French truc and machin (‘thing’) can function as placeholders, fillers or in general extender constructions. The aim of our paper is to investigate whether the prosodic characteristics of these three different uses may give a clue as to their respective status. For our analysis, we extracted 112 occurrences of truc and 57 occurrences of machin from the audio data of the PFC Corpus, which were analysed using Praat, focusing on the acoustic duration, the individual pitch contour and the integration of (...) machin and truc into the intonation contour of the utterance. As in previous studies, our results show that the prosodic patterns vary remarkably and show a highly heterogeneous picture so that the use of prosodic properties as cues for disambiguation is problematic. However, we are able to show some weak tendencies which point to a close functional link between placeholders and fillers reflecting their pragmatic functions. There is no evidence for prosodic weakening or even phonetic reduction in placeholders. Furthermore, we detect some evidence for the detachment typical of pragmatic markers in the case of fillers. The prosodic characteristics of truc and machin in general extender constructions diverge from both the placeholder and the filler functions. Their prosody seems to be largely determined by the particular respective construction into which both forms are strongly integrated. (shrink)

What unites the different studies in this volume is a corpus-based approach, in which various theoretical concepts and categories are applied to, and tested ...

Due to the spread of COVID-19, a key challenge was to reduce potential staff shortages in the healthcare sector. Besides recruiting retired healthcare workers, medical students were considered to support this task. Commitment of medical students in Germany during the COVID-19 pandemic was evaluated using an online survey, with particular focus on their burdens and anxieties. This survey was distributed to students within a 2-week period in April and May 2020. Ultimately, 1241 participants were included in the analysis. During the (...) pandemic, 67.9% of the participants reported that they had volunteered. Furthermore, 88.9% stated that they were against compulsory recruitment in this context. Students who volunteered had a significantly lower anxiety index than non-committed students. Additionally, students were more concerned about infecting other patients and relatives than themselves. Higher levels of anxiety were related to lower levels of commitment. A mandatory assignment during the pandemic was rejected by the students and does not seem to be necessary due to the large number of volunteers. (shrink)

Zusammenfassung. Der Fortschritt in der Fortpflanzungs- und Pränatalmedizin erweitert die Verantwortlichkeit des Arztes im Bereich der Zeugung und Geburt. Eine fehlerhafte Diagnose oder ein Kunstfehler konfrontiert den Juristen mit einem Problemfeld, in das ethisch-moralische Anschauungen hineinwirken. Die Gerichtspraxis sieht sich diesen besonderen Schwierigkeiten ausgesetzt, wenn darüber zu entscheiden ist, ob der Arzt bei der Geburt eines unerwünschten oder erbgeschädigten Kindes für den Ersatz der Unterhaltskosten haftet. Zunächst wird die Rechtsprechung und die Debatte um den Anspruch der Eltern für ein planwidriges (...) Kind (”wrongful birth”) dargestellt und die ethisch motivierte Argumentation gegen eine Arzthaftung kritisch gewürdigt. Sodann wird der Anspruch eines erbgeschädigten Kindes gegen den Arzt (”wrongful life”) behandelt und festgestellt, daß die Rechtsprechung in diesem Fall die Arzthaftung ungerechtfertigt verneint. Der Beitrag soll aufzeigen, daß ethische Ansatzpunkte in beiden Konstellationen unsachgemäß und unangemessen sind. (shrink)

Definition of the problem: The medical progress made in human reproduction and prenatal diagnosis is having an increasing effect on the responsibility of doctors concerning reproduction and birth. A faulty diagnosis or professional error is causing lawyers to be confronted with difficulties in which ethical views are involved. It is becoming clear that there will be difficulties if the courts have to rule on the question whether the doctor is under an obligation to pay maintenance following the birth of an (...) unwanted child or a child with genetic defects. Arguments and conclusion: First, the controversy about parental claims on maintenance as a result of an unwanted child (”wrongful birth”) is presented, and the ethical arguments against physician liability are critically discussed. Subsequently, the claims of a genetically defective child against the doctor (”wrongful life”) are dealt with. It should be stressed that it is unjust for the court to reject physician liability in this case. The intention is to point out that ethical judgements are improper and inadequate in both cases. (shrink)