Statt Sterbehilfe Therapie zur Schmerzlinderung : die Grenzen der Ethik und der Wille der Patienten ; [Rezension]

Rezension zu: Stephan Sahm : Sterbebegleitung und Patientenverfügung. Ärztliches Handeln an den Grenzen von Ethik und Recht ; Verlag Campus, Frankfurt 2006, ISBN 9783593381794, 265 Seiten, 32,90 Euro

Ethische Richtlinien in der Unternehmenskommunikation: Eine Befragung zu Kommunikationswerten und Normen der größten deutschen Unternehmen

Aktuelle Umfragen zeigen, dass großen Unternehmen und internationalen Konzernen von der Bevölkerung in Deutschland eher wenig Vertrauen entgegengebracht wird. Dies hat auch entscheidend mit den Themen und der Art und Weise zu tun, wie die Unternehmen kommunizieren. In diesem Kontext ist - von der Akademischen Gesellschaft für Unternehmensführung & Kommunikation beauftragt - 2014 eine doppelte Befragungsstudie von einem Team um Prof. Dr. Günter Bentele durchgeführt worden. Faktisch wurden knapp 60 der größten Unternehmen in Deutschland hinsichtlich der Institutionalisierung von Unternehmenskommunikation befragt, d.h. zu der Existenz von schriftlichen Kommunikationsrichtlinien, aber auch zu ihren Einstellungen zu ethischen Grundlagen in der Unternehmenskommunikation. Ausgewählte Ergebnisse zeigen: Für 75 Prozent der Befragten hat die Bedeutung von Kommunikationskodizes und -richtlinien in den vergangenen Jahren zugenommen. Die meisten Unternehmen haben bevorzugt in den Bereichen Media Relations, Finanzkommunikation und Online- Kommunikation schriftliche Kommunikationsrichtlinien entwickelt. Bei immerhin 43 Prozent der Befragten sind ethische Probleme ein regelmäßiges Thema. Für eine große Mehrheit der leitenden Kommunikationsmanager spielt Kommunikation auch für die allgemeinen Compliancekodizes eine wichtige Rolle. 84 Prozent der Befragten könnten sich vorstellen, dass ihr Unternehmen sich öffentlich hinter die Leitwerte des Deutschen Kommunikationskodex stellt. Diese Werte in den Arbeitsverträgen zu verankern sehen allerdings nur 30 Prozent als sinnvoll an.Representative surveys indicate that the population in Germany shows rather low trust towards large companies and international corporations. Lack of trust is strongly influenced by topics and the ways companies communicate. In this context - commissioned by the Academic Society of Corporate Management & Communication - a dual-survey study was conducted by a team led by Professor Guenter Bentele. Nearly 60 of the largest companies in Germany were interviewed regarding the institutionalization of corporate communications, including the existence of written communication guidelines and policies, but also regarding attitudes concerning ethical principles in corporate communications. According to 75 per cent of respondents, the relevance of communication codes and policies has increased in recent years. Most companies have developed written communication guidelines, preferably in the areas of media relations, financial communications and online communication. For 43 per cent of the respondents, ethical issues are a regular topic. For a large majority of senior communication managers, communication also plays an important role in the general compliance codes. A full 84 per cent of respondents could imagine that their company is publicly supporting the core values of the German Communication Code. But for only 30 per cent, it would be helpful to embed these values into labour contracts

Radiation Tolerance of 65nm CMOS Transistors

We report on the effects of ionizing radiation on 65nm CMOS transistors held at approximately -20C during irradiation. The pattern of damage observed after a total dose of 1 Grad is similar to damage reported in room temperature exposures, but we observe less damage than was observed at room temperature

Evidence suggests that state legislators are working to restrict access to the vote in response to minority turnout

In the past two elections there has been a dramatic increase in the number of restrictive voting laws passed at the state level. Support for these laws tends to break along party lines, with Republicans claiming these laws are needed to defend against voter fraud, and Democrats arguing that it is actually a form of voter suppression. In their recent research, Keith Gunnar Bentele and Erin O’Brien show that these proposals tend to be introduced in battleground states after periods of increased voter turnout among minority and low-income groups and are passed more frequently under Republican-controlled state legislatures

Exponential signaling gain at the receptor level enhances signal-to-noise ratio in bacterial chemotaxis

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Vaccination coverage for seasonal influenza among residents and health care workers in Norwegian nursing homes during the 2012/13 season, a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: WHO has set a goal of 75% vaccination coverage (VC) for seasonal influenza for residents and also recommends immunization for all healthcare workers (HCWs) in nursing homes (NHs). We conducted a cross-sectional study to estimate the VC for seasonal influenza vaccination in Norwegian NHs in 2012/2013 since the VC in NHs and HCWs is unknown. METHODS: We gathered information from NHs concerning VC for residents and HCWs, and vaccination costs for HCWs, using a web-based questionnaire. We calculated VC among NH residents by dividing the number of residents vaccinated by the total number of residents for each NH. VC among HCWs was similarly calculated by dividing the number of HCWs vaccinated by the total number of HCWs for each NH. The association between VC and possible demographic variables were explored. RESULTS: Of 910 NHs, 354 (38.9%) responded. Median VC per NH was 71.7% (range 0-100) among residents and 0% (range 0-100) among HCWs, with 214 (60%) NHs reporting that none of their HCWs was vaccinated. Median VC for HCWs in NHs with an annual vaccination campaign was 0% (range 0-53), compared to when they did not have an annual vaccination campaign 0% (range 0-12); the distributions in the two groups differed significantly (Mann–Whitney U, P = 0.006 two tailed). CONCLUSION: Median influenza VC in Norwegian NHs was marginally lower than recommended among residents and exceptionally low among HCWs. The VC in HCWs was significantly higher when NHs had an annual vaccination campaign. We recommend that NHs implement measures to increase VC among residents and HCWs, including vaccination campaigns and studies to identify potential barriers to vaccination

