Commons in Design

The scarcity of resources, climate change, and the digitalization of everyday life are fuelling the economy of swapping, sharing, and lending—all of which are in some way linked to a culture of commoning. In this context, we understand commons as community-based processes that use, collectively manage, and organize generally accessible resources—referring to both goods and knowledge. Commons in Design explores the meaning and impact of commons—especially knowledge-based peer commons—and acts of commoning in design. It discusses networked, participatory, and open procedures based on the commons and commoning, testing models that negotiate the use of commons within design processes. In doing so, it critically engages with questions regarding designers’ positionings, everyday practices, self-understandings, ways of working, and approaches to education

Augmented Spaces and Maps

With the convergence of space, media and design, not only are design practices radically changing but so are the surfaces that need to be designed: digital maps enable an interface to the physical world and allow new forms of navigation and spatial experience. At the same time, internet companies as cartographers raise discussions about inequalities and hegemonic claims. This book introduces this field, outlines important influences, theories and approaches and uses current examples to explain how card-based interfaces can work. This basis also serves as an inspiration for a critical and experimental approach that is important for designers, practitioners and an audience interested in design

The "Third Reich" memoir in the light of postmodern philosophy

Die Diplomarbeit hinterfragt die Darstellung und Darstellbarkeit historischer Ereignisse in Belletristik, Autobiographie, Film und Geschichtsschreibung unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des Holocaust. Der erste Teil konzentriert sich auf erzähltheoretische Ansätze zur Abgrenzung von Fakt und Fiktion. Anhand von Martin Löschniggs Unterscheidung von sprachlogischen, semantischen und pragmatischen Ansätzen werden die Stärken und Schwächen verschiedener erzähltheoretischer Modelle untersucht. Der zweite Teil setzt sich mit der Problematik postmoderner Geschichtsphilosophie nach Hayden White, Frank Ankersmit und Keith Jenkins auseinander. Danach wird anhand konkreter Beispiele das Potential von Literatur und Film als Vermittler zwischen Gegenwart und Vergangenheit erörtert. Art Spiegelmans Maus wird als gelungene Alternative zu konventionellen Holocaust-Biographien gelesen, die die postmoderne Geschichtsskepsis auf graphischer und metatextueller Ebene hinterfragt und überwindet. Den theoretischen Hintergrund des dritten Teils bilden Texte von Walter Benjamin und Paul Eakin. Im vierten Teil liegt der Schwerpunkt auf institutionalisierter Erinnerung und auf der Rolle des Holocaust in der Konstruktion kollektiver amerikanischer Identitäten. Norman Finkelsteins The Holocaust Industry wird als Exempel eines Textes an der Schnittstelle von Sachliteratur und Polemik behandelt. Weiters wird auf den „Ausverkauf“ des Holocaust durch die Kulturindustrie, den Wilkomirski/Dössekker-Skandal, den Gerichtsprozess zwischen Deborah Lipstadt/Penguin Books und David Irving und die „Holokitsch“-Problematik eingegangen. Die Arbeit will keine Antwort auf die Frage geben, wie die Vergangenheit denn nun darzustellen sei. Vielmehr sollen die Zusammenhänge zwischen Text und Realität, Vergangenheit und Gegenwart aufgezeigt werden. Die Grundlage der Untersuchung bildet meine persönliche Überzeugung, dass unser Wissen um und Denken über Geschichte einen Faktor für die gegenwärtige Entwicklung von Gesellschaft und Gemeinschaft darstellen, der, allen Schwierigkeiten zum Trotz, weder wegdividiert werden kann noch sollte

Augmented Spaces and Maps

With the convergence of space, media and design, not only are design practices radically changing but so are the surfaces that need to be designed: digital maps enable an interface to the physical world and allow new forms of navigation and spatial experience. At the same time, internet companies as cartographers raise discussions about inequalities and hegemonic claims. This book introduces this field, outlines important influences, theories and approaches and uses current examples to explain how card-based interfaces can work. This basis also serves as an inspiration for a critical and experimental approach that is important for designers, practitioners and an audience interested in design

Hemodynamic and genetic analysis in children with idiopathic, heritable, and congenital heart disease associated pulmonary arterial hypertension

Background: Aim of this prospective study was to compare clinical and genetic findings in children with idiopathic or heritable pulmonary arterial hypertension (I/HPAH) with children affected with congenital heart defects associated PAH (CHD-APAH). Methods: Prospectively included were 40 consecutive children with invasively diagnosed I/HPAH or CHD-APAH and 117 relatives. Assessment of family members, pedigree analysis and systematic screening for mutations in TGFß genes were performed. Results: Five mutations in the bone morphogenetic protein type II receptor (BMPR2) gene, 2 Activin A receptor type II-like kinase-1 (ACVRL1) mutations and one Endoglin (ENG) mutation were found in the 29 I/HPAH children. Two mutations in BMPR2 and one mutation in ACVRL1 and ENG, respectively, are described for the first time. In the 11 children with CHD-APAH one BMPR2 gene mutation and one Endoglin gene mutation were found. Clinical assessment of relatives revealed familial aggregation of the disease in 6 children with PAH (HPAH) and one CHD-APAH patient. Patients with mutations had a significantly lower PVR. Conclusion: Mutations in different TGFß genes occurred in 8/29 (27.6%) I/HPAH patients and in 2/11 (18.2%) CHD-APAH patients and may influence the clinical status of the disease. Therefore, genetic analysis in children with PAH, especially in those with I/HPAH, may be of clinical relevance and shows the complexity of the genetic background

