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The choice of suitable semiconducting metal oxide (MOX) gas sensors for the detection of a specific gas or gas mixture is time-consuming since the sensor’s sensitivity needs to be characterized at multiple temperatures to find its optimal operating conditions. To obtain reliable measurement results, it is very important that the power for the sensor’s integrated heater is stable, regulated and error-free (or error-tolerant). Especially the error-free requirement can be only be achieved if the power supply implements failure-avoiding and failure-detection methods. The biggest challenge is deriving multiple different voltages from a common supply in an efficient way while keeping the system as small and lightweight as possible. This work presents a reliable, compact, embedded system that addresses the power supply requirements for fully automated simultaneous sensor characterization for up to 16 sensors at multiple temperatures. The system implements efficient (avg. 83.3% efficiency) voltage conversion with low ripple output (<32 mV) and supports static or temperature-cycled heating modes. Voltage and current of each channel are constantly monitored and regulated to guarantee reliable operation. To evaluate the proposed design, 16 sensors were screened. The results are shown in the experimental part of this work.
This paper proposes an approach to an ANN-based temperature controller design for a plastic injection moulding system. This design approach is applied to the development of a controller based on a combination of a classical ANN and integrator. The controller provides a fast temperature response and zero steady-state error for three typical heaters (bar, nozzle, and cartridge) for a plastic moulding system. The simulation results in Matlab Simulink software and in comparison to an industrial PID regulator have shown the advantages of the controller, such as significantly less overshoot and faster transient (compared to PID with autotuning) for all examined heaters. In order to verify the proposed approach, the designed ANN controller was implemented and tested using an experimental setup based on an STM32 board.
More and more devices will be connected to the internet [3]. Many devicesare part of the so-called Internet of Things (IoT) which contains many low-powerdevices often powered by a battery. These devices mainly communicate with the manufacturers back-end and deliver personal data and secrets like passwords.
Lower back pain is one of the most prevalent diseases in Western societies. A large percentage of European and American populations suffer from back pain at some point in their lives. One successful approach to address lower back pain is postural training, which can be supported by wearable devices, providing real-time feedback about the user’s posture. In this work, we analyze the changes in posture induced by postural training. To this end, we compare snapshots before and after training, as measured by the Gokhale SpineTracker™. Considering pairs of before and after snapshots in different positions (standing, sitting, and bending), we introduce a feature space, that allows for unsupervised clustering. We show that resulting clusters represent certain groups of postural changes, which are meaningful to professional posture trainers.
The antiradical and antimicrobial activity of lignin and lignin-based films are both of great interest for applications such as food packaging additives. The polyphenolic structure of lignin in addition to the presence of O-containing functional groups is potentially responsible for these activities. This study used DPPH assays to discuss the antiradical activity of HPMC/lignin and HPMC/lignin/chitosan films. The scavenging activity (SA) of both binary (HPMC/lignin) and ternary (HPMC/lignin/chitosan) systems was affected by the percentage of the added lignin: the 5% addition showed the highest activity and the 30% addition had the lowest. Both scavenging activity and antimicrobial activity are dependent on the biomass source showing the following trend: organosolv of softwood > kraft of softwood > organosolv of grass. Testing the antimicrobial activities of lignins and lignin-containing films showed high antimicrobial activities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria at 35 °C and at low temperatures (0-7 °C). Purification of kraft lignin has a negative effect on the antimicrobial activity while storage has positive effect. The lignin release in the produced films affected the activity positively and the chitosan addition enhances the activity even more for both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Testing the films against spoilage bacteria that grow at low temperatures revealed the activity of the 30% addition on HPMC/L1 film against both B. thermosphacta and P. fluorescens while L5 was active only against B. thermosphacta. In HPMC/lignin/chitosan films, the 5% addition exhibited activity against both B. thermosphacta and P. fluorescens.
Due to global ecological and economic challenges that have been correlated to the transition from fossil-based to renewable resources, fundamental studies are being performed worldwide to replace fossil fuel raw materials in plastic production. One aspect of current research is the development of lignin-derived polyols to substitute expensive fossil-based polyol components for polyurethane and polyester production. This article describes the synthesis of bioactive lignin-based polyurethane coatings using unmodified and demethylated Kraft lignins. Demethylation was performed to enhance the reaction selectivity toward polyurethane formation. The antimicrobial activity was tested according to a slightly modified standard test (JIS Z 2801:2010). Besides effects caused by the lignins themselves, triphenylmethane derivatives (brilliant green and crystal violet) were used as additional antimicrobial substances. Results showed increased antimicrobial capacity against Staphylococcus aureus. Furthermore, the coating color could be varied from dark brown to green and blue, respectively.
Change - shaping reality
(2019)
The complex nature of multifactorial diseases, such as Morbus Alzheimer, has produced a strong need to design multitarget-directed ligands to address the involved complementary pathways. We performed a purposive structural modification of a tetratarget small-molecule, that is contilisant, and generated a combinatorial library of 28 substituted chromen-4-ones. The compounds comprise a basic moiety which is linker-connected to the 6-position of the heterocyclic chromenone core. The syntheses were accomplished by Mitsunobu- or Williamson-type ether formations. The resulting library members were evaluated at a panel of seven human enzymes, all of which being involved in the pathophysiology of neurodegeneration. A concomitant inhibition of human acetylcholinesterase and human monoamine oxidase B, with IC50 values of 5.58 and 7.20 μM, respectively, was achieved with the dual-target 6-(4-(piperidin-1-yl)butoxy)-4H-chromen-4-one (7).