The versatile thymine DNA‐glycosylase: a comparative characterization of the human, Drosophila and fission yeast orthologs

Human thymine‐DNA glycosylase (TDG) is well known to excise thymine and uracil from G·T and G·U mismatches, respectively, and was therefore proposed to play a central role in the cellular defense against genetic mutation through spontaneous deamination of 5‐methylcytosine and cytosine. In this study, we characterized two newly discovered orthologs of TDG, the Drosophila melanogaster Thd1p and the Schizosaccharomyces pombe Thp1p proteins, with an objective to address the function of this subfamily of uracil‐DNA glycosylases from an evolutionary perspective. A systematic biochemical comparison of both enzymes with human TDG revealed a number of biologically significant facts. (i) All eukaryotic TDG orthologs have broad and species‐specific substrate spectra that include a variety of damaged pyrimidine and purine bases; (ii) the common most efficiently processed substrates of all are uracil and 3,N4‐ ethenocytosine opposite guanine and 5‐fluorouracil in any double‐stranded DNA context; (iii) 5‐methylcytosine and thymine derivatives are processed with an appreciable efficiency only by the human and the Drosophila enzymes; (iv) none of the proteins is able to hydrolyze a non‐damaged 5′‐methylcytosine opposite G; and (v) the double strand and mismatch dependency of the enzymes varies with the substrate and is not a stringent feature of this subfamily of DNA glycosylases. These findings advance our current view on the role of TDG proteins and document that they have evolved with high structural flexibility to counter a broad range of DNA base damage in accordance with the specific needs of individual specie

Unternehmenskommunikation aus der Sicht von Vorständen und Kommunikationsmanagern: Ein empirischer Vergleich

Der vorliegende Forschungsbericht liefert empirische Erkenntnisse darüber, welche Wahrnehmung von Unternehmenskommunikation beim Top-Management einerseits und bei Kommunikationsverantwortlichen andererseits vorherrschen. Gemeinsamkeiten und Unterschiede werden identifiziert und diskutiert. Grundlage bilden zwei Befragungen, in denen der Stellenwert der Kommunikationsfunktion bei 602 Vorständen und Geschäftsführern bzw. 1.251 Kommunikationsmanagern deutscher Unternehmen untersucht wurde. Während das Top-Management der Information und Motivation von Mitarbeitern die höchste Relevanz zuschreibt, verstehen Kommunikatoren den Aufbau und die Pflege eines positiven Images als ihre Hauptaufgabe. Eine weitere Diskrepanz stellt die unterschiedliche Auffassung über den Umgang mit aktuellen Transparenzanforderungen dar. Im Hinblick auf das Rollenverständnis ist sich die Mehrheit der Befragten einig, dass Kommunikationsmanager vorrangig als Mittler zwischen Unternehmen und Öffentlichkeit wirken sollten. Jeder zweite Top-Manager nimmt den Kommunikationsverantwortlichen darüber hinaus als persönlichen Berater wahr. In einem Drittel der untersuchten Unternehmen hat die Kommunikationsfunktion nach übereinstimmender Aussage beider Gruppen einen großen strategischen Einfluss auf Entscheidungen der Unternehmensleitung. Die Aussagen über eine noch stärkere Einbindung und zur generellen Entwicklung des Kommunikationsmanagements in Unternehmen gehen allerdings wieder auseinander. Insgesamt wird deutlich, dass die Perspektiven vielfach auseinanderklaffen und eine bessere Abstimmung notwendig erscheint.This research report provides empirical insights into perceptions about corporate communications by top executives on the one hand and communication professionals on the other hand. Common viewpoints and divergences are identified and discussed. The research is based on two surveys with replies from 602 CEOs and executive board members as well as 1.251 communication managers from German companies. While top executives rate the information and motivation of employees as the most important objective of communication, communication professionals evaluate the creation of a positive image as their main task. Respondents from both groups also state different opinions about dealing with the demand for transparency. Both top executives and communicators give most support to a role model that describes communication professionals as a facilitator between an organization and its publics. Every second CEO or board member says that communication managers act as personal advisors. But other questions reveal significant differences. The overall conclusion is that perspectives diverge quite often and attention should be directed towards a better alignment between top management and those leading the communication function

The Death Penalty in Georgia: Still Arbitrary

The United States Supreme Court has found death constitutional as a punishment for murder. In Gregg v. Georgia, the Court declared that capital punishment is not, by its very nature, cruel and unusual in violation of the eighth amendment. This Article focuses on the Georgia capital punishment system. The conclusions to be drawn from examination of the Georgia experience have broad application, however, because the Georgia system is typical of modem American capital punishment schemes. If the Georgia statute cannot avoid arbitrary and discriminatory imposition of death sentences, it is difficult to imagine a statute that could effectively perform that task. In Part I, this Article examines the Gregg Court\u27s assumption that safeguards built into the trial and appeal phase of a capital case insure against arbitrary and capricious application of the death penalty in Georgia. The Court in Gregg essentially dismissed the problems inherent in the prosecutor\u27s discretion to charge and the executive\u27s power to grant clemency. The Article will address the issues surrounding those stages in Parts II and III