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The pharmaceutical industry faces increased sustainability demands. The Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) framework is most widely accepted to discuss corporate sustainability, but little is known about the effects of ESG measure implementation on supply chain security. Understanding these effects is especially important in the face of drug shortages. Leveraging a quantitative and a qualitative method based on a grounded theory approach, we aim to investigate the state of ESG maturity of pharmaceutical corporations in Germany and develop a perspective on the effects of ESG measure implementation on supply chain security. We find publicly traded and larger companies having higher ESG target‐setting maturity than privately‐owned or smaller companies and that company priorities, costs, and regulatory processes limt ESG progress overall. Our findings suggest that ESG measure implementation can induce short‐term supply disruption risks. A risk assessment considers current ESG maturity, implementation effects outside of own operations, short‐term supply buffers, implementation timeline, and scope, and change management capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our subject is a new catalogue of radar-based heavy rainfall events (CatRaRE) over Germany and how it relates to the concurrent atmospheric circulation. We classify daily ERA5 fields of convective indices according to CatRaRE, using an array of 13 statistical methods, consisting of 4 conventional ("shallow") and 9 more recent deep machine learning (DL) algorithms; the classifiers are then applied to corresponding fields of simulated present and future atmospheres from the Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment (CORDEX) project. The inherent uncertainty of the DL results from the stochastic nature of their optimization is addressed by employing an ensemble approach using 20 runs for each network. The shallow random forest method performs best with an equitable threat score (ETS) around 0.52, followed by the DL networks ALL-CNN and ResNet with an ETS near 0.48. Their success can be understood as a result of conceptual simplicity and parametric parsimony, which obviously best fits the relatively simple classification task. It is found that, on summer days, CatRaRE-convective atmospheres over Germany occur with a probability of about 0.5. This probability is projected to increase, regardless of method, both in ERA5-reanalyzed and CORDEX-simulated atmospheres: for the historical period we find a centennial increase of about 0.2 and for the future period one of slightly below 0.1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trend significance of time series that are serially correlated is once more addressed. Most conventional techniques to "pre-whiten" the series prior to calculating trends rely on the assumption of autoregressive residual noise, AR(1). Monthly recordings of 40 water level stations in Germany are investigated, revealing strong memory up to lag 2. A new scheme (PW(p)) is introduced that extends pre-whitening to AR(p) with p > 1. It performs well on surrogate series with prescribed trend and memory. For seven series the estimated trends are unrealistically off, raising doubts about the validity of the basic assumptions of short-memory noise. The series are characterized by a hockey stick pattern from which any pre-whitening produces trends that are all but plausible. The pattern also reveals that pre-whitening is not invariant under time reversal. Regardless of the validity of the noise model, these special cases serve as a warning for using pre-whitening in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mental health issues among Ph.D. students are prevalent and on the rise, with multiple studies showing that Ph.D. students are more likely to experience symptoms of mental health-related issues than the general population. However, the data is still sparse. This study aims to investigate the mental health of 589 Ph.D. students at a public university in Germany using a mixed quantitative and qualitative approach. We administered a web-based self-report questionnaire to gather data on the mental health status, investigated mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety, and potential areas for improvement of the mental health and well-being of Ph.D. students. Our results revealed that one-third of the participants were above the cut-off for depression and that factors such as perceived stress and self-doubt were prominent predictors of the mental health status of Ph.D. students. Additionally, we found job insecurity and low job satisfaction to be predictors of stress and anxiety. Many participants in our study reported working more than full-time while being employed part-time. Importantly, deficient supervision was found to have a negative effect on Ph.D. students' mental health. The study's results are in line with those of earlier investigations of mental health in academia, which likewise reveal significant levels of depression and anxiety among Ph.D. students. Overall, the findings provide a greater knowledge of the underlying reasons and potential interventions required for advancing the mental health problems experienced by Ph.D. students. The results of this research can guide the development of effective strategies to support the mental health of Ph.D. students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An important communication strategy of climate skeptics is the use of fake experts, who act as spokespersons, although they do not possess any expertise in the field. One promising approach to tackle the effect of misinformation is inoculation. Previous research focuses on the United States, and the comparably low effect sizes of previous research call for further examination and consolidation. This study aims to complement those findings with data for Germany and replicates and extends an experiment by Cook et al. with a 2 × 2 between-subjects design. Our study confirms the importance of pre-existing worldviews for climate-related attitudes. Regarding the effects of misinformation messages and most notably, the effects of inoculation messages we could not replicate the findings of Cook et al.: At least in our setting, the misinformation message and also inoculation preceding misinformation had hardly any effect on the climate-related attitudes under study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key plant traits affecting growth performance can differ among and within species, influencing competitive plant community dynamics. We determined the intra-specific variability of germination base temperature among 13 arable weed species and the seedlings' early post-emergence relative growth rate among 21 species in climate chamber and green house experiments. Intra-specific variability was quantified with two seed populations (originating from contrasting climate in Germany & France) for the germination base temperature of 6 species and for the early growth rate of 16 species. Inter-specific variability for both traits was always higher than intra-specific variability. Within a given species, we found that germination base temperatures were higher in seeds stemming from colder climate populations. Seedling relative growth rates did not differ between seed populations. Models simulating weed growth should reflect these differences in