The career of the German physicist Walther Gerlach (1889–1979) spanned two world wars and the changing political systems in Germany in the twentieth century. As a physicist involved in the rapid development of atomic physics and the management of scientific research in Germany during World War II as well as in post-war West Germany, several attempts have been made in the past by historians of science to write his full biography. These projects have, among other foci, asked about (...) Gerlach's role and his position with respect to National Socialism. However, based on his extensive papers preserved in the Deutsches Museum Archive in Munich, none of these projects has so far been conclusive. In this article, we identify evidence for the selective deletion of personal files relating to his first wife and daughter. We argue that reconstructing this lacuna sheds new light on the influence of National Socialist ideology on Gerlach's personal life, making him both a profiteer and a victim of eugenics jurisdiction. (shrink)

Cross-cultural comparisons often investigate values that are assumed to have long-lasting influence on human conduct and thought. To capture and compare cultural values across cultures, Geert Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions Theory has offered an influential framework. Hofstede also provided a survey instrument, the Values Survey Module (VSM), for measuring cultural values as outlined in his Cultural Dimensions Theory. The VSM has since been subject to a series of revisions. Yet, data on countries have been derived from the original VSM — and (...) not on one of the revised versions of VSM. We tested three scales (indulgence, power distance, and individualism) from the latest version, the VSM 2013, as part of a larger survey across 57 countries. Two main findings emerged. For one thing, country scores based on the VSM 2013 scales correlated only weakly with country scores of the same cultural dimensions obtained in a large previous study. Thus, the validity of the VSM 2013 is in doubt. For another thing, the internal consistency of the VSM 2013 scales was overall poor, indicating that the scales did not reliably measure well-defined constructs. We discuss implications for cross-cultural research. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 12.3 (2002) 299-303 [Access article in PDF] Bioethics Inside the Beltway What Should IRBs Consider When Applying the Privacy Rule to Research? Julie Waltz Gerlach In 1996, Congress mandated the establishment of standards for the privacy of individually identifiable health information through the Health Insurance and Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). Until the establishment of HIPAA, personal health information could be (...) distributed without notice or consent for reasons that had nothing to do with a patient's medical treatment or health care reimbursement. Patient information held by a health plan could be passed on to a lender who then might deny the patient's application for a home mortgage or a credit card or to an employer who might use it for personnel decisions. Congress failed to meet its 21 August 1996 deadline established by HIPAA to pass privacy legislation; the Act passed the responsibility to Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). On 28 December 2000, the Secretary of Health and Human Services released final privacy regulations relating to the protection of patients' individually identifiable health information. The "Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information" (Privacy Rule/current) took effect 14 April 2001. As required by HIPAA, the Privacy Rule established conditions for the collection, use, and disclosure of protected health information by covered entities for research purposes. Covered entities, defined as health plans, health care clearinghouses, and health care providers that engage electronically in a wide range of financial and administrative transactions related to payment and reimbursement, must comply by 14 April 2003 (DHHS 2000, p. 82462). To ensure that the provisions of the final rule provide strong privacy protection without hindering access to health care, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS 2002, p. 14776) has proposed modifications to the Privacy Rule.The final Privacy Rule (DHHS 2001) grants substantial rights to individuals/research participants to be informed of how their protected health information is maintained and how that information may be used or disclosed. It also defines individual's/research participants' rights with regard to gaining access to information about themselves, when such information is held by covered entities. [End Page 299]The Privacy Rule requires researchers either to receive authorization from individuals/research participants to collect, use, and disclose protected health information, or to obtain a waiver of authorization that is approved by an institutional review board (IRB) or Privacy Board, or to use de-identified data. Section 164.508 of the Privacy Rule, entitled "Use and Disclosures for Which an Authorization Is Required," describes how IRBs will be directly affected. The rule focuses not just on research but on the overall privacy of all identifiable health information. Institutions have the option of adding these required duties to IRBs or establishing "privacy boards." Privacy boards, as defined by the Privacy Rule, are to be composed of members with varying backgrounds and professional competency to review the effect of the research protocol on the individual/research participant's privacy rights. The board must include at least one member who is not affiliated with the covered entity, or any entity conducting or sponsoring the research, and not related to any person who is affiliated with such entities. Board members cannot participate in the review of any research project in which the member has a conflict of interest.The basic concepts and tenets of privacy and confidentiality are well known to IRBs in the United States, which operate under the Common Rule (45 CFR 46) and/or the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) human subject protection regulations. Both sets of regulations require IRBs to ensure that risks (including privacy risks) are minimized. Under these regulations, IRBs must consider the confidentiality of research data and whether researchers should have access to confidential medical information. IRBs also must review the consent form as a process of communication that will inform research subjects about the research study.One noteworthy aspect of the Privacy Rule is its application to all research regardless of funding source. Currently, research funded by... (shrink)

There can be analyzed at least four different types of intentions: prior inten- tions, intentions in action, intentions with which and further intentions. But how are these different types of intentions related? And what is their relation to goals in goal-directed actions? This work tries to answer these questions by a temporal analysis of intentions as mental states. It gives a new argument for the unity of the different forms of intention and shows the central state goals have thereby.

