Ernst Jünger and the problem of Nihilism in the age of total war

As a singular witness and actor of the tumultuous twentieth century, Ernst Jünger remains a controversial and enigmatic figure known above all for his vivid autobiographical accounts of experience in the trenches of the First World War. This article will argue that throughout his entire oeuvre, from personal diaries to novels and essays, he never ceased to grapple with what he viewed as the central question of the age, namely that of the problem of nihilism and the means to overcome it. Inherited from Nietzsche’s diagnosis of Western civilization in the late nineteenth century to which he added an acute observation of the particular role of technology within it, Jünger would employ this lens to make sense of the seemingly absurd industrial slaughter of modern war and herald the advent of a new voluntarist and bellicist order that was to imminently sweep away timorous and decadent bourgeois societies obsessed with security and self-preservation. Jünger would ultimately see his expectations dashed, including by the forms of rule that National Socialism would take, and eventually retreated into a reclusive quietism. Yet he never abandoned his central problematique of nihilism, developing it further in exchanges with Martin Heidegger after the Second World War. And for all the ways in which he may have erred, his life-long struggle with meaning in the age of technique and its implications for war and security continue to make Jünger a valuable interlocutor of the present

Essential Management of Pediatric Brain Tumors.

Brain tumors are the most common solid tumors in children and are associated with high mortality. The most common childhood brain tumors are grouped as low-grade gliomas (LGG), high grade gliomas (HGG), ependymomas, and embryonal tumors, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Advances in molecular genetics have led to a shift from pure histopathological diagnosis to integrated diagnosis. For the first time, these new criteria were included in the WHO classification published in 2016 and has been further updated in the 2021 edition. Integrated diagnosis is based on molecular genomic similarities of the tumor subclasses, and it can better explain the differences in clinical courses of previously histopathologically identical entities. Important advances have also been made in pediatric neuro-oncology. A growing understanding of the molecular-genetic background of tumorigenesis has improved the diagnostic accuracy. Re-stratification of treatment protocols and the development of targeted therapies will significantly affect overall survival and quality of life. For some pediatric tumors, these advances have significantly improved therapeutic management and prognosis in certain tumor subgroups. Some therapeutic approaches also have serious long-term consequences. Therefore, optimized treatments are greatly needed. Here, we discuss the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration and the role of (pediatric) neurosurgery by briefly describing the most common childhood brain tumors and their currently recognized molecular subgroups

Land use disadvantages in Germany: A matter of ethnic income inequalities?

Environmental hazards affect people from different income groups and migration backgrounds on different levels. The research on environmental inequalities and environmental justice has proposed several theories to explain such inequities; still, it remains unclear which of these theories applies to the German societal context. This research investigates whether individual-level income differences between Germans and migrants account for objectively measured exposure to the environmental goods and bads of land use, specifically soil sealing and green spaces. Marginal effects and predictions based on georeferenced survey data from the German General Social Survey reveal that Germans with higher incomes live in areas with better neighbourhood quality. Germans with lower incomes are exposed to fewer disadvantages stemming from land use, and there is no marginal difference between nonurban and urban municipalities. Spatial assimilation in high-income groups occurs; however, the difference in low-income groups can be explained by place stratification and discrimination in the housing market. While this study uses more indirect and non-hazardous measures of environmental quality - in contrast to air pollution or noise - it provides evidence that such indicators also create distributional injustices in Germany

Using Georeferenced Data in Social Science Survey Research: The Method of Spatial Linking and Its Application with the German General Social Survey and the GESIS Panel

