Model Based Requirements Engineering for the Development of Modular Kits

The introduction of modular design increases complexity within product development and especially within Requirements Engineering. To handle this complexity, the approach of Model Based Systems Engineering is applied in this contribution. First, the origins of complexity in modular product development are introduced. Key challenges within Requirements Engineering are drawn up and then verified. A modeling method for requirements of modular kits is introduced and validated in the series development of hybrid drivetrain systems at a German automotive manufacturer. Increases in quality and a requirements reusability of over 80% were achieved. Thus, the capability of the modeling method is verified

Modellbasierte Methoden zur Modellierung des Zielsystems und des Funktions-Gestalt-Zusammenhangs zur Unterstützung der Serienentwicklung von Baukästen am Beispiel von Hybrid-Triebstrangsystemen = Model Based Methods for the Modeling of the System of Objectives and the Correlation between Form and Function to support the Series Development of Modular Systems Using the Example of Hybrid Powertrains

In der vorliegenden Arbeit werden Modellierungsmethoden für Baukasten-Zielsysteme (mit Entwicklungszielen, Anforderungen und Randbedingungen) und für Funktions-Gestalt-Zusammenhänge (für die Weitergabe von Lösungswissen) zur Unterstützung der Baukastenentwicklung vorgestellt und in der Serienentwicklung von Hybrid-Triebstrangbaukästen eingesetzt

Family, friends and taxi drivers in hybrid networks. Integrating the immediate social environment into the Spiral of Silence Theory

The relative neglect of the immediate social environment is one of the best-known criticisms of the Spiral of Silence Theory (SoS). Due to massive changes in communication technology, especially the advent of social media, the immediate social environment has become even more relevant which has amplified this gap. This paper integrates the immediate social environment into the SoS. The immediate social environment is the aggregate of individual actors whom one interacts with – a mix of strong and weak ties. The immediate social environment is conceptualized as part of a larger ego-centric network of various sources or observers which also includes the mass media. Based on this concept, this paper examines the entire chain of effects – from monitoring the environment via different sources to the willingness to express one’s opinion in public in front of different observers. Particular attention is directed to the crosslinks between the immediate social environment and the larger realm of society and mass media. The integration of the immediate social environment serves the goal of further refining the conditions of a relevant social context under which people fear different types of social isolation from different groups and subsequently do or do not express their opinions

Sozialer Raum, Raum der Lebensstile und die Nutzung klassischer Musik im Radio über die Zeit

Die Vorliebe für klassische Musik wird in der vorliegenden Analyse im Zeitverlauf untersucht und dabei zur Altersstruktur und darüber hinaus zur Sozialstruktur in Beziehung gesetzt

Politische vs. persönliche Kritik: die Darstellung von Politikern in der Nachrichtensatire 'heute-show'

Politische Nachrichtensatire bewegt sich in einem Spannungsfeld zwischen Information und Unterhaltung. Dies resultiert in hybriden Anforderungen an die Selektion und Darstellung politischer Akteure, speziell vor dem Hintergrund der Diskussion um Personalisierung und Privatisierung der medialen Politikvermittlung. Anhand einer Inhaltsanalyse untersucht die Studie daher die Politikerdarstellung in der ‚heute-show‘. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich die Nachrichtensatire auf nationale, einflussreiche Politiker fokussiert. Persönlich-private Eigenschaften werden dabei fast ebenso häufig attackiert wie politische Aspekte. Der hohe Anteil an Privatisierung bestätigt, dass die politische Nachrichtensatire nicht zwangsläufig politisch sein muss. Durch die bessere Visualisierbarkeit und den geringeren Schwierigkeitsgrad werden Witze über rollenferne Merkmale, speziell Äußerlichkeiten, möglicherweise bevorzugt.Political news satire can be characterized as a hybrid format between information and entertainment. This results in hybrid demands regarding the selection and depiction of political protagonists, especially against the background of the discussion about privatization. Conducting a content analysis of the heute-show, our study investigates the representation of politicians in a German news satire. Our findings show that the heute-show focuses on national, powerful politicians. Private and personal attributes are criticized almost as often as political characteristics. The high amount of privatization acknowledges that political news satire does not necessarily have to be political. Instead, jokes about not role-related attributes, especially about appearance, might be preferred, as they do rely less on background knowledge und are better visualizable

Quality TV and Social Distinction: An Experiment on How Complex Television Series Valorize Their Users

