Vorwort zum Publikationsprojekt "Soziale Arbeit in der multiethnischen Gesellschaft"

Nachdem wir auch in Deutschland begriffen haben, dass wir ein Einwanderungsland sind und noch dazu eine europäische Nummer Eins in den Hoffnungen vieler potentieller Emigranten, müssen wir uns mit der Frage auseinandersetzen, wie sehr wir uns in unserem sozialarbeiterischen und sozialpädagogischen Denken, Fühlen und Tun auf unsere eigene Geschichte als ‚Sozialstaat‘ beziehen und wie wir uns auch auf andere soziale, ethnische, religiöse und gesellschaftspolitische Traditionen von Menschen einlassen müssen

A parametric approach to electoral systems

[ES] Se considera un encuadre algorítmico de los sistemas electorales. A partir de ello, se parametriza la especificación de los sistemas electorales principales. [EN] An algorithmic framework of electoral systems is considered. As a result, the specification of the main electoral systems is parametrized

Abgeordnete, Parteien und Koalitionspolitik: individuelle Präferenzen und politisches Handeln im Nationalrat

'Geschlossenes Verhalten von parlamentarischen Fraktionen kann daraus resultieren, dass die ihnen angehörenden Abgeordneten in ihren Präferenzen übereinstimmen oder daraus, dass sie von ihren jeweiligen Parteien zu einem einheitlichen Verhalten bewegt werden ('Fraktionszwang'). Parteien sind nur dann wirklich stark, wenn das Verhalten der Abgeordneten der Parteilinie entspricht, ihren individuellen Präferenzen aber widerspricht. Auf der Basis einer empirischen Erhebung der Präferenzen der Abgeordneten zum Nationalrat in der XX. Gesetzgebungsperiode (1996-1999) zeigen wir, dass es innerhalb der einzelnen Fraktionen erhebliche Divergenzen der Präferenzen gibt. In zwei policy-Dimensionen würde es im Parlament andere Mehrheitspositionen nach dem Median-Wähler-Theorem geben, wenn die Abgeordneten entsprechend ihrer individuellen Präferenzen und nicht entlang von Parteilinien abstimmen würden. In der sozio-ökonomischen policy-Dimension verschiebt die zweistufige Aggregation der Präferenzen - zuerst in den Parteien, dann im Parlament - den Median von der linken in die rechte Hälfte des policy-Spektrums. Die österreichischen Parteien sind also stark.' (Autorenreferat)'Cohesive parliamentary party behaviour can be caused either by the representatives' preference identity or by the influence the parties exercise on them. Parties can be considered strong only if their respective MPs follow the party line when it conflicts with their individual preferences. Based on a survey among MPs in the 1995-1999 parliament we show that there are considerable preference divergences within the individual parliamentary parties. In two policy dimensions the median voter position would shift considerably if MPs would vote according to their individual preferences rather than according to the median voter preferences of their own parliamentary party. In the economic policy dimension the two-step aggregation of preferences (first within the parties and then in parliament) shifts the median position from the left to the right. The policy positions of the parties, that is the aggregates of the preferences of their respective MPs, produce three different potential majority coalitions (minimal policy range) in five policy dimensions. The change from the SPÖ-ÖVP coalition of the 1996-1999 parliament to a ÖVP-FPÖ coalition in the post-1999 parliament cannot be explained by the policy distances between the parties. In a red-green coalition (which lacks a parliamentary majority), policy differences would be smaller than in the ÖVP-FPÖ coalition.' (author's abstract

"Business as usual" mit getauschten Rollen oder Konflikt- statt Konsensdemokratie? Parlamentarische Beziehungen unter der ÖVP-FPÖ-Koalition

