The four freedoms in the EU: Are they inseparable? Bertelsmann Stiftung EUROPA Briefing 2017

The four freedoms govern the movement of goods, persons, services and capital within the EU. They are the cornerstones of the Single Market and the common currency. Many citizens see them as the greatest achievement of the European unification project. Brexit has reignited the discussion surrounding the free movement of people - that is the opportunity to live and work in any EU country. Technically speaking, it is possible to separate the four freedoms, but does it make political sense

European taxes: Do we need them? Bertelsmann Stiftung EUROPA Briefing 2017

In the European Union, each member state is responsible for its tax system. Different national regimes help with tax competition, but can also lead to tax evasion or unfair rules in the Single Market. That is why better coordination or even standardisation of taxes is debated. What tax regulations are there already in the Single Market? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of a European tax? And what reforms are being discussed in Europe

Convergence: Are the Eurozone countries too different? Bertelsmann Stiftung EUROPA Briefing 2017

The Eurozone countries are economically different. The crisis has rendered some of these differences more acute and this could destabilize the currency union. The Eurozone countries therefore need to agree on which type of convergence is most important to them and the best way to achieve it. In what areas should they converge? What differences could or should remain? And what policy instruments are required to achieve this

Imbalances: Should the EU intervene? Bertelsmann Stiftung EUROPA Briefing 2017

Economic imbalances keep recurring in the EU. Differences in trade balances dominate the debate. Germany has been generating very high surpluses for years and meets criticism for this reason. Are imbalances a threat to the EU, and what role does the euro play in this? Should politicians adjust differences in the balance of trade? And if so, is that up to national governments or the EU

Why the euro area needs new convergence goals and how to choose them

Economic convergence is generally taken as an important requirement for the euro area to function correctly. Without this, the significant differences between euro area economies could make sharing a currency problematic. As Anna auf dem Brinke writes, however, political and market forces have so far proven unable to prevent imbalances between member states. She argues that new convergence goals should be a key priority for the euro area and suggests a number of principles for choosing better convergence indicators

Transit systems in the US and Germany - a comparison

This thesis compares German transit systems to the transit system of Atlanta, Georgia. Different performance measures are used to assess the difference in the respective rail and bus systems. The results show that the German transit systems are overall more successful and efficient than the system in Atlanta.M.S.Committee Chair: Meyer, Michael D.; Committee Member: Amekudzi, Adjo Akpene; Committee Member: Southworth, Fran

Documentation of ethical considerations in published articles in Sudanese medical journals

Introduction.Guidelines for biomedical research involving human subjects require that research should be conducted in accordance with accepted ethical principles. The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors guidelines require authors to indicate that they have obtained ethical approval and informed consent. Sudanese scientific medical journals ask authors to declare informed consent and ethical approval by an ethics review committee (ERC) in published reports.Methods. We reviewed 114 original research articles published in five peer-reviewed Sudanese medical and health journals to assess the extent to which ethical considerations had been reported.Results. A subtitle indicating ‘ethical considerations’ was found in 5 (4.4%) articles, 35 (30.7%) stated that informed consent had been obtained from the study participants, and 13 (11.4%) stated that the study had been approved by an independent ERC. Although all five journals explicitly ask authors to document ethical approval and informed consent, 88.6% and 69.3% of the articles examined had failed to document ethical approval and informed consent, respectively.Discussion. Failure to obtain or report ethical approval by an ERC and failure to obtain informed consent from study participants was the most prominent finding. Failure to report ethical approval or consent was seen to a similar extent in all study designs reported, so study design did not seem to influence the reporting of ethical considerations. However, failure to document ethical considerations, in particular ethics committee approval and obtaining of informed consent, does not necessarily mean that these were not done in the research reported.Limitations. We reviewed only Sudanese journals, so do not know the practice of Sudanese authors in this regard when they publish in international scientific journals