Groups In Germany Research Articles

‘Creative Cities’ and the Rise of the Dealer Class: A Critique of Richard Florida's Approach to Urban Theory

AbstractIn recent times, Richard Florida's ‘creative class’ theory, which deals with a particular set of regional success factors (technology, talent and tolerance) has received quite a positive reception among regional scientists and politicians in North America and Europe. Particularly on the urban level, Florida's concept has become a ‘message of hope’ to guide poor and declining localities to a future path of successful development. Florida's approach can be criticized for its highly affirmative concept of class and the current mode of capitalist development. This article starts from a deconstruction of the notion of a creative class and deals with the aggregation and co‐location problems that plague Florida's concept. On the basis of empirical research on the regional distribution of diverse occupational groups in Germany, the article proves specifically that the ‘dealer class’— or in Florida's terms, creative professionals — does not have a significant or positive impact on the success of urban areas in developing sustainable economic structures.Résumé Ces dernières années, la théorie de la ‘classe créative’ de Richard Florida, qui porte sur un ensemble spécifique de facteurs de réussite régionale (technologie, talent et tolérance), a été accueillie très favorablement, en Amérique du Nord et en Europe, dans les milieux politiques et de la recherche sur les régions. Plus précisément, au niveau urbain, le concept de Florida s’est transformé en ‘message d’espoir’ guidant les localités pauvres ou en déclin sur la voie d’un développement réussi. L’approche de Florida est critiquable par son concept de classe fortement antidiscriminatoire et du fait des modalités d’évolution actuelles du capitalisme. L’article commence par une déconstruction de la notion de classe créative et aborde les problèmes d’agrégation et de co‐localisation qui empoisonnent le concept de Florida. À partir d’une étude empirique sur la répartition régionale de divers groupes professionnels en Allemagne, il est démontré spécifiquement que la ‘dealer class ou classe des courtiers’ (les creative professionals au sens de Florida) n’a pas d’impact significatif ou positif sur la réussite des zones urbaines via le développement de structures économiques durables.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML): Prospective Comparison of Different Treatments with a Common Standard Treatment - A Study by the German AML Intergroup

AbstractAbstract 2175Eight years from the start of a cooperation among five multicenter study groups in Germany, and three years after entering the last patient we here present updated therapeutic results. A total of 3171 patients 16–60 years of age with AML including primary and secondary AML and high-risk MDS, and excluding APL with t(15;17), were treated in the five study groups cooperating by a general upfront randomization allocating 10% of their patients to a common standard treatment and 90% to the study group own regimens before any treatment had been started. The standard treatment consisted of remission induction by two courses of standard dose araC over seven days with daunorubicin 60mg/m2/d on three days. Patients in complete remission received three monthly courses of high-dose araC 3g/m2q 12 h on day 1,3 and 5. In the participating study groups a total of 2866 patients eligible by the inclusion criteria of the AML Intergroup study were treated according to the study group own regimens with 828 patients in study group A, 373 in B, 235 in C, 808 in D, 622 in E, and 305 patients were treated according to the common standard. In an attempt to conduct treatment optimization trials the study group own strategies relied on a risk-oriented stratification among treatment options (group A), a randomized stratification (group D), or combinations of randomization and risk-adaption (B, C, E). High-dose araC was used up to cumulative 54g/m2 in groups A, E, and in the standard arm, and up to 36 to 40g/m2 in groups B, C, D. Marked differences were also seen in the use of allogeneic stem cell transplantation with 27% allografts in 1st CR in study group A, 33% in B, 19% in C, 23% in D, 25% in group E, and 21% in the common standard arm. Unlike the differences in the study groups strategies in the amounts of high-dose araC, and in the numbers of allografts in 1st remission, the risk profiles regarding age, secondary AML, cytogenetic groups, mutations in NPM1/FLT3-ITD, levels of WBC and LDH were concordant between the common standard arm and the study group own populations, except for single differences in secondary leukemia (group B), cytogenetics (C), and WBC (D). The study group itself was not an independent prognostic factor for any outcome. Similar patient populations could thus be evaluated to compare the treatment strategy of each study group with that of the common standard arm. The outcome of the standard treatment was 66.7% (95% CI 61.0–72.0) complete remissions, an overall survival of 44.3% (95% CI 37.9–50.9), and a relapse free survival of 44.9% (95% CI 36.9–52.5) at 5 years. Adjusted for prognostic baseline variables no significant difference in the remission rate and overall survival between the standard arm and any of the study groups were observed. Comparable patterns were also found for relapse free survival where the long-term results of the standard treatment were not further improved in any of the five study groups. We conclude that in unselected patients with AML a prospective comparison shows very similar outcomes of any current treatment strategy when compared with that of the common standard treatment. Present reliable and unbiased analyses became possible by a strictly prospective approach and intent-to-treat evaluation. These representative results can form a solid basis for novel therapeutic approaches. Disclosures:No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Disfluency Markers in L1 Attrition

