The Crown Dependencies – the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man

This working paper provides a brief overview about the Crown Dependencies with the Channel Islands Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, and Sak as well as the Isle of Man as autonomous states. The United Kingdom is responsible for foreign relations and defense while the head of states is the King as Duke of Normandy and Lord Mann. Each of these states has its own government, parliament, legal and fiscal system. They were never part of the United Kingdom or of the European Union, but the inhabitants are British citizens. The term “Crown Dependencies” is increasingly used since the 1980ies and replaced the term “British Islands”. The Crown Dependencies are the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey with the separate jurisdictions of Guernsey, Alderney and Sark and the Isle of Man. For legislation, the Crown is acting through the Privy Council, i.e., the royal advisory council. Laws made in Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, and Sark require Royal Assent by the King in Council (i.e., the Privy Council with presence of the King) while on the Isle of Man, the Lieutenant-Governor can give Assent on behalf of the king for domestic laws. The Crown Dependencies cannot sign international agreements as they are not sovereign which makes e.g., impossible to sign treaties with the EU. Ater the Brexit vote, the UK and Ireland agreed on a Common Travel Area (CTA) with open border and it was clarified that this includes the Crown Dependencies as well. The Crown Dependencies participate in the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) for fisheries and the trade in goods while for other matters like finance the Islands are treated as third countries. Current topics are legal debates and discussions about taxation practices. The current relation is based on traditional political practices, but was never enshrined in any formal constitutional document. In 2024 the UK government stated that any attempt to codify or prescribe the relationship could risk undermining the flexibility and adaptability that has been beneficial to the relationship. In practice, this sometimes leads to frictions. The Crown is responsible for “good government”. A debate whether the good government rule could be used to urge the Crown Dependencies to apply public ownership registers showed that the lack of a formal framework could open the door to restrict the autonomy by a wider interpretation of the good government rule, but could also result in a demand for greater independence. A further issue is the tax system. While the status as tax haven is disputed, the Crown Dependencies are attractive for wealthy persons and organizations, as for various income types either no or low rates or a maximum tax cap irrespective of income are applicable. The other issue is the transparency of ownership. Only if the beneficial (ultimate) ownership is known, i.e., who ultimately owns or controls an asset (for example, a property or a company) and really gets the money from something, it is possible to apply taxation. In difference to the UK legislation, the registers of the Crown Dependencies were not available to the public, but restricted to law enforcement authorities and obliged entities (organizations that e.g., combat money laundering). The Crown Dependencies argued with privacy concerns while the United Kingdom supports transparency. Since 2025, all three Crown Dependencies launched consultations into extending the right of access to persons with a legitimate interest. In summary, the past decade with the Brexit and the taxation debate brought a new dynamic into the relations between the United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies

Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence for Intellectual Property and Organizational Innovation

The overarching aim of this cumulative dissertation is to provide theoretical grounding and empirically informed design knowledge on (1) how blockchain can modernize intellectual property lifecycle management, (2) how decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) can unlock their full potential as an emerging governance form, and (3) how generative AI chatbots can provide reliable assistance in trust-sensitive and high-stakes contexts such as decentralized finance (DeFi) and academia. Motivated by growing frictions of digital markets—particularly in protecting and remunerating creative outputs and innovations—the dissertation consolidates research and develops transferable concepts for institutionally grounded, trustworthy digital systems. To attain the overarching research objective, this cumulative dissertation reports on six peer-reviewed research contributions embedded in a unifying socio-technical framework. The research contributions draw on systematic literature reviews, qualitative empirical studies (including case study and expert interviews), and design science research with mockup instantiations, addressing descriptive and prescriptive research questions in the field of information systems

Auswirkungen der Plattformisierung auf Machtbeziehungen und Arbeit in globalen Produktionsnetzwerken – das Beispiel der Logistik

