Global education (GE) has become important in education due to heightened global interconnectedness and interdependence, with its incorporation into school materials aimed at preparing learners to navigate global challenges. In implementing GE, teachers are considered critical agents to transform normative GE into knowledge in classrooms. This study examines Rwandese teachers’ knowledge, awareness, and perceptions of challenges they face in implementing GE in schools. In a quantitative design, 208 teachers from 15 participating secondary schools completed a survey. The study findings reveal that the teachers had moderate to high levels of knowledge and awareness of global education, with most of the teachers recognising GE to be important in preparing learners for the future and stated the need to incorporate it within the curriculum in Rwanda. This study underscores the need for teacher training and professional development to enhance GE integration, and the provision of necessary resources and materials to enable the implementation of GE in schools in Rwanda.
Intensifying heatwaves driven by climate change are accelerating the adoption of mobile air conditioning (AC) systems. A rapid mass adoption of such AC systems could create additional stress on electricity grids and the power system. This study presents a novel method to estimate the electricity demand from AC systems both at the system level and at high temporal and spatial granularity. We apply the method to a near-future heatwave scenario in Germany in which household AC adoption increases from the current 19% to 35% during a heatwave similar to the one of July 2025. We analyze the effects for 196,428 grid cells of one square kilometer across Germany, by combining weather data, census data, socio-demographic assumptions, mobility patterns, and temperature-dependent AC activation functions. We find that electricity demand of newly purchased mobile AC systems could increase the peak load by over 12.9 GW, with urban hot-spots reaching 5.2 MW per square kilometer. The temporal pattern creates a pronounced afternoon peak that coincides with lower photovoltaic generation, potentially exacerbating power system stability challenges. Our findings underscore the urgency for proactive energy system planning to manage emerging demand peaks.
Recent advances in generative Artificial Intelligence have raised public awareness, shaping expectations and concerns about their societal implications. Central to these debates is the question of AI alignment -- how well AI systems meet public expectations regarding safety, fairness, and social values. However, little is known about what people expect from AI-enabled systems and how these expectations differ across national contexts. We present evidence from two surveys of public preferences for key functional features of AI-enabled systems in Germany (n = 1800) and the United States (n = 1756). We examine support for four types of alignment in AI moderation: accuracy and reliability, safety, bias mitigation, and the promotion of aspirational imaginaries. U.S. respondents report significantly higher AI use and consistently greater support for all alignment features, reflecting broader technological openness and higher societal involvement with AI. In both countries, accuracy and safety enjoy the strongest support, while more normatively charged goals -- like fairness and aspirational imaginaries -- receive more cautious backing, particularly in Germany. We also explore how individual experience with AI, attitudes toward free speech, political ideology, partisan affiliation, and gender shape these preferences. AI use and free speech support explain more variation in Germany. In contrast, U.S. responses show greater attitudinal uniformity, suggesting that higher exposure to AI may consolidate public expectations. These findings contribute to debates on AI governance and cross-national variation in public preferences. More broadly, our study demonstrates the value of empirically grounding AI alignment debates in public attitudes and of explicitly developing normatively grounded expectations into theoretical and policy discussions on the governance of AI-generated content.
Julian Bernhard, Stefanie Theuring, Welmoed van Loon
et al.
SARS-CoV-2 serology may be helpful to retrospectively understand infection dynamics in specific settings including kindergartens. We assessed SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in individuals connected to kindergartens in Berlin, Germany in September 2021. Children, staff, and household members from 12 randomly selected kindergartens were interviewed on COVID-19 history and sociodemographic parameters. Blood samples were collected on filter paper. SARS-CoV-2 anti-S and anti-N antibodies were assessed using Roche Elecsys. We assessed seroprevalence and the proportion of so far unrecognized SARS-CoV-2 infections. We included 277 participants, comprising 48 (17.3%) kindergarten children, 37 (13.4%) staff, and 192 (69.3%) household members. SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were present in 65.0%, and 52.7% of all participants were vaccinated. Evidence of previous infection was observed in 16.7% of kindergarten children, 16.2% of staff, and 10.4% of household members. Undiagnosed infections were observed in 12.5%, 5.4%, and 3.6%, respectively. Preceding infections were associated with facemask neglect. In conclusion, two-thirds of our cohort were SARS-CoV-2 seroreactive in September 2021, largely as a result of vaccination in adults. Kindergarten children showed the highest proportion of non-vaccine-induced seropositivity and an increased proportion of previously unrecognized SARS-CoV-2 infection. Silent infections in pre-school children need to be considered when interpreting SARS-CoV-2 infections in the kindergarten context.