This book demonstrates the use of georeferenced data for social science survey research which builds upon survey data enriched with geo-coordinates. It reviews the prerequisites and challenges of applying these data to different social science research questions, highlighting the different branches of an interdisciplinary effort. At the center of this presentation is the method of spatial linking: the combination of georeferenced survey data with information from auxiliary geospatial data sources. A collection of spatial linking methods is applied in this book’s empirical applications which underline these methods’ flexibility in different social science sub-disciplines, such as health and family, political attitudes, and environmental inequalities. For this purpose, georeferenced survey data from the German General Social Survey (GGSS) 2014 and the GESIS Panel are used. These empirical applications are part of an emerging field of research for social scientists, requiring new analytic skills from diverse and foreign disciplines, like ecology and engineering. Navigating the organizational and technical requirements for the analysis of georeferenced survey data enables researchers to answer new and innovative research questions.Dieses Buch beschäftigt sich mit der Nutzung georeferenzierter Daten in der sozialwissenschaftlichen Umfrageforschung, deren Ausgangspunkt Umfragedaten sind, die mit Geokoordinaten angereichert wurden. Es widmet sich den Voraussetzungen und Herausforderungen, solche Daten für verschiedene sozialwissenschaftliche Fragestellungen nutzbar zu machen und betont dabei die verschiedenen interdisziplinären Verzweigungen dieses Unterfangens. Im Mittelpunkt der Präsentation steht die Methode der räumlichen Verknüpfung: die Kombination georeferenzierter Umfragedaten mit Informationen aus externen Geodatenquellen. Anhand mehrerer, aus unterschiedlichen Subdisziplinen der Sozialwissenschaften stammender empirischer Anwendungen im Bereich Familie und Gesundheit, politische Einstellungen sowie Umwelt und Ungleichheit wird die Flexibilität der Methode in Form verschiedener räumlicher Verknüpfungen betont. Dazu werden georeferenzierte Umfragedaten der Allgemeinen Bevölkerungsumfrage Sozialwissenschaften (ALLBUS) 2014 und dem GESIS Panel 2014 verwendet. Diese empirischen Anwendungen sind Teil eines aufstrebenden Forschungsfelds für Sozialforschende, welches neue analytische Fertigkeiten aus verschiedenen anderen Fachbereichen wie der Ökologie oder des Ingenieurswesen erfordert. Werden die organisatorischen und technischen Anforderungen zur Analyse georeferenzierter Umfragedaten gemeistert, eröffnet sich Forschenden die Möglichkeit, neue und innovative Fragestellungen zu beantworten

Beurteilung der Degeneration der optischen Bahn via Chiasma Opticum Messung in der konventionellen Magnetresonanztomographie

