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Climatically controlled sedimentary processes on continental shelves
Get PDFContinental shelves with their large-scale depositional and erosional sedimentary structures are governed by shelf physiography, hydrodynamic regime, sediment flux, and climate-driven eustatic changes. The main aim is to investigate paleo-environmental organizations recorded in elongated depressions and confined depocenters in SE North Sea and NW Barents Sea, both of which were affected by the Eurasian Ice-Sheet during late Weichselian. Analysis of sediment echo-sounder and multichannel seismic data along with the sedimentological sampling enabled the identification of morphology and infill of Elbe Paleovalley (EPV), and external and internal geometry of Kveithola Drift (KD) in detail. Braided style paleodrainage was established at the base of EPV in periglacial environment. With Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene sea level rise, successive depocenters within EPV reflect the evolving hydrodynamic regime in tide- and wave-dominated environment until present. Moving towards high-latitudes, morphological and internal characteristics of KD suggest a bottom current flowing inside the trough. The formation of KD by Brine-enriched shelf water during winter season indicates the presence of coastal polynyas and increased storminess
Understanding Death by GPS : A Systematic Study of Catastrophic Incidents Associated with Personal Navigation Technologies
Get PDFCatastrophic incidents associated with GPS devices and other personal navigation technologies are sufficiently common that these incidents have been given a colloquial nickname: Death by GPS . While there is a significant body of work on the use of personal navigation technologies in everyday scenarios, no research has examined these technologies roles in catastrophic incidents. In this paper, we seek to address this gap in the literature. Borrowing techniques from public health research and communication studies, we construct a corpus of 158 detailed news reports of unique catastrophic incidents associated with personal navigation technologies. We then identify key themes in these incidents and the roles that navigation technologies played in them, e.g. missing road characteristics data contributed to over 24% of these incidents. With the goal of reducing casualties associated with personal navigation technologies, we outline implications for design and research that emerge from our results, e.g. advancing space usage rule mapping, incorporating weather information in routing, and improving visual and audio instructions in complex situations
Erkämpfte Hochschulzugänge in der Migrationsgesellschaft : Rassismuskritische Perspektiven auf Biografien von Lehramts- und Jurastudentinnen.
Get PDFAnna Aleksandra Wojciechowicz is dedicated to the conditions of access to subject-specific university studies in the context of inequalities in migration societies. Using a biographical-racist analysis of narrative interviews with female teachers and law students, she reconstructs biographical contexts of experience and their processing in processes of educational advancement and educational reproduction. At the same time, schulinstitutionelle Blockierungen proves to be a constitutive moment for the biographies. Among others, Beweisarbeit and Systemmisstrauen are worked out as two strategies with which the resulting contradictions are countered. The significance of the two concepts for university admission will then be discussed
Minority versus Majority : a New Paradigm of Intergroup Conflict
Get PDFLiving in an ethnically and culturally heterogeneous social setting has been a prime subject for a variety of social science disciplines. This dissertation adds to the discussion by addressing the dynamics of conflict between minorities and majorities from a novel theoretical perspective. More precisely, it tackles the question of majorities discriminating against minorities by situating the question in the Structural Goal/Expectation Theory (sGET) approach. Rather than rely on identity or attitude, sGET argues for an evolutionary view of human intergroup behaviour in which, crucially, the incentive structures inherent to the situation and the interpersonal interaction between the actors can be directly linked to behaviour. To test this approach, four studies have been conducted and are presented in this work. These studies show that the dilemma which comes with managing common resources, is a crucial component to understanding minority discrimination in heterogeneous societies
Impact of environmental conditions on geochemical proxies in tropical marine calcifiers