In the theoretical study of distributed communication networks, "history trees" are a discrete structure that naturally models the concept that anonymous agents become distinguishable upon receiving different sets of messages from neighboring agents. By conveniently organizing temporal information in a systematic manner, history trees have been instrumental in the development of optimal deterministic algorithms for networks that are both anonymous and dynamically evolving. This note provides an accessible introduction to history trees, drawing comparisons with more traditional structures found in existing literature and reviewing the latest advancements in the applications of history trees, especially within dynamic networks. Furthermore, it expands the theoretical framework of history trees in new directions, also highlighting several open problems for further investigation.
This article proposes to discuss the voluminous literary correspondence of the Estonian poets Marie Under (1883–1980) and Ivar Ivask (1927–1992), with a focus on its first year, 1957–1958. The whole correspondence comprises 550 letters, with an average length of 4000 (later 3000) words; it is held in the Cultural History Archive of the Estonian Literary Museum in Tartu. Both Under and Ivask had been war refugees, with Under and her husband, poet Artur Adson, finding an exile home near Stockholm, Sweden; Ivask and his wife Astrīde, a well-known Latvian poet emigrated to America after some years spent in DP camps in Germany. Marie Under was already a renowned poet during the Siuru movement in the Estonian Republic, and became a symbol during the Second World War, continuing to publish and hold a large reading audience in exile. In addition to her own poetry, she was a versatile translator of poetry from several languages into Estonian. Ivask, two generations younger than Under, had begun writing in Germany, but continued to search for his linguistic and cultural identity for some time: his mother tongue was Latvian, and the language of his father was Estonian; German was spoken at home. At length and around the time of the beginning of his correspondence with Under, he decided that Estonian would be his poetic language. Since coming to the United States, Ivask completed a PhD in comparative literature and established himself as a scholar and critic in Germanic Studies. He became associated with the publication Books Abroad, later renamed under his editorship as World Literature Today. Under’s and Ivask’s letters are rife with exchanges about core values in poetry, art and worldview, stylistics and poetics, as well as practicalities of publication.
After a brief introduction to theoretical approaches to the analysis of letters and correspondences, the article turns to a topical close reading of the letters from Under and Ivask’s first year: main foci included translations of the poetry of Karl Čaks, translation priorities, discussion of the aims and planned trajectory of a new cultural journal in Estonian named Mana (to which both contributed), perspectives on Ivask’s debut as a young poet, the future of Baltic literatures abroad, and the cultural politics in the exile communities over what attitude to take toward literary production from the homeland.
The second part of the article applies methods of digital humanities toward an extensive study of the Under-Ivask correspondence as a linguistic dataset, aiming to arrive at a thematic analysis of the text as a whole. The methods enable the identification of key words, word frequencies and thematic clusters, while making the whole corpus digitally accessible to the scholarly reader. The article concludes with proposals for a further study of the Under-Ivask correspondence, using the methods of digital humanities.
Clemens Grosser, Shalva Barjadze, Eter Maghradze
et al.
Two species of leeches were described from Georgia in the past, Dina ratschaensis Kobakhidze, 1958 from the Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti region and Trocheta ariescornuta Grosser, Barjadze & Maghradze, 2021 from the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region. Both species were the only known typical representatives of cave leeches in Georgia. Recently, two more species of the genus Dina R. Blanchard, 1894 have been found in karst caves in this country. These leeches are morphologically similar to D. ratschaensis, from which they differ in the shape of the reproductive system, primarily the shape of the cornua of the genital atrium and the shape and extension of the vasa deferentia and ovisacs, justifying the description of two new species, Dina imeretiensis Grosser, Barjadze & Maghradze sp. nov. from the Imereti region and Dina samegreloensis Grosser, Barjadze & Shavadze sp. nov. from the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region. Data on the cave dwelling invertebrate communities in the studied caves are provided. Molecular data are provided, and a phylogenetic tree based on Cox1 sequences of Dina spp. and related genera is provided and discussed.
