Sollten wir auf die Trolley-Fälle verzichten?

In den moralphilosophischen Debatten der letzten Jahrzehnte spielen die sogenannten Trolley-Fälle eine große Rolle. Sie kommen zum Einsatz in Diskussionen der Frage, welcher Schaden Personen im Rahmen medizinischer oder politischer Maßnahmen zugefügt werden darf, und in Diskussionen darüber, welches die richtige normative Moraltheorie ist. Allerdings kritisieren viele Philosophinnen und Philosophen diese Gedankenexperimente wegen ihrer Konstruiertheit, Künstlichkeit, Abstraktheit und ihrer Lebensferne. In diesem Beitrag werden die Einwände eines prominenten Kritikers, Allen Wood, diskutiert. Er attestiert den Trolley-Gedankenexperimenten neben den genannten Punkten außerdem, dass sie moralisch nicht neutral sind, indem sie uns mit einem rhetorischen Trick dazu bringen, bestimmte Faktoren für moralisch relevant zu halten. Wood fordert deshalb, dass man auf die Verwendung dieser Gedankenexperimente in der praktischen Philosophie verzichten solle. Ich werde seine Einwände entkräften, dann aber zeigen, dass er dennoch einen wunden Punkt nennt: Die Trolley-Fälle sind aufgrund der vorgegebenen Antwortoptionen in der Hinsicht nicht moralisch neutral, dass sie voraussetzen, dass die Anzahl der zu rettenden Menschen moralisch relevant ist. Sie eignen sich daher nicht, um ebendiese Behauptung zu begründen. Dieser Mangel kann aber durch eine Modifikation der Gedankenexperimente behoben werden; ein vollständiger Verzicht auf derartige Gedankenexperimente ist also entgegen Woods Ansicht nicht notwendigerweise geboten

What is it like to teach philosophy online? Experiences and satisfaction of lecturers at german universities in the first “Corona semester”

In an online survey we conducted subsequently to the first so-called “Corona semester” we asked university lecturers in philosophy at German universities to share their experiences with digital teaching. In the questionnaire, the respondents were asked questions concerning the use of digital media in a specific course they taught and how satisfied they were with their course. We also asked them about the advantages and disadvantages of teaching philosophy online and about their assessment of whether the use of digital media is suitable for teaching philosophy. In our article, we present some of our findings based on the data and statements of 87 respondents. We identify the main factors influencing satisfaction with online teaching and point out some assumptions underlying the widespread fear that core elements might get lost by teaching philosophy online. In a second step we will discuss our findings and we will also derive recommendations from our results that may help to overcome key difficulties of teaching philosophy online

Water and small organic molecules as probes for geometric confinement in well- ordered mesoporous carbon material

Mesoporous carbon materials were synthesized employing polymers and silica gels as structure directing templates. The basic physico-chemical properties of the synthetic mesoporous materials were characterized by 1H and 13C MAS solid-state NMR, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nitrogen adsorption measurements. The confinement effects on small guest molecules such as water, benzene and pyridine and their interactions with the pore surface were probed by a combination of variable temperature 1H-MAS NMR and quantum chemical calculations of the magnetic shielding effect of the surface on the solvent molecules. The interactions of the guest molecules depend strongly on the carbonization temperature and the pathway of the synthesis. All the guest-molecules, water, benzene and pyridine, exhibited high-field shifts by the interaction with the surface of carbon materials. The geometric confinement imposed by the surface causes a strong depression of the melting point of the surface phase of water and benzene. The theoretical calculation of 1H NICS maps shows that the observed proton chemical shifts towards high-field values can be explained as the result of electronic ring currents localized in aromatic groups on the surface. The dependence on the distance between the proton and the aromatic surface can be exploited to estimate the average diameter of the confinement structures

Comparing the Toxicological Responses of Pulmonary Air–Liquid Interface Models upon Exposure to Differentially Treated Carbon Fibers

In recent years, the use of carbon fibers (CFs) in various sectors of industry has been increasing. Despite the similarity of CF degradation products to other toxicologically relevant materials such as asbestos fibers and carbon nanotubes, a detailed toxicological evaluation of this class of material has yet to be performed. In this work, we exposed advanced air–liquid interface cell culture models of the human lung to CF. To simulate different stresses applied to CF throughout their life cycle, they were either mechanically (mCF) or thermo-mechanically pre-treated (tmCF). Different aspects of inhalation toxicity as well as their possible time-dependency were monitored. mCFs were found to induce a moderate inflammatory response, whereas tmCF elicited stronger inflammatory as well as apoptotic effects. Furthermore, thermal treatment changed the surface properties of the CF resulting in a presumed adhesion of the cells to the fiber fragments and subsequent cell loss. Triple-cultures encompassing epithelial, macrophage, and fibroblast cells stood out with an exceptionally high inflammatory response. Only a weak genotoxic effect was detected in the form of DNA strand breaks in mono- and co-cultures, with triple-cultures presenting a possible secondary genotoxicity. This work establishes CF fragments as a potentially harmful material and emphasizes the necessity of further toxicological assessment of existing and upcoming advanced CF-containing materials

