China's global connectivity politics: on confidently dealing with Chinese initiatives

European attitudes towards China and its Belt and Road Initiative are changing. While the People’s Republic under Xi Jinping is the only country in the world pursuing a global vision, distrust of China’s expanding influence is growing. As a consequence, the European debate about China is becoming increasingly emotional with interpretations fluctuating between alarmism and reassurance. Ideas about the ‘essence of China’ and expectations that the country should fit into the liberal order according to Western standards, however, threaten to limit Europe’s scope of action in dealing with the People’s Republic. In order to develop strategies for a confident German and European policy, China’s current global political approach should be considered systematically. Based on the features of China’s ‘connectivity politics’ (Konnektivitätspolitik), Germany and the EU could formulate policy options that go far beyond the realm of infrastructure. (author's abstract

Revision of the Neotropical water scavenger beetle genus Tobochares Short & García, 2007 (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae, Acidocerinae)

The genus Tobochares Short & García, 2007 is revised. A combination of morphological and molecular data provide support for ten distinct species. Five new species are described: T. canaliculatus sp. n. (Venezuela), T. canthus sp. n. (Venezuela), T. emarginatus sp. n. (Suriname), T. kusad sp. n. (Guyana), and T. pallidus sp. n. (Venezuela). All four preexisting species are redescribed. A tenth species, known from a single female from Venezuela, is left undescribed pending the collection of additional specimens. New collecting records are provided for T. sulcatus Short & García, 2007 and T. kasikasima Short, 2013. Tobochares sipaliwini Short & Kadosoe, 2011 is newly recorded from Guyana. All species are associated with seepage or wet rock habitats, although some species have also been found along the margins of streams that flow over rocky substrates. High-resolution images including scanning electron micrographs are provided, as well as a key to species and habitat photographs

Chinas Kommunistische Partei vor Xi Jinpings zweiter Amtsperiode als Vorsitzender: im Spannungsfeld individueller Machtkonsolidierung und kollektiver Parteitraditionen

Im Herbst 2017 wird die Kommunistische Partei Chinas (KPCh) ihren 19. Parteitag abhalten und einen Großteil der Ämter in der Parteiführung neu besetzen. Die vorausgehende Übergangsphase wurde durch offizielle Parteidokumente eingeleitet, die eine Rückbesinnung auf das Ethos des epochemachenden Parteiführers betonen, der »als Kern des Zentralkomitees« (ZK) bezeichnet wird. Xi Jinping - chinesischer Staatspräsident, Vorsitzender der KPCh, der Zentralen Militärkommission und einer stetig gewachsenen Zahl anderer Parteigremien - erscheint somit schon vor Ende seines ersten Fünfjahresturnus deutlich mächtiger, als es seinem Vorgänger an der Parteispitze, Hu Jintao, jemals möglich war. Auf den ersten Blick bestätigen sich damit Spekulationen einiger Beobachterinnen und Beobachter, die eine stetige Zentralisierung politischer Kompetenzen im Portfolio des Vorsitzenden sowie medial inszenierten Gehorsam der KP-Mitglieder als Indizien für Xis Absicht interpretieren, sich von etablierten Parteikonventionen, wie kollektiver Entscheidungsfindung innerhalb der Parteispitze, abzuwenden und die Macht langfristig zu personalisieren. Weil das Prinzip der kollektiven Führung seit Ende der Mao-Ära politische Stabilität gewährleistet hat, ist es wichtig, dieses Szenario ernst zu nehmen. Allerdings sollte die Widerstandskraft der kollektiven Parteiprozesse nicht unterschätzt werden. Ein offener Bruch mit Parteitraditionen dürfte nicht in Xis Interesse sein. (Autorenreferat

China und die "Rückkehr" der USA nach Asien: aus chinesischen Fachzeitschriften des ersten Halbjahrs 2012

Die USA wollen den Schwerpunkt ihrer Außenpolitik in die Asien-Pazifik-Region verlagern. Wie die Obama-Regierung seit Herbst 2011 in einer Reihe von Stellungnahmen verkündet hat, wurde eine umfangreiche Aufwertung und Vertiefung der amerikanischen Asienpolitik beschlossen. Diese zielt darauf ab, die politische, wirtschaftliche und militärische Entwicklung der schnell wachsenden Region im Sinne Washingtons zu prägen. Dabei wollen die USA entschiedener als Gegengewicht zu China auftreten. Chinesische Analysten interpretieren Amerikas »Rückkehr« nach Asien auf verschiedene Weise. Unterschiedlich fallen auch ihre Vorschläge aus, wie China auf die neue Herausforderung im Wettbewerb um Einfluss in Asien reagieren sollte. In einer Empfehlung aber stimmen sie überein: China solle sein eigenes Modell regionaler Integration in Asien verfolgen und dabei vermeiden, sich von den USA in eine passive bzw. reaktive Rolle drängen zu lassen. (Autorenreferat

