Cities In Germany Research Articles

Risk and risk assessment in pregnancy – do we scare because we care?

Objective : to assess whether being labelled ‘high-risk’ affects women's psychosocial state in pregnancy. Design : prospective, cross-sectional, non-experimental, case–control study. Setting : a large city in Germany. Participants : women between 22 and 41 weeks gestation were identified at antenatal classes and invited to participate in the study. Of the 147 women who were given a questionnaire, 82% (1 2 2) responded but only 75% (1 1 1) were eligible for inclusion in the study. Of these 111 women, 57 were classified as ‘labelled high-risk’ and 54 as ‘no-risk’ according to the risks documented in their antenatal records. Measurements : women's psychosocial state was assessed using a validated, anonymous, self-completed questionnaire, the Abbreviated Scale for the Assessment of Psychosocial State in Pregnancy (Goldenberg et al. 1997). Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was performed to test the effect of the risk label on psychosocial state. The effect of other variables, such as parity or education, was also tested. Findings : the effect of the risk label on psychosocial state after adjusting for age was statistically significant ( R 2=0.07, F=7.59, df=1, p=0.001). No significant differences were found for the other independent variables. The data showed that a large number of women had one or more risk factors and that 71% were booked for obstetrician-led care. A high variability in obstetrician's documentation of women's risk factors was also found. Conclusion : the data suggest that labelling women to be ‘at risk’ may negatively affect their psychosocial state. The findings highlight the need to re-evaluate the risk catalogue in the German antenatal record ( Mutterpass) as well as the German maternity guidelines ( Mutterschaftsrichtlinien). Although this study was conducted within the German system of antenatal care, the findings raise questions about the effects of risk labelling in maternity care wherever it is practised. Further research is needed to assess women's psychosocial state in a more representative sample, to explore women's experiences and satisfaction with the practice of risk assessment and to investigate the reasons for the high variability in documenting women's risk factors.

In the Driving Seat: on the Reception of John Casken's Cello Concerto in Germany

The composer himself relates how Heinrich Schiff had requested a ‘self-drive concerto’, one that combined the roles of soloist and conductor and in which a ‘sense of propulsion was provided by the orchestra's inner voice’. It has taken twelve years since the work's inception for John Casken's Cello Concerto to reach Munich, the southernmost major city in Germany. And it was Casken who conducted recently the Münchener Kammerorchester with the renowned Austrian soloist in the Herkulessaal here in the Bavarian capital. The world première was actually back in 1991 at the Schleswig Holstein Music Festival, with Schiff (to whom the work is dedicated) and the Northern Sinfonia delivering it with ‘exemplary and total allegiance’, according to one of Germany's more prestigious journals, Die Zeit. The work is ‘approachable’, this particular review continues; is cast in a musical language that ‘admits in its gestural directness highly expressive motifs and clear contours of tension’; manifests ‘expressive colour’; and gently queries the ‘depth of communication between soloist and orchestra’.

Fusion of spectral and shape features for identification of urban surface cover types using reflective and thermal hyperspectral data

The urban environment is characterized by an intense multifunctional use of available spaces, where the preservation of open green spaces is of special importance. For this purpose, area-wide urban biotope mapping based on CIR aerial photographs has been carried out for the large cities in Germany during the last 10 years. Because of dynamic urban development and high mapping costs, the municipal authorities are interested in effective methods for mapping urban surface cover types, which can be used for evaluation of ecological conditions in urban structures and supporting updates of biotope maps. Against this background, airborne hyperspectral remote sensing data of the DAIS 7915 instrument have been analyzed for a test site in the city of Dresden (Germany) with regard to their potential for automated material-oriented identification of urban surface cover types. Previous investigations have shown that the high spectral and spatial variabilities of these data require the development of special methods, which are capable of dealing with the resulting mixed-pixel problem in its specific characteristics in urban areas. Earlier, methodological developments led to an approach based on a combination of spectral classification and pixel-oriented unmixing techniques to facilitate sensible endmember selection based on the reflective bands of the DAIS instrument. This approach is now extended by a shape-based classification technique including the thermal bands of the DAIS instrument to improve the detection of buildings during the process of identifying seedling pixels, which represent the starting points for linear spectral unmixing. This new approach increases the reliability of differentiation between buildings and open spaces, leading to more accurate results for the spatial distribution of surface cover types. Thus, the new approach significantly enhances the exploitation of the information potential of the hyperspectral DAIS 7915 data for an area-wide identification of urban surface cover types.

