State North Rhine-Westphalia Research Articles

The hierarchy of multiple stressors’ effects on benthic invertebrates: a case study from the rivers Erft and Niers, Germany

BackgroundA variety of anthropogenic stressors influences the ecological status of rivers wordwide. Important stressors include elevated concentrations of nutrients, salt ions, heavy metals and other pollutants, habitat degradation and flow alteration. Some stressors tend to remain underrepresented in multiple-stressor studies, which in particular is apparent for micropollutants (e.g. pesticides, pharmaceuticals) and alterations of the flow regime. This case study analysed and compared the effects of 19 different stressor variables on benthic macroinvertebrates in the two German rivers Erft and Niers (Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). The stressors variables were assigned to four stressor groups (physico-chemical stress, mixture toxicity of 42 micropollutants, hydrological alteration and morphological degradation) and were put into a hierarchical context according to their relative impact on the macroinvertebrate community using redundancy analysis and subsequent variance partitioning.ResultsThe results suggest a strong and unique effect of physico-chemical stress, yet at the same time reveal also a strong joint effect of physico-chemical and hydrological stressor variables. Morphological degradation showed subordinate effects. Notably, only a minor share of the explained variance was attributed to the mixture toxicity of micropollutants in these specific catchments.ConclusionsThe stressor hierarchy indicates that management measures for improving the ecological status still need to address water quality issues in both rivers. The strong joint effect of physico-chemical stress and hydrological alteration might imply a common source of both stressor groups in these two catchment areas: lignite mining drainage, urban area and effluents of wastewater treatment plants. The findings point at the important role of alterations in the flow regime, which often remain unconsidered in hydro-morphological surveys.

Frequency and correlates of driving status among the oldest old: results from a large, representative sample

Background/aimsIn the light of the restricted knowledge, our aim was to explore the frequency and correlates of driving status among the oldest old.MethodsData came from the representative "Survey on quality of life and subjective well-being of the very old in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW80 +)” consisting of community-dwelling and institutionalized individuals ≥ 80 years residing in the most populous German state (North Rhine-Westphalia; n = 1,832 in the analytical sample, mean age: 86.5 years). The present driving status (no; yes, I drive myself; yes, as a passenger; yes, as driver and passenger) served as outcome measure.ResultsOverall, 43.62% (95% CI 40.98–46.29%) of the individuals did not drive, whereas 30.12% (95% CI 27.75–32.59%) of the individuals drove by themselves, 20.97% (95% CI 18.91–23.20%) of the individuals drove as a passenger, and 5.29% of the individuals drove both (by themselves and as a passenger) (95% CI 4.16–6.71%). Multinomial logistic regressions showed, e.g., that being male (RRR: 0.13, 95% CI 0.09–0.18), younger age (RRR: 0.88, 95% CI 0.84–0.91), being married and living together with spouse (RRR: 1.48, 95% CI 1.08–2.02), living in a private household (RRR: 0.04, 95% CI 0.01–0.35), better self-rated health (RRR: 1.26, 95% CI 1.02–1.56), and lower functional impairment (RRR: 19.82, 95% CI 12.83–30.62) were positively associated with ‘Yes, I drive myself’ (compared to not driving a car).Discussion/conclusionsA sizable proportion of the individuals aged 80 years and above still drove by themselves. Less than half of the oldest old individuals did not drive. Moreover, our current study identified some correlates of driving status among individuals in latest life.

Early Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 in German Wastewater.

Wastewater-based SARS-CoV-2 epidemiology (WBE) has been established as an important tool to support individual testing strategies. The Omicron sub-variants BA.4/BA.5 have spread globally, displacing the preceding variants. Due to the severe transmissibility and immune escape potential of BA.4/BA.5, early monitoring was required to assess and implement countermeasures in time. In this study, we monitored the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 BA.4/BA.5 at six municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW, Germany) in May and June 2022. Initially, L452R-specific primers/probes originally designed for SARS-CoV-2 Delta detection were validated using inactivated authentic viruses and evaluated for their suitability for detecting BA.4/BA.5. Subsequently, the assay was used for RT-qPCR analysis of RNA purified from wastewater obtained twice a week at six WWTPs. The occurrence of L452R carrying RNA was detected in early May 2022, and the presence of BA.4/BA.5 was confirmed by variant-specific single nucleotide polymorphism PCR (SNP-PCR) targeting E484A/F486V and NGS sequencing. Finally, the mutant fractions were quantitatively monitored by digital PCR, confirming BA.4/BA.5 as the majority variant by 5 June 2022. In conclusion, the successive workflow using RT-qPCR, variant-specific SNP-PCR, and RT-dPCR demonstrates the strength of WBE as a versatile tool to rapidly monitor variants spreading independently of individual test capacities.

