BackgroundClustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats-associated technology may allow for efficient and highly targeted gene editing in single-cell embryos. This possibility brings human germline editing into the focus of ethical and legal debates again.Main bodyAgainst this background, we explore essential ethical and legal questions of interventions into the human germline by means of CRISPR-Cas: How should issues of risk and uncertainty be handled? What responsibilities arise regarding future generations? Under which conditions can germline editing measures be therapeutically legitimized? For this (...) purpose, we refer to a scenario anticipating potential further development in CRISPR-Cas technology implying improved accuracy and exclusion of germline transmission to future generations. We show that, if certain concepts regarding germline editing are clarified, under such conditions a categorical prohibition of one-generation germline editing of single-cell embryos appears not to be ethically or legally justifiable.ConclusionThese findings are important prerequisites for the international debate on the ethical and legal justification of germline interventions in the human embryo as well as for the harmonization of international legal standards. (shrink)

Ultimately, this affects the natural interplay between privacy, personal identity and identification. This book investigates that interplay from a systemic, socio-technical perspective by combining research from the social and computer sciences. It sheds light on the basic functions of privacy, their relation to identity, and how they alter with digital identification practices. The analysis reveals a general privacy control dilemma of (digital) identification shaped by several interrelated socio-political, economic and technical factors. Uncontrolled increases in the identification modalities inherent to digital (...) technology reinforce this dilemma and benefit surveillance practices, thereby complicating the detection of privacy risks and the creation of appropriate safeguards. Easing this problem requires a novel approach to privacy impact assessment (PIA), and this book proposes an alternative PIA framework which, at its core, comprises a basic typology of (personally and technically) identifiable information. This approach contributes to the theoretical and practical understanding of privacy impacts and thus, to the development of more effective protection standards. This book will be of much interest to students and scholars of critical security studies, surveillance studies, computer and information science, science and technology studies, and politics. (shrink)

ObjectiveTo determine whether gait and accelerometric features can predict disorientation events in young and older adults.MethodsCognitively healthy younger and older participants navigated on a treadmill through a virtual representation of the city of Rostock featured within the Gait Real-Time Analysis Interactive Lab system. We conducted Bayesian Poisson regression to determine the association of navigation performance with domain-specific cognitive functions. We determined associations of gait and accelerometric features with disorientation events in real-time data using Bayesian generalized mixed effect models. The accuracy (...) of gait and accelerometric features to predict disorientation events was determined using cross-validated support vector machines and Hidden Markov models.ResultsBayesian analysis revealed strong evidence for the effect of gait and accelerometric features on disorientation. The evidence supported a relationship between executive functions but not visuospatial abilities and perspective taking with navigation performance. Despite these effects, the cross-validated percentage of correctly assigned instances of disorientation was only 72% in the SVM and 63% in the HMM analysis using gait and accelerometric features as predictors.ConclusionDisorientation is reflected in spatiotemporal gait features and the accelerometric signal as a potentially more easily accessible surrogate for gait features. At the same time, such measurements probably need to be enriched with other parameters to be sufficiently accurate for individual prediction of disorientation events. (shrink)

German law is commonly assumed to be strongly influenced by legal scholarship. This was certainly true in the past, and this article explores whether it is still the case today. But what is actually meant by ‘influence’ in the context of law? Who exerts it on whom, and how? These questions are analysed in the first part of the article. It is then shown, by drawing on biographical material, legislative history and case law, how legal scholarship contributes to both the (...) legislative and the judicial lawmaking process in Germany—and where it does not. Finally it is asked how the specific relationship between legal academics and lawmakers in the German legal system can be explained and whether this model can be transferred to other systems. (shrink)

Originally presented as author's thesis (doctoral)--Universitèat zu Kèoln, 2011/12).

According to recent scientific reports, certain climatic tipping points can be understood as “points of no return,” in which, for instance, anthropogenic interference changes global temperatures irreversibly. Such an outcome presents a situation unlike any considered before by risk theorists, for it introduces an element of radical uncertainty into the very value (considered ethically, culturally, and politically) of taking action on climate change. In the following I argue that ethical bases for action that rely on traditional concepts of risk (such (...) as the dominant precautionary principle) are vastly ill equipped to make sense of the catastrophes of the scale predicted by most climatologists today. Instead we need to understand the possibilities of political action beyond thresholds assumed by tipping-point calculations. This in turn means investigating action as a form of risktaking and as operating against the conservative connotations of environmental precaution. It also implies acting against the calculative assumption that one’s actions are meaningless “unless this happens by this time,” a sentiment propelled, perhaps, by the repetition in mainstream media of reference to the finality of points of no return. (shrink)

