Vom Ende der Natur als normativer Begründungsressource in spätmodernen Gesellschaften

"Allgemein wird in der Soziologie heute die selbstkritische Diagnose eines 'ökologischen Defizits' gestellt. Häufig verbunden ist damit die Forderung, Natur als Kategorie in die Soziologie (wieder)einzuführen. Wenn man jedoch akzeptiert, daß Soziologie die Wissenschaft von den gesellschaftlichen Ordnungsvorstellungen und des sinnhaft orientierten Handelns ist, fällt es schwer, einen direkten Bezug zu den stofflich-materiellen Aspekten herzustellen, die Grundlage einer ökologischen Selbstgefährdung sein mögen. Naheliegender und im soziologischen Forschungsprogramm anschlußfähiger erscheint es zunächst, die Bedeutung der jeweiligen Naturvorstellungen für die Begründung gesellschaftlicher Ordnungskonzepte zu untersuchen. In meinem Beitrag vertrete ich die These, daß sich der Geltungsanspruch jeglicher Rekurse auf Natur in spätmodernen Gesellschaften hier als kaum noch begründbar erweist. Denn solange man Natur als gegeben und von gesellschaftlicher Manipulation unbeeinflußt konzipieren konnte, eignete sich der Rekurs auf Natur zur stabilen Grenzziehung für den Geltungsbereich gesellschaftlicher Verantwortung: Gesellschaftliche Entscheidungen sind zu begründen, naturbedingte Ereignisse sind als Schicksal hinzunehmen. Doch mit den wachsenden wissenschaftlich-technischen Manipulationsmöglichkeiten und unter dem Eindruck ökologischer Krisenerscheinungen wird diese Grenzziehung problematisch. An die Stelle der Grenze zwischen Gesellschaft und Natur tritt nun die Grenze zwischen Wissen und Nicht-Wissen. Hier rückt die Wissenschaft in eine Schlüsselstellung für die Integration der ganzen Gesellschaft ein. Aber die Wissenschaft ist selbst, zumindest in ihrem Objektivitätsanspruch und damit in ihrem Anspruch, allgemeingültige Definitionen des Wissensstands liefern zu können, auf die Unterscheidung zwischen Gesellschaft und Natur angewiesen, deren Realitätsgehalt und Gültigkeit gerade im Schwinden begriffen ist. Daraus ergeben sich problematische Konsequenzen, die weder in einer linearen Fortschreibung der Modernisierungstheorie noch im Sinne reflexiver Modernisierung einfach zu lösen sind." (Autorenreferat

Potential Upgrade of the CMS Tracker Analog Readout Optical Links Using Bandwidth Efficient Digital Modulation

The potential application of advanced digital communication schemes in a future upgrade of the CMS Tracker readout optical links is currently being investigated at CERN. We show experimentally that multi-Gbit/s data rates are possible over the current 40 MSamples/s analog optical links by employing techniques similar to those used in ADSL. The concept involves using one or more digitally-modulated sinusoidal carriers in order to make efficient use of the available bandwidth.Comment: Presented at LECC 2006, Valencia, Spain. 5 pages, 11 figures

Maximizing the Bandwidth Efficiency of the CMS Tracker Analog Optical Links

The feasibility of achieving faster data transmission using advanced digital modulation techniques over the current CMS Tracker analog optical link is explored. The spectral efficiency of Quadrature Amplitude Modulation -Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (QAM-OFDM) makes it an attractive option for a future implementation of the readout link. An analytical method for estimating the data-rate that can be achieved using OFDM over the current optical links is described and the first theoretical results are presented

Feasibility of Using Bandwidth Efficient Modulation to Upgrade the CMS Tracker Readout Optical Links

Plans to upgrade the LHC after approximately 10 years of operation are currently being considered at CERN. A tenfold increase in luminosity delivered to the experiments is envisaged in the so-called Super LHC (SLHC). This will undoubtedly give rise to significantly larger data volumes from the detectors, requiring faster data readout. The possibility of upgrading the CMS Tracker analog readout optical links using a bandwidth efficient digital modulation scheme for deployment in the SLHC has been extensively explored at CERN. Previous theoretical and experimental studies determined the achievable data rate using a system based on Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) to be ~3-4Gbit/s (assuming no error correction is used and for an error rate of ~10-9). In this note we attempt to quantify the feasibility of such an upgrade in terms of hardware implementation complexity, applicability to the high energy physics (HEP) environment, technological feasibility and R&D effort required.Comment: CERN CMS Note. 16 pages, 10 figure

Predicting the Gain Spread of the CMS Tracker Analog Readout Optical Links

Approximately 40 000 analog optical links will read out the data from 10 million silicon microstrips in the CMS Tracker. In an analog system, the overall gain directly determines the dynamic range and resolution of the data being read out. Production is sufficiently advanced to allow the extraction of the real distribution of gain for each component making up the complete optical link. The purpose of this study is to examine the aggregate effect of the individual component gain distributions on the readout system's dynamic range, and its uniformity throughout the thousands of deployed links in the CMS Tracker. To this end, a Monte Carlo simulation based on production test data, and augmented with results from deployed links in real test systems, has been carried out. The results give an estimate of the spread in gain and dynamic range that can be expected in the final system, running at -10 degree C

Acquisition of procedural skills in pre-registration physiotherapy education comparing mental practice against no mental practice: The Learning of Procedures in Physiotherapy Education Trial - a development of concept study

