Quantitative Erfassung der Lernkulturen in den Studiengängen BWL und Wirtschaftspädagogik

Die quantitative Erfassung und Beschreibung von Lernkulturen im Hochschulkontext waren bislang Forschungsdesiderate. Diesem Defizit wird in diesem Beitrag begegnet, indem die Lernkulturen betriebswirtschaftlicher und wirtschaftspädagogischer Studiengänge quantitativ erfasst und beschrieben werden. Dies geschieht auf Basis eines funktionalistischen Lernkulturverständ-nisses und mit Hilfe eines von der Autorin konzipierten, hochschulbezogenen Lernkultureninventars. Es wurden Daten von 3.974 (Validierung) bzw. 2.171 (Deskription) Studierenden ausgewertet. Anhand der Resultate können zum einen die Validität und Reliabilität des Inventars nachgewiesen werden. Zum anderen lassen sich die wesentlichen Charakteristika wirtschaftswissenschaftlicher Lernkulturen skizzieren. 18.06.2012 | Anja Gebhardt (St. Gallen

Motivation deutschsprachiger Studierender in der "Bologna-Ära"

Eine wesentliche Anforderung, die es im Rahmen der Bologna-Reformen umzusetzen gilt, ist die Studierendenfokussierung bei der Gestaltung von Lehr- und Lernprozessen. Diese Herausforderung ist dabei vor dem Hintergrund tradierter Lernkulturen zu bewältigen. In diesem Zusammenhang bringen die Studierenden bestimmte motivationale Voraussetzungen und ein gewisses Rollenverständnis ihrer Rolle in die Lernkulturen ein. Sofern die Hochschuldidaktik die organisationalen Strukturen erfolgreich gestalten möchte, sind diese internalen Bedingungen seitens der Studierenden zu berücksichtigen. Die im Artikel beschriebene lernkulturelle Bestandsaufnahme an drei Universitäten in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz zeigt, dass die personalen Dispositionen der Studierenden optimiert werden können und dass dies über die Gestaltung organisationaler Rahmenbedingungen ein Stück weit gesteuert werden kann. 10.08.2011 | Taiga Brahm & Anja Gebhardt (St. Gallen

Intermediate-mass black holes in Globular Clusters

For a sample of nine Galactic globular clusters we measured the inner kinematic profiles with integral-field spectroscopy that we combined with existing outer kinematic measurements and HST luminosity profiles. With this information we are able to detect the crucial rise in the velocity-dispersion profile which indicates the presence of a central black hole. In addition, N-body simulations compared to our data will give us a deeper insight in the properties of clusters with black holes and stronger selection criteria for further studies. For the first time, we obtain a homogeneous sample of globular cluster integral- field spectroscopy which allows a direct comparison between clusters with and without an intermediate-mass black hole.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. To appear in the conference proceedings "Reading the book of globular clusters with the lens of stellar evolution", Mem. S. A. It. Eds. P. Ventura, C. Charbonnel, M. Castellani and M. Di Criscienz

Angular momenta, dynamical masses, and mergers of brightest cluster galaxies

Using the VIMOS integral field unit (IFU) spectrograph on the Very Large Telescope, we have spatially mapped the kinematic properties of 10 nearby brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) and 4 BCG companion galaxies located within a redshift of z = 0.1. In th

Improving mental well-being in psychocardiology—a feasibility trial for a non-blended web application as a brief metacognitive-based intervention in cardiovascular disease patients

Background: Many patients with cardiovascular disease also show a high comorbidity of mental disorders, especially such as anxiety and depression. This is, in turn, associated with a decrease in the quality of life. Psychocardiological treatment options are currently limited. Hence, there is a need for novel and accessible psychological help. Recently, we demonstrated that a brief face-to-face metacognitive therapy (MCT) based intervention is promising in treating anxiety and depression. Here, we aim to translate the face-to-face approach into digital application and explore the feasibility of this approach. Methods: We translated a validated brief psychocardiological intervention into a novel non-blended web app. The data of 18 patients suffering from various cardiac conditions but without diagnosed mental illness were analyzed after using the web app over a two-week period in a feasibility trial. The aim was whether a non-blended web app based MCT approach is feasible in the group of cardiovascular patients with cardiovascular disease. Results: Overall, patients were able to use the web app and rated it as satisfactory and beneficial. In addition, there was first indication that using the app improved the cardiac patients’ subjectively perceived health and reduced their anxiety. Therefore, the approach seems feasible for a future randomized controlled trial. Conclusion: Applying a metacognitive-based brief intervention via a non-blended web app seems to show good acceptance and feasibility in a small target group of patients with CVD. Future studies should further develop, improve and validate digital psychotherapy approaches, especially in patient groups with a lack of access to standard psychotherapeutic care