Currently, a variety of methods exist for creating different types of spatio-temporal world models. Despite the numerous methods for this type of modeling, there exists no methodology for comparing the different approaches or their suitability for a given application e.g. logistics robots. In order to establish a means for comparing and selecting the best-fitting spatio-temporal world modeling technique, a methodology and standard set of criteria must be established. To that end, state-of-the-art methods for this type of modeling will be collected, listed, and described. Existing methods used for evaluation will also be collected where possible.
Using the collected methods, new criteria and techniques will be devised to enable the comparison of various methods in a qualitative manner. Experiments will be proposed to further narrow and ultimately select a spatio-temporal model for a given purpose. An example network of autonomous logistic robots, ROPOD, will serve as a case study used to demonstrate the use of the new criteria. This will also serve to guide the design of future experiments that aim to select a spatio-temporal world modeling technique for a given task. ROPOD was specifically selected as it operates in a real-world, human shared environment. This type of environment is desirable for experiments as it provides a unique combination of common and novel problems that arise when selecting an appropriate spatio-temporal world model. Using the developed criteria, a qualitative analysis will be applied to the selected methods to remove unfit options.
Then, experiments will be run on the remaining methods to provide comparative benchmarks. Finally, the results will be analyzed and recommendations to ROPOD will be made.
Multi-robot systems (MRS) are capable of performing a set of tasks by dividing them among the robots in the fleet. One of the challenges of working with multirobot systems is deciding which robot should execute each task. Multi-robot task allocation (MRTA) algorithms address this problem by explicitly assigning tasks to robots with the goal of maximizing the overall performance of the system. The indoor transportation of goods is a practical application of multi-robot systems in the area of logistics. The ROPOD project works on developing multi-robot system solutions for logistics in hospital facilities. The correct selection of an MRTA algorithm is crucial for enhancing transportation tasks. Several multi-robot task allocation algorithms exist in the literature, but just few experimental comparative analysis have been performed. This project analyzes and assesses the performance of MRTA algorithms for allocating supply cart transportation tasks to a fleet of robots. We conducted a qualitative analysis of MRTA algorithms, selected the most suitable ones based on the ROPOD requirements, implemented four of them (MURDOCH, SSI, TeSSI, and TeSSIduo), and evaluated the quality of their allocations using a common experimental setup and 10 experiments. Our experiments include off-line and semi on-line allocation of tasks as well as scalability tests and use virtual robots implemented as Docker containers. This design should facilitate deployment of the system on the physical robots. Our experiments conclude that TeSSI and TeSSIduo suit best the ROPOD requirements. Both use temporal constraints to build task schedules and run in polynomial time, which allow them to scale well with the number of tasks and robots. TeSSI distributes the tasks among more robots in the fleet, while TeSSIduo tends to use a lower percentage of the available robots.
Subsequently, we have integrated TeSSI and TeSSIduo to perform multi-robot task allocation for the ROPOD project.
Scratch assays enable the study of the migration process of an injured adherent cell layer in vitro. An apparatus for the reproducible performance of scratch assays and cell harvesting has been developed that meets the requirements for reproducibility in tests as well as easy handling. The entirely autoclavable setup is divided into a sample translation and a scratching system. The translational system is compatible with standard culture dishes and can be modified to adapt to different cell culture systems, while the scratching system can be adjusted according to angle, normal force, shape, and material to adapt to specific questions and demanding substrates. As a result, a fully functional prototype can be presented. This system enables the creation of reproducible and clear scratch edges with a low scratch border roughness within a monolayer of cells. Moreover, the apparatus allows the collection of the migrated cells after scratching for further molecular biological investigations without the need for a second processing step. For comparison, the mechanical properties of manually performed scratch assays are evaluated.
This study presents a microindentation system which allows spatially resolved local as well as bulk viscoelastic material information to be obtained within one instrument. The microindentation method was merged with dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) for a tungsten cone indenter. Three tungsten cone indenters were investigated: tungsten electrode, tungsten electrode + 2% lanthanum, and tungsten electrode + rare earth elements. Only the tungsten electrode + 2% lanthanum indenter showed the sinusoidal response, and its geometry remained unaffected by the repeated indentations. Complex moduli obtained from dynamic microindentation for high-density polyethylene, polybutylene terephthalate, polycarbonate, and thermoplastic polyurethane are in agreement with the literature. Additionally, by implementing a specially developed x-y-stage, this study showed that dynamic microindentation with a tungsten cone indenter was an adequate method to determine spatially resolved local viscoelastic surface properties.
Digital transformation in Higher Education and Science is a mission-critical demand to prepare educational institutions for their future competition on the international market. In many cases, the digitization goes along with the search for and acquisition of new software. For easily exchangeable software, wrong product decisions, in the worst case, lead to calculable financial losses. However, if a planned software requires a lot of technological adjustments and is to be applied as central component of a business- and/or security-critical environment, wrong decisions during the software acquisition process might lead to hardly calculable damage. Questions arising are how to decide for a product and how many resources should be invested for the acquisition process.
We planned to apply a commercial Business Support System, which should replace the currently used in-house developed software. Our goals were the increase of our university’s level of data security, to ease the interaction between stakeholders, to eliminate media discontinuities, to improve the process management and transparency, and to reduce the execution time of automated processes. Alongside with the introduction of the electronic case file, our agenda stipulates the digitization (and automation) of administrative university processes, especially, but not limited to, the student self-service and the administrative student life cycle. Usual tools and practices, commonly applied to (simple) software acquisition, failed in our scenario.
With the case study introduced in this paper, we address all persons, involved within software acquisition processes: From our experiences, we strongly recommend to place greater value on an exhaustively completed acquisition process, than on short-termed economic advantages.
