On the Politics and Ideologies of the Sovereignty Discourse in Cyberspace

This article critically examines the current discourse on the legal status and substance of the international law concept of sovereignty in cyberspace against the backdrop of conflicting political-ideological attitudes. It first traces the origins of the interpretation of respect for sovereignty as a primary rule of international law, and then discusses two approaches to cyberspace that challenge the emerging consensus: cyber imperialism, embodied by the US and the other Five Eyes members on the one hand, and cyber-Westphalia, represented by China, Russia, and Iran on the other. Both groups conceive cyberspace in ways fundamentally irreconcilable with prevailing legal views. A third group of states endorses the sovereignty-as-rule understanding but leaves this legal position vulnerable to both authoritarian co-optation and imperialist dismissal. This article contributes to the discussion on sovereignty by offering an alternative interpretation of state practice and international jurisprudence that constructs sovereignty as a principle with derivative primary rules. It shows that, despite not by itself having the status of a rule, the principle of sovereignty allows for the identification of rules that protect the territorial integrity and political independence of states beyond the traditional notions of the prohibition of intervention and the use of force. It carefully analyzes evidence in existing practice in support of this novel, doctrinally more precise understanding of sovereignty. Based on the argument\u27s legal implications, it concludes with an assessment of the policies of persistent engagement and cyber sovereignty

Protection of Data in Armed Conflict

This article presents a novel way to conceptualize the protection of data in situations of armed conflict. Although the question of the targeting of data through adversarial military cyber operations and its implications for the qualification of such conduct under International Humanitarian Law has been on scholars’ and states’ radar for the last few years, there remain a number of misunderstandings as to how to think about the notion of “data.” Based on a number of fictional scenarios, the article clarifies the pertinent terminology and makes some expedient distinctions between various types of data. It then analyzes how existing international humanitarian and international human rights law applies to cyber operations whose effects have an impact on data. The authors argue that given the persisting ambiguities of traditional concepts such as “object” and “attack” under international humanitarian law, the targeting of content data continues to fall into a legal grey zone, which potentially has wide-ranging ramifications both for the rights of individual civilians and the functioning of civilian societies during situations of conflict. At the same time, much legal uncertainty surrounds the application of human rights law to these contexts, and existing data protection frameworks explicitly exclude taking effect in relation to issues of security. Acknowledging these gaps, the article attempts to advance the debate by proposing a paradigm shift: Instead of taking existing rules on armed conflict and applying them to “data,” we should contemplate applying the principles of data protection, data security, and privacy frameworks to military cyber operations in armed conflict

Rechtsfragen bei Open Science

Digitisation enables open science. Digitisation has many aspects, in particular free access to scholarly publications and materials (Open Access), transparent review procedures (Open Peer Review) or open source technologies (Open Source). The programme Hamburg Open Science (duration 2018-2020) supports, among other things, cultural change in research. It is in this context that the present guide was created. It is intended to make the legal environment tangible. The guide first systematically elaborates the relevant areas of law. The second part answers legal questions about Open Science that come directly from universities and libraries. In this way, the guide is prepared and communicated in a practical manner. The authors of the guide are Dr. Till Kreutzer, partner at the law firm iRights.Law, and their research assistant Henning Lahmann. This second, completely revised and expanded edition was produced with the assistance of Dr. Ina Kaulen, Hamburg State and University Library Carl von Ossietzky

Rechtsfragen bei Open Science

Digitisation makes open science possible. This has many aspects, in particular free access to academic publications and materials (Open Access), transparent peer review procedures (Open Peer Review) or open source technologies (Open Source). Supporting open science in Hamburg as a research location is the aim of the framework Hamburg Open Science. The guidelines developed in this context are intended to make this ecosystem legally tangible. In the first part, the guidelines systematically develop the areas of law concerned. The second part answers legal questions on Open Science that come directly from universities and libraries. In this way, a practice-oriented preparation and mediation can be achieved. The authors of the guide are Dr. Till Kreutzer, partner of the law office iRights.Law, and Henning Lahmann, research associate at iRights.Law

Induced Arp2/3 Complex Depletion Increases FMNL2/3 Formin Expression and Filopodia Formation.

The Arp2/3 complex generates branched actin filament networks operating in cell edge protrusion and vesicle trafficking. Here we employ a conditional knockout mouse model permitting tissue- or cell-type specific deletion of the murine Actr3 gene (encoding Arp3). A functional Actr3 gene appeared essential for fibroblast viability and growth. Thus, we developed cell lines for exploring the consequences of acute, tamoxifen-induced Actr3 deletion causing near-complete loss of functional Arp2/3 complex expression as well as abolished lamellipodia formation and membrane ruffling, as expected. Interestingly, Arp3-depleted cells displayed enhanced rather than reduced cell spreading, employing numerous filopodia, and showed little defects in the rates of random cell migration. However, both exploration of new space by individual cells and collective migration were clearly compromised by the incapability to efficiently maintain directionality of migration, while the principal ability to chemotax was only moderately affected. Examination of actin remodeling at the cell periphery revealed reduced actin turnover rates in Arp2/3-deficient cells, clearly deviating from previous sequestration approaches. Most surprisingly, induced removal of Arp2/3 complexes reproducibly increased FMNL formin expression, which correlated with the explosive induction of filopodia formation. Our results thus highlight both direct and indirect effects of acute Arp2/3 complex removal on actin cytoskeleton regulation