germination traits among populations, especially when they are used for weed community assembly studies in a local to regional extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimates of present and future extreme sub-hourly rainfall are derived from a daily spatial followed by a sub-daily temporal downscaling, the latter of which incorporates a novel, and crucial, temperature sensitivity. Specifically, daily global climate fields are spatially downscaled to local temperature T and precipitation P, which are then disaggregated to a temporal resolution of 10 min using a multiplicative random cascade model. The scheme is calibrated and validated with a group of 21 station records of 10-min resolution in Germany. The cascade model is used in the classical (denoted as MC) and in the new T-sensitive (MC+) version, which respects local Clausius–Clapeyron (CC) effects such as CC scaling. Extreme P is positively biased in both MC versions. Observed T sensitivity is absent in MC but well reproduced by MC+. Long-term positive trends in extreme sub-hourly P are generally more pronounced and more significant in MC+ than in MC. In units of 10-min rainfall, observed centennial trends in annual exceedance counts (EC) of P > 5 mm are +29% and in 3-yr return levels (RL) +27%. For the RCP4.5-simulated future, higher extremes are projected in both versions MC and MC+: per century, EC increases by 30% for MC and by 83% for MC+; the RL rises by 14% for MC and by 33% for MC+. Because the projected daily P trends are negligible, the sub-daily signal is mainly driven by local temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Der Abschied aus dem Bibliotheksdienst bietet Gelegenheit, einige Beobachtungen zu notieren. Persönliche Erinnerungen verdeutlichen die großen fachlichen und technischen Fortschritte der Bibliotheken, die nun aber vor noch größeren Herausforderungen stehen. Starke Allianzen, arbeitsteilige Strukturen und intelligente Vernetzung sind Antworten auf die steigende Komplexität und den dauerhaften Wandel. Deshalb muss die Kultur der Kooperation gestärkt werden. Und es sind Verbesserungen der politischen Rahmenbedingungen notwendig. The author's farewell from library service offers an opportunity to write down some observations made since then. Illustrated by personal memories, he reflects on the professional and technological advances in libraries, which, however, face even bigger challenges nowadays. Strong alliances, a structured division of labour, and intelligent networking, he argues, provide answers to an increasing complexity and constant change in library service. It is therefore essential to strengthen the culture of cooperation and to improve political frameworks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Graded return to work (GRTW) is a strategy aimed at bringing people gradually back to coping with a full workload after an extended period of sick leave. This study aims to determine the effect of GRTW in addition to a multimodal rehabilitation on longer-term work participation in people with chronic mental disorders (CMDs). Methods Patients filled out questionnaires at the start of a multimodal rehabilitation and 15 months later. Balanced groups (GRTW, no GRTW) were formed by propensity score matching based on 27 covariates. The primary outcome measures were the return to work (RTW) status at follow-up and the number of days on sick leave during follow-up. Results From 1062 data sets (GRTW 508, no GRTW 554), 381 pairs were matched (age: 47.8 years; 78% female; 65% affective disorders, 28% neurotic or somatic disorders). At follow-up, 88% of the GRTW group had returned to work compared to only 73% of the controls (RR = 1.22, 1.13–1.31). The mean sick leave duration during the follow-up period was 7.0 weeks in the GRTW group compared to 13.4 weeks in the control group (p < 0.001). Additional explorative analyses showed that these effects were only observed in patients with an unsure or negative subjective RTW prognosis. Conclusions Based on this analysis, GRTW in addition to a multimodal rehabilitation is effective in enhancing successful work participation in people with CMDs. Earlier studies showing larger effects in people with a higher risk of a non-RTW were confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Changes in the DSM-5 eating disorders criteria sought to increase the clarity of the diagnostic categories and to decrease the preponderance of nonspecified eating disorders. The first objective of this study was to analyze how these revisions affect threshold and EDNOS/OSFED eating disorder diagnoses in terms of prevalence, sex ratios, and diagnostic distribution in a student sample. Second, we aimed to compare the impairment levels of participants with a threshold, an EDNOS/OSFED and no diagnosis using both DSM-IV and DSM-5. Method A sample of 1654 7th and 8th grade students completed self-report questionnaires to determine diagnoses and impairment levels in the context of an eating disorder prevention program in nine German secondary schools. Height and weight were measured. Results The prevalence of threshold disorders increased from .48% (DSM-IV) to 1.15% (DSM-5). EDNOS disorders increased from 2.90 to 6.23% when using OSFED-categories. A higher proportion of girls was found throughout all the diagnostic categories, and the sex ratios remained stable. The effect sizes of DSM-5 group differences regarding impairment levels were equal to or larger than those of the DSM-IV comparisons, ranging from small to medium. Discussion We provide an in-depth overview of changes resulting from the revisions of DSM eating disorder criteria in a German adolescent sample. Despite the overall increase in prevalence estimates, the results suggest that the DSM-5 criteria differentiate participants with threshold disorders and OSFED from those no diagnosis as well as or even more distinctly than the DSM-IV criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was performed to investigate the frequency of bladder cancer in patients with an occupational history such as underground hard coal mining and/or painting after the structural change in the local industry. A total of 206 patients with bladder cancer and 207 controls were enlisted regarding occupational and nonoccupational bladder cancer risk factors by questionnaire. The phase II enzymesN-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2), glutathioneS-transferases M1 (GSTM1), and T1 (GSTT1) and the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs11892031[A/C] reported to be associated with bladder cancer in genome-wide association studies were genotyped. The bladder cancer risk in varnishers and underground hard coal miners was increased as previously shown in a study in this area performed in the 1980s. The occupation of a car mechanic was associated with a significantly elevated bladder cancer risk and higher in the case of underground hard coal miners even though the mine was closed in 1987. The frequency of GSTM1 negative genotype was comparable in cases and controls (53% versus 54%). In the case of NAT2, the slow NAT2 genotype was more frequent (62% versus 58%) and ultra-slow NAT2 genotype (NAT2*6A and/or *7B alleles only) was 23% versus 15%. An occupational history of a varnisher or an underground hard coal miner remains a risk factor for bladder cancer occurrence. Data indicate that in the case of bladder cancer, GSTM1 is a susceptibility factor