Research In Austria Research Articles

Digitizing Patterns of Power – Cartographic Communication for Digital Humanities

Abstract. The representation of space in medieval texts, the appropriation of land and the subsequent installation of new structures of power are central research topics of the project “Digitizing Patterns of Power” (DPP). The project focuses on three regional case studies: the Eastern Alps and the Morava-Thaya region, the historical region of Macedonia, and historical Southern Armenia. DPP is a multidisciplinary project, conducted by the Austrian Academy of Sciences the Institute for Medieval Research (IMAFO) in cooperation with the University of Vienna, Department of Geography and Regional Research. It is part of an initiative to promote digital humanities research in Austria. DPP brings together expertise from historical and archaeological research as well as cartography and geocommunication to explore medieval geographies. The communication of space, time and spatial interconnectivity is an essential aspect of DPP. By incorporating digital cartographic expertise, relevant facts can be depicted in a more effective visual form. Optimal cartographic visualization of base data as well as the historical and archaeological information in an interactive map-based online platform are important features. However, the multidisciplinary of the project presents the participants with various challenges. The different involved disciplines, among them cartography, archaeology and history each have their own approaches to relevant aspects of geography and geocommunication. This paper treats geocommunication characteristics and approaches to interactive mapping in a historical and archaeological context within a multidisciplinary project environment. The fundamental challenges of cartographic communication within DPP will be presented. Furthermore, recent results on the communication of historical topographic, as well as uncertain thematic content will be demonstrated.

A Strategy of Containment: Heinrich Drimmel’s Political Activism in the Realm of Higher Education Policy in the Early Second Republic

For over nine years, Heinrich Drimmel served as minister for education, becoming one of the most influential conservative politicians of the early Second Republic during his tenure. While the minister was responsible for many policy fields, higher education was particularly close to Drimmel’s heart. Yet today his reign is mostly interpreted as a period of continued provincialization and missed opportunities. That does not imply that Drimmel was a hapless politician – quite the contrary. This article investigates Drimmel’s biography, his political agenda, and his ideological background of political Catholicism, all of which are rooted in the authoritarian regime of the Standestaat. The analysis establishes that Drimmel’s aim was to preserve conservative hegemony at Austrian universities, and he had the means to realize it through a strategy of containing modernity of thought. Drimmel’s “success” had long-lasting effects on the tertiary sector and scientific research in Austria.

How Methodology Makes Topics: Ageing Immigrants as a Blind Spot in the Migration Research in Austria. A Research Note

The current research note describes a process where by applying the qualitative method of expert interviews, researchers got confronted with a new topic in their area of expertise that was not on the radar of their research. In the framework of an evaluation study on health promotion interventions for migrants in an urban setting, researchers applied a mixed methods approach. Quantitative element was a self-assessment tool, where providers of health promotion measures described their clientele and rated the quality of their services along given categories. Qualitative element was a series of semi-structured interviews with management and front line service providers. While the self-assessment tool delivered expected results, the interviews revealed an aspect concerning needs and problems of a migrant group researchers had not thought of before. This is the group of immigrants from the 1960ies, coming mainly from Turkey and Former Yugoslavia, now reaching or having reached retirement age. This group was reported as being extremely vulnerable and at risk of a double discrimination as being “old” and “migrant”.
 Desk research was conducted in reaction to such data, showing that information on this group is scarce. Given the demographic developments with rising shares of (old) aged immigrants living in Austria, it will be important to improve the respective knowledge base.

