The Political Economy of Participation in the Euro: A Case Study of Italy and Germany

This thesis analyses the political economy of the decision of Italy and Germany to participate in the euro. The emphasis is on understanding the economic rationales employed in each country in support of euro membership. For Italy, the central argument is that Italy outsourced monetary policy management to the ECB in order to delimit deficient domestic policy making and import German monetary credibility. This transferred the costs of monetary orthodoxy to Europe, and the thesis briefly examines places where we might observe those costs. For Germany, the argument is that, out of respect for the national humiliation and shame of the Second World War, Germany shirked the possibility of unilaterally leading European monetary policy in favour of a European solution that suited German economic interests. German actors were aware of these economic benefits at the time

Märchen-Pop und Grimms-Krams. Das Kulturerbe "Märchen" im Spannungsfeld von Tourismusmarketing und Identitätsstiftung in Hessen.

Der Märchen- und Grimm-Tourismus wird im Bundesland Hessen intensiv seit Gründung der Deutschen Märchenstraße 1975 betrieben. Doch einen außerordentlichen Schub erhielt das hessische Märchenengagement im Jahr 2005, als die „Kasseler Handexemplare der Kinder- und Hausmärchen“ am 17. Juni von der UNESCO zum „Memory of the World“ erklärt wurden. Hessen als selbst ernanntes „Bundesland der Brüder Grimm“ erkannte schnell die Chancen, die die UNESCO-Auszeichnung bot. Im Fokus der volkskundlich-kulturwissenschaftlichen Analyse steht daher die Frage, wie sich aktuelle populäre Resonanzen auf die Brüder Grimm und ihre Märchen im Bundesland Hessen präsentieren. In welchen Formen sind geschichtlich-volkskundliche Themen wie Märchenmotive, -personal und -(be)deutungen, aber auch Märchensammler und -entstehungsprozesse heute in der Gesellschaft verankert? Warum gehen gerade Tourismus und Märchenerbe eine solch enge – und beileibe nicht neuartige – Beziehung ein? Was genau sind die Konzepte, Strategien und Kampagnen, aufgrund derer der hessische Märchentourismus vorangetrieben wird? Stellt das Märchenthema in Hessen nur ein touristisch „verordnetes“ und nach außen gerichtetes Image dar oder besitzt es identifikatorischen Rückhalt in der lokalen, regionalen oder gar landesweiten Bevölkerung? Und nicht zuletzt: Warum fasziniert das Märchen in der Spätmoderne überhaupt noch so viele Menschen? Warum sprießen Märchenparks, Märchenfestspiele und Märchenstädte aus dem Boden, warum erreichen massenmediale Darstellungsformen mit märchenhaften Bezügen die cineastischen sowie schriftstellerischen Bestsellerlisten und warum verweisen Werbung, Karikatur und Satire immer wieder auf Froschkönig- oder Dornröschen-Motive? Gerade nicht-historische, nicht-wissenschaftliche, nicht-germanistische Umgangsweisen mit dem Grimm’schen Kulturerbe werden in der Studie als konstitutive Bestandteile lebendiger Erinnerungskultur und Kulturerbepflege betrachtet – und damit in ihrer Vielfalt und Popularität sowie hinsichtlich ihrer Bedürfnisbefriedigung ernst genommen. Ferner geht es insbesondere um das Spannungsfeld zwischen wirtschaftlichen Wertschöpfungsprozessen und lokalpatriotischem Engagement, zwischen Inszenierung und Authentizität, zwischen Heritage und History, zwischen Place Branding und Kulturerbeschutz. Qualitative Antworten werden dabei nicht pauschal gegeben, sondern auf der Basis von Feldforschung anhand der vier hessischen „Märchenorte“ Steinau an der Straße, Alsfeld, Witzenhausen und Schauenburg in ihrer Eigenlogik beschrieben. Im Vordergrund steht die Analyse des jeweils herausragenden Märchenangebots. In Steinau ist dies eine jährliche Veranstaltung: der seit 2002 stattfindende Steinauer Märchensonntag unter dem Motto „Stadt spielt Märchen“. Alsfelds Märchenvermarktung wird durch das 2005 eröffnete Märchenhaus repräsentiert, während der seit 1968 existierende Familien-Erlebnispark im Witzenhäuser Stadtteil Ziegenhagen das dortige Märchenmarketing vorantreibt und daher näher vorgestellt wird. Schließlich werden die 1997 eröffnete Schauenburger Märchenwache und ihre Synergieeffekte auf den nordhessischen Märchentourismus untersucht. Dabei stehen auch und vor allem die Akteure im Fokus, die die konkreten Märchenaktionen mit Leben füllen; also diejenigen, die Märchen „lebendig werden lassen“, indem sie sich als „Gestiefelter Kater“ verkleiden, Puppenspiele aufführen, Märchen erzählen oder diese künstlerisch verarbeiten. Der populäre Umgang mit den Grimms und ihren Märchen (Märchenparks, -puppenspiel, -festivals oder -kostümierungen) zielt oft darauf ab, die historischen Persönlichkeiten und die fantastischen Märchenfiguren anschaulich zu machen: Sie sollen hier und jetzt unmittelbar erlebbar, anfassbar, dinglich und leiblich erfahrbar sein. Doch reicht das Märchenverständnis darüber hinaus von ökonomischen und unterhaltenden über gemeinschaftsfördernde und wissensvermittelnde bis hin zu pädagogisch-esoterischen und künstlerischen Zugangsweisen zum Märchenthema. Aufgrund dieser verschiedenen Märchenverständnisse bietet schließlich die Untersuchung der „Marke Grimm“ und der „Marke Märchen“ in hessischen Städten auch einen neuen Einblick in das aktuelle gesellschaftliche Märchenbild. Dabei berührt die Analyse stark den wissenschaftlichen Diskurs um spätmoderne Erinnerungskultur(en) und den aktuellen „Geschichtsboom“ und führt von Phänomenen wie Erlebniskultur, Tourismus, Folklorismus und Heritage über deren Kritik bis hin zur (mittlerweile für die Volkskunde fast als „klassisch“ zu charakterisierenden) Kritik der Kritik

