On Curation: A Hermeneutical Approach

Starting point of this paper is the philosophical field of hermeneutics. Hermeneutics was established to account for different conditions of understanding and how they shape our interpretative processes. As different times constitute different conditions, the goal of the discipline essentially is to bridge the temporal gap between the creation of a work and its perception at a given point in time. Whereas traditionally, understanding was a matter of analyzing the historical tradition of author/artist and reader/viewer, nowadays, the perception and interpretation of art is shaped by another instance, the curator. Under the premise that selection and arrangement, i.e. curating, cannot be neutral, the author analyzes different contexts in which curating takes place and how different contexts account for different effects on our perception of art. After outlining the development of the curatorial practice—from institutional to independent curation—, a case study of Swiss curator Harald Szeemann serves as opportunity to examine specific phenomena and exhibitions in a detailed manner. A cultural and methodological cesura is proposed after which curators were able to execute the power and influence they have today: independent curation and the ahistorical exhibition. Ahistorical exhibitions disregard chronological display and enable curators to create individual narratives and themes by gathering artworks in a cross-temporal and geographical manner. Throughout the paper, it is assessed if and to what degree the application of hermeneutics onto the field of independent curation is fruitful. This theoretical analysis is followed by a market overview, in which various functions the curator fulfills in different institutions, e.g. museums, galleries, auction houses, are outlined and compared. Optimally, the consideration of cultural and commercial factors enables viewers to approach and see (curated) art in a differentiated way

Soil and Phyllosphere Microorganisms of the Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) Holobiont Involved in Chloromethane Emissions

Brassica napus, or rapeseed, is one major oilseed crop in Europe and Germany and is used for food, feed, and Biodiesel production. Chloromethane (CH3Cl) is the most abundant halogenated organic compound in the atmosphere and triggers the chlorine-mediated destruction of the ozone layer. Anthropogenic sources became negligible because of taken measures according to the Montreal Protocol (1987) and therefore natural sources such as plants became more relevant for the global chloromethane budget. The actual global budget is imbalanced through missing sinks, which may be activities of soil and phyllosphere microbiomes which together with the plant is considered as the holobiont. The amount of CH3Cl from crops has not been addressed and might even increase under stresses such as elevated soil salinization and temperature. We proved that B. napus (rapeseed) plants emit CH3Cl. Certain methylotrophs (microorganisms that utilize one-carbon compounds) degrade CH3Cl and can gain a selective advantage while colonizing plants. Moreover, methylotrophs thrive in the rhizosphere of grassland plants. The rapeseed associated microbiome likely harbours methylotrophs that degrade CH3Cl. Therefore, we addressed in this study the rapeseed holobiont to resolve its response to stressors such as salt and temperature in regard to CH3Cl emission. We addressed in our project the following objectives: (i) To measure CH3Cl emission rates from single B. napus holobionts under different NaCl and temperature stress levels in pot experiments, (ii) to assess the B. napus microbiome and its CH3Cl degradation ability through amplicon sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes and functional gene markers. The summer cultivar MAKRO was used as a model organism. We identified methylotrophs that responded to salt and temperature stress conditions in the phyllo- and rhizosphere of rapeseed and correlated those to the observed net emission rates

Gehandicaptenzorg inclusie en organiseren

This research is about people with a learning disability and their quality of life. It is generally accepted that the quality of life of people with a disability can be improved if social inclusion is put into practise successfully. Chapter 1 describes how the Netherlands has poor accessibility for people with disabilities and that inclusion is far away from reality. On the basis of research and current insights partly based on this, a movement has started which argues for replacing ‘the institute model’ by ‘the support model’. However, in practice there appears to be resistance to this process. The present - segregating - care system impedes this. Guffens (1985) distinguishes three strategies for change which are closely connected to each other: (1) a strategy whereby there is an active role for people with a disability (bottom-up), (2) a strategy which is mainly aimed at politics, laws and legislation (top-down) and (3) a strategy whereby the care institutions play an important role in realizing the preconditions for social inclusion. This research, from a organisational perspective, is aimed at contributing to the insights into improving the quality of life for people with a learning disability, especially in the area of social inclusion. It considers the following: – Providing insight into the components (success and failure factors) which play a role in giving form to social inclusion, from the perspective of care organizations; – Reaching recommendations for administrators of care organizations in order to be able to give a better form to social inclusion of people with a learning disability; – Contributing to theory forming with regard to success and failure factors. The main research question The main research question is: Care organizations are also trying to contribute to social inclusion of people with a learning disability. From the point of view of care organizations, which success and failure factors play a role in this and which administrative tasks do they lead to