This paper addresses the question as to whether serial quality TV has the potential to valorize its fans. We draw on Bourdieu’s theory of distinction, assuming that demonstrated preference for a specific cultural taste has consequences for the attribution of capital endowment overall, and especially within an adept group. These assumptions are tested via a 3 (preference for high-culture vs. conventional television vs. quality TV series) x 1 online experiment with between subject design plus control group (N = 389). Results showed that conspicuously favouring serial quality TV has the potential to function as a distinctive sign – at least to some extent. Significantly more cultural capital is ascribed to a quality TV fan than to a person showing a preference for conventional television. Within a certain group of connoisseurs, a quality TV taste is even worth as much as a preference for high-culture. Implications are discussed with regard to the theory of distinction and quality TV series as the object of investigation

Pion photo- and electroproduction and the partially-conserved axial current

The relevance of the axial current for pion production processes off the nucleon with real or virtual photons is revisited. Employing the hypothesis of a partially conserved axial current (PCAC), it is shown that, when all of the relevant contributions are taken into account, PCAC does not provide any additional constraint for threshold production processes that goes beyond the Goldberger-Treiman relation. In particular, it is shown that pion electroproduction processes at threshold cannot be used to extract any information regarding the weak axial form factor. The relationships found in previous investigations are seen to be an accident of the approximations usually made in this context.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures; typos corrected; references updated; some rewording; conclusions unchange

Treatment of Lowland Frogs From the Spawn Stage with Homeopathically Prepared Thyroxin (10 -30

The influence of a highly diluted agitated, i.e. homeopathically prepared thyroxin solution (10-30, final concentration in the basin water 10-35 parts by weight after the first application) on metamorphosis in lowland Rana temporaria from the spawn stage on was studied. The treatment with homeopathically prepared thyroxin solution (10-30) starts at the frogspawn stage. It represents a tool to learn more about the previously standardized amphibian model, where the thyroxin solution was applied from the two- legged stage on only. Lowland frogs were pretreated by immersing spawn in an aqueous molecular thyroxin dilution (10-8 parts by weight). In later stages of development (2 to 4 legged), this has been found to speed up metamorphosis by around 15%. In accordance with the homeopathic idea of detoxication or cure, hyperstimulated animals (spawn or, in subsequence, larvae) were treated either with thyroxin that had been highly diluted and agitated in successive steps, i.e. homeopathically prepared (10-30), or analogously prepared blank solution (water). Development was monitored by documenting the number of animals that had entered the four-legged stage. It has been found that animals treated with the test solution metamorphosed more slowly than the control animals, i.e. the effect of the homeopathically prepared thyroxin was opposed to the usual effect of molecular thyroxin. The number of test animals that reached the 4- legged stage at defined points in time was slightly smaller in the group treated with homeopathically prepared thyroxin at some, but not at all points in time, compared to control. The results in this study sustain the previous multi researcher findings that highly diluted homeopathically prepared thyroxin is able to slow down metamorphosis of Rana temporaria

Association between multimorbidity patterns and chronic pain in elderly primary care patients: a cross-sectional observational study

Background: Multimorbidity is a highly prevalent health problem, which may reduce adherence, produce conflicts in treatment, and is not yet supported by evidence-based clinical recommendations. Many older people suffer from more than one chronic disease as well as from chronic pain. There is some evidence that disease management can become more complex if multimorbid patients suffer from chronic pain. In order to better consider the patients' comorbidity spectrum in clinical pain treatment recommendations, evidence is needed regarding which disease combinations are frequently related with the presence of chronic pain. Therefore, our aim is to identify diseases and disease combinations in a multimorbid population, which are associated with the patient-reported presence of chronic pain. Methods: Analyses are based on cross-sectional data of the MultiCare Cohort Study, an observational cohort study based on interviews with 3189 multimorbid patients aged 65+, randomly selected from 158 practices, and their GPs. The response rate was 46.2 %. Data were collected in GP interviews and comprehensive patient interviews. Diseases and disease combinations associated with chronic pain were identified by CART (classification and regression tree) analyses performed separately for both genders. 46 chronic conditions were used as predictor variables and a dichotomized score from the Graded Chronic Pain Scale was used as outcome variable. Results: About 60 % of the study participants were female. Women more often reported chronic pain than men. The most important predictor of a higher pain level in the female population was chronic low back problems, especially if combined with chronic gastritis, hyperuricemia/gout, cardiac insufficiency, neuropathies or depression. Regarding the pain level the male population was also divided best by chronic low back problems, especially if combined with intestinal diverticulosis, neuropathies or chronic ischemic heart disease. Conclusions: Our analyses are a first step in identifying diseases and disease combinations that are related to chronic pain. The most important condition seems to be low back problems. Back pain and pain in other body regions seems to be interrelated with cardiometabolic conditions. In women, psychosocial issues like depression also seem to be relevant