The Arp2/3 complex is crucial for colonisation of the mouse skin by melanoblasts

The Arp2/3 complex is essential for the assembly of branched filamentous actin, but its role in physiology and development is surprisingly little understood. Melanoblasts deriving from the neural crest migrate along the developing embryo and traverse the dermis to reach the epidermis, colonising the skin and eventually homing within the hair follicles. We have previously established that Rac1 and Cdc42 direct melanoblast migration in vivo. We hypothesised that the Arp2/3 complex might be the main downstream effector of these small GTPases. Arp3 depletion in the melanocyte lineage results in severe pigmentation defects in dorsal and ventral regions of the mouse skin. Arp3 null melanoblasts demonstrate proliferation and migration defects and fail to elongate as their wild-type counterparts. Conditional deletion of Arp3 in primary melanocytes causes improper proliferation, spreading, migration and adhesion to extracellular matrix. Collectively, our results suggest that the Arp2/3 complex is absolutely indispensable in the melanocyte lineage in mouse development, and indicate a significant role in developmental processes that require tight regulation of actin-mediated motility

On the Politics and Ideologies of the Sovereignty Discourse in Cyberspace

This article critically examines the current discourse on the legal status and substance of the international law concept of sovereignty in cyberspace against the backdrop of conflicting political-ideological attitudes. It first traces the origins of the interpretation of respect for sovereignty as a primary rule of international law, and then discusses two approaches to cyberspace that challenge the emerging consensus: cyber imperialism, embodied by the US and the other Five Eyes members on the one hand, and cyber-Westphalia, represented by China, Russia, and Iran on the other. Both groups conceive cyberspace in ways fundamentally irreconcilable with prevailing legal views. A third group of states endorses the sovereignty-as-rule understanding but leaves this legal position vulnerable to both authoritarian co-optation and imperialist dismissal. This article contributes to the discussion on sovereignty by offering an alternative interpretation of state practice and international jurisprudence that constructs sovereignty as a principle with derivative primary rules. It shows that, despite not by itself having the status of a rule, the principle of sovereignty allows for the identification of rules that protect the territorial integrity and political independence of states beyond the traditional notions of the prohibition of intervention and the use of force. It carefully analyzes evidence in existing practice in support of this novel, doctrinally more precise understanding of sovereignty. Based on the argument\u27s legal implications, it concludes with an assessment of the policies of persistent engagement and cyber sovereignty

Rechtsfragen bei Open Science : Ein Leitfaden

Die Digitalisierung ermöglicht eine offene Wissenschaft (Open Science). Diese hat viele Aspekte, insbesondere den freien Zugang zu wissenschaftlichen Veröffentlichungen und Materialien (Open Access), transparente Begutachtungsverfahren (Open Peer Review) oder quelloffene Technologien (Open Source). Das Programm Hamburg Open Science will offene Wissenschaft am Forschungsstandort Hamburg unterstützen. Der in diesem Kontext entstandene Leitfaden soll das rechtliche Umfeld greifbar machen. Der Leitfaden erarbeitet die betroffenen Rechtsgebiete zunächst systematisch. Im zweiten Teil werden rechtliche Fragen zu Open Science beantwortet, die direkt aus den Universitäten und Bibliotheken kommen. So gelingt eine praxisnahe Aufbereitung und Vermittlung. Autoren des Leitfadens sind Dr. Till Kreutzer, Partner der Kanzlei iRights.Law, und deren wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter Henning Lahmann. -- AUCH ALS EPUB UND MOBI FÜR MOBILE ENDGERÄTE zum kostenfreien Herunterladen und Weiterverbreiten unter "Frei verfügbarer Volltext". 2. AUFLAGE: Nach der ersten Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2019 liegt der Band nun in einer 2., überarbeiteten und erweiterten Auflage vor.Digitisation makes open science possible. This has many aspects, in particular free access to academic publications and materials (Open Access), transparent peer review procedures (Open Peer Review) or open source technologies (Open Source). Supporting open science in Hamburg as a research location is the aim of the Hamburg Open Science. The guidelines developed in this context are intended to make this ecosystem legally tangible. In the first part, the guidelines systematically develop the areas of law concerned. The second part answers legal questions on Open Science that come directly from universities and libraries. In this way, a practice-oriented preparation and mediation can be achieved. The authors of the guide are Dr. Till Kreutzer, partner of the law office iRights.Law, and Henning Lahmann, research associate at iRights.Law

Autonomous weapons systems: a paradigm shift for the law of armed conflict?

No abstract available