Local responses to European Integration: patterns of Europe-related activities of German local governments

ABSTRACTEuropeanisation situates local governments in a constantly changing environment, bringing challenges, opportunities, and constraints. These circumstances raise the question, how local authorities adapt to the process of European integration, face its challenges, and use its diverse opportunity structures. The article explores four dimensions, through which Europeanisation hits the ground of local government: downloading, uploading, dissemination, and horizontal networking. It examines the distribution of different types of Europe-related activities at the local level using data from a survey sent to all 396 independent cities, towns, and municipalities in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Our empirical analysis provides an overview of the most and least frequent Europe-related activities within the different types of local authorities. The findings of our multivariate analysis shows that next to the direct affectedness by Europeanisation, the municipalities’ capacities in terms of financial and institutional resources have a major influence on their efforts towards Europe.

Farmers' acceptance of results-based agri-environmental schemes: A German perspective

Results-based agri-environmental schemes (AES) seek to overcome reluctance to adopt other forms of AES in the European Union. Instead of complying with inflexible land management prescriptions, farmers receive payments after certain contracted environmental results are verified. In addition to reducing the organizational and administrative burdens, this practice allows farmers to focus on which practices can achieve the desired environmental outcomes. Farmer uptake of results-based payments may be limited by risk-adverse behavior, such as fear of not meeting environmental targets and forfeiting the contracted payment. This study investigated participation in a hypothetical results-based AES among arable farmers in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the number of hectares enrolled (participation intensity). Our hypothetical scheme sought to foster biodiversity in pollinator and bird species by supporting weed-species richness in intensive arable production. Our split-treatment research design investigated how social nudging influences acceptance and intensity. Approximately 60% of the 63 farmers in our convenience sample expressed a willingness to participate in our hypothetical scheme. Using a Heckman style selection model, we could not detect any effect of the social nudge tested on the likelihood of participation or its intensity. Cognitive factors correlated positively with the likelihood of participation, whereas social and dispositional factors correlated with participation intensity. Perceived lack of control was the main obstacle found to adoption. The findings suggest that policies can mitigate barriers to acceptance by reducing the bureaucratic burden and being transparent over expected costs and ecosystem benefits. This study was the first to investigate farmers' acceptance of a hypothetical results-based AES that targets the enrichment of biodiversity in arable farming and thus may serve as a stepping stone for follow-up studies.

Explaining climate policy pathways of unlikely city pioneers: The case of the German city of Remscheid

The German mid-sized city of Remscheid, located in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, can be characterised as an unlikely climate pioneer. Remscheid is a least likely candidate for pioneering climate policies. Previous research suggests that climate pioneers are typically characterised by a growing population, favourable economic conditions, political influence of green parties, a strong civil society, and a supportive local research environment. However, none of the listed characteristics apply to Remscheid – quite to the contrary. Our paper aims at solving this research puzzle, based on an exploratory in-depth case-study of Remscheid's climate policy pathway since the early 1990s. The city performs much better than most German cities of comparable size because the lack of capacities can be compensated by strong key actors and creative policy-making. Local actors manage to attract external funding from a variety of sources and frequently participate in applied research projects on relevant topics. However, we also find that the uncertainty of planning from project to project has a negative effect on setting long-term climate goals and developing holistic visions for the future. We need more studies on rather disadvantaged cities that have nevertheless managed to become climate pioneers. Models created by unlikely pioneers such as Remscheid have to be made visible and accessible for cities that work under similar conditions.

Finding spaces for all languages. Teacher educators’ perspectives on multilingualism

In 2009, the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany enacted a law that prescribed a binding module on dealing with linguistic diversity for all future teachers in every university offering teacher training in the state. In this paper, we present an interview study with teacher educators in this so-called DaZ module and their views on multilingualism. The conceptual framework of this article is based on Niedrig’s (2002) typology of perspectives on multilingualism. The findings reveal that the educators’ perspectives on multilingualism seem to be reproductions of their own multilingual biographies and that the framing of the DaZ module tends to reinforce a monolingual mindset. At the same time, the results show multiple ways in which the interviewees still find spaces for multilingual practices within the framework of this module. This underlines the educators’ role in promoting a multilingual turn in education.

