Birational maps between Calabi-Yau manifolds associated to webs of quadrics

We consider two varieties associated to a web of quadrics W in the projective space of dimension 7. One is the base locus and the second one is the double cover of the three dimensional projective space branched along the determinant surface of W. We show that small resolutions of these varieties are Calabi-Yau manifolds. We compute their Betti numbers and show that they are not birational in the generic case. The main result states that if the base locus of W contains a plane then in the generic case the two varieties are birational

Neighboring Alterity: Eastern European Art and Global Art Studies

The European today in art historical writing faces the Eastern European yesterday. Intentional laminations of national and ethnic ‘legacies’, still present in research, preserve the old directionality of art history and go against every attempt to overcome the traditional image of absorptive Easternness and progressive Westernness. Consequently, Eastern European art after WWII is still appealing due to its projected obscure anachronistic clichés based on escapist visions of modernist resistance against oppression taken from the long 20th century and cultivated primarily during the Cold War. This deficiency creates a challenge for the transcultural and global approaches. The latter not only try to overthrow the directionality, but also to recognize timely differences between intention, production and reception, as described long ago e.g. by George Kubler. These are essential in comprehending the past and contemporary world art scenes without falling into a new generation of comparative and formalistic art historical colonialism. Within the ongoing endeavors of furnishing Eastern European art production with easily legible ‘Eastern’ labels, the corpus delicti still are, however, certain Western notions of art’s autonomy, which at a certain time shaped certain debates on modernity. This introductory essay shows this problem in relation to selected contemporary artistic interventions dealing with remembrance and oblivion

Räumen aus Falten, Falten aus Mustern, Muster aus Bändern (15. Jahrhundert)

Lutz H. Räumen aus Falten, Falten aus Mustern, Muster aus Bändern (15. Jahrhundert). In: Kapustka M, Kirves M, Sundberg M, eds. Falten-Muster. Texturen von Bildlichkeit. Textile Studies. Vol 9. 1st ed. Emsdetten; Berlin: Edition Imorde; 2018: 99-119

Identification of health risks from harmful chemical agents – review concerning bisphenol A in workplace

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an industrial chemical used as an additive in conventional point-of-sale thermal paper receipts, in the production of many polycarbonate plastics, and epoxy resins lignin for food. BPA is xenoestrogen, a foreign compound that is not naturally produced in living organisms, but which acts similarly to natural 17-ß estradiol (natural estrogen). Due to its weak estrogenic activities, BPA exposure may influence multiple endocrine-related pathway, and is associated with prostate and breast cancer, neurobehavioral deficits, heart disease, and obesity. Furthermore, BPA may act as a DNA methylation agent and cause altered gene expression in the brain. Human exposure to bisphenol A is a matter of controversy. This review shows a potential risks in workplace resulting from contact with bisphenol A. The work presents the contribution of BPA exposure levels via dermal contact and the relationship between BPA exposure level and oxidative DNA damage