A comparison of national approaches to setting ecological status boundaries in phytobenthos assessment for the European Water Framework Directive: results of an intercalibration exercise

The European Union (EU)'s Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires that all Member States participate in intercalibration exercises in order to ensure that ecological status concepts and assessment levels are consistent across the EU. This paper describes one such exercise, performed by the countries in the Central/Baltic Geographical Intercalibration Group stretching from Ireland in the west to Estonia in the east and from the southern parts of Scandinavia to the northern regions of Spain and Italy (but excluding alpine regions, which were intercalibrated separately). In this exercise, methods used to measure ecological status of rivers using benthic diatoms were compared. Ecological status is estimated as the ratio between the observed value of a biological element and the value expected in the absence of significant human impact. Approaches to defining the 'reference sites', from which these 'expected' values were derived, varied from country to country. Minimum criteria were established as part of the exercise but there was still considerable variation between national reference values, reflecting typological differences that could not be resolved during the exercise. A simple multimetric index was developed to compare boundary values using two widely used diatom metrics. Boundary values for high/good status and good/moderate status set by each participant were converted to their equivalent values of this intercalibration metric using linear regression. Variation of ±0.05 EQR units around the median value was considered to be acceptable and the exercise provided a means for those Member States who fell significantly above or below this line to review their approaches and, if necessary, adjust their boundaries

Report Card grades on the physical activity of children and youth comparing 30 very high Human Development Index countries

Background: To better understand the childhood physical inactivity crisis, Report Cards on physical activity of children and youth were prepared concurrently in 30 very high Human Development Index countries. The aim of this article was to present, describe, and compare the findings from these Report Cards. Methods: The Report Cards were developed using a harmonized process for data gathering, assessing, and assigning grades to 10 common physical activity indicators. Descriptive statistics were calculated after converting letter grades to interval variables, and correlational analyses between the 10 common indicators were performed using Spearman's rank correlation coefficients. Results: A matrix of 300 grades was obtained with substantial variations within and between countries. Low grades were observed for behavioral indicators, and higher grades were observed for sources of influence indicators, indicating a disconnect between supports and desired behaviors. Conclusion: This analysis summarizes the level and context of the physical activity of children and youth among very high Human Development Index countries, and provides additional evidence that the situation regarding physical activity in children and youth is very concerning. Unless a major shift to a more active lifestyle happens soon, a high rate of noncommunicable diseases can be anticipated when this generation of children reaches adulthood.</p

Global Matrix 3.0 Physical Activity Report Card Grades for Children and Youth: Results and Analysis From 49 Countries

Background: Accumulating sufficient moderate to vigorous physical activity is recognized as a key determinant of physical, physiological, developmental, mental, cognitive, and social health among children and youth (aged 5–17 y). The Global Matrix 3.0 of Report Card grades on physical activity was developed to achieve a better understanding of the global variation in child and youth physical activity and associated supports. Methods: Work groups from 49 countries followed harmonized procedures to develop their Report Cards by grading 10 common indicators using the best available data. The participating countries were divided into 3 categories using the United Nations’ human development index (HDI) classification (low or medium, high, and very high HDI). Results: A total of 490 grades, including 369 letter grades and 121 incomplete grades, were assigned by the 49 work groups. Overall, an average grade of “C-,” “D+,” and “C-” was obtained for the low and medium HDI countries, high HDI countries, and very high HDI countries, respectively. Conclusions: The present study provides rich new evidence showing that the situation regarding the physical activity of children and youth is a concern worldwide. Strategic public investments to implement effective interventions to increase physical activity opportunities are needed

Genomic investigations of unexplained acute hepatitis in children

Since its first identification in Scotland, over 1,000 cases of unexplained paediatric hepatitis in children have been reported worldwide, including 278 cases in the UK1. Here we report an investigation of 38 cases, 66 age-matched immunocompetent controls and 21 immunocompromised comparator participants, using a combination of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and immunohistochemical methods. We detected high levels of adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2) DNA in the liver, blood, plasma or stool from 27 of 28 cases. We found low levels of adenovirus (HAdV) and human herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B) in 23 of 31 and 16 of 23, respectively, of the cases tested. By contrast, AAV2 was infrequently detected and at low titre in the blood or the liver from control children with HAdV, even when profoundly immunosuppressed. AAV2, HAdV and HHV-6 phylogeny excluded the emergence of novel strains in cases. Histological analyses of explanted livers showed enrichment for T cells and B lineage cells. Proteomic comparison of liver tissue from cases and healthy controls identified increased expression of HLA class 2, immunoglobulin variable regions and complement proteins. HAdV and AAV2 proteins were not detected in the livers. Instead, we identified AAV2 DNA complexes reflecting both HAdV-mediated and HHV-6B-mediated replication. We hypothesize that high levels of abnormal AAV2 replication products aided by HAdV and, in severe cases, HHV-6B may have triggered immune-mediated hepatic disease in genetically and immunologically predisposed children