Format-Oriented Regional Development as a Strategy for Proactive Transformation in the Rhenish Mining Area

Proactive state-led transformations of post-industrial regions have a significant tradition in Germany. The federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia alone hosted the International Building Exhibition (Internationale Bauausstellung – IBA) Emscher Park regional format in the Ruhr mining region between 1989 and 1999. Since then, it has implemented a format-oriented REGIONALE programme that is still ongoing. Nevertheless, the current transformation of the Rhenish Mining Area (RMA) poses its own challenges: Not only the massive landscape transformation of the opencast mining areas but also the formulation and negotiation of corresponding development goals remain a largely untested approach to regional development. There is also the organisation and maintenance of sustainable governance structures in a plethora of sub-regional approaches, interdependencies and time perspectives. The planned launch of the International Building and Technology Exhibition (Internationale Bau- und Technologieausstellung – IBTA) in the RMA, like that of the IBA Emscher Park, is aimed at bridging these challenges and thus creating significant potential for format-oriented regional development. This article highlights essential temporal-spatial dependencies and conflicts in regional structural change as a characteristic of the RMA. Further, it discusses the advantages and limitations of format-oriented regional development carried out by the IBTA as a means of synchronisation of timely and spatially disconnected intraregional developments.

Seamless Navigation, 3D Reconstruction, Thermographic and Semantic Mapping for Building Inspection.

We present a workflow for seamless real-time navigation and 3D thermal mapping in combined indoor and outdoor environments in a global reference frame. The automated workflow and partly real-time capabilities are of special interest for inspection tasks and also for other time-critical applications. We use a hand-held integrated positioning system (IPS), which is a real-time capable visual-aided inertial navigation technology, and augment it with an additional passive thermal infrared camera and global referencing capabilities. The global reference is realized through surveyed optical markers (AprilTags). Due to the sensor data’s fusion of the stereo camera and the thermal images, the resulting georeferenced 3D point cloud is enriched with thermal intensity values. A challenging calibration approach is used to geometrically calibrate and pixel-co-register the trifocal camera system. By fusing the terrestrial dataset with additional geographic information from an unmanned aerial vehicle, we gain a complete building hull point cloud and automatically reconstruct a semantic 3D model. A single-family house with surroundings in the village of Morschenich near the city of Jülich (German federal state North Rhine-Westphalia) was used as a test site to demonstrate our workflow. The presented work is a step towards automated building information modeling.

As monkeypox goes sexual: a public health perspective.

As monkeypox goes sexual: a public health perspective.

The Process of Leaving the Church Revisited. A Replication of Ebertz’ Study on Types of Church Leavers

Abstract In a qualitative study in 2012, Michael Ebertz and colleagues constructed characteristic types of processes of leaving the Roman Catholic Church in the Freiburg area of southern Germany. This article aims to replicate and supplement Ebertz’ findings through the analysis of problem-centered interviews of former Roman-Catholics in the north-western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. With one exception, the types of processes could be replicated, and four additional types were added. The results show that processes of leaving the church are diverse and in many cases result from a long and complex process.

Comparison of CNN-based segmentation models for forest type classification

Abstract. We present the results from evaluating various Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) models to compare their usefulness for forest type classification. Machine Learning based on CNNs is known to be suitable to identify relevant patterns in remote sensing imagery. With the availability of free data sets (e.g. the Copernicus Sentinel-2 data), Machine Learning can be utilized for forest monitoring, which provides useful and timely information helping to measure and counteract the effects of climate change. To this end, we performed a case study with publicly available data from the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. We created an automated pipeline to preprocess and filter this data and trained the CNN models UNet, PSPNet, SegNet, and FCN-8. Since the data contained large rural areas, we augmented the imagery to improve classification results. We reapplied the trained models to the data, compared the results for each model, and evaluated the effect of augmentation. Our results show that UNet performs best with a categorical accuracy of 73% when trained with augmented imagery.

1412-P: Preexisting Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Attenuates Improvement of Adipose Tissue OXPHOS Capacity after Weight-Loss Surgery