Based on an analysis of the speech of long-term emigres of German and Dutch origin, the present investigation discusses to what extent hesitation patterns in language attrition may be the result of the creation of an interlanguage system, on the one hand, or of language-internal attrition patterns on the other. We compare speech samples elicited by a film retelling task from German emigres in Canada (n = 52) and the Netherlands (n = 50) and from Dutch emigres in Canada (n = 45) to retellings produced by predominantly monolingual control groups in Germany (n = 53) and the Netherlands (n = 45). Findings show that the attriting groups overuse empty pauses, repetitions, and retractions, whereas the distribution of filled pauses appears to conform more closely to the second language norm. An investigation of the location at which disfluency markers appear within the sentence suggests that they are indicators of difficulties that the attriters experience largely in the context of lexical retrieval.

Transfer of conceptualization patterns in bilinguals: The construal of motion events in Turkish and German

In the present article we provide evidence for the occurrence of transfer of conceptualization patterns in narratives of two German–Turkish bilingual groups. All bilingual participants grew up in Germany, but only one group is still resident in Germany (n = 49). The other, the returnees, moved back to Turkey after having lived in Germany for thirteen years (n = 35). The study is based on the theoretical framework for conceptual transfer outlined in Jarvis and Pavlenko (2008) and on the typology of satellite-framed and verb-framed languages developed by Talmy (1985, 1991, 2000a, b) and Slobin (1987, 1996, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006). In the present study we provide evidence for the hypothesis that language structure affects the organization of information structure at the level of the Conceptualizer, and show that bilingual speakers’ conceptualization of motion events is influenced by the dominant linguistic environment in both languages (German for the group in Germany and Turkish for the returnees). The returnees follow the Turkish blueprints for the conceptualization of motion, in both Turkish and German event construals, whereas the German-resident bilinguals follow the German blueprints, when speaking German as well as Turkish. We argue that most of the patterns found are the result of transfer of conceptualization patterns from the dominant language of the environment.

Fertility, Female Labor Supply, and Family Policy

The present paper develops a general equilibrium model with overlapping generations and endogenous fertility in order to analyze the interaction between public policy and household labor supply and fertility decisions. The model's benchmark equilibrium reflects the current family policy as well as the differential fertility pattern of educational groups in Germany. Then we simulate alternative reforms of child benefits and family taxation that increase the long-run fertility and growth rate of the economy. Our simulations indicate two central results: First, although households are typically hurt by the first-order effects of family policy, it is possible to generate long-run welfare gains due to positive second-order effects from induced changes in the population structure. Second, specific family policies could be designed that yield a joint increase of the fertility rate and female employment rate as observed in cross-country studies.

Region-Specific Nutrient Intake Patterns Exhibit a Geographical Gradient within and between European Countries1–3

Until recently, the study of nutrient patterns was hampered at an international level by a lack of standardization of both dietary methods and nutrient databases. We aimed to describe the diversity of nutrient patterns in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study at population level as a starting point for future nutrient pattern analyses and their associations with chronic diseases in multi-center studies. In this cross-sectional study, 36,034 persons aged 35–74 y were administered a single, standardized 24-h dietary recall. Intake of 25 nutrients (excluding intake from dietary supplements) was estimated using a standardized nutrient database. We used a graphic presentation of mean nutrient intakes by region and sex relative to the overall EPIC means to contrast patterns within and between 10 European countries. In Mediterranean regions, including Greece, Italy, and the southern centers of Spain, the nutrient pattern was dominated by relatively high intakes of vitamin E and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), whereas intakes of retinol and vitamin D were relatively low. In contrast, in Nordic countries, including Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, reported intake of these same nutrients resulted in almost the opposite pattern. Population groups in Germany, The Netherlands, and the UK shared a fatty acid pattern of relatively high intakes of PUFA and SFA and relatively low intakes of MUFA, in combination with a relatively high intake of sugar. We confirmed large variability in nutrient intakes across the EPIC study populations and identified 3 main region-specific patterns with a geographical gradient within and between European countries. J. Nutr. 140: 1280–1286, 2010.

