Increasing poverty or statistical illusion? Patterns, dynamics and spatial disparities of relative poverty in Germany

As a result of social and economic transformations over the last two decades, poverty in Germany predominantly affects the unemployed, more so than in any other European Union country. This is partly a result of the reforms implemented by the Schröder government between 2003 and 2005. The present article uses two indicators to examine and present the dynamics and geographical disparities of poverty in Germany, and shows that although the considerable East-West and North-South contrasts persist, the most remarkable recent development is the increase in poverty in the cities of the North Rhine-Westfalia and Northern Germany.Mehr als in jedem anderen Land der Europäischen Union trifft Armut in Deutschland in erster Linie Arbeitslose, aber auch Alleinerziehende und Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund. Anhand von zwei statistischen Indikatoren der relativen Armut werden in diesem Aufsatz die Muster, Entwicklungen und räumlichen Disparitäten der Armut in Deutschland untersucht. Die großen regionalen Unterschiede (Nord–Süd und Ost–West) sind noch erkennbar, die bemerkenswerte Entwicklung in den letzten Jahren ist aber der Anstieg der Armut in Großstädten des Rheinlands und Norddeutschlands

POUR UNE GEOGRAPHIE DES ESPACES ANTI-HEROS : AU-DELA DE LA BANALITE DES ESPACES INTERMEDIAIRES

The communication has three objectives: an abstract clarification of the notion of in-between space, a relatively recent notion in geography; an interrogation on the lack of visibility of the in-between spaces, very often considered as commonplace, thus without interest; a reflection on the difficulties of the in-between spaces to build itself on territories, for the benefit of a multi-territoriality. The communication associates the geographical analysis with an approach in terms of stakes in spatial planing. It questions the " new emergent spaces ". It leans on two recent researches, the one led on the territorial construction of the in-between spaces in Rhone-Alps, and the other one on German industrial rural areas in region of borders, as in-between spaces in reorganization.La communication se donne trois objectifs : une clarification conceptuelle de la notion d'espace intermédiaire, notion relativement récente en géographie ; une interrogation sur le manque de visibilité des espaces intermédiaires, bien souvent considérés comme banals, donc sans intérêt ; une réflexion sur les difficultés des espaces intermédiaires à se construire en territoires, au profit d'une multi-appartenance (ou d'un écartèlement ?) territoriale. La communication associe donc l'analyse géographique à l'approche en termes d'enjeux d'aménagement. Elle relève des questionnements sur les " nouveaux espaces émergents ". Elle s'appuie sur deux récents travaux de recherche, l'un mené sur la construction territoriale des espaces intermédiaires en Rhône-Alpes, et l'autre sur les campagnes industrielles allemandes en région de frontières, comme espaces intermédiaires en recomposition

Policies and urban planning in small and medium-sized towns in Germany and France

Quite apart from the diversity of situations in small and medium-sized towns, stabilising their town centres is a major challenge. In both countries, town centres have been weakened by commercial changes, a decline in the supply of services and transformations in lifestyles. They are characterised by an increase in vacancy rates, which accelerates a spiralling loss of attractiveness and atmosphere of neglect. Since the beginning of the 2000s, this challenge has been central in the public debate. In both countries, urban renewal has been a key element of this revitalisation policy. However, although the context of public action is rather similar in France and Germany, the modes of governance differ. In France the administrative municipal system continues to provide a narrow and fixed framework despite recent territorial reforms that favour the intermunicipal level. In addition, cooperation, communication and participation of local actors from business and civil society are more firmly anchored in social and political practice in German small and medium-sized towns

Pauvreté et aide sociale en Allemagne – talon d’Achille du modèle allemand ?

Sous l’effet des mutations économiques et sociales des deux dernières décennies, la pauvreté en Allemagne – plus que dans tout autre État de l’Union européenne - affecte en premier lieu les chômeurs, ce qui renvoie pour partie aux réformes menées par le gouvernement Schröder en 2003-2005. Cet article présente les dynamiques et les disparités spatiales de la pauvreté en Allemagne, à partir de deux indicateurs. Si les grands contrastes Est-Ouest et Nord-Sud demeurent, l’évolution récente la plus notable est l’augmentation de la pauvreté dans les grandes villes de Rhénanie et du nord de l’Allemagne.Under the influence of the economic and social transformations of the last two decades, the poverty in Germany - more than in any Member State of the European Union - affects first of all the unemployed persons, what sends back partly to the reforms led by the government Schröder in 2003-2005. This article presents the dynamics and the spatial disparities of poverty in Germany, based on two indicators. If the east-west and north-south contrasts persist, the increase of poverty in the big cities of Rhineland and the North of Germany is an issue of concern for social and territorial cohesion

Stratégies et urbanisme dans les villes petites et moyennes en Allemagne et en France

Quite apart from the diversity of situations in small and medium-sized towns, stabilising their town centres is a major challenge. In both countries, town centres have been weakened by commercial changes, a decline in the supply of services and transformations in lifestyles. They are characterised by an increase in vacancy rates, which accelerates a spiralling loss of attractiveness and atmosphere of neglect. Since the beginning of the 2000s, this challenge has been central in the public debate. In both countries, urban renewal has been a key element of this revitalisation policy. However, although the context of public action is rather similar in France and Germany, the modes of governance differ. In France the administrative municipal system continues to provide a narrow and fixed framework despite recent territorial reforms that favour the intermunicipal level. In addition, cooperation, communication and participation of local actors from business and civil society are more firmly anchored in social and political practice in German small and medium-sized towns