Kostenmessung der Prozesse öffentlicher Liefer-, Dienstleistungs- und Bauaufträge aus Sicht der Wirtschaft und der öffentlichen Auftraggeber

Für 300 Mrd. Euro kaufen jährlich die über 30.000 Vergabestellen von Bund, Land und Kommunen Waren und Dienstleistungen ein, mit zum Teil lang andauernden und komplexen Vergabeverfahren. Wie hoch die Verfahrenskosten bei der Vergabe von öffentlichen Aufträgen sowohl auf Seiten der Unternehmen als auch der Vergabestellen sind und wie sie reduziert werden können ist Gegenstand einer Studie im Auftrag des Bundesministeriums für Wirtschaft und Technologie, an deren Erstellung das IfM Bonn beteiligt war. Auf Basis des international angewandten Standard-Kosten-Modells (SKM) zur Berechnung von Bürokratiekosten wurde ermittelt, dass mit der Vergabe öffentlicher Aufträge in Deutschland pro Jahr Verfahrenskosten in Höhe von 19 Mrd. Euro anfallen. Mit einem Großteil der 30 identifizierten Vorschläge zur Vereinheitlichung und Verschlankung des Vergaberechts, vor allem organisatorische Maßnahmen, können die Prozesskosten jedoch um bis zu 20 % gesenkt werden. --

Identification of Proteins and Genes Expressed by Methylophaga thiooxydans During Growth on Dimethylsulfide and Their Presence in Other Members of the Genus

Dimethylsulfide is a volatile organic sulfur compound that provides the largest input of biogenic sulfur from the oceans to the atmosphere, and thence back to land, constituting an important link in the global sulfur cycle. Microorganisms degrading DMS affect fluxes of DMS in the environment, but the underlying metabolic pathways are still poorly understood. Methylophaga thiooxydans is a marine methylotrophic bacterium capable of growth on DMS as sole source of carbon and energy. Using proteomics and transcriptomics we identified genes expressed during growth on dimethylsulfide and methanol to refine our knowledge of the metabolic pathways that are involved in DMS and methanol degradation in this strain. Amongst the most highly expressed genes on DMS were the two methanethiol oxidases driving the oxidation of this reactive and toxic intermediate of DMS metabolism. Growth on DMS also increased expression of the enzymes of the tetrahydrofolate linked pathway of formaldehyde oxidation, in addition to the tetrahydromethanopterin linked pathway. Key enzymes of the inorganic sulfur oxidation pathway included flavocytochrome c sulfide dehydrogenase, sulfide quinone oxidoreductase, and persulfide dioxygenases. A sulP permease was also expressed during growth on DMS. Proteomics and transcriptomics also identified a number of highly expressed proteins and gene products whose function is currently not understood. As the identity of some enzymes of organic and inorganic sulfur metabolism previously detected in Methylophaga has not been characterized at the genetic level yet, highly expressed uncharacterized genes provide new targets for further biochemical and genetic analysis. A pan-genome analysis of six available Methylophaga genomes showed that only two of the six investigated strains, M. thiooxydans and M. sulfidovorans have the gene encoding methanethiol oxidase, suggesting that growth on methylated sulfur compounds of M. aminisulfidivorans is likely to involve different enzymes and metabolic intermediates. Hence, the pathways of DMS-utilization and subsequent C1 and sulfur oxidation are not conserved across Methylophaga isolates that degrade methylated sulfur compounds