Playing Catch-Up in German Early Science Education with Science-Lab (Innovations Case Narrative: Science-Lab)

pared student achievement in various fields came as a shock to the different constituent groups in Germany, such as parents, educational professionals, and politicians. The German government has generally considered its education system superior to those of other countries, but German students’ results in the 2000 Program for International Student Assessment, or PISA, were significantly lower than the mean of all participating countries in all three areas that were tested: literacy, mathematics, and science (Weiss et al., 2001). Immediately afterward, lengthy and emotional discussions started about the reasons for the poor results. One problem was the late start of science teaching in the German education system. In 2002, there was no science program in German preschools or kindergartens (henceforth referred to as kindergartens, since in Germany almost all children attend kindergarten from age three to six). In primary schools, science was only a small part of the curriculum and focused mainly on biological topics, like plants and animals, but also touched briefly on subjects like water, air, temperature, and even electricity. However, even countries with science programs and curricula in place for this age group face the challenge that science teaching for young children must be different from the higher education approach. It should be far

German contributions to the CMS computing infrastructure

The CMS computing model anticipates various hierarchically linked tier centres to counter the challenges provided by the enormous amounts of data which will be collected by the CMS detector at the Large Hadron Collider, LHC, at CERN. During the past years, various computing exercises were performed to test the readiness of the computing infrastructure, the Grid middleware and the experiment's software for the startup of the LHC which took place in September 2008. In Germany, several tier sites are set up to allow for an efficient and reliable way to simulate possible physics processes as well as to reprocess, analyse and interpret the numerous stored collision events of the experiment. It will be shown that the German computing sites played an important role during the experiment's preparation phase and during data-taking of CMS and, therefore, scientific groups in Germany will be ready to compete for discoveries in this new era of particle physics. This presentation focuses on the German Tier-1 centre GridKa, located at Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, the German CMS Tier-2 federation DESY/RWTH with installations at the University of Aachen and the research centre DESY. In addition, various local computing resources in Aachen, Hamburg and Karlsruhe are briefly introduced as well. It will be shown that an excellent cooperation between the different German institutions and physicists led to well established computing sites which cover all parts of the CMS computing model. Therefore, the following topics are discussed and the achieved goals and the gained knowledge are depicted: data management and distribution among the different tier sites, Grid-based Monte Carlo production at the Tier-2 as well as Grid-based and locally submitted inhomogeneous user analyses at the Tier-3s. Another important task is to ensure a proper and reliable operation 24 hours a day, especially during the time of data-taking. For this purpose, the meta-monitoring tool "HappyFace", which was developed at the University of Karlsruhe, is used in order to allow even non-expert shift crews to monitor and operate a centre continuously and to contact on-call experts, if needed.

Reproductive behaviour of migrant women in Germany: Data, patterns and determinants

This paper examines the fertility of female migrants in Germany. After introducing major hypotheses on migrant fertility we give an overview on German datasets that are available for migrant fertility research. Finally, descriptive and multivariate analyses based on the “Sample Survey of Selected Migrant Groups in Germany (RAM)” are presented. Migrant fertility in Germany differs according to the country of origin: among major migrant groups analysed, Turkish women show the highest and Polish women the lowest fertility level. Multivariate analysis shows that the existence of children born in the country of origin has a strong increasing effect on migrant fertility. Besides, migrant women with German partners have a lower fertility than women with non-German partners. Furthermore, the fertility of Muslim women is elevated when compared with other religious groups. In contrast, emotional ties with the country of origin and the level of native and German language skills show no influence on migrants’ fertility.

Stereotypes of Social Groups in Germany in Terms of Warmth and Competence

The stereotype content model says that warmth and competence are fundamental dimensions of social judgment. This brief report analyzes the cultural stereotypes of relevant social groups in a German student sample (N = 82). In support of the model, stereotypes of 29 societal groups led to five stable clusters of differing warmth and competence evaluations. As expected, clusters cover all four possible combinations of warmth and competence. The study also reports unique findings for the German context, for example, similarities between the perceptions of Turks and other foreigners. Moreover, it points to different stereotypes of lesbians and gay men.