Childlessness intentions of young female researchers in Austria

According to prior studies, female researchers in Austria exhibit a very high level of childlessness and, consequentially, a low mean number of children. Following up on these studies, we analyse childlessness intentions of young female researchers and compare them to those of other highly educated women in other occupations. We examine factors that are related to female researchers’ intent to stay childless. The analysis is based on a survey of 196 female researchers between the ages of 25 and 45 (with the majority being between age 25 and 34). Results indicate that few young, childless researchers plan a life without children: Only 7% intend to stay childless and most of them want to have two children (66%). Their intentions are strikingly close to those of their highly educated peers in other occupations. We discuss three factors that play a role for childlessness intentions of female researchers: work-related conditions (employment uncertainty and work-family reconciliation), personal career orientation, and partnership context.
 Zusammenfassung 
 Bisherige Studien haben nachgewiesen, dass Wissenschaftlerinnen in Österreich sehr häufig kinderlos bleiben und dass daher ihre mittlere Kinderzahl sehr niedrig liegt. Ausgehend von diesen Studien untersuchen wir intendierte Kinderlosigkeit unter jungen Wissenschaftlerinnen im Vergleich zu ebenfalls höher gebildeten Frauen in anderen Berufen. Des Weiteren analysieren wir Faktoren, die mit gewünschter Kinderlosigkeit von Wissenschaftlerinnen in Zusammenhang stehen. Die Studie basiert auf einer Befragung von 196 Wissenschaftlerinnen im Alter von 25 bis 45 Jahren (die Mehrheit ist 25 bis 34 Jahre alt). Die Ergebnisse verweisen darauf, dass nur wenige junge, kinderlose Wissenschaftlerinnen ein Leben ohne Kinder planen: Nur 7% wollen kinderlos bleiben und die meisten wünschen sich zwei Kinder (66%). Ihre gewünschte Kinderzahl ähnelt in hohem Maß jener ihrer hoch gebildeten Vergleichsgruppe außerhalb der Wissenschaft. Wir diskutieren drei Faktoren, die wesentlich für gewünschte Kinderlosigkeit von Wissenschaftlerinnen sind: berufliche Bedingungen (prekäre Arbeitsverhältnisse, Vereinbarkeit von Familie und Beruf), persönliche Karriereorientierung und Partnerschaftssituation.

TBM research in Austria / TVM‐Forschung in Österreich

Geomechanics and TunnellingVolume 9, Issue 3 p. 170-171 EditorialFree Access TBM research in Austria / TVM-Forschung in Österreich Bernd Moritz, Bernd MoritzSearch for more papers by this author Bernd Moritz, Bernd MoritzSearch for more papers by this author First published: 15 June 2016 https://doi.org/10.1002/geot.201690019Citations: 2AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume9, Issue3June 2016Pages 170-171 RelatedInformation

Informal Assessment of Competences in the Context of Science Standards in Austria

Science standards have been a topic in educational research in Austria for about ten years now. Starting in 2005, competency structure models have been developed for junior and senior classes of different school types. After evaluating these models, prototypic tasks were created to point out the meaning of the models to teachers. At the moment, instruments for competency are developed. The term informal competency diagnosis is used to distinguish this kind of diagnosis, which is carried out by the teachers themselves, from nationwide formal competency tests. One of these instruments for is the IKM (instrument for competency measurement). It is developed for the of science competences in junior classes. This article deals with the question if the underlying construct of the IKM can be supported through empirical data. Therefore the situation of science standards in Austria is described first to illustrate the context in which the development of the IKM took place. Then, the underlying theoretical construct is introduced and detailed information about the tool is given. Later, the empirical evaluation of the theoretical construct gets depicted and discussed.

TBM research in Austria

AbstractThe Klaus Tunnel chain on the A9 motorway in Austria is an 8 km long section, which was initially built with only one lane in each direction. Since the end of 2014 work has been underway on the second tubes of the Spering and Falkenstein Tunnels, and in May 2015 the Asfinag also started work on the Klauser and Traunfried Tunnels. With the help of the ground support products supplied by DSI, all of the tunnel tubes were excavated safely and within the planned schedule (see report on page 276–278).Die Tunnelkette Klaus im Verlauf der österreichischen Pyhrn‐Autobahn A 9 ist ein 8 km langer Abschnitt, der zunächst mit nur einem Fahrstreifen pro Richtung erstellt wurde. Seit Ende 2014 laufen die Arbeiten für die zweiten Röhren von Spering‐ und Falkensteintunnel, im Mai 2015 hat die Asfinag auch Klauser‐ und Traunfriedtunnel in Angriff genommen. Mithilfe der von DSI gelieferten Stützsysteme konnten alle Tunnelröhren sicher und innerhalb des geplanten Zeitrahmens aufgefahren werden (siehe Bericht auf Seite 276–278).