Impaired adipose tissue (AT) function closely associates with obesity, type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) . Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) capacity of AT improves after weight loss surgery. However, it is not clear if the improvement is affected by the presence of NAFLD before surgery. We examined 52 severely obese people exhibiting no histological liver disease (OBE_CON) , simple steatosis (OBE_NAFL) or steatohepatitis (OBE_NASH) before (0 weeks) , 12 and 52 weeks after bariatric surgery. Whole-body insulin sensitivity was measured by hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamps. OXPHOS capacity of subcutaneous AT was assessed by high-resolution respirometry. Transcript levels of TNFα in AT were quantified by RT-PCR. Before surgery, OBE_NASH presented with lower insulin sensitivity and higher HbA1c compared to OBE_CON and OBE_NAFL (all p<0.05) whereas OXPHOS capacity in AT was comparable between the groups. Maximum coupled respiration declined at week 12 by 17% from week 0 in OBE_CON only (p<0.05) . From 12 to 52 weeks, AT maximum coupled respiration markedly increased by 82 and 49% in OBE_CON and OBE_NAFL (both p<0.001) but only by 28% in OBE_NASH (p=0.05; maximum coupled OXPHOS at week 52: OBE_CON vs. OBE_NASH p<0.05) . The changes in AT maximum coupled respiration from 12 to 52 weeks correlated negatively with changes in AT TNFα levels in OBE_CON (β=-0.83, p<0.001) and negatively with changes in systemic C-reactive protein levels in OBE_NASH (β=-0.34, p<0.05) . Maximal noncoupled OXPHOS yielded similar changes and correlations. In conclusion, in severe obesity, weight loss-related improvements in AT OXPHOS capacity may be mediated to a great extent by reduced AT inflammation in people without liver disease; however, with pre-surgery manifestation of NASH and worsening of metabolic control, residual systemic subclinical inflammation may attenuate the improvement of AT OXPHOS capacity after bariatric surgery. Disclosure S.Kahl: None. G.Heilmann: None. I.Esposito: None. M.Schlensak: None. M.Roden: Advisory Panel; Eli Lilly and Company, Research Support; Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, Nutricia, Speaker's Bureau; Novo Nordisk. K.Strassburger: None. S.Gancheva: None. N.Saatmann: None. C.Granata: None. C.Herder: Research Support; Sanofi. K.Pafili: None. J.Puetzer-furmanczak: None. T.Sarabhai: None. Funding German Federal Ministry of Health; Ministry of Culture and Science of the State North Rhine-Westphalia;German Federal Ministry of Education and Research;European Funds for Regional Development (EFRE-0400191) ;EUREKA Eurostars-2 (E!113230DIA-PEP) ;German Science Foundation (CRC/SFB1116/2 B12; RTG/GRK 2576 vivid, Project 3) ;Schmutzler Stiftung

Integrated, cross-sectoral psycho-oncology (isPO): a new form of care for newly diagnosed cancer patients in Germany

Integrated, cross-sectoral psycho-oncology (isPO): a new form of care for newly diagnosed cancer patients in Germany

Foreign language education policies at secondary school level in England and Germany: an international comparison

ABSTRACT International comparative curriculum research is becoming more important in a globalised world. However, up-to-date comparative studies of international foreign language education policies are still rare. This study compares current modern foreign language curricula in England with that in the state of North-Rhine Westphalia in Germany at Key Stage 4 and equivalent, to identify points of convergence and divergence in learning intentions. The analysis shows systematic differences and similarities regarding philosophical underpinning, learning goals, curriculum content and the level of alignment to international frameworks for teaching, learning and assessing foreign language proficiency. The paper discusses the findings with reference to the implications for the development of modern foreign languages teaching and learning in both educational settings.

Perioperative complications after pacemaker implantation: higher complication rates with subclavian vein puncture than with cephalic vein cutdown

PurposeThe cephalic vein cutdown (CVC) and the subclavian puncture (SP) is the most common access for pacemaker implantation. The purpose of this study was to compare the peri-/postoperative complications of these approaches.MethodsA retrospective analysis of the quality assurance data of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia was performed to evaluate the peri-/postoperative complications of first pacemaker implantation according to the venous access. The primary endpoint was defined as the occurrence of one of the following: asystole, ventricular fibrillation, pneumothorax, hemothorax, pericardial effusion, pocket hematoma, lead dislocation, lead dysfunction, postoperative wound infection or other complication requiring intervention. Descriptive analysis was done via absolute, relative frequencies and Odds Ratio. Fisher’s exact test was used for comparison of the both study groups.ResultsFrom 139,176 pacemaker implantations from 2010 to 2014, 15,483 cases were excluded due to other/double access. The median age was 78 years and the access used was CVC for 75,251 cases (60.8%) and SP for 48,442 cases (39.2%). The implanted devices were mainly dual-chamber pacemakers (73.9% in the CVC group and 78.4% in the SP group), followed by single-chamber pacemakers VVI (24.9% and 19.9% in the CVC and SP group respectively). There were significantly fewer peri/postoperative complications in the CVC group compared to the SP group (2.49% vs. 3.64%, p = 0.0001, OR 1.47; 95% CI 1.38–1.57).ConclusionsCVC as venous access for pacemaker implantation has significantly fewer peri/postoperative complications than SP and appears to be an advantageous technique.