The determinants of opting for the German group taxation regime with regard to taxes on corporate profits

Forming a tax group for corporate and trade tax purposes in Germany has its advantages in terms of tax savings for the companies concerned. Depending on the profit situation, for certain companies these benefits were extended by the 2001 German corporate tax reform. However, setting up a tax group in Germany is also accompanied by certain disadvantages for the consolidated companies, resulting especially from the assumption of increased liability for subsidiaries’ losses. The objective of this study is to investigate the factors determining the decision in favour of, or against, the formation of a tax group. A natural experiment arising from the 2001 German corporate tax reform allowed us to determine to what extent companies exploited the increased potential benefits of a tax group post reform. We test this finding employing firm-level data from the database AMADEUS. Our results show that the number of tax groups increased significantly with the introduction of the exemption method as from 01.01.2001. This result is especially apparent amongst companies benefiting from a tax group only post reform. Yet eligible companies which would have obtained tax benefits by entering into a tax group did not always choose this option. This applies in particular to parent companies with subsidiaries that are not wholly owned, and to small subsidiaries.

O11. Per case payment in in-patient ENT oncology – Six years experience with diagnosis-related groups in Germany

O11. Per case payment in in-patient ENT oncology – Six years experience with diagnosis-related groups in Germany

Antiprotonic Helium Atoms

At CERN's antiproton decelerator (AD), the ASACUSA (atomic spectroscopy and collisions using slow antiprotons) collaboration, a Japan–Austria–Hungary–Italy–Denmark–Germany group led by the author, has been working on the precision laser spectroscopy of antiprotonic helium atoms since 2000 [1]. By comparing the measured laser transition frequencies with three-body quantum electrodynamics (QED) calculations [2–4], we have determined the antiproton-to-electron mass ratio m p /me to the level of 2 × 10−9 [5]. Together with the atomic transition frequencies in hydrogen and deuterium, our results (assuming CPT symmetry, i.e., the equality of particle-antiparticle masses) yield information on the Rydberg constant, the proton and deuteron charge radii, and the relative atomic mass of the electron, in the CODATA recommended values of the fundamental physical constants 2006 [6].

RFID Adoption Issues: Analysis of Organizational Benefits and Risks

What makes companies such as Wal-Mart in the U.S., Metro Group in Germany and Tesco in the United Kingdom, so willing to adopt RFID technology? More precisely, what are those factors that matter most and least to firms when considering an investment in RFID? And how does the importance of such factors vary between adopters and non-adopters? The answers to these questions are important because they indicate where future development effort should be directed to increase the rate of RFID adoption. To begin, we conducted a large survey of 133 RFID Journal readers. The industries represented in the sample include: wholesale trade, retail trade, transportation and communications, business services, communication services, manufacturing, finance and insurance, mining, government administration and defense. Firm size was well distributed, with 39% of the sample from small sized firms (less than 20 employees), 21% from medium sized firms (20 to 200 employees) and 40% from large firms (more than 200 employees). The methodology used to conduct this study allowed us to calculate the relative importance of 21 attributes that influence the decision to invest in RFID. The results indicate that those factors that matter “most” during the RFID investment decision are: (1) the benefits that RFID offers in terms of improved data quality, reliability and timeliness, (2) the amount of top management commitment by senior managers to provide resources that will support investment in RFID, and (3) improved alignment of information between suppliers and customers. One of the most interesting aspects of the study is that it shows quite clearly which attributes respondents are willing to abandon first. In other words, the factors that matter “least” to the RFID investment decision are: (1) privacy threats, (2) security threats and (3) standards ambiguity. Finally, the results reveal important differences between RFID adopters and non adopters. In the case of adopters, the perceived opportunity to derive strategic benefits from RFID through improved decision making is critical. Not surprisingly, the non adopting firms are primarily concerned with the high acquisition and other costs associated with RFID technology.

