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ALS as Tool to Study Preferred Stem Inclination Directions
Get PDFAlthough gravitropism forces trees to grow vertically, stems have shown to prefer specific orientations. Apart from wind deforming the tree shape, lateral light can result in prevailing inclination directions. In recent years a species dependent interaction between gravitropism and phototropism, resulting in trunks leaning down-slope, has been confirmed, but a terrestrial investigation of such factors is limited to small scale surveys. ALS offers the opportunity to investigate trees remotely. This study shall clarify whether ALS detected tree trunks can be used to identify prevailing trunk inclinations. In particular, the effect of topography, wind, soil properties and scan direction are investigated empirically using linear regression models. 299.000 significantly inclined stems were investigated. Species-specific prevailing trunk orientations could be observed. About 58% of the inclination and 19% of the orientation could be explained by the linear models, while the tree species, tree height, aspect and slope could be identified as significant factors. The models indicate that deciduous trees tend to lean down-slope, while conifers tend to lean leeward. This study has shown that ALS is suitable to investigate the trunk orientation on larger scales. It provides empirical evidence for the effect of phototropism and wind on the trunk orientation
The Contributions of Knowledge and Stress to Academic Achievement: A Meta-Analysis, a Latent Transition Analysis, and a Latent State-Trait Model
Get PDFAcademic achievement is a central outcome in educational research, both in and outside higher education, has direct effects on individual’s professional and financial prospects and a high individual and public return on investment. Theories comprise cognitive as well as non-cognitive influences on achievement. Two examples frequently investigated in empirical research are knowledge (as a cognitive determinant) and stress (as a non-cognitive determinant) of achievement. However, knowledge and stress are not stable, what raises questions as to how temporal dynamics in knowledge on the one hand and stress on the other contribute to achievement. To study these contributions in the present doctoral dissertation, I used meta-analysis, latent profile transition analysis, and latent state-trait analysis. The results support the idea of knowledge acquisition as a cumulative and long-term process that forms the basis for academic achievement and conceptual change as an important mechanism for the acquisition of knowledge in higher education. Moreover, the findings suggest that students’ stress experiences in higher education are subject to stable, trait-like influences, as well as situational and/or interactional, state-like influences which are differentially related to achievement and health. The results imply that investigating the causal networks between knowledge, stress, and academic achievement is a promising strategy for better understanding academic achievement in higher education. For this purpose, future studies should use longitudinal designs, randomized controlled trials, and meta-analytical techniques. Potential practical applications include taking account of students’ prior knowledge in higher education teaching and decreasing stress among higher education students
Impact of silver nanoparticles (AgNP) on soil microbial community depending on functionalization, concentration, exposure time, and soil texture
Get PDFBackground: Increasing exposure to engineered inorganic nanoparticles takes actually place in both terrestric and aquatic ecosystems worldwide. Although we already know harmful effects of AgNP on the soil bacterial community, information about the impact of the factors functionalization, concentration, exposure time, and soil texture on the AgNP effect expression are still rare. Hence, in this study, three soils of different grain size were exposed for up to 90 days to bare and functionalized AgNP in concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 1.00 mg/kg soil dry weight. Effects on soil microbial community were quantified by various biological parameters, including 16S rRNA gene, photometric, and fluorescence analyses.
Results: Multivariate data analysis revealed significant effects of AgNP exposure for all factors and factor combinations investigated. Analysis of individual factors (silver species, concentration, exposure time, soil texture) in the unifactorial ANOVA explained the largest part of the variance compared to the error variance. In depth analysis of factor combinations revealed even better explanation of variance. For the biological parameters assessed in this study, the matching of soil texture and silver species, and the matching of soil texture and exposure time were the two most relevant factor combinations. The factor AgNP concentration contributed to a lower extent to the effect expression compared to silver species, exposure time and physico–chemical composition of soil.