Bioinspired stem cell-based hard tissue engineering includes numerous aspects: The synthesis and fabrication of appropriate scaffold materials, their analytical characterization, and guided osteogenesis using the sustained release of osteoinducing and/or osteoconducting drugs for mesenchymal stem cell differentiation, growth, and proliferation. Here, the effect of silicon- and silicate-containing materials on osteogenesis at the molecular level has been a particular focus within the last decade. This review summarizes recently published scientific results, including material developments and analysis, with a special focus on silicon hybrid bone composites. First, the sources, bioavailability, and functions of silicon on various tissues are discussed. The second focus is on the effects of calcium-silicate biomineralization and corresponding analytical methods in investigating osteogenesis and bone formation. Finally, recent developments in the manufacturing of Si-containing scaffolds are discussed, including in vitro and in vivo studies, as well as recently filed patents that focus on the influence of silicon on hard tissue formation.
Zur Milderung des Klimawandels sind Maßnahmen zur Förderung von Energieeinsparungen notwendig. Energiespartipps informieren über energiesparende Verhaltensweisen und Produkte. Zur Formulierung wirkungsvoller Energiespartipps untersucht die Arbeit, welchen Einfluss Ergänzungen von CO2-Angaben und Formulierungen der Konsequenzen auf die wahrgenommene Informationsqualität, Nützlichkeit und Verhaltensabsicht haben. Außerdem wird untersucht, ob es diesbezüglich Unterschiede zwischen verhaltens- und investitionsorientierten Tipps gibt. Dazu wurde ein Onlineexperiment (N = 352) im 4 x 4 x 2 Design mit den vierstufigen Zwischensubjektfaktoren Framing der Währung (alleinige CO2-Angabe, Jahresvergleichswert, äquivalente Fahrstrecke, äquivalente Laptopnutzung) und Framing der Konsequenz (erreichte Einsparung, vermiedener Ausstoß, entgangene Einsparung, verursachter Ausstoß) sowie der Art des Energiespartipps (verhaltens- vs. investitionsorientiert) als zweistufigen Innersubjektfaktor konzipiert. Varianzanalysen ergaben, dass der verhaltensorientierte Tipp positiver als der investitionsorientierte Tipp bewertet wurde und verhaltensnahe Ergänzungen die Nützlichkeit von CO2-Angaben sowie die Verhaltensintention erhöhen. Das Framing der Konsequenz hatte keinen Effekt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen die Relevanz, zwischen verhaltens- und investitionsorientierten Energiespartipps zu differenzieren und verhaltensnahe Ergänzungen von CO2-Angaben in Kilogramm zu berücksichtigen.
Although work events can be regarded as pivotal elements of organizational life, only a few studies have examined how positive and negative events relate to and combine to affect work engagement over time. Theory suggests that to better understand how current events affect work engagement (WE), we have to account for recent events that have preceded these current events. We present competing theoretical views on how recent and current work events may affect employees (e.g., getting used to a high frequency of negative events or becoming more sensitive to negative events). Although the occurrence of events implies discrete changes in the experience of work, prior research has not considered whether work events actually accumulate to sustained mid-term changes in WE. To address these gaps in the literature, we conducted a week-level longitudinal study across a period of 15 consecutive weeks among 135 employees, which yielded 849 weekly observations. While positive events were associated with higher levels of WE within the same week, negative events were not. Our results support neither satiation nor sensitization processes. However, high frequencies of negative events in the preceding week amplified the beneficial effects of positive events on WE in the current week. Growth curve analyses show that the benefits of positive events accumulate to sustain high levels of WE. WE dissipates in the absence of continuous experience of positive events. Our study adds a temporal component and informs research that has taken a feature-oriented perspective on the dynamic interplay of job demands and resources.
Förderpreise 2018
(2019)
This handbook contains lots of interesting information for international students about studying at H-BRS and living in the Rhineland.
In January 2015, German retail and industry jointly started a sector-wide initiative ("Initiative Tierwohl" - ITW) to improve animal welfare standards. The principle of the ITW is communicated mostly via the websites of ITW and its participating companies. However, uncertainty remained whether or not these websites provide the necessary information consumers need on the ITW products. Based on Schwartz's basic human values, different types of consumers were identified by a cluster analysis (ward-method, k-means). The results showed that depending on expressed meta‐values (Self-Transcendence/Openness to Change Self-Enhancement or Conservation), respondents had different specific information sources and needs. Online sources were rarely mentioned, the majority of consumers referred to brochures, flyers and interpersonal contacts.
Atmospheric aerosols affect the power production of solar energy systems. Their impact depends on both the atmospheric conditions and the solar technology employed. By being a region with a lack in power production and prone to high solar insolation, West Africa shows high potential for the application of solar power systems. However, dust outbreaks, containing high aerosol loads, occur especially in the Sahel, located between the Saharan desert in the north and the Sudanian Savanna in the south. They might affect the whole region for several days with significant effects on power generation. This study investigates the impact of atmospheric aerosols on solar energy production for the example year 2006 making use of six well instrumented sites in West Africa. Two different solar power technologies, a photovoltaic (PV) and a parabolic through (PT) power plant, are considered. The daily reduction of solar power due to aerosols is determined over mostly clear-sky days in 2006 with a model chain combining radiative transfer and technology specific power generation. For mostly clear days the local daily reduction of PV power (at alternating current) (PVAC) and PT power (PTP) due to the presence of aerosols lies between 13 % and 22 % and between 22 % and 37 %, respectively. In March 2006 a major dust outbreak occurred, which serves as an example to investigate the impact of an aerosol extreme event on solar power. During the dust outbreak, daily reduction of PVAC and PTP of up to 79 % and 100 % occur with a mean reduction of 20 % to 40 % for PVAC and of 32 % to 71 % for PTP during the 12 days of the event.
