Grüne Gentechnik und ökologische Landwirtschaft

Weltweit findet sich als Rechtsnorm in allen entsprechenden Verbraucherschutzgesetzen die Vorgabe, in der ökologischen Landwirtschaft keine gentechnisch veränderten Organismen einzusetzen. Auf europäischer Ebene enthalten weder die EU-Öko-Verordnung noch die Saatgutverkehrsrichtlinien Regelungen, aufgrund derer Schutzmaßnahmen zur Verhinderung oder Vermeidung von GVO-Einkreuzungen in ökologische Kulturen vorgeschrieben werden können. Eine Prüfung der neuen Freisetzungsrichtlinie ergibt aber, dass bei der Genehmigung zum Inverkehrbringen als „besondere Bedingungen für die Verwendung und Handhabung“ eines GVO auch Maßnahmen zum Schutz vor Sachschäden durch GVO-Einkreuzung vorgeschrieben werden können. Als Maßnahmen zum Schutz vor Sachschäden werden hauptsächlich Sicherheitsabstände zwischen Feldern mit GVO-Pflanzen und ökologisch bewirtschafteten Kulturen sowie zusätzlich gentechnikfreie Gebiete diskutiert. Bei der Analyse der Datenlage zur Definition von Sicherheitsabständen treten viele Lücken in der empirischen Datenbasis zu Tage, sodass sich hier dringender Forschungsbedarf abzeichnet. Es werden pragmatisch Hinweise zu Sicherheitsabständen abgeleitet. Gentechnikfreie Gebiete resp. geschlossene Anbaugebiete werden in Zusammenhang mit der Saatgutproduktion vorgeschlagen. Bisher ermöglicht nur das Zivilrecht in Deutschland einen privaten Ausgleich der Rechts- und Interessensphären der Bio-Bauern und der Nutzer transgener Sorten. § 906 BGB lässt sich hier als zentrale Steuerungsnorm des Umweltprivatrechts heranziehen. Dessen System von Unterlassungs- und Ausgleichsansprüchen ist hochkomplex und wird nur schwer zu einer zufriedenstellenden Koexistenz beitragen können. Eine Lösung wäre daher eine wirksame Selbstorganisation des Wirtschaftszweigs der Saatgutindustrie, die transgene Pflanzen züchtet und das Saatgut in Verkehr bringt. Sollte diese nicht möglich sein, bietet sich eine öffentlich-rechtliche Regelung an. Dazu könnten gehören: Die Einrichtung eines Anbaukatasters, die Einführung einer guten fachlichen Praxis des GVO-Anbaus (GfP), die Festlegung einer Instruktionspflicht auf der Saatgutverpackung sowie der Schutz der ökologischen Saatgutproduktion

Zero bias anomalies in point-contact characteristics of αt-(BEDT-TTF)2I3

The zero-bias anomaly in point-contact characteristics of the organic superconductor α-(BEDT-TTF)2I3 is investigated as a function of temperature and magnetic field. It is found that the zero-bias anomaly is insensitive to magnetic fields up to 5 T. In contrast, a structure at 5 meV, conventionally designated as the superconducting gap - but which is 4 times larger than the expected BCS gap - is strongly affected by magnetic fields above 1 T

Determination of the electron phonon coupling and the superconducting gap in β-(BEDT-TTF)2X crystals (X=I3, IAuI)

We performed point-contact and tunneling measurements on the organic superconductors beta-(BEDT-TTF)2I3 and beta-(BEDT-TTF)2IAuI, in the normal and superconducting states. The point-contact measurement in the normal state provides the Eliashberg function alpha2(omega)F (omega). This function has maxima at 4 and 15 mV, as well as a sharp peak at 1 mV which seems to indicate a very soft phonon strongly coupled to the electrons. The measurements in the superconducting state provide the superconducting gap, which for the tunneling measurements has a value 2Delta/kB Tc=4, just slightly above the BCS value

ErUM-Data-Hub - The Networking and Transfer Office serving Digital Transformation in Research on Universe and Matter in Germany