No full textSkeletal structures of marine calcifying organisms have become an important archive of ancient environmental conditions. By the means of ontogenetic geochemical signatures (so-called a proxiesa ), in particular accretionary calcareous skeletal structures such as corals, bivalve shells or fish otoliths provide sub-seasonally resolved records of modern and ancient climate variability. However, complex physiological and environmental processes can complicate these geochemical signatures and a thorough understanding of these mechanisms is a prerequisite for reliable paleoenvironmental reconstructions. By focusing on proxy incorporation pattern in modern and archeological specimens this thesis aims to extend the applicability of geochemical proxies of calcareous skeletal structures for reliable paleoclimate reconstructions. First, the influence of water temperature on oxygen isotopes, carbon isotopes as well as Mg/Ca ratios in modern echinoid spines (Eucidaris galapagensis) sampled across the natural water temperature gradient of the Galapagos archipelago was studied. Thereby, it was shown that in addition to water temperature, additional physiological or environmental variables affect the incorporation of in particular carbon isotopes and Mg/Ca ratios. Nevertheless, the significant correlation of oxygen isotopes measured in E. galapagensis spines and measured water temperatures throughout the Galapagos archipelago indicates their potential for paleoenvironmental reconstructions. Secondly, this thesis provides new insights into the applicability of mathematical approaches for the conversion of ontogenetically distorted isotope records from fish otoliths and bivalve shells into sub-seasonally resolved time series. Using new simple but traceable linear interpolation approaches as well as more complex growth models from fisheries biology, ontogenetically distorted otolith and bivalve oxygen isotope records were successfully converted into time series and correlated against measured water temperatures. The resulting significant correlations indicate that ontogenetic oxygen isotope records of both skeletal structures represent reliable archives of (paleo-) environmental conditions. Within a third study, the effect of pre-historic cooking methods on proxy signatures of aragonitic skeletal structures from archeological deposits has been tested using an experimental approach. The results show that all prehistoric cooking methods cause an alteration of the shell chemistry in aragonitic bivalves with regard to the most commonly used geochemical proxy systems even without a conversion of primary aragonite into secondary calcite. However, clumped isotope analysis showed that this proxy system represents a so-far unique tool to detect and reconstruct certain pre-historic cooking methods and therefore help to avoid erroneous paleoclimate reconstructions from archeological deposits. Finally, ontogenetic oxygen isotope records of archeological fish otoliths and bivalve shells were used to reconstruct mid- to late Holocene environmental conditions along the Banc d Arguin, Mauritania, NW Africa. By showing unreasonably low oxygen isotopic compositions, these skeletal structures from a large paleo-estuary indicate consistently the persistence of isotopically lighter monsoon-related freshwater discharge into the coastal zones during the mid-Holocene. Given their deposition a few hundred years after the supposed abrupt aridification of NW Africa, the data questions the hypothesis of an abrupt termination of the African Humid Period. Aside from showing the potential of geochemical proxies from echinoid spines for paleoenvironmental reconstructions, this thesis underlines the unique potential of ontogenetic oxygen isotope records of modern and archeological otoliths and bivalve shells for sub-seasonally resolved (paleo-) climate reconstructions if the samples are adequately preserved
Interaction between weaver ants, mango infesting fruit flies and their exotic parasitoids
No full textCompetitive and trophic interactions can be important forces determining the structure of ecological communities. As the effects of these interactions result from the behaviour adopted by individuals, investigating individual decision making processes helps understanding the mechanisms that mediate such interactions. Such an understanding can be crucial also for applied sciences, such as the planning of biological control programs. This research investigated competitive and trophic interactions in a predator-parasitoid-pest system in sub-Saharan Africa. It involved two mango infesting fruit flies as pest, i.e., the invasive Bactrocera dorsalis, and the indigenous Ceratitis cosyra. The parasitoids were the exotic Fopius arisanus and Diachasmimorpha longicaudata, attacking eggs and larvae of the flies, respectively. Both had been released to control the fruit flies. Finally, the predator, was the African weaver ant, Oecophylla longinoda, an indigenous generalist predator in Kenya. Studies of the oviposition behaviour of the two fruit fly species