) and older speakers may rely on non-syntactic cues relatively more than first-language (L1)/young speakers. Yet, the role of visual information for thematic-role comprehension has not been measured in L2 speakers, and only limitedly across the adult lifespan.
Thematically unambiguous canonically ordered (subject-extracted) and noncanonically ordered (object-extracted) spoken relative clauses in German (see 1a-b) were presented in isolation and alongside visual scenes conveying either the same (congruent) or the opposite (incongruent) thematic relations as the sentence did.
1 a Das ist der Koch, der die Braut verfolgt.
This is the.NOM cook who.NOM the.ACC bride follows
This is the cook who is following the bride.
b Das ist der Koch, den die Braut verfolgt.
This is the.NOM cook whom.ACC the.NOM bride follows
This is the cook whom the bride is following.
The relative contribution of each cue to thematic-role representations was assessed with agent identification. Accuracy and latency data were collected post-sentence from a sample of L1 and L2 speakers (Zona & Felser, 2023), and from a sample of L1 speakers from across the adult lifespan (Zona & Reifegerste, under review). In addition, the moment-by-moment dynamics of thematic-role assignment were investigated with mouse tracking in a young L1 sample (Zona, under review).
The following questions were addressed: (1) How do visual scenes influence thematic-role representations of canonical and noncanonical sentences? (2) How does reliance on visual-scene, case, and word-order cues vary in L1 and L2 speakers? (3) How does reliance on visual-scene, case, and word-order cues change across the lifespan?
The results showed reliable effects of incongruence of visually and linguistically conveyed thematic relations on thematic-role representations. Incongruent (vs. congruent) scenes yielded slower and less accurate responses to agent-identification probes presented post-sentence. The recently inspected agent was considered as the most likely agent ~300ms after trial onset, and the convergence of visual scenes and word order enabled comprehenders to assign thematic roles predictively.
L2 (vs. L1) participants relied more on word order overall. In response to noncanonical clauses presented with incongruent visual scenes, sensitivity to case predicted the size of incongruence effects better than L1-L2 grouping. These results suggest that the individual’s ability to exploit specific cues might predict their weighting.
Sensitivity to case was stable throughout the lifespan, while visual effects increased with increasing age and were modulated by individual interference-inhibition levels. Thus, age-related changes in comprehension may stem from stronger reliance on visually (vs. linguistically) conveyed meaning.
These patterns represent evidence for a recent-role preference – i.e., a tendency to re-assign visually conveyed thematic roles to the same referents in temporally coordinated utterances. The findings (i) extend the generalizability of CIA predictions across stimuli, tasks, populations, and measures of interest, (ii) contribute to specifying the outcomes and mechanisms of detecting and indexing incongruent representations within the CIA, and (iii) speak to current efforts to understand the sources of variability in sentence comprehension.
Invisible iterations: how formal and informal organization shape knowledge networks for coordination
(2024)
This study takes a network approach to investigate coordination among knowledge workers as grounded in both formal and informal organization. We first derive hypotheses regarding patterns of knowledge-sharing relationships by which workers pass on and exchange tacit and codified knowledge within and across organizational hierarchies to address the challenges that underpin contemporary knowledge work. We use survey data and apply exponential random graph models to test our hypotheses. We then extend the quantitative network analysis with insights from qualitative interviews and demonstrate that the identified knowledge-sharing patterns are the micro-foundational traces of collective coordination resulting from two underlying coordination mechanisms which we label ‘invisible iterations’ and ‘bringing in the big guns’. These mechanisms and, by extension, the associated knowledge-sharing patterns enable knowledge workers to perform in a setting that is characterized by complexity, uncertainty and ambiguity. Our research contributes to theory on the interplay between formal and informal organization for coordination by showing how self-directed, informal action is supported by the formal organizational hierarchy. In doing so, it also extends understanding of the role that hierarchy plays for knowledge-intensive work. Finally, it establishes the collective need to coordinate work as a previously overlooked driver of knowledge network relationships and network patterns. © 2024 The Authors. Journal of Management Studies published by Society for the Advancement of Management Studies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Column-oriented database systems can efficiently process transactional and analytical queries on a single node. However, increasing or peak analytical loads can quickly saturate single-node database systems. Then, a common scale-out option is using a database cluster with a single primary node for transaction processing and read-only replicas. Using (the naive) full replication, queries are distributed among nodes independently of the accessed data. This approach is relatively expensive because all nodes must store all data and apply all data modifications caused by inserts, deletes, or updates.
In contrast to full replication, partial replication is a more cost-efficient implementation: Instead of duplicating all data to all replica nodes, partial replicas store only a subset of the data while being able to process a large workload share. Besides lower storage costs, partial replicas enable (i) better scaling because replicas must potentially synchronize only subsets of the data modifications and thus have more capacity for read-only queries and (ii) better elasticity because replicas have to load less data and can be set up faster. However, splitting the overall workload evenly among the replica nodes while optimizing the data allocation is a challenging assignment problem.
The calculation of optimized data allocations in a partially replicated database cluster can be modeled using integer linear programming (ILP). ILP is a common approach for solving assignment problems, also in the context of database systems. Because ILP is not scalable, existing approaches (also for calculating partial allocations) often fall back to simple (e.g., greedy) heuristics for larger problem instances. Simple heuristics may work well but can lose optimization potential.
In this thesis, we present optimal and ILP-based heuristic programming models for calculating data fragment allocations for partially replicated database clusters. Using ILP, we are flexible to extend our models to (i) consider data modifications and reallocations and (ii) increase the robustness of allocations to compensate for node failures and workload uncertainty. We evaluate our approaches for TPC-H, TPC-DS, and a real-world accounting workload and compare the results to state-of-the-art allocation approaches. Our evaluations show significant improvements for varied allocation’s properties: Compared to existing approaches, we can, for example, (i) almost halve the amount of allocated data, (ii) improve the throughput in case of node failures and workload uncertainty while using even less memory, (iii) halve the costs of data modifications, and (iv) reallocate less than 90% of data when adding a node to the cluster. Importantly, we can calculate the corresponding ILP-based heuristic solutions within a few seconds. Finally, we demonstrate that the ideas of our ILP-based heuristics are also applicable to the index selection problem.
With the surging reliance on videoconferencing tools, users may find themselves staring at their reflections for hours a day. We refer to this phenomenon as self-referential information (SRI) consumption and examine its consequences and the mechanism behind them. Building on self-awareness research and the strength model of self-control, we argue that SRI consumption heightens the state of self-awareness and thereby depletes participants’ mental resources, eventually undermining virtual meeting (VM) outcomes. Our findings from a European employee sample revealed contrary effects of SRI consumption across speaker vs listener roles. Engagement with self-view is positively associated with self-awareness, which, in turn, is negatively related to satisfaction with VM process, perceived productivity, and enjoyment. Looking at the self while listening to others exhibits adverse direct and indirect (via self-awareness) effects on VM outcomes. However, looking at the self when speaking exhibits positive direct effects on satisfaction with VM process and enjoyment.
Enhancing higher entrepreneurship education: insights from practitioners for curriculum improvement
(2024)
Curricula for higher entrepreneurship education should meet the requirements of both a solid theoretical foundation and a practical orientation. When these curricula are designed by education specialists, entrepreneurs are usually not consulted. To explore practitioners’ curricular recommendations, we conducted 73 semi-structured interviews with entrepreneurs with at least five years of professional experience. We collected 49 items for teaching and learning objectives, 37 for contents, 28 for teaching methods, and 17 for assessment methods. The respondents are convinced that students should acquire solid knowledge in business and management, legal issues, and entrepreneurship. For the latter, only some core aspects are provided. The entrepreneurs put greater emphasis on entrepreneurial skills and attitudes and consider experiential learning designs as most suitable, both in the secure setting of the classroom and in real life. The findings can help reflect on current entrepreneurship curriculum designs.
Volatile supply and sales markets, coupled with increasing product individualization and complex production processes, present significant challenges for manufacturing companies. These must navigate and adapt to ever-shifting external and internal factors while ensuring robustness against process variabilities and unforeseen events. This has a pronounced impact on production control, which serves as the operational intersection between production planning and the shop- floor resources, and necessitates the capability to manage intricate process interdependencies effectively. Considering the increasing dynamics and product diversification, alongside the need to maintain constant production performances, the implementation of innovative control strategies becomes crucial.
In recent years, the integration of Industry 4.0 technologies and machine learning methods has gained prominence in addressing emerging challenges in production applications. Within this context, this cumulative thesis analyzes deep learning based production systems based on five publications. Particular attention is paid to the applications of deep reinforcement learning, aiming to explore its potential in dynamic control contexts. Analysis reveal that deep reinforcement learning excels in various applications, especially in dynamic production control tasks. Its efficacy can be attributed to its interactive learning and real-time operational model. However, despite its evident utility, there are notable structural, organizational, and algorithmic gaps in the prevailing research. A predominant portion of deep reinforcement learning based approaches is limited to specific job shop scenarios and often overlooks the potential synergies in combined resources. Furthermore, it highlights the rare implementation of multi-agent systems and semi-heterarchical systems in practical settings. A notable gap remains in the integration of deep reinforcement learning into a hyper-heuristic.
To bridge these research gaps, this thesis introduces a deep reinforcement learning based hyper- heuristic for the control of modular production systems, developed in accordance with the design science research methodology. Implemented within a semi-heterarchical multi-agent framework, this approach achieves a threefold reduction in control and optimisation complexity while ensuring high scalability, adaptability, and robustness of the system. In comparative benchmarks, this control methodology outperforms rule-based heuristics, reducing throughput times and tardiness, and effectively incorporates customer and order-centric metrics. The control artifact facilitates a rapid scenario generation, motivating for further research efforts and bridging the gap to real-world applications. The overarching goal is to foster a synergy between theoretical insights and practical solutions, thereby enriching scientific discourse and addressing current industrial challenges.
Während zur Geschichte des Strafrechts in der alten Bundesrepublik bislang lediglich überblicksartige Gesamtdarstellungen und Monographien zu einzelnen Deliktsbereichen existierten, nimmt dieser Band einige prägnante Facetten des Besonderen Teils detailreich in den Blick und setzt damit das Projekt fort, das die Herausgeber 2020 mit dem bereits erschienenen Band zum Allgemeinen Teil begonnen haben. Auch hier interessieren die einzelnen Teilbereiche weniger dogmengeschichtlich als in ihrer Interaktion mit der Strafrechtswissenschaft, -praxis, -politik und gesellschaftlichen Veränderungen. Die individuellen Zugänge, die die Autorinnen und Autoren hierzu gesucht haben, sollen in ihrer methodischen Vielfalt durchaus als Experiment verstanden werden.
Das Rechtslexikon
(2024)
Kompetenz im handlichen Format in über 1.400 Stichwörtern, 26 Tabellen und Schaubildern zu allen wichtigen Rechtsgebieten: Zivilrecht (z. B. Familien- und Erbrecht, Versicherungsrecht), Arbeitsrecht, Öffentliches Recht (z. B. Baurecht, Staats- und Verfassungsrecht, Umweltrecht, Verwaltungsrecht), Sozialrecht (z. B. Arbeitslosen- und Rentenversicherung), Strafrecht (einschließlich Jugendstrafrecht und Ordnungswidrigkeiten) sowie ihren europa- und völkerrechtlichen Bezügen.
Das Rechtslexikon ist in seiner 2. Auflage ergänzt worden um zahlreiche neue und aktuelle Begriffe wie Impfpflicht, Quarantäne, Radwegbenutzung, Schutzpflicht, Crowdworking, Homeoffice/mobiles Arbeiten, Datenschutzgrundverordnung, Mediation, Smart Contract u.v.a.m. Das Lexikon erklärt außerdem Normen und Grundsätze des deutschen und europäischen Rechts, knapp, zuverlässig und verständlich. Grundlegende Fragen und Zusammenhänge werden in besonderen Überblicksartikeln erläutert. Querverweise machen auf verwandte Themen im Lexikon aufmerksam.
Ein Lexikon für juristisch interessierte Laien, Studierende sowie Schülerinnen und Schüler.
Der russische Krimi
(2024)
Die erste umfassende Darstellung des Kriminalgenres in Russland. Sie geht auf Bücher und Filme ein und berücksichtigt die Debatten der Literaturkritik, da sich die Kulturpolitik während der sowjetischen Jahrzehnte schwer damit tat, dem Kriminalgenre überhaupt ein Existenzrecht zubilligen. Sympathie für die Miliz zu erzeugen wurde schließlich offizieller Zweck dieses politisch zu einer Nischenexistenz gedrängten Genres. Entsprechend liegt ein Akzent der Studie auf der Ideologie, besonders bei der Darstellung der Helden und ihrer Gegner und der Lebenswelt, die die Leser als ihre wiedererkennen sollten. Dabei erfahren sie eine Menge über die Gesellschaft, vor allem über deren sonst eher verschwiegene Schattenseiten.