related to environmental and/or occupational exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background: High prevalence rates of psychological distress in medical training and later professional life indicate a need for prevention. Different types of intervention were shown to have good effects, but little is known about the relative efficacy of different types of stress management interventions, and methodological limitations have been reported. In order to overcome some of these limitations, the present study aimed at evaluating the effect of a specifically developed mindfulness-based stress prevention training for medical students (MediMind) on measures of distress, coping and psychological morbidity. Methods: We report on a prospective randomized controlled trial with three study conditions: experimental treatment (MediMind), standard treatment (Autogenic Training) and a control group without treatment. The sample consisted of medical or dental students in the second or eighth semester. They completed self-report questionnaires at baseline, after the training and at one year follow-up. Distress (Trier Inventory for the Assessment of Chronic Stress, TICS) was assessed as the primary outcome and coping (Brief COPE) as a co-primary outcome. Effects on the psychological morbidity (Brief Symptom Inventory, BSI) as a secondary outcome were expected one year after the trainings. Results: Initially, N = 183 students were randomly allocated to the study groups. At one year follow-up N = 80 could be included into the per-protocol analysis: MediMind (n =31), Autogenic Training (n = 32) and control group (n = 17). A selective drop-out for students who suffered more often from psychological symptoms was detected (p = .020). MANCOVA's on TICS and Brief COPE revealed no significant interaction effects. On the BSI, a significant overall interaction effect became apparent (p = .002, n2partial = .382), but post hoc analyses were not significant. Means of the Global Severity Index (BSI) indicated that MediMind may contribute to a decrease in psychological morbidity. Conclusion: Due to the high and selective dropout rates, the results cannot be generalized and further research is necessary. Since the participation rate of the trainings was high, a need for further prevention programs is indicated. The study gives important suggestions on further implementation and evaluation of stress prevention in medical schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims In Germany, the smoking prevalence among adolescents is among the highest in Europe. Our aim was to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of a combined student-parent and a student-only smoking prevention programme to reduce the smoking prevalence among 7th grade students in Berlin. Design Three-armed cluster-randomized controlled trial (RCT). Schools as cluster units were randomized into (i) student intervention, (ii) combined student-parent intervention or (iii) control group, with follow-up after 12 and 24 months. Setting High schools and integrated secondary schools in Berlin, Germany. Participants Seventh grade students aged 11-16 years. We included 47 schools, 161 classes and 2801 students [50.1% girls, mean age ± standard deviation (SD) = 13.0 ± 0.6 years]. Measurements The primary outcome was self-reported regular smoking (at least one cigarette per day) after 24 months (point prevalence). Further self-reported outcomes were other smoking behaviours as well as parental rules and attitudes towards smoking. Comparisons were calculated as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Findings At baseline, 2.3% of the students reported that they smoked regularly. After 24 months, 7.8% and 7.0% were regular smokers in the student-only intervention and the student-parent intervention, respectively, compared with 10.1% in the control group. The OR for being a regular smoker was 0.81 (0.34-1.92) for the student-parent intervention versus control, 0.95 (CI = 0.41-2.22) for the student-only intervention versus control and 0.85 (0.38-1.89) for student-parent intervention versus student-only intervention. Conclusion A combined student-parent smoking prevention intervention delivered via secondary schools in Berlin, Germany did not result in a statistically significant reduction in regular smoking compared with a control group or a student-only intervention. The student-only intervention did not result in a significant reduction in regular smoking compared with the control group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, there is no established occupational risk factor for prostate cancer. However, in the 1980s, a hospital-based case-control study in the greater Dortmund area showed an elevated risk for hard coal miners and, based on few cases, for painters and varnishers. Therefore, approximately 10 yr later, a similar study regarding prostate cancer was performed in this area. In total, 292 patients with prostate cancer who underwent radical prostatectomy and 313 controls who underwent transurethral resection of a benign prostatic hyperplasia were investigated by questionnaire. All of them were operated on between 1995 and 1999. This study showed a decreased risk for prostate cancer in hard coal miners (odds ratio [OR] = 0.67, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.44–1.03). Occupational exposures related to an elevated risk for prostate cancer were exposures to combustion products (20% cases vs. 11% controls), colorants and dyes (19 vs. 13%), and cutting fluids (8 vs. 6%). The different prostate cancer risks for underground coal miners in two studies with a time interval of approximately 10 yr are striking. Factors to be discussed are the introduction of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer and investigation of cases that underwent radical prostatectomy, where the disease in general is locally confined. Working conditions in the local underground coal mines improved over time but did not change markedly in the period of interest. In essence, the present study does not corroborate an elevated prostate cancer risk in former underground hard coal miners from the greater Dortmund area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reduction of pesticide use intensity is a societal and political ambition. Crop rotation is one important method to control pests and diseases in arable farming. We investigated the contribution of crop rotation to the variability of herbicide and fungicide use of 60 farms in four regions of Northern Germany. Our study aimed at answering the question: do diverse crop sequences lead to reduced herbicide and fungicide use in arable farming? Ten-year data on chemical plant protection measures and field management were examined for six field crops. We classified crop sequences (triplets of three succeeding crops) according to their susceptibility for weeds and diseases (= ’riskiness’). The Treatment Frequency Index (TFI) of the last crop in the triplet was set in relation to the crop triplet riskiness, additionally also in combination with tillage. In general, herbicide and fungicide use intensities were smaller in more diverse crop sequences. Diversified cereal sequences, involving roots and tubers, maize or spring cereals were less dependent on herbicides. Cultivation of maize in three subsequent years increased herbicide use. Crop sequences including high proportion of winter cereals increased