Major anniversaries, such as the centennial of the French Revolution and the Battle of the Nations at Leipzig (October 16-19, 1813) as well as the fiftieth anniversary of the 1848 Revolution, were occasions for debates about the significance of these events or periods for European history, but also for the construction of a national narrative. In Wilhelmine Germany, these anniversaries were linked to particular political issues. For supporters of the order that had been in place since 1871, the aim was to give a teleological interpretation to national history since 1813 legitimizing not only the founding and constitution of the new empire but also the dynasty that held the imperial dignity. Opponents, however, wanted to restore the truth, that is, to correct the official historiography and to bring to light the dark sides of national history the regime was trying to suppress. By using these three anniversaries as examples, this study shows what contribution major German dailies made to the writing of history in the context of this culture of remembrance. Their discussion of German history can also be analyzed as a consequence of the vivid critical public opinion in imperial Germany, in a golden age of opinion press. This study will first show the variety of article genres that contributed to the debate; this attempt at a typology is followed by a content analysis that illustrates—following the scheme: causes, developments, consequences—how all the newspapers in the corpus used interpreted history according to an ideology and an editorial line. It is worth noting that this journalistic discussion focused essentially on three themes: Revolution, Constitution, and Fatherland. Underlying were major issues that touched on the specific situation in Wilhelmine Germany. The great collective merit of the daily press of the time was to offer contemporaries, but also future generations, a differentiated historiography and thus to encourage them to shape a critical conception of the national narrative, in between the theses of professional historians and the fables of school history textbooks.
. Introduction Stories and legends are like ships in the direction of the wind, moving east and west, north and south, traveling from one land to another, and sometimes changing from one form to another. The process of development and metamorphosis of these stories can usually be traced, despite their ups and downs. Among the most attractive examples of this type of story are those that have humorous content, and they have certainly played an important role in creating pleasure and entertainment for people in different nations. Since such stories were usually presented as anecdotes and in a short form, they could be passed on more quickly. One of the most famous comic characters in Iran is Molla Nasreddin, who has a long history among Iranians and other people. His popularity, presence, and influence are such that many instructive hints and answers are attributed to him and he is effectively represented in folk literature and Persian proverbs and sayings.The fact that stories have been used since ancient times as one of the best methods of education prompted us to look for similarities in the legends and stories of other peoples. Compare with domestic examples. Among the different countries, the German fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm seem to be more similar to the stories of Molla Nasreddin. In this article we will try to answer the question, what are the similarities and differences between the themes of the stories of Molla Nasreddin and the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm? 2.MethodologyThe method used in this research is descriptive-analytical. The data has been analyzed by content analysis technique and library documents have been used in it. The research approach in terms of comparative literature is based on the American school. 3.DiscussionFrom the distant past to the present, wise people have told stories and legends to guide others and teach them important life lessons. The problems that people faced on a daily basis required solutions, which were often found in stories. On the other hand, people's dreams and fantasies, and even unattainable desires could come true in stories and sweeten their palates, even if only for a short time. In the following article, we will review the summary of some stories of Molla Nasreddin and related stories in Grimm's Fairy Tales We will also .categorize and extract the salient features of the characters mentioned in the stories.We have selected 29 stories of Molla Nasreddin based on their similarities with the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales as examples for review. then we will compare the way of storytelling and their similarities and differences.In most of these stories, simplicity is the main characteristic of Molla Nasreddin. Moreover, the mullah can be seen as a simple and ignorant character who is often self-deprecating, but sometimes he appears so entitled and arrogant that this personality conflict makes the audience laugh. Sometimes he takes advantage of the experiences of others, and sometimes he is open to criticism with humility. All these traits are different characteristics of ordinary people, one of which is highlighted in each story to attract the audience's attention and make them correct their behavior.Most of the characters of the Brothers Grimm are naive, ignorant, and gullible. Some of them are the third brother or the third student and sometimes they are smaller and weaker than others. Resourcefulness and good-heartedness are positive qualities that connect the reader with the main character, and their cleverness at the last moment or their luck provides a happy ending in the stories. In some other stories, the main character is cunning and greedy and uses any means to achieve his wish. Here, however, contrary to Iranian stories, witches and wizards are present to help the hero in difficult times and save him from danger. After all, the German people also have common concerns and problems, and stories help them during the difficulties. 