Nicht zuletzt wegen der langen Entbehrung spannender Texte wurde der Krimi nach dem Ende des Sozialismus zu dem Bestsellergenre schlechthin. Am Bespiel des Frauenkrimis (Marinina und Nachfolgerinnen) und des postmodernen Krimis (Akunin) wird die postsowjetische Entwicklung bis in die 2010er Jahre gezeigt.
In the debate on epistemic injustice, it is generally assumed that testimonial injustice as one form of epistemic injustice cannot be committed (fully) deliberately or intentionally because it involves unconscious identity prejudices. Drawing on the case of sexual violence against refugees in European refugee camps, this paper argues that there is a form of testimonial injustice—willful testimonial injustice—that is deliberate. To do so, the paper argues (a) that the hearer intentionally utilizes negative identity prejudices for a particular purpose and (b) that the hearer is aware of the fact that the intentionally used prejudices are in fact prejudices. Furthermore, the paper shows how testimonial injustice relates to recognition failures both in terms of a causal as well as a constitutive claim. In fact, introducing willful testimonial injustice can support the constitutive claim of such a relation that has so far received little attention. Besides arguing for a novel form of testimonial injustice and contributing to the recent debate on the relation between epistemic injustice and recognition failures, this paper is also motivated by the attempt to draw attention to the inhumane conditions for refugees at the border of Europe as well as elsewhere.
Diglossic translanguaging
(2024)
This book examines how German-speaking Jews living in Berlin make sense and make use of their multilingual repertoire. With a focus on lexical variation, the book demonstrates how speakers integrate Yiddish and Hebrew elements into German for indexing belonging and for positioning themselves within the Jewish community. Linguistic choices are shaped by language ideologies (e.g., authenticity, prescriptivism, nostalgia). Speakers translanguage when using their multilingual repertoire, but do so in a diglossic way, using elements from different languages for specific domains
Der vorliegende Beitrag, der sich weniger als Fachbeitrag, sondern vielmehr als Erfahrungsbericht aus der Praxis versteht, berichtet von unterschiedlichen Versuchen, die Mensch-Tier-Beziehung in den schulischen Kontext einzubringen und somit der unzureichenden Beachtung der Thematik entgegenzuwirken. Nachdem überblicksartig die Relevanz der Mensch-Tier-Thematik herausgestellt und auf diese Weise die Notwendigkeit einer unterrichtlichen Beschäftigung mit dem Verhältnis von Menschen und anderen Tieren begründet wird, wird zunächst von einem ersten Versuch berichtet, (angehende) Lehrkräfte im Rahmen eines Workshops am Studienseminar Potsdam für die Relevanz der Mensch-Tier-Thematik zu sensibilisieren sowie über eine mögliche Umsetzung in den verschiedenen Unterrichtsfächern zu informieren. Anschließend werden – exemplarisch für den Politikunterricht – zwei Unterrichtsstunden, die die Mensch-Tier-Beziehung auf verschiedene Weise in den Politikunterricht einbeziehen, sowie die im Rahmen der Durchführung gesammelten Erfahrungen vorgestellt.
Wem wird geglaubt und wem nicht? Wessen Wissen wird weitergegeben und wessen nicht? Wer hat eine Stimme und wer nicht? Theorien der epistemischen Ungerechtigkeit befassen sich mit dem breiten Feld der ungerechten oder unfairen Behandlung, die mit Fragen des Wissens, Verstehens und Kommunizierens zusammenhängen, wie z.B. die Möglichkeit, vom Wissen oder von kommunikativen Praktiken ausgeschlossen zu werden oder zum Schweigen gebracht zu werden, aber auch Kontexte, in denen die Bedeutungen mancher systematisch verzerrt oder falsch gehört und falsch dargestellt werden, in denen manchen misstraut wird oder es an epistemischer Handlungsfähigkeit mangelt. In diesem Buch wird eine Übersicht über die breite Debatte epistemischer Ungerechtigkeit, epistemischer Unterdrückung und epistemischer Gewalt gegeben, in dem unterschiedliche Theorien, die sich auf der Schnittstelle von Gerechtigkeitstheorie und epistemischen Fragen befinden, systematisch und kritisch diskutiert sowie theoretische Vorgänger dieser Theorien beleuchtet werden.
We examine how the gender of business-owners is related to the wages paid to female relative to male employees working in their firms. Using Finnish register data and employing firm fixed effects, we find that the gender pay gap is – starting from a gender pay gap of 11 to 12 percent - two to three percentage-points lower for hourly wages in female-owned firms than in male-owned firms. Results are robust to how the wage is measured, as well as to various further robustness checks. More importantly, we find substantial differences between industries. While, for instance, in the manufacturing sector, the gender of the owner plays no role for the gender pay gap, in several service sector industries, like ICT or business services, no or a negligible gender pay gap can be found, but only when firms are led by female business owners. Businesses in male ownership maintain a gender pay gap of around 10 percent also in the latter industries. With increasing firm size, the influence of the gender of the owner, however, fades. In large firms, it seems that others – firm managers – determine wages and no differences in the pay gap are observed between male- and female-owned firms.
The growing use of digital tools in policy implementation has altered the work of street-level bureaucrats who are granted substantial discretionary power in decision-making. Digital tools can constrain discretionary power, like the curtailment thesis proposed, or serve as action resources, like the enablement thesis suggested. This article assesses empirical evidence of the impact of digital tools on street-level work and decision-making in service-oriented and regulation-oriented organisations based on a systematic literature review and thematic qualitative content analysis of 36 empirical studies published until 2021. The findings demonstrate different effects with regard to the role of digital tools and the core tasks of the public administration, depending on political and managerial goals and consequent system design. Leading or decisive digital tools mostly curtail discretion, especially in service-oriented organisations. In contrast, an enhanced information base or recommendations for actions enable decision-making, in particular in regulation-oriented organisations. By showing how street-level bureaucrats actively try to resist the curtailing effects caused by rigid design to address individual circumstances, for instance by establishing ways of coping like rule bending or rule breaking, using personal resources or prioritising among clients, this study demonstrates the importance of the continuation thesis and the persistently crucial role of human judgement in policy implementation.
This work analyzed functional and regulatory aspects of the so far little characterized EPSIN N-terminal Homology (ENTH) domain-containing protein EPSINOID2 in Arabidopsis thaliana. ENTH domain proteins play accessory roles in the formation of clathrin-coated vesicles (CCVs) (Zouhar and Sauer 2014). Their ENTH domain interacts with membranes and their typically long, unstructured C-terminus contains binding motifs for adaptor protein complexes and clathrin itself. There are seven ENTH domain proteins in Arabidopsis. Four of them possess the canonical long C-terminus and participate in various, presumably CCV-related intracellular transport processes (Song et al. 2006; Lee et al. 2007; Sauer et al. 2013; Collins et al. 2020; Heinze et al. 2020; Mason et al. 2023). The remaining three ENTH domain proteins, however, have severely truncated C-termini and were termed EPSINOIDs (Zouhar and Sauer 2014; Freimuth 2015). Their functions are currently unclear. Preceding studies focusing on EPSINOID2 indicated a role in root hair formation: epsinoid2 T DNA mutants exhibited an increased root hair density and EPSINOID2-GFP was specifically located in non-hair cell files in the Arabidopsis root epidermis (Freimuth 2015, 2019).
In this work, it was clearly shown that loss of EPSINOID2 leads to an increase in root hair density through analyses of three independent mutant alleles, including a newly generated CRISPR/Cas9 full deletion mutant. The ectopic root hairs emerging from non-hair positions in all epsinoid2 mutant alleles are most likely not a consequence of altered cell fate, because extensive genetic analyses placed EPSINOID2 downstream of the established epidermal patterning network. Thus, EPSINOID2 seems to act as a cell autonomous inhibitor of root hair formation. Attempts to confirm this hypothesis by ectopically overexpressing EPSINOID2 led to the discovery of post-transcriptional and -translational regulation through different mechanisms. One involves the little characterized miRNA844-3p. Interference with this pathway resulted in ectopic EPSINOID2 overexpression and decreased root hair density, confirming it as negative factor in root hair formation. A second mechanism likely involves proteasomal degradation. Treatment with proteasomal inhibitor MG132 led to EPSINOID2-GFP accumulation, and a KEN box degron motif was identified in the EPSINOID2 sequence associated with degradation through a ubiquitin/proteasome-dependent pathway. In line with a tight dose regulation, genetic analyses of all three mutant alleles indicate that EPSINOID2 is haploinsufficient. Lastly, it was revealed that, although EPSINOID2 promoter activity was found in all epidermal cells, protein accumulation was observed in N-cells only, hinting at yet another layer of regulation.
The Arctic is the hot spot of the ongoing, global climate change. Over the last decades, near-surface temperatures in the Arctic have been rising almost four times faster than on global average. This amplified warming of the Arctic and the associated rapid changes of its environment are largely influenced by interactions between individual components of the Arctic climate system. On daily to weekly time scales, storms can have major impacts on the Arctic sea-ice cover and are thus an important part of these interactions within the Arctic climate. The sea-ice impacts of storms are related to high wind speeds, which enhance the drift and deformation of sea ice, as well as to changes in the surface energy budget in association with air mass advection, which impact the seasonal sea-ice growth and melt.
The occurrence of storms in the Arctic is typically associated with the passage of transient cyclones. Even though the above described mechanisms how storms/cyclones impact the Arctic sea ice are in principal known, there is a lack of statistical quantification of these effects. In accordance with that, the overarching objective of this thesis is to statistically quantify cyclone impacts on sea-ice concentration (SIC) in the Atlantic Arctic Ocean over the last four decades. In order to further advance the understanding of the related mechanisms, an additional objective is to separate dynamic and thermodynamic cyclone impacts on sea ice and assess their relative importance. Finally, this thesis aims to quantify recent changes in cyclone impacts on SIC. These research objectives are tackled utilizing various data sets, including atmospheric and oceanic reanalysis data as well as a coupled model simulation and a cyclone tracking algorithm.
Results from this thesis demonstrate that cyclones are significantly impacting SIC in the Atlantic Arctic Ocean from autumn to spring, while there are mostly no significant impacts in summer. The strength and the sign (SIC decreasing or SIC increasing) of the cyclone impacts strongly depends on the considered daily time scale and the region of the Atlantic Arctic Ocean. Specifically, an initial decrease in SIC (day -3 to day 0 relative to the cyclone) is found in the Greenland, Barents and Kara Seas, while SIC increases following cyclones (day 0 to day 5 relative to the cyclone) are mostly limited to the Barents and Kara Seas.
For the cold season, this results in a pronounced regional difference between overall (day -3 to day 5 relative to the cyclone) SIC-decreasing cyclone impacts in the Greenland Sea and overall SIC-increasing cyclone impacts in the Barents and Kara Seas. A cyclone case study based on a coupled model simulation indicates that both dynamic and thermodynamic mechanisms contribute to cyclone impacts on sea ice in winter. A typical pattern consisting of an initial dominance of dynamic sea-ice changes followed by enhanced thermodynamic ice growth after the cyclone passage was found. This enhanced ice growth after the cyclone passage most likely also explains the (statistical) overall SIC-increasing effects of cyclones in the Barents and Kara Seas in the cold season.
Significant changes in cyclone impacts on SIC over the last four decades have emerged throughout the year. These recent changes are strongly varying from region to region and month to month. The strongest trends in cyclone impacts on SIC are found in autumn in the Barents and Kara Seas. Here, the magnitude of destructive cyclone impacts on SIC has approximately doubled over the last four decades. The SIC-increasing effects following the cyclone passage have particularly weakened in the Barents Sea in autumn. As a consequence, previously existing overall SIC-increasing cyclone impacts in this region in autumn have recently disappeared. Generally, results from this thesis show that changes in the state of the sea-ice cover (decrease in mean sea-ice concentration and thickness) and near-surface air temperature are most important for changed cyclone impacts on SIC, while changes in cyclone properties (i.e. intensity) do not play a significant role.
