Assessing old-age long-term care using the concepts of healthy life expectancy and care duration: the new parameter "Long-Term Care-Free Life-Expectancy (LTCF)"

Achieving old ages is also connected with prevalence of illness and long-term care. With the introduction of the statutory long-term care insurance in 1996 and the long-term care statistics in 1999 research data of about 2.3 million people receiving long-term care benefits is available. Average life expectancy can be qualitatively divided into lifetime spent in good health and lifetime spent in long-term care dependence (average care duration). In Germany women’s and men’s average care duration amount 3.6 years respectively 2.1 years.Germany, ageing, laboratories, life expectancy

Characterization and quantification of hydrodynamic exchange processes in a tidal channel (East Frisian Wadden Sea)

In coastal regions like the Wadden Sea there are complex interactions between tidal currents, their turbulence and sediment transport. The used approaches to characterize and quantify these hydrodynamic exchange processes in a tidal channel based on operational physical oceanography procedures and field measurements. Key points of this thesis were the assessment of turbulence patterns via post-processing of pre-existing current velocity data sets, the investigation of the impact of these measured currents and turbulence on turbidity dynamics, and the derivation of acoustic and optical methods to infer water transparency. The results show that the combination of data sets from different measurement principles (optical and acoustic) is an effective tool for monitoring and verification of complex interactions of different environmental parameters and exchange processes

Improving the First Impression of an Online Scientific Publishing Service: A Usability Test

A study of the Human-Oriented Technology Lab at Carleton University shows that users form an opinion (first impression) regarding a new website in 50 milliseconds (Lindgaard et al (2006)). Furthermore, the Halo effect causes that the first impression will be transferred on the whole organization. For this reason, it is very important to optimize a website before one starts with marketing activities. There is no thing as a second first impression. In this contribution, we analyse the website of a new scientific journal. The usability test covers 2 areas: The layout and the functionality of the website on a variety of devices (mobile devices (Android, iOS), Macs, PCs with different browsers)

The Impact of the General Data Protection Regulation on the Design and Measurement of Marketing Activities: Introducing Permission Marketing and Tracking for Improved Marketing & CRM Compliance with Legal Requirements

It is important to design marketing and CRM campaigns in accordance with the customer’s requirements. A good way to collect information for the creation of a purposeful campaign is the usage of feedback and knowledge of previous campaigns. But the introduction of the GDPR 2016/679 in May 2018 makes the measurement of consumer behavior in a law-conforming way more challenging. This contribution discusses user behavior measurement methods which are compatible with the GDPR. It illustrates the impact of the new regulation on user communication in the context of email campaigns and of social media marketing in Facebook. We show that the implementation of Godin’s permission marketing approach is a blueprint for GDPR compatible marketing communication activities (Godin, 1999)

The role of news media knowledge for how people use social media for news in five countries

Concern over misinformation on social media has amplified calls to improve the public’s knowledge about how news is produced, distributed and financed. This study investigates the relationship between people’s news media knowledge and the ways in which they use social media for news using online survey data in five countries: the United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Spain and Sweden ( N = 10,595). We find that people with higher news media knowledge are more likely to include social media in their news repertoire – but not as their main or only source of news. Second, we find that news media knowledge is positively associated with paying attention to source and editorial cues. When it comes to different social endorsement cues, news media knowledge is positively associated with paying attention to the person who shared the news, but negatively associated with paying attention to the number of likes, comments and shares

