Separating wheat and chaff: age-specific staffing strategies and innovative performance at the firm level

Adopting a dynamic perspective, this paper investigates age-related staffing patterns in German establishments and their effect on innovative performance. First, we investigate how establishments achieve the necessary workforce rejuvenation - from the inflow of younger or from outflows of older workers. In addition, we explore whether certain staffing patterns are more likely to appear under different economic regimes. In a second step, we analyse whether an establishment's innovative performance is related to the staffing patterns it experiences. The analysis of linked-employer-employee data shows that most of the 585 German establishments covered rejuvenate by inflows of younger workers. Half of the establishments also use the outflow of older workers. Furthermore, workforces are more likely to become more age-heterogeneous in growing establishments. Finally, we do not find evidence that a youth-centred human resource strategy (always) fosters innovation. --Workforce aging,staffing strategies,innovation

At Home Instead of Lecture Hall: Experiences of University Teachers on the Transition to Online Teaching in the First Pandemic-Related Lockdown of Universities

Die Digitalisierung von Studium und Lehre stellt einen komplexen Entwicklungsprozess dar, der für alle beteiligten Akteurinnen und Akteure Herausforderungen, wie beispielsweise die Auseinandersetzung mit den Einsatzmöglichkeiten digitaler Medien und die Entwicklung digitaler Kompetenzen, mit sich bringt (Getto und Schulenburg 2018; Kerres 2016). Der Beginn der Corona-Pandemie und die damit verbundene erstmalige Schliessung der Universitäten im Frühjahr 2020 erforderte innerhalb kürzester Zeit die Umstellung der konventionellen universitären Lehre in Präsenzform auf online-gestützte Lehrformate. Wie diese Umstellung von Hochschulangehörigen in Deutschland erlebt wurde, in welchem Ausmass digitale Tools in der eigenen Lehre im Sommersemester 2020 eingesetzt wurden und welche personenbezogenen Merkmale hierfür relevant erscheinen, ist Gegenstand des vorliegenden Beitrags. Die deskriptive Auswertung der bundesweiten Befragung von Dozierenden deutscher Hochschulen verdeutlicht ambivalente Erfahrungen mit der Umstellung auf Online-Lehre. Dennoch wird insgesamt die Bewältigung der pädagogisch-didaktischen Herausforderungen durch die zeitweilige Schliessung der Universitäten aus Sicht der Dozierenden als erfolgreich eingeschätzt. Für das Ausmass der Nutzung digitaler Tools während des Lockdowns zeigen sich in den Korrelationsanalysen signifikante Zusammenhänge mit den bisherigen Vorerfahrungen, der selbsteingeschätzten Fähigkeit, digital zu lehren, sowie Unterschiede zwischen männlichen und weiblichen Befragten.The digitization of studies and teaching represents a complex development process with challenges for all actors involved, such as dealing with the possible uses of digital media and the development of digital competencies (Getto and Schulenburg 2018; Kerres, 2016). The onset of the Corona pandemic and the associated first-time closure of universities in spring 2020 required the transition from conventional university teaching in face-to-face form to online-supported teaching formats within a very short time. How this transition was experienced by university staff in Germany, to what extent digital tools were used in their own teaching during the summer semester 2020 and which personal characteristics appear to be relevant for this is the subject of this paper. The descriptive analysis of the nationwide survey of teachers at German universities reveals ambivalent experiences with the transition to online teaching. Nevertheless, from the point of view of the university teachers, the overcoming of the pedagogical-didactic challenges caused by the temporary closure of the universities is assessed as successful overall. For the extent of the use of digital tools during the first lockdown, significant correlations with previous experience, self-assessed ability to teach digitally, and differences between male and female respondents emerge in the correlation analyses

Brief history of serious games

Serious Games are now an established field of study. In this field most would attribute the rise of Serious Games to Clark C Abt’s creation of the term in 1970, or indeed Ben Sawyer’s popularization of it in 2002. However, considering the rich history of purposing non-digital games, itself preceded by discussions of purposing play that are traceable to the work of Plato, it can be said that Serious Games is a contemporary manifestation of centuries old theories and practices. In this chapter, we explore the pre-history of Serious Games, beginning with the suggested purpose, and purposing of play. Throughout this historical review we identify key in research and practice that are apparent in the contemporary Serious Games field

