Generaties, Herinnering en Historiciteit

Samenvatting: 'Generatie' is een term die in de geschiedschrijving veelvuldig gebruikt wordt om tijdscontrasten te schetsen. Slechts weinig historici staan stil bij wat generaties nu eigenlijk zijn en wie dat wel doet moet leentjebuur spelen bij de sociologie. In dit artikel worden enkele geschiedtheoretische problemen met de sociologische generatietheorie van Karl Mannheim besproken. Ook wordt een voorstel gedaan voor een generatietheorie waarin de tijdservaring verdisconteerd is, om zo de besproken problemen te ondervangen. Abstract: Although 'generation' is a key concept in historiography, the problem of historicity has rarely been discussed within generational theory. In this artiele, I argue for a revision of generational thinking, which focuses on historica! experience instead of politica! action. I start with a critica! assessment of Kar! Mannheims seminat essay 'the Problem of Generations' (1928). Although the core axiom of his theory - the primary importance of adolescent experiences for generationat consciousness - is still valid, his historica! materialist interpretation of generations is questionable as it leads to the fallacies of historicism. Alternatively, the imagined character of the generation is emphasi:z;ed and a reinterpretation of the generationat experience as an experience of bistoricity is proposed. Consequendy, the generation is no langer understood as an agent of sociohistorica! change, but as a meta-historical category in which the individual's placement in history is both cognitively understood and socially mediated

Local delivery of beta interferon using an adeno-associated virus type 5 effectively inhibits adjuvant arthritis in rats

Beta interferon (IFN-β) is a cytokine with potent immunomodulatory properties and has been described as a promising therapeutic molecule for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). IFN-β was previously overexpressed intra-articularly using an adenoviral vector in rats with adjuvant arthritis (AA) as a model of RA. This effect was powerful, albeit transient due to the vector chosen. Therefore, in the context of pre-clinical development, a delivery vector optimized for intra-articular gene transfer, recombinant adeno-associated virus type 5 (rAAV5), was selected. To exert an optimal effect, protein production should parallel the course of the disease. For this reason, the gene for IFN-β was placed under the control of an inflammation-responsive [nuclear factor (NF)-κB] promoter. After intra-articular injection of the rAAV5 constructs in rats with AA, local transcription of the transgene and production of the IFN-β protein was found, leading to a pronounced and sustained effect on paw swelling when the expression was under the control of the NF-κB-responsive promoter. Additionally, a significant beneficial effect was observed on proteoglycan depletion and erosions. Thus, intra-articular overexpression of IFN-β using a rAAV5 vector exhibits potential as an innovative therapy for the treatment of RA

The Inner Quality Concept for food, based on life processes

How can we adequately express the quality of food produced by organic agriculture? To answer this research question, we defined a concept of ‘inner quality’ (formerly called ‘vital quality’) based on the life processes growth and differentiation, and their integration. Growers use management methods to influence life processes in their crops, thus optimising the quality of the final product. Traders and consumers can recognise certain product properties as being the result of these life processes. Here, we present a course of validation for the quality concept, together with appropriate quality parameters. The process of validation has been completed in part for two experimental crops, apple and carrot. This quality concept can provide a holistic context for the interpretation of individual food quality parameters as developed by different laboratories

Picturing Auschwitz: Multimodality and the attribution of historical significance on Instagram

As social media have become a prime means of communication among students, so too are they increasingly used to give meaning to the past. But while history education scholars tend to conceptualize historical meaning-making as acts of narrative emplotment, social media are multimodal by nature, and some platforms — like Instagram — prioritize images over written text. This article focuses on the question of how Instagram users attribute historical significance in posts that feature the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, by analysing the various ways in which they combine images and captions to give meaning to the past. Subsequently, the potential of multimodal social media representations for history education is explored. Dado que las redes sociales se han convertido en un medio principal de comunicación entre estudiantes, también se usan cada vez más para dar significado al pasado. Sin embargo, mientras que los expertos en la enseñanza de la historia suelen conceptualizar la construcción de significado histórico como actos de contextualización narrativa, las redes sociales son multimodales por naturaleza, y algunas plataformas — como Instagram — priorizan las imágenes sobre el texto escrito. Este artículo aborda cómo los usuarios de Instagram atribuyen significado histórico en sus publicaciones relacionadas con el campo de concentración y centro de exterminio de Auschwitz-Birkenau a través del análisis de las diversas formas en que combinan imágenes y pies de foto para dar significado al pasado. Después, exploramos el potencial de las representaciones multimodales de las redes sociales para la educación histórica