Einsatz und Bewertung einer Entscheidungshilfe für Patientinnen mit Brustkrebs im T1-Stadium

Fragestellung: Zur Unterstützung von Therapieentscheidungen werden international zunehmend medizinische Entscheidungshilfen (sog. decision aids) eingesetzt. Damit soll die aktive Teilnahme von Patienten am Entscheidungsprozess gestärkt werden. In Deutschland ist der Einsatz von Entscheidungshilfen wenig verbreitet. Eine neu entwickelte Entscheidungshilfe für Frauen mit T1-Tumoren der Brust enthält ausführliche Informationen sowohl zur brusterhaltenden Therapie als auch zur Brustentfernung, um der Patientin bei der Entscheidung für eine der Therapieoptionen zu helfen. Wir untersuchten, wie Patientinnen und Ärzte[*] die Entscheidungshilfe und ihre Einsatzmöglichkeiten bewerten. Material und Methodik: Die Entscheidungshilfe wurde niedergelassenen Frauenärzten sowie Ärzten und Patientinnen mit neu aufgetretenen T1-Tumoren in gynäkologischen Abteilungen und Mitgliedern einer Selbsthilfegruppe vorgelegt. In einer Querschnittsuntersuchung wurden Bewertungen der Entscheidungshilfe und die Möglichkeit der Implementierung im klinischen Alltag ermittelt. Die erhobenen Daten wurden deskriptiv analysiert. Ergebnisse: Im vorgegebenen Studienzeitraum nahmen 18 Patientinnen aus 5 Brustzentren und 42 Mitglieder der Selbsthilfegruppe, 11 Ärzte und Psychoonkologen aus den Kliniken sowie 150 niedergelassene Frauenärzte teil. Der Einsatz einer Entscheidungshilfe wurde von den Teilnehmern aus allen Gruppen positiv bewertet. Sowohl Ärzte in Brustzentren als auch niedergelassene Fachärzte können die Entscheidungshilfe im klinischen Alltag einsetzen. Als geeigneter Zeitraum für die Übergabe an die Patientin wurden zumeist 4–14 Tage nach endgültiger Diagnose und vor Abschluss der Therapieplanung angegeben. Bei den Niedergelassenen wurde als Übergabezeitpunkt das Zweitgespräch nach Diagnose favorisiert. Schlussfolgerungen: Die untersuchte Entscheidungshilfe wird positiv bewertet. Strukturierte Nutzungsanleitungen sind vermutlich hilfreich, um einen regelmäßigen Einsatz von Entscheidungshilfen im klinischen Setting zu gewährleisten. Eine Übersetzung der Broschüre in Sprachen der großen Migrantengruppen in Deutschland ist empfehlenswert.

Planung und Steuerung der Pflegeversorgung auch für Migranten und Migrantinnen? – Eine Analyse der Pflege- und Gesundheitsberichterstattung in der ambulanten und stationären Altenpflege

Elderly migrants are a rapidly growing group in Germany. Well-grounded health and nursing care reports which deal with the situation of migrants are therefore necessary to secure an appropriate local and national planning of care for elderly migrants. Also quality control and development need substantiated data in order to ensure proper nursing care services for this segment of the population. This contribution explores whether and to what extent data sources provide information about access, quality and use of care services by migrants. The result: the major data sources for regional and national care planning and quality control render no specific information about migrants. This is problematic since several studies indicate severe deficits in nursing care services for this group.

General William E. DePuy: Preparing the Army for Modern War (review)

