CrossFlow: Cross-Organizational Workflow Management for Service Outsourcing in Dynamic Virtual Enterprises

In this report, we present the approach to cross-organizational workflow management of the CrossFlow project. CrossFlow is a European research project aiming at the support of cross-organizational workflows in dynamic virtual enterprises. The cooperation in these virtual enterprises is based on dynamic service outsourcing specified in electronic contracts. Service enactment is performed by dynamically linking the workflow management infrastructures of the involved organizations. Extended service enactment support is provided in the form of cross-organizational transaction management and process control, advanced quality of service monitoring, and support for high-level flexibility in service enactment. CrossFlow technology is realized on top of a commercial workflow management platform and applied in two real-world scenarios in the contexts of a logistics and an insurance company

Cemeteries in transformation: a Swiss community conflict study

For the first time, this study presents a natural experiment describing and explaining selected stakeholders’ attitudes toward the transformation of cemeteries into urban green spaces. In 2020, a real-life community conflict unfolded in Bern, the capital of Switzerland, over plans to close the smallest of its three municipal cemeteries by 2023. This study analyzes a representative sample (N = 519) of the city’s adult population and that of the adjacent town, Ostermundigen, capturing the views of residents of the conflict district and contrasting them with those of people living outside the district. It also compares attitudes of cemetery visitors and non-visitors. Survey interviews were conducted via telephone and through an online panel. The study focuses on conflicts triggered by alternative land-use plans, highlighting the need to include groups that are both familiar and unfamiliar with cemeteries. Interestingly, the latter group proved to be more open to change. The local meaning of cemeteries and municipal green urban-space policies are crucial context parameters, as demonstrated by the strong opposition to cemetery transformation in affected areas. The underlying beliefs of opponents and proponents are explored qualitatively and found to be complex and multidimensional. Individual attitude predictors include age and personal emotional attributes. Finally, factor analysis is used to develop a typology of users. The four emerging user types are linked to different perceptions of “the nature of cemeteries” and attitudes toward innovative plans (e.g., whether to create burial spaces for pets or a restaurant within the cemetery grounds, both of which received significant support). The findings inform policy decisions related to urban green-space management while balancing the interests of various groups. User perspectives should be reconciled by focusing on “dialogues of values” and participatory approaches, which complement information-centered municipal policies

Post-communism and the abandonment of mixed-member electoral systems

Many countries adopted mixed-member (MM) electoral systems in the 1990s, but several switched to list proportional representation (PR) recently. Most switchers are post-communist countries that used the semi-proportional mixed-member majoritarian (MMM) system, often associated with dominant parties. List PR was adopted under competitive conditions in some cases (Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Ukraine), while in places where authoritarian control remains (Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan), list PR appears to be used as a means of reducing competition and undermining multiparty democracy

Boston University Choral Ensembles, April 25, 1995

This is the concert program of the Boston University Choral Ensembles performance on Tuesday, April 25, 1995 at 8:00 p.m., at the Tsai Performance Center, 685 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts. Works performed were Make a Joyful Noise by Edward Gregson, In the Beginning by Edward Gregson, Ecco mormorar l'onde by Claudio Monteverdi, Dolcissimo uscignolo by Claudio Monteverdi, Like as the Culver on the Bared Bough by Halsey Stevens, and Three Selections from The Creation by Franz Joseph Haydn. Digitization for Boston University Concert Programs was supported by the Boston University Humanities Library Endowed Fund

Genetically modified natural killer cells specifically recognizing the tumor-associated antigens ErbB2/HER2 and EpCAM

The continuously growing natural killer (NK) cell line NK-92 is highly cytotoxic against malignant cells of various origin without affecting normal human cells. Based on this selectivity, the potential of NK-92 cells for adoptive therapy is currently being investigated in phase I clinical studies. To further enhance the antitumoral activity of NK-92 cells and expand the range of tumor entities suitable for NK-92-based therapies, here by transduction with retroviral vectors we have generated genetically modified NK-92 cells expressing chimeric antigen receptors specific either for the tumor-associated ErbB2 (HER2/neu) antigen or the human Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule (Ep-CAM). Both antigens are overexpressed by many tumors of epithelial origin. The chimeric antigen receptors consist of either the ErbB2 specific scFv(FRP5) antibody fragment or the Ep-CAM specific scFv(MOC31), a flexible hinge region derived from CD8, and transmembrane and intracellular regions of the CD3 zeta chain. Transduced NK-92-scFv(FRP5)-zeta or NK-92-scFv(MOC31)-zeta cells express high levels of the fusion proteins on the cell surface as determined by FACS analysis. In europium release assays no difference in cytotoxic activity of NK-92 and transduced NK-92 cells towards ErbB2 or Ep-CAM negative targets was found. However, even at low effector to target ratios transduced NK-92 cells specifically and efficiently lysed established ErbB2 or Ep-CAM expressing tumor cells that were completely resistant to cytolytic activity of parental NK-92 cells. Similarly, ErbB2-positive primary breast cancer cells isolated from pleural effusions of patients with recurrent disease were selectively killed by NK-92-scFv(FRP5)-zeta. In an in vivo model in immunodeficient mice treatment with retargeted NK-92-scFv(FRP5)-zeta, but not parental NK-92 cells resulted in markedly delayed growth of ErbB2 transformed cancer cells. These results demonstrate that efficient retargeting of NK-92 cytotoxicity can be achieved, and might allow the generation of potent cell-based therapeutics for the treatment of ErbB2 and Ep-CAM expressing malignancies. This therapeutic approach might be applicable for a large variety of different cancers where suitable cell surface antigens have been identified

Parliamentarians' Evaluations of the Global Economic Crisis

Based on two surveys of parliamentarians in five new (Chile, South Korea, Poland, South Africa, Turkey) and two established (Germany, Sweden) democracies, the paper analyzes perceptions of the global economic crisis as well as evaluations of policies to fight the crisis and their determinants. In a second step, it will be determined if these perceptions and evaluations are related to participation in government and to the ideological positions of the political parties. Finally, it will be asked if a decline in democratic legitimacy in the political orientations of MPs and citizens can be observed in the wake of the crisis

The Problem of Low and Unequal Voter Turnout - and What We Can Do About It. IHS Political Science Series No. 54, February 1998

Low voter turnout has become a serious problem in most democracies, not only in the United States but also in many West European countries – and even in a traditionally high-turnout country like Austria where turnout has also been declining in recent years. There are five reasons why we should be concerned about this problem: 1. Low turnout means low participation by less privileged citizens, who are already at a disadvantage in terms of other forms of political participation. 2. Unequal participation means unequal influence. 3. Actual turnout tends to be lower than the official turnout figures suggest. 4. Turnout in elections other than those at the national level tends to be particularly low. 5. Turnout is declining in most countries. The problem of low and unequal turnout can be solved by a number of institutional mechanisms such as proportional representation, concurrent and infrequent elections, weekend instead of weekday voting, and compulsory voting. The last of these – mandatory voting – is especially strong and effective, and also morally justified

The three Achilles' heels of Brazilian political science

This article intends to analyze the institutionalization of political science in Brazil through the expansion of the graduate system and evaluation process, which promoted research and scientific evaluations of institutions with Master`s and doctoral degree programs by an assessment model based on peer reviews and the rating of scientific production. The focus here is on Political Science in comparison with its neighboring disciplines, Sociology and Anthropology. We attempt to consider the timing of the process of academic institutionalization of Political Science, as well as its consequences for the consolidation of the field nowadays