Aging is associated with bone loss, which can lead to osteoporosis and high fracture risk. This coincides with the enhanced formation of bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT), suggesting a negative effect of bone marrow adipocytes on skeletal health. Increased BMAT formation is also observed in pathologies such as obesity, type 2 diabetes and osteoporosis. However, a subset of bone marrow adipocytes forming the constitutive BMAT (cBMAT), arise early in life in the distal skeleton, contain high levels of unsaturated fatty acids and are thought to provide a physiological function. Regulated BMAT (rBMAT) forms during aging and obesity in proximal regions of the bone and contain a large proportion of saturated fatty acids. Paradoxically, BMAT accumulation is also enhanced during caloric restriction (CR), a life-span extending dietary intervention. This indicates, that different types of BMAT can form in response to opposing nutritional stimuli with potentially different functions.
To this end, two types of nutritional interventions, CR and high fat diet (HFD), that are both described to induce BMAT accumulation were carried out. CR markedly increased BMAT formation in the proximal tibia and led to a higher proportion of unsaturated fatty acids, making it similar to the physiological cBMAT. Additionally, proximal and diaphyseal tibia regions displayed higher adiponectin expression. In aged mice, CR was associated with an improved trabecular bone structure. Taken together, these findings demonstrate, that the type of BMAT that forms during CR might provide beneficial effects for local bone stem/progenitor cells and metabolic health. The HFD intervention performed in this thesis showed no effect on BMAT accumulation and bone microstructure. RNA Seq analysis revealed alterations in the composition of the collagen-containing extracellular matrix (ECM).
In order to investigate the effects of glucose homeostasis on osteogenesis, differentiation capacity of immortalized multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and osteochondrogenic progenitor cells (OPCs) was analyzed. Insulin improved differentiation in both cell types, however, combination of with a high glucose concentration led to an impaired mineralization of the ECM. In the MSCs, this was accompanied by the formation of adipocytes, indicating negative effects of the adipocytes formed during hyperglycemic conditions on mineralization processes. However, the altered mineralization pattern and structure of the ECM was also observed in OPCs, which did not form any adipocytes, suggesting further negative effects of a hyperglycemic environment on osteogenic differentiation.
In summary, the work provided in this thesis demonstrated that differentiation commitment of bone-resident stem cells can be altered through nutrient availability, specifically glucose. Surprisingly, both high nutrient supply, e.g. the hyperglycemic cell culture conditions, and low nutrient supply, e.g. CR, can induce adipogenic differentiation. However, while CR-induced adipocyte formation was associated with improved trabecular bone structure, adipocyte formation in a hyperglycemic cell-culture environment hampered mineralization. This thesis provides further evidence for the existence of different types of BMAT with specific functions.
Global warming, driven primarily by the excessive emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, has led to severe and detrimental environmental impacts. Rising global temperatures have triggered a cascade of adverse effects, including melting glaciers and polar ice caps, more frequent and intense heat waves disrupted weather patterns, and the acidification of oceans. These changes adversely affect ecosystems, biodiversity, and human societies, threatening food security, water availability, and livelihoods. One promising solution to mitigate the harmful effects of global warming is the widespread adoption of solar cells, also known as photovoltaic cells. Solar cells harness sunlight to generate electricity without emitting greenhouse gases or other pollutants. By replacing fossil fuel-based energy sources, solar cells can significantly reduce CO2 emissions, a significant contributor to global warming. This transition to clean, renewable energy can help curb the increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, thereby slowing down the rate of global temperature rise.
Solar energy’s positive impact extends beyond emission reduction. As solar panels become more efficient and affordable, they empower individuals, communities, and even entire nations to generate electricity and become less dependent on fossil fuels. This decentralized energy generation can enhance resilience in the face of climate-related challenges. Moreover, implementing solar cells creates green jobs and stimulates technological innovation, further promoting sustainable economic growth. As solar technology advances, its integration with energy storage systems and smart grids can ensure a stable and reliable energy supply, reducing the need for backup fossil fuel power plants that exacerbate environmental degradation.
The market-dominant solar cell technology is silicon-based, highly matured technology with a highly systematic production procedure. However, it suffers from several drawbacks, such as: 1) Cost: still relatively high due to high energy consumption due to the need to melt and purify silicon, and the use of silver as an electrode, which hinders their widespread availability, especially in low-income countries. 2) Efficiency: theoretically, it should deliver around 29%; however, the efficiency of most of the commercially available silicon-based solar cells ranges from 18 – 22%. 3) Temperature sensitivity: The efficiency decreases with the increase in the temperature, affecting their output. 4) Resource constraints: silicon as a raw material is unavailable in all countries, creating supply chain challenges.
Perovskite solar cells arose in 2011 and matured very rapidly in the last decade as a highly efficient and versatile solar cell technology. With an efficiency of 26%, high absorption coefficients, solution processability, and tunable band gap, it attracted the attention of the solar cells community. It represented a hope for cheap, efficient, and easily processable next-generation solar cells. However, lead toxicity might be the block stone hindering perovskite solar cells’ market reach. Lead is a heavy and bioavailable element that makes perovskite solar cells environmentally unfriendly technology. As a result, scientists try to replace lead with a more environmentally friendly element. Among several possible alternatives, tin was the most suitable element due to its electronic and atomic structure similarity to lead.
Tin perovskites were developed to alleviate the challenge of lead toxicity. Theoretically, it shows very high absorption coefficients, an optimum band gap of 1.35 eV for FASnI3, and a very high short circuit current, which nominates it to deliver the highest possible efficiency of a single junction solar cell, which is around 30.1% according to Schockly-Quisser limit. However, tin perovskites’ efficiency still lags below 15% and is irreproducible, especially from lab to lab. This humble performance could be attributed to three reasons: 1) Tin (II) oxidation to tin (IV), which would happen due to oxygen, water, or even by the effect of the solvent, as was discovered recently. 2) fast crystallization dynamics, which occurs due to the lateral exposure of the P-orbitals of the tin atom, which enhances its reactivity and increases the crystallization pace. 3) Energy band misalignment: The energy bands at the interfaces between the perovskite absorber material and the charge selective layers are not aligned, leading to high interfacial charge recombination, which devastates the photovoltaic performance. To solve these issues, we implemented several techniques and approaches that enhanced the efficiency of tin halide perovskites, providing new chemically safe solvents and antisolvents. In addition, we studied the energy band alignment between the charge transport layers and the tin perovskite absorber.
Recent research has shown that the principal source of tin oxidation is the solvent known as dimethylsulfoxide, which also happens to be one of the most effective solvents for processing perovskite. The search for a stable solvent might prove to be the factor that makes all the difference in the stability of tin-based perovskites. We started with a database of over 2,000 solvents and narrowed it down to a series of 12 new solvents that are suitable for processing FASnI3 experimentally. This was accomplished by looking into 1) the solubility of the precursor chemicals FAI and SnI2, 2) the thermal stability of the precursor solution, and 3) the potential to form perovskite. Finally, we show that it is possible to manufacture solar cells using a novel solvent system that outperforms those produced using DMSO. The results of our research give some suggestions that may be used in the search for novel solvents or mixes of solvents that can be used to manufacture stable tin-based perovskites.
Due to the quick crystallization of tin, it is more difficult to deposit tin-based perovskite films from a solution than manufacturing lead-based perovskite films since lead perovskite is more often utilized. The most efficient way to get high efficiencies is to deposit perovskite from dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), which slows down the quick construction of the tin-iodine network that is responsible for perovskite synthesis. This is the most successful approach for achieving high efficiencies. Dimethyl sulfoxide, which is used in the processing, is responsible for the oxidation of tin, which is a disadvantage of this method. This research presents a potentially fruitful alternative in which 4-(tert-butyl) pyridine can substitute dimethyl sulfoxide in the process of regulating crystallization without causing tin oxidation to take place. Perovskite films that have been formed from pyridine have been shown to have a much-reduced defect density. This has resulted in increased charge mobility and better photovoltaic performance, making pyridine a desirable alternative for use in the deposition of tin perovskite films.
The precise control of perovskite precursor crystallization inside a thin film is of utmost importance for optimizing the efficiency and manufacturing of solar cells. The deposition process of tin-based perovskite films from a solution presents difficulties due to the quick crystallization of tin compared to the more often employed lead perovskite. The optimal approach for attaining elevated efficiencies entails using dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as a medium for depositing perovskite. This choice of solvent impedes the tin-iodine network’s fast aggregation, which plays a crucial role in the production of perovskite. Nevertheless, this methodology is limited since the utilization of dimethyl sulfoxide leads to the oxidation of tin throughout the processing stage. In this thesis, we present a potentially advantageous alternative approach wherein 4-(tert-butyl) pyridine is proposed as a substitute for dimethyl sulfoxide in regulating crystallization processes while avoiding the undesired consequence of tin oxidation. Films of perovskite formed using pyridine as a solvent have a notably reduced density of defects, resulting in higher mobility of charges and improved performance in solar applications. Consequently, the utilization of pyridine for the deposition of tin perovskite films is considered advantageous.
Tin perovskites are suffering from an apparent energy band misalignment. However, the band diagrams published in the current body of research display contradictions, resulting in a dearth of unanimity. Moreover, comprehensive information about the dynamics connected with charge extraction is lacking. This thesis aims to ascertain the energy band locations of tin perovskites by employing the kelvin probe and Photoelectron yield spectroscopy methods. This thesis aims to construct a precise band diagram for the often-utilized device stack. Moreover, a comprehensive analysis is performed to assess the energy deficits inherent in the current energetic structure of tin halide perovskites. In addition, we investigate the influence of BCP on the improvement of electron extraction in C60/BCP systems, with a specific emphasis on the energy factors involved. Furthermore, transient surface photovoltage was utilized to investigate the charge extraction kinetics of frequently studied charge transport layers, such as NiOx and PEDOT as hole transport layers and C60, ICBA, and PCBM as electron transport layers. The Hall effect, KP, and TRPL approaches accurately ascertain the p-doping concentration in FASnI3. The results consistently demonstrated a value of 1.5 * 1017 cm-3. Our research findings highlight the imperative nature of autonomously constructing the charge extraction layers for tin halide perovskites, apart from those used for lead perovskites.
The crystallization of perovskite precursors relies mainly on the utilization of two solvents. The first one dissolves the perovskite powder to form the precursor solution, usually called the solvent. The second one precipitates the perovskite precursor, forming the wet film, which is a supersaturated solution of perovskite precursor and in the remains of the solvent and the antisolvent. Later, this wet film crystallizes upon annealing into a full perovskite crystallized film. In our research context, we proposed new solvents to dissolve FASnI3, but when we tried to form a film, most of them did not crystallize. This is attributed to the high coordination strength between the metal halide and the solvent molecules, which is unbreakable by the traditionally used antisolvents such as Toluene and Chlorobenzene. To solve this issue, we introduce a high-throughput antisolvent screening in which we screened around 73 selected antisolvents against 15 solvents that can form a 1M FASnI3 solution. We used for the first time in tin perovskites machine learning algorithm to understand and predict the effect of an antisolvent on the crystallization of a precursor solution in a particular solvent. We relied on film darkness as a primary criterion to judge the efficacy of a solvent-antisolvent pair. We found that the relative polarity between solvent and antisolvent is the primary factor that affects the solvent-antisolvent interaction. Based on our findings, we prepared several high-quality tin perovskite films free from DMSO and achieved an efficiency of 9%, which is the highest DMSO tin perovskite device so far.
Microalgae have been recognized as a promising green production platform for recombinant proteins. The majority of studies on recombinant protein expression have been conducted in the green microalga C. reinhardtii. While promising improvement regarding nuclear transgene expression in this alga has been made, it is still inefficient due to epigenetic silencing, often resulting in low yields that are not competitive with other expressor organisms. Other microalgal species might be better suited for high-level protein expression, but are limited in their availability of molecular tools.
The red microalga Porphyridium purpureum recently emerged as candidate for the production of recombinant proteins. It is promising in that transformation vectors are episomally maintained as autonomously replicating plasmids in the nucleus at a high copy number, thus leading to high expression values in this red alga.
In this work, we expand the genetic tools for P. purpureum and investigate parameters that govern efficient transgene expression. We provide an improved transformation protocol to streamline the generation of transgenic lines in this organism. After being able to efficiently generate transgenic lines, we showed that codon usage is a main determinant of high-level transgene expression, not only at the protein level but also at the level of mRNA accumulation. The optimized expression constructs resulted in YFP accumulation up to an unprecedented 5% of the total soluble protein. Furthermore, we designed new constructs conferring efficient transgene expression into the culture medium, simplifying purification and harvests of recombinant proteins. To further improve transgene expression, we tested endogenous promoters driving the most highly transcribed genes in P. purpureum and found minor increase of YFP accumulation.
