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- Bastholm, Caroline, 1981-
(författare)
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Micro-grids supplied by renewable energy : Improving technical and social feasibility
- 2019
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Universal access to electricity stands high on the global agenda and is regarded as essential for positive development in sectors such as health care, education, poverty reduction, food production and climate change. Decentralized, off-grid electrification is deemed an important complement to centralized grid extension. By utilizing a renewable energy source, solar technology for the generation of electricity, photovoltaics (PV) is being considered as a way forward to minimize the environmental problems related to energy use.This thesis aims to contribute to improving the technical and social feasibility of PV and PV-diesel hybrid micro-grids for the purpose of providing access to electricity to people in rural areas of countries with low level access to electricity. In line with these general aims, the focus has been to address three questions related to challenges in three phases of rural electrification. The work has a multi-disciplinary approach, addressing mainly technical and social aspects of long-term sustainability of micro-grids, in a local context, and the changes these are intended to generate. One specific micro-grid in Tanzania has been used as a major case study.The thesis is developed through three papers, all presenting methodologies or aspects for investigation in rural electrification projects and studies in general, and for PV-diesel hybrid micro-grids in particular. Paper I puts forward a methodology to facilitate non-social scientific researchers to take social aspects increasingly into consideration. Paper II is a guideline to support system users to increasingly apply an evaluation based system operation. Paper III specifically highlights the importance to consider blackouts when investigating how an existing off-grid PV-diesel hybrid system shall be utilized when a national grid becomes available.
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| 2. |
- Bastholm, Caroline, et al.
(författare)
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The use of three perspectives to make energy implementation studies more culturally informed
- 2014
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Ingår i: Energy, Sustainability and Society. - : Springer. - 2192-0567. ; 4:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In our research on the social and technical feasibility of a small-scale electrical power system in Tanzania, we have perceived a need for an alternative framework or method for social scientific studies of limited scope. The approach we suggest is also a response to the growing criticism of cultural ignorance with which many energy implementation projects are handled. Theories from Social Anthropology and Sociology form the core of the approach we present. In addition, concepts from Science and Technology studies are used, as well as lessons learned from History of Technology. We suggest that particular attention should be paid to three aspects: identification of social actors, perceptions of change, and long-term feasibility and sustainability. The approach has been developed and concretised through application in our research. To elucidate our suggested approach, we use examples and results from our ongoing research project, in which the 'Three-perspectives-approach' is currently applied. We have combined theories, approaches and knowledge from different disciplines in order to formulate a framework for studies of social aspects of energy projects that is structured, concise and comparable. The approach is developed to target multi-disciplinary researchers with limited training in social scientific research. It may also be used by project implementers, or as a way for social scientists to present their findings in a way that facilitates for non-social scientists to integrate them into practice. We suggest that the Three-perspectives-approach may be applied independently, os as a complement to other tools.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Ferdousi, Hosne Ara, et al.
(författare)
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Clinical characteristics of school children with birch and/or grass pollen hay-fever (The PAT-Study)
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: To describe the clinical characteristics of school children with hay-fever based on baseline data from the PAT-Study.Material: Two hundred and five children, 6-15 years, mean 10.7 years, with birch and or grass pollen hay-fever, without known asthma were recruited by six pediatric allergy centers in Northern and Central Europe.Methods: Bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) to methacholine tested by methacholine bronchial provocation test (MBPT) expressed in PC20 was registered during the birch and grass pollen seasons. During the winter symptoms of conjunctivitis, rhinitis and asthma were graded by visual analogue scale (VAS), conjunctival provocation test with birch and or timothy pollen extracts, skin tests with a panel of allergen extracts and MBPT were done and a questionnaire was filled in. Differences of p <0.01 level or less were considered significant.Results: Despite the children were included because of seasonal hay-fever without known asthma, 42/205 children (21 %) got doctor diagnosed asthma (DDA) after the first season. During the three seasons, between 60 and 73 % of the children had a PC20 to methacholine ≤ 8 mg/ml, about 30 % to ≤ 2 mg/ml and 7-10% even to ≤ 0.5 mg/ml. Most children had both rhinitis and conjunctivitis. Furthermore, 119/201 children (59%) were regularly exposed to furred animals.There was an association between DDA and the sum of VAS for asthma during the pollen seasons.The BHR was significantly more pronounced in those with than those without DDA during all three seasons: Using the three cut offs, the difference was most pronounced during the winter season but reached also significance using the cut off limit 0.5 mg/ml during the birch pollen season.Doctor diagnosed asthma correlated to PC20 during the seasons for most of the cut off limits for PC20 and in general there was an association in PC20 between the seasons independent of cut off limits.Furthermore, DDA, but not BHR, correlated to exposure to traffic and there was an association between exposure to traffic and industrial pollution, but not to ETS or duration of breastfeeding.Conclusion: The most striking feature of school children with uncomplicated hay-fever was the high frequency of DDA and BHR, most pronounced during the winter, the high frequency of exposure to living animals and sensitization to indoor allergens. Hay-fever is a generalized disease. Even without obvious asthma, BHR is common and most children have symptoms from both the eyes and the airways. Diagnosis of asthma in children with hay-fever and early anti-inflammatory treatment may improve the prognosis.