Das Verhältnis von westdeutscher Außenwirtschaftspolitik und Wirtschaftsbeziehungen mit Indien veränderte sich ab den frühen 1950ern auf besondere Weise. Nach einem kräftigen Wirtschaftswachstum sahen deutsche Politiker und Unternehmer den Handel mit Schwellen- und Entwicklungsländern als Unterstützung für einen anhaltenden Wirtschaftsaufschwung. In einer programmatischen Schrift trug Wirtschaftsminister Ludwig Erhard 1953 diesem Gedanken mit Bezug zum währungspolitisch wichtigen Sterling-Raum und Indien als seinem größten Wirtschaftsblock Rechnung. In ordnungspolitischer Tradition sollte der Export deutscher technischer Hilfe und Kapitalgüter die indische Wirtschaftskraft erhöhen und so langfristig (...) einen neuen Markt für deutsche Konsumgüter erschließen. Dieses neue Verständnis von Außenwirtschaftspolitik war gewissermaßen symptomatisch für die Zeit, stand aber auch der späteren Herausbildung einer Entwicklungshilfepolitik nicht entgegen. Auswirkungen dieser Politik fanden sich nicht nur im deutschen Handelsregelwerk für Indien, sondern vor allem in der staatlichen Durchsetzung privatwirtschaftlicher Initiativen in Indien. Hilfeleistungen und Investitionen etablierten die BRD als führende Wirtschaftsnation in Indien. Allerdings war das westdeutsche Ringen um neue Märkte in blockfreien Staaten wie Indien vornehmlich Ausdruck wachsender politischer Konkurrenz mit Ländern des Ostblocks. Für die BRD war Indien aufgrund des Alleinvertretungsanspruchs gegenüber der DDR und aufgrund des Ost-West-Konflikts gegenüber anderen Ostblock-Staaten wichtig. -/- Trotz dieser prägnanten Entwicklung im deutsch-indischen Wirtschaftsaustausch in der Frühzeit des Kalten Krieges gibt es wenige historische Betrachtungen über das Gesamtbild und über einzelne Unternehmensinitiativen. Bisherige Arbeiten behandeln die Entwicklung der bundesdeutschen Südasienpolitik und die von Wirtschaftsinteressen geleiteten Grundlagen westdeutscher Entwicklungshilfe in Indien. Überblicksbetrachtungen thematisieren beide Aspekte selten zusammen. Zudem benennen die genannten Arbeiten bundesdeutsche und privatwirtschaftliche Initiativen, diskutieren dann aber hauptsächlich staatliche Interessen. Für das deutsch-indische Wirtschaftsgeschehen war aber gerade das Verhältnis von Akteuren und Institutionen der deutschen Politik und Wirtschaft relevant. Gab es hier ein Ungleichgewicht der Kräfte oder traten gar Konflikte auf? Für andere Weltregionen streicht die Literatur beispielsweise besondere Fürsprecher innerhalb der deutschen Industrie heraus. Gab es auch einen direkten Fürsprecher für Indien? Obwohl die indische Wirtschaft nach 1947 neuerdings als dynamischer und offener betrachtet wird, gehen lokale und globale Wirtschaftsentwicklungen und der Einfluss ausländischer Politik- und Wirtschaftsinteressen auf die indische Wirtschaftsentwicklung bisher kaum in die Analysen ein. -/- Diese Forschungslücken nimmt der vorliegende Beitrag zum Anlass, die Entwicklung deutsch-indischer Wirtschaftsbeziehungen in der Frühzeit des Kalten Krieges genauer zu untersuchen. Dabei wird insbesondere gefragt, wie sich westdeutsche Wirtschaftsbeziehungen mit Indien zwischen den 1950er und 1970er Jahren unter dem Einfluss außenwirtschaftspolitischer Maßgaben veränderten. Wie einleitend erwähnt, waren diese Wirtschaftsbeziehungen das Resultat einer dynamischen Beziehung von Außenwirtschaftspolitik und Wirtschaftsinteressen während des Ost-West-Konflikts. Da sich politische und wirtschaftliche Umstände auf besondere Weise in der Förderung dieses Wirtschaftsaustausches niederschlugen, fokussiert der Artikel vor allem auf die Verschränkung verschiedener für den Wirtschaftsaustausch wichtiger Themen und Akteure auf der höheren Ebene von Politik und Wirtschaft als auch auf der Mikroebene bestimmter Unternehmensinitiativen. -/- Der Artikel gliedert sich in zwei Teile. Der erste Teil betrachtet den größeren politischen und wirtschaftlichen Rahmen deutsch-indischer Wirtschaftsbeziehungen vor dem Hintergrund neuer lokaler, globaler und transnationaler Verschiebungen. Dabei wird Entwicklungshilfe als Kristallisationspunkt von westdeutscher Außenwirtschaftspolitik und Wirtschaftsbeziehungen mit Indien verstanden. Im zweiten Teil fokussiert der Artikel auf das damals größte westdeutsche Industrieprojekt in Indien – den Aufbau des Hüttenwerks in Rourkela. An diesem Beispiel wird sowohl das steigende deutsche Interesse an Indien als auch die Veränderungen außenwirtschaftspolitischer Leitlinien und wirtschaftlicher Interessen behandelt. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Reviewed by:Philosophy and the Interpretation of Pop CultureStefán SnaevarrPhilosophy and the Interpretation of Pop Culture, edited by William Irwin and Jorge J. E. Gracia. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, 2007, 297 pp., $29.85 paper.There has been quite a boom lately in the market for philosophical books on popular culture. The young American philosopher William Irwin has led the way by starting the fad of "... and philosophy" books; the (...) first one that Irwin edited was Seinfeld and Philosophy. So it is only fitting that he is one of the editors of this volume on philosophical interpretation of popular culture. In contrast to most of the earlier books of this kind, a sizable number of the contributors to this volume belong to the top brass of America's aestheticians: Noël Carrol, Ted Cohen, Carolyn Korsmeyer, and Richard Shusterman, to name but a few. The book is divided into two parts, "Philosophy and Popular Culture" and "Interpretation and Popular Art Forms." These titles are self-explanatory; it might be added that the aforementioned top brass dominates the first part.Irwin provides the book with a witty and well-written introduction, but he operates with a very wide definition of popular culture, classifying movies as such as items of pop culture. However, the medium surely is not the message. The fact that novels can be part of popular culture does not make Joyce's Ulysses a pop cultural object. Irwin's chapter, "Philosophy as/and/of popular culture," is rather two papers in one. One half addresses the concept of popular culture, containing an insightful critical evaluation of, among others, Noël Carroll's concept of mass art. The other half proposes that we can use popular culture to disseminate philosophical ideas to the general public. More so than in the introduction, Irwin is actually rather critical of popular culture in this chapter. He worries about its negative effect on culture in general—no cult of pop culture here. In addition, he rejects the notion of popular culture having the potential of becoming philosophy or its surrogate. He reminds us that Socrates used examples from everyday life and the popular culture of his day to make his philosophical points. In a similar fashion, the popular culture of today can be a stepping stone for philosophers to reach wider audiences. If you cannot beat them, join them! Popular culture could, for instance, be used to warn the public against its own evil aspects. This is an excellent idea, and I could not agree more; I myself often use examples from popular culture in my own lectures with good results. Irwin should expand on this idea and present it in a separate article.Richard Shusterman's chapter does not add much to his earlier writings. It is also somewhat like two articles in one; the first is a criticism of the denigration of pleasure and entertainment as aesthetic values, and the second half is an attempt to bridge the divide between intrinsic value and instrumental value. Both halves [End Page 111] contain some excellent arguments, but popular culture tends to be on the fringe in Shusterman's argument. The focus is on other more traditional, philosophical issues. Perhaps another venue would have been more suitable for this article.In contrast to Shusterman, Caroline Korsmeyer addresses the issues of popular culture in a fairly straightforward manner. Popular culture can be educational, even philosophically so. This claim does not mean that works of popular culture are works of philosophy in the ordinary sense of the word. However, we can "treat philosophy as a success term to refer to works demanding imaginative engagement that results in the recognition... of a philosophical position, such that what is done in philosophy proper that induces a possible conclusion is done in another genre by means appropriate to its appreciation" (31). Given this understanding of philosophy, we can understand works of popular culture as vehicles of philosophy. Korsmeyer maintains that the TV series Angel conveys some of Simone de Beauvoir's ideas from one of her books. Korsmeyer's chapter also contains a delightful discussion of "the probable impossible" and "the possible improbable" in fiction. But... (shrink)