Due to the policy goals for sustainable energy production, renewable energy plants such as photovoltaics are increasingly in use. The energy production from solar radiation depends strongly on atmospheric conditions. As the weather mostly changes, electrical power generation fluctuates, making technical planning and control of power grids to a complex problem.
In mathematical modeling by means of performance models, the Fitness-Fatigue Model (FF-Model) is a common approach in sport and exercise science to study the training performance relationship. The FF-Model uses an initial basic level of performance and two antagonistic terms (for fitness and fatigue). By model calibration, parameters are adapted to the subject’s individual physical response to training load. Although the simulation of the recorded training data in most cases shows useful results when the model is calibrated and all parameters are adjusted, this method has two major difficulties. First, a fitted value as basic performance will usually be too high. Second, without modification, the model cannot be simply used for prediction. By rewriting the FF-Model such that effects of former training history can be analyzed separately – we call those terms preload – it is possible to close the gap between a more realistic initial performance level and an athlete's actual performance level without distorting other model parameters and increase model accuracy substantially. Fitting error of the preload-extended FF-Model is less than 32% compared to the error of the FF-Model without preloads. Prediction error of the preload-extended FF-Model is around 54% of the error of the FF-Model without preloads.
Intact Transition Epitope Mapping - Targeted High-Energy Rupture of Extracted Epitopes (ITEM-THREE)
(2019)
Epitope mapping, which is the identification of antigenic determinants, is essential for the design of novel antibody-based therapeutics and diagnostic tools. ITEM-THREE is a mass spectrometry-based epitope mapping method that can identify epitopes on antigens upon generating an immune complex in electrospray-compatible solutions by adding an antibody of interest to a mixture of peptides from which at least one holds the antibody's epitope. This mixture is nano-electrosprayed without purification. Identification of the epitope peptide is performed within a mass spectrometer that provides an ion mobility cell sandwiched in-between two collision cells and where this ion manipulation setup is flanked by a quadrupole mass analyzer on one side and a time-of-flight mass analyzer on the other side. In a stepwise fashion, immune-complex ions are separated from unbound peptide ions and dissociated to release epitope peptide ions. Immune complex-released peptide ions are separated from antibody ions and fragmented by collision induced dissociation. Epitope-containing peptide fragment ions are recorded, and mass lists are submitted to unsupervised data base search thereby retrieving both, the amino acid sequence of the epitope peptide and the originating antigen. ITEM-THREE was developed with antiTRIM21 and antiRA33 antibodies for which the epitopes were known, subjecting them to mixtures of synthetic peptides of which one contained the respective epitope. ITEM-THREE was then successfully tested with an enzymatic digest of His-tagged recombinant human β-actin and an antiHis-tag antibody, as well as with an enzymatic digest of recombinant human TNFα and an antiTNFα antibody whose epitope was previously unknown.
Interactive Object Detection
(2019)
The success of state-of-the-art object detection methods depend heavily on the availability of a large amount of annotated image data. The raw image data available from various sources are abundant but non-annotated. Annotating image data is often costly, time-consuming or needs expert help. In this work, a new paradigm of learning called Active Learning is explored which uses user interaction to obtain annotations for a subset of the dataset. The goal of active learning is to achieve superior object detection performance with images that are annotated on demand. To realize active learning method, the trade-off between the effort to annotate (annotation cost) unlabeled data and the performance of object detection model is minimised.
Random Forests based method called Hough Forest is chosen as the object detection model and the annotation cost is calculated as the predicted false positive and false negative rate. The framework is successfully evaluated on two Computer Vision benchmark and two Carl Zeiss custom datasets. Also, an evaluation of RGB, HoG and Deep features for the task is presented.
Experimental results show that using Deep features with Hough Forest achieves the maximum performance. By employing Active Learning, it is demonstrated that performance comparable to the fully supervised setting can be achieved by annotating just 2.5% of the images. To this end, an annotation tool is developed for user interaction during Active Learning.
ITS Jahresbericht 2018
(2019)
Lignocellulose feedstock (LCF) provides a sustainable source of components to produce bioenergy, biofuel, and novel biomaterials. Besides hard and soft wood, so-called low-input plants such as Miscanthus are interesting crops to be investigated as potential feedstock for the second generation biorefinery. The status quo regarding the availability and composition of different plants, including grasses and fast-growing trees (i.e., Miscanthus, Paulownia), is reviewed here. The second focus of this review is the potential of multivariate data processing to be used for biomass analysis and quality control. Experimental data obtained by spectroscopic methods, such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), can be processed using computational techniques to characterize the 3D structure and energetic properties of the feedstock building blocks, including complex linkages. Here, we provide a brief summary of recently reported experimental data for structural analysis of LCF biomasses, and give our perspectives on the role of chemometrics in understanding and elucidating on LCF composition and lignin 3D structure.
The number of studies on work breaks and the importance of this subject is growing rapidly, with research showing that work breaks increase employees’ wellbeing and performance and workplace safety. However, comparing the results of work break research is difficult since the study designs and methods are heterogeneous and there is no standard theoretical model for work breaks. Based on a systematic literature search, this scoping review included a total of 93 studies on experimental work break research conducted over the last 30 years. This scoping review provides a first structured evaluation regarding the underlying theoretical framework, the variables investigated, and the measurement methods applied. Studies using a combination of measurement methods from the categories “self-report measures,” “performance measures,” and “physiological measures” are most common and to be preferred in work break research. This overview supplies important information for ergonomics researchers allowing them to design work break studies with a more structured and stronger theory-based approach. A standard theoretical model for work breaks is needed in order to further increase the comparability of studies in the field of experimental work break research in the future.