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| 5. |
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| 6. |
- Henning, Annette, 1952-, et al.
(författare)
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A 'three-step-approach' to energy implementation : Examples from a PV hybrid grid in Tanzania
- 2013
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Ingår i: Micro Perspectives for Decentralized Energy Supply. ; , s. 60-63
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- In an ongoing research project, a 'three-step-approach' is used to study rural electrification and the use of a small PV-diesel grid at a community centre in Ihushi, Tanzania. The paper gives some preliminary results from the current research. It also describes the three steps of investigation by which social actors are identified, cultural change studied, and long-term feasibility evaluated. As an answer to the critique of the 'drivers-and-barriers' concepts, we suggest this model as a way of capturing the dynamic and long-term aspects of implementation processes and of adding a more culturally informed stance to actor oriented research.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Henning, Annette, 1952-, et al.
(författare)
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Anthropology and decision making : an introduction
- 2013
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Ingår i: Focaal. Journal of Global and Historical Anthropology. - Nijmegen : Focaal. - 1558-5263 .- 0920-1297. ; :65, s. 97-113
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This introductory article calls for a critical re-examination of a plethora of phenomena relating to choice and decision-making, occasionally addressed by anthropologists, but more regularly studied by economists, political scientists, psychologists and organization scholars. By means of a bird's eye research overview, we identify certain weak spots pertaining to a formalistic uni-central view of human rationality, and argue that ethnographic approaches casting light on cultural contexts for thought, reason and action can explain how choices are framed and constituted from horizons of perceptions and expectations. A positive account of socially and culturally embedded decision-making heralds a mode of anthropology with a broad, integrating capacity to address public policy and administration and its interactions with everyday experience and practice.
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| 9. |
- Henning, Annette
(författare)
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Användarnas utvärdering
- 2007
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Ingår i: Energibilaga till Ljusnan, Ljusdalsposten, Hudiksvallstidningen, Söderhamns-Kuriren. - : Ovanåkers energikontor, Ovanåkers kommun.
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Det vanliga är att värmesystems tekniska förmåga utvärderas i en verkstad eller ett laboratorium. I ett just avslutat forskningsprojekt har några forskare på Centrum för solenergiforskning (SERC), på uppdrag av Energimyndigheten, istället låtit ett antal användare berätta sin egen historia om hur det gick till när de bestämde sig för ett nytt värmesystem och hur de upplevde tiden runt och närmast efter installationen. Se www.serc.se/publikationer/skriftserien Flexibla värmesystem.
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| 10. |
- Henning, Annette
(författare)
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Can qualitative methods support the development of more flexible and energy saving thermal comfort?
- 2006
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Ingår i: Comfort and energy use in buildings - getting them right. - Windsor, UK.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper uses examples from a Swedish study to suggest some ways in which cultural variation could be included in studies of thermal comfort. It is shown how only a slight shift of focus and methodological approach could help us discover aspects of human life that add to previous knowledge within comfort research of how human beings perceive and handle warmth and cold. It is concluded that it is not enough for buildings, heating systems and thermal control devices to be energy-efficient in a mere technical sense. If these are to help to decrease, rather than to increase, energy consumption, they have to support those parts of already existing habits and modes of thought that have the potential for low energy use. This is one reason why culture-specific features and emotional cores need to be investigated and deployed into the study and development of thermal comfort.
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