Background: The optic pathway is preferentially targeted by inflammatory central nervous system diseases such as neuromyelitis spectrum disorders (NMOSD). The neurodegenerative damage that follows an optic neuritis may involve the entire visual pathway. Currently there is no validated method available to evaluate this damage on conventional MRI. Axons from both optic nerves merge at the optic chiasm, making it a promising imaging marker of neurodegenerative changes of the anterior optic pathway. Objectives: The aim of this dissertation project was to investigate whether neurodegenerative changes of the anterior optic pathway can be detected by measuring optic chiasm dimensions. Therefore, we hypothesized that neurodegenerative changes of the anterior optic pathway manifest in a reduction of optic chiasm dimensions and that optic chiasm dimensions in conventional 3D T1- weighted MR images are sensitive to neurodegenerative changes of anterior optic pathway. Materials and Methods: In a cross-sectional study, we used NMOSD as a model of severe optic pathway damage and measured optic chiasm dimensions of 39 aquaporin 4-IgG-seropositive NMOSD patients, of which 25 had a history of optic neuritis (NMOSD-ON), and 37 age- and sex- matched healthy control participants. To test our hypothesis optic chiasm dimensions between patients and healthy control participants were compared. The sensitivity with which these predict the presence of damage of the anterior optic pathway was assessed in a receiver operating characteristics analysis. Additional associations with structural measures of the anterior optic pathway (optic nerve atrophy in MRI, retinal ganglion cell loss in optical coherence tomography (OCT)) and clinical parameters (visual acuity as logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) and disease duration) were analyzed. Results: Compared to healthy control participants optic chiasm height and area were smaller in NMOSD-ON patients (p<0.0001) and NMOSD-NON patients (p<0.01). An optic chiasm area smaller than 22.5 mm2 yielded a sensitivity of 0.92 and a specificity of 0.92 in differentiating the optic chiasm of NMOSD-ON from healthy control participants. The optic chiasm area correlated with structural measures of the anterior optic pathway in NMOSD-ON, i.e. optic nerve diameter (r=0.4, p=0.047), peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (r=0.59, p=0.003)) and clinical parameters, e.g. visual acuity (r=-0.57, p=0.013) and disease duration (r=-0.5, p=0.012). Conclusion: Optic chiasms are significantly smaller in NMOSD patients compared to healthy control patients. The optic chiasm area, as measured with conventional MRI, is associated with structural measures of the anterior optic pathway and clinical parameters. Our results suggest that optic chiasm dimensions are promising and easily accessible imaging markers for the assessment of neurodegenerative changes of the anterior optic pathway.Hintergrund: Das visuelle System ist in neuroinflammatorischen Erkrankungen wie Neuromyelitis optica häufig betroffen. Neurodegenerativer Schaden nach Optikusneuritis kann die gesamte optische Bahn betreffen. Aktuell gibt es keine validierte Methode zur Beurteilung neurodegenerativen Schadens der anterioren optischen Bahn auf Routine-MRT Aufnahmen. Axone beider Nervi optici laufen im Chiasma opticum zusammen, was es zu einem vielversprechenden Bildgebungsmarker neurodegenerativer Veränderungen der anterioren optischen Bahn macht. Ziel: Ziel war es zu untersuchen, ob neurodegenerative Veränderungen der anterioren optischen Bahn am Chiasma opticum sensitiv und zuverlässig detektierbar sind. Unsere Hypothese ist, dass sich neurodegenerative Veränderungen der anterioren optischen Bahn durch Atrophie des Chiasma opticums manifestieren und, dass Größenparameter des Chiasma opticums in konventionellen 3D T1-gewichteten MRT Aufnahmen sensitiv gegenüber dieser Veränderungen sind. Methoden: In einer Querschnittsstudie wurden Patienten mit NMOSD als Modell für schweren Schaden der anterioren optischen Bahn untersucht. Die Größenparamenter Höhe, Breite, Fläche des Chiasma opticums von 39 Aquaporin-4-IgG seropositiven NMOSD Patienten (davon 25 mit Optikusneuritis Anamnese) und 37 in Alter und Geschlecht gematchte, gesunde Kontrollprobanden wurden bestimmt und verglichen. Sensitivität und Spezifität, mit der diese Parameter Schaden der anterioren optischen Bahn nachweisen, wurden in einer Receiver Operating Characteristics Analyse untersucht. Es wurden Assoziationen mit strukturellen Parametern der anterioren optischen Bahn (Nervus opticus Atrophie im MRT, Verlust retinaler Ganglionzellen im OCT) und klinischen Parametern (Sehschärfe als logMAR, Krankheitsdauer) analysiert. Ergebnisse: Verglichen mit Kontrollprobanden waren Höhe und Fläche des Chiasma opticums signifikant kleiner in NMOSD-Patienten, sowohl bei Patienten mit Optikusneuritis Anamnese (NMOSD- ON p<0.0001) als auch ohne (NMOSD-NON p<0.01). Eine Chiasma opticum Fläche von kleiner als 22.5mm2 trennte NMOSD-ON Patienten von Kontrollprobanden mit einer Sensitivität von 0.92 und einer Spezifität von 0.92. Die Chiasma opticum Fläche korrelierte mit strukturellen Maßen der anterioren optischen Bahn in NMOSD-ON Patienten, z.B. Nervus opticus Durchmesser (r=0.4, p=0.047), pRNFL Dicke (r=0.59, p=0.003), und mit klinischen Parametern, wie der Sehschärfe (r=-0.57, p=0.013) und der Krankheitsdauer (r=-0.5, p=0.012)). Schlussfolgerung: Zwischen NMOSD-Patienten und Kontrollprobanden bestehen deutliche Größenunterschiede des Chiasma opticums. Diese sind mit strukturellen Maßen der anterioren optischen Bahn und klinischen Parametern assoziiert. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Größenparameter des Chiasma opticums vielversprechende und einfach zugängliche Bildgebungsmarker für die Beurteilung neurodegenerativer Veränderungen der anterioren optischen Bahn sind

Scraping social media data as platform research: A data hermeneutical perspective

Working with social media data is a hermeneutic procedure systematically guided by doubts about the meaning of data at all stages of the research process, from data collection and preparation to data analysis and publication. A short walk through the automated data collection workflow, as it is implemented in the open-source software Facepager, highlights some of the epistemic peculiarities of the process. The paper encourages researchers to deal with technical details, errors, and restrictions in order to gain a deeper understanding of the organizing principles of the web. Technical limitations and hurdles should not solely be considered as problems to be solved, but also as indicators of social processes on online platforms. Scraping social media data touches on key aspects of platformization and, therefore, is not merely a data collection method, but also a means of examining the online world through a data hermeneutical lens