fungicide use in cereals, while roots and tubers, winter oilseed rape and set-aside in the crop sequence decreased it. In winter oilseed rape, sequences with roots and tubers also increased fungicide use. In sugar beets, sequences with maize or a high concentration of sugar beets led to increasing fungicide use. If farmers chose riskier crop sequences tillage by plough decreased the need for herbicide and fungicide use. To reduce herbicide and fungicide use intensities we recommend increasing the diversity of crop rotations, including a higher number of crops per rotation together with ploughing. Simplifying both crop sequence diversity and tillage intensity implies higher use of herbicides and fungicides. Results will be useful for convincing farmers to diversify crop sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Forestry Review is the property of Commonwealth Forestry Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Literary historians normally associate the success of the “Suhrkamp culture” with the legendary Gruppe 47 because of the overlap between the members of both literary circles. But, in fact, Peter Suhrkamp, who was regarded as a representative of a “better Germany” and who received the first publishing license in postwar Berlin, assessed the cultural situation among the ruins differently than the majority of the writers and intellectuals of his time. This article explains why Peter Suhrkamp could not agree with the widespread notion of a “zero hour” after 1945. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This comment is meant to reiterate two warnings: One applies to the uncritical use of ready-made (openly available) program packages, and one to the estimation of trends in serially correlated time series. Both warnings apply to the recent publication of Lischeid et al. about lake-level trends in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

„Drohung“ („Threat“) is one of the most famous love poems of Gottfried Benn. The German poet published it originally in 1913 in the influential left-wing journal Die Aktion. After World War I the young avant-garde writer became more and more conservative, and by 1933 he sympathized with Hitler. This essay reconstructs the forgotten context of Benn's early publications and his close friendship with Else Lasker-Schüler as well as other Jewish intellectuals and key figures in the Expressionist movement to analyse the consequences and personal problems of his engagement with National Socialism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of energy crops in Germany is a growing agronomic sector and is expected to occupy a substantial share of farmland in the near future. At the same time, there are concerns that energy crops might cause increased nitrogen pollution of soil water, surface water and groundwater. Therefore, the Federal State of Saxony, Germany, funded a study on potential effects of an intensified cultivation of energy crops. In frame of this study, we used the Web GIS-based model STOFFBILANZ to simulate N leaching from the rooting zone and N loads of surface water for a reference scenario and an energy crop scenario. For the reference scenario, we used data representing the crop cultivation for the year 2005 at municipality level. We found that the total loads for N leaching from the rooting zone of cropland are highest for the loess region (8,067 t year), followed by mountainous region (6,797 t year) and lowland (5,443 t year). However, highest N fluxes in the leachate from rooting zones have been simulated for lowland (40.6 kg ha year) and mountainous region (37.1 kg ha year), while nitrate concentrations of leachate were highest for the lowland (101.8 mg l). In terms of diffuse N input into surface water, the mountainous region is the most important source area (total N load 6,380 t year, flux 34.6 kg ha year). Retention by in-stream processes accounts for 15 % (3,784 t year) of the total N load leaving the study area (25,136 t year). In the 2020 energy crop scenario, shares of rape and silage maize (id., ensiled corn) were limited for each municipality to a maximum of 25 and 33 %, respectively. The conversion of grasslands to crop farming was not allowed. Under these conditions, we found slight to substantial reductions of nitrogen loads for leachate from the rooting zone and for surface waters. The simulated reduction depends strongly on local conditions. Only small reductions (ca. 4-8 %) were found for the lowlands and mountainous regions of Saxony, while reductions for the loess region were substantial (ca. 22 %). A major outcome of our study is that the cultivation of energy crops might reduce N loss if certain preconditions are assumed, for example, without conversion of grasslands to crop farming. However, effects might vary widely depending on local conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to achieve national or EU-wide energy efficiency targets, a variety of policies is available. Apart from the traditional set of regulative, financial, fiscal and informative instruments, market-oriented instruments as e.g. energy efficiency obligations (EEOs) become more and more important. The new EU Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) even suggests EEOs as the preferred instrument for promoting energy efficiency in all Member States. Their actual impact, however, depends highly on the national framework. With a multi-criteria, semi-quantitative approach we evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of these instruments, taking Germany as an example. The evaluation shows that none of the instruments alone can achieve the prescribed energy efficiency targets, but that a mix of instruments is necessary. The possibility of a budget-independence of the funding in particular supports a supplementary deployment of new market-oriented instruments such as an EEO as part of the future mix of policy instruments in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes and evaluates a number of different financial support instruments for the energy refurbishment of the building stock based on the example of Germany. The key focus is on policy instruments which are not counter-financed by public budgets or where, by other means, investment and planning security for investors is assured. Through such instruments the typical disadvantages of public budget-financed support programs (e.g. insufficient support funds, frequent changes to support conditions) should be alleviated. Five different policy instruments are examined in terms of their legal viability and evaluated according to functionality criteria. The article closes with a recommended time frame for the implementation of an effective set of policy instruments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares two flagship policies in the area of energy efficient building refurbishment, the German CO2-Building Rehabilitation Programme and the Green Deal in the UK. Although both policies are essentially loan programmes to finance energy efficiency measures, the nature of the two policies is very different regarding scope, financial architecture, integration with other policies, and carbon reductions. The paper draws out the main differences of the programmes as well as similarities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We analysed pesticide use data of 539 winter wheat fields grown on seven commercial farms in North East Germany in the seasons 2001–2007. The data were originally collected as part of economic analysis. The aim of our study was to show the impact of agronomic measures typical for integrated pest management (IPM) on pesticide use intensity. We used multivariate methods including hierarchical clustering and unconstrained ordination to describe variability of pesticide use and to identify pesticide use patterns. 