Cross-border vocational training as processes of cross-border learning

in Europa Regional (2021), 26(4), 17-30

In recent years cross-border vocational educational training (VET) in cross-border regions has gained more and more importance. The overall research question is how regional learning processes are shaped ... [more ▼]

In recent years cross-border vocational educational training (VET) in cross-border regions has gained more and more importance. The overall research question is how regional learning processes are shaped by bilateral cross-border formal learning agreements in a border region. Therefore, we build our own model of regional learning in border regions on WELLBROCK et al. (2012) following an integrated conceptual perspective and focusing on the actor’s perspective. The development of this transboundary VET by a variety of actors can be considered to form an intra- und interregional learning process. The interpretation of the structures regarding the conceptual findings reveals that the learning processes in the Saarland-Lorraine border region are dynamic and depend on key actors with expert knowledge as well as advantageous regional characteristics. [less ▲]

Entre mode et religion, un corps à corps riche de sens

in The Conversation (2021)

La pratique luxembourgeoise en matière de droit international public 2019

in Annales de droit luxembourgeois (2021), 30

Rosy or blue? Change in recall bias of students’ affective experiences during early adolescence

in Emotion (2021)

Inklusives Klassenklima

in Resch, Katharina; Lindner, Katharina-Theresa; Streese, Bettina (Eds.) et al Inklusive Schulentwicklung (2021)

Localization System for Lightweight Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Inspection Tasks

in Sensors (2021), 21(17 5937),

This paper presents a localization system for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) especially designed to be used in infrastructure inspection, where the UAVs have to fly in challenging conditions, such as ... [more ▼]

This paper presents a localization system for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) especially designed to be used in infrastructure inspection, where the UAVs have to fly in challenging conditions, such as relatively high altitude (e.g., 15 m), eventually with poor or absent GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) signal reception, or the need for a BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) operation in some periods. In addition, these infrastructure inspection applications impose the following requirements for the localization system: defect traceability, accuracy, reliability, and fault tolerance. Our system proposes a lightweight solution combining multiple stereo cameras with a robotic total station to comply with these requirements, providing full-state estimation (i.e., position, orientation, and linear and angular velocities) in a fixed and time-persistent reference frame. Moreover, the system can align and fuse all sensor measurements in real-time at high frequency. We have integrated this localization system in our aerial platform, and we have tested its performance for inspection in a real-world viaduct scenario, where the UAV has to operate with poor or absent GNSS signal at high altitude. [less ▲]

In Vitro Red Blood Cell Segregation in Sickle Cell Anemia

in FRONTIERS IN PHYSICS (2021), 9

Red blood cells in sickle cell anemia (sRBC) are more heterogeneous in their physical properties than healthy red blood cells, spanning adhesiveness, rigidity, density, size, and shape. sRBC with ... [more ▼]

Red blood cells in sickle cell anemia (sRBC) are more heterogeneous in their physical properties than healthy red blood cells, spanning adhesiveness, rigidity, density, size, and shape. sRBC with increased adhesiveness to the vascular wall would trigger vaso-occlusive like complications, a hallmark of sickle cell anemia. We investigated whether segregation occurs among sRBC flowing in micron-sized channels and tested the impact of aggregation on segregation. Two populations of sRBC of different densities were separated, labeled, and mixed again. The mixed suspension was flowed within glass capillary tubes at different pressure-drops, hematocrit, and suspending media that promoted or not cell aggregation. Observations were made at a fixed channel position. The mean flow velocity was obtained by using the cells as tracking particles, and the cell depleted layer (CDL) by measuring the distance from the cell core border to the channel wall. The labeled sRBC were identified by stopping the flow and scanning the cells within the channel section. The tube hematocrit was estimated from the number of fluorescence cells identified in the field of view. In non-aggregating media, our results showed a heterogeneous distribution of sRBC according to their density: low-density sRBC population remained closer to the center of the channel, while the densest cells segregated towards the walls. There was no impact of the mean flow velocity and little impact of hematocrit. This segregation heterogeneity could influence the ability of sRBC to adhere to the vascular wall and slow down blood flow. However, promoting aggregation inhibited segregation while CDL thickness was enhanced by aggregation, highlighting a potential protective role against vaso-occlusion in patients with sickle cell anemia. [less ▲]

The Dialectic of Transnational Integration and National Disintegration as Challenge for Multilevel Governance

in Social Sciences (2021), 20(7),

A large number of studies have detected that within the EU multilevel governance there is a transformation toward a hybrid knowledge co-production that overcomes traditional categories such as locality or ... [more ▼]

A large number of studies have detected that within the EU multilevel governance there is a transformation toward a hybrid knowledge co-production that overcomes traditional categories such as locality or embeddedness. There, a sort of sustainable decision-making knowledge is co-developed and theoretically supposed to be applied top-down on the national level of EU member states. However, in practice such processes of unification are always associated with a risk of limited compliance with specific national situations and with a specific national “world of relevancies”. Despite the rise in popularity of these top-down initiatives within international policy levels, there is a lack of studies that empirically analyze how national policy systems respond to these global standardization approaches. Therefore, the central aim of this study is twofold: Based on an exemplary case of an international information system co-produced by an expert group of the European Commission, it first reconstructs whether and how transnational information is integrated on the national policy level. Second, it elucidates factors limiting an application. The results show that this international knowledge system was used for basal purposes and was mainly challenged by non-compliance with national specificities and the existence of alternative knowledge sources. [less ▲]

Time use, childcare and home schooling

Report (2021)

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected households around the globe in many dimensions. Governments' responses to the public health crisis have almost brought economies to a halt and unemployment rates have ... [more ▼]

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected households around the globe in many dimensions. Governments' responses to the public health crisis have almost brought economies to a halt and unemployment rates have jumped to historical highs.Work conditions for those who remained employed changed abruptly, with many being forced to work from home. As schools and daycare centres closed, child-care needs soared. Social distancing recommendations and stay-at-home orders made it difficult, if not impossible, for informal care providers, such as grandparents or other family members, to help with child-care responsibilities. So how did parents cope? [less ▲]

Emigration, Friends, and Social Integration: The Determinants and Development of Friendship Network Size After Arrival

in Erlinghagen, Marcel; Ette, Andreas; Schneider, Norbert (Eds.) et al The Global Lives of German Migrants (2021)

Friendships can be interpreted as voluntary relationships between individuals and characterised as relatively amorphous bond. Since migration usually diversifies people’s social bonds, it can be suggested ... [more ▼]

Friendships can be interpreted as voluntary relationships between individuals and characterised as relatively amorphous bond. Since migration usually diversifies people’s social bonds, it can be suggested that in this context friendships have to be reconfigured. Even though friendships are important for societal integration and related to individual well-being, migration research has treated friendships as a side issue. This chapter aims to narrow this gap by answering three questions: Are there significant differences between emigrants and non-mobiles in their number of close friends? What are important factors influencing emigrants’ number of close friends abroad? How does this number develop during the first years after emigration? Based on data from the German Emigration and Remigration Panel Study and the German Socio-Economic Panel, the results show that emigrants have more friends than non-mobiles. Additionally, we find that individual characteristics and cultural distance between emigrant and host society or the intension to stay in the emigration country are significantly related to emigrants’ friendship network size. Furthermore, we find that identification with the emigration country is the most influential factor on the size of the friendship networks during the first 2 years after arrival. Our results also provide some evidence that there is an optimal size of the close-friendship-network. [less ▲]