Why children are the better cooks and better people - How MasterChef Junior reinforces the 'taste of luxury and freedom', gives children high culinary capital and portrays them as having a multitude of positive characteristics

In this paper I explore how the US-American competitive cooking show MasterChef Junior assigns its 8 to 13- year-old contestants with a notion of strength. In the first part of the paper I will demonstrate how the show constructs different categories of knowledge and values of food and food practices which I will define as soft and hard culinary capital. I will describe how food is presented, how cooking is illustrated and what information the audience can gain from how the jury judges the dishes in the show. The portrayal of food will be categorized with Bourdieu's ideas of 'taste of necessity' and 'taste of luxury and freedom'; the idea of cooking will be analyzed by applying the Kantian categories of 'genius', 'artist' and 'imitator' and the language of judging will be evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively. Those findings will demonstrate that the junior cooks posses high hard and soft culinary capital, as they are 'geniuses' and have practical cooking skills, while the viewer can only gain a vocabulary and some rules of how to judge food and express a distinct taste. The second part of the paper will show that the depiction of those young cooks can be seen as opposed to current concepts of children in popular media. I will provide an historical background of concepts of children and an overview of current roles of children in reality TV to demonstrate that children in MasterChef Junior are portrayed as more independent from adults as well as more equal to them than in most current TV roles and concepts of popular media. As a result the paper will explore connections of the visual culture of children and food in an example of the current phenomenon of cooking competition shows between children

Linear cryptanalysis and block cipher design in East Germany in the 1970s

Linear cryptanalysis (LC) is an important codebreaking method that became popular in the 1990s and has roots in the earlier research of Shamir in the 1980s. In this article we show evidence that linear cryptanalysis is even older. According to documents from the former East Germany cipher authority ZCO, the systematic study of linear characteristics for nonlinear Boolean functions was routinely performed in the 1970s. At the same time East German cryptologists produced an excessively complex set of requirements known as KT1, which requirements were in particular satisfied by known historical used in the 1980s. An interesting line of inquiry, then, is to see if KT1 keys offer some level of protection against linear cryptanalysis. In this article we demonstrate that, strangely, this is not really the case. This is demonstrated by constructing specific counterexamples of pathologically weak keys that satisfy all the requirements of KT1. However, because we use T-310 in a stream cipher mode that uses only a tiny part of the internal state for actual encryption, it remains unclear whether this type of weak key could lead to key recovery attacks on T-310

The use of Bid-Management-Systems to manage PPCCampaigns for transactional search requests

Das Ziel dieser Bachelorarbeit ist es zu analysieren, ob es für KMUs lohnend ist ein Bid Management System für die Verwaltung der PPC-Gebote bei transaktionalen Suchanfragen einzusetzen. Hierfür werden aktuelle Erkenntnisse von deutschen und amerikanischen Forschern diskutiert und anhand fiktiver Beispiele die Funktionsweise von Bid Management Systemen untersucht. Anhand dieser Untersuchungen wird eine allgemeingültige Handlungsempfehlung für KMUs entwickelt

Gene expression of potential modulators of inhibitory neurotransmission in the Lurcher mutant mouse