Miscanthus x giganteus Stem Versus Leaf-Derived Lignins Differing in Monolignol Ratio and Linkage
(2019)
As a renewable, Miscanthus offers numerous advantages such as high photosynthesis activity (as a C4 plant) and an exceptional CO2 fixation rate. These properties make Miscanthus very attractive for industrial exploitation, such as lignin generation. In this paper, we present a systematic study analyzing the correlation of the lignin structure with the Miscanthus genotype and plant portion (stem versus leaf). Specifically, the ratio of the three monolignols and corresponding building blocks as well as the linkages formed between the units have been studied. The lignin amount has been determined for M. x giganteus (Gig17, Gig34, Gig35), M. nagara (NagG10), M. sinensis (Sin2), and M. robustus (Rob4) harvested at different time points (September, December, and April). The influence of the Miscanthus genotype and plant component (leaf vs. stem) has been studied to develop corresponding structure-property relationships (i.e., correlations in molecular weight, polydispersity, and decomposition temperature). Lignin isolation was performed using non-catalyzed organosolv pulping and the structure analysis includes compositional analysis, Fourier transform infradred (FTIR), ultraviolet/visible (UV-Vis), hetero-nuclear single quantum correlation nuclear magnetic resonsnce (HSQC-NMR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and pyrolysis gaschromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Structural differences were found for stem and leaf-derived lignins. Compared to beech wood lignins, Miscanthus lignins possess lower molecular weight and narrow polydispersities (<1.5 Miscanthus vs. >2.5 beech) corresponding to improved homogeneity. In addition to conventional univariate analysis of FTIR spectra, multivariate chemometrics revealed distinct differences for aromatic in-plane deformations of stem versus leaf-derived lignins. These results emphasize the potential of Miscanthus as a low-input resource and a Miscanthus-derived lignin as promising agricultural feedstock.
In the literature on occupational stress and recovery from work several facets of thinking about work in off-job time have been conceptualized. However, research on the focal concepts is currently rather disintegrated. In this study we take a closer look at the five most established concepts, namely (1) psychological detachment, (2) affective rumination, (3) problem-solving pondering, (4) positive work reflection, and (5) negative work reflection. More specifically, we scrutinized (1) whether the five facets of work-related rumination are empirically distinct, (2) whether they yield differential associations with different facets of employee well-being (burnout, work engagement, thriving, satisfaction with life, and flourishing), and (3) to what extent the five facets can be distinguished from and relate to conceptually similar constructs, such as irritation, worry, and neuroticism. We applied structural equation modeling techniques to cross-sectional survey data from 474 employees. Our results provide evidence that (1) the five facets of work-related rumination are highly related, yet empirically distinct, (2) that each facet contributes uniquely to explain variance in certain aspects of employee well-being, and (3) that they are distinct from related concepts, albeit there is a high overlap between (lower levels of) psychological detachment and cognitive irritation. Our study contributes to clarify the structure of work-related rumination and extends the nomological network around different types of thinking about work in off-job time and employee well-being.
In the literature on occupational stress and recovery from work, several facets of thinking about work during off-job time have been conceptualized. However, research on the focal concepts is currently rather diffuse. In this study we take a closer look at the five most well-established concepts: (1) psychological detachment, (2) affective rumination, (3) problem-solving pondering, (4) positive work reflection, and (5) negative work reflection. More specifically, we scrutinized (1) whether the five facets of work-related rumination are empirically distinct, (2) whether they yield differential associations with different facets of employee well-being (burnout, work engagement, thriving, satisfaction with life, and flourishing), and (3) to what extent the five facets can be distinguished from and relate to conceptually similar constructs, such as irritation, worry, and neuroticism. We applied structural equation modeling techniques to cross-sectional survey data from 474 employees. Our results provide evidence for (1) five correlated, yet empirically distinct facets of work-related rumination. (2) Each facet yields a unique pattern of association with the eight aspects of employee well-being. For instance, detachment is strongly linked to satisfaction with life and flourishing. Affective rumination is linked particularly to burnout. Problem-solving pondering and positive work reflection yield the strongest links to work engagement. (3) The five facets of work-related rumination are distinct from related concepts, although there is a high overlap between (lower levels of) psychological detachment and cognitive irritation. Our study contributes to clarifying the structure of work-related rumination and extends the nomological network around different types of thinking about work during off-job time and employee well-being.
Healing of large bone defects requires implants or scaffolds that provide structural guidance for cell growth, differentiation, and vascularization. In the present work, an agarose-hydroxyapatite composite scaffold was developed that acts not only as a 3D matrix, but also as a release system. Hydroxyapatite (HA) was incorporated into the agarose gels in situ in various ratios by a simple procedure consisting of precipitation, cooling, washing, and drying. The resulting gels were characterized regarding composition, porosity, mechanical properties, and biocompatibility. A pure phase of carbonated HA was identified in the scaffolds, which had pore sizes of up to several hundred micrometers. Mechanical testing revealed elastic moduli of up to 2.8 MPa for lyophilized composites. MTT testing on Lw35human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) and osteosarcoma MG-63 cells proved the biocompatibility of the scaffolds. Furthermore, scaffolds were loaded with model drug compounds for guided hMSC differentiation. Different release kinetic models were evaluated for adenosine 5′-triphosphate (ATP) and suramin, and data showed a sustained release behavior over four days.
Incoming solar radiation is an important driver of our climate and weather. Several studies (see for instance Frank et al. 2018) have revealed discrepancies between ground-based irradiance measurements and the predictions of regional weather models. In the realm of electricity generation, accurate forecasts of solar photovoltaic (PV)energy yield are becoming indispensable for cost-effective grid operation: in Germany there are 1.6 million PVsystems installed, with a nominal power of 46 GW (Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft 2019). The proliferation of PV systems provides a unique opportunity to characterise global irradiance with unprecedented spatiotemporalresolution, which in turn will allow for highly resolved PV power forecasts.