Endogenous Bak inhibitors Mcl-1 and Bcl-xL: differential impact on TRAIL resistance in Bax-deficient carcinoma

Although both Mcl-1 and Bcl-xL keep proapoptotic Bak in check, it is the loss of Mcl-1 that sensitizes cells to death receptor–mediated apoptosis

The Rest-Frame Optical Luminosity Function of Cluster Galaxies at z<0.8 and the Assembly of the Cluster Red Sequence

We present the rest-frame optical luminosity function (LF) of red sequence galaxies in 16 clusters at 0.4<z<0.8 drawn from the ESO Distant Cluster Survey (EDisCS). We compare our clusters to an analogous sample from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and match the EDisCS clusters to their most likely descendants. We measure all LFs down to M M* + (2.5 - 3.5). At z<0.8, the bright end of the LF is consistent with passive evolution but there is a significant build-up of the faint end of the red sequence towards lower redshift. There is a weak dependence of the LF on cluster velocity dispersion for EDisCS but no such dependence for the SDSS clusters. We find tentative evidence that red sequence galaxies brighter than a threshold magnitude are already in place, and that this threshold evolves to fainter magnitudes toward lower redshifts. We compare the EDisCS LFs with the LF of co-eval red sequence galaxies in the field and find that the bright end of the LFs agree. However, relative to the number of bright red galaxies, the field has more faint red galaxies than clusters at 0.6<z<0.8 but fewer at 0.4<z<0.6, implying differential evolution. We compare the total light in the EDisCS cluster red sequences to the total red sequence light in our SDSS cluster sample. Clusters at 0.4<z<0.8 must increase their luminosity on the red sequence (and therefore stellar mass in red galaxies) by a factor of 1-3 by z=0. The necessary processes that add mass to the red sequence in clusters predict local clusters that are over-luminous as compared to those observed in the SDSS. The predicted cluster luminosities can be reconciled with observed local cluster luminosities by combining multiple previously known effects.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. 36 pages, 16 figures, 10 table

Glacial-to-interglacial changes in nitrate supply and consumption in the subarctic North Pacific from microfossil-bound N isotopes at two trophic levels

Reduced nitrate supply to the subarctic North Pacific (SNP) surface during the last ice age has been inferred from coupled changes in diatom-bound delta N-15 (DB-delta N-15), bulk sedimentary delta N-15, and biogenic fluxes. However, the reliability of bulk sedimentary and DB-delta N-15 has been questioned, and a previously reported delta N-15 minimum during Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1) has proven difficult to explain. In a core from the western SNP, we report the foraminifera-bound delta N-15 (FB-delta N-15) in Neogloboquadrina pachyderma and Globigerina bulloides, comparing them with DB-delta N-15 in the same core over the past 25 kyr. The delta N-15 of all recorders is higher during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) than in the Holocene, indicating more complete nitrate consumption. N. pachyderma FB-delta N-15 is similar to DB-delta N-15 in the Holocene but 2.2% higher during the LGM. This difference suggests a greater sensitivity of FB-delta(15)NZ to changes in summertime nitrate drawdown and delta N-15 rise, consistent with a lag of the foraminifera relative to diatoms in reaching their summertime production peak in this highly seasonal environment. Unlike DB-delta N-15, FB-delta N-15 does not decrease from the LGM into HS1, which supports a previous suggestion that the HS1 DB-delta N-15 minimum is due to contamination by sponge spicules. FB-delta N-15 drops in the latter half of the Bolling/Allerod warm period and rises briefly in the Younger Dryas cold period, followed by a decline into the mid-Holocene. The FB-delta N-15 records suggest that the coupling among cold climate, reduced nitrate supply, and more complete nitrate consumption that characterized the LGM also applied to the deglacial cold events