Reflexionen über die Liebe. Jan Vermeers Mädchen mit dem Weinglas im Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum Braunschweig. - [Originalmanuskript]

Thema der Arbeit ist die Analyse eines unumstritten von der Hand Vermeers stammenden, um 1660 gemalten, heute im Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum Braunschweig hängenden Gemäldes, das dort als "Mädchen mit dem Weinglas" bezeichnet wird. Wie so viele andere Bilder mutierte auch dieses im Zuge des emblematic turn der Kunstgeschichte zu einem Medium moralischer Warnung. Die Hauptperson wurde zu einer von zwei Dandys besuchten „Dame von zweifelhaftem Ruf“, während allen Dreien eine in der Glasmalerei des Fensters versteckte temperantia ihren Maßhalteappell zurief. Die malerischen Eigenschaften des Bildes interessierten bestenfalls am Rande. Im Gegensatz dazu geht die vorliegende Untersuchung von der visuellen Analyse des Gemäldes aus. Sie arbeitet die bildimmanente Bewegung heraus, die dem Strom des Lichtes folgend von links oben in die diagonal gegenüber liegende Bildhälfte führt, um dort aufgefangen und in die Faltenlandschaft des roten Satin transformiert zu werden. Diese Bewegung verläuft nicht geradlinig und ruhig, sondern über Barrieren und Sprünge hinweg, nicht im gleichmäßigen Fließen, eher in Kaskaden und Wirbeln. Kunstvoll verknüpft Vermeer die Bildelemente in einer dynamischen coniunctio oppositorum, die ebensosehr Verbindungen wie zugleich Spannung, Sperren und Brüche zwischen den Elementen formuliert. In einem zweiten Schritt wird die Szene im Kontext der gesellschaftlichen Schicht und der sozialen Normen der dargestellten Personen interpretiert. Das Ergebnis ist, dass wir hier eine ganz normale Werbungsszene vor uns haben, deren revolutionärer Zug allerdings darin besteht, dass die Umworbene den üblichen Gang der Ereignisse unterbricht, indem sie sich lachend aus dem Bild wendet. Vermeer billigt der noch sehr jungen Frau visuell und szenisch eine Kraft und Handlungsfähigkeit zu, an die seine späteren Konstruktionen von autonomer Weiblichkeit anknüpfen werden. Es zeigt sich, dass die formalen und inhaltlichen Elemente des Gemäldes aufs engste aufeinander bezogen sind. Die beiden Leitthemen sind - verkürzt gesagt - Verbindung und Unterbrechung sowohl auf rein visueller wie auf szenischer Ebene. Von Moralpredigt findet sich keine Spur, eher umgekehrt ein Plädoyer für die Eroberung eines Möglichkeitsraumes weiblichen Verhaltens jenseits der durch die Konvention gesetzten Grenzen - in Parallele gesetzt zu einem Möglichkeitsraum des beweglich strömenden Lichts. Vermeer zwingt den Betrachter zu aktiver Teilnahme am Bildgeschehen, indem er - ihn fesselnd durch die Licht-Ereignisse - ihn zugleich dazu zwingt, nachzusinnen über die möglichen Ursachen und Konsequenzen der Unterbrechung der Szene durch die junge Frau (oder den Betrachter selbst?). Dabei zeigt sich Vermeer auch von seiner weniger bekannten Seite als warmzherzig-humorvoller Beobachter aufs Sorgfältigste konstruierter visueller Phänomene und menschlicher Verhaltensweisen. Mit einem Hauch von Ironie spielt er mit emblematischen Bezügen, die freilich im Bildzusammenhang nur eine Randrolle einnehmen. Der Text ist die schriftliche, mit Anmerkungen und Belegen versehene Fassung eines Vortrages aus dem Jahre 2007, erschienen 2010 in dem von Victoria von Flemming und Alma-Elisa Kittner herausgegebenen Sammelband "Barock - modern?", Salon-Verlag, Köln

Hemispheric differences in word meaning processing: Alternative interpretations of current evidence

Current models of hemispheric differences in word semantic processing converge on the hypothesis that the left hemisphere focuses word meanings to their core meanings, whereas the right hemisphere keeps wider representations active. This paper discusses four aspects of studies frequently cited in support of this hypothesis that require further investigation and consideration. Specifically, the paper critiques assumptions about interpretation of lateral prime presentation, priming measures, prime-target association, and aspects of targeted meanings (strength of relatedness versus meaning dominance). The paper proposes further research to clarify these assumptions, and introduces an alternative interpretation of the available data

Prognostic factors in seminomas with special respect to HCG: Results of a prospective multicenter study

