Money Laundering: Some Facts

The term "Money Laundering" originates from the US describing the Mafia's attempt to "launder" illegal money via cash-intensive washing salons, which where controlled by company acquisitions or business formations. Estimated two to five per cent of the global gross domestic product stems from illicit sources. A great deal of the money derives from drug-dealing, with a total revenue of 810 Billion USD in 2003. In 2005 the Austrian Police secured drugs worth 49266800 Euro (drug seizures in terms of street prices), in total 25.892 persons were charged for violation of the Austrian Narcotics Act. Most of all illegal transactions are processed by cash since there is the smallest risk to leave one's mark; nevertheless there exists an obvious tendency to misuse the internet in order to undertake illicit transactions in form of Online- Banking, Cyber money and Electronic Purse.

Globalisierte Produktion von (akademischem) Wissen – ein Wettbewerbsspiel

Im Entdeckungszusammenhang der folgenden Überlegungen wirkt lebensweltliche Praxis, nämlich ein Unbehagen an den angeblich der Qualitätssicherung dienenden Ritualen der akademischen Praxis. Es wird die These aufgestellt, dass Ergebnisse1 in einem globalen Kontext unter Wettbewerbsbedingungen zunehmend industrialisiert generiert werden, wofür einiges an empirischer Evidenz ins Treffen geführt werden kann. Das Einnehmen einer kritischen Perspektive ruft notwendig Kritik hervor. Auf diese Weise kommt das Denken voran, wenn die Kritik sich auf die vorgetragenen Argumente einlässt und sich nicht ausschließlich auf Interpretationen stützt, die dem Referenzsystem der Kritiker entstammen. Um einem unnötigen Schlagabtausch vorzubeugen, rechtfertigt die Autorin, ihren einseitigen Fokus auf problematischen Seiten einer industrialisierten Produktion von Wissen (in Universitäten) mit dem pragmatischen Argument, dass der Zeitgeist beinahe schon mantra-artig dessen positive Effekte betont, für die es ebenfalls gute Argumente gibt. Die folgenden Ausführungen lassen sich zwei Kategorien von Argumenten zuordnen: Ein kleinerer Teil hat mit der Erkennbarkeit dessen zu tun, was wir unscharf mit Realität bezeichnen. Hier geht es um die bekannten Grenzen des Erkenntnisprojekts der Moderne, wobei – so die These dieses Papiers – unterschiedliche Sichtweisen nun stärker um Marktakzeptanz ringen, weil der Wettbewerb zunimmt. Ein größerer Teil der Beobachtungen erfolgt aus ethnologischer Perspektive auf das eigene System: Welche Rituale, welche Heldenkonstruktionen, welche Modalitäten der In- und Exklusion sind im akademischen System wirksam? Der Schwerpunkt der Untersuchung liegt dabei auf Praktiken und deren Wirkungen. Die Autorin thematisiert nicht weiter, dass jedes System aus Gründen der Identitätsbildung, der Orientierung, der Koordination und Komplexitätsbewältigung der beschriebenen Modalitäten bedarf. Vielmehr beschäftigt sie die Beobachtung, dass sie aus dem Kontext der (Dorf)Gemeinschaft stammen und im anonymen, „entbindenden“ Kontext moderner Gesellschaft daher gerne ausgeblendet werden. In Anbetracht der fortgeschrittenen Möglichkeiten kulturwissenschaftliche Paradigmen auf das politische und wirtschaftliche System anzuwenden, findet sie eine relativ starke Abstinenz gegenüber einer Übertragung auf das akademische System dennoch überraschend. Die Arbeit geht von der Beobachtung aus, dass es diesem System an systematischer Selbstreflexion mangelt, was durch eine geringe Zahl an Arbeiten gestützt wird, die sich mit den Produktionsbedingungen und der Reproduktion in diesem System beschäftigen

Money Laundering: Some Facts

The term "Money Laundering" originates from the US describing the Mafia's attempt to "launder" illegal money via cash-intensive washing salons, which where controlled by company acquisitions or business formations. Estimated two to five per cent of the global gross domestic product stems from illicit sources. A great deal of the money derives from drug-dealing, with a total revenue of 810 Billion USD in 2003. In 2005 the Austrian Police secured drugs worth 49266800 Euro (drug seizures in terms of street prices), in total 25.892 persons were charged for violation of the Austrian Narcotics Act. Most of all illegal transactions are processed by cash since there is the smallest risk to leave one's mark; nevertheless there exists an obvious tendency to misuse the internet in order to undertake illicit transactions in form of Online- Banking, Cyber money and Electronic Purse

Attitudes Toward Assisted Suicide and Life-Prolonging Measures in Swiss ALS Patients and Their Caregivers