Exploring the city of Rubble: botanical fieldwork in bombed cities in Germany after World War II.

In recent decades, the flora and fuana of cities have become the objects of the inter-disciplinary research field of urban ecology and related policies of urban nature conservation. Although the term "urban ecology" is quite recent, it is argued in this paper that the formation of urban nature as an object of ecological knowledge has a much longer history. For example, in Germany, after World War II, the large rubble areas that existed in all bombed cities soon became important research fields for botanists studying plant migration and vegetation development in the context of the city. This paper uses the case of these botanical research activities to shed light on the historical origins of ecological thinking about nature in the city. Drawing upon a socio-spatial approach to science and practice, the paper explores the interaction between the social and material order of the city and the formation of ecological knowledge. As will be shown, botanists studying the rubble areas created various representations (e.g., lists, statistical tabulations, maps) of urban space that contributed to the transformation of the cultural and political meaning of urban wastelands. At the same time, it will be argued, urban wastelands were practically appropriated as scientific workplaces in which these representations were locally crafted. What later became the science and politics of urban ecology is to a large extent the outcome of this mutual shaping of knowledge and urban space in the post-Second World War period.

Ballets Danced in Munster: FrançOis Ogier, Dramatist

The town of Munster, well known for the quantity of its churches and historical monuments, ‘one of the most beautiful among all the beautiful cities in Germany’, in 1998 celebrated the 300th anniversary of the Peace of Westphalia. It was an occasion worthy of commemoration, and it was celebrated through many events, both large and small – historical, diplomatic, military and cultural. Among these were two exhibitions. The first, 1648: War & Peace in Europe, was organised by the Council of Europe. Three hundred years to the day and in the presence of twenty monarchs, state presidents and other dignatories, the signing of the Treaty of Westphalia in Munster and Osnabruck was celebrated. Some months earlier, the city museum had also commemorated the day on which a peace treaty had been signed between Spain and the Low Countries. Entitled The Thirty Years War: Munster & the Peace of Westphalia, it lasted from 30 January to 18 October 1998. Among its 300 exhibits was the programme for the Ballet de la Paix [Ballet of Peace] danced in Munster, on 26 February 1645. The programme contained a second text: Ballet danse a Munster sur la nouvelle de l’heureuse naissance de Monseigneur le Conte de Dunois, au mois de Feburier 1646. In a display cabinet could be seen the last page of the Ballet de la Paix alongside the title page of the ballet dedicated to the Conte de Dunois. No author was given, and a simple note was appended: ‘The two volumes have been bound together and belong to a private collection.’ The catalogue provided a summary of the two ballets, a reproduction of each title page, and two copperplate engravings – le bal from the workshop of Abraham Bosse and a fine portrait of Anne de Bourbon. Two further pages depicted the double portrait of Henri II d’Orleans, duc de Longueville and his duchess, Anne de Bourbon, with details about the lives and their sojourn in Munster. Both ballet programmes were written by Francois Ogier, almoner of Claude de Mesmes, conte d’Avaux, chief French

Schrumpfende Städte und leere Wohnungen


 
 
 Over the next 10 to 15 years, the towns and cities of Germany — and indeed throughout Europe — will feel the full impact of overall population decline. At present the effects of this new megatrend in urban development are most clearly evident in the towns of eastern Germany, which are suffering not only from the effects of natural negative population development, but are also experiencing serious population depletion through outward migration. The result is unoccupied housing, with major consequences both for the economy and for settlement structure. The author outlines possible measures and conflicts associated with managing urban shrinkage processes.
 
 
 
 
 

Twenty-five years of biomonitoring lead in the Frankfurt/Main area.