Das Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es, mittels einer nuancierten Sichtweise zu einem erweiterten Verständnis von Plattformisierungsprozessen und ihren Auswirkungen auf globale Produktionsnetzwerke beizutragen. Konkret wird anhand des empirischen Beispiels der Logistik untersucht, wie sich digitale B2B-Plattformen auf Machtbeziehungen und Arbeit in globalen Produktionsnetzwerken auswirken. Damit adressiert die Untersuchung die bislang relativ geringe Auseinandersetzung mit Plattformausprägungen, die über typische Plattformmodelle aus Konsum- und Kommunikationsbereichen hinausgehen, welche frühe Annahmen der Plattformforschung maßgeblich geprägt haben. Basierend auf einer relationalen wirtschaftsgeographischen sowie einer arbeitsgeographischen Forschungsperspektive dient der Globale Produktionsnetzwerkeansatz (GPN), der mit dem Konzept der Labour-Agency kombiniert wird, als konzeptionelle Grundlage. Der empirische Fokus dieser Arbeit liegt auf digitalen Logistikplattformen, die im zwischenbetrieblichen Bereich zum Einsatz kommen und in erster Linie zur Auftragsvergabe in der Transportlogistik – vorwiegend im europäischen Straßengütertransport – genutzt werden. Die Datengrundlage bilden 42 qualitative Interviews, die mit Vertreter*innen von Logistikplattformen und andere Logistikunternehmen, Arbeitnehmenden und Arbeitnehmendenvertreter*innen sowie unterschiedlichen Expert*innen durchgeführt wurden. Ergänzend wurden teilnehmende Beobachtungen sowie Dokumentenanalysen durchgeführt. Auf übergeordneter Ebene verdeutlichen die Ergebnisse, dass die Plattformisierung als vielschichtiges Phänomen zu verstehen ist, das sich auf verschiedene Dimensionen globaler Produktionsnetzwerke auswirkt. Am Beispiel globaler Logistiknetzwerke lassen sich einerseits Neu- und Restrukturierungsprozesse sowie andererseits die Reproduktion bzw. Verstärkung bestehender Strukturen infolge der Verbreitung digitaler Logistikplattformen beobachten. Konkret trägt diese Arbeit wie folgt zur wirtschaftsgeographischen und daran angrenzenden Auseinandersetzung mit der Plattformisierung und der Labour-Agency aus GPN-Perspektive bei: Erstens zeigt sie, dass digitale Plattformen in globalen Produktionsnetzwerken unterschiedliche Rollen einnehmen können – von Lead Firms bis zu spezialisierten Dienstleisterinnen – und somit auf multiple Weise auf die Gestalt von Netzwerkbeziehungen wirken. Zweitens wird die Rolle von Daten als neue Machtressource in globalen Produktionsnetzwerken herausgearbeitet und am Beispiel digitaler Logistikplattformen die zunehmende Verschneidung digitaler und physisch-materieller räumlicher Dimensionen verdeutlicht. Drittens beleuchtet die Untersuchung die arbeitsbezogenen Auswirkungen der Plattformisierung und zeigt auf, dass damit nicht nur Veränderungen auf individueller Beschäftigungsebene, sondern auch auf struktureller Arbeitsmarktebene einhergehen können. Viertens wird gezeigt, dass mit der Plattformisierung weitere strukturelle Einschränkungen der Labour-Agency in globalen Produktionsnetzwerken – insbesondere in der Logistik – einhergehen. Anhand des Fallbeispiels der Lkw-Proteste in Gräfenhausen 2023 werden zudem die Notwendigkeit einer differenzierten Sichtweise auf potenzielle Resultate von Arbeitskämpfen in globalisierten Produktionszusammenhängen sowie die Relevanz institutioneller Macht in diesem Kontext herausgearbeitet. Über das Beispiel der Logistik hinaus bekräftigt die Untersuchung die Notwendigkeit weiterer Forschung zum Zusammenspiel von Daten als zunehmend wichtiger Machtressource, sich wandelnder institutioneller Rahmenbedingungen und daraus resultierender Konfliktlinien in globalen Produktions- und Arbeitszusammenhängen

Design and Development of Scalable and Automated Cloud-based Remote Sensing Tools for Seagrass Mapping and Monitoring across Large Spatial Scales

