244 research outputs found

    Floer homology and the heat flow

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    We study the heat flow in the loop space of a closed Riemannian manifold MM as an adiabatic limit of the Floer equations in the cotangent bundle. Our main application is a proof that the Floer homology of the cotangent bundle, for the Hamiltonian function kinetic plus potential energy, is naturally isomorphic to the homology of the loop space.Comment: 83 pages, 1 figure. We introduce a class of abstract perturbations in order to achieve transversality. The argument carries over to this clas

    The Effects of Entrepreneurship Education

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    Entrepreneurship education ranks highly on policy agendas in Europe and the US, but little research is available to assess its impacts. In this context it is of primary importance to understand whether entrepreneurship education raises intentions to be entrepreneurial generally or whether it helps students determine how well suited they are for entrepreneurship. We develop a theoretical model of Bayesian learning in which entrepreneurship education generates signals which help students to evaluate their own aptitude for entrepreneurial tasks. We derive predictions from the model and test them using data from a compulsory entrepreneurship course at a German university. Using survey responses from 189 students ex ante and ex post, we ?nd that entrepreneurial propensity declined somewhat in spite of generally good evaluations of the class. Our tests of Bayesian updating provide support for the notion that students receive valuable signals and learn about their own type in the entrepreneurship course.entrepreneurship; entrepreneurship education; Bayes’ Rule; learning; signals

    Zeitgemäß oder anachronistisch? Zwangseinweisungspraxis in Frankfurt am Main

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    Background: The evaluation of local mental health care remains difficult. For this reason systematic development of appropriate services is barely possible. Methods: We examined involuntary hospitalization in the city of Frankfurt/Main with regard to diagnoses, socio-demographic data, complementary psychosocial outpatient care, and circumstances of hospitalization. There are four psychiatric clinics, each serving a catchment area of more than 165.000 inhabitants. These clinics are responsible for all psychiatric in-patient treatments regardless of the admission modus. During a one year period, 677 patients were involuntarily hospitalized. Statistical analyses were performed subsequent to pooling the data. Results: During a period of one year, 103 out of 100.000 inhabitants of Frankfurt/Main were admitted involuntarily. The rate of involuntary admissions related to all admissions was 10.98 percent. Any complementary psychosocial care was missing in more than 70 percent of patients admitted involuntarily. Only about 10 percent of patients were examined by a physician before reaching the hospital and in disappointing 1.3 percent the municipal mental health service had been consulted prior to involuntarily admission. Conclusion: Our results show that a systematic improvement of precautionary complementary psychosocial care for risk patients is needed as well as the obligation of psychiatric emergency consultation before involuntary hospitalization.Anliegen: In der gemeindepsychiatrischen Versorgung ist eine systematische Datenerhebung bislang unzureichend etabliert. Daher ist eine planvolle Entwicklung von Versorgungsstrukturen kaum möglich. Zur weiteren Qualitätsverbesserung der gemeindepsychiatrischen Struktur soll eine verlässliche Datenbasis geschaffen werden. Methode: Das durch den Sozialpsychiatrischen Dienst initiierte Projekt PISA untersuchte 677 Zwangseinweisungen in die Versorgungskliniken der Stadt Frankfurt/Main. Ergebnisse: Bei über 70 % der Patienten fehlte eine komplementäre psychosoziale Versorgung, nur 10 % wurden außerhalb der Klinik vor der Einweisung ärztlich untersucht, nur 1,3 % durch den Sozialpsychiatrischen Dienst. Schlussfolgerungen: Eine gezielte Ausweitung ambulanter Hilfesysteme und die Hinzuziehung fachärztlicher Kompetenz vor einer Zwangseinweisung erscheinen dringend erforderlich

