Thermodiffusion in binary liquids: the role of irreversibility

We study thermal diffusion in binary mixtures in the framework of non-equilibrium thermodynamics. Our formal result displays the role of partial enthalpies and Onsager's generalized mobilities. The mobility ratio provides a measure for the irreversible character of thermal diffusion. Comparison with experimental data on benzene, cyclohexane, toluene and alkanes shows that irreversibility is essential for thermal diffusion, and in particular for the isotope effect.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure

Researching Social Services of General Interest: an Analytical Framework Derived from Underlying Policy Systems

This paper discusses Social Services of General Interest, a political term of the European Union, which lies at the heart of the European Model of Society and Cohesion concepts. How and why is the organization and provision of services across Europe rooted in, and shaped by, the prevailing national constitutional components of social welfare and spatial planning systems? A high degree of interrelation between these two systems is confirmed and Social Services of General Interest are detected and conceptualized as a substantiation of components of both systems. In a concluding step, an analytical framework is introduced which enables us to research Social Services of General Interest from different angles for the purpose of deploying promising policy solutions

Children of Guest Workers in Europe: Social and Cultural Needs in Relation to Library Service

published or submitted for publicatio

Limited Self-Control, Obesity and the Loss of Happiness

Obesity has become a major health issue. Research in economics has provided important insights as to how technological progress reduced the relative price of food and contributed to the increase in obesity. However, the increased availability of food might well have overstrained will power and led to suboptimal consumption decisions relative to people’s own standards. We propose the economics of happiness as an approach to study the phenomenon. Based on proxy measures for experienced utility, it is possible to directly address whether certain observed behavior is suboptimal and therefore reduces a person’s well-being. It is found that obesity decreases the well-being of individuals who report limited self-control, but not otherwise.obesity, revealed preference, self-control problem, subjective well-being