Local Characteristics Shape the Intended Political Behaviours of Adolescents

Among the different factors that predict political participation, the characteristics of the local community are often described. The types and the intensity of political participation differ in urban and rural communities. The local community provides social and cultural resources for political participation and at the same time acts as a driver of political socialisation. The political attitudes of adolescents differ depending on the characteristics of the communities in which they live, i.e. the local context of their political socialisation. This paper describes the context of the political socialisation of adolescents in the German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) in terms of geographical differences in socioeconomic, sociostructural, and sociocultural characteristics. The approach uses public databases to construct indicators that describe administrative districts in terms of their degree of urbanisation, degree of aggregated individual wealth, and variety of opportunity. These indicators were merged with the NRW subset of the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS 2016), which comprises N = 1451 students in N = 59 schools. Neither the degree of urbanisation nor the degree of aggregated individual wealth was suitable for explaining differences in the intended political behaviour of secondary school students in the 8th grade in NRW. However, the higher the variety of opportunity in a certain district, the less frequently students intend to participate in elections as adults. Also, the higher the measure, the more frequently students intend to participate in illegal protest activities. Apparently certain local environments mobilise intentions to participate in protest activities and suppress more conventional political activities.

Evaluation of using digital photography as a cost-effective tool for the rapid assessment of soil organic carbon at a regional scale

A rapid and cost-effective soil organic carbon (SOC) monitoring is vital for soil management. While SOC laboratory analysis is expensive and time-consuming, spectroscopic sensor technology allows for much faster and inexpensive acquisition of data. Still, the initial cost of spectroscopic sensors is high for farmers. With soil color as a proxy, digital cameras could be used as SOC sensors. We compared the performance of SOC prediction based on soil color on a regional scale. Soil color measurements were made on samples covering the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. SOC ranged between 0.03 and 4.74%. Images of the samples were taken under standardized conditions with four different sensors. Various soil color space models and indices were derived for SOC prediction. Modeling was performed using multiple linear regression (MLR) and random forest (RF). Best SOC prediction results were achieved using color of wet soils. Best MLR and RF models gave similar validation R2 values for the prediction of SOC at 0.66 and 0.63 with RMSE values of 0.57 and 0.61%, respectively. The MLR models using one color space showed the same performance as the RF models using the full vis spectrum. This suggested that the vis spectrum does not contain more information than the three variables of a common color space. A smartphone had the same accuracy as a more professional camera, making it a potential soil sensor. With increasing scale, soil mineralogy influences soil color weakening the performance.

Changing dietary patterns is necessary to improve the sustainability of Western diets from a One Health perspective

Western diets are associated with multiple environmental impacts and risks to human health. European countries are gradually taking action towards the Farm to Fork Strategy, embracing a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) perspective to promote the sustainability of food production and consumption. Although LCA enables the comprehensive assessment of environmental impacts, diet-related human health and animal welfare impacts are often underrepresented. This study proposes integrating additional indicators into LCA to evaluate the sustainability of diets under the One Health (OH) approach, which holistically considers interlinked complex health issues between humans, animals and the environment. Human health loss is estimated according to risk factors for non-communicable diseases; while animal welfare is measured as animal life years suffered, loss of animal lives and loss of morally-adjusted animal lives. The extended LCA framework is applied to men and women's reference diets in the German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW); compared to three optimized dietary scenarios under nutritional constraints: 1) the national dietary guidelines, 2) a vegan diet (VD) and 3) a Mediterranean diet (MD). Men's reference diet causes greater impacts than women's across OH dimensions due to the higher food consumption, especially of ready-to-eat meals, sausages, meat, and sweetened and alcoholic beverages. Both reference diets are associated with risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, stroke and neoplasms. Besides meat, consumption of honey, fish and seafood has the greatest impact on animal welfare, because of the high number of individuals involved. Alternative diets improve the sustainability of food consumption in NRW, although trade-offs arise: MD worsens animal suffering due to the higher fish intake; water use increases in both VD and MD due the higher intake of nuts and vegetables. Results highlight the importance of including animal welfare and human health indicators in LCA to better elucidate the potential impacts of diets characterized by the high intake of animal products, from a OH perspective.

COVID-19 Infection in Vaccinated Adult Patients with Hematological Malignancies. Preliminary Results from Epicovideha (Epidemiology of COVID-19 infection in patients with hematological malignancies: A European Haematology Association Survey)

COVID-19 Infection in Vaccinated Adult Patients with Hematological Malignancies. Preliminary Results from Epicovideha (Epidemiology of COVID-19 infection in patients with hematological malignancies: A European Haematology Association Survey)