M+D: conceptual guidelines for compiling a materials library

This article proposes to present a study conducted by the Raw Materials research group, the results of which comprise the conceptual guidelines for compiling an M+D material library. The study includes the topic, materials and design taking the impact of the changes that came into being in the post industrial era on project methodologies and the search for information regarding materials. Taking into account the importance and complexity that these relationships have taken on currently, we have studied the issue of materials based on Manzini (1983) and Ashby and Johnson (2002). Afterward different databases and materials libraries located in the Brazil, the United States, France and Italy geared toward design professionals and students were analyzed to understand what information and means of access to them were available. The project methodologies were approached based on Löbach (1991), Bürdeck (1994), Schulmann (1994), Baxter (1998), Dantas (1998 and 2005) and Papanek (1995 and 2000). This study sought to identify the key elements of the role of materials in the project process today, to serve as a parameter for the analysis of the models studied. A comparative analysis of the models investigated enabled identification of positive and negative aspects to adapt to the needs previously mentioned and identify conceptual guidelines for compiling a collection of materials for use in design projects. Keywords: Design, Materials, Project Methodology, Library</p

Laser Metal Deposition of AlSi10Mg with high build rates

Additive manufacturing with aluminum alloys is becoming increasingly important in the automotive industry to meet the growing demand for lightweight construction and flexibility. However, higher build rates and higher process efficiency are necessary for laser metal deposition (LMD) to be more economically competitive. The so called high-speed LMD allows high build rates by partial melting of the powder before it hits the melt pool but is currently limited to coatings of rotationally symmetrical parts. Our goal is to apply this process technology to the additive manufacturing of AlSi10Mg and thereby increase the build rate. In this work we demonstrate a successful build-up of cuboids manufactured with the alloy AlSi10Mg using feed rates ten times higher compared to state of the art. The tensile strength of these cuboids is in the range of 180 to 220 MPa

Histological Correlates of Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Microscopy in a Mouse Model of Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) is the most common type of focal epilepsy. It is frequently associated with abnormal MRI findings, which are caused by underlying cellular, structural, and chemical changes at the micro-scale. In the current study, it is investigated to which extent these alterations correspond to imaging features detected by high resolution magnetic resonance imaging in the intrahippocampal kainate mouse model of MTLE. Fixed hippocampal and whole-brain sections of mouse brain tissue from nine animals under physiological and chronically epileptic conditions were examined using structural and diffusion-weighted MRI. Microstructural details were investigated based on a direct comparison with immunohistochemical analyses of the same specimen. Within the hippocampal formation, diffusion streamlines could be visualized corresponding to dendrites of CA1 pyramidal cells and granule cells, as well as mossy fibers and Schaffer collaterals. Statistically significant changes in diffusivities, fractional anisotropy, and diffusion orientations could be detected in tissue samples from chronically epileptic animals compared to healthy controls, corresponding to microstructural alterations (degeneration of pyramidal cells, dispersion of the granule cell layer, and sprouting of mossy fibers). The diffusion parameters were significantly correlated with histologically determined cell densities. These findings demonstrate that high-resolution diffusion-weighted MRI can resolve subtle microstructural changes in epileptic hippocampal tissue corresponding to histopathological features in MTLE

Corrigendum: Histological Correlates of Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Microscopy in a Mouse Model of Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

In the published article, there were errors in affiliations 2 and 3. Instead of “Experimental Epilepsy Research, Department of Neurosurgery, Medical Center – University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany” and “Department Neurosurgery, Experimental Epilepsy Research, Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany,” they should be “Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany” and “Experimental Epilepsy Research, Department of Neurosurgery, Medical Center – University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany,” respectively. The authors apologize for these errors and state that this does not change the scientific conclusions of the article in any way. The original article has been updated

The Turkey Ig-like receptor family: identification, expression and function.