Research on Universe and Matter (ErUM), conducted at major infrastructures such as CERN and large observatories in collaboration with university groups, plays an important role in driving the digital transformation for the future. The German action plan "ErUM-Data" [2] promotes this transformation through the interdisciplinary networking and financial support of about 20.000 scientists. The ErUM-Data-Hub [4] serves as a central networking and transfer office to meet these ambitions. One central task is designing, organizing and performing schools and workshops for young and expert scientists in the areas of big data, deep learning, sustainable computing and many more. We present the achievements up to the first anniversary of the ErUM-Data-Hub in the German ErUM community

Band structure calculation and tunneling measurements in (BEDT-TTF)2X (X=I3, IAuI)

At about the same time when little proposed room-temperature superconductivity in organic polymers, it was suggested that the high-Tc of the more conventional A-15's is associated with their one-dimensional electronic band structure. When TTF-TCNQ was discovered in 1973, it was suggested that the electron-phonon coupling in this 1-D organic molecular crystal is responsible for the metal-to-insulator (Peierls) transition at 52 K2, and reducing λ will cause a crossover to a superconducting state. Since then, the electronic structure, the conduction mechanism, and the superconducting mechanism were subject to controversy. Therefore, it is of some importance to establish whether the electronic band structure, and conduction mechanism, are similar to those in more conventional metals, and whether the superconductivity mechanism is the normal BCS phonon-mediated interaction

Nanoscale spin rectifiers controlled by the Stark effect

The control of orbital and spin state of single electrons is a key ingredient for quantum information processing, novel detection schemes, and, more generally, is of much relevance for spintronics. Coulomb and spin blockade (SB) in double quantum dots (DQDs) enable advanced single-spin operations that would be available even for room-temperature applications for sufficiently small devices. To date, however, spin operations in DQDs were observed at sub-Kelvin temperatures, a key reason being that scaling a DQD system while retaining an independent field-effect control on the individual dots is very challenging. Here we show that quantum-confined Stark effect allows an independent addressing of two dots only 5 nm apart with no need for aligned nanometer-size local gating. We thus demonstrate a scalable method to fully control a DQD device, regardless of its physical size. In the present implementation we show InAs/InP nanowire (NW) DQDs that display an experimentally detectable SB up to 10 K. We also report and discuss an unexpected re-entrant SB lifting as a function magnetic-field intensity

The safe-and-sustainable-by-design concept:innovating towards a more sustainable future

Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design (SSbD) is a new concept proposed by the European Commission to support the urgent need to transition towards a more preventive and proactive approach in chemical and material innovation which supports a more sustainable future and in meeting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. SSbD provides orientation and guidance by taking a system approach. SSbD building blocks were developed: regenerative corporate and societal strategic needs (considering service and function), risk and sustainability governance, competencies, and data management. This viewpoint brings these building blocks together in a holistic way to create an innovation landscape ensuring safer and more sustainable chemicals, materials, production processes and products in science, technology, and industry; starting from ‘design’ and that is fit for supporting a sustainable future

The safe-and-sustainable-by-design concept:innovating towards a more sustainable future

Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design (SSbD) is a new concept proposed by the European Commission to support the urgent need to transition towards a more preventive and proactive approach in chemical and material innovation which supports a more sustainable future and in meeting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. SSbD provides orientation and guidance by taking a system approach. SSbD building blocks were developed: regenerative corporate and societal strategic needs (considering service and function), risk and sustainability governance, competencies, and data management. This viewpoint brings these building blocks together in a holistic way to create an innovation landscape ensuring safer and more sustainable chemicals, materials, production processes and products in science, technology, and industry; starting from ‘design’ and that is fit for supporting a sustainable future

Search for supersymmetry in events with b-quark jets and missing transverse energy in pp collisions at 7 TeV

Results are presented from a search for physics beyond the standard model based on events with large missing transverse energy, at least three jets, and at least one, two, or three b-quark jets. The study is performed using a sample of proton-proton collision data collected at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV with the CMS detector at the LHC in 2011. The integrated luminosity of the sample is 4.98 inverse femtobarns. The observed number of events is found to be consistent with the standard model expectation, which is evaluated using control samples in the data. The results are used to constrain cross sections for the production of supersymmetric particles decaying to b-quark-enriched final states in the context of simplified model spectra.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review