Surge Tank Research in Austria and Norway

Surge Tank Research in Austria and Norway

Special issue: Shining a light on future broadband satellite systems: optical and quantum space communications systems and technologies

Optical space communications have moved from the Research & Development (R&D) stage and are now ready to be applied in commercial satellite communication systems, bringing with them significant advantages such as much higher data rates, low probability of intercept, no restriction for frequency use, lower payload volume and mass, and less power consumption requirements. The European Space Agency has demonstrated laser communications from an airborne platform to ground stations, further establishing that high-throughput laser communications are feasible and ready for commercial service, and the European Data Relay System is relying on optical inter satellite links for its commercial data relay service. The US fundedTransformational Satellite Communications System program, developed and partially validated highly successful inter-satellite laser optical links, proving the efficacy and efficiency of laser communications. In Japan, there is a lot of activity on optical communications by satellite, and China has declared an intention to develop a quantum satellite. Researchers in Austria and Spain are working on applications of quantum communications, and the UK has recently announced an investment to convert quantum-physics research into commercial products. A new generation of proposed satellite constellations has intent to develop a service addressing the high bandwidth data and next-generation service needs of carriers, enterprises, and government agencies around the world, based entirely on optical wave technology. We would like to invite papers addressing these and other related topics:

State of the Art Research In Austria: Dexhelpp - Decision Support For Health Policy and Planning: Methods, Models and Technologies Based On Existing Health Care Data

State of the Art Research In Austria: Dexhelpp - Decision Support For Health Policy and Planning: Methods, Models and Technologies Based On Existing Health Care Data

Doctors’ problem drinking has been overestimated, researchers say

Levels of problem drinking among doctors have been overestimated and are lower than those in the general population, researchers have argued. Previous studies have shown a high prevalence of problematic drinking among doctors. But researchers in Austria found that using real world data to correct for the sensitivity and specificity …

Johann Gottfried Bremser (1767-1827) as a protagonist of the cowpox vaccine

Vienna was the first city on the European continent where the cowpox vaccination was applied in 1799, shortly after Jenner's (1798) publication of his encouraging results in England. Nevertheless, substantial denial and distrust was evident among doctors and patients in Europe as well, particularly in Austria. The medical doctor Johann Gottfried Bremser remains well known even today among parasitologists as a pioneer of helminthological research in Austria. He founded, in Vienna, one of the richest parasitic worm collections worldwide and published perceptive papers about helminthology. But his role as a protagonist of the cowpox vaccine has been buried in oblivion. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Bremser worked as a medical doctor in Vienna and was influenced by the major proponents of the vaccine in Austria, Pascal Joseph Ferro, Jean de Carro, Johann Peter Frank and others. Beyond his practical contribution as vaccinator, he excelled as a propagandist, mainly through his publications on cow pox vaccination. Bremser used his expert knowledge and sophisticated argumentation to prompt people to accept the prophylactic treatment, especially for their children. He argued for an obligatory cowpox vaccination for all. On one hand, his argumentation summarizes the contrarian opinions of that time, on the other hand the discussion shows striking analogies with the controversies of today. In a way, Bremser's commitment was a forerunner for future health policies that led to vaccination laws and ultimately to the eradication of smallpox worldwide in the second half of the 20th century.

Research Overview of German Speaking Countries

Abstract: This paper provides a first overview on music therapy research in Austria, Germany and Switzerland as given by the heads of the different universities in December 2012. For material collection three questions were sent to all university training course leaders. They were asked about a list of all research projects in the resp. university including MA and PhD thesis – to summarize past and ongoing research projects – to name ongoing and future research projects in cooperation with other institutions, universities or clinics.

Random Sample

Researchers in Austria have turned the eye of science on what makes a dahlia black, concluding that the black color comes from high levels of anthocyanins, the pigments that—at lower levels—also give orange and red dahlias their colors. In other news, a message to aliens that an MIT graduate student transcribed onto a metal disk last spring could outlast Earth itself. And this week's numbers quantify the drop in HIV infections since 2001 and the amount being committed to create a new drug research facility in Canada.