166 fields had a complete record of eight crop management variables characterising rotation, tillage, cultivar, seeding time and N fertilisation. We subjected pesticide data of these fields to an ordination constrained by crop management data and considered weather and farm characteristics as co-variables influencing the pesticide use intensity. Crop management had a measurable effect even beyond the single farm and changing weather conditions: it accounted for approx. 10% of the explained variability of pesticide use. Pesticide intensity is adjusted by farmers to overall cropping intensity. Fields which were managed with typical IPM characteristics like late seeding and resistant cultivars were treated with a lower pesticide intensity. The downside of our findings is that these lower input CM systems are typically used only on less productive sites. Variability of pesticide use was mainly influenced by the farm, this factor accounted for 37% of explainable variance. We discuss two components of this high explanatory power: (I) farm characteristics which determine overall cropping intensity and (II) the routine of treatment decisions on the farm. We discuss the implications of our results regarding robust study design and sampling for pesticide use monitoring. To enhance IPM adoption in the context of recent European pesticide regulations, we identify the need for: (I) studies on the economy of reducing pesticide use by integrating agronomic measures, and (II) identification of innovative farmers for possible farmer to farmer exchange on successful IPM adoption. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses the anomalous architecture of a late-Gothic church called the Marienkirche in Pirna, Saxony, Germany. The asymmetrical hall church was constructed over an extended time period in five phases over an irregular parcel of land beginning in the mid-15th century. The construction history and integration of the various stages under the oversight of various builders including Peter Ulrich, Markus Ribisch, and Wolff Blechschmidt is described. The problematics with constructing the vault are reviewed in detail, as is the architectural and decorative interplay between concepts of order and chaos.

From 2005 to 2009 we modelled the input of nitrogen and phosphorus in waters in the area of the Federal State of Saxony (Germany). The model results are an important component in elucidating the present situation of nutrient loads in groundwater and surface water as well as its future development. The present contribution focuses on the modelling of diffuse nitrogen leaching on arable land. Processes of mobilization and immobilization of nitrogen are included in the modelling. They will be estimated as induced by the respective types of fruit, management practices and local conditions. Source areas can be derived using the relationship of nitrogen sources (mobilization, deposition) and sinks (immobilization, denitrification) on the regional scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to derive measures to reduce nutrient loadings into waters in Saxony, we calculated nitrogen inputs with the model STOFFBILANZ on the regional scale. Thereby we have to compare our modelling results to measured loadings at the river basin outlets, considering long term nutrient retention in surface waters. The most important mechanism of nitrogen retention is the denitrification in the contact zone of water and sediment, being controlled by hydraulic and micro-biological processes. Retention capacity is derived on the basis of the nutrient spiralling concept, using water residence time (hydraulic aspect) and time-specific N-uptake by microorganisms (biological aspect). Short time related processes of mobilization and immobilization are neglected, because they are of minor importance for the derivation of measures on the regional scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For three small, mountainous catchments in Germany two medium-range forecast systems are compared that predict precipitation for up to 5 days in advance. One system is composed of the global German weather service (DWD) model, GME, which is dynamically downscaled using the COSMO-EU regional model. The other system is an empirical (expanded) downscaling of the ECMWF model IFS. Forecasts are verified against multi-year daily observations, by applying standard skill scores to events of specified intensity. All event classes are skillfully predicted by the empirical system for up to five days lead time. For the available prediction range of one to two days it is superior to the dynamical system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zusammenfassung  In Deutschland leiden derzeit über 1 Mio. Menschen an Alzheimer-Demenz (AD). Bis zum Jahr 2050 wird eine Verdoppelung der Zahl der Erkrankten erwartet. Die Wirksamkeit derzeit zugelassener, spezifischer Antidementiva zur symptomatischen Behandlung der AD ist nicht befriedigend. Für ein Prodromalstadium der Erkrankung gibt es noch keine zugelassene Therapie. Es stellt sich die Frage, ob kognitionsbezogene nichtmedikamentöse Maßnahmen eine wirkungsvolle Intervention bei AD und ihren Vorstadien darstellen können. Der vorliegende Beitrag erläutert die theoretischen Grundlagen von kognitivem Training und gibt einen Überblick über die bisher erbrachten Wirksamkeitsnachweise. Perspektiven und erforderliche weitere Schritte für zukünftige Studien und die Etablierung kognitiven Trainings werden diskutiert. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a hydrometeorological reconstruction of the flood triggering meteorological situation and the simulation of discharges of the flood event of December 1882 in the Neckar catchment in Baden-Württemberg (southwest Germany). The course of the 1882 flood event in the Neckar catchment in southwest Germany and the weather conditions which led to this flood were reconstructed by evaluating the information from various historical sources. From these historical data, daily input data sets were derived for run-off modeling. For the determination of the precipitation pattern at the end of December 1882, the sparse historical data were modified by using a similar modern day precipitation pattern with a higher station density. The results of this run-off simulation are compared with contemporary historical data and also with 1-D hydraulic simulations using the HEC-RAS model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information about the contribution of German architect Arnold von Westfalen to Middle European architecture in the 16th century. Von Westfalen's works include the castle Albrechtsburg in Meißen, Germany and, possibly, the third tower of the cathedral in Meißen. Biographical information about von Westfalen is also provided, including suggestions about his place of birth, which may have been Leipzig, Germany. Conjecture is offered about von Westfalen's possible travels to France and Southern Germany, which would have exposed him to the different architectural styles apparent in his projects.

