Ion mobility spectrometry for microbial volatile organic compounds: a new identification tool for human pathogenic bacteria

Presently, 2 to 4 days elapse between sampling at infection suspicion and result of microbial diagnostics. This delay for the identification of pathogens causes quite often a late and/or inappropriate initiation of therapy for patients suffering from infections. Bad outcome and high hospitalization costs are the consequences of these currently existing limited pathogen identification possibilities. For this reason, we aimed to apply the innovative method multi-capillary column–ion mobility spectrometry (MCC-IMS) for a fast identification of human pathogenic bacteria by determination of their characteristic volatile metabolomes. We determined volatile organic compound (VOC) patterns in headspace of 15 human pathogenic bacteria, which were grown for 24 h on Columbia blood agar plates. Besides MCC-IMS determination, we also used thermal desorption–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry measurements to confirm and evaluate obtained MCC-IMS data and if possible to assign volatile compounds to unknown MCC-IMS signals. Up to 21 specific signals have been determined by MCC-IMS for Proteus mirabilis possessing the most VOCs of all investigated strains. Of particular importance is the result that all investigated strains showed different VOC patterns by MCC-IMS using positive and negative ion mode for every single strain. Thus, the discrimination of investigated bacteria is possible by detection of their volatile organic compounds in the chosen experimental setup with the fast and cost-effective method MCC-IMS. In a hospital routine, this method could enable the identification of pathogens already after 24 h with the consequence that a specific therapy could be initiated significantly earlier

Editorial

The five papers in this issue of the Weizenbaum Journal of the Digital Society examine processes of digitalization from a perspective that encompasses political economy, political science, psychology, and communication science. In turn, the contributors explore the relationship between digitalization and capitalism, the role of civic tech initiatives, the regulation of political micro-targeting on social media, the use of fictive accounts of historical figures on social media, and concepts for the participatory development of research agendas

Editorial

Joseph Weizenbaum would have been 100 years old on January 8, 2023. This anniversary was a welcome occasion to remember the life, work, and impact of the great computer scientist and public intellectual at the Weizenbaum Institute.  This special issue compiles a series of articles directly or indirectly related to his work. Contributions center on Weizenbaum as an individual and his public role as a progressive intellectual, encompassing contemporary viewpoints on ethics in digital technology

Das Konjunkturpaket II: bildungspolitische Richtungsentscheidung durch die Hintertür

Der Einsatz des Milliardensegens ist nicht geregelt – dass die Mittel den bedürftigsten Einrichtungen zukommen, darf bezweifelt werden. Die Ziele des Bildungsgipfels, etwa die Zahl der Schulabbrecher bis 2015 zu halbieren, wären nur durch langfristige Investitionen zu erreichen. Mündet das Konjunkturpaket II in eine Schuldenbremse, sind nötige Investitionen von morgen, wie Hochschulpakt und Exzellenzinitiative, in Gefahr

Öffnen die Länder ihre Hochschulen? Annahmen über den Dritten Bildungsweg auf dem Prüfstand

\u27Im Diskurs um den Dritten Bildungsweg kursieren drei zentrale Behauptungen: 1) Die Regelungen in den Ländern unterscheiden sich stark. 2) Sie wurden durch den KMK-Beschluss harmonisiert. 3) Die Regelungen in den Ländern sind durch den KMK-Beschluss einen großen Schritt vorangekommen. Diese Annahmen entbehren zumeist der empirischen Fundierung. Sie sollen hier auf Grundlage einer systematischen Auswertung der rechtlichen Regelungen für das Studium ohne Abitur in den Ländern von 1990 bis heute einer Prüfung unterzogen werden. Die Analyse zeigt, dass eine weit verbreitete Annahme im hochschulpolitischen Diskurs, nach der die Öffnung der Hochschulen in den Ländern nur dann Fortschritte macht, wenn die KMK Druck auf die Länder ausübt, infrage gestellt werden muss.\u27 (HoF/Text übernommen

Scraping the demos: Digitalization, web scraping and the democratic project

Scientific, political and bureaucratic elites use epistemic practices like "big data analysis" and "web scraping" to create representations of the citizenry and to legitimize policymaking. I develop the concept of "demos scraping" for these practices of gaining information about citizens (the "demos") through automated analysis of digital trace data which are re-purposed for political means. This article critically engages with the discourse advocating demos scraping and provides a conceptual analysis of its democratic implications. It engages with the promise of demos scraping advocates to reduce the gap between political elites and citizens and highlights how demos scraping is presented as a superior form of accessing the "will of the people" and to increase democratic legitimacy. This leads me to critically discuss the implications of demos scraping for political representation and participation. In its current form, demos scraping is technocratic and de-politicizing; and the larger political and economic context in which it takes place makes it unlikely that it will reduce the gap between elites and citizens. From the analytic perspective of a post-democratic turn, demos scraping is an attempt of late modern and digitalized societies to address the democratic paradox of increasing citizen expectations coupled with a deep legitimation crisis