How Knowledge Shapes Collective Action: Professionalism, Market Closure and Bureaucracy in the Fields of University and Non-university Research

Knowledge workers are often considered to prefer an individual rather than a collective articulation of their interests. This phenomenon is primarily explained by their individualistic orientation and power derived from possessing scarce knowledge. However, highly skilled work is a very heterogeneous field. In order to understand the diverse experiences of highly skilled employees and their attitudes towards collective action, this article proposes a model based on the juxtaposition of professional and knowledge work that entails three distinct logics of control over knowledge: professionalism, market closure and bureaucracy. The forms of collective action (i.e. intra-group solidarity, inter-group solidarity, no solidarity) are predicted to vary contingent on the prevailing position within a field. The model is illustrated by the example of university and non-university research in Austria. Professional self-control of scientific knowledge has been partly replaced by bureaucratic control of top management. This, in turn, mitigates power derived from professional knowledge. Unlike trade unions, collective action based on inter-group solidarity has been found to become more attractive. In non-university research organizations, the prevailing market logic entails employees using expertise or innovation to close a market and, hence, to refrain from acting collectively.

PMMB and APA in harmony.

The present issue of Psychomusicology: Music, Mind, & Brain (PMMB) is special in several ways. It is the first produced by its new publisher, the American Psychological Association. This longstanding prestigious publisher assures wide dissemination through PsycINFO and PsycARTICLES, and it also assures both timeliness and highest publication standards through its professional management staff. The previous two volumes of PMMB (20 and 21) under my editorship inaugurated many changes in format (as detailed in Cohen, 2009) and the new subtitle Music, Mind, & Brain. Both volumes were double issues on special topics: The History of Music Psychology in Autobiography (with coeditor Amy Graziano) and Singing and Psychomusicology (with coeditor Sandra Trehub), respectively. The present issue (Vol. 22, No. 1) continues with the new format but represents a wide range of topics including absolute pitch, reading music and text syntax, melodic parsing, musical spatial concepts as understood by persons who are blind, and time estimation. Also included is a report on the Music and Neuroscience IV conference held in 2011 in Edinburgh, Scotland, reflecting the journal's strong interest in providing an outlet for research in music and neuroscience (as implicated by the journal's new subtitle). Consistent with this thrust, the next issue (Vol. 22, No. 2) will be a special issue on music and neuroscience guest edited by Lauren Stewart.Since the beginning of my editorship, PMMB has been blessed with an active trio of associate editors: Lauren Stewart (Goldsmiths, University of London), W. Jay Dowling (University of Texas at Dallas), and Bruno Repp (Haskins Laboratories, New Haven, Connecticut). Regretfully, Bruno Repp has retired from Haskins Laboratories and is now also retiring from the editorial board. PMMB will miss his creative ideas, high editorial standards, embrace of the value of translating key works unavailable in English, and in addition service as book review editor. The current issue, with reviews of six recent books, attests to this dedication. PMMB welcomes as new associate editor Renee Timmers (Department of Music, University of Sheffield, England), who has conducted research in Austria, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States, in addition to the Netherlands, her homeland. The associate editors and I thank the strong international board of consulting editors who represent all subspecialties in this field and serve as reviewers, guest action editors, and advisors: Mayumi Adachi, Eckhart Altenmuller, Christine Beckett, Emmanuel Bigand, Lola Cuddy, Lyle Davidson, Diana Deutsch, Zohar Eitan, Alf Gabrielsson, John M. Geringer, Amy Graziano, Pamela Heaton, Peter Keller, Bjorn Merker, Frank Russo, Gottfried Schlaug, William (Bill) Forde Thompson, Barbara Tillmann, Laurel Trainor, Peter Vuust, and Robert J. Zatorre. Among them they represent 10 countries (Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Israel, Japan, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States).PMMB encourages the submission of manuscripts in all areas of psychomusicology: music, mind, and brain; and we pride ourselves on fair and constructive reviews. …

Oesterreicher im Burenkrieg 1899-1902;

Not only in South Africa and Great Britain there is an increased interest for the second Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902, but also in other countries for whom this war was far away and of limited importance. It is a matter apart to explain the remarkable interest in this colonial war fought long ago. Recently in Vienna the fifth Austrian doctoral thesis regarding this war since World War II has appeared. It is the work of Erwin A. Schmidl, a very thorough thesis, based on archival research in Austria, Britain and South Africa, visits to family of veterans in Austria and a tour of the museums and war memorials in South Africa.