The present study is an example of the historical monitoring of heavy metals. The specific question it aims to explore is: to what extent has the lead content of selected organisms used for biomonitoring in Frankfurt/Main--one of the cities in Germany most heavily affected by automobile traffic--changed as a result of legislation on leaded gasoline? Data on the lead content of the moss species Bryum argenteum Hedw. from the years 1974, 1975 and 1978 and data on the lead content of the outer bark of the ash species Fraxinus excelsior L. from 1973 served as the basis for the repeated measurements. Remeasurement was successful in 76.5% (i.e. 124 trees at 26 growth sites). The study produced the following results: As was expected, the lead content of the short-term accumulator Bryum argenteum Hedw. was distinctly lowered with a decreasing particulate lead concentration. However, the reduction factor varied greatly between the different growth sites. On the other hand, the lead content measured in the outer bark layers of Fraxinus excelsior L. has risen markedly during the past two decades. Whereas in 1973 nearly all trees examined displayed very low concentrations of lead (< 38 ppm), only 9.5% were still in this category in 1997 and nearly 30% exhibited high or even unacceptable lead concentrations (< 150 ppm-->225 ppm). Various factors have to be taken into account to explain this increase. First of all, bark is a long-term accumulator for heavy metals like lead and its enrichment capacity could have increased as the surface becomes rougher over time. Furthermore, lead is most probably leached out of the bark to a lesser degree now than in the 1970s, owing to the reduced concentration of sulphuric acid in the rain. The dramatic growth of automobile traffic in the Frankfurt/Main area during the period covered by the study undoubtedly plays an important role as well.

The Munich Rent Advisor: A success for logic programming on then Internet

Most cities in Germany regularly publish a booklet called the Mietspiegel. It basically contains a verbal description of an expert system. It allows the calculation of the estimated fair rent for a flat. By hand, one may need a weekend to do this task. With our computerized version, the Munich Rent Advisor, the user just fills in a form in a few minutes, and the rent is calculated immediately. We also extended the functionality and applicability of the Mietspiegel so that the user need not answer all questions on the form. The key to computing with partial information using high-level programming was to use constraint logic programming. We rely on the Internet, and more specifically the World Wide Web, to provide this service to a broad user group, the citizens of Munich and the people who are planning to move to Munich. To process the answers from the questionnaire and return its result, we wrote a small simple stable special-purpose web server directly in ECLiPSe. More than 10,000 people have used our service in the last three years. This article describes the experiences in implementing and using the Munich Rent Advisor. Our results suggest that logic programming with constraints can be an important ingredient in intelligent internet systems.

An epidemiological study of HIV-infections in Frankfurt/Main and other major cities in Germany

Epidemiological studies can help to understand the effects of medical treatment of HIV infections. Accordingly, this study was designed to discuss the most important parameters in Frankfurt/Main and other big German cities from 1984 to 2000. The number of HIV tests performed by Frankfurt's Virology has been decreasing continually since 1991. A decrease of new infections in men could be registered, whereas the number of HIV infected women rose. From 1985 to 2000 an annual mean value of 478 HIV infected men and 121 HIV infected women was registered in Frankfurt. The gender proportion was followed up for Frankfurt and Hamburg since 1985, for Berlin, Munich, and Cologne since 1993. All but one city showed a significant decline of infected males, only Berlin did not show any obvious changes in this proportion. Over the last twelve years the average age of men and women tested positive for the first time increased. An obvious shift could be discerned during the last two years concerning the distribution of risk groups. The percentage of HIV infected homosexuals and female i. v. drug addicts sank significantly over the last two years, the number of women infected by heterosexual contacts is still increasing when compared to data compiled from 1988 to 1992, and varies between 44 % and 33 %. During the same time-span a significant shift in first onset of AIDS-defining illnesses was observed. PCP (pneumocystis carinii pneumonia) - formerly represented with 35.5 % - decreased and is now surpassed by tuberculosis with 25.5 %. The general gender proportion (3 : 1) could not be reflected by AIDS-defining diseases of which NHL (non-Hodgkin-lymphoma) seems to have the shortest time-span (6.5 months) between the occurrence of illness and death.

Urban Population Change in Large Cities in Germany, 1980-94

The populations of the large cities of the former Federal Republic of Germany (cities with at least 100 000 inhabitants) have been characterised by a continuing downward trend since the beginning of the 1980s. The number of inhabitants, which had already been decreasing during the 1970s, had registered a loss of 3.6 per cent by 1987. Subsequently, however, the trend reversed and, from 1988 to 1994, the population of the large cities in West Germany increased by about 6 per cent. Does this reversal indicate the beginning of a process of reurbanisation and, in cyclic terms, has the urban development changed to more traditional patterns of population redistribution? The increase in population in the large cities around 1990 was rather different from former urbanisation processes. The concentration was a temporary phenomenon and affected predominantly persons of foreign nationality, whereas the German population was still going through a deconcentration process. There are several contributing factors, including the political upheavals in eastern Europe, the accelerated economic restructuring in the 1980s and improvements in communication and transport technology. Globalisation with its worldwide expansion of communication networks also played a role, allocating gateway functions to larger centres in favourable locations. The paper analyses the effects of urban economy and city size on the balances of migration movements of the large cities in West Germany since 1980, especially on the different distribution patterns of the German and foreign populations.