Die Maus-Mutante Lurcher ist ein Tiermodell für die spinocerebelläre Ataxie und durch einen primären Untergang der Purkinjezellen charakterisiert. Im Gegensatz zur massiven sekundären Degeneration von Körnerzellen und Neuronen der inferioren Olive fällt der Verlust von Neuronen der tiefen Kleinhirnkerne verhältnismäßig gering aus. Diesen Kerngebieten wird eine gewisse kompensatorische Fähigkeit zugeschrieben. Während des Purkinezelluntergangs kann eine verstärkte inhibitorische synaptische Erregungsübertragung nachgewiesen werden. Immunhistochemisch findet sich in vier Wochen alten Lc eine Zunahme kleiner GABAerger Neurone und eine Größenzunahme der Endknöpfchen bei relativ schwach ausgeprägtem Verlust GABAerger Synapsen. Um die stattfindenden Vorgänge genauer zu beleuchten wurde in dieser Arbeit die Genexpression potentieller Modulatoren der inhibitorischen synaptischen Erregungsüberleitung untersucht. Mittels quantitativer real-time PCR konnte eine Herunterregulation der Genexpression des GABARAP und der gamma2-Untereinheit des GABA-A-Rezeptors bei 14 Tage alten Mäusen nachgewiesen werden. Die Herunterregulation beider Proteine kann zur Zunahme von ungeclusterten Rezeptoren mit höherer GABA-Affinität und schnellerer Wiederöffnungszeit beitragen. Dies könnte eine bessere Verwertung herabgesetzter GABA-Konzentrationen ermöglichen. Durch eine verringerte Anzahl von Bindungsstellen für gamma2 und eine relative Zunahme von Rezeptoren, welche nicht der konstitutiven (gamma2-abhängigen) Endozytose unterliegen, könnte die Endozytoserate sinken und die Rezeptorzahl an der postsynaptischen Membran konsekutiv steigen, was wiederum eine verstärkte Inhibition bedingen kann. Die Herunterregulation der gamma2-Untereinheit könnte weiterhin zu verminderter Regulation durch die Proteinkinase C führen und auch hierdurch eine erhöhte Rezeptorzahl begünstigen. Die Verringerung der Endozytoserate und/oder die Reduktion der Anzahl geclusterter Rezeptoren können zwei Wege zur kurzfristigen Verstärkung der GABAergen Erregungsüberleitung darstellen und die Reaktion auf den Verlust GABAerger Afferenzen sowie die beginnende Kompensation desselben repräsentieren. Die beobachtete Herunterregulation ist transient. Die Herunterregulation der beiden Proteine zur Verstärkung der inhibitorischen Überleitung wurde in der Literatur bisher nicht beschrieben. In die GABAerge Inhibition sind jedoch einige weitere Proteine involviert. Die Untersuchung derselben könnte weitere Einblicke in die Vorgänge ermöglichen und die Rolle von gamma2 und GABARAP weiter präzisieren. Die Aufklärung stattfindender Kompensationsmechanismen und -wege führt zur Vertiefung des Verständnisses für neurodegenerative Erkrankungen und kann neue Ansatzpunkte zur Therapie enthüllen.The Lurcher mutant mouse is an animal model for spinocerebellar ataxia and characterized by a primary selective loss of Purkinje cells. In contrast to the subsequent massive secondary degeneration of the granule cells and the inferior olivary neurons only mild degeneration occurs in the deep cerebellar nuclei. These nuclei are supposed to have a compensatory role in Lurcher mice. During the purkinje cell degeneration an increased inhibitory synaptic transmission can be observed. Immunohistochemically four week old Lurcher show an increase of small GABAergic neurons and an increase in synaptic bouton size and density. The loss of GABAergic synapses is relatively weak. To elucidate the molecular mechanism we analyzed in this study the gene expression of potential modulators of inhibitory synaptic conduction in the Lurcher mutant mouse. By performing quantitative real time PCR we detected a down-regulation of gene expression of GABARAP and the gamma2 subunit of GABA-A-receptor in 14 days old mice. The downregulation of these two proteins may contribute to the increase of non-clustered GABA receptors with a higher affinity to GABA and a faster re-opening time. This could allow for a better utilization of reduced GABA concentrations. A reduced number of binding sites to gamma2 and a relative increase of receptors which are not subject to constitutive (gamma2 -dependent) endocytosis may reduce the receptor endocytosis and consecutively rise the receptor number at the postsynaptic membrane. This can result in increased synaptic inhibition. The downregulation of the gamma2 subunit could also lead to a reduced regulation by proteinkinasis C and thereby also facilitate an increased number of receptors. However, the observed downregulation is transient. The reduction of endocytosis and / or reduction of the number of clustered receptors may represent two paths for short-term reinforcement of GABAergic inhibition and represent the response to the loss of GABAergic afferents and beginning compensation. The downregulation of the two proteins to enhance inhibitory neurotransmission wasn’t previously described in the literature. The GABAergic inhibition involves some more proteins. Studying them could provide further insight into the process and clarify the role of gamma2 and GABARAP. The revealing of these compensatory mechanisms and pathways could deepen the understanding of neurodegenerative disorders and may reveal new targets for therapy