Awareness and knowledge of child abuse amongst physicians – a descriptive study by a sample of rural Austria

This study with a selected sample of physicians was conducted to assess their awareness and knowledge of child abuse. Two thirds (66.7%) of all participants confirmed contact with obviously abused children in the course of their professional life, whereas 87.3% did not report any prior education or training in that field. In relation to general practitioners, pediatricians had significantly more contacts with abused children (p = 0.021) and more prior education (p = 0.012). Results indicate that physicians in rural regions of Austria possess basic knowledge. Better training and further specialization is needed to facilitate diagnosing, enhance reporting, strengthen cooperation with experts and reduce fears when handling abuse victims. Austria is a rich country with excellent health care and competitive research structures. However, child abuse research in Austria still has to fill gaps in order to keep up with international developments.

Wie kann der Impact von Health Technology Assessment (HTA) im österreichischen Gesundheitssystem ermittelt werden? Die Entwicklung eines Analyseinstruments

In Austria research in Health Technology Assessment (HTA) has been conducted since the 1990s. Research in HTA aims at supporting an adequate and efficient use of health care resources in order to sustain a publicly financed and solidary health care system. Ultimately, HTA research should result in better health of the population. Research results should provide independent information for decision makers. For legitimizing further research resources and for prioritizing future HTA research and guaranteeing the value of future research, HTA research needs itself to undergo evaluation. Aim of the study is to design a conceptual framework for evaluating the impact of HTA research in Austria on the basis of the existing literature. An already existing review which presents methods and concepts how to evaluate HTA-impact was updated by a systematic research including literature of the years 2004-January 2010. Results were analysed in regard to 4 categories: definition of the term impact, target groups and system levels, operationalisation of indicators and evaluation methods. Overall, 19 publications were included. Referring to the 4 categories, an explanation of impact has to take into account HTAs multidisciplinary setting and needs a context related definition. Target groups, system levels, indicators and methods depend on the impact defined. Studies investigated direct and indirect impact and were focused on different target groups like physicians, nurses and decision makers on the micro-, and meso level, as well as politicians and reimbursement institutions on the macro level. Except for one reference all studies applied already known and mostly qualitative methods for measuring the impact of HTA research. Thus, an appropriate pool of instruments seems to be available. There is a lack of information about validity of applied methods and indicators. By adapting adequate methods and concepts a conceptual framework for the Austrian HTA-Impact evaluation has been designed. The paper presents an overview of existing methods for the evaluation of the HTA research. This has been used to identify useful approaches for measuring the HTA-impact in Austria. By providing a context sensitive framework for impact evaluation in Austria the Austrian HTA-research contributes to the international trend of impact-evaluation.

Cardiovascular effects of environmental noise: Research in Austria

Cardiovascular effects of noise rank second in terms of disability-adjusted life year (DALYs) after annoyance. Although research during the past decade has consolidated the available data base, the most recent meta-analysis still shows wide confidence intervals - indicating imprecise information for public health risk assessment. The alpine area of Tyrol in the Austrian part of the Alps has experienced a massive increase in car and heavy goods traffic (road and rail) during the last 35 years. Over the past 25 years small-, middle-, and large-sized epidemiological health surveys have been conducted - mostly within the framework of environmental health impact assessments. By design, these studies have emphasized a contextually driven environmental stress perspective, where the adverse health effects on account of noise are studied in a broader framework of environmental health, susceptibility, and coping. Furthermore, innovative exposure assessment strategies have been implemented. This article reviews the existing knowledge from these studies over time, and presents the exposure-response curves, with and without interaction assessment, based on standardized re-analyses and discusses it in the light of past and current cardiovascular noise effects research. The findings support relevant moderation by age, gender, and family history in nearly all studies and suggest a strong need for consideration of non-linearity in the exposure-response analyses. On the other hand, air pollution has not played a relevant role as a moderator in the noise-hypertension or the noise-angina pectoris relationship. Finally, different noise modeling procedures can introduce variations in the exposure response curves, with substantive consequences for public health risk assessment of noise exposure.