This paper presents a case study on the estimation of peak discharges of extreme flood events during the 19th century of the Neckar River located in south-western Germany. It was carried out as part of the BMBF (German Federal Ministry of Education and Research) research project RIMAX (Risk Management of Extreme Flood Events). The discharge estimations were made for the 1824 and 1882 flood events, and are based on historical cross profiles. The 1-D model Hydrologic Engineering Centers River Analysis System (HEC-RAS) was applied with different roughness coefficients to determine these estimations. The results are compared (i) with contemporary historical calculations for the 1824 and 1882 flood events and (ii) in the case of the flood event in 1824, with the discharge simulation by the water balance model LARSIM (Large Area Runoff Simulation Model). These calculations are matched by the HEC-RAS simulation based on the standard roughness coefficients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present article outlines VD 18 (Bibliography of books published in German-speaking countries in the 18th century), its background as well the intended project structure. In contrast to similarly named projects on earlier centuries, VD 18 will provide complete digitization of all items covered by the bibliography. As for German speaking countries VD 18 will provide the digital library of the 18th century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: G72 is among the most frequently replicated vulnerability genes for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The authors previously found identical haplotypes of markers M23 and M24 to be associated with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and panic disorder. Given both the well-recognized familial clustering across these disorders and recent linkage findings implicating the region harboring G72 in the etiology of major depression and panic disorder, we can hypothesize that G72 should also be involved in the etiology of major depression. Neuroticism, measuring trait anxiety, may be the endophenotypic link underlying genetic associations with G72 across diagnostic boundaries. The authors tested whether the previously observed risk haplotypes are also associated with major depression and neuroticism. Method: The authors performed a standard haplotype analysis in a group of 500 major depression patients and 1,030 population-based comparison subjects. The authors also performed an exploratory analysis on 10 additional G72 markers using a novel haplotype-sharing approach. They performed a quantitative trait haplotype analysis in an independent group of 907 individuals phenotyped for neuroticism. Results: The previously identified M23-M24 risk haplotype was significantly associated with major depression and high levels of neuroticism. The haplotype-sharing analysis also implicated the same region, whereas more proximal markers showed no association with major depression. Conclusions: This is the first study to the authors' knowledge to implicate the G72 locus in the etiology of major depression and neuroticism. The results strengthen the notion of a genetic overlap between diagnoses, commonly conceptualized as distinct entities. Neuroticism may constitute the common underlying endophenotypic link. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: German plant protection law demands farmers to limit the use of pesticides to a necessary extent. In this article, we have developed a theoretical framework on deciding on pesticide use. We look at three different ways of interpreting how much pesticide is “necessary” to control a pest on a crop: (1) using a product at the recommended dose when a pest is found or a precautionary treatment thought necessary, (2) optimising pesticide use for economic savings through adjusted doses, thresholds, etc. and (3) minimising pesticide need by altering the cultivation system to lower the risk of pests. The smallest pesticide use intensity can be reached by combining approaches 2 and 3. In practice, information on optimising pesticide use needs further research to reduce the uncertainty about the effects of agronomical control measures, both with respect to economics and risk. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The FTIR spectrum of monoisotopic stannane 116SnH4 has been recorded in the 600-850 cm-1 range, with the Bruker 120 HR interferometer at Giessen, Germany. The resolution was 2.1 × 10-3 cm-1. The analysis of infrared transitions in this region enabled Brunet et al. [1] to assign many lines to the bending dyad ν2/ν4. However, several lines in this spectrum were found to be unassigned. In a recent work [2], we have analysed the infrared spectrum of stannane in the bending triad region at 1400 cm-1. The results obtained enabled us to assign directly, for the spectrum in the region 600-850 cm-1, 163 of the observed transitions to the hot band {bending triad} minus {bending dyad} up to J=9. These transitions were combined to the infrared data corresponding to the bending triad (2ν2, ν2 + ν4, 2ν4), to refine a set of Hamiltonian parameters for the two bands 2ν2 and (ν2 + ν4) [2]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of a climate change scenario on regional climate conditions and runoff characteristics has been investigated for the Mulde catchment, a meso-scale sub-basin of the Elbe in Germany. First, the semi-distributed, conceptual model HBV-D has been successfully applied to simulate discharge for present climate conditions. Further, the expanded downscaling method (EDS) was calibrated and applied to observed global circulation fields in order to produce local climate input data for HBV-D. Finally, the coupled atmosphere-ocean model ECHAM4/OPYC3, driven by a climate change scenario, provided simulated global circulation patterns for application with EDS. The regionalised scenario conditions then served as input to HBV-D in order to investigate the impact of global climate change on regional hydrology. The results indicate that an obvious increase in temperature is accompanied by a clear tendency to reduced precipitation over the investigated area for the next 100 years. These conditions lead to a decrease in simulated mean discharges of the Mulde. The study is considered to be a contribution for regional impact studies on global climate change. At the same time, it demonstrates existing shortcomings and limitations of current climate impact research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