Olympic Dances by John Harbison, a Lecture Recital together with Three Recitals of Selected Works of D. Holsinger, P. Granger, K. Husa, B. Rands, R. Vaughan Williams, and Others

John Harbison's Olympic Dances was composed in 1996 and premiered in February 1997. The work was written as a piano score before it was orchestrated for a wind ensemble of 25 winds and two percussionists.The first section of the paper focuses on the various influences that have affected Harbison's compositional style. The composer's educational background includes several prominent teachers whose instruction had great impressions. Special emphasis is placed on those characteristics of Harbison's style that are most prominent in the work with which this paper is concerned, Olympic Dances. Olympic Dances was commissioned by the College Band Directors National Association and premiered at the CBDNA Twenty-ninth National Conference in Athens, Georgia, in a collaborative performance of the University of North Texas Wind Symphony and Pilobolus Dance Theatre. The second part of the paper presents an historical overview of CBDNA commissioning projects along with a summary of the genesis of the commissioning of Olympic Dances. The primary focus of the study appears in the third section of the paper. An analysis of the four movements of Olympic Dances is presented with attention to the objective elements of harmonic and melodic structures along with a focus on orchestration and scoring. This section considers the composer's thoughts on aesthetic concerns, suggested through his written program notes, and elucidated by way of an interview with the author. Special performance concerns related to rehearsal and conducting conclude this chapter. The paper also includes a transcription of the author's interview with John Harbison, a bibliography and a select discography of recent recordings of his works that are currently available

Chinas BRICS-Vorsitz 2017: Peking hadert mit der eigenen Vormachtstellung im Club der Regionalmächte

China hat 2017 den Vorsitz der BRICS-Staatengruppe (Brasilien, Russland, Indien, China und Südafrika) inne. Damit ist es Gastgeber des neunten BRICS-Gipfels, der Anfang September in der Stadt Xiamen stattfinden wird. Allerdings hat sich Chinas außenpolitisches Selbstverständnis in jüngster Zeit stark verändert. Peking könnte daher mittelfristig die eigene Rolle innerhalb der BRICS oder sogar die Zweckmäßigkeit dieser Staatengruppe in ihrer jetzigen Form in Frage stellen. Mit der Idee einer "BRICS-Plus" versucht China bereits, die Gruppierung zu erweitern und dafür zu sorgen, dass sich mehr Überschneidungen mit der von Peking initiierten "Neuen Seidenstraße" ergeben. Kurzfristig bleibt das Forum der BRICS dennoch für China relevant und wird als nützliche Bühne angesehen, um eigene "internationale Diskursmacht" bei selektiven Themen wie Klimaschutz oder Cyberspace-Politik auszuüben. (Autorenreferat

European intensive care physicians’ experience of infections due to antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Background Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) compromises the treatment of patients with serious infections in intensive care units (ICUs), and intensive care physicians are increasingly facing patients with bacterial infections with limited or no adequate therapeutic options. A survey was conducted to assess the intensive care physicians' perception of the AMR situation in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA). Methods Between May and July 2017, physicians working in European ICUs were invited to complete an online questionnaire hosted by the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine. The survey included 20 questions on hospital and ICU characteristics, frequency of infections with multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria and relevance of AMR in the respondent's ICU, management of antimicrobial treatment as well as the use of last-line antibiotics in the six months preceding the survey. For the analysis of regional differences, EU/EEA countries were grouped into the four sub-regions of Eastern, Northern, Southern and Western Europe. Results Overall, 1062 responses from four European sub-regions were analysed. Infections with MDR bacteria in their ICU were rated as a major problem by 257 (24.2%), moderate problem by 360 (33.9%) and minor problem by 391 (36.8%) respondents. Third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae were the most frequently encountered MDR bacteria followed by, in order of decreasing frequency, meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa and vancomycin-resistant enterococci. Perception of the relevance of the AMR problem and the frequency of specific MDR bacteria varied by European sub-region. Bacteria resistant to all or almost all available antibiotics were encountered by 132 (12.4%) respondents. Many physicians reported not having access to specific last-line antibiotics. Conclusions The percentage of European ICU physicians perceiving AMR as a substantial problem in their ICU is high with variation by sub-region in line with epidemiological studies. The reports of bacteria resistant to almost all available antibiotics and the limited availability of last-line antibiotics in ICUs in the EU/EEA are of concern

Emancipated Minors: Health Policy and Implications for Nursing

Abstract: Emancipation is a process that offers adolescents a solution to serve in the role of an adult in circumstances that warrant the need for more autonomy. The process and definitions of emancipation are often ambiguous for adolescents, nurses, and other health care providers that provide services for these individuals. Emancipation can be additionally perplexing with the lack of overarching federal guidelines and the fragmented definitions among various states. Nursing has a significant and legal role in providing care for emancipated minors and a more global duty to advocate for adolescents in situations that necessitate emancipation. This article explores the emancipation process, the laws of each state that govern emancipation, the facilitators and barriers, and the role of nursing in the emancipation process. emancipation | minors | law | health policy | nursing | emancipated minor