4.ConclusionFolklore consists of the language, behavior, way of thinking, and attitude of the members of the society reflected in their legends. The stories of Molla Nasreddin, with their humorous and wise aspects, have played a very important role in informing and sensitizing the people. The storytellers of Grimm's fairy tales have told stories to people by following the example of normal characters in society so that people can easily identify with them and find the way out of problems and succeed from the heart of the story.In Iranian culture, due to the belief in Islam and Islam's rejection of magic, humor was used instead of magic to portray popular culture and educate people, while in Germany, the tool of magic and legend was most commonly used to convey concepts and criticize the prevailing situation. Thus, the difference between these two cultures is the non-use of magic in Iranian stories.The similarities between these two collections lie more in the fact that a common person takes roles and positions in different stories, and this despite the naivety and stupidity and everyday events and sometimes laughter. Unexpectedly, he completes something and sees the consequences of his actions. The purpose of the stories is to condemn the bad qualities and traits in society and teach morality and lifestyle in a pleasant and effective way.In general, the mullah can be seen as a simple and ignorant character who is often self-deprecating, but sometimes he appears so self-righteous and arrogant that this personality conflict causes laughter among the audience. Sometimes he takes advantage of the experiences of others, and sometimes he is open to criticism with humility; but these behaviors do not last long, and they come across as stingy, greedy, selfish, and apologetic. The heroes of the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales are also naive, ignorant, and gullible. most of them are the third brother or the third disciple and sometimes they are smaller and weaker than others. Resourcefulness and good-heartedness are positive qualities that connect the reader with the main character, and their cleverness at the last moment or their luck provides a happy ending in the stories. In some other stories, the main character is cunning and greedy and uses any means to fulfill his desire.It can be concluded that the general culture of the two countries has many similarities and themes. Heroization of ordinary characters is the main theme of most of these stories. Sometimes the audience gets angry or laughs at the exaggerated naivety of the main character, but in the end, this method has a profound effect on the audience and teaches the audience many lessons during the story.
This paper reviews the literature on biodegradable waste management in Germany, a multifaceted endeavor that reflects its commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility. It examines the processes and benefits of separate collection, recycling, and eco-friendly utilization of biodegradable materials, which produce valuable byproducts such as compost, digestate, and biogas. These byproducts serve as organic fertilizers, peat substitutes, and renewable energy sources, contributing to ecological preservation and economic prudence. The paper also discusses the global implications of biodegradable waste management, such as preventing methane emissions from landfills, a major source of greenhouse gas, and reusing organic matter and essential nutrients. Moreover, the paper explores how biodegradable waste management reduces waste volume, facilitates waste sorting and incineration, and sets a global example for addressing climate change and working toward a sustainable future. The paper highlights the importance of a comprehensive and holistic approach to sustainability that encompasses waste management, renewable energy, transportation, agriculture, waste reduction, and urban development.
A MCMC approach is used to estimate the age-specific mortality rate ratio for German men and women with RA. For constructing priors, we calculate a range of admissible values from prevalence and incidence data based on about 60 million people in Germany. Using these priors, MCMC mimics and compares estimated mortality to the findings of a recent register study from Denmark. It is estimated that the mortality rate ratio is highest in the young ages (4.0 and 3.5 for men and women aged 17.5 years, respectively) and declines towards higher ages (1.0 and 1.2 for men and women aged 92.5 years, respectively). The lengths of the credibility intervals decrease from younger towards older ages.
With the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we became aware of the need for comprehensive data collection and its provision to scientists and experts for proper data analyses. In Germany, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has tried to keep up with this demand for data on COVID-19, but there were (and still are) relevant data missing that are needed to understand the whole picture of the pandemic. In this paper, we take a closer look at the severity of the course of COVID-19 in Germany, for which ideal information would be the number of incoming patients to ICU units. This information was (and still is) not available. Instead, the current occupancy of ICU units on the district level was reported daily. We demonstrate how this information can be used to predict the number of incoming as well as released COVID-19 patients using a stochastic version of the Expectation Maximisation algorithm (SEM). This in turn, allows for estimating the influence of district-specific and age-specific infection rates as well as further covariates, including spatial effects, on the number of incoming patients. The paper demonstrates that even if relevant data are not recorded or provided officially, statistical modelling allows for reconstructing them. This also includes the quantification of uncertainty which naturally results from the application of the SEM algorithm.