Bone tissue engineering is an ever-changing, rapidly evolving, and highly interdisciplinary field of study, where scientists try to mimic natural bone structure as closely as possible in order to facilitate bone healing. New insights from cell biology, specifically from mesenchymal stem cell differentiation and signaling, lead to new approaches in bone regeneration. Novel scaffold and drug release materials based on polysaccharides gain increasing attention due to their wide availability and good biocompatibility to be used as hydrogels and/or hybrid components for drug release and tissue engineering. This article reviews the current state of the art, recent developments, and future perspectives in polysaccharide-based systems used for bone regeneration.
Renewable energies play an increasingly important role for energy production in Europe. Unlike coal or gas powerplants, solar energy production is highly variable in space and time. This is due to the strong variability of cloudsand their influence on the surface solar irradiance. Especially in regions with large contribution from photovoltaicpower production, the intermittent energy feed-in to the power grid can be a risk for grid stability. Therefore goodforecasts of temporal and spatial variability of surface irradiance are necessary to be able to properly regulate thepower supply.
The aim of this study was to investigate whether beneficial vacation effects can be strengthened and prolonged with a smartphone-based intervention. In a four-week longitudinal study among 79 Finnish teachers, we investigated the development of recovery, well-being, and job performance before, during, and after a one-week vacation in three groups: non-users (n = 51), passive (n = 18) and active (n = 10) users. Participants were instructed to actively use a recovery app (called Holidaily) and complete five digital questionnaires. Most recovery experiences and well-being indicators increased during the vacation. Job performance and concentration capacity showed no significant time effects. Among active app users, creativity at work increased from baseline to after the vacation, whereas among non-users it decreased and among passive users it decreased a few days after the vacation but increased again one and a half weeks after the vacation. The fading of beneficial vacation effects on negative affect seems to have been slower among active app users. Only few participants used the app actively. Still, results suggest that a smartphone-based recovery intervention may support beneficial vacation effects.
Quantifying Interference in WiLD Networks using Topography Data and Realistic Antenna Patterns
(2019)
Avoiding possible interference is a key aspect to maximize the performance in Wi-Fi based Long Distance networks. In this paper we quantify self-induced interference based on data derived from our testbed and match the findings against simulations. By enhancing current simulation models with two key elements we significantly reduce the deviation between testbed and simulation: the usage of detailed antenna patterns compared to the cone model and propagation modeling enhanced by license-free topography data. Based on the gathered data we discuss several possible optimization approaches such as physical separation of local radios, tuning the sensitivity of the transmitter and using centralized compared to distributed channel assignment algorithms. While our testbed is based on 5 GHz Wi-Fi, we briefly discuss the possible impact of our results to other frequency bands.
Verschiedene intelligente Heimautomatisierungsgeräte wie Lampen, Schlösser und Thermostate verbreiten sich rasant im privaten Umfeld. Ein typisches Kommunikationsprotokoll für diese Geräteklasse ist Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). In dieser Arbeit wird eine strukturierte Sicherheitsanalyse für BLE vorgestellt. Die beschriebene Vorgehensweise kategorisiert bekannte Angriffsvektoren und beschreibt einen möglichen Aufbau für eine Analyse. Im Zuge dieser Arbeit wurden einige sicherheitsrelevante Probleme aufgedeckt, die es Angreifern ermöglichen die Geräte vollständig zu übernehmen. Es zeigte sich, dass im Standard vorgesehene Sicherheitsfunktionen wie Verschlüsselung und Integritätsprüfungen häufig gar nicht oder fehlerhaft implementiert sind.
Bond graph software can simulate bond graph models without the user needing to manually derive equations. This offers the power to model larger and more complex systems than in the past. Multibond graphs (those with vector bonds) offer a compact model which further eases handling multibody systems. Although multibond graphs can be simulated successfully, the use of vector bonds can present difficulties. In addition, most qualitative, bond graph–based exploitation relies on the use of scalar bonds. This article discusses the main methods for simulating bond graphs of multibody systems, using a graphical software platform. The transformation between models with vector and scalar bonds is presented. The methods are then compared with respect to both time and accuracy, through simulation of two benchmark models. This article is a tutorial on the existing methods for simulating three-dimensional rigid and holonomic multibody systems using bond graphs and discusses the difficulties encountered. It then proposes and adapts methods for simulating this type of system directly from its bond graph within a software package. The value of this study is in giving practical guidance to modellers, so that they can implement the adapted method in software.
Start-ups stehen im Wettbewerb um qualifizierte Mitarbeiter in starker Konkurrenz zu etablierten Unternehmen und Konzernen. Der Bedarf an Fachkräften (etwa Software-Entwicklern) ist größer als je zuvor [1]. Wie stellen sich Start-ups als Arbeitgeber dar, um Personal für sich zu gewinnen? Dieser Frage wurde im Rahmen der Studie „Start-ups als Arbeitgeber“ nachgegangen.
Die Bilder aus dem Silicon Valley sind bekannt: Das Großraumbüro mit den Sitzecken zum Zurückziehen. Schaukeln, Kickern und Videospiele zum Relaxen in den Arbeitspausen. Überall gibt es etwas zu essen und zu trinken, und das natürlich gratis. – Diese Vorstellungen haben viele im Kopf. Finden sich diese Bilder in der Selbstdarstellung deutscher Start-ups als Arbeitgeber wieder?
Die hier vorgestellte Studie will keine allgemeingültigen Ergebnisse liefern, sondern ist explorativ angelegt und soll zur weiteren Beschäftigung mit diesem Forschungsfeld in Wissenschaft und Praxis anregen.
