Die Verlegung der Berliner Sternwarte nach Babelsberg — ein konservativer Neubeginn

In 1913 the Berlin Observatory was moved from the center of the city to Babelsberg on the outskirts of Berlin, now part of Potsdam. The new observatory was considerably larger in size and with respect to its staff, and it had got a completely new equipment. At that time it was the most modern astronomical observatory in Germany and possibly even in Europe. However, the scientific results achieved afterward were not comparable to that of other institutions, especially in the USA. A main reason was the conservative concept for the observatory, drawn up by Wilhelm Foerster and his colleagues, and restricting the work to classical fields of astronomy. Foerster's successor Hermann Struve tried to follow rather strictly this concept as well as the traditions of his family of astronomers. This led to conflicts with his collaborators Eugen Goldstein, Erwin Finlay Freundlich and Paul Guthnick, who were interested rather in astrophysics than in the classical problems.     

Direct democracy and intergenerational conflicts in ageing societies

To evaluate the potential effects of population ageing on the outcomes of direct democracy, we analyze the effect of age on voting decisions in public referendums. In a case study of the Stuttgart 21 referendum on one of the largest infrastructure projects in Germany, we find that support for the project decreased significantly in age. A quantitative review of the relevant literature affirms that similar lifecycle patterns appear to be the norm in referendums on projects that require initial expenditures and pay off in the long run. Population ageing, thus, presents a potential threat to investment-like reform projects.     

形象与想象:柏林的都市民族学

<正>首先,我想向各位介绍一下我的两个"家园":一个是我的学术"家园",即欧洲民族学,另一个是我的"家园"城市柏林。我希望这些有关柏林以及我和同事们在那里的工作的概述,能够给大家一些关于我们所说的"都市民族学"的印象。都市民族学这一领域,也是我目前为数不多的"户外"研究范围中的一项工作,它能够使我获得几个小时的时间,得以逃离书桌和各种行政事务。     

Die Nasenzähler und die Demographie

Ohne Zusammenfassung