Kavi Jagadamma - ORCID 0000-0003-2011-0744 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2011-0744Gillian Baer - ORCID 0000-0002-1528-2851 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1528-2851Introduction: Procedural skills are a central element in the education of physiotherapists. Procedural skills relate to the execution of a practical task. An educational intervention, which can be used to support skill acquisition of procedural skills, is mental practice (MP). Several studies have investigated the use of MP or imaging in medical education. This pilot study evaluated the application of MP on the acquisition of procedural skills in physiotherapy education.Methods: This pilot randomised controlled study recruited a convenience sample of 37 BSc physiotherapy student participants. Two different complex task procedures (transfer and vestibular rehabilitation) were trained during this study. Participants in both the transfer (task procedure 1) and the vestibular rehabilitation (task procedure 2) arm of the study were randomly assigned to either MP or no MP.Results: For the transfer task, median performance at post-acquisition testing showed a moderate effect size in favour of the group using MP (r: −0.3), but the findings were not statistically significant (P: 0.2). Similar results were found for the vestibular rehabilitation task (r: 0.29; P: 0.21). In addition, the self-reported confidence was higher in the MP group.Conclusion: Moderate effect sizes were identified in favour of MP at post-acquisition testing. In addition, the between-group difference was higher than the minimally important difference. The feasibility of the study was high based on quantitative feasibility measures such as the recruitment rate. Both these findings suggest larger well-powered studies should be considered to confirm the findings of this pilot study.https://doi.org/10.1177/23821205209273827pubpu

(η5-Cyclo­penta­dien­yl)(η6-mesitylamine)ruthenium(II) hexa­fluorido­phosphate

The title compound, [Ru(η5-C5H5){η6-C6H2(CH3)3NH2}]PF6, contains a sandwich complex with a mesitylamine unit which is significantly non-planar at the ipso-carbon of the amino group due to repulsive electronic effects with Ru. The ipso-carbon deviates by 0.107 (3) Å from the least-squares plane of the remaining five benzene ring atoms, which show an r.m.s. deviation of 0.005 Å. N—H⋯F hydrogen-bonding interactions help to consolidate the crystal packing

A new sensitive method for the simultaneous chromatographic separation and tandem mass spectrometry detection of anticoccidials, including highly polar compounds, in environmental waters

peer-reviewedA sensitive and selective method was developed and validated for the determination of 26 anticoccidial compounds (six ionophores and twenty chemical coccidiostats) in surface and groundwater samples at parts-per-quadrillion (pg L−1) to parts-per-trillion (ng L−1) levels by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry detection (UHPLC–MS/MS). A range of different analytical columns and mobile phase compositions were evaluated to enhance selectivity and retention of a number of highly polar and basic anticoccidials along with other non-polar coccidiostats. A combined separation, including these problematic polar compounds, was achieved on a phenyl-hexyl column, by binary gradient elution with water/acetonitrile using ammonium formate and formic acid as additives. The anticoccidial residues were extracted from raw, unfiltered, water samples (250 mL) using polymeric divinylbenzene solid phase extraction (SPE) cartridges, with subsequent elution (methanol:acetonitrile:ethyl acetate, 40:40:20, v/v) and concentration prior to determination. The method recovery (at a concentration representative of realistic expected environmental water concentrations based on literature review) ranged from 81% to 105%. The method was successfully validated for 26 anticoccidials, at four concentration levels, in accordance to Commission Decision 2002/657/EC and SANTE/11813/2017 guidelines. Trueness and precision, under within-laboratory reproducibility conditions, ranged from 88% to 111% and 0.9% to 10.3% respectively

Carbon and nitrogen dynamics and greenhouse gas emissions in constructed wetlands treating wastewater: a review

peer-reviewedThe removal efficiency of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in constructed wetlands (CWs) is very inconsistent and frequently does not reveal whether the removal processes are due to physical attenuation or whether the different species have been transformed to other reactive forms. Previous research on nutrient removal in CWs did not consider the dynamics of pollution swapping (the increase of one pollutant as a result of a measure introduced to reduce a different pollutant) driven by transformational processes within and around the system. This paper aims to address this knowledge gap by reviewing the biogeochemical dynamics and fate of C and N in CWs and their potential impact on the environment, and by presenting novel ways in which these knowledge gaps may be eliminated. Nutrient removal in CWs varies with the type of CW, vegetation, climate, season, geographical region, and management practices. Horizontal flow CWs tend to have good nitrate (NO3−) removal, as they provide good conditions for denitrification, but cannot remove ammonium (NH4+) due to limited ability to nitrify NH4+. Vertical flow CWs have good NH4+ removal, but their denitrification ability is low. Surface flow CWs decrease nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions but increase methane (CH4) emissions; subsurface flow CWs increase N2O and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, but decrease CH4 emissions. Mixed species of vegetation perform better than monocultures in increasing C and N removal and decreasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but empirical evidence is still scarce. Lower hydraulic loadings with higher hydraulic retention times enhance nutrient removal, but more empirical evidence is required to determine an optimum design. A conceptual model highlighting the current state of knowledge is presented and experimental work that should be undertaken to address knowledge gaps across CWs, vegetation and wastewater types, hydraulic loading rates and regimes, and retention times, is suggested. We recommend that further research on process-based C and N removal and on the balancing of end products into reactive and benign forms is critical to the assessment of the environmental performance of CWs.The research was funded by Irish Research Council and Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine in Association with The University of Dublin, Trinity College