Sound propagation in a duct of periodic wall structure

A boundary condition, which accounts for the coupling in the sections behind the duct boundary, is given for the sound-absorbing duct with a periodic structure of the wall lining and using regular partition walls. The soundfield in the duct is suitably described by the method of differences. For locally active walls this renders an explicit approximate solution for the propagation constant. Coupling may be accounted for by the method of differences in a clear manner. Numerical results agree with measurements and yield information which has technical applications

The Coming Out of Memory: The Holocaust, Homosexuality, and Dealing with the Past

This research discusses the challenges of establishing a collective memory for gay victims of the Nazi terror in World War II and examines the introduction of gay victimhood into the public sphere through memorialization efforts. While scholarly accounts on gays and the Holocaust emerged in the 1970s, little is known about the emergence and consolidation of a public narrative on gay persecutions under the Nazis. It raises important questions, including why a public voice for crimes against sexual minorities in World War II emerged only hesitantly? Drawing on historical gay memorialization processes in Germany, the author maps the obstacles for recognition, including external and internal challenges in expanding existing narratives and a collective memory of the past. This fraught advocacy work remains nonetheless crucial to promote commemorations of persecution and discrimination against minority groups that have received limited public acknowledgement

Afraid to Cry Wolf: Human Rights Activists’ Conundrum to Define Narratives of Justice and Truth in the Former Yugoslavia1

Throughout the 1990s the state of Yugoslavia dissolved, ravaged by horrendous conflict. Since, several retributive and restorative mechanisms to cope with past atrocities have been attempted. In these processes social activists and civil society organizations have increasingly gained ground. Employing concepts of sociology of spaces, which focuses on the creation of spaces through action and the interdependence of action on spatial structures, I argue that activists move between different spaces constituted by narratives of justice and truth. Different NGOs across the region run trial monitoring and/or witness support programs—examples of activist involvement in legal spatiality

Youth Activism, Art and Transitional Justice: Emerging Spaces of Memory after the Jasmine Revolution

This chapter explores the creation of alternative transitional justice spaces in post-conflict contexts, particularly concentrating on the role of art and the impact of social movements to address human rights abuses. Drawing from post-authoritarian Tunisia, it scrutinizes the work of contemporary youth activists and artists to deal with the past and foster sociopolitical change. Although these vanguard protesters provoked the overthrow of President Zine El Abdine Ben Ali in 2011, the power vacuum was quickly filled by old elites. The exclusion of young revolutionaries from political decision-making led to unprecedented forms of mobilization to account for repression and injustice under the ancien regime. During this process, art served as a medium to create these innovative spaces of deliberation. The study builds on Foucault’s concept of heterotopia – spaces of otherness that are simultaneously physical and mental – to fuel new insights on the challenges associated with generating spaces of memory and accountability. It is based on over three dozen in-depth narrative interviews with local actors and content analysis of art campaigns and collective action. The findings demonstrate that the emergence of this new fragile spatiality is nevertheless contingent on contested visions and memories of Tunisia’s secularist and Islamist political traditions

Time for Change: Aid, NGOs, and Transitional Justice in Bosnia-Herzegovina

This article examines Scandinavian donor practices in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) with regards to post-conflict justice activities. BiH has been a laboratory of reconstruction, peace-building and transitional justice processes since the end of the war in 1995. While issues related to rebuilding and developing war-torn societies and their economies have attracted extensive scholarly attention, the question of international aid practices in transitional justice contexts remains widely understudied. Although the influence of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in reconciliatory transitional justice work has been growing, the relationship between international donors and local NGOs involved in these projects remains very limited. The objective of this study is to explore why this is the case. This research draws on Scandinavian aid practices in BiH – particularly the cases of Norway and Sweden – as Scandinavian countries are considered norm entrepreneurs not only in world politics but also in the field of development. This research relies on over three-dozen in depth interviews (with government representatives, experts, and activists), donor evaluation reports, and media documents. The article discusses the factors contributing to the reluctance of Scandinavian donors to provide financial assistance to local NGOs engaging in restorative justice processes in BiH