While it is widely acknowledged that carbon pricing plays an important role in driving the transition towards a low-carbon energy system, its interaction with complementary instruments is discussed controversially. The analysis of combining carbon pricing with complementary policies has been mostly focused on the electricity sector, while the role of carbon pricing in the buildings sector has received only minor interest. In view of the newly introduced carbon pricing scheme for the buildings and transport sector in Germany, we analyze the interactions between the carbon pricing scheme with the existing policy instruments and assess the consistency of the policy mix for decarbonizing the buildings sector. Our analysis finds that the introduction of carbon pricing has a reinforcing effect on the instrument mix and adds to the consistency of the policy mix. The results highlight the importance of complementary policies in order to achieve deep decarbonization in the buildings sector. We conclude that carbon pricing, preferably implemented as a tax with a predictable and increasing price level, needs to be supplemented with a powerful mix of complementary measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimates of present and future sub-hourly extreme rainfall are derived for a group of stationsin central Germany, based on very long (&#x003E;70y) records of 10-minute local measurements andglobal climate model (GCM) projections. The notorious spatial and temporal scale gaps arebridged using a two-step procedure:step 1 (spatial): GCM daily → stations dailystep 2 (temporal): stations daily → stations sub-hourlyWhile step 1 employs a standard downscaling scheme (Expanded Downscaling), step 2introduces a novel method of a temperature-sensitive disaggregation, MC+. It is derivedfrom the multiplicative random cascade model, MC, of Olsson (1998), and implements asensitivity on temperature that, unlike MC, respects Clausius-Clapeyron (CC) scaling. Animmediate consequence is that extreme sub-daily rainfall becomes more likely on warmerdays. For future rainfall, we show that even with no change projected for daily rainfallextremes, a significant increase at the sub-hourly scale is obtained from using MC+, but notMC, that must be attributed to the direct effect of warmer temperatures via CC scaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article announces the award "Bundesverdienstkreuz" given to Professor Jürgen Hering, General Director of the Sächsischen Landesbibliothek - Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden, Germany and former director of the Universität Stuttgart library.

In view of the current geopolitical situation, the EU and its Member States are accelerating efforts to reduce their dependency on fossil fuel imports, while simultaneously tackling the climate crisis. With heating in buildings accounting for a large share of the energy consumption in the EU, policies to phase-out fossil fuels for heating and to switch to renewables are key elements. In the context of the proposed actions to phase-out fossil fuels at EU level, this article provides a systematic analysis of current and planned phase-out regulations for fossil fuel boilers in the EU Member States. The paper quantifies the share of energy consumption for heating that is addressed by such regulations and finds that the current regulations only address about 10% of the total fossil energy consumption for heating in the EU. The share increases to almost 30% when considering the planned regulations, reflecting the fact that large energy consumers such as Germany and the Netherlands have announced such regulations. The analysis shows that several Member States with high energy consumption for heating have neither implemented nor announced plans to introduce phase-out regulations for fossil fuel heating. The study concludes that immediate policy action is needed both at EU and at Member State levels. At EU level, the proposed introduction of an end-date for stand-alone fossil fuel boilers needs to be substantiated and implemented into the legislative framework. At the national level, phase-out regulations for fossil fuel boilers need to be expanded both in quantity and scope. [Display omitted] • Systematic analysis of phase-out regulations for fossil fuel boilers in the EU. • Only 10% of the EU fossil energy used for heating is covered by phase-out regulations. • Including planned regulations, the share of heating energy covered by phase-out regulations increases to almost 30%. • Comparison of different approaches for implementing regulations for phasing out fossil fuel boilers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent years have seen a continuous rise in the proportion of emergency contacts across all mental health-related care structures for children and adolescents. Treatment in a protective intensive care unit constitutes an essential element of care and primarily serves the immediate protection of children and adolescents during mental health crises. Protective intensive care is subject to strict legal requirements. Those requirements were amended in 2017 via changes to § 1631b BGB (German Civil Code), leading to a clear separation of the stay in protective intensive care per se and the use of coercive measures. Using the restructuring of the intensive care unit of the Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy at the University Hospital Würzburg as an example, the article illustrates the requirements for modern acute care of children and adolescents with mental disorders.Following the modernisation at the university hospital Würzburg we could drastically reduce the duration of stays in the intensive care unit to a mean of 1.5 days across around 500 admissions per year. Consequently, the risk of hospitalism especially for patients with chronic suicidality is practically non-existent anymore. Since 2017, our cooperation with other clinics in the region has made it possible to care for all underage patients requiring treatment in a protective intensive care unit in child and adolescent psychiatric settings. Long-term treatment over many months in a protective intensive care unit no longer occurs in cases of chronic suicidality., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Cluster-randomized, controlled evaluation of stress management training for high school students Abstract., Objective: One fifth of German adolescents show elevated levels of mental health problems. The development of mental health problems is often closely related to experiences of stress. Hence, fostering competences in coping with stress offers an approach for counteracting the development of psychological problems. The aim of the present study is to test a stress management training of 3 x 90 minutes in a German high school, 11 th grade., Method: A cluster-randomized, controlled design was used. The primary outcome was stress. Secondary outcome criteria were knowledge about stress, coping behaviour, emotional and behavioural problems as well as health-related quality of life. Students from twenty-one courses from four schools participated in the study., Results: The sample comprised 286 students (58.25 % girls; mean age 16.58 ± 0.65). Changes in stress levels from pre- to post-evaluation did not differ significantly between intervention and control group. With regard to secondary criteria, apart from a significant increase in knowledge no further effects were observed. An exploratory moderation analysis hints at a positive association between baseline levels of stress and effectiveness of the training., Conclusions: The results question whether the universal application of a brief cognitive behavioural intervention is appropriate to prevent stress in this population. Future research should, inter alia, investigate the potential of indicated prevention regarding stress.