Sulfur Respiration in a Marine Chemolithoautotrophic Beggiatoa Strain

The chemolithoautotrophic strain Beggiatoa sp. 35Flor shows an unusual migration behavior when cultivated in a gradient medium under high sulfide fluxes. As common for Beggiatoa spp., the filaments form a mat at the oxygen–sulfide interface. However, upon prolonged incubation, a subpopulation migrates actively downward into the anoxic and sulfidic section of the medium, where the filaments become gradually depleted in their sulfur and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) inclusions. This depletion is correlated with the production of hydrogen sulfide. The sulfur- and PHA-depleted filaments return to the oxygen–sulfide interface, where they switch back to depositing sulfur and PHA by aerobic sulfide oxidation. Based on these observations we conclude that internally stored elemental sulfur is respired at the expense of stored PHA under anoxic conditions. Until now, nitrate has always been assumed to be the alternative electron acceptor in chemolithoautotrophic Beggiatoa spp. under anoxic conditions. As the medium and the filaments were free of oxidized nitrogen compounds we can exclude this metabolism. Furthermore, sulfur respiration with PHA under anoxic conditions has so far only been described for heterotrophic Beggiatoa spp., but our medium did not contain accessible organic carbon. Hence the PHA inclusions must originate from atmospheric CO2 fixed by the filaments while at the oxygen–sulfide interface. We propose that the directed migration of filaments into the anoxic section of an oxygen–sulfide gradient system is used as a last resort to preserve cell integrity, which would otherwise be compromised by excessive sulfur deposition occurring in the presence of oxygen and high sulfide fluxes. The regulating mechanism of this migration is still unknown

Convergence of Amyloid-β and Tau Pathologies on Mitochondria In Vivo

The histopathological characteristics of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are amyloid-β (Aβ) containing plaques and neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) as well as neuronal and synaptic loss. Until today, the underlying mechanisms of the interplay of plaques and tangles remained unresolved. There is increasing evidence that mitochondrial dysfunction might be a possible link, as revealed by studies in several APP and tau transgenic mouse models. Recently, we examined mitochondrial function in a novel triple transgenic mouse model (pR5/APP/PS2)—tripleAD mice—that combines both pathologic features of the disease in brain. Using comparative, quantitative proteomics (iTRAQ) and mass spectroscopy, we found a massive deregulation of 24 proteins, of which one third were mitochondrial proteins mainly related to complexes I and IV of the oxidative phosphorylation system (OXPHOS). Remarkably, deregulation of complex I was related to tau, whereas deregulation of complex IV was Aβ dependent, both at the protein and activity levels. The tripleAD mice showed synergistic effects of Aβ and tau already at the age of 8months, resulting in a depolarized mitochondrial membrane potential. At 12months, the strongest defects on OXPHOS, synthesis of ATP and reactive oxygen species, were exhibited in the tripleAD mice, again emphasizing synergistic, age-associated effects of Aβ and tau in impairing mitochondria. This review highlights the convergence of Aβ and tau on mitochondria and establishes a molecular link in AD pathology in viv

Bohrspülungen zur Erschließung mariner Gashydratlagerstätten - inhibierende und stabilisierende Additive sowie verbesserte rheologische Charakterisierung: Bohrspülungen zur Erschließung mariner Gashydratlagerstätten - inhibierende und stabilisierende Additive sowie verbesserte rheologische Charakterisierung

Gashydrate sind natürlich vorkommende feste Verbindungen aus Wasser und Gas, deren Erschließung als zukünftige Energiequelle von Interesse ist. Für die bohrtechnische Erschließung mariner Gashydratlagerstätten ist eine leistungsfähige Bohrspülung notwendig. Das vom Bohrmeißel gelockerte Sediment und darin enthaltenes Gashydrat werden durch die Bohrspülung nach übertage transportiert. Die Gashydratpartikel verlassen beim Aufsteigen im Ringraum in ca. 300 m Wassertiefe ihren Stabilitätsbereich und dissoziieren in Wasser und Gas. Um eine Verdünnung und eine Dichteerniedrigung der Bohrspülung zu verhindern, soll das Gashydratbohrklein stabilisiert werden. Gleichzeitig darf sich in der Bohrspülung bei Anwesenheit von freiem Gas in der Lagerstätte kein neues Gashydrat bilden. Die Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der Suche nach Additiven, welche die Gashydratneubildung und -dissoziation gleichzeitig hemmen. Es wurde ein Schüttelautoklav genutzt, um die Dissoziationstemperatur von Methanhydrat bei ca. 85 bar zu ermitteln und die Verzögerung des Hydratzerfalls bei Anwesenheit verschiedener Additive zu vergleichen. Es konnte ein Additiv gefunden werden, das diese Anforderungen erfüllt. Des Weiteren wurden neue rheologische Untersuchungsprogramme für verschiedene Spülungstypen erarbeitet, die eine detaillierte Charakterisierung der Fließfähigkeit, Thixotropie und Geleigenschaften von Bohrspülungen erlauben