α′\alpha'-Cosmology: solutions and stability analysis

We review O$(d,d)$ Covariant String Cosmology to all orders in $\alpha'$ in the presence of matter and study its solutions. We show that the perturbative analysis for a constant dilaton in the absence of a dilatonic charge does not lead to a time-independet equation of state. Meanwhile, the non-perturbative equations of motion allow de Sitter solutions in the String frame parametrized by the equation of state and the dilatonic charge. Among this set of solutions, we show that a cosmological constant equation of state implies a de Sitter solution both in String and Einstein frames while a winding equation of state implies a de Sitter solution in the former and a static phase in the latter. We also consider the stability of these solutions under homogeneous linear perturbations and show that they are not unstable, therefore defining viable cosmological scenarios.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure, references updated, typos fixe

Why people would not stop contributing if an unconditional basic income were introduced : an argumentation from within the sociology of religion

The fear that with the existence of an unconditional basic income sufficient for living many people would cease to engage in a productive life, would only relax, consume and devote to having fun, can be addressed from different perspectives. One of these is the sociology of religion, which allows elaborating the argument that with such a way of life the question about the meaning of life cannot be answered. But this "meaning question", the whole research within the field of the sociology of religion speaks for this, compellingly must be answered by each life praxis. It cannot remain unanswered, as is said already in the Bible: "Man does not live on bread alone, [but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.]" (5. Moses 8.3, Matthew 4.4, Lukas 4.4) The paper examines the reasons of this fact and its consequences in regard to a life with an unconditional basic income sufficient for living

Generation and secularisation in Germany : the succession of generations up to the youngest adult generation and the advancing process of secularisation

When one considers the results of social scientific surveys, secularisation in Germany seems to be a more or less linear process of erosion of what is traditionally named religiosity. The percentage of citizens who affirm that they are “religious”, believe in God or otherworldly beings, hope for life after death or participate regularly in the praxis of a religious community has been – by and large – steadily declining for decades. This decline has occurred over the succeeding generations: The younger the generation, the fewer “religious” people in it. But the process of secularisation is apparent not only in this persistent quantitative shrinkage from generation to generation. Above all it also manifests itself – this is the thesis of the article – in the transformation of the habitus formations and contents of faith of the generations. The essence of ongoing secularisation naturally is reflected most clearly in its contemporary state of development which is represented in the youngest adult generation. Therefore the analysis of this generation is particularly interesting for the sociology of religion. But the article does not confine to analyze this generation. After indicating some basic premises of the sociology of generations and the notion of secularisation presupposed in this paper, the succession of generations in Germany is outlined hypothetically, from the so-called generation of ´68 to the youngest adult generation, concluding with some remarks about the progress of secularisation

Point Particle Motion in DFT and a Singularity-Free Cosmological Solution

We generalize the action for point particle motion to a double field theory background. After deriving the general equations of motion for these particle geodesics, we specialize to the case of a cosmological background with vanishing antisymmetric tensor field and constant dilaton. We then show that the geodesics can be extended to infinity in both time directions once we define the appropriate physical clock. Following this prescription, we also show the existence of a singularity-free cosmological solution.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure

Ist die traditionelle Leistungsethik in den führenden Industrienationen zum Haupthindernis eines prosperierenden und gerechten Kapitalismus geworden? : die Relevanz dieser zeitdiagnostischen Frage für die Religionssoziologie

Der Autor beschäftigt sich in diesem Aufsatz aus religionssoziologischer Perspektive mit der Frage, ob die herkömmliche Leistungsethik in den entwickelten Industrienationen zum Haupthindernis eines prosperierenden und gerechten Kapitalismus geworden ist. Vor dem Hintergrund der Skizze einer Krisendiagnose vom "Ende der Erwerbsarbeitsethik als Normalmodell" wird zu bestimmen versucht, was diese Krise insbesondere für die Lebensführung bedeutet und welche religionssoziologisch relevanten Fragen durch sie aufgeworfen werden. Es wird schließlich unter Rekurs auf die skizzierte Krise die erweiterte Version einer Weberianschen Säkularisierungstheorie entworfen, die sich nicht zuletzt durch die krisenhafte Entwicklung theoretisch aufdränge