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Collaborating in the digital age: On the design of collaboration support systems
(2024) Wöhl, Moritz; Gimpel, Henner
Collaboration is undergoing a transformation in the digital age. As digital technologies advance, individuals and organisations need to continuously adapt to the ever-changing circumstances in their mutual engagement, especially when these technologies form the nexus of interaction. Three major trends shape this evolving collaborative landscape. First, globalisation diminishes the significance of physical boundaries, fostering a globally distributed workforce. Second, propelled initially by the COVID-19 pandemic but now a lasting trend, there is a heightened value placed on the flexibility afforded by remote or hybrid work. Third, the ascendant capabilities of large language models hint at them becoming central to collaboration, which benefits both employees and organisations. Collectively, these trends not only shape collaboration as of today but also provide implications for its future trajectory. These shifts present interesting avenues for designing collaboration support via digital technologies.
This dissertation delves into the design of Collaboration Support Systems in light of these developments. These systems encompass software, tools, and services to enhance outcomes from collaborative efforts. At their core, collaborators coordinate their actions. More specifically, they process and communicate information before taking a decision. Collaboration support in this dissertation explicitly targets these three facets to enhance collaborative endeavours. The structure of this dissertation is bifurcated into direct support to collaborators via technical systems (Part A) and indirect support through aiding facilitators of a collaborative endeavour (Part B).
Part A (Chapter II) of this dissertation explores the facet of delivering support to collaborators engaged in direct collaboration, offering profound insights into how technological systems can be harnessed to augment collaborative endeavours across four distinct chapters. Each chapter elucidates strategies to support collaborators in information processing, communication, and decision-making. Chapter II.1 delves into the collaboration of multi-professional teams, spotlighting the work system in inpatient palliative care, characterised by frequent in-person interactions and noticeable reservations towards digital technologies, making it a relevant subject of investigation. This chapter discerns potential challenges and opportunities to overcome them with digital technologies by maintaining the relevance of in-person interactions. Building on this, Chapter II.2 articulates the design and prototype of a system tailored for multi-professional collaboration, addressing the specific challenges unearthed in the preceding chapter. Chapter II.3 targets virtual teams engaging synchronously in chats, facilitated by an automated facilitator to streamline their collaboration by fostering favourable patterns in collaboration to sidestep potential pitfalls. Chapter II.4 explores academic research collaboration, aiming to illuminate methods for assessing the current research landscape and signposting promising areas for future collaborative research.
Part B (Chapter III) shifts its lens towards amplifying support mechanisms for facilitators, enhancing the support mechanisms available for facilitators, thereby aiming to amplify the effectiveness and efficiency of their roles within the collaborative structure – particularly within crowdsourcing environments. These environments are often geared towards addressing complex, wicked problems by pooling diverse knowledge resources. This part underscores the facilitator’s pivotal role in steering collaborative ventures, supporting them throughout the multifaceted processes, particularly in information processing, communication, and decision-making. Chapter III.1 presents an assessment model with five success dimensions, equipping facilitators with guidance on actions before, during, and after a crowdsourcing initiative. This framework helps in achieving high-quality results through a well-guided process. Subsequent chapters delve deeper into vital facets of crowdsourcing: Chapter III.2 advocates for fostering intellectual cross-fertilisation among collaborators, promoting a richer and potentially more innovative range of contributions. Chapter III.3 proposes a synthesis information system, utilising natural language processing to enhance the facilitator’s support in efficiently assessing discussion content and effectively disseminating it to a wider audience in diverse formats.
In conclusion, this dissertation provides a comprehensive guide for collaboration support design. It concludes by consolidating and discussing both parts’ results, implications, limitations, and avenues for future research. The emergence of large-scale language models will blur the lines between the two parts of this dissertation. Today, these models automate only specific aspects of facilitation and support human moderators in their roles. As large language models continue to evolve and their capabilities improve, it is foreseeable that the distinction between the two parts will diminish. Hence, although distinct in their approach, both parts intertwine, providing a cohesive perspective on the potential and design of Collaboration Support Systems and creating a common body of knowledge that informs the future of collaborative endeavours. Key themes threading through the dissertation include seamless integration into daily-use systems, leveraging natural language processing, and guiding collaborators’ focus in their interactions. This dissertation’s insights contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the potential and design nuances of Collaboration Support Systems.
Eltern Influencer in Sozialen Netzwerken: Wertvolle Tipps oder bedenkliche Inhalte?