revealed important differences between the fly species leading to a competitive advantage of B. dorsalis over C. cosyra. While both species increased oviposition probability with egg-load and either fruit ripeness (C. cosyra) or fruit type preference (B. dorsalis), the more fecund B. dorsalis produced larger clutch sizes. Moreover, both fly species preferred to exploit previously made oviposition punctures and thus increased their oviposition rate by saving drilling time, but while C. cosyra preferred con-specific over heterospecific punctures, B. dorsalis used punctures indiscriminately. The presence of weaver ants severely impacted oviposition behaviour in both, fruit flies and parasitoids. Direct observations revealed that encounters with ants reduced fruit fly and parasitoid foraging behaviour on mango fruits. Using weaver ants and parasitoids to control the two fruit fly species is discussed
Travelblogging als Online-Marketing-Instrument für Reiseveranstalter
Get PDFDie dynamische Tourismusbranche, die von Internationalität und Individualität lebt, sieht sich seit einigen Jahren durch die digitale Transformation immer wieder mit neuen Herausforderungen konfrontiert. So stößt das Thema Online-Marketing u. a. bei vielen Reiseveranstaltern auf Interesse und Zuspruch, doch ist deren Konzept häufig ausbaufähig. Aufgrund dessen wird der Aspekt Travelblogging sowie dessen Potenziale als Online-Marketing-Instrument für Reiseveranstalter im Folgenden genauer betrachtet. Eine Analyse von Sekundärliteratur, qualitativen Experteninterviews und Best-Practice-Beispielen führte dabei zu der primären Erkenntnis, dass die Implementierung eines Corporate Blogs eine wertvolle Ergänzung des Marketing-Konzepts eines Unternehmens darstellen kann. Voraussetzung für einen Erfolg sind dabei insbesondere qualitative Inhalte, Einzigartigkeit, Authentizität und Persönlichkeit. Kooperationen mit Reisebloggern können darüber hinaus zusätzlichen Content für das Unternehmen generieren und zu einer erhöhten Reichweite beitragen. Nichtsdestotrotz gilt es weitere Social-Media-Kanäle und speziell die Erwartungen der eigenen Zielgruppe zu berücksichtigen. Bei der Optimierung von Prozessen ist deshalb ein ausführliches Monitoring und Controlling ratsam. Basierend auf den Ergebnissen empfiehlt es sich zukünftig Trends genau zu beobachten und neue Wege in der Kundenansprache auszuprobieren. // The dynamic tourism sector, which is based on internationality and individuality, sees itself confronted with the new challenges of digital transformation for some years now. Thus many tour operators express keen interest and approval concerning online marketing. But their concept is often meant to be improved. Therefore the following study takes a closer look at the aspect travel blogging and its benefits as an online marketing tool for tour operators. An analysis of secondary literature, qualitative consultations with experts and examples of best practice were thereby leading to the primary finding: The implementation of a corporate blog might be a valuable addition to a company's marketing concept. It can be successful on condition that qualitative content, uniqueness, authenticity and personality are given. Further, blogger cooperations may be useful to generate additional content and contribute to an expanding reach. Nonetheless other social media channels and especially expectations of the own target group have to be considered. Regarding the optimization of processes an extensive monitoring and controlling is advisable. For the future it means to observe trends precisely and to give new ways of customer approach a try
You can Be Anyone; but there are Limits: a gendered Reading of Sexuality and Player Avatar Identification in Dragon Age: Inquisition
Get PDFDragon Age: Inquisition s (2014) release opened a new world of character creation for the single-player RPG genre. Upon release, it allowed the player an extensive amount of customization. In addition to the typical variety of choices associated with hairstyle and color, face structure, tattoos, eye color, scarring, etc. the game also provides in-game unique sexuality quest lines that highlight the spectrum of sexual choices, race-defined features, different class options, and body-positive representations, which the player could project onto their avatar. However, in a game heralded as groundbreaking for representation, the creators fail to acknowledge the non-binary gender expressions of their players, instead, forcing the player to choose between the traditional male and female characters. This paper seeks to explore the different ways in which Dragon Age: Inquisition (DAI) purports to incorporate modern notions of representation in the sphere of gender and sexuality but fail to do so, instead, reinforcing traditional binary representations of gender and sexuality informed by racial and religious assumption