We employed the previous findings to express complex viral antigens from the hepatitis B virus and the hepatitis C virus in P. purpureum to demonstrate its feasibility as producer of biopharmaceuticals. The viral glycoproteins were successfully produced to high levels and could reach their native confirmation, indicating a functional glycosylation machinery and an appropriate folding environment in this red alga. We could successfully upscale the biomass production of transgenic lines and with that provide enough material for immunization trials in mice that were performed in collaboration. These trials showed no toxicity of neither the biomass nor the purified antigens, and, additionally, the algal-produced antigens were able to elicit a strong and specific immune response.
The results presented in this work pave the way for P. purpureum as a new promising producer organism for biopharmaceuticals in the microalgal field.
The Women, Peace and Security Agenda (WPSA) is an international framework addressing the disproportionate impact of armed conflict on women and girls and promoting their meaningful participation in peacebuilding efforts. The Security Council called on Member States to develop National Action Plans (NAPs) to operationalize the four pillars of the Agenda. This study looks at the relevant steps undertaken by both Germany and the European Union. The author calls for improvements on either level and makes four recommendations.
Does working in a gender-atypical occupation reduce individuals’ likelihood of finding a different-sex romantic partner, and do such occupational partnership penalties contribute to occupational gender segregation? To answer this question, we theorized partnership penalties for working in gender-atypical occupations by drawing on insights from evolutionary psychology, social constructivism, and rational choice theory and exploited the stability of occupational pathways in Germany. In Study 1, we analyzed observational data from a national probability sample (N= 1,634,944) to assess whether individuals in gender-atypical occupations were less likely to be partnered than individuals who worked in gender typical occupations. To assess whether the observed partnership gaps found in Study 1 were causally related to the gender typicality of men’s and women’s occupations, we conducted a field experiment on a dating app (N = 6,778). Because the findings from Study 2 suggested that young women and men indeed experienced penalties for working in a gender-atypical occupation (at least when they were not highly attractive), we employed a choice-experimental design in Study 3 (N = 1,250) to assess whether women and men were aware of occupational partnership penalties and showed that anticipating occupational partnership penalties may keep young and highly educated women from working in gender-atypical occupations. Our main conclusion therefore is that that observed penalties and their anticipation seem to be driven by unconscious rather than conscious processes.
Citizenship
(2024)
Moss-microbe associations are often characterised by syntrophic interactions between the microorganisms and their hosts, but the structure of the microbial consortia and their role in peatland development remain unknown.
In order to study microbial communities of dominant peatland mosses, Sphagnum and brown mosses, and the respective environmental drivers, four study sites representing different successional stages of natural northern peatlands were chosen on a large geographical scale: two brown moss-dominated, circumneutral peatlands from the Arctic and two Sphagnum-dominated, acidic peat bogs from subarctic and temperate zones.
The family Acetobacteraceae represented the dominant bacterial taxon of Sphagnum mosses from various geographical origins and displayed an integral part of the moss core community. This core community was shared among all investigated bryophytes and consisted of few but highly abundant prokaryotes, of which many appear as endophytes of Sphagnum mosses. Moreover, brown mosses and Sphagnum mosses represent habitats for archaea which were not studied in association with peatland mosses so far. Euryarchaeota that are capable of methane production (methanogens) displayed the majority of the moss-associated archaeal communities. Moss-associated methanogenesis was detected for the first time, but it was mostly negligible under laboratory conditions. Contrarily, substantial moss-associated methane oxidation was measured on both, brown mosses and Sphagnum mosses, supporting that methanotrophic bacteria as part of the moss microbiome may contribute to the reduction of methane emissions from pristine and rewetted peatlands of the northern hemisphere.
Among the investigated abiotic and biotic environmental parameters, the peatland type and the host moss taxon were identified to have a major impact on the structure of moss-associated bacterial communities, contrarily to archaeal communities whose structures were similar among the investigated bryophytes. For the first time it was shown that different bog development stages harbour distinct bacterial communities, while at the same time a small core community is shared among all investigated bryophytes independent of geography and peatland type.
The present thesis displays the first large-scale, systematic assessment of bacterial and archaeal communities associated both with brown mosses and Sphagnum mosses. It suggests that some host-specific moss taxa have the potential to play a key role in host moss establishment and peatland development.
Wo programmiert wird, da passieren Fehler. Um das Debugging, also die Suche sowie die Behebung von Fehlern in Quellcode, stärker explizit zu adressieren, verfolgt die vorliegende Arbeit das Ziel, entlang einer prototypischen Lernumgebung sowohl ein systematisches Vorgehen während des Debuggings zu vermitteln als auch Gestaltungsfolgerungen für ebensolche Lernumgebungen zu identifizieren. Dazu wird die folgende Forschungsfrage gestellt: Wie verhalten sich die Lernenden während des kurzzeitigen Gebrauchs einer Lernumgebung nach dem Cognitive Apprenticeship-Ansatz mit dem Ziel der expliziten Vermittlung eines systematischen Debuggingvorgehens und welche Eindrücke entstehen während der Bearbeitung?
Zur Beantwortung dieser Forschungsfrage wurde orientierend an literaturbasierten Implikationen für die Vermittlung von Debugging und (medien-)didaktischen Gestaltungsaspekten eine prototypische Lernumgebung entwickelt und im Rahmen einer qualitativen Nutzerstudie mit Bachelorstudierenden informatischer Studiengänge erprobt. Hierbei wurden zum einen anwendungsbezogene Verbesserungspotenziale identifiziert. Zum anderen zeigte sich insbesondere gegenüber der Systematisierung des Debuggingprozesses innerhalb der Aufgabenbearbeitung eine positive Resonanz. Eine Untersuchung, inwieweit sich die Nutzung der Lernumgebung längerfristig auf das Verhalten von Personen und ihre Vorgehensweisen während des Debuggings auswirkt, könnte Gegenstand kommender Arbeiten sein.
The origin and structure of magnetic fields in the Galaxy are largely unknown. What is known is that they are essential for several astrophysical processes, in particular the propagation of cosmic rays. Our ability to describe the propagation of cosmic rays through the Galaxy is severely limited by the lack of observational data needed to probe the structure of the Galactic magnetic field on many different length scales. This is particularly true for modelling the propagation of cosmic rays into the Galactic halo, where our knowledge of the magnetic field is particularly poor.
In the last decade, observations of the Galactic halo in different frequency regimes have revealed the existence of out-of-plane bubble emission in the Galactic halo. In gamma rays these bubbles have been termed Fermi bubbles with a radial extent of ≈ 3 kpc and an azimuthal height of ≈ 6 kpc. The radio counterparts of the Fermi bubbles were seen by both the S-PASS telescopes and the Planck satellite, and showed a clear spatial overlap. The X-ray counterparts of the Fermi bubbles were named eROSITA bubbles after the eROSITA satellite, with a radial width of ≈ 7 kpc and an azimuthal height of ≈ 14 kpc. Taken together, these observations suggest the presence of large extended Galactic Halo Bubbles (GHB) and have stimulated interest in exploring the less explored Galactic halo.
In this thesis, a new toy model (GHB model) for the magnetic field and non-thermal electron distribution in the Galactic halo has been proposed. The new toy model has been used to produce polarised synchrotron emission sky maps. Chi-square analysis was used to compare the synthetic skymaps with the Planck 30 GHz polarised skymaps. The obtained constraints on the strength and azimuthal height were found to be in agreement with the S-PASS radio observations.
The upper, lower and best-fit values obtained from the above chi-squared analysis were used to generate three separate toy models. These three models were used to propagate ultra-high energy cosmic rays. This study was carried out for two potential sources, Centaurus A and NGC 253, to produce magnification maps and arrival direction skymaps. The simulated arrival direction skymaps were found to be consistent with the hotspots of Centaurus A and NGC 253 as seen in the observed arrival direction skymaps provided by the Pierre Auger Observatory (PAO).
The turbulent magnetic field component of the GHB model was also used to investigate the extragalactic dipole suppression seen by PAO. UHECRs with an extragalactic dipole were forward-tracked through the turbulent GHB model at different field strengths. The suppression in the dipole due to the varying diffusion coefficient from the simulations was noted. The results could also be compared with an analytical analogy of electrostatics. The simulations of the extragalactic dipole suppression were in agreement with similar studies carried out for galactic cosmic rays.
Relativistic pair beams produced in the cosmic voids by TeV gamma rays from blazars are expected to produce a detectable GeV-scale cascade emission missing in the observations. The suppression of this secondary cascade implies either the deflection of the pair beam by intergalactic magnetic fields (IGMFs) or an energy loss of the beam due to the electrostatic beam-plasma instability. IGMF of femto-Gauss strength is sufficient to significantly deflect the pair beams reducing the flux of secondary cascade below the observational limits. A similar flux reduction may result in the absence of the IGMF from the beam energy loss by the instability before the inverse Compton cooling. This dissertation consists of two studies about the instability role in the evolution of blazar-induced beams.
Firstly, we investigated the effect of sub-fG level IGMF on the beam energy loss by the instability. Considering IGMF with correlation lengths smaller than a few kpc, we found that such fields increase the transverse momentum of the pair beam particles, dramatically reducing the linear growth rate of the electrostatic instability and hence the energy-loss rate of the pair beam. Our results show that the IGMF eliminates beam plasma instability as an effective energy-loss agent at a field strength three orders of magnitude below that needed to suppress the secondary cascade emission by magnetic deflection. For intermediate-strength IGMF, we do not know a viable process to explain the observed absence of GeV-scale cascade emission and hence can be excluded.
Secondly, we probed how the beam-plasma instability feeds back on the beam, using a realistic two-dimensional beam distribution. We found that the instability broadens the beam opening angles significantly without any significant energy loss, thus confirming a recent feedback study on a simplified one-dimensional beam distribution. However, narrowing diffusion feedback of the beam particles with Lorentz factors less than 1e6 might become relevant even though initially it is negligible. Finally, when considering the continuous creation of TeV pairs, we found that the beam distribution and the wave spectrum reach a new quasi-steady state, in which the scattering of beam particles persists and the beam opening angle may increase by a factor of hundreds. This new intrinsic scattering of the cascade can result in time delays of around ten years, thus potentially mimicking the IGMF deflection. Understanding the implications on the GeV cascade emission requires accounting for inverse Compton cooling and simulating the beam-plasma system at different points in the IGM.
Digitale Plattformen prägen unsere Rechts- und Wirtschaftsordnung, die Freizeitgestaltung, das Informationsverhalten und im Aggregat die digitale Öffentlichkeit. Die damit verbundenen Rechtsfragen sind im Fluss und berühren alle juristischen Teildisziplinen. Der Tagungsband nähert sich daher den Entwicklungen des Plattformrechts aus disziplinübergreifendem Blickwinkel. Dieser Versuch einer überspannenden Perspektive fokussiert vor allem auf die beiden „Großen“ der jüngsten Rechtsakte (DSA/DMA) unter dem besonderen Gesichtspunkt ihres Vollzugs: Wie kann man ein globales Phänomen wie Plattformen lokal und regional regulieren? Welche Rolle spielt der Schwarm der Vielen in der Effektivierung der neuen Regularien? Passen Regelungsmodelle wie das Urheberrecht zum Plattformphänomen?
Spring Issue
(2024)
Mindful Eating
(2024)
Maladaptive eating behaviors such as emotional eating, external eating, and loss-of-control eating are widespread in the general population. Moreover, they are associated to adverse health outcomes and well-known for their role in the development and maintenance of eating disorders and obesity (i.e., eating and weight disorders). Eating and weight disorders are associated with crucial burden for individuals as well as high costs for society in general. At the same time, corresponding treatments yield poor outcomes. Thus, innovative concepts are needed to improve prevention and treatment of these conditions.
The Buddhist concept of mindfulness (i.e., paying attention to the present moment without judgement) and its delivery via mindfulness-based intervention programs (MBPs) has gained wide popularity in the area of maladaptive eating behaviors and associated eating and weight disorders over the last two decades. Though previous findings on their effects seem promising, the current assessment of mindfulness and its mere application via multi-component MBPs hampers to draw conclusions on the extent to which mindfulness-immanent qualities actually account for the effects (e.g., the modification of maladaptive eating behaviors). However, this knowledge is pivotal for interpreting previous effects correctly and for avoiding to cause harm in particularly vulnerable groups such as those with eating and weight disorders.