    Involuntary hospitalizations in Frankfurt/Main, Germany

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    Background: The evaluation of local mental health care remains difficult. For this reason systematic development of appropriate services is barely possible. Methods: We examined involuntary hospitalization in the city of Frankfurt/Main with regard to diagnoses, socio-demographic data, complementary psychosocial outpatient care, and circumstances of hospitalization. There are four psychiatric clinics, each serving a catchment area of more than 165.000 inhabitants. These clinics are responsible for all psychiatric in-patient treatments regardless of the admission modus. During a one year period, 677 patients were involuntarily hospitalized. Statistical analyses were performed subsequent to pooling the data. Results: During a period of one year, 103 out of 100.000 inhabitants of Frankfurt/Main were admitted involuntarily. The rate of involuntary admissions related to all admissions was 10.98 percent. Any complementary psychosocial care was missing in more than 70 percent of patients admitted involuntarily. Only about 10 percent of patients were examined by a physician before reaching the hospital and in disappointing 1.3 percent the municipal mental health service had been consulted prior to involuntarily admission. Conclusion: Our results show that a systematic improvement of precautionary complementary psychosocial care for risk patients is needed as well as the obligation of psychiatric emergency consultation before involuntary hospitalization.Anliegen: In der gemeindepsychiatrischen Versorgung ist eine systematische Datenerhebung bislang unzureichend etabliert. Daher ist eine planvolle Entwicklung von Versorgungsstrukturen kaum möglich. Zur weiteren Qualitätsverbesserung der gemeindepsychiatrischen Struktur soll eine verlässliche Datenbasis geschaffen werden. Methode: Das durch den Sozialpsychiatrischen Dienst initiierte Projekt PISA untersuchte 677 Zwangseinweisungen in die Versorgungskliniken der Stadt Frankfurt/Main. Ergebnisse: Bei über 70 % der Patienten fehlte eine komplementäre psychosoziale Versorgung, nur 10 % wurden außerhalb der Klinik vor der Einweisung ärztlich untersucht, nur 1,3 % durch den Sozialpsychiatrischen Dienst. Schlussfolgerungen: Eine gezielte Ausweitung ambulanter Hilfesysteme und die Hinzuziehung fachärztlicher Kompetenz vor einer Zwangseinweisung erscheinen dringend erforderlich

    Virtuelles Netzwerken im Spannungsfeld sozialer und ökonomischer Rationalität

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    Die politische Öffnung der Welt, die Deregulierung der Märkte sowie die informationstechnischen Möglichkeiten zur Restrukturierung von Unternehmungen werden begleitet von einer zunehmenden Verbreitung entstandardisierter Beschäftigungsverhältnisse und dem Rückgang klassischer Erwerbsbiographien (vgl. Weber 2005). Sie bilden den Nährboden für die Entstehung flexibler Modelle nicht-klassischer Organisations- und Arbeitsformen. Ein Beispiel hierfür ist die zunehmende Freisetzung hoch qualifizierter freiberuflicher Wissensarbeiter, die in Branchen wie IT- und Management-Beratung oder Personal- und Organisationsentwicklung tätig sind und sich in selbstorganisierten Netzwerken zusammenschließen. Eine bessere Außendarstellung und günstigere Bedingungen zur Auftragsakquise einerseits, sowie die Möglichkeit zur Bearbeitung komplexer kurzfristig personalintensiver Projekte, zu Fortbildungen, zu beruflichem und persönlichem Austausch andererseits, sind häufig genannte Vorteile, die ein Zusammenschluss im Netzwerk bieten kann

    Characterization of three pyranose dehydrogenase isoforms from the litter-decomposing basidiomycete Leucoagaricus meleagris (syn. Agaricus meleagris)

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    Nicht verfügbarMultigenicity is commonly found in fungal enzyme systems, with the purpose of functional compensation upon deficiency of one of its members or leading to enzyme isoforms with new functionalities through gene diversification. Three genes of the flavin-dependent glucosemethanolcholine (GMC) oxidoreductase pyranose dehydrogenase (AmPDH) were previously identified in the litter-degrading fungus Agaricus (Leucoagaricus) meleagris, of which only AmPDH1 was successfully expressed and characterized. The aim of this work was to study the biophysical and biochemical properties of AmPDH2 and AmPDH3 and compare them with those of AmPDH1. AmPDH1, AmPDH2 and AmPDH3 showed negligible oxygen reactivity and possess a covalently tethered FAD cofactor. All three isoforms can oxidise a range of different monosaccarides and oligosaccharides including glucose, mannose, galactose and xylose, which are the main constituent sugars of cellulose and hemicelluloses, and judging from the apparent steady-state kinetics determined for these sugars, the three isoforms do not show significant differences pertaining to their reaction with sugar substrates. They oxidize glucose both at C2 and C3 and upon prolonged reaction C2 and C3 double-oxidized glucose is obtained, confirming that the A. meleagris genes pdh2 (AY753308.1) and pdh3 (DQ117577.1) indeed encode CAZy class AA3_2 pyranose dehydrogenases. While reactivity with electron donor substrates was comparable for the three AmPDH isoforms, their kinetic properties differed significantly for the model electron acceptor substrates tested, a radical (the 2,2′-azino-bis[3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid] cation radical), a quinone (benzoquinone) and a complexed iron ion (the ferricenium ion). Thus, a possible explanation for this PDH multiplicity in A. meleagris could be that different isoforms react preferentially with structurally different electron acceptors in vivo.(VLID)192910