(2024-11-10) Betz, Emily; Hilkert, Anna; Clara, Jung; Kruglikow, Alice; Dombrowski, Jana
Von gut gemeinten Ratschlägen zur Kindererziehung bis hin zur Vermarktung des eigenen Familienlebens – in den sozialen Medien, genauer gesagt in der Welt der Parental Influencer, ist genau das Teil eines knallharten Geschäfts. Doch welche Herausforderungen ergeben sich für das Wohlergehen und die Privatsphäre ihrer Kinder? Denn Parental Influencer ziehen nicht nur die Aufmerksamkeit von Firmen, sondern auch die vieler Eltern auf sich - und das zu einem hohen Preis. Untersuchungen zeigen, dass die Inhalte von Parental Influencern durchaus negative
Auswirkungen auf die Psyche von Eltern haben können – von hitzigen Diskussionen und echtem Mom-Shaming in der Kommentarspalte bis hin zu Verunsicherung und Unzufriedenheit vieler Eltern. Du siehst: Das Thema Parental Influencer ist ziemlich facettenreich. Wir klären, wer genau Parental Influencer sind und was Sharenting bedeutet, bevor wir die Kommerzialisierung ihres Familienlebens und ihre Geschäftsmöglichkeiten genauer unter die Lupe nehmen. Außerdem zeigen wir Dir als Elternteil einen gesunden Umgang mit Tipps und Kritik in Bezug auf das Elternsein in den sozialen Medien auf.
Cashflow Hedge Accounting bei Fremdwährungssicherungen: Inwieweit erreicht das IASB die Zielsetzung das ökonomische Risikomanagement mit IFRS 9 besser abzubilden? : Ausgewählte Fragestellungen und Analyse der Offenlegungspflichten gemäß IFRS 7 deutscher börsennotierter Industrieunternehmen
(2024) Ritz, Meryem; Hachmeister, Dirk
Diese Dissertation untersucht, ob IFRS 9 das ökonomische Risikomanagement, insbesondere das Cashflow Hedge Accounting für Fremdwährungsrisiken, verbessert. Anhand von drei Praxisfällen, einer Analyse der Geschäftsberichte deutscher DAX-Unternehmen (2019–2021) und Experteninterviews wird bewertet, ob IFRS 9 die Bilanzierung vereinfacht und nützlichere Informationen gemäß IFRS 7 liefert.
Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass IFRS 9 eine genauere Abbildung von Sicherungsbeziehungen ermöglicht und die Bilanzierungspraxis im Vergleich zu IAS 39 verbessert. Herausforderungen bestehen jedoch weiterhin in der Komplexität der Anwendung, insbesondere im langfristigen Projektgeschäft und bei den Offenlegungspflichten gemäß IFRS 7. Eine Umfrage unter deutschen Treasury-Experten bestätigt, dass IFRS 9 das Risikomanagement besser darstellt, das Hedging-Verhalten jedoch nur gering beeinflusst.
Insgesamt erreicht IFRS 9 eine bessere Übereinstimmung zwischen Risikomanagement und Bilanzierung, jedoch bleiben Vereinfachungen bei den Offenlegungspflichten notwendig.
Nutrient utilisation and metabolic adaptation of broiler chickens to high levels of free amino acids in the diet
(2024) Ibrahim, Ahmad; Rodehutscord, Markus
Reducing dietary crude protein (CP) content in broiler chickens is a strategy used to reduce nitrogen excretion and its impact on the environment caused by the broiler industry. This requires an increased proportion of free amino acids (AA) in the diet to avoid insufficient AA supply. An upper limit of dietary free AA inclusion has often been suggested but could not be derived from the current literature. The overall objective of this dissertation was to determine the upper limit of free AA content in CP-reduced diets. Additionally, the aim was to investigate the effects of adding free AA on the acid-base status in the blood of broiler chickens. Furthermore, the physiological and metabolic responses to substituting peptide-bound AA with free AA were investigated.
In a preliminary experiment of the first study, the precaecal AA digestibility of soya protein isolate (SPI) representing a peptide-bound AA source was determined. One diet with 80 g SPI per kg and another with the basal mix, including maize starch in substitution with SPI, were tested. The diets were offered from day 18–21 of age and tested in eight units with 15 animals each. On day 21, the birds were slaughtered and the content of the last distal ileum was sampled. The amount of precaecal digestible AA derived from SPI was calculated as the difference in AA digestibility between both diets. In the main trial of the first study, the amount of digestible AA derived from SPI was incrementally substituted with a free AA mixture, i.e. 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 % to determine the maximum amount of peptide-bound AA that can be substituted by free AA without reducing growth performance. At each substitution level, the amounts of digestible aspartate (Asp) and glutamate (Glu), which, per analysis, also contained asparagine (Asn) and glutamine (Gln), were either substituted with free Asp and Glu or with a 50/50 mixture of Asp/Asn and Glu/Gln. Each diet was offered from day 7–21 of age and tested in 7 units of 10 animals each. Based on growth performance, there was a maximum limit of dietary free AA inclusion dependent on the inclusion of Asn and Gln. This indicates that Asn and/or Gln were limited in the diets including only Asp and Glu and high levels of free AA. Asn and Gln supply allowed for increased AA substitution from 10 to 19 % of CP in the diet and increased free AA concentration from about 37 to 54 g/kg without reducing growth. Additionally, as the AA substitution was done in 25 %-unit increments, the maximum amount of dietary free AA was estimated between 54–71 g/kg. The broken line linear regression estimated value of 57 g free AA/kg in the diets with Asn and Gln without impairing growth and 61 g free AA/kg without impairing feed intake. Blood data related to the acid-base balance indicated a compensated acidosis 14 days after the diet change, which was attenuated by including Asn and Gln in the diet.