'Der Wechsel von der SPÖ-ÖVP-Koalition zur ÖVP-FPÖ-Koalition brachte die FPÖ in die Regierung, die SPÖ in die Opposition und die ÖVP in die Position der größeren Regierungspartei. Handelt es sich dabei um einen in der Demokratie üblichen Rollentausch einzelner Parteien oder um einen grundlegenden Systemwandel von der Konsensdemokratie vergangener Perioden hin zu einer Konflikt- oder Mehrheitsdemokratie? Diese beiden Thesen sind keine strikten Alternativen, da ein Rollenwechsel objektiv stattgefunden hat. Sie werden auf Basis objektiver (Abstimmungsverhalten) und subjektiver (Abgeordnetenbefragung) Daten überprüft. Das Ausmaß an politischem Konsens, gemessen an der parlamentarischen Zustimmung zu Gesetzen, ist unter der ÖVP-FPÖ-Koalition auf einen neuen Tiefststand gesunken, was die These vom Systemwandel stützt. Allerdings wird unter der ÖVP-FPÖ-Regierung ein Trend fortgesetzt, der bereits seit Anfang der 1990er Jahre existiert. Die Einschätzungen der Abgeordneten über Veränderungen im Verhältnis zwischen Regierung und Opposition seit dem Koalitionswechsel bestätigen sowohl die Rollentausch- als auch die Systemwandel-These.' (Autorenreferat)'The change from the SPÖ-ÖVP coalition to the ÖVP-FPÖ coalition has reversed the roles of SPÖ and FPÖ as government and opposition parties and changed the ÖVP's role from junior to senior partner in the coalition. This article asks whether this was a 'normal' change of government parties, as is routine in democracies (role change thesis), or a more fundamental change from consensus democracy to majoritarian (or conflictual) democracy (system change thesis). The two competing interpretations are not strict alternatives, as a role change of parties has occurred, objectively speaking. This article tests the two theses by employing objective and subjective data, i.e. data on legislative voting and the perceptions of MPs. The extent of political consensus in parliamentary voting has reached a new low under the ÖVP-FPÖ coalition, which supports the majoritarian democracy thesis. However, this development only continues a trend towards majoritarian democracy that had already begun in the early 1990s. The MPs' perceptions about government-opposition relations support both the role change and system change theses.' (author's abstract

An algorithmic approach to one-round electoral systems

A family of algorithms provides a formalization of how the basic one-round electoral systems – highest average and largest remainders, single transferable vote and single non-transferable vote systems – proceed in transforming votes into seats. In this way, the basic one-round electoral systems are parametrized with the four parameters n (size of the constituency), m (size of the nomination lists), ck (a factor providing the electoral formula) and l (signed election threshold). The parametrization reveals that the most important electoral systems have a common basic structure

An algorithmic approach to one-round electoral systems

A family of algorithms provides a formalization of how the basic one-round electoral systems – highest average and largest remainders, single transferable vote and single non-transferable vote systems – proceed in transforming votes into seats. In this way, the basic one-round electoral systems are parametrized with the four parameters n (size of the constituency), m (size of the nomination lists), ck (a factor providing the electoral formula) and l (signed election threshold). The parametrization reveals that the most important electoral systems have a common basic structure

Generation and characterization of two fibroblast-derived Baboon induced pluripotent stem cell lines

Cross-species comparisons studying primate pluripotent stem cells and their derivatives are crucial to better understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms behind human disease and development. Within this context, Baboons (Papio anubis) have emerged as a prominent primate model for such investigations. Herein, we reprogrammed skin fibroblasts of one male individual and generated two induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines, which exhibit the characteristic ESC-like morphology, demonstrated robust expression of key pluripotency factors and displayed multilineage differentiation potential. Notably, both iPSC lines can be cultured under feeder-free conditions in commercially available medium, enhancing their value for cross-species comparisons

Generation and characterization of two Vervet monkey induced pluripotent stem cell lines derived from fibroblasts

Cross-species comparisons using pluripotent stem cells from primates are crucial to better understand human biology, disease, and evolution. The Vervet monkey (Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus) serves as an important primate model for such studies, and therefore we reprogrammed skin fibroblasts derived from a male and a female individual, resulting in two induced pluripotent stem cell lines (iPSCs). These iPSCs display the characteristic ESC-like colony morphology, express key pluripotency markers, and possess the ability to differentiate into cells representing all three germ layers. Importantly, both generated cell lines can be maintained in feeder-free culture conditions using commercially available medium

Improved Thermoelectric Cooling Based on the Thomson Effect

Traditional thermoelectric Peltier coolers exhibit a cooling limit which is primarily determined by the figure of merit, zT. Rather than a fundamental thermodynamic limit, this bound can be traced to the difficulty of maintaining thermoelectric compatibility. Self-compatibility locally maximizes the cooler's coefficient of performance for a given zT and can be achieved by adjusting the relative ratio of the thermoelectric transport properties that make up zT. In this study, we investigate the theoretical performance of thermoelectric coolers that maintain self-compatibility across the device. We find such a device behaves very differently from a Peltier cooler, and term self-compatible coolers "Thomson coolers" when the Fourier heat divergence is dominated by the Thomson, as opposed to the Joule, term. A Thomson cooler requires an exponentially rising Seebeck coefficient with increasing temperature, while traditional Peltier coolers, such as those used commercially, have comparatively minimal change in Seebeck coefficient with temperature. When reasonable material property bounds are placed on the thermoelectric leg, the Thomson cooler is predicted to achieve approximately twice the maximum temperature drop of a traditional Peltier cooler with equivalent figure of merit (zT). We anticipate the development of Thomson coolers will ultimately lead to solid state cooling to cryogenic temperatures.Comment: The Manuscript has been revised for publication in PR