    169 Does atrial differences in endothelium damage, leukocyte and platelet activation contribute to chamber specific thrombogenic status in patients with atrial fibrillation?

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    BackgroundIn atrial fibrillation (AF), the reasons why most of the thrombi form in the left atrium are mainly unknown. In the vasculature, endothelial damage together with platelet activation and inflammation contribute to initiation of blood coagulation and thrombus growth.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to investigate whether atrial-specific differences in endothelial damage, leukocyte activation, platelet stimulation occur in patients with AF.MethodsTwenty patients (15 men, 5 women; age 55±8 years, 15 paroxystic AF, 5 persistent AF) with AF undergoing ablation were investigated. Blood samples from the left and right atrium were obtained at the start of the procedure. Procoagulant microparticles (MPs), reliable markers of vascular damage were measured by capture assays. Their procoagulant abilities were quantified by functional prothrombinase assay and their cellular origin were determined (endothelium, platelet, leukocyte). In addition, platelet reactivity was evaluated by whole blood flow cytometry for expression of platelet Pselectin (CD62P), active glycoprotein IIbIIIa receptor (PAC-1). Platelet aggregation was evaluated using Arachidonic acid (AA), ADP, TRAP and collageninduced whole blood aggregometry.ResultsNo atrial-specific differences in the levels of total procoagulant MP, leukocyte-derived-MP and platelet-derived MP could be evidenced. Conversely, endothelial-derived MPs (CD105+) were slightly elevated in the right atrium (RA 0.96±0.53 vs. LA 0.80±0.45nm PhtdSer Eq.; p=0.041). Likewise, collagen-induced platelet aggregation was evidenced in the right atrium (Collagen 1mg/l RA: 48±33% vs LA 37±29%; p 0.035; collagen 2,5mg/l RA: 76±25% vs LA: 60±29%; p=0.001).ConclusionsIn patients with AF, endothelial damage and collageninduced platelet aggregation appear slightly more pronounced in the right atrium. Our data did not substantiate the view that chamber specific enhanced thrombogenic status could be a reliable explanation for the increased propensity for thrombus formation observed in the left atrium in AF patients

    Where Does Originality End and Plagiarism Start? Discussing Plagiarism in Information Science

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    This paper describes a session for interaction and engagement to be held at iConference2014. The session for interaction and engagement focuses on researchers at iSchools and as such is an intellectual follow-up to the systematic check of all iConference2014 paper submissions in a copying detection system. The session offers a platform for discussing whether the use of such a system is justified for a conference that attracts submissions from highly respected researchers. Panel members and the audience will discuss the amount of text a researcher is allowed to reuse and when a submission would no longer be considered to be original and starts to be considered self-plagiarism. Parts of the discussion will center on the question of whether information science researchers can actually avoid repeating the same words when today they have to publish results from research projects in as many publications as possible.publishedye

    The effects of entrepreneurship education

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    Entrepreneurship education ranks high on policy agendas in Europe and the US, but little research is available to assess its impact. To help close this gap we investigate whether entrepreneurship education a?ects intentions to be entrepreneurial uniformly or whether it leads to greater sorting of students. The latter can reduce the average intention to be entrepreneurial and yet be socially beneficial. This paper provides a model of learning in which entrepreneurship education generates signals to students. Drawing on the signals, students evaluate their aptitude for entrepreneurial tasks. The model is tested using data from a compulsory entrepreneurship course. Using ex ante and ex post survey responses from students, we find that intentions to found decline somewhat although the course has significant positive e?ects on students’ self-assessed entrepreneurial skills. The empirical analysis supports the hypothesis that students receive informative signals and learn about their entrepreneurial aptitude. We outline implications for educators and public policy
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