Conclusions: The factors functionalization, concentration, exposure time, and soil texture significantly impacted the effect expression of AgNP on the soil microbial community. Especially long-term exposure scenarios are strongly needed for the reliable environmental impact assessment of AgNP exposure in various soil types
Les travailleurs frontaliers au Luxembourg et en Suisse : Emploi, Quotidien et Perceptions
Get PDFPetits pays ayant d’importants besoins de main-d’œuvre, le Luxembourg et la Suisse attirent tous deux un grand nombre de travailleurs frontaliers. C’est dans une perspective comparative que les 19 auteurs impliqués dans ce Cahier Thématique analysent la situation des travailleurs frontaliers dans les principaux pôles d’emploi transfrontaliers (Luxembourg, Bâle, Genève), mais également au Tessin. En tenant compte des éléments contextuels et méthodologiques, géographes, économistes, sociologues et politologues se focalisent sur les questions d’emploi, le quotidien transfrontalier et les perceptions des frontaliers par la société. Cette approche collective et pluridisciplinaire est résumée par les éditeurs en identifiant des enjeux communs pour le Luxembourg et la Suisse.Trotz ihrer Kleinheit verzeichnen Luxemburg und die Schweiz eine hohe Arbeitskräftenachfrage und bieten Beschäftigungsmöglichkeiten vor allem für Grenzgänger. Ihre Situation an den Hauptbeschäftigungsstandorten (Luxemburg, Basel, Genf) – aber auch im Tessin – ist Gegenstand des Themenhefts, in dem 19 Autor_innen Beiträge in vergleichender Perspektive vorlegen. Unter Berücksichtigung zentraler Kontextmerkmale und methodologischer Überlegungen betrachten die Geographen, Wirtschaftswissenschaftler, Soziologen und Politologen vor allem den Arbeitsmarkt, grenzüberschreitenden Alltag und die gesellschaftliche Wahrnehmungen der Grenzgänger. Die multidisziplinäre Annäherung wird abschließend von den Herausgebern in gemeinsame Herausforderungen für Luxemburg und die Schweiz verdichtet
An understudied species: Understanding therapists and their impact on psychotherapy
Get PDFA huge number of clinical studies and meta-analyses have shown that psychotherapy is effective on average. However, not every patient profits from psychotherapy and some patients even deteriorate in treatment. Due to this result and the restricted generalization of clinical studies to clinical practice, a more patient-focused research strategy has emerged. The question whether a particular treatment works for an individual case is the focus of this paradigm. The use of repeated assessments and the feedback of this information to therapists is a major ingredient of patient-focused research. Improving patient outcomes and reducing dropout rates by the use of psychometric feedback seems to be a promising path. Therapists seem to differ in the degree to which they make use of and profit from such feedback systems. This dissertation aims to better understand therapist differences in the context of patient-focused research and the impact of therapists on psychotherapy. Three different studies are included, which focus on different aspects within the field:
Study I (Chapter 5) investigated how therapists use psychometric feedback in their work with patients and how much therapists differ in their usage. Data from 72 therapists treating 648 patients were analyzed. It could be shown that therapists used the psychometric feedback for most of their patients. Substantial variance in the use of feedback (between 27% and 52%) was attributable to therapists. Therapists were more likely to use feedback when they reported being satisfied with the graphical information they received. The results therefore indicated that not only patient characteristics or treatment progress affected the use of feedback.
Study II (Chapter 6) picked up on the idea of analyzing systematic differences in therapists and applied it to the criterion of premature treatment termination (dropout). To answer the question whether therapist effects occur in terms of patients’ dropout rates, data from 707 patients treated by 66 therapists were investigated. It was shown that approximately six percent of variance in dropout rates could be attributed to therapists, even when initial impairment was controlled for. Other predictors of dropout were initial impairment, sex, education, personality styles, and treatment expectations.
Study III (Chapter 7) extends the dissertation by investigating the impact of a transfer from one therapist to another within ongoing treatments. Data from 124 patients who agreed to and experienced a transfer during their treatment were analyzed. A significant drop in patient-rated as well as therapist-rated alliance levels could be observed after a transfer. On average, there seemed to be no difficulties establishing a good therapeutic alliance with the new therapist, although differences between patients were observed. There was no increase in symptom severity due to therapy transfer. Various predictors of alliance and symptom development after transfer were investigated. Impacts on clinical practice were discussed.
Results of the three studies are discussed and general conclusions are drawn. Implications for future research as well as their utility for clinical practice and decision-making are presented
L’aménagement du territoire transfrontalier en pratique : Réflexions pour un dialogue entre chercheurs et praticiens de la Grande Région
Get PDFDie Großregion gilt als eine der wichtigsten Regionen der grenzüberschreitenden Zusammenarbeit in der Europäischen Union. Nach Beginn der Zusammenarbeit in den siebziger Jahren entwickelte sich die Koope-ration im Bereich der Raumplanung zu einer wichtigen Säule. Dennoch sind konkrete Nachweise, die die hohe Bedeutung einer grenzüberschreitenden Raumplanung bestätigen eher selten zu finden. Aufgegriffen wird diese Thematik meist nur in Bezug auf den gesetzlichen und institutionellen Rahmen.
Das vorliegende Strategiepapier setzt voraus, dass die grenzüberschreitende Raumplanung über die Ge-setze, Pläne und Konzepte hinaus auch aus Planungspraktiken resultiert, die darauf abzielen gesellschaftli-che Bedürfnisse an den Raum langfristig zu berücksichtigen.
Nach einer kurzen Präsentation der wichtigsten Meilensteine der Zusammenarbeit im Bereich der grenz-überschreitenden Raumplanung in der Großregion, stellt dieses Strategiepapier die Ergebnisse eines expe-rimentellen Workshops (Planspiel) vor, der im Jahr 2017 stattfand und bei dem sowohl Forscher als auch Planungspraktiker involviert waren. Abschließend stellt das Dokument eine Reihe von Empfehlungen vor, die auf der Analyse des Forschungsmaterials basieren.Avec une coopération initiée dans les années 1970, la Grande Région est considérée comme l’un des es-paces transfrontaliers les plus emblématiques au sein de l’Union européenne. L’aménagement du territoire constitue un élément essentiel de ses thématiques de coopération. Cependant, l'importance grandissante de ce champ d'action demeure relativement peu documentée d'un point de vue transfrontalier. Cette thé-matique reste principalement abordée sous l’angle réglementaire et institutionnel.