To address these shortcomings, recent research has focused on the context-specific approach of mindful eating (ME) to investigate underlying mechanisms of action. ME can be considered a subdomain of generic mindfulness describing it specifically in relation to the process of eating and associated feelings, thoughts, and motives, thus including a variety of different attitudes and behaviors. However, there is no universal operationalization and the current assessment of ME suffers from different limitations. Specifically, current measurement instruments are not suited for a comprehensive assessment of the multiple facets of the construct that are currently discussed as important in the literature. This in turn hampers comparisons of different ME facets which would allow to evaluate their particular effect on maladaptive eating behaviors. This knowledge is needed to tailor prevention and treatment of associated eating and weight disorders properly and to explore potential underlying mechanisms of action which have so far been proposed mainly on theoretical grounds.
The dissertation at hand aims to provide evidence-based fundamental research that contributes to our understanding of how mindfulness, more specifically its context-specific form of ME, impacts maladaptive eating behaviors and, consequently, how it could be used appropriately to enrich the current prevention and treatment approaches for eating and weight disorders in the future.
Specifically, in this thesis, three scientific manuscripts applying several qualitative and quantitative techniques in four sequential studies are presented. These manuscripts were published in or submitted to three scientific peer-reviewed journals to shed light on the following questions:
I. How can ME be measured comprehensively and in a reliable and valid way to advance the understanding of how mindfulness works in the context of eating?
II. Does the context-specific construct of ME have an advantage over the generic concept in advancing the understanding of how mindfulness is related to maladaptive eating behaviors?
III. Which ME facets are particularly useful in explaining maladaptive eating behaviors?
IV. Does training a particular ME facet result in changes in maladaptive eating behaviors?
To answer the first research question (Paper 1), a multi-method approach using three subsequent studies was applied to develop and validate a comprehensive self-report instrument to assess the multidimensional construct of ME - the Mindful Eating Inventory (MEI). Study 1 aimed to create an initial version of the MEI by following a three-step approach: First, a comprehensive item pool was compiled by including selected and adapted items of the existing ME questionnaires and supplementing them with items derived from an extensive literature review. Second, the preliminary item pool was complemented and checked for content validity by experts in the field of eating behavior and/or mindfulness (N = 15). Third, the item pool was further refined through qualitative methods: Three focus groups comprising laypersons (N = 16) were used as a check for applicability. Subsequently, think-aloud protocols (N = 10) served as a last check of comprehensibility and elimination of ambiguities.
The resulting initial MEI version was tested in Study 2 in an online convenience sample (N = 828) to explore its factor structure using exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Results were used to shorten the questionnaire in accordance with qualitative and quantitative criteria yielding the final MEI version which encompasses 30 items. These items were assigned to seven ME facets: (1) ‘Accepting and Non-attached Attitude towards one’s own eating experience’ (ANA), (2) ‘Awareness of Senses while Eating’ (ASE), (3) ‘Eating in Response to awareness of Fullness‘ (ERF), (4) ‘Awareness of eating Triggers and Motives’ (ATM), (5) ‘Interconnectedness’ (CON), (6) ‘Non-Reactive Stance’ (NRS) and (7) Focused Attention on Eating’ (FAE).
Study 3 sought to confirm the found facets and the corresponding factor structure in an independent online convenience sample (N = 612) using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The study served as further indication of the assumed multidimensionality of ME (the correlational seven-factor model was shown to be superior to a single-factor model). Psychometric properties of the MEI, regarding factorial validity, internal consistency, retest-reliability, and observed criterion validity using a wide range of eating-specific and general health-related outcomes, showed the inventory to be suitable for a comprehensive, reliable and valid assessment of ME. These findings were complemented by demonstrating measurement invariance of the MEI regarding gender. In accordance with the factor structure of the MEI, Paper 1 offers an empirically-derived definition of ME, succeeding in overcoming ambiguities and problems of previous attempts at defining the construct.
To answer the second and third research questions (Paper 2) a subsample of Study 2 from the MEI validation studies (N = 292) was analyzed. Incremental validity of ME beyond generic mindfulness was shown using hierarchical regression models concerning the outcome variables of maladaptive eating behaviors (emotional eating and uncontrolled eating) and nutrition behaviors (consumption of energy-dense food). Multiple regression analyses were applied to investigate the impact of the seven different ME facets (identified in Paper 1) on the same outcome variables. The following ME facets significantly contributed to explaining variance in maladaptive eating and nutrition behaviors: Accepting and Non-attached Attitude towards one`s own eating experience (ANA), Eating in Response to awareness of Fullness (ERF), the Awareness of eating Triggers and Motives (ATM), and a Non-Reactive Stance (NRS, i.e., an observing, non-impulsive attitude towards eating triggers). Results suggest that these ME facets are promising variables to consider when a) investigating potential underlying mechanisms of mindfulness and MBPs in the context of eating and b) addressing maladaptive eating behaviors in general as well as in the prevention and treatment of eating and weight disorders.
To answer the fourth research question (Paper 3), a training on an isolated exercise (‘9 Hunger’) based on the previously identified ME facet ATM was designed to explore its particular association with changes in maladaptive eating behaviors and thus to preliminary explore one possible mechanism of action. The online study was realized using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design. Latent Change Scores (LCS) across three measurement points (before the training, directly after the training and three months later) were compared between the intervention group (n = 211) and a waitlist control group (n = 188). Short- and longer-term effects of the training could be shown on maladaptive eating behaviors (emotional eating, external eating, loss-of-control eating) and associated outcomes (intuitive eating, ME, self-compassion, well-being). Findings serve as preliminary empirical evidence that MBPs might influence maladaptive eating behaviors through an enhanced non-judgmental awareness of and distinguishment between eating motives and triggers (i.e., ATM). This mechanism of action had previously only been hypothesized from a theoretical perspective. Since maladaptive eating behaviors are associated with eating and weight disorders, the findings can enhance our understanding of the general effects of MBPs on these conditions.
The integration of the different findings leads to several suggestions of how ME might enrich different kinds of future interventions on maladaptive eating behaviors to improve health in general or the prevention and treatment of eating and weight disorders in particular. Strengths of the thesis (e.g., deliberate specific methodology, variety of designs and methods, high number of participants) are emphasized. The main limitations particularly regarding sample characteristics (e.g., higher level of formal education, fewer males, self-selected) are discussed to arrive at an outline for future studies (e.g., including multi-modal-multi-method approaches, clinical eating disorder samples and youth samples) to improve upcoming research on ME and underlying mechanisms of action of MBPs for maladaptive eating behaviors and associated eating and weight disorders.
This thesis enriches current research on mindfulness in the context of eating by providing fundamental research on the core of the ME construct. Thereby it delivers a reliable and valid instrument to comprehensively assess ME in future studies as well as an operational definition of the construct. Findings on ME facet level might inform upcoming research and practice on how to address maladaptive eating behaviors appropriately in interventions. The ME skill ‘Awareness of eating Triggers and Motives (ATM)’ as one particular mechanism of action should be further investigated in representative community and specific clinical samples to examine the validity of the results in these groups and to justify an application of the concept to the general population as well as to subgroups with eating and weight disorders in particular.
In conclusion, findings of the current thesis can be used to set future research on mindfulness, more specifically ME, and its underlying mechanism in the context of eating on a more evidence-based footing. This knowledge can inform upcoming prevention and treatment to tailor MBPs on maladaptive eating behaviors and associated eating and weight disorders appropriately.
Cross-sectional associations of dietary biomarker patterns with health and nutritional status
(2024)
Enhancing economic efficiency in modular production systems through deep reinforcement learning
(2024)
In times of increasingly complex production processes and volatile customer demands, the production adaptability is crucial for a company's profitability and competitiveness. The ability to cope with rapidly changing customer requirements and unexpected internal and external events guarantees robust and efficient production processes, requiring a dedicated control concept at the shop floor level. Yet in today's practice, conventional control approaches remain in use, which may not keep up with the dynamic behaviour due to their scenario-specific and rigid properties. To address this challenge, deep learning methods were increasingly deployed due to their optimization and scalability properties. However, these approaches were often tested in specific operational applications and focused on technical performance indicators such as order tardiness or total throughput. In this paper, we propose a deep reinforcement learning based production control to optimize combined techno-financial performance measures. Based on pre-defined manufacturing modules that are supplied and operated by multiple agents, positive effects were observed in terms of increased revenue and reduced penalties due to lower throughput times and fewer delayed products. The combined modular and multi-staged approach as well as the distributed decision-making further leverage scalability and transferability to other scenarios.
Assessing the impact of global change on hydrological systems is one of the greatest hydrological challenges of our time. Changes in land cover, land use, and climate have an impact on water quantity, quality, and temporal availability. There is a widespread consensus that, given the far-reaching effects of global change, hydrological systems can no longer be viewed as static in their structure; instead, they must be regarded as entire ecosystems, wherein hydrological processes interact and coevolve with biological, geomorphological, and pedological processes. To accurately predict the hydrological response under the impact of global change, it is essential to understand this complex coevolution. The knowledge of how hydrological processes, in particular the formation of subsurface (preferential) flow paths, evolve within this coevolution and how they feed back to the other processes is still very limited due to a lack of observational data.
At the hillslope scale, this intertwined system of interactions is known as the hillslope feedback cycle. This thesis aims to enhance our understanding of the hillslope feedback cycle by studying the coevolution of hillslope structure and hillslope hydrological response. Using chronosequences of moraines in two glacial forefields developed from siliceous and calcareous glacial till, the four studies shed light on the complex coevolution of hydrological, biological, and structural hillslope properties, as well as subsurface hydrological flow paths over an evolutionary period of 10 millennia in these two contrasting geologies. The findings indicate that the contrasting properties of siliceous and calcareous parent materials lead
to variations in soil structure, permeability, and water storage. As a result, different plant species and vegetation types are favored on siliceous versus calcareous parent material, leading to diverse ecosystems with distinct hydrological dynamics. The siliceous parent material was found to show a higher activity level in driving the coevolution. The soil pH resulting from parent material weathering emerges as a crucial factor, influencing vegetation development, soil formation, and consequently, hydrology. The acidic weathering of the siliceous parent material favored the accumulation of organic matter, increasing the soils’ water storage capacity and attracting acid-loving shrubs, which further promoted organic matter accumulation and ultimately led to podsolization after 10 000 years. Tracer experiments revealed that the subsurface flow path evolution was influenced by soil and vegetation development, and vice versa. Subsurface flow paths changed from vertical, heterogeneous matrix flow to finger-like flow paths over a few hundred years, evolving into macropore flow, water storage, and lateral subsurface flow after several thousand years. The changes in flow paths among younger age classes were driven by weathering processes altering soil structure, as well as by vegetation development and root activity. In the older age
class, the transition to more water storage and lateral flow was attributed to substantial organic matter accumulation and ongoing podsolization. The rapid vertical water transport in the finger-like flow paths, along with the conductive sandy material, contributed to podsolization and thus to the shift in the hillslope hydrological response.
In contrast, the calcareous site possesses a high pH buffering capacity, creating a neutral to basic environment with relatively low accumulation of dead organic matter, resulting in a lower water storage capacity and the establishment of predominantly grass vegetation. The coevolution was found to be less dynamic over the millennia. Similar to the siliceous site, significant changes in subsurface flow paths occurred between the young age classes. However, unlike the siliceous site, the subsurface flow paths at the calcareous site only altered in shape and not in direction. Tracer experiments showed that flow paths changed from vertical, heterogeneous matrix flow to vertical, finger-like flow paths after a few hundred to thousands of years, which was driven by root activities and weathering processes. Despite having a finer soil texture, water storage at the calcareous site was significantly lower than at the siliceous site, and water transport remained primarily rapid and vertical, contributing to the flourishing of grass vegetation.
The studies elucidated that changes in flow paths are predominantly shaped by the characteristics of the parent material and its weathering products, along with their complex interactions with initial water flow paths and vegetation development. Time, on the other hand, was not found to be a primary factor in describing the evolution of the hydrological response. This thesis makes a valuable contribution to closing the gap in the observations of the coevolution of hydrological processes within the hillslope feedback cycle, which is important to improve predictions of hydrological processes in changing landscapes. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary studies in addressing the hydrological challenges arising from global change.
Rapidly growing seismic and macroseismic databases and simplified access to advanced machine learning methods have in recent years opened up vast opportunities to address challenges in engineering and strong motion seismology from novel, datacentric perspectives. In this thesis, I explore the opportunities of such perspectives for the tasks of ground motion modeling and rapid earthquake impact assessment, tasks with major implications for long-term earthquake disaster mitigation.