Objectives: In Switzerland, assisted suicide (AS) is legal, provided that the person seeking assistance has decisional capacity and the person assisting is not motivated by reasons of self-interest. However, in this particular setting nothing is known about patients' and their caregivers' attitudes toward AS and life-prolonging measures. Methods: Data was retrieved through validated questionnaires and personal interviews in 33 patients and their caregivers covering the following domains: physical function according to the revised Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R), demographic data, quality of life, anxiety, depression, social situation, spirituality, burden of disease, life-prolonging, and life-shortening acts. Results: In patients the median time after diagnosis was 9 months (2-90) and the median Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) FRS-R score was 37 (22-48). The majority of patients (94%; n = 31) had no desire to hasten death. Patients' and caregivers' attitudes toward Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy (PEG) and Non-Invasive Ventilation (NIV) differed. Significantly more patients than caregivers (21.2 versus 3.1%) stated that they were against NIV (p = 0.049) and against PEG (27.3 versus 3.1%; p = 0.031). Answers regarding tracheotomy were not significantly different (p = 0.139). Caregivers scored significantly higher levels of "suffering" (p = 0.007), "loneliness" (p = 0.006), and "emotional distress" answering the questionnaires (p > 0.001). Suffering (p > 0.026) and loneliness (p > 0.016) were related to the score of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) in patients. Conclusion: A liberal legal setting does not necessarily promote the wish for AS. However, the desire to discuss AS is prevalent in ALS patients. There is a higher level of suffering and loneliness on the caregivers' side. A longitudinal study is warranted

Selective contribution of Tyk2 to cell activation by lipopolysaccharide

AbstractTyk2 deficient mice show a markedly reduced susceptibility to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced shock and a partial impairment of IL-12 and interferon (IFN) signals. To examine the underlying mechanisms, we analysed the activation of peritoneal macrophages (PMΦs) and spleen cells after LPS challenge. In PMΦs and spleen cells the contribution of Tyk2 to the induction of the T-cell co-stimulatory molecules CD86, CD40 and MHC II was small or insignificant. By contrast, induced expression of the early activation marker CD69 on PMΦs and splenic cell populations required type I interferons (IFN-I) and Tyk2. The data suggest a selective contribution of Tyk2 to the activation of inflammation-relevant cell types by LPS

Skin cancer risk and shade: comparing the risk of foresters with other outdoor workers

Background: Keratinocyte carcinoma (KC) is an increasingly important public health problem with an especially high prevalence in outdoor workers. In contrast to other occupations, foresters spend most of their outdoor time under the shade of trees. Objectives: We aimed to compare the unique sun exposure patterns and sun protection behaviour of foresters with those of other outdoor workers and their relation to the KC risk. Methods: In July 2018, a cross‐sectional study was conducted at an international forestry fair using a questionnaire about health awareness and skin cancer screening by dermatologists to assess the prevalence of KC. Results: A total of 591 participants (78.7% male; mean age 46.8 ± 16.2 years) including 193 foresters were enrolled. Of all foresters, 72% experienced sunburns (solar erythema) within the past year and 50% of them experienced the worst sunburn during work. Foresters were most likely to often/always wear protective clothes (29.0%) but were least likely to often/always avoid midday sun (23.8%) and stay in the shade (31.1%). Having an outdoor profession or spending hours outside for leisure was negatively associated with sun protection. Skin examination revealed an overall KC prevalence of 16.7%, with 16.5% of foresters being affected. Conclusion: Despite being protected by trees, the risk of KC for foresters is comparable to that of other professional groups. Shade alone may not provide sufficient protection. Additional sun protection measures are necessary

The Influence of Personal School Experience in Biology Classes on the Beliefs of Students in University Teacher Education

Teachers’ pedagogical beliefs are thought to play a prominent role in determining teacher behavior. In contrast to other professions, pedagogical beliefs of teachers and students in teacher education are widely influenced by personal experiences gained in school, which has been referred to as “apprenticeship of observation” (Lortie, 1975, p. 61).It can be assumed that student teachers already enter teacher education with a relatively firm set of beliefs about teaching. In our study, N = 280 student teachers in biology were asked to recall their own biology classes in school, employing a frame of reference provided by national standards for biology education in Germany. First, a factor analysis was conducted on students’ responses. This analysis yielded four aspects (factors) according to which students’ recall of their own biology classes in school is structured. Next, students were clustered into four biography types by means of their parameter values on the four factors. Students’ beliefs about how biology should be taught are influenced by their biography. Our findings thus provide evidence for the influence of school biography on pedagogical beliefs in the field of biology education; however, this influence does not point in a uniform direction. When comparing university freshmen to more advanced student teachers, only one out of the four belief aspects was affected by students’ progress in their university studies. A practical implication is that teacher educators are well-advised to incorporate their students’ past experiences into the contents of their courses