Le présent policy paper postule qu’au-delà des règlementations, des plans et des schémas, l’aménagement du territoire transfrontalier résulte également d’une pratique visant à anticiper l’organisation d’une société dans un espace donné.
Après une présentation sommaire des grandes étapes de la coopération dans le domaine de l’aménage-ment du territoire transfrontalier au sein de la Grande Région, le présent policy paper présente les résultats d’un exercice de recherche expérimentale réalisé en 2017, essentiellement sous la forme d’un jeu de simu-lation (« Planspiel »). Les principales conclusions analytiques de cet échange sont ensuite mises en lumière. Pour conclure, le document dresse une liste de recommandations basées sur l’analyse des résultats des travaux de recherche.The Greater Region belongs to the most important regions in the European Union in terms of cross-border cooperation. After a start in the 70ies the cooperation in the field of spatial planning arose to an important pillar of cooperation. However, concrete evidence on the high relevance of cross-border spatial planning is scarce. This issue is mostly picked-up in relation to the legal and institutional framework.
This strategic paper on hand calls for cross-border spatial planning resulting from planning practices that aim at sustainably take into account the societal needs in space besides law, plans and concepts.
After a short presentation of the most decisive milestones of cooperation in the field of cross-border spatial planning in the Greater Region, the strategic paper presents the results of an experimental workshop (plan-ning game) that was conducted in 2017 and involved researchers as well as planning practitioners. At the end, several recommendations are presented which are based on the analysis of the research material
Functioning and Independence of the Constitutional Court of Spain: Guarantees and Challenges
Get PDFMajor threats to the Spanish Constitutional Court’s independence and authority have come, first, from political parties and the media and, second, by the Catalonian secession movement. The authority and the legitimacy of the Constitutional Court were tested in the stormy
proceedings on the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006 that ended in 2010 and, above all, in the period of 2013–2017, when successive acts directed at the secession of were recurrently Catalonia challenged before the Court and subsequently overturned, and to stop the continued disobedience its rulings the of Court was given extended execution powers for its judgments. These new powers include the temporary replacement of any authority or public official that does not comply with a Court’s ruling and the ordering of a substitutive execution through the central government. The Court declared the new powers to be consistent with the Constitution (with three dissenting votes by four constitutional judges) and it even used them for the first time to enforce its prohibition of the referendum on the independence of Catalonia of 1 October 2017. Nevertheless, the Venice Commission has raised doubts about the opportunity of those powers, which are unusual in European constitutional jurisdiction models. At the end, the Court’s powers were not enough to stop the Catalonian secession process, and on 27 October 2017 the state government implemented the federal coercion clause and suspended Catalonian autonomy until new elections were held
Apprentissage autonome et responsable grâce aux projets
Get PDFL’apprentissage par le projet - plus que toute autre forme d’enseignement - permet aux élèves de participer de manière autonome à l’organisation des cours. Les apprenant(e)s ne s’exercent pas seulement dans l’action autonome et responsable, mais jouent, eux aussi, un rôle actif dans la société
Toward a Political Ecology of Biosocial Relations: Rethinking the Urban Water Metabolism Beyond the City
Get PDFThis working paper examines the concept of metabolism and its potential as a critical analytical lens to study the contemporary city from a political perspective. The paper illustrates how the metabolism concept has been used historically, both as a metaphor to describe the technological, social, political and economic dimensions of human-environment relations, and as a concrete analytical tool to quantify and better understand how flows of matter and energy shape the territorial and spatial configurations of cityscapes. Drawing on the example of the urban water metabolism of the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA), it is argued that contemporary approaches to metabolic analysis should be extended in two ways to increase the integrative potential of the urban water metabolism concept. On the one hand, the paper demonstrates that a political ecology approach is particularly well-suited to illuminate the contested production of urban environments and move beyond a narrow technical, managerial and state- centric focus in research on urban metabolic relations. On the other hand, the paper advocates for an approach to metabolic analysis that views the urban environment not simply as a relatively static exteriority that is produced by dynamic flows of matter, energy and information, but rather as a dynamic, nested and co-evolutionary network of complex biosocial and material relations, which in itself shapes how various metabolisms interact across scales. The paper then concludes by briefly discussing how a combination of metabolic analysis and political ecology research can inform urban water governance. In sum, the paper emphasizes the need for metabolic analysis to remain open to a plurality of different knowledge forms and perspectives, and to remain attentive to the inherently political nature of material and technological phenomena in order to allow for mutually beneficial exchanges between various scholarly communities
Systemische Resilienz
Get PDFDie Veröffentlichung setzt den Fokus auf die zentrale Funktion der systemischen Resilienzabwehr gegen psychosomatische Leiden wie die Depression und chronische Stresssyndrome