Enseigner la guitare sur YouTube. Le tutoriel gratuit et les contradictions de la « numérimorphose » de l’enseignement de l’instrument : le cas de la chaîne MrGalagomusic

Cet article présente les résultats d’une étude sur les modalités d’enseignement de la guitare sur YouTube. Il met en lumière une des contradictions propres au Do (Learn) It Yourself et à la gratuité. « Je me demande si je n’ai pas tué le métier de prof de guitare en proposant des contenus gratuits », s’interroge l’auteur de la chaîne MrGalagomusic lors d’un entretien. Comment, alors que la transformation de la consommation de l’écoute musicale intègre une tension qui tend à diminuer, le tutoriel, par sa gratuité, renouvelle-t-il une tension inhérente à la reproductibilité sonore dans le domaine de la transmission des gestes, des savoirs et des connaissances liés à l’apprentissage d’un instrument ? Cette tension est propre à la culture de la convergence qu’analyse Henry Jenkins : la contribution d’une communauté par une intelligence collective de l’apprentissage se confronte toujours au problème de la rémunération du créateur. Que devient donc son statut lorsque l’apprentissage est pluriel ?This article presents the results of a study on how to teach guitar on YouTube. It highlights one of the contradictions inherent in Do (Learn) It Yourself related to free service. “I wonder if I haven’t killed the profession of guitar teacher by offering free content?” muses the owner of the MrGalagomusic channel during an interview. Whereas tenisons around listening to music as a consumer activity  are decreasing, how do free tutorials renew a tension inherent in sound reproductibility with the transmission of gestures, expertise and knowledge related to learning to play a musical instrument This tension is specific to convergence culture analyzed by Henry Jenkins: the collective contribution of communities to learning always faces the problem of how to pay the creator. What happens then when learning is plural?Este artículo presenta los resultados de un estudio sobre las modalidades de enseñanza de la guitarra en YouTube. Destaca una de las contradicciones inherentes al Hágalo Usted Mismo y a la gratuidad. “¿Me pregunto si no he matado la profesión de profesor de guitarra ofreciendo contenido gratuito?” se pregunta el autor del canal MrGalagomusic en una entrevista. ¿Cómo, a la vez que la transformación del consumo de la escucha de la música integra una tensión que tiende a disminuir, el tutorial, al ser gratuito, renueva una tensión inherente a la reproducibilidad del sonido en el campo de la transmisión de gestos, conocimientos y habilidades relacionados con el aprendizaje de un instrumento? Esta tensión es específica de la cultura de la convergencia que analiza Henry Jenkins: la contribución de una comunidad a través de una inteligencia colectiva de aprendizaje siempre se enfrenta al problema de la remuneración del creador. ¿Cuál es su nuevo estatus cuando el aprendizaje es plural

Draft Genome Sequences of Clostridium tyrobutyricum Strains FAM22552 and FAM22553, Isolated from Swiss Semihard Red-Smear Cheese.

Clostridium tyrobutyricum is the main microorganism responsible for late blowing defect in cheeses. Here, we present the draft genome sequences of two C. tyrobutyricum strains isolated from a Swiss semihard red-smear cheese. The two draft genomes comprise 3.05 and 3.08 Mbp and contain 3,030 and 3,089 putative coding sequences, respectively

The Logarithmic Sobolev Constant of The Lamplighter

We give estimates on the logarithmic Sobolev constant of some finite lamplighter graphs in terms of the spectral gap of the underlying base. Also, we give examples of application

Global burden of human brucellosis : a systematic review of disease frequency

BACKGROUND: This report presents a systematic review of scientific literature published between 1990-2010 relating to the frequency of human brucellosis, commissioned by WHO. The objectives were to identify high quality disease incidence data to complement existing knowledge of the global disease burden and, ultimately, to contribute towards the calculation of a Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALY) estimate for brucellosis.METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Thirty three databases were searched, identifying 2,385 articles relating to human brucellosis. Based on strict screening criteria, 60 studies were selected for quality assessment, of which only 29 were of sufficient quality for data analysis. Data were only available from 15 countries in the regions of Northern Africa and Middle East, Western Europe, Central and South America, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Central Asia. Half of the studies presented incidence data, six of which were longitudinal prospective studies, and half presented seroprevalence data which were converted to incidence rates. Brucellosis incidence varied widely between, and within, countries. Although study biases cannot be ruled out, demographic, occupational, and socioeconomic factors likely play a role. Aggregated data at national or regional levels do not capture these complexities of disease dynamics and, consequently, at-risk populations or areas may be overlooked. In many brucellosis-endemic countries, health systems are weak and passively-acquired official data underestimate the true disease burden.CONCLUSIONS: High quality research is essential for an accurate assessment of disease burden, particularly in Eastern Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Central and South America and Africa where data are lacking. Providing formal epidemiological and statistical training to researchers is essential for improving study quality. An integrated approach to disease surveillance involving both human health and veterinary services would allow a better understand of disease dynamics at the animal-human interface, as well as a more cost-effective utilisation of resources