In my first study, I utilize the rich strong motion database from the Kanto basin, Japan, and apply the U-Net artificial neural network architecture to develop a deep learning based ground motion model. The operational prototype provides statistical estimates of expected ground shaking, given descriptions of a specific earthquake source, wave propagation paths, and geophysical site conditions. The U-Net interprets ground motion data in its spatial context, potentially taking into account, for example, the geological properties in the vicinity of observation sites. Predictions of ground motion intensity are thereby calibrated to individual observation sites and earthquake locations.
The second study addresses the explicit incorporation of rupture forward directivity into ground motion modeling. Incorporation of this phenomenon, causing strong, pulse like ground shaking in the vicinity of earthquake sources, is usually associated with an intolerable increase in computational demand during probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA) calculations. I suggest an approach in which I utilize an artificial neural network to efficiently approximate the average, directivity-related adjustment to ground motion predictions for earthquake ruptures from the 2022 New Zealand National Seismic Hazard Model. The practical implementation in an actual PSHA calculation demonstrates the efficiency and operational readiness of my model. In a follow-up study, I present a proof of concept for an alternative strategy in which I target the generalizing applicability to ruptures other than those from the New Zealand National Seismic Hazard Model.
In the third study, I address the usability of pseudo-intensity reports obtained from macroseismic observations by non-expert citizens for rapid impact assessment. I demonstrate that the statistical properties of pseudo-intensity collections describing the intensity of shaking are correlated with the societal impact of earthquakes. In a second step, I develop a probabilistic model that, within minutes of an event, quantifies the probability of an earthquake to cause considerable societal impact. Under certain conditions, such a quick and preliminary method might be useful to support decision makers in their efforts to organize auxiliary measures for earthquake disaster response while results from more elaborate impact assessment frameworks are not yet available.
The application of machine learning methods to datasets that only partially reveal characteristics of Big Data, qualify the majority of results obtained in this thesis as explorative insights rather than ready-to-use solutions to real world problems. The practical usefulness of this work will be better assessed in the future by applying the approaches developed to growing and increasingly complex data sets.
Heat stress (HS) is a major abiotic stress that negatively affects plant growth and productivity. However, plants have developed various adaptive mechanisms to cope with HS, including the acquisition and maintenance of thermotolerance, which allows them to respond more effectively to subsequent stress episodes. HS memory includes type II transcriptional memory which is characterized by enhanced re-induction of a subset of HS memory genes upon recurrent HS. In this study, new regulators of HS memory in A. thaliana were identified through the characterization of rein mutants.
The rein1 mutant carries a premature stop in CYCLIN-DEPENDENT-KINASE 8 (CDK8) which is part of the cyclin kinase module of the Mediator complex. Rein1 seedlings show impaired type II transcriptional memory in multiple heat-responsive genes upon re-exposure to HS. Additionally, the mutants exhibit a significant deficiency in HS memory at the physiological level. Interaction studies conducted in this work indicate that CDK8 associates with the memory HEAT SHOCK FACTORs HSAF2 and HSFA3. The results suggest that CDK8 plays a crucial role in HS memory in plants together with other memory HSFs, which may be potential targets of the CDK8 kinase function. Understanding the role and interaction network of the Mediator complex during HS-induced transcriptional memory will be an exciting aspect of future HS memory research.
The second characterized mutant, rein2, was selected based on its strongly impaired pAPX2::LUC re-induction phenotype. In gene expression analysis, the mutant revealed additional defects in the initial induction of HS memory genes. Along with this observation, basal thermotolerance was impaired similarly as HS memory at the physiological level in rein2. Sequencing of backcrossed bulk segregants with subsequent fine mapping narrowed the location of REIN2 to a 1 Mb region on chromosome 1. This interval contains the At1g65440 gene, which encodes the histone chaperone SPT6L. SPT6L interacts with chromatin remodelers and bridges them to the transcription machinery to regulate nucleosome and Pol II occupancy around the transcriptional start site. The EMS-induced missense mutation in SPT6L may cause altered HS-induced gene expression in rein2, possibly triggered by changes in the chromatin environment resulting from altered histone chaperone function.
Expanding research on screen-derived factors that modify type II transcriptional memory has the potential to enhance our understanding of HS memory in plants. Discovering connections between previously identified memory factors will help to elucidate the underlying network of HS memory. This knowledge can initiate new approaches to improve heat resilience in crops.
Jahresbericht 2023
(2024)
Dieser Jahresbericht umfasst den Berichtszeitraum 2023, in dem Forschung und Lehre wieder in Präsenz stattfinden konnten. Begegnung und Austausch in Hörsaal und Seminarraum, auf Konferenzpaneln und während Kaffeepausen sind wieder möglich, aber die Möglichkeiten von Homeoffice und Onlinekommunikation bleiben weiter bestehen, wie die Erfahrung zeigt.
Das MenschenRechtsZentrum als interdisziplinär arbeitende, zentrale wissenschaftliche Einrichtung der Universität Potsdam hat es im Berichtszeitraum erneut unternommen, juristische, philosophische, geschichts- und kultur- sowie politikwissenschaftliche Perspektiven auf das Thema Menschenrechte in Forschung und Lehre miteinander zu verbinden.
Die Wissenschaftler*innen des MenschenRechtsZentrums lehren an den Fakultäten, denen sie angehören. Hier werden daher nur diejenigen Aktivitäten angeführt, die einen Bezug zur Arbeit des MenschenRechtsZentrums sowie zu menschenrechtlichen Fragestellungen haben; weitergehende Informationen finden sich auf den Homepages der jeweiligen Personen.
Die Nutzung von Informations- und Kommunikationstechnik (IKT), Fachverfahren und die Automatisierung von Prozessen verändern die Sachbearbeitung und Leistungserstellung in der Verwaltung und somit die Tätigkeiten, Arbeitsbedingungen und Personalstrukturen. Bei der Antragsbearbeitung und Bescheiderstellung in der Ordnungs- und Leistungsverwaltung erhält IKT nicht nur eine unterstützende, sondern zunehmend auch eine leitende oder entscheidende Rolle. Abhängig von der konkreten Ausgestaltung kann die fortschreitende Digitalisierung eine ganzheitliche Sachbearbeitung ermöglichen, aber auch einschränken. Insgesamt kann sie zu einer Neuordnung des Berufsfeldes öffentlicher Dienst führen.
Comparative vote switching
(2024)
Large literatures focus on voter reactions to parties’ policy strategies, agency, or legislative performance. While many inquiries make explicit assumptions about the direction and magnitude of voter flows between parties, comparative empirical analyses of vote switching remain rare. In this article, we overcome three challenges that have previously impeded the comparative study of dynamic party competition based on voter flows: we present a novel conceptual framework for studying voter retention, defection, and attraction in multiparty systems, showcase a newly compiled data infrastructure that marries comparative vote switching data with information on party behavior and party systems in over 250 electoral contexts, and introduce a statistical model that renders our conceptual framework operable. These innovations enable first-time inquiries into the polyadic vote switching patterns underlying multiparty competition and unlock major research potentials on party competition and party system change.
Diskursive Perspektiven auf internationale Politik haben in den vergangenen Jahren an Relevanz und Popularität gewonnen. Der vorliegende Beitrag gibt zunächst einen Überblick über verschiedene Spielarten diskursiver Ansätze in den Internationalen Beziehungen, um sich dann vor allem poststrukturalistisch inspirierten Diskursarbeiten zu widmen. Poststrukturalistische Ansätze, so argumentieren wir, sind besonders interessant für die Disziplin der IB, da sie vier spezifische Gewinne bieten: Erstens erlauben sie eine kritische Perspektive auf Fragen internationaler Politik, zweitens hilft eine poststrukturalistische Perspektive dabei, den oft übersehenen politischen Charakter sozialer Realität herauszustellen, drittens halten sie dazu an, die eigene Sichtweise des/der Forschenden zu reflektieren und viertens erlaubt es eine poststrukturalistische Vorgehensweise mit ihrem Fokus auf „Wie-möglich-Fragen“, eine alternative analytische Perspektive zu dominanten erklärenden Ansätzen einzunehmen.
Das Dokument "Forschungsdatenmanagement bei personenbezogenen Daten - eine Handreichung" versammelt zentrale Inhalte, Verweise und Vorgehensweisen für Forscher*innen, die in einer Studie personenbezogene Daten erheben und diese verarbeiten, archivieren oder veröffentlichen wollen. Die Handreichung verweist an den entsprechenden Abschnitten auf weiterführende Materialien wie insbesondere die Handreichung „Datenschutz“ des Rats für die Sozial-, Verhaltens-, Bildungs- und Wirtschaftswissenschaften (RatSWD).
Sulfur is an important element that is incorporated into many biomolecules in humans. The incorporation and transfer of sulfur into biomolecules is, however, facilitated by a series of different sulfurtransferases. Among these sulfurtransferases is the human mercaptopyruvate sulfurtransferase (MPST) also designated as tRNA thiouridine modification protein (TUM1). The role of the human TUM1 protein has been suggested in a wide range of physiological processes in the cell among which are but not limited to involvement in Molybdenum cofactor (Moco) biosynthesis, cytosolic tRNA thiolation and generation of H2S as signaling molecule both in mitochondria and the cytosol. Previous interaction studies showed that TUM1 interacts with the L-cysteine desulfurase NFS1 and the Molybdenum cofactor biosynthesis protein 3 (MOCS3). Here, we show the roles of TUM1 in human cells using CRISPR/Cas9 genetically modified Human Embryonic Kidney cells. Here, we show that TUM1 is involved in the sulfur transfer for Molybdenum cofactor synthesis and tRNA thiomodification by spectrophotometric measurement of the activity of sulfite oxidase and liquid chromatography quantification of the level of sulfur-modified tRNA. Further, we show that TUM1 has a role in hydrogen sulfide production and cellular bioenergetics.
In late summer, migratory bats of the temperate zone face the challenge of accomplishing two energy-demanding tasks almost at the same time: migration and mating. Both require information and involve search efforts, such as localizing prey or finding potential mates. In non-migrating bat species, playback studies showed that listening to vocalizations of other bats, both con-and heterospecifics, may help a recipient bat to find foraging patches and mating sites. However, we are still unaware of the degree to which migrating bats depend on con-or heterospecific vocalizations for identifying potential feeding or mating opportunities during nightly transit flights. Here, we investigated the vocal responses of Nathusius’ pipistrelle bats, Pipistrellus nathusii, to simulated feeding and courtship aggregations at a coastal migration corridor. We presented migrating bats either feeding buzzes or courtship calls of their own or a heterospecific migratory species, the common noctule, Nyctalus noctula. We expected that during migratory transit flights, simulated feeding opportunities would be particularly attractive to bats, as well as simulated mating opportunities which may indicate suitable roosts for a stopover. However, we found that when compared to the natural silence of both pre-and post-playback phases, bats called indifferently during the playback of conspecific feeding sounds, whereas P. nathusii echolocation call activity increased during simulated feeding of N. noctula. In contrast, the call activity of P. nathusii decreased during the playback of conspecific courtship calls, while no response could be detected when heterospecific call types were broadcasted. Our results suggest that while on migratory transits, P. nathusii circumnavigate conspecific mating aggregations, possibly to save time or to reduce the risks associated with social interactions where aggression due to territoriality might be expected. This avoidance behavior could be a result of optimization strategies by P. nathusii when performing long-distance migratory flights, and it could also explain the lack of a response to simulated conspecific feeding. However, the observed increase of activity in response to simulated feeding of N. noctula, suggests that P. nathusii individuals may be eavesdropping on other aerial hawking insectivorous species during migration, especially if these occupy a slightly different foraging niche.
Obwohl Bildungsreisen nach England und in andere westeuropäische Staaten in adligen Kreisen seinerzeit regelrecht in Mode waren, ragen die Itzenplitz'schen Briefe aufgrund ihrer inhaltlichen Vielseitigkeit sowie wegen des häufigen Auftretens der bedeutendsten englischen Agrarökonomen und Naturwissenschaftler jener Zeit aus vergleichbaren Überlieferungen heraus.Henriette und Peter von Itzenplitz - erstere war die Tochter der vor allem durch Theodor Fontanes »Wanderungen...« bekannt gewordenen Agrarpionierin »Frau von Friedland« auf Kunersdorf im Oderbruch - traten kurz nach ihrer Hochzeit im Herbst 1792 eine landwirtschaftlich-ökonomisch-botanische Bildungsreise nach England an. Sie starteten vom Itzenplitz'schen Familiengut im havelländischen Groß Behnitz aus und sollten über ein Jahr lang unterwegs sein. Erst am letzten Tag des Jahres 1793 kehrte das junge Ehepaar mit ihrem in Kew bei London geborenen Sohn abgekämpft, aber erfüllt heim.Die von den beiden unterwegs regelmäßig an...