The Coming Out of Memory: The Holocaust, Homosexuality, and Dealing with the Past

This research discusses the challenges of establishing a collective memory for gay victims of the Nazi terror in World War II and examines the introduction of gay victimhood into the public sphere through memorialization efforts. While scholarly accounts on gays and the Holocaust emerged in the 1970s, little is known about the emergence and consolidation of a public narrative on gay persecutions under the Nazis. It raises important questions, including why a public voice for crimes against sexual minorities in World War II emerged only hesitantly? Drawing on historical gay memorialization processes in Germany, the author maps the obstacles for recognition, including external and internal challenges in expanding existing narratives and collective memory of the past. This fraught advocacy work remains nonetheless crucial to promote commemorations of persecution and discrimination against minority groups that have received limited public acknowledgment

Effect of tomato variety, cultivation, climate and processing on Sola l 4, an allergen from Solanum lycopersicum

Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) are one of the most consumed vegetables worldwide. However, tomato allergies in patients suffering from birch pollen allergy occur frequently. Due to highly similar protein structures of the tomato allergen Sola l 4 and the major birch pollen allergen Bet v 1, patients cross-react with allergenic proteins from tomato as well as other fruits or vegetables. The aim of this study was to quantify Sola l 4 in various tomatoes differing in color, size and shape for identification of varieties with a reduced allergen level. Therefore, an indirect competitive ELISA using a specific polyclonal Sola l 4 antibody was developed. In addition, two varieties, both cultivated either conventionally or organically and furthermore dried with different methods, were analyzed to investigate the influence of the cultivation method and processing techniques on Sola l 4 level. Within 23 varieties, Sola l 4 content varied significantly between 0.24 and 1.71 μg Sola l 4/g FW. The tomato cultivars Rugantino and Rhianna showed the significantly lowest level, whereas in cultivars Farbini and Bambello the significantly highest concentration was determined. Drying of tomatoes in the oven and by sun resulted in a significant decrease. The thermal instability was verified for the recombinant Sola l 4 emphasizing the results for the native protein in dried tomato samples. Overall, the Sola l 4 content is cultivar-dependent and no correlation between color and Sola l 4 amount was found. During the drying process of tomatoes Sola l 4 level was significantly reduced due to thermal instability. Growing conditions have a minor effect whereas seasonal effects show a more pronounced impact. These findings could extend the knowledge about the allergen level of different tomato varieties and may help to improve food safety to potentially increase the life quality of patients suffering from birch pollen allergy

Democratizing Justice in the Post-Conflict Balkans: The Dilemma of Domestic Human Rights Activists

Years of international and national accountability efforts in the former Yugoslavia have only partially helped post-conflict societies to transition. To complement retributive justice efforts more recently, human rights activists have launched a campaign to establish a regional truth commission. This article explores the intricate efforts among nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in several states across the region – particularly Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia – to coordinate this movement. Drawing on participant observation and in-depth interviews, this study illustrates the movement’s struggle from within – caused by the conflicting interests of its members – and from outside, as it seeks support from international and region-specific organizations as well as national governments. While activists have remained unsuccessful in institutionalizing new truth spaces, this article argues that the state-centric strategy of human rights advocates during the campaign widened the gap between the activist leaders and victims’ groups, their principal supporters

#WarCrimes #PostConflictJustice #Balkans: Youth, Performance Activism and the Politics of Memory

While literature in transitional justice has addressed conventional retributive and restorative justice mechanisms, scholarship focusing on the rise in youth activism to confront war crimes is underdeveloped. This article draws on over two-dozen in-depth interviews with youth activist leaders across the former Yugoslavia, focusing on their performance-based campaigns. I explain why the emergence of transitional justice youth activism in the Balkans falls short of the significant institutional reforms of earlier youth movement mobilizations in the region. I also throw light on why their performance activism is distinct from practices of older, established human rights organizations in the region. Notwithstanding, I argue that this performance-based advocacy work has fuelled the creation of a new spatiality of deliberation – so-called strategic confrontation spaces – to contest the culture of impunity and challenge the politics of memory in the former Yugoslavia