Aesthetic Freedom and Democratic Ethical Life: A Hegelian Account of the Relationship between Aesthetics and Democratic Politics

This paper presents a novel Hegelian view of the relationship between aesthetics and democratic politics. My account avoids the drawbacks associated with approaches that (like Rancière’s) reconceive all of the political in aesthetic terms or (like Rockhill’s) reduce the aesthetic to art. Instead, I maintain that the aesthetic is best understood as a distinct relationship of individual freedom. My argument proceeds by highlighting shortcomings of Honneth’s account of democratic Sittlichkeit and then addressing these impasses by integrating aesthetic freedom into the picture. The first two steps of my argument concern the fact that the form of life outlined by Honneth aspires to be a form of free life, yet his account of democratic Sittlichkeit gives rise to two dimensions of unfreedom. The first problem of unfreedom pertains to the scope of freedom. The relationships of freedom incorporated into Honneth’s account fail to turn given social roles into the subject matter of a sufficiently unrestricted practice of freedom. The second problem of freedom concerns conformism. In a final step, I complete my argument that Honneth’s account is unsatisfactory and incomplete by showing that aesthetic freedom is socially valid and thus ought to form part of our accounts of democratic ethical life

Connected or Unconnected? Synergiepotenziale und Herausforderungen von IT-Governance in Hochschulen.

IT-Governance spielt in diversen Tätigkeitsfeldern von Hochschulen eine immer größere Rolle: Hochschulinternationalisierung, Lehre, wissenschaftiche Weiterbildung oder auch Forschungsdatenmanagement und Open Science sind Handlungsfelder, deren Digitalisierungsprozesse vorangetrieben werden. Diese iit perspektive richtet den Fokus auf eine zielgerichtete und integrative Steuerung durch eine IT-Governance an Hochschulen, die die Schnittstellenelemente zwischen den verschiedenen Handlungsfeldern innerhalb der Hochschule mitbetrachtet. Diskutiert wird unter anderem die Frage, welche Beispiele für IT-Governance-Prozesse an Hochschulen es gibt, die die Kompatibilität und Interoperabilität von Systemen, Daten, Standards zwischen den einzelnen Handlungsfeldern ebenso wie auch zwischen Institutionen mitdenken

Automated analysis of urinary stone composition using raman spectroscopy: Pilot study for the development of a compact portable system for immediate postoperative ex vivo application

Purpose: We evaluate a compact portable system for immediate automated postoperative ex vivo analysis of urinary stone composition using Raman spectroscopy. Analysis of urinary stone composition provides essential information for the treatment and metaphylaxis of urolithiasis. Currently infrared spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction are used for urinary stone analysis. However, these methods may require complex sample preparation and costly laboratory equipment. In contrast, Raman spectrometers could be a simple and quick strategy for immediate stone analysis. Materials and Methods: Pure samples of 9 stone components and 159 human urinary calculi were analyzed by Raman spectroscopy using a microscope coupled system at 2 excitation wavelengths. Signal-to-noise ratio, peak positions and the distinctness of the acquired Raman spectra were analyzed and compared. Background fluorescence was removed mathematically. Corrected Raman spectra were used as a reference library for aut omated classification of native human urinary stones (50). The results were then compared to standard infrared spectroscopy. Results: Signal-to-noise ratio was superior at an excitation wavelength of 532 nm. An automated, computer based classifier was capable of matching spectra from patient samples with those of pure stone components. Consecutive analysis of 50 human stones demonstrated 100% sensitivity and specificity compared to infrared spectroscopy (for components with more than 25% of total composition). Conclusions: Our pilot study indicates that Raman spectroscopy is a valid and reliable technique for determining urinary stone composition. Thus, we propose that the development of a compact and portable system based on Raman spectroscopy for immediate, postoperative stone analysis could represent an invaluable tool for the metaphylaxis of urolithiasis

Nucleated Red Blood Cell Emergence-Time in Newborn Lambs Following a Dose of Darbepoetin Alfa

Background: Nucleated red blood cells (NRBC) are very uncommon in the blood of children and adults, but small numbers are not rare in neonates on the day of birth. Elevated NRBC counts in neonates can be seen following erythropoietin dosing. Limited studies in human neonates suggest the time-interval between erythropoietin dosing and the first appearance of NRBC in the blood (the “NRBC emergence-time”) is in excess of 24 hours. Methods: We made serial blood counts (Sysmex veterinary analyzer) on ten newborn lambs; five were dosed with darbepoetin (10 μg/kg), and five were dosed with a vehicle-control to assess the NRBC emergence time under relatively controlled laboratory conditions. Results: The first appearance of NRBC was at 24 h (2757 ± 3210 NRBC/μL vs. 0/μL in controls). Peak was 48-72 h (16,758 ± 8434/μL vs. 0/μL in controls), followed by fewer at 96 hours (7823 ± 7114/μL vs. 0/μL in controls). Similarly, reticulocytes peaked at 48-72 h (113,094 ± 3210/μL vs. 10,790 ± 5449/μL in controls), with no changes in platelets or leukocytes. Conclusions: The NRBC emergence time in newborn lambs is similar to reports from newborn hu-mans. By extrapolation, if a neonate has a high NRBC at birth, the erythropoietic stimulus likely occurred within the interval 24 to perhaps 96+ hours prior to birth. </jats:sec