Chronologie der Englandreise
(2023)
Einleitender Kommentar
(2023)
Digitale Reflexionsanlässe
(2023)
Geschichts-Didaktik
(2023)
Its properties make copper one of the world’s most important functional metals. Numerous megatrends are increasing the demand for copper. This requires the prospection and exploration of new deposits, as well as the monitoring of copper quality in the various production steps. A promising technique to perform these tasks is Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS). Its unique feature, among others, is the ability to measure on site without sample collection and preparation. In this work, copper-bearing minerals from two different deposits are studied. The first set of field samples come from a volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposit, the second part from a stratiform sedimentary copper (SSC) deposit. Different approaches are used to analyze the data. First, univariate regression (UVR) is used. However, due to the strong influence of matrix effects, this is not suitable for the quantitative analysis of copper grades. Second, the multivariate method of partial least squares regression (PLSR) is used, which is more suitable for quantification. In addition, the effects of the surrounding matrices on the LIBS data are characterized by principal component analysis (PCA), alternative regression methods to PLSR are tested and the PLSR calibration is validated using field samples.
Das Eigene und das Fremde
(2023)
Die vorliegende Arbeit stellt eine Untersuchung des Fremdverstehens von Lehrkräften im Mathematikunterricht dar. Mit ‚Fremdverstehen‘ soll dabei – in Anlehnung an den Soziologen Alfred Schütz – der Prozess bezeichnet werden, in welchem eine Lehrkraft versucht, das Verhalten einer Schülerin oder eines Schülers zu verstehen, indem sie dieses Verhalten auf ein Erleben zurückführt, das ihm zugrunde gelegen haben könnte. Als ein wesentliches Merkmal des Prozesses stellt Schütz in seiner Theorie des Fremdverstehens heraus, dass das Fremdverstehen eines Menschen immer auch auf seinen eigenen Erlebnissen basiert. Aus diesem Grund wird in der Arbeit ein methodischer Zweischritt vorgenommen: Es werden zunächst die mathematikbezogenen Erlebnisse zweier Lehrkräfte nachgezeichnet, bevor dann ihr Fremdverstehen in konkreten Situationen im Mathematikunterricht rekonstruiert wird. In der ersten Teiluntersuchung (= der Rekonstruktion eigener Erlebnisse der untersuchten Lehrkräfte) erfolgt die Datenerhebung mit Hilfe biographisch-narrativer Interviews, in denen die untersuchten Lehrkräfte angeregt werden, ihre mathematikbezogene Lebensgeschichte zu erzählen. Die Analyse dieser Interviews wird im Sinne der rekonstruktiven Fallanalyse vorgenommen. Insgesamt führt die erste Teiluntersuchung zu textlichen Darstellungen der rekonstruierten mathematikbezogenen Lebensgeschichte der untersuchten Mathematiklehrkräfte. In der zweiten Teiluntersuchung (= der Rekonstruktion des Fremdverstehens der untersuchten Lehrkräfte) werden dann narrative Interviews geführt, in denen die untersuchten Lehrkräfte von ihrem Fremdverstehen in konkreten Situationen im Mathematikunterricht erzählen. Die Analyse dieser Interviews erfolgt mit Hilfe eines dreischrittigen Analyseverfahrens, welches die Autorin eigens zum Zweck der Rekonstruktion von Fremdverstehen entwickelte. Am Ende dieser zweiten Teiluntersuchung werden sowohl das rekonstruierte Fremdverstehen der Lehrkräfte in verschiedenen Unterrichtssituationen dargestellt als auch Strukturen, die sich in ihrem Fremdverstehen abzeichnen. Mit Hilfe einer theoretischen Verallgemeinerung werden schließlich – auf Basis der Ergebnisse der zweiten Teiluntersuchung – Aussagen über fünf Merkmale des Fremdverstehens von Lehrkräften im Mathematikunterricht im Allgemeinen gewonnen. Mit diesen Aussagen vermag die Arbeit eine erste Beschreibung davon hervorzubringen, wie sich das Phänomen des Fremdverstehens von Lehrkräften im Mathematikunterricht ausgestalten kann.
The African weakly electric fish genus Campylomormyrus includes 15 described species mostly native to the Congo River and its tributaries. They are considered sympatric species, because their distribution area overlaps. These species generate species-specific electric organ discharges (EODs) varying in waveform characteristics, including duration, polarity, and phase number. They exhibit also pronounced divergence in their snout, i.e. the length, thickness, and curvature. The diversifications in these two phenotypical traits (EOD and snout) have been proposed as key factors promoting adaptive radiation in Campylomormyrus. The role of EODs as a pre-zygotic isolation mechanism driving sympatric speciation by promoting assortative mating has been examined using behavioral, genetical, and histological approaches. However, the evolutionary effects of the snout morphology and its link to species divergence have not been closely examined. Hence, the main objective of this study is to investigate the effect of snout morphology diversification and its correlated EOD to better understand their sympatric speciation and evolutionary drivers. Moreover, I aim to utilize the intragenus and intergenus hybrids of Campylomormyrus to better understand trait divergence as well as underlying molecular/genetic mechanisms involved in the radiation scenario. To this end, I utilized three different approaches: feeding behavior analysis, diet assessment, and geometric morphometrics analysis. I performed feeding behavior experiments to evaluate the concept of the phenotype-environment correlation by testing whether Campylomormyrus species show substrate preferences. The behavioral experiments showed that the short snout species exhibits preference to sandy substrate, the long snout species prefers a stone substrate, and the species with intermediate snout size does not exhibit any substrate preference. The experiments suggest that the diverse feeding apparatus in the genus Campylomormyrus may have evolved in adaptation to their microhabitats. I also performed diet assessments of sympatric Campylomormyrus species and a sister genus species (Gnathonemus petersii) with markedly different snout morphologies and EOD using NGS-based DNA metabarcoding of their stomach contents. The diet of each species was documented showing that aquatic insects such as dipterans, coleopterans and trichopterans represent the major diet component. The results showed also that all species are able to exploit diverse food niches in their habitats. However, comparing the diet overlap indices showed that different snout morphologies and the associated divergence in the EOD translated into different prey spectra. These results further support the idea that the EOD could be a ‘magic trait’ triggering both adaptation and reproductive isolation. Geometric morphometrics method was also used to compare the phenotypical shape traits of the F1 intragenus (Campylomormyrus) and intergenus (Campylomormyrus species and Gnathonemus petersii) hybrids relative to their parents. The hybrids of these species were well separated based on the morphological traits, however the hybrid phenotypic traits were closer to the short-snouted species. In addition, the likelihood that the short snout expressed in the hybrids increases with increasing the genetic distance of the parental species. The results confirmed that additive effects produce intermediate phenotypes in F1-hybrids. It seems, therefore, that morphological shape traits in hybrids, unlike the physiological traits, were not expressed straightforward.
Das Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Meinungsfreiheit und allgemeinem Persönlichkeitsrecht hat das Bundesverfassungsgericht seit Jahrzehnten und wiederholt beschäftigt. Insbesondere in den letzten drei Jahren hatte sich das Gericht erneut intensiv damit zu befassen, einen angemessenen Ausgleich zwischen den sich gegenüberstehenden Grundrechtspositionen zu formulieren. Der Beitrag analysiert überblicksartig, inwieweit es in seinen neueren Entscheidungen seine bisherige Rechtsprechung fortgeführt, ergänzt oder gar nachjustiert hat.
The chapter describes the German procedure for obtaining compensation for wrongful convictions. Besides specific cases of compensation for convictions based on subsequently repealed legislation and claims arising from general official liability, German law provides a mechanism for compensation, insofar as a conviction is eliminated or mitigated in a retrial in criminal proceedings. Still within this retrial, the criminal court is called upon to determine whether a claim exists for compensation of material and/or non-material damages on the merits. The amount of compensation is assessed in a judicial administrative procedure at the request of the person concerned. The compensation for non-material harm is calculated on the basis of a lump sum of currently €75 per day of imprisonment; the extent of material harm must be submitted and proven by the person concerned. She has the right to take legal action in the civil courts against the decision on the amount, she has the right to take legal action in the civil courts.
§§ 253-299a
(2023)
Die Kommentierung umfasst neben der Zivilprozessordnung auch die relevanten Nebengesetze (wie EGZPO, GVG, KapMuG und MediationsG) sowie das europäische und internationale Zivilprozessrecht. Selbstverständlich sind alle relevanten Gesetzesänderungen sowie die neuesten Entwicklungen in Rechtsprechung und Lehre berücksichtigt.
Umfassende Kommentierung zum Verfahren vor den Landgerichten bis zum Urteil.
Networking fast and slow
(2023)
Growing interest in network dynamics has led to insights about patterns of network change, drivers of tie formation, and the temporal unfolding of the consequences of networks. To this area of inquiry, we introduce networking speed—the time that it takes for individuals to form a network tie—as an important but so far largely overlooked aspect. We develop a theory of networking speed that explains how different catalysts enable professionals to introduce variation into the speed with which they form interpersonal network ties. We discuss how such variation in the speed with which ties have been formed influences relational outcomes and the network returns that these ties generate. This discussion illustrates that high networking speed can entail advantages as well as pitfalls. We also explore temporal implications of networking speed—for instance, the persistence of the effects of speed over time. Overall, we conceptualize networking speed as a constitutive element of how interpersonal networks function in professional settings, and we propose a future research program for the integration of this novel concept into organizational network research.
Digitalization, as well as sustainability, are gaining increased relevance and have attracted significant attention in research and practice. However, the research already published about this topic examining digitalization in the retail sector does not consider the acceptance of related innovations, nor their impact on sustainability. Therefore, this article critically analyzes the acceptance of customers towards digital technologies in fashion stores as well as their impact on sustainability in the textile industry. The comprehensive analysis of the literature and the current state of research provide the basis of this paper. Theoretical models, such as the Technology-Acceptance-Model (TAM) and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT 2) enable the evaluation of expectations and acceptance, as well as the assessment of possible inhibitory factors for the subsequent descriptive and statistical examination of the acceptance of digital technologies in fashion stores. The research on this subject was examined in a quantitative way. The key findings show that customers do accept digital technologies in fashion stores. The final part of this contribution describes the innovative Digitalization 4 Sustainability Framework which shows that digital technologies at the point of sale (PoS) in fashion stores could have a positive impact on sustainability. Overall, this paper shows that it is particularly important for fashion stores to concentrate on their individual strengths and customer needs as well as to indicate a more sustainable way by using digital technologies, in order to achieve added value for the customers and to set themselves apart from the competition while designing a more sustainable future. Moreover, fashion stores should make it a point of their honor to harness the power of digitalization for sake of sustainability and economic value creation.
Achilles tendinopathy (AT) is a debilitating injury in athletes, especially for those engaged in repetitive stretch-shortening cycle activities. Clinical risk factors are numerous, but it has been suggested that altered biomechanics might be associated with AT. No systematic review has been conducted investigating these biomechanical alterations in specifically athletic populations. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to compare the lower-limb biomechanics of athletes with AT to athletically matched asymptomatic controls. Databases were searched for relevant studies investigating biomechanics during gait activities and other motor tasks such as hopping, isolated strength tasks, and reflex responses. Inclusion criteria for studies were an AT diagnosis in at least one group, cross-sectional or prospective data, at least one outcome comparing biomechanical data between an AT and healthy group, and athletic populations. Studies were excluded if patients had Achilles tendon rupture/surgery, participants reported injuries other than AT, and when only within-subject data was available.. Effect sizes (Cohen's d) with 95% confidence intervals were calculated for relevant outcomes. The initial search yielded 4,442 studies. After screening, twenty studies (775 total participants) were synthesised, reporting on a wide range of biomechanical outcomes. Females were under-represented and patients in the AT group were three years older on average. Biomechanical alterations were identified in some studies during running, hopping, jumping, strength tasks and reflex activity. Equally, several biomechanical variables studied were not associated with AT in included studies, indicating a conflicting picture. Kinematics in AT patients appeared to be altered in the lower limb, potentially indicating a pattern of “medial collapse”. Muscular activity of the calf and hips was different between groups, whereby AT patients exhibited greater calf electromyographic amplitudes despite lower plantar flexor strength. Overall, dynamic maximal strength of the plantar flexors, and isometric strength of the hips might be reduced in the AT group. This systematic review reports on several biomechanical alterations in athletes with AT. With further research, these factors could potentially form treatment targets for clinicians, although clinical approaches should take other contributing health factors into account. The studies included were of low quality, and currently no solid conclusions can be drawn.