Throughout his philosophical work, Schelling came to increasingly emphasize his conviction that the ultimate principles of philosophy are essentially practical: the ego formally conceived as act in early philosophy, creation as the unfolding of structurally rich action in late philosophy. It remained unclear, however, exactly what constituted the practicality of these principles, namely which concept of action Schelling used and how it is being integrated into the totality of his system. The task this study sets itself is to investigate into (...) these issues in respect to his middle and late philosophy. With the doctrine of potencies serving as point of departure, spirit is first reconstructed as practical consciousness. Creation as an ontotheological original act with the historical world as the space of human action is then systematically developed. Freedom, foresight, purposefulness, intentionality and futurity prove to be the central practical attributes of both human and divine action. Their connection is manifested in the religious consciousness of man and instantiated metaphysically in the relationship of time and eternity. Schelling's positive philosophy shows that these practical aspects are the irreducable prerequisites to render the historical world process intelligible. (shrink)

ZusammenfassungZur aristotelischen Unterscheidung von Herstellen und Handeln (Poiesis und Praxis) gibt es zwei konkurrierende Interpretationen: nach der einen betrifft der Unterschied zwei verschiedene Aspekte an Handlungen, nach der anderen verschiedene Typen von Handlungen. Für eine Entscheidung dieser Frage sind systematische und exegetische Gesichtspunkte zu trennen: zwar bietet die aristotelische Textbasis Belege für beide Seiten, allerdings zeigt die systematische Untersuchung, dass eine zwei-Typen-Lesart sachlich verfehlt ist. Handlungen lassen sich nicht sinnvoll unterteilen in solche, die ihr Ziel lediglich außer sich, aber kein (...) Ziel in sich haben und umgekehrt. Stattdessen sind sie notwendig von einer doppelten Zielsetzung geleitet, bei welcher der Vollzug der Handlung in deren Vollendung münden soll. (shrink)

Psychological safety is a shared belief among team members that it is safe to take interpersonal risks. It can enhance team learning, experimentation with new ideas, and team performance. Considerable research has examined the positive effects of PS in diverse organizational contexts and is now shifting its focus toward exploring the nature of PS itself. This study aims to enhance our understanding of PS antecedents and development over time. Based on the model of team faultlines and research on team diversity, (...) we examined the effects of demographic faultlines, team member personality, and member competencies on the development of PS. Over 5 months, 61 self-managed teams assessed their PS at the beginning, midpoint, and end of a research project. Results of a multilevel growth curve model show that PS decreased from project beginning to end. Initial levels of PS were especially low when teams had strong demographic faultlines and when team members differed in neuroticism. PS decreased more strongly over time when team members were diverse in agreeableness and assessed their task-related competencies to be relatively high. Our study identifies time and team composition attributes as meaningful predictors for the development of PS. We present ideas for future research and offer suggestions for how and when to intervene to help teams strengthen PS throughout their collaboration. (shrink)

Die Bedeutung Platons für die Mathematik und die von Beginn der Neuzeit an entstehenden mathematischen Naturwissenschaften ist unbestritten. Ebenso unbestritten ist, dass Platon selbst der Mathematik einen hohen Stellenwert in allen Bereichen seines philosophischen Denkens zugemessen hat. Insbesondere hat die mathematische Konzeption seiner im Dialog Timaios dargestellten Naturphilosophie herausragende Beachtung gefunden, nicht nur, weil der Timaios die einzige über das Mittelalter hinweg kontinuierlich im Abendland überlieferte Schrift Platons war, sondern auch, weil gerade hier der die Naturwissenschaften der Neuzeit leitende Gedanke, (...) die materielle Natur sei in sich selbst nach mathematischen Strukturen verfasst, von Platon umfassend entwickelt worden ist. (shrink)

The study gives a temporal analysis of actions. Thereby it tries to show that there is a crucial connection between action theory and time theory. It is based on the idea that the main difference in time theory between A- and B-series of time is related to the main difference in action theory between causal and teleological concepts of action. Teleological concepts need A-time-series because goals are in the future related to the view of the agent in acting – and (...) not just later as the time he is in now. They cannot be replaced by causal explications without cutting the idea of goal-directed action in the same way as in time theory the concept of future, as a part of the A-series, cannot be reduced to the B-series of time. (shrink)