Berlin: The Metropolis as a Production Space

Metropolitan regions can be regarded as economic areas comprising various sub-economies with different forms of economic and spatial organization. The purpose of this article is to undertake a critical appraisal of the vision of Berlin as a 'service metropolis' through empirical observation of sectoral trends and locational patterns in the city, and to establish that Berlin's urban area is a major production space with a complex fabric of specialized production districts. This spatial organization will be examined in terms of the level of agglomeration of various sub-economies with special reference to the formation of local enterprise clusters in the Berlin economic area. Berlin's specialization profile and the employment trend in the city compared with other metropolitan cities in Germany make it clear that the metropolis of Berlin is under threat as a production space, and this threat partly stems from the way in which the real estate business has developed in the Berlin area.

Survey on the distribution of the Horse Chestnut ScalePulvinaria regalis Canard (Hom., Coccidae) in Germany in the years 1996 to 1998

In the present study, the distribution of the Horse Chestnut Scale insectPulvinaria regalis Canard in Germany in the years 1996 to 1998 and tendencies in the variation of infestation levels during the past three years were investigated by a survey. A questionnaire was sent to the offices for green areas and environmental affairs of 121 cities in Germany with a population exceeding 75.000 citizens. Additional observations by the authors were also taken into consideration. A comparison to data from 1995 was conducted. In the year 1998, this arboricultural pest occurred in 34 cities (15 in 1995) and could be found in the areas of the Rhineland and the Ruhr-Valley, from Bonn in the south up to Münster (Westphalia) in the north and from Aachen in the west to Hagen and Dortmund in the east.P. regalis could also be detected in Offenbach and Frankfurt a. M., It also occurred southward along the rivers Rhine and Neckar in the cities of Mainz, Ludwigshafen, Freiburg and Stuttgart. The most southern point whereP. regalis was detected in July 1998 was Zürich in Switzerland. The first occurrence of the 19 new observed infestations withP. regalis took place in six instances before 1995, eight in 1995, three in 1996, and one each in 1997 and 1998. The investigations about tendencies in the variation of infestation levels revealed a decrease in scale numbers only in the cities where Horse Chestnut Scales have been observed first in Germany. On the other hand, almost every place located further away from these infestation sites showed a population increase ofP. regalis. Constant infestation levels over the past three years could be found in only two cities. In most cases lime, maple and horse chestnut trees were the host plants of this scale insect.

わが国の都市における「風の道」の必要性について

In Germany, “Klimaanalyse fuer die Stadtplanung” (Climate analysis for the urban planning) is widely practiced mainly in inland cities, for the purpose of mitigation of heat stress in summer and air pollutant load in winter.“Klimaanalyse” gives “Hinweiskarte” (Planning advice map). Planners are recommended to refer to “Hinweiskarte” for drawing “B-Plan” (Building plan; obligation to be practiced). As the result, urban planning with consideration on the urban climate protection represented by “Luftleitbahnen” (Urban ventilation path) is practiced effectively. In inland cities in Germany, wind speed is quite low through most time of the year especially during periods of high pressure in summer and polluted air mass can easily be diluted. Therefore they have to consider keeping the urban ventilation path. We Japanese have to analyse basic wind data statistically for the discussion on the necessity of urban ventilation path in Japanese cities, e.g. frequency of calm days in each season, histogram of wind velocity, geographical relationships between the dominant wind direction, “klimaaktive Flaechen” (Climatic active surfaces; e.g. green park, water body) and urban area. In this research, the authors discuss on the probability to apply “Luftleitbahnen” to Japanese and Asian cities based on comparison with German case studies.

In Search of a Future: Leipzig Since the Wende

In the political and economic history of Germany, Leipzig alreadyheld a special place long before unification. Since the middle ages, ithas hosted one of the most important trade fairs in Europe. Whenindustrialization turned Germany in the late nineteenth century intoa leading European power, outpacing France and closely rivalingBritain, Leipzig added to its established and internationally acclaimedfur and book trade a mighty industrial sector in lignite-based chemicalsand vehicle production. At the turn of the century, Leipzig wasone of the largest and most affluent cities of Germany and indeedEurope. A rich stock of Gründerzeit houses remains to testify to thisillustrious past.