I apply Dawid's Meta-Empirical Assessment (MEA) methodology to the theory of cosmological inflation. I argue that applying this methodology does not currently offer a compelling case for ascribing non-empirical confirmation to cosmological inflation. In particular, I argue that despite displaying strong instances of Unexpected Explanatory Coherence (UEA), it is premature to evaluate the theory on the basis of the No Alternatives Argument (NAA). More significantly though, I argue that the theory of cosmological inflation fails to sustain a convincing Meta-Inductive Argument (MIA) because the empirical evidence and theoretical successes that it seeks to draw meta-empirical support from do not warrant a meta-inductive inference to inflation. I conclude by assessing how future developments could pave the way towards crafting a more compelling case for the non-empirical confirmation of cosmological inflation.
With net-zero emission goals, low-carbon transitions enter a new phase of development, leading to new challenges for policymaking and research. Multiple transitions unfold in parallel across different sectors. This involves a broad range of technologies, while actors engage in increasingly complex discourses. Here, we study the discourses on hydrogen in Germany. Based on the analysis of 179 newspaper articles from 2016 to 2020, we find that a diverse set of actors, including many industry incumbents, speak favorably about hydrogen, emphasizing economic opportunities and its relevance for the energy transition, whereas skeptics highlight its low energy efficiency and expected scarcity. With the help of discourse network analysis, we identify three emerging conflicts around the use, production, and import of hydrogen. We explain these conflicts and the widespread support of incumbents with a conceptual framework that captures the complex interplay of sectoral contexts, specific technologies and actor interests.
War as a human phenomenon has been one of the catastrophic problems of human societies throughout history. Endeavors of some philosophers especially during contemporary century, being used to eliminate war by applying human rights and ethics. The output of this corporation is rejection of offensive war and accepting defensive war as justifiable and legitimate. John Rawls considering fundamental principles and emphasizing human rights and ethics, has made attempt to take new steps towards limitation of war. This research is based on analytic philosophy through “conceptual analysis” and “critical evaluation”. It has analyzed Rawls’ viewpoint on basic principles of Just war, reasons of offensive wars and taking part of it as unjustifiable, and reasons of defensive war and participation of it as justifiable. Furthermore, refusal of joining a war and also methods of defensive war in different systems of government are discussed. Critique and evaluation of Rawls’ doctrine on assessment of the specific situation indicate that there are contradictions between his realistic attitude and legal and moral obligations. So findings of the research reveal approval of hidden intervention in other countries by domestic governments based on national security, approval of attack on civilians by governors in emergency situations for the interest of political system, and justifying bombardment of Germany by Britain in Second Word War based on legal and moral constraints.
Thomas Wagner, Don DeVol, Bettina Schützhofer
et al.
Driving under the influence of alcohol is one of the greatest dangers to the safety of road users not only in Germany, but across the rest of the world. An essential indicator for both punitive and corrective measures as well as for the prediction of recidivism is the blood alcohol concentration (BAC). This paper examines the relationships between BAC of first-time offenders, former drinking history, traffic related alcohol problem (TRAP), and the outcome of a medical-psychological assessment. The concept of TRAP combines syndromes from Alcohol Use Disorders (AUD) and a non-clinical delinquency category (drink and drive issue without AUD). It is in use for diagnostics among "hard core" alcohol-impaired offenders according to a diagnostic model which is applied in Germany and accepted by the legislator. The present study (N = 505) showed that a BAC of 0.11% upwards must be considered as a risk parameter for the identification of drivers with non-normative, and therefore traffic safety impairing drinking patterns. The importance of BAC as a risk indicator for road safety is underlined by significant correlations between BAC with drinking history and TRAP, but its prognostic value is poor, since BAC was unrelated to the outcome of the medical-psychological assessment. It could be demonstrated that TRAP severity increases with higher age, higher BAC, greater number of drinking days, higher occasion-related drinking amounts, and non-social drinking motivation (against stress and tension). Practical consequences are drawn regarding preconditions for re-issuing a driving licence.
Social sciences (General), Transportation and communications