Revisiting the structure of subjective well-being in middle-aged adults

Abstract Subjective well-being is a broad, multifaceted construct comprising general satisfaction with life, satisfaction with life domains (health, family, people, free time, self, housing, work, and finances), positive affect, and negative affect. Drawing on representative data from middle-aged adults (N = 738), the authors used three different structural models to analyze the interrelationships among these facets of subjective well-being. In a top-down model, a single factor representing global subjective well-being explained the correlations found among the more specific facets of subjective well-being and exerted the strongest influence on general satisfaction with life, satisfaction with health, and satisfaction with finances. In a bottom-up model, satisfaction with the latter two domains had the strongest effect on global subjective well-being. The authors discuss the implications of their findings for research on subjective well-being

Incidence of Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma and Breast-Implant-Associated Lymphoma—An Analysis of a Certified Tumor Registry over 17 Years

Background: Breast-implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BI-ALCL) and primary breast ALCL are rare extranodal manifestations of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The rarity of both diseases, along with unreleased sales data on breast implants and constant updates of classification systems impede the calculation of an exact incidence. Methods: The database of the Tumor Center Regensburg in Bavaria was searched for patients with CD30-positive and ALK-negative anaplastic large cell lymphoma between 2002 and 2018. These lymphomas were identified by the ICD-O-3 morphology code "97023" and were cross-checked by searching the diagnosis by name the and ICD-10 code C84.7. Furthermore, we tried to calculate the incidence rates and corresponding 95% confidence intervals, standardized to 1,000,000 implant years of breast-implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma and primary breast anaplastic large cell lymphoma. Results: Twelve ALK-negative and CD30-positive anaplastic large cell lymphomas were identified out of 170,405 malignancies. No case was found within the breast tissue and none of the patients had a previous history of breast implant placement. In five cases, lymph node involvement in close proximity to the breast was observed. Conclusion: We found a low incidence of anaplastic large cell lymphoma and no association to breast implants in these patients. A review of the current literature revealed inconsistent use of classification systems for anaplastic large cell lymphomas and potential overestimation of cases

A Striational Muscle Antigen and Myasthenia Gravis-Associated Thymomas Share an Acetylcholine-Receptor Epitope

The coincidence of autoantibodies against the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) and muscle striational antigens (SA) is a characteristic finding in thymoma-associated myasthenia gravis (MG), but their origins are still unresolved. Some common muscle antigens that were shown to be targets of anti-SA autoantibodies in thymoma-associated MG have also been detected in normal or neoplastic thymic epithelial cells, suggesting that the release of (eventually altered) antigens from the thymic tumors could elicit SA autoimmunity. In contrast to this model, we report here that titin, which is a recently reported target of SA autoimmunity, is not expressed in thymomas. In addition, we show that skeletal muscle type-II fibers exhibit a striational immunoreactivity with monoclonal antibody mAb155, which was previously identified to label a very immunogenic cytoplasmic epitope of the AChR and neoplastic epithelial cells of MGassociated thymomas. We conclude from these findings that titin autoimmunity in thymoma-associated MG is either due to a molecular mimicry mechanism involving tumor antigens (other than titin) or is a secondary phenomenon following release of titin from muscle. Based on the common immunoreactivity of the AChR, a striational antigen and thymoma, we suggest as the pathogenetic mechanism of thymoma-associated MGa "circulus vitiosus" in which SA autoimmunity could help maintain the AChR autoimmunity that is primarily elicited by the thymomas