Determination of trace-metal concentrations in size-classified atmospheric particles by ETV-ICP-MS

Atmospheric particles were sampled and fractionated according to their size by a cascade impactor in Berlin, capital city of Germany, on the Brocken, peak of the Harz mountains and on the Szrenica peak in the Giant mountains, Republic Poland. The fractionated particles were collected on small graphite targets and subsequently analyzed by ETV-ICP-MS. Distribution curves were measured showing trace-metal contents in air versus the aerodynamic particle diameter for the elements Pb, Ag, Cd and Tl. Despite good element correlation, the distribution curves differ significantly for the three sampling locations. The limits of detection for the elements of concern were in the pg/m3 range at a sampling time of 4 h. An attempt was made to determine single particles: in urban aerosols a content was found of 1 · 10–13 g Tl and 9 · 10–13 g Ag in single particles of the size fraction 3.45 μm.

Requirements and possibilities of best management practises for storm water run-off from the view of ecological townplanning

The character of urban water cycle does not comply with the principles of sustainability. The task of restructuring the urban water cycle is to create a system which is close to a natural. The approached method for this research was to develop and demonstrate a new comprehensive system in two cities of Germany (Dortmund and Zwickau). Standardized types of settlement structure were developed in order to obtain transferable results and to portray the total spectrum of urban planning situations.

Konfliktbewältigungsstrategien der Berliner Bauverwaltung in der verbindlichen Bauleitplanung

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size In the case that an intended construction project does not correspond to the legal planning law, building in Berlin at these times requires a lot of time. The planning scheme proceeding in Berlin takes 3 times as long as in comparable cities in Germany. This starts the question, how the planning process is regulated by the Berlin planning administration? On one hand, we more and more have a not corresponding planning law to the intended projects, and the planning scheme proceeding takes 8 years on the average, on the other hand, the building permission should be ratificated as soon as possible to avoid delay of the construction projects. These questions caused an analysis of legal facts (1949–1995) concerning the density of regulations and the time necessary for the procedural matter for planning schemes in the borough of Charlottenburg in Berlin. The most essential causes for the long procedures of planning schemes you will find in the internal consultations of the planning design and in its ratification by the administration. To avoid delay for the construction projects, there are instruments used voluminously to pass premature planning permissions for single projects combined with other instruments to accelerate the process. These procedures are often regarded as legally critical.

Requirements and possibilities of best management practises for storm water run-off from the view of ecological townplanning

The character of urban water cycle does not comply with the principles of sustainability. The task of restructuring the urban water cycle is to create a system which is close to a natural. The approached method for this research was to develop and demonstrate a new comprehensive system in two cities of Germany (Dortmund and Zwickau). Standardized types of settlement structure were developped in order to obtain transferable results.and to portray the total spectrum of urban planning situations.

Processes of Suburbanisation and its Effects on the Finances of Cities in West Germany: The Example of Bremen and the Surrounding Communities

This paper is an analysis of the effects of suburbanisation processes on the finances of cities in West Germany, taking the metropolitan area of Bremen as an example. The main thesis is that, under the present socioeconomic conditions, the German system of public finance and public responsibilities has led to a growing gap between the financial situations of central cities and of their surrounding communities in urban agglomerations. For the purpose of describing the differences in developments in the central city of Bremen and its suburban area, the main local tax revenues, as well as some indicators of ‘fiscal stress’, and their developments between 1982 and 1992 were analysed. The empirical results verify a significant shift of economic and financial strength to the suburban belt during the period under investigation. Although since the beginning of the 1970s a severe imbalance between the development of revenue and of expenditure needs has generated a dramatic budget situation in Bremen, in the surrounding communities in Lower Saxony budgetaty situations were sound in every respect. Similar processes, which have led to a relative weakness of revenues and increasing debts, have been observed in other central cities in Germany. Obviously the negative effect of suburbanisation processes on the financial situation of the central city is not a problem specific to Bremen. Generally, the larger cities are convinced that their functions for the hinterland and the resulting burdens have not been adequately taken into account in the systems of municipal finance and fiscal equalisation.

Return to normal ? Leipzig in search of its future position in Central Europe

Before World War II Leipzig was one of the most important cities in Germany. Leipzig was a metropole holding the primate position in international trade fairs and in publishing. It was also the seat of the Supreme Court of Germany (since late 19th century). Under socialist dictatorship following the partition of the country after WW II the outstanding ranking was lost.