Axioms, Natural Law, Values and Paradigms in Contemporary Concepts of Development

Contemporary concepts of development (the process of globalization, sustainable development) can be diversified according to their relation to axioms, natural law, values and paradigms. The subcategories obtained constitute the ground for business ethics. Ethics in business is always needed, however, it can be implemented at-source (as a component of management) or as an end-of-pipe measure. In Poland, constitutional regulations guarantee, indirectly at least, business ethics as a component of management

Normative media theories: the media in the new democracies

The political changes which occurred in Central and Eastern Europe in the last decade of the 20th century resulted in introducing democratic systems to replace authoritarian regimes. The political transformation in the region affected also freedom of speech and leeway for the media. The transformation was of an evolutionary nature, preceded by discussions and disputes over the future form of the media. At the initial stage of the changes, strict state control was required, as the government was responsible for the success of the democratic changes. Following the overthrow of the authoritarian regimes, a need emerged for sorting out the legal and institutional basis of a free media intended to be established on the basis of state-owned media, fully controlled by the political authorities and in fact assuming a single role, namely that of a propaganda machine. Normative theories of the media have become the starting point, as a collection of ideas and postulates stating that the media’s mode of operation should facilitate socially desirable values. Discussions of the legal, institutional, functional as well as personal solutions related to the mass media in the new democracies referred to observations and agreements among researchers who came from systems with long democratic traditions. This paper revolves around the relation between the media and democracy, and argues that the theory of the media’s social responsibility and the democratic-participant theory were the major source of inspiration for the participants of the debates about the future form of the mass media in the emerging democracies. It is worth noticing that these theories represent not only slightly different opinions on the role of the media in a democracy but they also reflect the differences in understanding the essence of democracy.Zmiany polityczne, które zaszły w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w ostatniej dekadzie XX wieku zaowocowały odejściem od reżimów autorytarnych i wprowadzaniem demokratycznych rozwiązań ustrojowych. Transformacja ustrojowa w krajach regionu dotyczyła także sfery wolności słowai swobody działania mediów. Przemiany odbywały się w sposób ewolucyjny, poprzedzały je dyskusje i spory o przyszły kształt mediów. W początkowym etapie przekształceń niezbędna była silna kontrola państwa, to jego struktury odpowiedzialne były za powodzenie demokratycznych przemian. Po upadku reżimów autorytarnych należało uporządkować prawne i instytucjonalne podstawy istnienia wolnych mediów, które powstać miały na fundamencie mediów państwowych, w pełni kontrolowanych przez władzę polityczną i pełniących w istocie jedną rolę – tuby propagandowej. Punktem wyjścia stały się normatywne teorie mediów, które stanowią zbiór idei i postulatów dotyczących tego, jak media powinny działać, aby implementować społecznie pożądane wartości. Dyskusje nad prawnymi, instytucjonalnymi, funkcjonalnymi, a także personalnymi rozwiązaniami dotyczącymi mediów masowych w nowych demokracjach odwoływały się do obserwacji i ustaleń poczynionych przez badaczy wywodzących się z systemów o długiej tradycji demokratycznej. Przedmiotem prezentowanego artykułu jest relacja między mediami i demokracją. Autorka prezentuje pogląd, że teoria społecznej odpowiedzialności mediów, wspomagana założeniami teorii demokratyczno-uczestniczącej, była głównym źródłem inspiracji dla uczestników debat dotyczących przyszłego kształtu mediów komunikowania masowego w rodzących się demokracjach. Warto zauważyć, że teorie te reprezentują nie tylko nieco odmienne poglądy na miejsce mediów w demokracji, ale odzwierciedlają także różnice w pojmowaniu istoty demokracji

Transformations of German stereotypes of Poles in Artur Becker's and Maria Kolenda's prose

The article analyzes the transformations of German stereotypes of Poles in current prose of Polish immigrant authors in Germany. The authors show a particularly keen awareness of the long term stereotypes and try to change their meaning by means of detachment, humor and irony.The article analyzes the transformations of German stereotypes of Poles in current prose of Polish immigrant authors in Germany. The authors show a particularly keen awareness of the long term stereotypes and try to change their meaning by means of detachment, humor and irony

Use of Modified Clostridium perfringens Enterotoxin Fragments for Claudin Targeting in Liver and Skin Cells