A multi-purpose, multi-rotor drone system for long-range and high-altitude volcanic gas plume measurements

A multi-rotor drone has been adapted for studies of volcanic gas plumes. This adaptation includes improved capacity for high-altitude and long-range, real-time SO2 concentration monitoring, long-range manual control, remotely activated bag sampling and plume speed measurement capability. The drone is capable of acting as a stable platform for various instrument configurations, including multi-component gas analysis system (MultiGAS) instruments for in situ measurements of SO2, H2S, and CO2 concentrations in the gas plume and portable differential optical absorption spectrometer (MobileDOAS) instruments for spectroscopic measurement of total SO2 emission rate, remotely controlled gas sampling in bags and sampling with gas denuders for posterior analysis on the ground of isotopic composition and halogens. The platform we present was field-tested during three campaigns in Papua New Guinea: in 2016 at Tavurvur, Bagana and Ulawun volcanoes, in 2018 at Tavurvur and Langila volcanoes and in 2019 at Tavurvur and Manam volcanoes, as well as in Mt. Etna in Italy in 2017. This paper describes the drone platform and the multiple payloads, the various measurement strategies and an algorithm to correct for different response times of MultiGAS sensors. Specifically, we emphasize the need for an adaptive flight path, together with live data transmission of a plume tracer (such as SO2 concentration) to the ground station, to ensure optimal plume interception when operating beyond the visual line of sight. We present results from a comprehensive plume characterization obtained during a field deployment at Manam volcano in May 2019. The Papua New Guinea region, and particularly Manam volcano, has not been extensively studied for volcanic gases due to its remote location, inaccessible summit region and high level of volcanic activity. We demonstrate that the combination of a multi-rotor drone with modular payloads is a versatile solution to obtain the flux and composition of volcanic plumes, even for the case of a highly active volcano with a high-altitude plume such as Manam. Drone-based measurements offer a valuable solution to volcano research and monitoring applications and provide an alternativespan idCombining double low line"page4256"/> and complementary method to ground-based and direct sampling of volcanic gases

Selective C-H Activation at a Molecular Rhodium Sigma-Alkane Complex by Solid/Gas Single-Crystal to Single-Crystal H/D Exchange

The controlled catalytic functionalization of alkanes via the activation of C-H bonds is a significant challenge. Although C-H activation by transition metal catalysts is often suggested to operate via intermediate σ-alkane complexes, such transient species are difficult to observe due to their instability in solution. This instability may be controlled by use of solid/gas synthetic techniques that enable the isolation of single-crystals of well-defined σ-alkane complexes. Here we show that, using this unique platform, selective alkane C-H activation occurs, as probed by H/D exchange using D2, and that five different isotopomers/isotopologues of the σ-alkane complex result, as characterized by single-crystal neutron diffraction studies for three examples. Low-energy fluxional processes associated with the σ-alkane ligand are identified using variable-temperature X-ray diffraction, solid-state NMR spectroscopy, and periodic DFT calculations. These observations connect σ-alkane complexes with their C-H activated products, and demonstrate that alkane-ligand mobility, and selective C-H activation, are possible when these processes occur in the constrained environment of the solid-state

Fluid Flow Programming in Paper-Derived Silica–Polymer Hybrids

In paper-based devices, capillary fluid flow is based on length-scale selective functional control within a hierarchical porous system. The fluid flow can be tuned by altering the paper preparation process, which controls parameters such as the paper grammage. Interestingly, the fiber morphology and nanoporosity are often neglected. In this work, porous voids are incorporated into paper by the combination of dense or mesoporous ceramic silica coatings with hierarchically porous cotton linter paper. Varying the silica coating leads to significant changes in the fluid flow characteristics, up to the complete water exclusion without any further fiber surface hydrophobization, providing new approaches to control fluid flow. Additionally, functionalization with redox-responsive polymers leads to reversible, dynamic gating of fluid flow in these hybrid paper materials, demonstrating the potential of length scale specific, dynamic, and external transport control

Genome-wide association and Mendelian randomisation analysis provide insights into the pathogenesis of heart failure

Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. A small proportion of HF cases are attributable to monogenic cardiomyopathies and existing genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have yielded only limited insights, leaving the observed heritability of HF largely unexplained. We report results from a GWAS meta-analysis of HF comprising 47,309 cases and 930,014 controls. Twelve independent variants at 11 genomic loci are associated with HF, all of which demonstrate one or more associations with coronary artery disease (CAD), atrial fibrillation, or reduced left ventricular function, suggesting shared genetic aetiology. Functional analysis of non-CAD-associated loci implicate genes involved in cardiac development (MYOZ1, SYNPO2L), protein homoeostasis (BAG3), and cellular senescence (CDKN1A). Mendelian randomisation analysis supports causal roles for several HF risk factors, and demonstrates CAD-independent effects for atrial fibrillation, body mass index, and hypertension. These findings extend our knowledge of the pathways underlying HF and may inform new therapeutic strategies