Zusammenfassung In Schellings Philosophie der Offenbarung wird die Schöpfung als Handlung Gottes konzipiert, vergleichbar mit menschlichen Handlungen. Allerdings ist es eine Handlung in einer einzigartigen Situation: Der Schöpfungsakt selbst vollzieht sich von einem Standpunkt außerhalb der physikalischen Welt, ja außerhalb der sukzessiven Zeit. Und sie ist eine Handlung unter Minimalbedingungen: es bedarf für sie lediglich eines absoluten, zukunftsgerichteten Geistes. Daher lässt eine Analyse von Schellings Schöpfungskonzept die Grundstrukturen von Handlungen sichtbar werden. Das Ergebnis einer solchen Untersuchung ist, dass Handlungen basale (...) teleologische Strukturen besitzen. Im Gegensatz zu einer Hauptrichtung der gegenwärtigen Handlungstheorie lässt sich mit Schelling zeigen, dass Handlungen undenkbar sind ohne Begriffe des Zukünftigen und der Zielgerichtetheit - dass der Aspekt der Zukunft und der Zielgerichtetheit in Handlungen zusammenkommen und wie dies geschieht. (shrink)

In the period of On the Essence of Human Freedom Schelling worked out a theory of freedom which includes more than its main question about the compatibility of human freedom to do good and evil with the logical necessity of reason and freedom of God. A full comprehension of freedom in this period has to include his answers to the question how free individual actions of persons work. The main claim of this paper is that Schelling’s philosophy around 1810 contains (...) a two-level theory of freedom. It relates a fundamental base of general freedom and unchangeable decisions about our character with a level where different grades of freedom and changes of the character of a person are possible. (shrink)

English summary: The book "Gnomica Democritea" takes a panoramic view of the fate of Democritus' ethics by establishing a connection between the lost body of works on ethics and the "gnomological" tradition which is at the core of Diels' collection of fragments attributed to Democritus. The focus of the study is on the early and middle period of the Byzantine gnomological tradition which had not yet been analysed so far, and it leads to some modifications of the canon of texts (...) established by Diels. Starting from a central "universal collection", the author traces the erratic ways of tradition of the Democritea with unprecedented precision, and this results in new insight about the Byzantine florilegia. German description: Das Buch "Gnomica Democritea" wirft einen Panoramablick auf das Schicksal der demokritischen Ethik, indem es Bezuge zwischen dem verlorenen ethischen Oeuvre und der "gnomologischen" Tradition herstellt, welche den Kern der von Diels gesammelten Demokritfragmente bildet. Der Untersuchungsschwerpunkt liegt auf der fur Demokrit bislang nicht ausgewerteten fruh- und mittelbyzantinischen Gnomentradition und erlaubt Modifikationen des Dielsschen Textkanons. Ausgehend von einer zentralen "Universalsammlung" werden die verschlungenen Uberlieferungswege der "Democritea" in bislang nicht gekannter Prazision ermittelt und neuartige Erkenntnisse uber die byzantinischen Florilegien gewonnen. (shrink)

A linear wave field in its Minkowski ground state is analyzed heuristically by two observers, one inertial, the other accelerating in a linear and uniform way. Relative to the accelerated observer, the zero-point oscillations of each Minkowski plane wave mode have an unusual Fourier spectrum. Its intensity is (i) the same for all plane wave modes, (ii) isotropic, and (iii) that of a thermal ambience (relative to the accelerated frame). The temperature of this ambience is given by the Davies-Unruh formula (...) kT=(ħ/2π)(g/c). The existence of this ambience is incompatible with the requirement that the laws of nature be formulated in terms of tensors. (shrink)

Die allgemeine anzahlenlehre.--Der araum und die grössenlehre.--Die gestaltenlehre.--Besondere gestalten.--Gleich und gleich.--Plus, minus und das irgend-i.--Anhang: Zur "gemeinverständlichen" erörterund der relativitätstheorie.

Keine ausführliche Beschreibung für "Martin Heidegger" verfügbar.

In the absence of effective judicial remediation mechanisms after business-related human rights violations, companies themselves are expected to establish remediation procedures for affected victims and communities. This is a challenge for both companies and victims since comprehensive company-based grievance mechanisms are currently missing. In this paper, we explore how companies can provide effective remediation after human rights violations. Accordingly, we critically assess two different approaches to conflict resolution, alternative dispute resolution and restorative justice, for their potential to provide dialogue-based, non-judicial (...) remediation. We argue that remedy through agreement-driven ADR mechanisms risks marginalizing the interests and concerns of victims and affected community members, particularly in weak institutional contexts. Hence, we develop a dialogue-driven framework for corporate remediation of human rights violations grounded on RJ principles. This restorative framework provides a comprehensive CGM that focuses on the harms and needs of victims and aims at restoring justice through restorative dialogue. Based on a prompt discovery and a thorough investigation of the grievance, companies should design and prepare the remediation process together with victims, offenders and affected community members. Through restorative dialogue with the affected parties about the circumstances and impacts of the wrongdoing, companies can repair the harm, regain legitimacy amongst stakeholders as well as transform their business practices to avoid future human rights violations. (shrink)