Schädlingsprognose mit SOPRA als Entscheidungshilfe im Bioobstbau

The forecasting tool SOPRA has been developed with the objective to optimize timing of monitoring and control measures of insect pests in fruit orchards. Phenologymodels were developed driven by solar radiation, air temperature and soil temperature on hourly basis including simulation of characteristic habitat conditions for Dysaphis plantaginea, Hoplocampa testudinea, Cydia pomonella, Grapholita lobarzewskii, Cacopsylla pyri, Rhagoletis cerasi, Anthonomus pomorum and Adoxophyes orana. On base of local weather data, age structure of pest populations is simulated and crucial events for management in organic and integrated production are announced. Through a web-interface, the simulation results are made available to consultants and growers (www.sopra.info). As timing of monitoring and management are especially important in organic growing, SOPRA is applied as decision support system (DSS) for major insect pests of organic fruit orchards in Switzerland

Combined modes of gradual change: the case of academic upgrading and declining collectivism in German skill formation

The corporatist-governed dual-training system has been a key example of collective governance in the German capitalist model. However, high-end dual-training is increasingly being offered within post-secondary higher education. Here, firms and universities, not chambers of commerce or trade unions, are the actors negotiating the curricula of and access to a range of ‘dual-study programmes’. This article traces the emergence and expansion of this more firm-specific skills provision system, which diminishes the beneficial constraints for strategic cooperation and, in turn, the provision of ollective training standards and transferable skills. The case study builds on the ‘gradual institutional change’ taxonomy, while pointing to the potential benefits of using different modes of change in combination. Through analysing firms’ strategies to initiate change in an institutional grey area between established socio-economic spheres, the article shows how layering, conversion and drift can become interlinked and how each individual process can trigger and feed the next

Amerikanisierung oder Europäisierung der (Aus-) Bildung? Die Bologna- und Kopenhagen-Prozesse und das neue europäische Modell der Hochschul- und Berufsbildung

Die USA, Deutschland, Frankreich und Grossbritannien stehen für jeweils unterschiedliche sowie international viel beachtete Modelle der Hochschul- und Berufsbildung. Es gibt keinen globalen Konsens darüber, welche Kriterien für den Erfolg nationaler Bildungssysteme gelten oder welchem Vorbild gefolgt werden soll. Gegenwärtige europäische Reformen, wie die Bologna- und der Kopenhagen-Prozesse, sollen die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit Europas im Vergleich zu den USA erhöhen. Doch auf welchen zentralen Vorstellungen basiert das in diesen Prozessen verbreitete, im Entstehen begriffene europäische Bildungsmodell? Mit einer Inhaltsanalyse europäischer Dokumente (Deklarationen und Kommuniqués) gehen wir der Frage nach, ob die Ideale, Ziele, Legitimationen und Standards dieses Modells eher auf eine Amerikanisierung oder auf eine bricolage verschiedener aus Europa stammender Modelle hindeuten

The Emergent European Model in Skill Formation: Comparing Higher Education and Vocational Training in the Bologna and Copenhagen Processes

Proposing an alternative to the American model, intergovernmental reform initiatives in Europe have developed and promote a comprehensive European model of skill formation. What ideals, standards, and governance are proposed in this new pan-European model? This model responds to heightened global competition among “knowledge societies” as it challenges national systems to improve. The authors thus compare this emergent European model with the historically influential models of Germany, France, Great Britain, and the United States. To what extent does the European model resemble these traditionally influential national models? The authors report findings of a theory-guided content analysis of official European policy documents in higher education and vocational training from 1998 to 2010. They find that while the European model is a bricolage that integrates diverse characteristics of influential models, the ambitious goals and standards codified in the twin Bologna and Copenhagen processes in higher education and vocational training offer a new model to compete internationally. Dozens of countries now seek to implement these principles. This comparative analysis finds different visions for the future of skill formation on both sides of the Atlantic

Integrating International Student Mobility in Work-based Higher Education: The Case of Germany

Dual study programs are hybrid forms of work-based higher education that have expanded very rapidly in Germany—a country traditionally considered a key model in both higher education (HE) and vocational education and training (VET). The continued expansion of these hybrid programs increasingly raises questions if, how, and why they may be internationalized. Although comparative research suggests that this could be challenging due to the uniqueness of the German education and training system, strong forces support internationalization. This study examines the current state and the future prospects of internationalization of such innovative dual study programs by focusing on student mobility, a key dimension of internationalization. We find growing interest in but still relatively little mobility related to dual study programs, whether among German (outgoing) or international (incoming) students. Based on expert interviews and document analysis, we extend existing typologies of student mobility regarding specific features of work-based HE programs. Furthermore, we discuss opportunities—at home and abroad—for increasing student mobility in this rapidly expanding sector

Duale Studiengänge im globalen Kontext: Internationalisierung in Deutschland und Transfer nach Brasilien, Frankreich, Katar, Mexiko und in die USA

This exploratory study is devoted in equal measure to the status quo and the future perspectives of the internationalisation of dual study programmes, a special hybrid form of vocational training and higher education developed in Germany. Building on the earlier DAAD studies ‘Sachstand: Duales Studium als Exportmodell’ (Maschke 2012) and ‘Modelle und Szenarien für den Export deutscher Studienangebote ins Ausland’ (Schreiterer and Witte 2001; see also DAAD/HRK 2012), the authors examine both the degree of internationalisation of existing dual study programmes in Germany (with special emphasis on students’ geographical mobility) and the possibilities and limits of systematically transferring this emergent educational model to selected countries. Two recent trends have helped put issues of internationalisation and the transfer of German education concepts higher up on the policy agenda again: first, the current economic situation in Germany, which has remained robust despite the recent financial and economic turmoil, reflected most importantly in comparatively low levels of youth unemployment. Dual vocational education and training models are seen as a key factor contributing to this success. Second, the concept of dual studies reflects an emergent model of skill formation at the nexus of initial vocational training and tertiary education. This innovative hybrid form is seen as having the potential to play a crucial role in the development of competencies for twenty-first-century occupations, not least against the backdrop of the pressing skills gap

The Evolution of Bat Vestibular Systems in the Face of Potential Antagonistic Selection Pressures for Flight and Echolocation

PMCID: PMC3634842This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited