Morality and Conflicts

In recent debates, morality or social norms have been proposed as an instrument to reduce conflict behavior. As the argument goes, moral people will not engage in socially not-tolerated behavior or, less so than amoral people. Analyzing this question in the framework of contest theory, we find that if morality can discriminate between appropriation and defense, it is an effective instrument to lower socially unwanted behavior and support the enforcement of property rights. If it cannot discriminate between these different conflict efforts, strategic effects due to a one-sided increase in morality might actually lead to total increased conflict effort in the economy.Contests, property right enforcement, morality, education

Procedure to Approximately Estimate the Uncertainty of Material Ratio Parameters due to Inhomogeneity of Surface Roughness

Roughness parameters that characterize contacting surfaces with regard to friction and wear are commonly stated without uncertainties, or with an uncertainty only taking into account a very limited amount of aspects such as repeatability of reproducibility (homogeneity) of the specimen. This makes it difficult to discriminate between different values of single roughness parameters. Therefore uncertainty assessment methods are required that take all relevant aspects into account. In the literature this is scarcely performed and examples specific for parameters used in friction and wear are not yet given. We propose a procedure to derive the uncertainty from a single profile employing a statistical method that is based on the statistical moments of the amplitude distribution and the autocorrelation length of the profile. To show the possibilities and the limitations of this method we compare the uncertainty derived from a single profile with that derived from a high statistics experiment.Comment: submitted to Meas. Sci. Technol., 12 figure

Diagnostic agreement of two calcaneal ultrasound devices: the Sahara bone sonometer and the Achilles+

Titelblatt und Inhaltsverzeichnis Einleitung Population und Methoden Ergebnisse Diskussion Zusammenfassung Anhang Literaturverzeichnis Danksagung Aktuelle Publikationsliste Lebenslauf ErklärungZusammenfassung Der Einsatz von Quantitativen Ultraschall (QUS)-Geräten zur Bestimmung des individuellen Frakturrisikos ist im Rahmen der Osteoporosediagnostik in den vergangenen Jahren weltweit stark angestiegen. In dieser Studie vergleichen wir die beiden am Kalkaneus messenden QUS-Geräte Sahara (Hologic) und ACHILLES+ (Lunar) und überprüfen ihre diagnostische Übereinstimmung unter Bezug auf die QUS-Parameter Schalldämpfung (broadband ultrasound attenuation = BUA), Schallgeschwindigkeit (speed of sound = SOS) und der jeweils gerätespezifischen Indices Stiffness und QUI (quantitative ultrasound index). In einem Normkollektiv bestehend aus 167 gesunden Berliner Frauen im Alter von 22 bis 79 Jahren werden die genannten QUS-Parameter unter zeitlich und räumlich identischen Bedingungen ermittelt. Die in-vivo-Präzision wird als Gesamtvariationskoeffizient (VCSD) nach Glüer berechnet und beträgt für die BUA 2,6% (ACHILLES+) und 4,5% (Sahara) und für die SOS 0,2% (ACHILLES+) und 0,5% (Sahara). Die Korrelation zwischen den beiden QUS-Geräten ist stark für die SOS (r = 0,90, p < 0,001) und den Indices Stiffness und QUI (r = 0,84, p < 0,001), aber nur mäßig für die BUA (r = 0,66, p < 0,001). Begrenzt auf das Teilkollektiv der Frauen in der Menopause (n = 82) ist die Korrelation für alle QUS-Parameter als stark zu beschreiben (BUA r = 0,80, SOS r = 0,93 und Stiffness/QUI r = 0,88, für alle gilt p < 0,001) und insgesamt höher im Vergleich zu den Frauen vor der Menopause (n = 85). Alle Parameter korrelieren mäßig negativ mit dem Alter (r von -0,39 bis -0,52, für alle gilt p < 0,001). Als Maß für die diagnostische Übereinstimmung wird Kappa einmal für Tertilen und einmal für äquivalente T-Werte bestimmt. Für die Tertilen, bei denen das Normkollektiv für beide Geräte in jeweils die gleiche Anzahl von Individuen mit Messwerten über und unter einem festgelegten T-Wert aufgeteilt wird, schwingt Kappa von schwach bis stark (BUA 0,18 - 0,52; SOS 0,48 - 0,77; Stiffness / QUI 0,39 - 0,69). Für die äquivalenten T-Werte wird die diagnostische Übereinstimmung insgesamt etwas stärker als bei den Tertilen, ansonsten aber ähnlich beurteilt (BUA 0,15 - 0,56; SOS 0,58 - 0,82; Stiffness / QUI 0,54 - 0,66), wobei Kappa bei allen Parametern für die jeweils kleinsten und gleichzeitig diagnostisch interessantesten Werte (T < -2)am schwächsten ist. Aufgrund dieser sehr begrenzten diagnostischen Übereinstimmung, kommen wir zu dem Schluss, dass es nicht ausreicht, einen einzelnen Patienten mit beiden Ultraschallgeräten zu messen und die Ergebnisse direkt zu vergleichen. Die Standardisierung von QUS-Geräten ist dringend notwendig und Voraussetzung für einen korrekten klinischen Einsatz.Abstract Quantitativ ultrasound fort he assessment of skeletal status is an evolving method in the diagnosis of osteoporosis. In this study we investigated the diagnostic agreement between the Sahara bone sonometer and Achilles+ with respect to broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA), speed of sound (SOS) and stiffness/ quantitativ ultrasound index (QUI). 167 healthy females aged 22-79 years living in Berlin and without diseases or medikations known to influence bone metabolism were recruited and measured in the same room and on the same day with both devices. In vivo precision (expressed as root mean square coefficient of variation) was calculated. Mean values were 2,6% (BUA Achilles+), 4,5 (BUA Sahara) and 0,2% (SOS Achilles+) and 0,5% (SOS Sahara). Between the two devices we observed a strong correlation for SOS (r=0,90, p<0,001) and stiffness/QUI (r=0,84, p<0,001) and moderate correlation for BUA (r=0,68, p<0,001). Kappa scores used to report diagnostic agreement were calculated for tertiles and equivalent T-scores. Kappa for tertiles was poor to moderate for BUA (0,18 - 0,52) and moderat til good for SOS (0,48 - 0,77). Diagnostic agreement using equivalent T-score was generally a little bit bether but similary. We conclude, that it is insufficient to compare directly two measurements of an individual patient on both ultrasound devices. Standardisation of quantitative ultrasound is very much needed

Formal verification of a small real-time operating system

The foundation of this thesis is a distributed real-time system that connects several electronic control units (ECUs) with a communication bus. Each ECU consists of a processor executing the real-time operating system OLOS and several applications on the one hand, and an interface to the bus (ABC) on the other hand. OLOS provides application scheduling and controls the communication with the bus. The applications may communicate with OLOS via so-called system calls. For applications written in high-level languages these calls are available in terms of library functions. First, we present the design and the implementation of OLOS and its necessary library functions. Thereafter, we introduce the abstract model of an entire ECU which specifies the interface to the bus (ABC), process models and the behaviour of OLOS. Then, we formulate a simulation theorem between the abstract ECU model and a model that embeds the concrete OLOS implementation. The proof of this theorem provides us with the implementation correctness of OLOS. Based on the formal correctness of our operating system, the last section of this thesis presents an approach to pervasively verify applications that are executed under OLOS on a single ECU.Grundlage dieser Arbeit ist ein verteiltes Echtzeitsystem, welches mehrere elektronische Kontrolleinheiten (ECUs) mit einem Kommunikationsbus verbindet. Jede dieser Kontrolleinheiten besteht aus einer Schnittstelle zum Bus (ABC) und einem Prozessor, welcher das Echtzeitbetriebssystem Olos und mehrere Anwendungen ausführt. Olos organisiert die Ausführungszeit der Anwendungen auf dem Prozessor und steuert deren Kommunikation mit dem Bus. Die Anwendungen haben die Möglichkeit, über sogenannte Systemaufrufe mit dem Betriebssystem zu kommunizieren. Diese stehen den Anwendungen, die in höheren Programmiersprachen geschrieben sind, in Form von Bibliotheksfunktionen zur Verfügung. Zuerst stellen wir den Entwurf und die Implementierung von Olos und den notwendigen Bibliotheksfunktionen vor. Danach beschreiben wir das abstrakte Modell einer vollständigen ECU, welches die Schnittstelle zum Bus (ABC), Prozessmodelle und das Verhalten des Betriebssystems Olos festlegt. Wir formulieren ein Simulationstheorem zwischen dem abstrakten ECU Modell und einem Modell mit eingebetteter konkreter Olos-Implementierung. Der Beweis dieser Aussage liefert uns die Implementierungskorrektheit von Olos. Im letzten Teil der Arbeit benutzen wir dieses Ergebnis als Grundlage für einen Ansatz, mit dem durchgängig Anwendungen verifiziert werden können, die unter Olos auf einer elektronischen Kontrolleinheit ausgeführt werden

Learning about climate politics during COP 21: explaining a diminishing knowledge gap

A basic understanding of climate politics is necessary for citizens to assess their government's policies. Media use is supposed to enable learning, while widening knowledge gaps. We analyze whether such a gap opened up in times of intense media coverage during the 2015 climate conference in Paris and explain learning through hierarchical regression analyses, drawing on a 3-month panel survey (n = 1121) in Germany. We find a diminishing knowledge gap: people with low previous knowledge catch up on the better informed, but overall knowledge remained low and learning was limited. This suggests a ceiling effect: possibly journalistic media did not provide enough new information for the well-informed. Closing knowledge gaps may also be explained by the media system with public television and regional newspapers reaching broad segments of the population. Higher knowledge was predicted less by media use than by education, concern, and being male

Effects of recombinant adenovirus-mediated expression of IL-2 and IL-12 in human B lymphoma cells on co-cultured PBMC

BACKGROUND: Modulation of the immune system by genetically modified lymphoma cell vaccines is of potential therapeutic value in the treatment of B cell lymphoma. However, the anti-tumor effect of any single immunogene transfer has so far been limited. Combination treatment of recombinant IL-2 and IL-12 has been reported to be synergistic for inducing anti-tumor responses in solid tumors but the potential of IL-2/IL-12 gene modified B cell lymphoma cells has not been explored yet. METHODS: Using three different human B cell lymphoma cell lines and primary samples from patients with B cell neoplasms, expression levels of the coxsackie B-adenovirus receptor (CAR) and alpha (v) integrins were analyzed by fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS). Adenoviral transduction efficiencies were determined by GFP expression analysis and IL-2 and IL-12 cytokine production was quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent (ELISA) assays. Proliferative activities of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) stimulated with either cytokine derived from supernatants of transduced lymphoma cells were measured by cell proliferation (MTT) assays. An EuTDA cytotoxicity assay was used to compare cytotoxic activities of IL-2 and/or IL-12 stimulated PBMC against unmodified lymphoma cells. RESULTS: We found that B cell lymphoma cell lines could be transduced with much higher efficiency than primary tumor samples, which appeared to correlate with the expression of CAR. Adenoviral-expressed IL-2 and IL-12 similarly led to dose-dependent increases in proliferation rates of PBMC obtained from healthy donors. IL-2 and/or IL-12 transduced lymphoma cells were co-cultured with PBMC, which were assayed for their cytolytic activity against unmodified lymphoma cells. We found that IL-2 stimulated PBMC elicited a significant anti-tumor effect but not the combined effect of IL-2/IL-12 or IL-12 alone. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that the generation of recombinant adenovirus modified lymphoma cell vaccines based on lymphoma cell lines expressing IL-2 and IL-12 cytokine genes is technically feasible, induces increases in proliferation rates and cytotoxic activity of co-cultured PBMC, and warrants further development for the treatment of lymphoma patients in the future

Complex carbohydrate recognition by proteins: Fundamental insights from bacteriophage cell adhesion systems

SummaryProtein–glycan interactions are ubiquitous in nature. Molecular description of complex formation and the underlying thermodynamics, however, are not well understood due to the lack of model systems. Bacteriophage tailspike proteins (TSP) possess binding sites for bacterial cell surfaces oligosaccharides. In this article we describe the analysis of TSP-oligosaccharide complexes. TSP provide large glycan interaction sites where affinity and specificity are guided by the protein surface solvation and the conformational space sampled by the respective glycan. Furthermore, we describe a computational approach to analyse the conformational space sampled by flexible glycans of bacterial origin, a prerequisite for a thorough understanding of TSP-oligosaccharide interactions

Prevalence of RT-qPCR-detected SARS-CoV-2 infection at schools: First results from the Austrian School-SARS-CoV-2 prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The role of schools in the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is much debated. We aimed to quantify reliably the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections at schools detected with reverse-transcription quantitative polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-qPCR). METHODS: This nationwide prospective cohort study monitors a representative sample of pupils (grade 1-8) and teachers at Austrian schools throughout the school year 2020/2021. We repeatedly test participants for SARS-CoV-2 infection using a gargling solution and RT-qPCR. We herein report on the first two rounds of examinations. We used mixed-effects logistic regression to estimate odds ratios and robust 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). FINDINGS: We analysed data on 10,734 participants from 245 schools (9465 pupils, 1269 teachers). Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection increased from 0·39% at round 1 (95% CI 028-0·55%, 28 September-22 October 2020) to 1·39% at round 2 (95% CI 1·04-1·85%, 10-16 November). Odds ratios for SARS-CoV-2 infection were 2·26 (95% CI 1·25-4·12, P = 0·007) in regions with >500 vs. ≤500 inhabitants/km2, 1·67 (95% CI 1·42-1·97, P<0·001) per two-fold higher regional 7-day community incidence, and 2·78 (95% CI 1·73-4·48, P<0·001) in pupils at schools with high/very high vs. low/moderate social deprivation. Associations of regional community incidence and social deprivation persisted in a multivariable adjusted model. Prevalence did not differ by average number of pupils per class nor between age groups, sexes, pupils vs. teachers, or primary (grade 1-4) vs. secondary schools (grade 5-8). INTERPRETATION: This monitoring study in Austrian schools revealed SARS-CoV-2 infection in 0·39%-1·39% of participants and identified associations of regional community incidence and social deprivation with higher prevalence. FUNDING: BMBWF Austria

Sensitivity and specificity of the antigen-based anterior nasal self-testing programme for detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection in schools, Austria, March 2021.

This study evaluates the performance of the antigen-based anterior nasal screening programme implemented in all Austrian schools to detect SARS-CoV-2 infections. We combined nationwide antigen-based screening data obtained in March 2021 from 5,370 schools (Grade 1-8) with an RT-qPCR-based prospective cohort study comprising a representative sample of 244 schools. Considering a range of assumptions, only a subset of infected individuals are detected with the programme (low to moderate sensitivity) and non-infected individuals mainly tested negative (very high specificity)

The Threat of Capital Drain: A Rationale for Public Banks?

This paper yields a rationale for why subsidized public banks may be desirable from a regional perspective in a financially integrated economy. We present a model with credit rationing and heterogeneous regions in which public banks prevent a capital drain from poorer to richer regions by subsidizing local depositors, for example, through a public guarantee. Under some conditions, cooperative banks can perform the same function without any subsidization; however, they may be crowded out by public banks. We also discuss the impact of the political structure on the emergence of public banks in a political-economy setting and the role of interregional mobility