The chicken leukocyte receptor complex located on microchromosome 31 encodes the chicken Ig-like receptors (CHIR), a vastly expanded gene family which can be further divided into three subgroups: activating CHIR-A, bifunctional CHIR-AB and inhibitory CHIR-B. Here, we investigated the presence of CHIR homologues in other bird species. The available genome databases of turkey, duck and zebra finch were screened with different strategies including BLAST searches employing various CHIR sequences, and keyword searches. We could not identify CHIR homologues in the distantly related zebra finch and duck, however, several partial and complete sequences of CHIR homologues were identified on chromosome 3 of the turkey genome. They were designated as turkey Ig-like receptors (TILR). Using cDNA derived from turkey blood and spleen RNA, six full length TILR could be amplified and further divided according to the typical sequence features into one activating TILR-A, one inhibitory TILR-B and four bifunctional TILR-AB. Since the TILR-AB sequences all displayed the critical residues shown to be involved in binding to IgY, we next confirmed the IgY binding using a soluble TILR-AB1-huIg fusion protein. This fusion protein reacted with IgY derived from various gallinaceous birds, but not with IgY from other bird species. Finally, we tested various mab directed against CHIR for their crossreactivity with either turkey or duck leukocytes. Whereas no staining was detectable with duck cells, the CHIR-AB1 specific mab 8D12 and the CHIR-A2 specific mab 13E2 both reacted with a leukocyte subpopulation that was further identified as thrombocytes by double immunofluorescence employing B-cell, T-cell and thrombocyte specific reagents. In summary, although the turkey harbors similar LRC genes as the chicken, their distribution seems to be distinct with predominance on thrombocytes rather than lymphocytes

Formation of dsRNA by-products during in vitro transcription can be reduced by using low steady-state levels of UTP

Introduction: Exogeneous messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) can be used as therapeutic and preventive medication. However, during the enzymatic production process, commonly called in vitro transcription, by-products occur which can reduce the therapeutic efficacy of mRNA. One such by-product is double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). We therefore sought to limit the generation of dsRNA by-products during in vitro transcription.Materials and methods:In vitro transcription was performed with a DNA template including a poly(A)-tail-encoding region, dinucleotide or trinucleotide cap analogs for cotranscriptional capping, and relevant nucleoside triphosphates. Concentrations of UTP or modified UTP (m1ΨTP) and GTP were reduced and fed over the course of the reaction. mRNA was analyzed for dsRNA contamination, yield of the reaction, RNA integrity, and capping efficiency before translational activity was assessed.Results: Limiting the steady-state level of UTP or m1ΨTP during the enzymatic reaction reduced dsRNA formation, while not affecting mRNA yield or RNA integrity. Capping efficiency was optimized with the use of a combined GTP and UTP or m1ΨTP feed, while still reducing dsRNA formation. Lower dsRNA levels led to higher protein expression from the corresponding mRNAs.Discussion: Low steady-state concentrations of UTP and GTP, fed in combination over the course of the in vitro transcription reaction, produce mRNA with high capping and low levels of dsRNA formation, resulting in high levels of protein expression. This novel approach may render laborious purification steps to remove dsRNA unnecessary

5,5'-Azoxytetrazolates - a new nitrogen-rich dianion and its comparison to 5,5'-azotetrazolate

A modification of the synthesis of sodium 5,5'-azotetrazolate pentahydrate, described by Thiele in 1898, yields the unknown and unexpected corresponding 5N-oxido derivative sodium 5,5'-azoxybistetrazolate pentahydrate (Na(2)zTO center dot 5H(2)O, 1). Purification was achieved by recrystallization based on the better solubility of Na(2)zTO center dot 5H(2)O in water. Different nitrogen-rich salts, such as the diammonium (3), the dihydroxylammonium (4), the bis-diaminoguanidinium (5), the bis-triaminoguanidinium (6) and the diaminouronium salt (7), have been prepared using metathesis reactions starting from barium 5,5'azoxybistetrazolate pentahydrate (2) and ammonium, hydroxylammonium, diaminoguanidinium or diaminouronium sulfate and triaminoguanidinium chloride, respectively. The nitrogen rich azoxyderivatives 3-7 were characterized using NMR, IR and Raman spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and elemental analysis. Additionally the solid state structures of 3, 4, 5 and 7 were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The heats of formation of 3 and 4 and their corresponding azo-tetrazolate derivatives were calculated by the atomization method based on CBS-4M enthalpies. With these values and the crystal densities, several detonation parameters such as the detonation velocity, detonation pressure and specific impulse were calculated (EXPLO5) and compared. The sensitivities towards shock (BAM drophammer), friction (BAM friction tester) and electrostatic discharge of the described compounds were determined