Claudins regulate paracellular permeability in different tissues. The claudin-binding domain of Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin (cCPE) is a known modulator of a claudin subset. However, it does not efficiently bind to claudin-1 (Cldn1). Cldn1 is a pharmacological target since it is (i) an essential co-receptor for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections and (ii) a key element of the epidermal barrier limiting drug delivery. In this study, we investigated the potential of a Cldn1-binding cCPE mutant (i) to inhibit HCV entry into hepatocytes and (ii) to open the epidermal barrier. Inhibition of HCV infection by blocking of Cldn1 with cCPE variants was analyzed in the Huh7.5 hepatoma cell line. A model of reconstructed human epidermis was used to investigate modulation of the epidermal barrier by cCPE variants. In contrast to cCPEwt, the Cldn1-binding cCPE-S305P/S307R/S313H inhibited infection of Huh7.5 cells with HCV in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, TJ modulation by cCPE variant-mediated targeting of Cldn1 and Cldn4 opened the epidermal barrier in reconstructed human epidermis. cCPE variants are potent claudin modulators. They can be applied for mechanistic in vitro studies and might also be used as biologics for therapeutic claudin targeting including HCV treatment (host-targeting antivirals) and improvement of drug delivery

What do they tell us about drinking cultures in European countries?

Aim: A drinking pattern is not only a major drinking variable, but is also one indicator of a country’s drinking culture. In the present study, we examine drinking patterns within and across the neighbouring countries of Denmark and Germany. The aim of the research is to determine to what extent drinking patterns differ or are shared at the sub-national level in the two countries. Method: Data came from the German 2012 Epidemiological Survey of Substance Use (n = 9084) 18–64 years (response rate 54%), and the Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research’s 2011 Danish national survey (n = 5133) 15–79 years (response rate 64%), which was reduced to a common age range, producing a final n = 4016. The drinking pattern variable included abstention, moderate drinking, heavy drinking, risky single occasion drinking (RSOD), and was investigated with bivariate statistics and gender-specific hierarchical cluster analysis. Results: For men three clusters emerged: one highlighting abstention and RSOD, moderate/heavy drinking, RSOD and RSOD + heavy drinking. For women, two clusters appeared: one highlighting abstention and moderate/heavy drinking and the other highlighting RSOD and RSDO + heavy drinking. The clusters revealed different geographical patterning: for men, a west vs. east divide; for women, a north–south gradient. Conclusions: The analysis could identify for each gender clusters representing both separate and shared drinking patterns as well as distinctive geographical placements. This new knowledge can contribute to a new understanding of the dynamics of drinking cultures and could indicate new approaches to prevention efforts and policy initiatives

Regulation of Star Formation Rates in Multiphase Galactic Disks: a Thermal/Dynamical Equilibrium Model

We develop a model for regulation of galactic star formation rates Sigma_SFR in disk galaxies, in which ISM heating by stellar UV plays a key role. By requiring simultaneous thermal and (vertical) dynamical equilibrium in the diffuse gas, and star formation at a rate proportional to the mass of the self-gravitating component, we obtain a prediction for Sigma_SFR as a function of the total gaseous surface density Sigma and the density of stars + dark matter, rho_sd. The physical basis of this relationship is that thermal pressure in the diffuse ISM, which is proportional to the UV heating rate and therefore to Sigma_SFR, must adjust to match the midplane pressure set by the vertical gravitational field. Our model applies to regions where Sigma < 100 Msun/pc^2. In low-Sigma_SFR (outer-galaxy) regions where diffuse gas dominates, the theory predicts Sigma_SFR \propto Sigma (rho_sd)^1/2. The decrease of thermal equilibrium pressure when Sigma_SFR is low implies, consistent with observations, that star formation can extend (with declining efficiency) to large radii in galaxies, rather than having a sharp cutoff. The main parameters entering our model are the ratio of thermal pressure to total pressure in the diffuse ISM, the fraction of diffuse gas that is in the warm phase, and the star formation timescale in self-gravitating clouds; all of these are (in principle) direct observables. At low surface density, our model depends on the ratio of the mean midplane FUV intensity (or thermal pressure in the diffuse gas) to the star formation rate, which we set based on Solar neighborhood values. We compare our results to recent observations, showing good agreement overall for azimuthally-averaged data in a set of spiral galaxies. For the large flocculent spiral galaxies NGC 7331 and NGC 5055, the correspondence between theory and observation is remarkably close.Comment: 49 pages, 7 figures; accepted by the Ap.