Reviewed by: General William E. DePuy: Preparing the Army for Modern War Peter Maslowski General William E. DePuy: Preparing the Army for Modern War. By Henry G. Gole. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8131-2500-8. Maps. Illustrations. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Pp. xviii, 364. $35.00. William E. DePuy hardly ranks among the nation's best-known generals and yet, according to Gole's biography, he ultimately had more influence on the Army than did many better-known soldiers. A 1941 ROTC graduate, DePuy's long and varied career began in Europe during World War II, where he commanded a battalion in the 90th Division and then became the division G-3; as with so many officers of his generation, the "lessons" he learned during that war informed his thinking for more than thirty years. After a stint with the CIA during the Korean War (his activities remain classified), he commanded a battalion and then a Battle Group in Germany; spent three years in the Office of the Army Chief of Staff; became Director of Special Warfare; and served as Director of Plans and Programs on the Army Staff. During the Vietnam War he was one of General William C. Westmoreland's confidants, first as MACV's operations officer and then as commander of the 1st Infantry Division. Upon returning to the U.S. in 1967 DePuy served as the Special Assistant for Counterinsurgency and Special Activities before becoming the Army's Assistant Vice Chief of Staff (AVICE), a controversial position created in 1967 and abolished seven years later. As the AVICE, DePuy helped to orchestrate a reorganization that abolished the cumbersome Continental Army Command and replaced it with two new organizations, Forces Command (FORSCOM) and Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC). The capstone of DePuy's career came as TRADOC's first commander, when he did much to "re-professionalize" the Army and catapult it out of its post-Vietnam doldrums. By the time he retired in 1977, "A revolution in training was under way; combat developments had been rationalized; a doctrine was in place; the creative energy of the Army was being tapped" (p. 266). This revitalized Army quickly won the First Gulf War, which Gole alleges was especially satisfying because "Americans prefer their wars to be short, decisive, and—of course—victorious" (p. 294). Evidently this differentiates Americans from those benighted "Others" who prefer their wars to be long, indecisive, and—of course—defeats. DePuy was a contentious figure, beloved by some but despised and feared by others. His acolytes--Gole often quotes them to excess--considered him energetic, intelligent, and decisive, a preeminent soldier-scholar who was both a fighting general and a dedicated teacher and mentor. Detractors reviled him as abrasive, ruthless, and arrogant, a bullying bantam rooster (DePuy was a very small man). Although the author does not hide the general's flaws, he perhaps over-extols the general's virtues while understating his less than appealing traits. [End Page 689] An important key in writing a biography is to provide context by setting an individual's life within a broader historical framework. In some places Gole does this quite well; the World War II chapters are especially fine in this regard, as is the chapter about the AVICE post, which reveals a great deal about the contemporary strains in civil-military relations and the Army's vicious in-fighting. But in other chapters, such as those covering Vietnam, this book misses opportunities to probe more profoundly into the subject. As just one example, based on his World War II experience DePuy always believed that "Killing comes from heavy firepower" (p. 47). Although Gole writes as if DePuy's adulation of firepower was unique, almost every officer who learned his craft during World War II worshipped the Goddess Firepower. Why did so few professionals understand that each war is unique, that what worked in World War II or Korea might not be equally useful in Vietnam? Gole writes, apparently without noticing the contradiction, that when DePuy's command of the 1st Division ended he had dominated the battlefield with mobility and firepower—and yet "the enemy continued to decide when to...

Prevalence of erythromycin and clindamycin resistance among clinical isolates of the Streptococcus anginosus group in Germany

Members of the Streptococcus anginosus group (SAG) are frequently involved in pyogenic infections in humans. In the present study, the antimicrobial susceptibility of 141 clinical SAG isolates to six antimicrobial agents was analysed by agar dilution. All isolates were susceptible to penicillin, cefotaxime and vancomycin. However, 12.8 % displayed increased MIC values (0.12 mg l(-1)) for penicillin. Resistance to erythromycin was detected in eight (5.7 %) isolates. Characterization of the erythromycin-resistant isolates with the double-disc diffusion test revealed Macrolide-Lincosamide-Streptogramin(B) and M-type resistance in six and two isolates, respectively. The erythromycin-resistant isolates were further characterized by PCR for the resistance genes ermA, ermB and mefA. Resistance and intermediate resistance to ciprofloxacin were detected in two and six isolates, respectively. Molecular typing by PFGE revealed a high genetic heterogeneity among the SAG isolates and no evidence for a clonal relationship between the erythromycin-resistant isolates. Our data show that resistance to erythromycin, clindamycin and ciprofloxacin has emerged among SAG isolates in Germany. The implications of these findings for susceptibility testing and antimicrobial therapy of SAG infections are discussed.

The German Breast Group – Healing Through Innovation, Competence and Partnership

The German Breast Group (GBG) is the leading breast cancer study group in Germany, conducting clinical trials in the adjuvant, neoadjuvant, preventative and palliative settings. One focus of the GBG is neoadjuvant studies, which have a long and successful history in Germany. The aim of neoadjuvant studies is to improve operability and to gain more information about the tumour itself in terms of the chemotherapy (invivo) as well as regarding the biology in general. However, preventative, palliative and adjuvant studies are also important components of the GBG. This article is an overview of the structure and working practice of the GBG and gives a sample of trials currently being led by the GBG.

The Immigrant Wage Gap in Germany

Immigrants consist of foreigners and citizens with migration background. We analyze the wage gap between natives and these two groups in Germany. The estimates show a substantial gap for both groups with respect to natives. Discarding immigrants who completed education abroad reduces much of the immigrants' wage gap. This implies educational attainment in Germany is an important component of economic integration and degrees obtained abroad are valued less.