The application of Raman and infrared (IR) microspectroscopy is leading to hyperspectral data containing complementary information concerning the molecular composition of a sample. The classification of hyperspectral data from the individual spectroscopic approaches is already state-of-the-art in several fields of research. However, more complex structured samples and difficult measuring conditions might affect the accuracy of classification results negatively and could make a successful classification of the sample components challenging. This contribution presents a comprehensive comparison in supervised pixel classification of hyperspectral microscopic images, proving that a combined approach of Raman and IR microspectroscopy has a high potential to improve classification rates by a meaningful extension of the feature space. It shows that the complementary information in spatially co-registered hyperspectral images of polymer samples can be accessed using different feature extraction methods and, once fused on the feature-level, is in general more accurately classifiable in a pattern recognition task than the corresponding classification results for data derived from the individual spectroscopic approaches.
Background: To protect renewable packaging materials against autoxidation and decomposition when substituting harmful synthetic stabilizers with bioactive and bio-based compounds, extracts from Aesculus hippocastanum L. seeds were evaluated. The study objectives were to determine the antioxidant efficacy of bioactive compounds in horse chestnut seeds with regard to different seed fractions, improve their extraction, and to evaluate waste reuse. Methods: Different extraction techniques for field samples were evaluated and compared with extracts of industrial waste samples based on total phenolic content and total antioxidant capacity (2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS)). The molecular weight distribution and absorbance in ultraviolet range (UV) of seed coat extracts were determined, and the possibility of extracts containing proanthocyanidins was examined. Results: Seed coat extracts show a remarkable antioxidant activity and a high UV absorbance. Passive extractions are efficient and much less laborious. Applying waste product seed coats leads to a reduced antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and UV absorbance compared to the field sample counterparts. In contrast to peeled seed extracts, all seed coat extracts contain proanthocyanidins. Discussion: Seed coats are a potential source of bioactive compounds, particularly regarding sustainable production and waste reuse. With minimum effort, highly bioactive extracts with high potential as additives can be prepared.
Due to increased emissions of palladium nanoparticles in recent years, it is important to develop analytical techniques to characterize these particles. The synthesis of defined and stable particles plays a key role in this process, as there are not many materials commercially available yet which could act as reference materials. Polyvinylpyrrolidone- (PVP-) stabilized palladium nanoparticles were synthesized through the reduction of palladium chloride by tetraethylene glycol (TEG) in the presence of KOH. Four different methods were used for particle size analysis of the palladium nanoparticles. Palladium suspensions were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), single-particle ICP-MS (SP-ICP-MS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Secondary particles between 30 nm and 130 nm were detected in great compliance with SAXS and SP-ICP-MS. SEM analysis showed that the small particulates tend to form agglomerates.
Large display environments are highly suitable for immersive analytics. They provide enough space for effective co-located collaboration and allow users to immerse themselves in the data. To provide the best setting - in terms of visualization and interaction - for the collaborative analysis of a real-world task, we have to understand the group dynamics during the work on large displays. Among other things, we have to study, what effects different task conditions will have on user behavior.
In this paper, we investigated the effects of task conditions on group behavior regarding collaborative coupling and territoriality during co-located collaboration on a wall-sized display. For that, we designed two tasks: a task that resembles the information foraging loop and a task that resembles the connecting facts activity. Both tasks represent essential sub-processes of the sensemaking process in visual analytics and cause distinct space/display usage conditions. The information foraging activity requires the user to work with individual data elements to look into details. Here, the users predominantly occupy only a small portion of the display. In contrast, the connecting facts activity requires the user to work with the entire information space. Therefore, the user has to overview the entire display.
We observed 12 groups for an average of two hours each and gathered qualitative data and quantitative data. During data analysis, we focused specifically on participants' collaborative coupling and territorial behavior.
We could detect that participants tended to subdivide the task to approach it, in their opinion, in a more effective way, in parallel. We describe the subdivision strategies for both task conditions. We also detected and described multiple user roles, as well as a new coupling style that does not fit in either category: loosely or tightly. Moreover, we could observe a territory type that has not been mentioned previously in research. In our opinion, this territory type can affect the collaboration process of groups with more than two collaborators negatively. Finally, we investigated critical display regions in terms of ergonomics. We could detect that users perceived some regions as less comfortable for long-time work.
The Learning Culture Survey (LCS) is a questionnaire-based research, investigating students’ perceptions of and expectations towards Higher Education (HE). The aim of this survey is to improve our understanding about the sources of cultural conflicts in educational scenarios. This understanding, shell help us to predict potential conflict situations and develop supportive measures.
After three years of development, the LCS was initialized in 2010 in South Korea and Germany. During the following years, the investigations were extended to further countries. The results, on the one hand, provided insights about the cultural context of HE in general and on the other hand, about specific (national / regional) characteristics of learners in HE. Most issues targeted with the questionnaire were directly linked to value systems. Thus, we expected from the beginning that the collected data would keep valid over longer periods of time. However, we had no evidence regarding the actual persistence of learning culture. For a study, designed to being implemented on a global scope and providing input for further applications, persistence is a basic condition to justify related investigations.
To answer the question on persistence, we repeated the LCS in our university every four years, between 2010 to 2018/19. Besides a small number of slight changes, explainable out of their situational context, the overall results kept consistent over the investigated years. In this paper, after an introduction of the LCS’ concept, setting and its general results from the past years, we present the insights from our most recently finalized longitudinal study on learning culture.