Clinical signs caused by the use of electric training collars on dogs in everyday life situations

Abstract The use of electric shock collars for training dogs is the subject of considerable controversy. Supporters claim that they are a reliable means of eliminating self-rewarding behaviour and that they can be used over greater distances and with less risk of stress and injury than mechanical devices, such as choke chains. Opponents cite the risk of incorrect or abusive use and temptation to use electric training collars without thought or time given to alternative training methods, regardless of the fact that their use may be associated with pain and fear. The aim of this study was to investigate whether any stress is caused by the use of electric shock collars or not and in this way to contribute to their evaluation with respect to animal welfare. Fourteen laboratory-bred Beagles were used to ensure standardised breeding, raising and training. Heart rate and saliva cortisol were used as stress parameters. The research project lasted for 7 months, during which each dog was trained for 1.5 h per day. To exclude circadian deviations of salivary cortisol values, each individual was allocated a rigid timeslot. Training as well as the experiments themselves were conducted in a secluded storage building to exclude the influence of external stressors. Three experimental groups were used. Group A (Aversion) received the electric shock when the dogs touched the prey-a rabbit dummy fixed to a motion device. Group H (Here) received the electric shock when they did not obey a previously trained recall command during hunting. Animals of group R (Random) received the electric shock arbitrarily, i.e. the shock was administered unpredictably and out of context. The main experiment lasted for 17 days. All animals were allowed to hunt unimpeded for the first 5 days. For the next 5 days the dogs were stopped from hunting by a leash. Every day, the stress parameters were determined. These values were compared with the values that were obtained during the use of the electric training collars. The collars were used over a period of 7 days as described previously. After 4 weeks the dogs were brought back into the research area without receiving an electric pulse. Group A did not show a significant rise in salivary cortisol levels, while group R and group H did show a significant rise. When the animals were reintroduced to the research area after 4 weeks, the results remained the same. This led to the conclusion that animals, which were able to clearly associate the electric stimulus with their action, i.e. touching the prey, and consequently were able to predict and control the stressor, did not show considerable or persistent stress indicators.

Gender comparison of clinical, histopathological, therapeutic and outcome factors in 185,967 colon cancer patients

Introduction: Colorectal carcinomas represent the third most common cause of cancer-related deaths in Germany. Although the incidence is significantly higher in men compared with women and gender is a well-established crucial factor for outcome in other diseases, detailed gender comparisons for colon cancer are lacking. Methods: This retrospective population-based cohort study included all patients diagnosed with colon cancer in Germany between 2000 and 2016 who were included in the common dataset of colorectal cancer patients from the quality conference of the German Cancer Society. We compared clinical, histopathological, and therapeutic characteristics as well as overall and recurrence-free survival. Results: A total of 185,967 patients were included in the study, of which 85,685 were female (46.1%) and 100,282 were male (53.9%). The proportion of women diagnosed with colon cancer decreased from 2000 to 2016 (f: 26.6 to 40.1%; m: 24.9 to 41.9%; p < 0.001), and the proportion of very old patients was especially high in women (f: 27.3%; m: 15.6%; p < 0.001). The localization in women was more right-sided (f: 45.0%, m: 36.7%; p < 0.001), and women had a higher tumor grading and a higher UICC stage (especially stage III nodal-positive) at diagnosis of primary colon cancer (UICC III: f: 22.7%, m: 21.0%; p < 0.001). We could detect a significantly better overall (hazard ratio: 0.853, lower 95%: 0.841, upper 95%: 0.864; p < 0.001) and recurrence-free survival (hazard ratio: 0.857, lower 95%: 0.845, upper 95%: 0.868; p < 0.001) in women compared with men, even though women received chemotherapy less frequently compared with men (f: 26.1%, m: 28.1%; p < 0.001). Conclusion: We could detect several variables that differed significantly between men and women regarding clinical, histopathological, therapeutic, and outcome factors. We believe that it is crucial to consider gender as a key factor in the diagnosis and treatment of colon cancer. Sex-specific diagnostic tools could lead to an earlier diagnosis of colon cancer in women, and ways to increase the rate of chemotherapy in women should be evaluated. Furthermore, we recommend stratifying randomized trials by gender