Seagrass meadows are highly productive ecosystems currently facing a global decline. Additionally, substantial knowledge gaps exist regarding their global distribution. Remote sensing offers a means to address these gaps, with sensors such as Sentinel-2 providing frequent and comprehensive coverage. These data can provide seagrass maps by applying remote sensing techniques suitable for aquatic areas. Since seagrass grows largely below the water surface, the proportion of backscattered radiation in the water column must first be calculated, which is computationally demanding. A current solution addresses this challenge with cloud platforms such as Google Earth Engine (GEE). A basic yet rudimentary work for mapping seagrass on GEE has been in development in the recent years. This dissertation now aims to improve the existing GEE seagrass mapping evaluation workflow to effectively map seagrasses in different regions of the world where the exact extent of seagrass areas were previously unknown. One challenge in classifying seagrass is the confusion with other seabed covers, such as other underwater plants or deep waters. This dissertation first presents a novel, GEE-based approach to distinguish deep waters from shallow waters. By utilising optical water types, a colour space transformation is applied to the image composite, and the resulting colour information is used to better detect and remove deep waters before further processing. The existing GEE seagrass mapping workflow utilises Sentinel-2 image time series. The second major contribution in this dissertation now investigates the potential of PlanetScope Norway's International Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI) dataset, which is a higher geometric resolution satellite data, to provide a high-resolution alternative to the current workflow. PlanetScope NICFI is characterized by a higher spatial resolution, which allows incorporating finer textural features, improving the final results. An additional hindrance for seagrass mapping is posed by contamination of clouds and cloud shadows, particularly in areas frequently covered by clouds. A new cloud quality product on GEE was evaluated for its effectiveness in removing and mitigating these features. As the product currently only has a limited temporal coverage, it was assessed for its ability to enhance image quality for shorter times series, and thereby enabling temporal analyses. Finally, all the methods developed were evaluated on various datasets in different regions, with the detailed analysis showing a substantial improvement on the results obtained with other methods

Spatio-Temporal-Semantic Sensor Data Management With Use Cases in Agricultural Robotics

Sensor data-based approaches for autonomous machines require efficient handling of this very sensor data. Currently, no streamlined process is available (1) for capturing and storing the sensor data; (2) for the following enhancement of the data; and (3) for finally accessing specific subsets of the huge amount of stored data based on spatial, temporal and semantic categories. The contribution of this dissertation is such a streamlined overall process from the sensor data capturing over the enhancement of the dataset to the access to specific subsets. The main focus lies on the access to sub-datasets based on the spatial, temporal and semantic modalities of the stored sensor data. In general, the contribution is not restricted to a specific use case domain, yet this dissertation has use cases in agricultural robotics. Thus, use cases from the agricultural robotics domain are used to demonstrate how the spatio-temporal-semantic data access enables efficient data enhancement and analysis. We claim that storing sensor data in an HDF5 file is faster than the well-known rosbag approach. We prove this with experiments comparing the data storing rate of both approaches. Additionally, we claim that the access to sub-datasets based on the three modalities at once is novel and that no other solution to this problem currently exists. We back this claim by an extensive comparison to existing solutions

Characterization of the PI(3,5)P2 production and turnover on endosomes and the vacuole in S. cerevisiae

Eucaryotic cells are highly compartmentalized by lipid membranes that define organelles, creating specialized environments for distinct biological processes. Lysosomes in mammalian cells, are central organelles for the degradation and recycling of macromolecules as well as for the storage of ions, metabolites and amino acids. Proteins, lipids, carbohydrates reach the lysosome through cellular trafficking routes, such as endocytosis or autophagy. In the acidic lumen of lysosomes, macromolecules are digested by hydrolases for cellular reuse. Beyond these catabolic functions, lysosomes also play essential roles in growth regulation, by sensing the availability of nutrients, and osmotic adaptation by adjusting their membrane to maintain membrane integrity. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the model organism used in this thesis, growth signaling and stress response largely occur at the vacuole, the analogue of the mammalian lysosome. The vacuole harbors the nutrient sensing Target of Rapamycin complex 1 (TORC1) and the phosphatidylinositol 3-5 kinase Fab1, which converts Phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PI(3)P) to Phosphatidylinositol-3,5-bisphosphate (PI(3,5)P2). PI(3,5)P2 is a signaling lipid that is essential for membrane remodeling and vacuole fission. Both TORC1 and Fab1 additionally localize to the vacuole-derived signaling endosomes (SEs), which function as secondary signaling platforms, where TORC1 downregulates catabolic processes. TORC1 dependent phosphorylation of Fab1 has been proposed to link vacuole membrane homeostasis to growth control. However, how TORC1 and Fab1 activities are functionally coupled remains unclear. In this study, we employed the newly developed PI(3,5)P2 reporter SnxA together with live-cell microscopy analysis to investigate subcellular dynamics of PI(3,5)P2 during stress and growth conditions. We identified two distinct pools of PI(3,5)P2 that operate in independent pathways. During osmotic stress response, Fab1 primarily acts on the vacuole in a TORC1-independent manner enabling rapid adaptation to hyperosmotic conditions. Under growth-promoting conditions, TORC1 together with the membrane remodeling CROP complex mediate the redistribution of PI(3,5)P2 from the vacuole to SEs. High levels of PI(3,5)P2 promoted the redistribution, indicating a direct role of PI(3,5)P2 in SE biogenesis. PI(3,5)P2 persists on SEs, potentially stabilized through a feedback loop between Fab1 and TORC1. PI(3,5)P2 is then channeled into the endocytic pathway, likely by endosome maturation or fusion with late endosomes, until it is delivered back to the vacuole, where it is degraded by the phosphatase Fig4