Achilles tendinopathy (AT) is a debilitating injury in athletes, especially for those engaged in repetitive stretch-shortening cycle activities. Clinical risk factors are numerous, but it has been suggested that altered biomechanics might be associated with AT. No systematic review has been conducted investigating these biomechanical alterations in specifically athletic populations. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to compare the lower-limb biomechanics of athletes with AT to athletically matched asymptomatic controls. Databases were searched for relevant studies investigating biomechanics during gait activities and other motor tasks such as hopping, isolated strength tasks, and reflex responses. Inclusion criteria for studies were an AT diagnosis in at least one group, cross-sectional or prospective data, at least one outcome comparing biomechanical data between an AT and healthy group, and athletic populations. Studies were excluded if patients had Achilles tendon rupture/surgery, participants reported injuries other than AT, and when only within-subject data was available.. Effect sizes (Cohen's d) with 95% confidence intervals were calculated for relevant outcomes. The initial search yielded 4,442 studies. After screening, twenty studies (775 total participants) were synthesised, reporting on a wide range of biomechanical outcomes. Females were under-represented and patients in the AT group were three years older on average. Biomechanical alterations were identified in some studies during running, hopping, jumping, strength tasks and reflex activity. Equally, several biomechanical variables studied were not associated with AT in included studies, indicating a conflicting picture. Kinematics in AT patients appeared to be altered in the lower limb, potentially indicating a pattern of “medial collapse”. Muscular activity of the calf and hips was different between groups, whereby AT patients exhibited greater calf electromyographic amplitudes despite lower plantar flexor strength. Overall, dynamic maximal strength of the plantar flexors, and isometric strength of the hips might be reduced in the AT group. This systematic review reports on several biomechanical alterations in athletes with AT. With further research, these factors could potentially form treatment targets for clinicians, although clinical approaches should take other contributing health factors into account. The studies included were of low quality, and currently no solid conclusions can be drawn.
Ribosomes decode mRNA to synthesize proteins. Ribosomes, once considered static, executing machines, are now viewed as dynamic modulators of translation. Increasingly detailed analyses of structural ribosome heterogeneity led to a paradigm shift toward ribosome specialization for selective translation. As sessile organisms, plants cannot escape harmful environments and evolved strategies to withstand. Plant cytosolic ribosomes are in some respects more diverse than those of other metazoans. This diversity may contribute to plant stress acclimation. The goal of this thesis was to determine whether plants use ribosome heterogeneity to regulate protein synthesis through specialized translation. I focused on temperature acclimation, specifically on shifts to low temperatures. During cold acclimation, Arabidopsis ceases growth for seven days while establishing the responses required to resume growth. Earlier results indicate that ribosome biogenesis is essential for cold acclimation. REIL mutants (reil-dkos) lacking a 60S maturation factor do not acclimate successfully and do not resume growth. Using these genotypes, I ascribed cold-induced defects of ribosome biogenesis to the assembly of the polypeptide exit tunnel (PET) by performing spatial statistics of rProtein changes mapped onto the plant 80S structure. I discovered that growth cessation and PET remodeling also occurs in barley, suggesting a general cold response in plants. Cold triggered PET remodeling is consistent with the function of Rei-1, a REIL homolog of yeast, which performs PET quality control. Using seminal data of ribosome specialization, I show that yeast remodels the tRNA entry site of ribosomes upon change of carbon sources and demonstrate that spatially constrained remodeling of ribosomes in metazoans may modulate protein synthesis. I argue that regional remodeling may be a form of ribosome specialization and show that heterogeneous cytosolic polysomes accumulate after cold acclimation, leading to shifts in the translational output that differs between wild-type and reil-dkos. I found that heterogeneous complexes consist of newly synthesized and reused proteins. I propose that tailored ribosome complexes enable free 60S subunits to select specific 48S initiation complexes for translation. Cold acclimated ribosomes through ribosome remodeling synthesize a novel proteome consistent with known mechanisms of cold acclimation. The main hypothesis arising from my thesis is that heterogeneous/ specialized ribosomes alter translation preferences, adjust the proteome and thereby activate plant programs for successful cold acclimation.
The Tetrarchy as Ideology
(2023)
In this paper, we show how socialist planning can be based on input-output data. We argue that the information required for this can be obtained by a central planning agency and thus dismiss Hayek’s information argument against socialism. We further show how economic planning can be made responsive to consumer demand through a feedback control mechanism. Output targets of products would be adjusted in response to observed consumer demand or based on predictions about future demand. Planners can use machine learning to make more accurate forecasts. The valuation of goods plays an important role in the feedback control mechanism. The values of goods can either be measured by the labour time necessary for their production (labour values) or through shadow prices based on linear programming.
Anchored in ink
(2023)
This book serves as a gateway to the Elementa grammaticae Huronicae, an eighteenth-century grammar of the Wendat (‘Huron’) language by Jesuit Pierre-Philippe Potier (1708–1781). The volume falls into three main parts. The first part introduces the grammar and some of its contexts, offering information about the Huron-Wendat and Wyandot, the early modern Jesuit mission in New France and the Jesuits’ linguistic output. The heart of the volume is made up by its second part, a text edition of the Elementa. The third part presents some avenues of research by way of specific case studies.
Der generelle Prozess der Digitalisierung ist für die Medienordnung von besonderer Relevanz. Stehen auf der einen Seite wichtige Kommunikations- und Effektivitätsgewinne, so müssen auf der anderen Seite gesellschaftliche Gefahren durch Hatespeech, Fake News oder Urheberrechtsverletzungen erkannt und verhindert werden. Der vorliegende Band enthält die Vorträge, die auf der 1. Berlin-Potsdamer Konferenz zu interdisziplinären Rechtsfragen im März 2022 in Berlin gehalten wurden. Sie beleuchten die aus der Medienkonvergenz folgenden Veränderungen der Medienlandschaft in zentralen Bereichen wie der Bekämpfung von Desinformation, der Digitalwirtschaft, der Wissenskommunikation, dem Persönlichkeitsrechtsschutz, dem Influencer-Marketing, der Plattformregulierung, der Musikwirtschaft und der Anonymität in sozialen Netzwerken. Dabei geht es jeweils auch um Empfehlungen, welche politischen Aktivitäten erforderlich sind, um die Digitalisierung einerseits zu fördern, andererseits aber auch ihren Gefahren wirksam zu begegnen.
The Media Privilege under Data Protection Law: Journalism and data protection are fundamentally at odds with each other. In view of current developments, the need for a functioning regulatory concept for both legal positions is probably more important than ever. This conceptual balance is provided by the journalistic exemption in data protection law. The thesis focuses on the scope of the exception. It also identifies existing coherence problems between European and national law.
Investment control has experienced a considerable increase in importance in M&A transactions, as it has been constantly adapted to real economic conditions and successively tightened. The result is a partially inconsistent review regime that contains value contradictions and creates legal uncertainties. In a comprehensive approach, this doctoral thesis analyzes the problems of the current investment control regime and states concrete reform proposals.
FRAKIS (Fragebogen zur frühkindlichen Sprachentwicklung) ist ein Elternfragenbogen zur Erfassung des Sprachstandes bei deutsch-sprachigen Kindern zwischen 18 und 30 Monaten und die deutsche Adaptation des MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory for Toddlers. Es gibt eine Langform (FRAKIS) und Kurzform (FRAKIS-K). Der lange Fragebogen enthält eine Wortliste von 600 Wörtern und Skalen zur Flexionsmorphologie und Syntax, die Kurzform eine Wortschatzliste von 102 Wörtern und drei Fragen zur Grammatik. Beide Fragebögen sind an einer Stichprobe von 1240 Kindern normiert. Die Normierungsstudie wird im Manual dargestellt. Normen werden in monatlichen Altersgruppen für Mädchen und Jungen getrennt, und für alle Kinder angegeben. Mit FRAKIS und FRAKIS-K stehen im deutschsprachigen Bereich erstmals Elternfragebögen zur Verfügung, die auf empirisch gesicherten, strengen Normierungsverfahren beruhen. Die Normwerte bringen ein Bezugssystem für das Ausmaß an Variabilität im frühen Spracherwerb. FRAKIS-K ist geeignet für die Sprachstandsbestimmung im Rahmen der kinderärztlichen Vorsorgeuntersuchungen. Kinder mit spätem oder verzögertem Sprachbeginn können identifiziert werden. Darüber hinaus sind die Fragebögen geeignet für eine Verlaufsbeobachtung der frühen Sprachentwicklung, ob in Forschung oder Praxis.
The role of biogenic carbonate producers in the evolution of the geometries of carbonate systems has been the subject of numerous research projects. Attempts to classify modern and ancient carbonate systems by their biotic components have led to the discrimination of biogenic carbonate producers broadly into Photozoans, which are characterised by an affinity for warm tropical waters and high dependence on light penetration, and Heterozoans which are generally associated with both cool water environments and nutrient-rich settings with little to no light penetration. These broad categories of carbonate sediment producers have also been recognised to dominate in specific carbonate systems. Photozoans are commonly dominant in flat-topped platforms with steep margins, while Heterozoans generally dominate carbonate ramps. However, comparatively little is known on how these two main groups of carbonate producers interact in the same system and impact depositional geometries responding to changes in environmental conditions such as sea level fluctuation, antecedent slope, sediment transport processes, etc. This thesis presents numerical models to investigate the evolution of Miocene carbonate systems in the Mediterranean from two shallow marine domains: 1) a Miocene flat-topped platform dominated by Photozoans, with a significant component of Hetrozoans in the slope and 2) a Heterozoan distally steepened ramp, with seagrass-influenced (Photozoan) inner ramp. The overarching aim of the three articles comprising this cumulative thesis is to provide a numerical study of the role of Photozoans and Heterozoans in the evolution of carbonate system geometries and how these biotas respond to changes in environmental conditions. This aim was achieved using stratigraphic forward modelling, which provides an approach to quantitatively integrate multi-scale datasets to reconstruct sedimentary processes and products during the evolution of a sedimentary system.
In a Photozoan-dominated carbonate system, such as the Miocene Llucmajor platform in Western Mediterranean, stratigraphic forward modelling dovetailed with a robust set of sensitivity tests reveal how the geometry of the carbonate system is determined by the complex interaction of Heterozoan and Photozoan biotas in response to variable conditions of sea level fluctuation, substrate configuration, sediment transport processes and the dominance of Photozoan over Heterozoan production. This study provides an enhanced understanding of the different carbonate systems that are possible under different ecological and hydrodynamic conditions. The research also gives insight into the roles of different biotic associations in the evolution of carbonate geometries through time and space. The results further show that the main driver of platform progradation in a Llucmajor-type system is the lowstand production of Heterozoan sediments, which form the necessary substratum for Photozoan production.
In Heterozoan systems, sediment production is mainly characterised by high transport deposits, that are prone to redistribution by waves and gravity, thereby precluding the development of steep margins. However, in the Menorca ramp, the occurrence of sediment trapping by seagrass led to the evolution of distal slope steepening. We investigated, through numerical modelling, how such a seagrass-influenced ramp responds to the frequency and amplitude of sea level changes, variable carbonate production between the euphotic and oligophotic zone, and changes in the configuration of the paleoslope. The study reinforces some previous hypotheses and presents alternative scenarios to the established concepts of high-transport ramp evolution. The results of sensitivity experiments show that steep slopes are favoured in ramps that develop in high-frequency sea level fluctuation with amplitudes between 20 m and 40 m. We also show that ramp profiles are significantly impacted by the paleoslope inclination, such that an optimal antecedent slope of about 0.15 degrees is required for the Menorca distally steepened ramp to develop.
The third part presents an experimental case to argue for the existence of a Photozoan sediment threshold required for the development of steep margins in carbonate platforms. This was carried out by developing sensitivity tests on the forward models of the flat-topped (Llucmajor) platform and the distally steepened (Menorca) platform. The results show that models with Photozoan sediment proportion below a threshold of about 40% are incapable of forming steep slopes. The study also demonstrates that though it is possible to develop steep margins by seagrass sediment trapping, such slopes can only be stabilized by the appropriate sediment fabric and/or microbial binding. In the Photozoan-dominated system, the magnitude of slope steepness depends on the proportion of Photozoan sediments in the system. Therefore, this study presents a novel tool for characterizing carbonate systems based on their biogenic components.