Vergessene Erinnerungen. Alzheimer-Demenz in Martin Suters "Small World" und Arno Geigers "Der alte König in seinem Exil"

Nicht mehr Erinnern, sondern Vergessen ist das Los von Menschen, die an Alzheimer-Demenz erkrankt sind. Die Krankheit nimmt dem Menschen seine Erinnerungen und damit einen Teil seiner selbst und seiner Geschichte – und sie findet immer weitere Verbreitung innerhalb der Weltbevölkerung. Deshalb ist Alzheimer-Demenz ein relevantes Thema in unterschiedlichsten Medien. Auch die Literatur wendet sich diesem mit steigender Tendenz und in verschiedenen Formen zu: Romane, biographische Erzählungen und Erfahrungsberichte von Angehörigen, aber auch von Betroffenen selbst, sind in den letzten zwei Jahrzehnten verfasst worden. Martin Suters "Small World" und Arno Geigers "Der alte König in seinem Exil" sind solche literarischen Werke – Texte, die sich auf sehr unterschiedliche Art und Weise mit der Krankheit auseinandersetzen. Die Thematisierung von Alzheimer-Demenz wird in dieser Analyse am Beispiel der oben genannten Werke untersucht, wobei nicht nur die Darstellung der Krankheit von Bedeutung ist, sondern auch der Umgang mit Biographie-, Erinnerungs- und Identitätsarbeit. Der Vergleich zwischen "Small World" und "Der alte König in seinem Exil" wird zusätzlich zu den konkreten Unterschieden zwischen den beiden Texten aufzeigen, welche Rolle die Wahl des Genres bei der Gestaltung eines solchen Themas spielt, welch großen Einfluss die Stellung des Erzählers zum Geschehen dabei hat und wie unterschiedlich der Alzheimerstoff literarisch verarbeitet werden kann

The effects of group membership and task experience on asynchronous computer-mediated group performance, group competencies and group member reactions

Organizations that use computer-mediated communication (CMC) to communicate and coordinate work are ubiquitous and highly dependent on the permeation of virtual work groups throughout the organizational structure. In this era of distributed work, it is imperative to determine which factors affect the efficiency and effectiveness of asynchronous computer-mediated groupwork. Two factors are identified in the literature to potentially mediate effects on asynchronous computer-mediated groupwork: group membership and task experience. The purpose of this study is to investigate the extent to which these factors affect group performance, competencies and group members' social experiences. A 2 x 2 between-subjects factorial design was used to carry out this study. Three-person groups (n = 56) performed tasks corresponding to task types 2 and 4 of McGrath's (1984) circumplex: an idea generation task and a judgment task. The study ran over a period of three weeks via the CMC system FirstClass® . Four treatment conditions were constructed using FirstClass whereby group membership and task experience conditions were created by varying participants' experiences during weeks 1 and 2, prior to the performance of the criterion judgment task at week 3. Results indicated that groups acquiring task experience as stable groups during weeks 1 and 2 performed better on the judgment task at week 3 than groups in other treatment conditions. Analyses also confirmed that membership and task experience had a substantial effect on group competencies and member reactions. Groups with changing membership exchanged a greater amount of communication, with those groups not having acquired judgment task experience during weeks 1 and 2 producing the highest number of process-specific remarks. Participants in stable groups reported higher levels of shared knowledge and awareness of group members' ability. Members of stable groups reported higher levels of group cohesion and collective orientation while those who were in stable groups and acquiring task experience expressed the highest amount of member interdependence. Subjects in stable groups were more satisfied with the task and the process of completing it while those who also acquired task experience were more satisfied and confident in the final task solution. Results are discussed in terms of the implications of structuring asynchronous computer-mediated collaborative work environments in organizations

Diffusion of IS in companies using renewable resources and its impact on uncertainty

The importance of sustainability is meanwhile well known in research as well as in practice. One way to produce moresustainable goods is the use of renewable resources. In this paper we present a two-staged study, consisting of a quantitativesurvey followed by qualitative interviews with companies which use renewable resources as an input for production. Thefocus of our study is on the diffusion of IS and supporting technologies and concepts in these special industrial sector. Due tothe natural growth and environmental influence factors it can be supposed that renewable resources are underlying a greateruncertainty regarding quantity, quality and time of availability. Therefore we also examine the influence of IS on uncertaintyin the companies surveyed

Precambrian olistoliths masquerading as sills from Death Valley, California

Olistolith production and magmatism are processes commonly associated with extensional tectonic settings, such as rift basins. We present a cautionary exemplar from one such Precambrian basin, in which we reinterpret metabasite bodies, previously documented as sills, to be olistoliths. We nevertheless demonstrate that, on the basis of field observation alone, the previous but erroneous sill interpretation is parsimonious. Indeed, it is only by using isotopic age and compositional analysis that the true identities of these metabasite olistoliths are revealed. We present new data from metabasites and metasedimentary strata of the Kingston Peak Formation (Cryogenian) and Crystal Spring Formation (Mesoproterozoic) of Death Valley, USA. These include field observations, U?Pb apatite ages, U?Pb zircon ages (detrital and igneous) and whole-rock geochemistry. These data also provide a new maximum age for the base of the Pahrump Group and suggest that the Crystal Spring Diabase was more tholeiitic than previously thought. Similar sill/olistolith misinterpretations may have occurred elsewhere, potentially producing erroneous age and tectonic-setting interpretations of surrounding strata. This is particularly relevant in Precambrian rocks, where fossil age constraints are rare. This is illustrated herein using a potential example from the Neoproterozoic literature of the Lufilian belt, Africa. We caution others against Precambrian olistoliths masquerading as sills.publishersversionPeer reviewe