Analysis of atmospheric wind and gust prediction

This thesis examines how atmospheric wind varies across a broad range of spatial and temporal scales, from fluctuations over seconds to patterns extending hundreds of kilometers. The analysis is based on long-term measurements from the offshore research platform FINO1 in the North Sea. A detailed investigation of scaling features in energy spectra and structure functions is carried out, using the local Taylor hypothesis to relate temporal observations to spatial flow structures. Despite varying weather conditions, the smallest scales below the measurement height consistently exhibit signatures of classical three-dimensional turbulence. At intermediate scales between the measurement height and the typical height of the planetary boundary layer, the influence of the Earth's surface becomes apparent through patterns characteristic of wall-bounded turbulence. On horizontal scales of tens or hundreds of kilometers, buoyancy-driven internal gravity waves and quasi-two-dimensional geostrophic turbulence shaped by Earth's rotation dominate the wind field. The transition between the gravity-wave and the geostrophic regime manifests itself in a remarkably abrupt sign change of the third-order structure function. It occurs at a scale of 500 km, which can be explained by the maximum horizontal length scale permitted by gravity wave dynamics. In both regimes, the scaling of structure functions agrees well with aircraft measurements reported in the literature. The analysis demonstrates that applying the Taylor hypothesis locally is essential for obtaining the correct scaling behavior. Distributions of velocity increments reveal an additional, secondary peak at scales corresponding to the gravity-wave regime. These secondary maxima play a decisive role in producing the observed scaling of structure functions. Moreover, anticorrelations in increment time series are linked to the constraint of finite turbulent kinetic energy. The final part of the thesis focuses on short-term gust prediction. Existing wind gust definitions in the literature are critically reviewed, and gusts are defined on a physical basis as sudden changes in drag force or wind power. Autoregressive models may be used to predict single gust events, but they tend to forecast gusts persistently in gusty phases. To address this problem, ARCH-type models are employed to predict the variance of wind speed increments, which correlates with the number of gusts within a given time window. This approach offers a complementary perspective on short-term gust predictability relevant for wind energy and aviation

Interrogation of Polar Structural Modification on the Atomic Length Scale by Radiative Nonlinear Optical Phenomena

This dissertation investigates the interaction of (ultrashort) laser pulses with polar oxide single and nanocrystals, with a focus on light-induced polar structural modification studied by nonlinear optical phenomena. Central to this work are self-localization processes such as self-trapped excitons (STEs) and small polarons, which govern the optical and electronic properties of these materials. Using temperature-dependent and time-resolved spectroscopic techniques, it is demonstrated that STEs dominate the photoluminescence in lithium niobate tantalate systems and persist in nanocrystalline form as sensitive probes of dynamic polarization processes. Complementary nonlinear optical measurements establish a direct link between microscopic lattice distortions and macroscopic optical response. Additional studies on potassium niobate nanocrystals and novel polar sulfido-vanadate systems further expand the understanding of polar structural dynamics and multifunctional material properties. The results provide new insights into ultrafast light-matter interaction and contribute to the development of advanced photonic and optoelectronic applications

