The Danube Region: transformation and emergence

The paper deals with the impact of concrete / tangible social transformation processes on the emergence and shaping of new concepts such as multi-dimensional identity. It also discusses the preconditions necessary for the emergence of such concepts as well as the reasons that may lead to their acceptance or rejection by the respective target groups. The topic is discussed on the concrete empirical evidence of the transformation and the emergence of the Danube Region as the third EU macro-region. It shows that transformation processes require careful coordination and transparency, especially when they address social spaces that do not conform to traditional boundaries and perceptions of reality. Education is considered to play a crucial role in the process of internalisation of such social realities and the redefinition of obsolete thinking patterns.Danube Region, transformation, identity, education, EU Regional Policy

Auf dem Weg zu einer globalen Medienpolitik. Anfragen und Erwartungen an die Weltkirche

Ich werde meine Anfragen und Überlegungen aus allgemeiner Sicht vortragen; als Politiker, vor allem aber als Zeitgenosse, dem die Kirche über ihre medialen Aussagen begegnet; und ein wenig auch als Christ, der die Kirche einerseits von innen kennt und andererseits ihr mediales Erscheinungsbild wahrnehmen muß. Sie wissen ja selbst am besten, daß es da manchmal Diskrepanzen gibt - Diskrepanzen, die nicht an den bösen Medien allein liegen können, sondern vor allem an der Selbstdarstellung der Kirche. Sie kennen dieses Problem besser und differenzierter als ich; ieh brauche Ihnen da nichts zu erzählen. Es wird Sie auch nicht trösten, wenn ich Ihnen versichere, daß auch Parteien dieses Problem aus leidvoller Erfahrung kennen, vor allem auch die Partei, der ich angehöre. (...)  EnglishThe author points out the importance of the Church as one of the great public medias for communication. Each week the Church communicates in Sunday masses with one tenth or one fivth of its members. Nevertheless, the Church faces great difficulties in transmitting its Good News because of the negative image which in the media conceals its true message. The actual shortage of empathy of the Church within modern pluralistic society could only be compensated by spreading its message not in the sense of a simple stimulus-response model. This would not be real communication but indoctrination. The Church must operate on the public market of free meanings in a democatric society. In a pluralistic community the Church must recognise all people as free persons with common sense and of equal rights. Their answers must be taken for serious. So, the church faces the task of accepting the existence of a democratic pluralistic society and making clear in public its message of a liberating hope for mankind.

Dachbegrünung: Anregungen und Tipps für Hausbesitzer

Die Broschüre richtet sich an Hausbesitzer und gibt Anregungen und Tipps zu den verschiedenen Möglichkeiten der Erstellung eines Gründaches von einfachen Ausführungen bis zu einem Dachgarten. Dabei wird auf die baulichen Voraussetzungen eingegangen. Die verschiedenen Arten von Dachbegrünungen werden vorgestellt und die mögliche Pflanzenauswahl aufgezeigt. Gründächer sind wertvolle Biotope und helfen die Lebensqualität zu erhöhen und das Stadtklima zu verbessern. Redaktionsschluss: 18.07.201

Automated Micro-PIV measurement in Lab-on-a-Chip systems

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.Flow rate and wall shear stress are important parameters for perfused cell culture systems and should be monitored. An easy and non-invasive method is the particle image velocimetry (PIV). In this work PIV was used to characterize a cell culture system with included peristaltic pump. The time-dependent flow profile was measured on several points of the chip for different pumping speeds to figure out which forces are applied to dissolved and adherent cells. The results can be used to improve the developed pump in respect to its layout, the excitation and the position within the chip

Transcription levels of two actin genes (SmAct and SmAct2), cytochrome C oxidase subunit II (SmCOXII), triosephosphate ssomerase (TPI), and a putative translation regulatory protein EIF-5 during the first seven days of in vitro development of Schistosoma mansoni schistosomula

After penetration into the mammalian host, the Schistosoma mansoni cercariae transforms into schistosomula. This immature larval form of the parasite migrates via the circulatory system of the host through the lungs, reaching the hepatic portal system where it matures and couples. A number of morphologic, behavioral and metabolic changes that take place during the development of the parastie have been well characterized. However, the understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate these changes at the gene level are still limited. In this paper we describe attempts we have undertaken to better understand some of these mechanisms

Hydrogel patterns in microfluidic devices by do-it-yourself UV-photolithography suitable for very large-scale integration

The interest in large-scale integrated (LSI) microfluidic systems that perform highthroughput biological and chemical laboratory investigations on a single chip is steadily growing. Such highly integrated Labs-on-a-Chip (LoC) provide fast analysis, high functionality, outstanding reproducibility at low cost per sample, and small demand of reagents. One LoC platform technology capable of LSI relies on specific intrinsically active polymers, the so-called stimuli-responsive hydrogels. Analogous to microelectronics, the active components of the chips can be realized by photolithographic micro-patterning of functional layers. The miniaturization potential and the integration degree of the microfluidic circuits depend on the capability of the photolithographic process to pattern hydrogel layers with high resolution, and they typically require expensive cleanroom equipment. Here, we propose, compare, and discuss a cost-efficient do-it-yourself (DIY) photolithographic set-up suitable to micro-pattern hydrogel-layers with a resolution as needed for very large-scale integrated (VLSI) microfluidics. The achievable structure dimensions are in the lower micrometer scale, down to a feature size of 20 µm with aspect ratios of 1:5 and maximum integration densities of 20,000 hydrogel patterns per cm. Furthermore, we demonstrate the effects of miniaturization on the efficiency of a hydrogel-based microreactor system by increasing the surface area to volume (SA:V) ratio of integrated bioactive hydrogels. We then determine and discuss a correlation between ultraviolet (UV) exposure time, cross-linking density of polymers, and the degree of immobilization of bioactive components. © 2020 by the authors

Physiology of long pranayamic breathing: Neural respiratory elements may provide a mechanism that explains how slow deep breathing shifts the autonomic nervous system

Pranayamic breathing, defined as a manipulation of breath movement, has been shown to contribute to a physiologic response characterized by the presence of decreased oxygen consumption, decreased heart rate, and decreased blood pressure, as well as increased theta wave amplitude in EEG recordings, increased parasympathetic activity accompanied by the experience of alertness and reinvigoration. The mechanism of how pranayamic breathing interacts with the nervous system affecting metabolism and autonomic functions remains to be clearly understood. It is our hypothesis that voluntary slow deep breathing functionally resets the autonomic nervous system through stretchinduced inhibitory signals and hyperpolarization currents propagated through both neural and non-neural tissue which synchronizes neural elements in the heart, lungs, limbic system and cortex. During inspiration, stretching of lung tissue produces inhibitory signals by action of slowly adapting stretch receptors (SARs) and hyperpolarization current by action of fibroblasts. Both inhibitory impulses and hyperpolarization current are known to synchronize neural elements leading to the modulation of the nervous system and decreased metabolic activity indicative of the parasympathetic state. In this paper we propose pranayama’s physiologic mechanism through a cellular and systems level perspective,involving both neural and non-neural elements. This theoretical description describes a common physiological mechanism underlying pranayama and elucidate the role of the respiratory and cardiovascular system on modulating the autonomic nervous system. Along with facilitating the design of clinical breathing techniques for the treatment of autonomic nervous system and other disorders, this model will also validate pranayama as a topic requiring more research