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Pharmaceuticals are in many cases an indispensable element of a comfortable and healthy life. Nevertheless, there is also a downside to the widespread and increasing use of drugs: the occurrence of their residues in the aquatic environment and in drinking water. Although there is evidence for negative effects of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in some animal and plant species, it has not yet been shown which risks in fact exist for humans and the environment. At the same time there is evidence that people will reject drinking water which contains only the smallest traces of APIs, despite claims that such traces are harmless. In this mélange of high uncertainties, subjective risk perception, and the undisputed societal benefit of pharmaceuticals, established risk management procedures are likely to fail. Addressing this issue, the article will suggest applying the concept of systemic risk to the case of APIs in drinking water. With this concept as basis a practical approach to risk management will be presented. It draws upon the recently developed concept of risk governance, as well as the precautionary principle. Finally, concrete measures for risk precaution in the spheres of drug development, handling of drugs, and technical emissions control in urban water management will be presented.

Niklas Luhmann GOTTHARD BECHMANN NICO STEHR RESUMO: O artigo traça um sintético retrato intelectual de Niklas Luhmann, focalizando essencialmente sua teoria social; em especial, as idéias expostas em A sociedade da sociedade, que revelam o núcleo construtivista da moderna teoria dos sistemas societais. Por meio da discussão da distinção central dessa obra, entre sistema e ambiente, os autores identificam os pontos básicos de ruptura da teoria de Luhmann em relação ao modelo cognitivo clássico da tradição européia e sua cosmologia humanista. Em seguida, expõem três concepções básicas de sua análise sociológica: sociedades sem pessoas; a sociedade como comunicação; e sociedade como sociedade mundial. Finalmente, apresentam algumas reflexões críticas acerca das possibilidades e dos limites da teoria pós-ontológica da sociedade como sistema auto-referencial. Introdução m alguns dos muitos e extensos obituários publicados nos jornais e revistas europeus em 1999, Niklas Luhmann é lembrado como o mais importante teórico social do século XX. No entanto, na maior parte do mundo anglo-saxão, ele é virtualmente desconhecido entre os cientistas sociais profissionais. Luhmann nasceu numa família de classe média em Lünemburgo, Alemanha, no dia 8 de dezembro de 1927. Depois de se formar muito cedo no 1 o ciclo (Notabitur), ele foi recrutado em 1944 e feito prisioneiro de guerra das Forças Americanas. De 1946 a 1949, ele estudou direito em Friburgo, entrou para o serviço público e trabalhou por 10 anos como advogado administrativo em Hanover. Em 1962, ele recebeu uma bolsa de estu

culture". Even the case of celibacy with respect to new technologies can be described as "technological practice". The term in particular does not restrict itself to the formal organisational structure of the firm, also extending to the formal and informal structures of the world of work, thus, for instance, adequately addressing the special issue of new forms of social exclusion in connection with the new technologies.The SOWING-Project deals with various empirical research instruments: firm survey, regional profile study, and case studies of enterprises. In the first step of the project, each of the national research groups had to prepare a literature report giving an overview of the national discourses on the information society. These National Literature Reports were synthesized into the first Interim Report of the project. Furthermore, the national state of the art reports became the basis for the final version of the theoretical framework of the SOWING Project. The present report is based on the National Reports and is part of the Interim Report. * The aim of the Interim Report is to further develop the conceptual framework for the project. Therefore, those parts of the National Literature Reports were taken into account which could particularly contribute to this objective. With the selection of parts of the Interim Report given here the authors want to present the conceptual discussion in the project. Therefore the published text is a work in progress. The second contribution "'Standortdebatte' und 'Neue Armut': Bundesdeutsche Illustrationen zum EU-Projekt SOWING" deals with the special historical aspects influencing the development of the Information Society in Germany in the light of SOWING. Vice versa, this results also in an informative illustration of the topics of SOWING in the light of German experiences. German developments like the former "Modell Deutschland" and the recent "Standortdebatte" give the opportunity to demonstrate the comprehensiveness and actuality of this EU project.

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