Objective: In a prospective multicenter trial, it was our intention to elucidate clinical prognostic factors of seminomas with special reference to the importance of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) elevations in histologically pure seminomas. Methods: Together with 96 participating urological departments in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, we recruited 803 seminoma patients between 1986 and 1991. Out of 726 evaluable cases, 378 had elevated, while 348 had normal HCG values in the cubital vein. Histology was reviewed by two reference pathologists. HCG levels were determined in local laboratories and in a study laboratory. Standard therapy was defined as radiotherapy in stages I (30 Gy) and IIA/B (36 Gy) to the paraaortal and the ispilateral (stage I) and bilateral (stage IIA/B) iliac lymph nodes; higher stages received polychemotherapy and surgery in case of residual tumor masses. Statistics included chi-square tests, linear Cox regression, and log-rank test. Results: The HCG elevation is associated with a larger tumor mass (primary tumor and/or metastases). HCG-positive and HCG-negative seminomas had no different prognostic outcome after standard therapy. The overall relapse rate of 6% and the survival rate of 98% after 36 months (median) indicate an excellent prognosis. The calculation of the relative risk of developing a relapse discovered only stage of the disease and elevation of the lactate dehydrogenase concentration and its prolonged marker decay as independent prognostic factors for seminomas. A more detailed analysis of the prognostic significance of the stage revealed that the high relapse rate in stage IIB seminomas after radiotherapy (24%) is responsible for this result. Conclusions: We conclude that HCG-positive seminomas do not represent a special entity. Provided standard therapy is applied, HCG has no influence on the prognosis. Patients with stage IIB disease should be treated with chemotherapy because of the demonstrated higher relapse rate outside the retroperitoneum. Copyright (C) 1999 S. Karger AG. Basel

Developing a standardized measure of short-term memory and syntactic complexity: results from subtests of the CRTT-R

Short-term memory (STM) effects have shown to be distinguishable from other working memory components supporting complex computations/central executive functions. To develop a measure capable of assessing the effects of STM and linguistic computations on sentence processing,  effects of syntactic complexity and padding were investigated with the Computerized Revised Token Test –Revised in individuals with aphasia and control participants.  Off-line measures revealed clear effects of both factors.  The expected interaction of complexity and padding  and overadditive effects for individuals with aphasia were not found. An effect of complexity on word errors in passive sentences for individuals was shown

Perturbative approach to the hydrogen atom in strong magnetic field

The states of hydrogen atom with principal quantum number n <= 3 and zero magnetic quantum number in constant homogeneous magnetic field H are considered. The perturbation theory series is summed with the help of Borel transformation and conformal mapping of the Borel variable. Convergence of approximate energy eigenvalues and their agreement with corresponding existing results are observed for external fields up to n^3 H ~ 5. The possibility of restoring the asymptotic behaviour of energy levels using perturbation theory coefficients is also discussed.Comment: LaTeX, 8 pages with 5 eps figure

Concurrent Validation of the Computerized Revised Token Test (CRTT) and Three Experimental Reading Versions (CRTT-R) in Normal Elderly Individuals and Persons With Aphasia

This study evaluated one listening and three reading tasks with stimuli, scoring, and task requirements coherent for auditory and visual administrations of the Computerized Revised Token Test (CRTT), thus allowing for direct comparisons across modalities and language functions. Thirty Persons with Aphasia (PWA) and 30 Normal Elderly Individuals (NEI) received the four versions of the CRTT in random order. The Porch Index of Communicative Ability (PICA) and the Reading Comprehension Battery for Aphasia (RCBA) also were administered. In PWA the four versions were strongly related and highly correlated with the PICA and the RCBA. The NEI differed from this pattern

Energy, Sustainability, and the Environment in Iceland: A STEM-Focused Program for the Experiment in International Living

Since 1932, The Experiment in International Living (The Experiment or EIL) has been one of the most respected front-runners for providing high school educational programs that strengthen cultural awareness and engage and empower participants to think critically about global issues. Since its inception, over 70,000 students have participated in an Experiment program (World Learning, 2016a). Experience gained working as a group leader for The Experiment in summer 2015 helped in the development of a needs assessment that uncovered a significant gap in thematic offerings. Examining the STEM trends in the international education field and interviewing staff on requirements and issues in programming and curriculum, the following proposal strongly demonstrates the need for a new hard science-focused program for The Experiment in International Living. This proposal focuses on the development of a new STEM-focused outbound summer program to Iceland with an excursion to Greenland. Iceland’s location in the Arctic Circle and proximity to Greenland make it an excellent location for students to learn about climate change, geology, and sustainability. Following The Experiment structure, this proposal outlines the curriculum, goals and objectives, itinerary, and budget for the Energy, Sustainability, and the Environment in Iceland program. This is a four-week outbound summer high school program that offers students a unique opportunity to explore Iceland’s diverse geology, topography and unique historic use of geothermal energy and hydropower