In the second study, three diets were selected based on the results of the first study. The first diet included SPI with 0 % AA substitution. The second diet included the maximum free AA level with 50 % AA substitution without negative effects on growth and nitrogen utilisation. The third diet with 100 % AA substitution had evidence of an acid-base shift. The second and third diets considered all 20 proteinogenic AA including Asn and Gln. The change to one of these three diets occurred on day 7 post-hatch and feeding continued until day 22. Excreta were collected on days 7–8, 8–9, 9–10, 11–12, 14–15, and 21–22. Repeated blood samples were withdrawn on days 7, 8, 9, 11, 14, and 21.
There was no evidence of affected nitrogen utilisation by substituting peptide-bound with free AA, especially 3 days after the diet change. It was confirmed that up to 50 % AA substitution from SPI did not affect growth. The reduction in growth at 100 % AA substitution was mainly due to the reduced feed intake immediately after the diet change. Adaption of nitrogen utilisation and AA in blood plasma to high levels of dietary free AA occurred within 3 to 7 days after changing to 50 % and 100 % AA substitution diets, respectively. This was suggested by the data on feed intake, nitrogen accretion, nitrogen utilisation efficiency in the first 3 days and plasma free AA concentrations in the first 7 days after the diet change, which remained unaffected by the treatments thereafter. A significant increase in ammonia excretion was also observed with increasing levels of free AA at all points in time.
The blood samples were also investigated for responses in the acid-base balance and plasma metabolites directly after the diet change. An acid-base shift was determined in the birds that received 100 % and 50 % AA substitution diets. An acute reaction of the acid-base balance was on days 4 to 7 and day 4 after a change to the 100 % and 50 % AA substitution diets, respectively. Thereafter, a compensated acid-base acidosis was determined on day 7 for 50 % AA substitution and on day 14 for 100 % AA substitution. This likely explained the increased ammonia excretion found for these diets as an adaptation to excrete acids after an acid-base shift. The untargeted metabolomics analysis effectively determined the reduction in the use of plant feed ingredients with increasing free AA inclusion. However, no changes in metabolic pathways by increasing free AA inclusion were detected.
It can be concluded that there was a maximum limit to including free AA in diets for broiler chickens, which was dependent on the supply of Asn and Gln. A reduced feed intake was the primary response of the birds to this upper limit. One of the likely reasons for the reduced feed intake was the acid-base shift caused by the diets with AA substitution higher than 50 %. The dietary inclusion of Asn and Gln attenuated this acid-base shift. The knowledge gained from this dissertation can contribute to the targeted use of more free AA, representing a potential alternative to protein sources for the future and reducing the CP content of the feed. The free AA level used to date in practical feeding is below the limit identified in this dissertation. Nonetheless, such levels of free AA are often used in research to answer specific questions or to cover certain AA interactions for a more accurate estimation of the individual AA requirements for contemporary poultry breeds.
Agronomic and technical evaluation of herbicide spot spraying in maize based on high-resolution aerial weed maps - an on-farm trial
(2024) Allmendinger, Alicia; Spaeth, Michael; Saile, Marcus; Peteinatos, Gerassimos G.; Gerhards, Roland; Allmendinger, Alicia; Department of Weed Science, Institute for Phytomedicine, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany; (A.A.);; Spaeth, Michael; Department of Weed Science, Institute for Phytomedicine, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany; (A.A.);; Saile, Marcus; Department of Weed Science, Institute for Phytomedicine, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany; (A.A.);; Peteinatos, Gerassimos G.; ELGO-DIMITRA, Leof Dimokratias 61, Agii Anargiri, 135 61 Athens, Greece;; Gerhards, Roland; Department of Weed Science, Institute for Phytomedicine, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany; (A.A.);; Rossi, Vittorio
Spot spraying can significantly reduce herbicide use while maintaining equal weed control efficacy as a broadcast application of herbicides. Several online spot-spraying systems have been developed, with sensors mounted on the sprayer or by recording the RTK-GNSS position of each crop seed. In this study, spot spraying was realized offline based on georeferenced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images with high spatial resolution. Studies were conducted in four maize fields in Southwestern Germany in 2023. A randomized complete block design was used with seven treatments containing broadcast and spot applications of pre-emergence and post-emergence herbicides. Post-emergence herbicides were applied at 2–4-leaf and at 6–8-leaf stages of maize. Weed and crop density, weed control efficacy (WCE), crop losses, accuracy of weed classification in UAV images, herbicide savings and maize yield were measured and analyzed. On average, 94% of all weed plants were correctly identified in the UAV images with the automatic classifier. Spot-spraying achieved up to 86% WCE, which was equal to the broadcast herbicide treatment. Early spot spraying saved 47% of herbicides compared to the broadcast herbicide application. Maize yields in the spot-spraying plots were equal to the broadcast herbicide application plots. This study demonstrates that spot-spraying based on UAV weed maps is feasible and provides a significant reduction in herbicide use.