Background: Out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is one of the more common causes of death in Germany. Ambulance response time is an important planning parameter for emergency medical services (EMS) systems. We studied the effect of ambulance response time on survival after resuscitation from OHCA., Methods: We analyzed data from the German Resuscitation Registry for the years 2010-2016. First, we used a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine the effect of ambulance response time (defined as the interval from the alarm to the arrival of the first rescue vehicle) on the hospital-discharge rate (in percent), depending on various factors, including resuscitation by bystanders. Second, we compared faster and slower EMS systems (defined as those arriving on the scene within 8 minutes in more than 75% of cases or in ≤ 75% of cases) with respect to the frequency of resuscitation and the number of surviving patients., Results: Our analysis of data from a total of 10 853 patients in the logistical regression model revealed that the rate of hospital discharge was significantly affected by the ambulance response time, bystander resuscitation, past medical history, age, witnessed vs. unwitnessed collapse, the initial heart rhythm, and the site of the collapse. The success of resuscitation was inversely related to the ambulance response time; thus, among patients who did not receive bystander resuscitation, the discharge rate declined from 12.9% at a mean response time of 1 minute and 10 seconds to 6.4% at a mean response time of 9 minutes and 47 seconds. Twelve faster EMS systems and 13 slower ones were identified, with a total of 9669 and 7865 resuscitated patients, respectively. The faster EMS systems initiated resuscitation more frequently and also had a higher discharge rate with good neurological outcome in proportion to the population of the catchment area (7.7 versus 5.6 persons per 100 000 population per year, odds ratio [OR] 0.72, 95% confidence interval [0.66; 0.79], p<0.001)., Conclusion: Rapid ambulance response is associated with a higher rate of survival from OHCA with good neurological outcome. The response time, independently of whether bystander resuscitation measures are provided, ha^ a significant independent effect on the survival rate. In drawing conclusions from these findings, one should bear in mind that this was a retrospective registry study, with the corresponding limitations.

Adult ADHD is a frequent psychiatric disorder affecting relevant aspects of an individual's life. The aim of our study group was to carry out the first randomized controlled multicenter study to evaluate the effects of psychotherapy compared to clinical management in combination with psychopharmacological treatment with methylphenidate (MPH) or placebo (Plac) in a factorial four-arm design. Here, we present the enrollment procedure and description of adult ADHD patients recruited for the trial. Four hundred and thirty-three adult patients with ADHD were randomized at seven study sites in Germany to four treatment conditions: manualized dialectical-behavioral-therapy-based group psychotherapy (GPT) plus MPH or Plac, or clinical management (CM) including supportive counseling plus MPH or Plac with weekly sessions in the first 12 weeks and monthly sessions thereafter. Assessment for eligibility included standardized scales and instruments. After prescreening of 1,480 patients, 518 were evaluated for trial participation and 433 were randomized. The main reasons for prescreening failure were lack of interest in participating (n = 205), difficulties in meeting the time and effort requirements for participation (n = 186), and contraindications for psychopharmacological treatment with MPH (n = 194). The full analysis set (FAS) comprised 419 adult ADHD patients (mean age 35.2 years, males/females 1:1). Fifty-seven percent of the patients suffered from the combined ADHD subtype. Prevalence of at least one current or lifetime axis-I comorbidity was 66 %. Axis-II comorbidity rates was 18 % (patients with comorbid borderline and antisocial personality disorders were excluded). Our network was able to recruit an adult ADHD sample essentially comparable to community samples. A selection bias was created by excluding patients unable or unwilling to participate, or who had somatic and psychiatric contraindications for stimulant treatment (Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN54096201, FUNDING: Federal Ministry of Education and Research 01GV0606).

Purpose: The aim of this study was to update reference data of handgrip strength for healthy adults of both genders spanning a wide age range and to analyze possible factors of influence., Methods: Intraindividual and interindividual variations of grip strength and their relation to several anthropometric factors were analyzed in a standardized manner for 769 healthy adults (women, n = 403; men, n = 366) aged between 20 years and 95 years. Measurements were done in neutral position of arm, forearm, and wrist on setting II of a Baseline digital hydraulic dynamometer (NexGen Ergonomics Inc. Quebec, Canada)., Results: Mean strength was about 41% less in women (right 29 kg; left 27 kg) than in men (right 49 kg; left 47 kg) resulting in a ratio of left to right hand slightly above .95 in both genders. During the course of life, hand strength develops comparably in both genders peaking at 35 years of age and decreasing continuously further on. Anthropometric variables such as forearm circumference and length, hand size, or body mass showed a positive correlation with grip strength. Body mass index, type of work, and hand dominance showed only a partial positive correlation or no correlation with grip strength. Gender and age, followed by parameters representing body length and obesity, were observed to have the highest predictive value for handgrip strength and were therefore entered into the generation of prediction equations., Conclusions: We recommend side adjustment of measured values for intraindividual comparison and inclusion of information regarding anthropometric characteristics, as well as using gender- and age-adjusted reference values, whereas hand dominance can be neglected. The regression equations we generated might prove to be useful for clinicians or for those who use normative values within software to provide more accurate predictions of strength scores for specific applications.