In an effort to assist researchers in choosing basis sets for quantum mechanical modeling of molecules (i.e. balancing calculation cost versus desired accuracy), we present a systematic study on the accuracy of computed conformational relative energies and their geometries in comparison to MP2/CBS and MP2/AV5Z data, respectively. In order to do so, we introduce a new nomenclature to unambiguously indicate how a CBS extrapolation was computed. Nineteen minima and transition states of buta-1,3-diene, propan-2-ol and the water dimer were optimized using forty-five different basis sets. Specifically, this includes one Pople (i.e. 6-31G(d)), eight Dunning (i.e. VXZ and AVXZ, X=2-5), twenty-five Jensen (i.e. pc-n, pcseg-n, aug-pcseg-n, pcSseg-n and aug-pcSseg-n, n=0-4) and nine Karlsruhe (e.g. def2-SV(P), def2-QZVPPD) basis sets. The molecules were chosen to represent both common and electronically diverse molecular systems. In comparison to MP2/CBS relative energies computed using the largest Jensen basis sets (i.e. n=2,3,4), the use of smaller sizes (n=0,1,2 and n=1,2,3) provides results that are within 0.11--0.24 and 0.09-0.16 kcal/mol. To practically guide researchers in their basis set choice, an equation is introduced that ranks basis sets based on a user-defined balance between their accuracy and calculation cost. Furthermore, we explain why the aug-pcseg-2, def2-TZVPPD and def2-TZVP basis sets are very suitable choices to balance speed and accuracy.
TREE Jahresbericht 2018
(2019)
Die Wahrnehmung des perzeptionellen Aufrecht (perceptual upright, PU) variiert in Abhängigkeit der Gewichtung verschiedener gravitationsbezogener und körperbasierter Merkmale zwischen Kontexten und aufgrund individueller Unterschiede. Ziel des Vorhabens war es, systematisch zu untersuchen, welche Zusammenhänge zwischen visuellen und gravitationsbedingten Merkmalen bestehen. Das Vorhaben baute auf vorangegangen Untersuchungen auf, deren Ergebnisse indizieren, dass eine Gravitation von ca. 0,15g notwendig ist, um effiziente Selbstorientierungsinformationen bereit zu stellen (Herpers et. al, 2015; Harris et. al, 2014).
In dem hier beschriebenen Vorhaben wurden nun gezielt künstliche Gravitationsbedingungen berücksichtigt, um die Gravitationsschwelle, ab der ein wahrnehmbarer Einfluss beobachtbar ist, genauer zu quantifizieren bzw. die oben genannte Hypothese zu bestätigen. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass die zentripetale Kraft, die auf einer rotierenden Zentrifuge entlang der Längsachse des Körpers wirkt, genauso efektiv wie Stehen mit normaler Schwerkraft ist, um das Gefühl des perzeptionellen Aufrechts auszulösen. Die erzielten Daten deuten zudem darauf hin, dass ein Gravitationsfeld von mindestens 0,15 g notwendig ist, um eine efektive Orientierungsinformation für die Wahrnehmung von Aufrecht zu liefern. Dies entspricht in etwa der Gravitationskraft von 0,17 g, die auf dem Mond besteht. Für eine lineare Beschleunigung des Körpers liegt der vestibulare Schwellenwert bei etwa 0,1 m/s2 und somit liegt der Wert für die Situation auf dem Mond von 1,6 m/s2 deutlich über diesem Schwellenwert.
Das Forschungsprojekt beruht auf zwei Elementen: Die erste Untersuchung, ein Verhaltensexperiment mit 35 Studierenden der Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, erforschte den Einfluss von Gruppengröße (Zuschauereffekt) und dargebotenen Informationen zu Verantwortungsdiffusion (Priming) auf nachhaltiges Verhalten. Mithilfe eines zweiten Online-Experiments folgte eine Erhebung zum Einfluss von wahrgenommener persönlicher Bedrohung auf die Bereitschaft zu nachhaltigem Verhalten (N = 72). Die Ergebnisse des ersten Experimentes zeigen einen schwachen, statistisch nicht signifikanten Einfluss der Gruppengröße sowie einen, z.T. statistisch signifikanten, Einfluss der dargebotenen Informationen zu Verantwortungsdiffusion auf das gemessene nachhaltige Verhalten. Bequemlichkeit sowie monetärer Aufwand stellen mit Abstand die größten Hindernisse für nachhaltiges Verhalten dar, während die Beeinflussung durch andere und das Ziel des Umweltschutzes als positive Argumente für nachhaltiges Verhalten genannt wurden. In der Folgestudie konnte ein statistisch signifikanter kausaler Zusammenhang zwischen der wahrgenommenen persönlichen Bedrohung durch die aktuelle Umwelt- und Klimasituation und der Bereitschaft zu nachhaltigem Verhalten nachgewiesen werden. Alle Resultate zu Verhaltensintentionen zeigten insgesamt eine hohe Bereitschaft der Probanden zu nachhaltigem Verhalten.
Background: Virtual reality combined with spherical treadmills is used across species for studying neural circuits underlying navigation.
New Method: We developed an optical flow-based method for tracking treadmil ball motion in real-time using a single high-resolution camera.
Results: Tracking accuracy and timing were determined using calibration data. Ball tracking was performed at 500 Hz and integrated with an open source game engine for virtual reality projection. The projection was updated at 120 Hz with a latency with respect to ball motion of 30 ± 8 ms.
Comparison: with Existing Method(s) Optical flow based tracking of treadmill motion is typically achieved using optical mice. The camera-based optical flow tracking system developed here is based on off-the-shelf components and offers control over the image acquisition and processing parameters. This results in flexibility with respect to tracking conditions – such as ball surface texture, lighting conditions, or ball size – as well as camera alignment and calibration.
Conclusions: A fast system for rotational ball motion tracking suitable for virtual reality animal behavior across different scales was developed and characterized.