Quantum Dynamics and Transport in Closed and Open Models of Interacting Spins

Based on the references [P1–P6], we investigate in this cumulative PhD thesis the dynamics and transport in closed and open interacting spin chain models. We focus on (i) the connection between the open and the closed system dynamics [P1, P2], (ii) the influence of various system parameters on the transport behavior in closed and open systems [P3, P5], and in addtion (iii) the dynamics and transport in closed models [P4, P6]. As for (i), we explore the connection of the dynamics in open systems, modeled by the Lindblad equation, and the correlation functions in the closed system [P1]. Building on this connection for magnetization transport, we study whether the time evolution of the open quantum system can be described in terms of classical correlation functions generated by the Hamiltonian equations of motion for real vectors [P2]. Second, we study in (ii) the influence of different parameters on the diffusion constants in closed and open systems [P3, P5]. In Ref. [P3], we study the impact of integrability-breaking perturbations in both closed and open spin chain systems. While we find a continuous change of the diffusion constant with perturbation strength in the closed system, in the open system, in the weak-perturbation limit, we indicate the possibility of a diverging diffusion constant. Also, we investigate the influence of the system-bath coupling on the transport behavior in boundary-driven open systems [P5]. We observe that the diffusion constants depend on the system-bath coupling and that in the nonequilibrium steady state, they inevitably retain finite-size effects, limiting the computation of long-time transport coefficients. Additional for (iii), in Ref. [P4], we first examine the impact of perturbations on the dynamics in closed spin chain models. We employ projector-operator techniques to understand, on perturbative grounds, the nontrivial damping of the standard correlation function. Second, we also discuss a dynamical quantum typicality approach for studying the energy transport in bipartite systems at low temperatures [P6]

Neprilysin 4 regulates muscle contraction and male fertility in Drosophila melanogaster

Neprilysins belong to the highly conserved M13 family of zinc metalloendopeptidases. They are expressed in various tissues and predominantly occur as membrane-bound ectoenzymes. Based on their broad substrate specificity, neprilysins are involved in numerous physiological processes by hydrolyzing and thus inactivating signaling peptides. As neprilysin-mediated cleavage is critical to peptide activity and homeostasis, impaired neprilysin activity is linked to several human diseases. However, despite their physiological relevance and their therapeutic potential, the physiological functions of many neprilysin family members are only partially understood. This thesis focuses on the Drosophila melanogaster Neprilysin 4 (Nep4) and aims to expand the current knowledge on its physiological impact. In the first project, Nep4 was identified as an essential regulator of the sarcoplasmic and endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) in myocytes. In this context, Nep4 localizes to the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) membrane and hydrolyzes two SERCA-inhibitory micropeptides: Sarcolamban A and Sarcolamban B. The Nep4-mediated hydrolysis affects the SR membrane integral peptides on different levels. On the one hand, cleaved micropeptides lose their membrane anchoring, thus likely becoming unable to interact with SERCA. On the other hand, cleaved peptides lose the ability to form oligomeric species, which is an additional regulatory feature in their interaction with SERCA. Strikingly, the analysis of corresponding human factors indicates an evolutionary conservation of the underlying regulatory mechanism. In the second project of this thesis, the impact of the Nep4 peptidase on male fertility in Drosophila was investigated. In sperm, Nep4 localizes to the acrosome, an organelle that is highly conserved and essential for successful fertilization. The analysis shows that Nep4 activity is critical during spermatogenesis by maintaining the structural integrity of the sperm head and, particularly, the acrosome. Impaired Nep4 activity resulted in deformed acrosomes, which are shorter and more spherical in the anterior region when compared to wildtype organelles. Furthermore, impaired Nep4 function disrupted the structural organization of the sperm head, as indicated by an altered distribution of specific glycoproteins at the surface of the sperm tip and a less pronounced acrosome compartmentalization. Ultimately, these defects lead to male sterility. In summary, the present work describes two novel and crucial functions of Nep4 and contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the functionality of neprilysins in general. It is noteworthy that these functions rely on the subcellular localization of Nep4 to internal membranes, rather than on the typical neprilysin localization at the cell surface. This observation uncovers novel sites of action for neprilysins and further expands their broad physiological relevance