A tale of two commissions -- Disciplining disorder -- Transparent fictions -- Conscientious objections -- A failed experiment -- Stem cells, interrupted.

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)

Drawing on the work of Robert Nozick and Johann Gottlieb Fichte, the author argues that human self-consciousness cannot be explained in naturalistic terms. Instead, it is a spontaneous phenomenon.

Organisationsidentität ist ein bedeutender Faktor für die Erklärung der Stabilität und des Wandels von Organisationen. Stefan Kirchner leistet einen grundlegenden Beitrag zur aktuellen Organisationsforschung, indem er mit dem Konzept der Organisationsidentität Ansätze des soziologischen Neo-Institutionalismus und der Pfadabhängigkeitstheorie zusammenführt.

This essay is a second attempt to reconcile the perspectives of Merleau-Ponty and Guattari, following on the examination of the unconscious in a previous issue of Chiasmi. Here the focus concerns an ontology that overcomes the dualistic heritage of Western metaphysics. More precisely, I compare the concept of flesh as Merleau-Ponty employs it in his later texts with that of the machine as Guattari uses this from the end of the 1960s until his last writings in the early 1990s. The (...) machine concerns the potential for transformation in a given social and political configuration, so that the ontology to be drawn from this concept is a thought of transformation. The position of individual subjectivity in this context is not so different from that granted to it by Merleau-Ponty in his last writings: a curvature of the flesh or, as Deleuze and Guattari write about the artisan in A Thousand Plateaus, “one who is determined in such a way as to follow a flow of matter.”Cet essai est une deuxième tentative de rapprochement des perspectives de Merleau-Ponty et de Guattari, après la problématique de l’inconscient traitée dans un précédent numéro de Chiasmi. Cette fois elle a lieu sous l’angle d’une ontologie qui surmonte l’héritage dualiste de la métaphysique occidentale. Plus précisément, je mets en comparaison la notion de chair telle que Merleau-Ponty la met en oeuvre dans ses textes tardifs et celle de machine telle que Guattari l’emploie depuis la fin des années 1960 jusqu’à ses derniers écrits du début des années 1990. La machine concerne le potentiel de transformation dans une configuration sociale et politique donnée, de sorte que l’ontologie qu’on peut tirer de cette notion est une pensée de la transformation. La position de la subjectivité individuelle dans ce contexte n’est pas très différente de celle que lui accorde Merleau-Ponty dans ses derniers écrits : une courbure de la chair, ou comme l’écrivent Deleuze et Guattari dans Mille plateaux à propos de l’artisan, « celui qui est déterminé à suivre un flux de matière ».Questo saggio è un secondo tentativo di avvicinare le prospettive di Merleau-Ponty e di Guattari, dopo quanto fatto in un precedente numero di Chiasmi attorno alla problematica dell’inconscio. Questa volta, tale raffronto sarà nella prospettiva di un’ontologia che superi l’eredità dualistica della metafisica occidentale. Più precisamente, intendo confrontare la nozione di carne, nel modo in cui essa prende corpo nei testi dell’ultimo Merleau-Ponty, e quella di macchina di Guattari, nella maniera in cui è caratterizzata dall’autore a partire dalla fine degli anni Sessanta fino ai suoi ultimi scritti dell’inizio degli anni Novanta. La macchina riguarda il potenziale di trasformazione in una configurazione sociale e politica data, e quindi l’ontologia che ne deriva implica un pensiero della trasformazione. In questo contesto, la posizione della soggettività individuale non è molto diversa da quella caratterizzata da Merleau-Ponty nei suoi ultimi scritti: una curvatura della carne, o, come scrivono Deleuze e Guattari in Millepiani a proposito dell’artigiano, “colui che è determinato a seguire un flusso di materia”. (shrink)

Technical Delusions in Schizophrenia: productivity and Limits of an AnalogyIn the debates on psychosis, the cases of "technical delusions" or "influencing machines" are regularly coming back, both in phenomenological and psychoanalytical psychiatry. As Alfred Kraus points out in the 1990s, "Even if such delusions do not represent the most frequent content in schizophrenia, they receive relatively high consideration for the diagnosis of schizophrenia". And more recently, he notes that, "It is not by chance that people with schizophrenia so often use (...) technical metaphors to explain their schizophrenic experiences", but he then concludes that they are not in fact metaphors, at least... (shrink)