Discourse function ambiguity of fragments: A linguistic puzzle

The puzzle we consider in this paper is that Merchant (2004) judges certain elliptical utterances in context to be ungrammatical, while Culicover and Jackendoff (2005) judge similar examples to be grammatical. The main difference between the examples appears to be that Merchant’s are introduced by no, while Culicover and Jackendoff’s are introduced by yes. We propose that the different judgments do not reflect grammaticality, but complexity associated with ambiguity. First, there is an ambiguity with respect to the reference of noun phrases in discourse: the relationship of the fragment to the preceding discourse is ambiguous. Second, there is an ambiguity with respect to the discourse function of an utterance, and in particular, whether it is an affirmation triggered by yes or a denial triggered by no. In the case of the denial, it needs to be established, which part of the preceding statement has to be corrected, while in the case of the affirmation, no such ambiguity arises. The interactions between these two interpretive functions may under certain circumstances render particular sentences in discourse difficult to interpret. Interpretive difficulty has the subjective flavor of ‘ungrammaticality’; in the case that we discuss here, these judgments form the basis for a particular linguistic analysis. But, we argue, manipulation of the dis-course context can simplify discourse interpretation by resolving the ambiguity, which removes the interpretive difficulty. The conclusion that we draw is that the phenomenon in question is not a matter of linguistic structure, but of discourse interpretation

Coordination Complexes of Molybdenum with 3,6-Di-tert-butylcatechol. Addition Products of DMSO, Pyridine N-oxide, and Triphenylarsine Oxide to the Putative [MoVIO(3,6-DBCat)2] Monomer and Self-Assembly of the Chiral [{MoVIO(3,6-DBCat)2}4] Square

Molybdenum complexes of 3,6-di-tert-butylcatechol have been prepared from the reaction between [Mo(CO)6] and 3,6-di-tert-butyl-1,2-benzoquinone. A putative "[MoO(3,6-DBCat)2]" monomer is assumed to form initially by reaction with trace quantities of oxygen. Condensation of the reaction mixture leads to the formation of oligomeric products, including the [{MoO(3,6-DBCat)2}4] chiral square isolated by chromatographic separation. Molybdenum centers at the corner of the square are bridged by oxo ligands centered along edges. Four-fold and inversion crystallographic symmetry gives tetramers as either or isomers, and the crystal structure consists of parallel columns of squares with the same chirality. Addition of O-Subst (O-Subst = dmso, pyridine N-oxide, triphenylarsine oxide) ligands to [MoO(3,6-DBCat)2] occurs selectively to give cis-[MoO(O-Subst)(3,6-DBCat)2] products. All three addition complexes are fluxional in solution. The temperature-dependent stereodymanic behavior of [MoO(dmso)(3,6-DBCat)2] has been shown to occur via a trigonal prismatic intermediate (Bailar twist) that conserves the cis disposition of oxo and dmso ligands. Electrochemical and chemical reduction reactions have been investigated for [MoO(dmso)(3,6-DBCat)2] with interest in displacement of SMe2 with formation of cis-[MoO2(3,6-DBCat)2]2-. Cyclic voltammetry shows an irreversible two-electron reduction for the complex at -0.852 V (vs Fc/Fc+). Chemical reduction using CoCp2 was observed to give a product with an electronic spectrum that is generally associated with cis-[MoO2(Cat)2]2- complexes. Structural characterization revealed that the product was [CoCp2][MoO(3,6-DBCat)2], possibly formed as the product of dmso displacement upon one-electron reduction of [MoO(dmso)(3,6-DBCat)2]

Discourse function ambiguity of fragments: A linguistic puzzle

Schmeh K, Culicover PW, Hartmann J, Winkler S. Discourse function ambiguity of fragments: A linguistic puzzle. In: Winkler S, ed. Ambiguity. Language and Communication. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter ; 2015: 199-216