| 1. |
- Axelsson, Anton, 1981-
(författare)
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Knowledge elicitation as abstraction of purposive behaviour
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Researchers use knowledge elicitation methods to document expert knowledge for the primary purpose of understanding cognitive processes and with this understanding, technical solutions to resolve human factors issues can be produced. This dissertation offers a novel perspective on knowledge elicitation as an abstraction process. Such a theoretical framework has emerged by consolidating the ecological approach of Brunswikian psychology with the ideas of tacit and personal knowledge of Polanyian epistemology. Traditionally, knowledge elicitation has been considered an extraction process in which knowledge can be readily transferred from one individual to another. Here, this traditional position is rejected in favour of Polanyi’s premise that much of the knowledge individuals possess is tacit in nature, which implies that it cannot be documented easily, expressed in explicit form or explained. In this dissertation, knowledge is characterised as a personal process of knowing, highlighting context as a subjective knowledge structure of personal experiences that is formulated implicitly and indirectly over time through a dynamic interaction with the environment. Therefore, tacit knowledge cannot be articulated or shared; however, learners can be inspired by observing other individuals' purposive (i.e., goal-directed) behaviours and thus shape their own tacit knowledge once they practise the observed skills and develop conceptual understanding through reasoning about the learning process. Knowledge elicitation thereby makes use of observations, questions, or more structured process tracing methods in environments familiar to the observed individuals to elicit purposive behaviour from them. Accordingly, functional descriptions can be produced in this process that further conceptual understanding of a particular domain. Knowledge elicitation procedures are a powerful set of methods for reaching such functional descriptions. Moreover, by understanding the resulting knowledge elicitation data as an abstraction derived from multiple collection points in the same environment, the focus shifts from purely subjective mental constructs to the impact of environmental constraints.
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| 2. |
- Berhan, Yonas, 1970-
(författare)
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Epidemiological studies of childhood diabetes and important health complications to the disease
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background and aims: The overall aim of this thesis was to increase knowledge regarding the occurrence of childhood onset T1D and T2D in Sweden and in relation to that describe and elucidate important aspects on two grave complications to diabetes; end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and mortality. The two first studies included in this thesis aimed to describe and analyze the cumulative incidence of childhood onset T1D in Sweden and to assess the occurrence of undetected T2D in Swedish children. The aim with the third study was to describe the cumulative incidence of ESRD, and to analyze how ESRD risk differs with age at-onset and sex. The aim of the fourth study was to show how parental socioeconomic status (SES) affects all cause mortality in Swedish patients with childhood onset T1D.Study populations: The foundation for the studies on T1D was data from the Swedish Childhood Diabetes Registry (SCDR). When studying ESRD we also included adult onset T1D cases from the Diabetes Incidence Study in Sweden (DISS). The study on T2D was a population-based screening study where BMI was measured in 5528 school-children and hemoglobin A1c was measured in children with overweight according to international age and sex specific BMI cut-offs. To study ESRD and mortality, we linked the SCDR to various nationwide registers containing individual information on SES, mortality and ESRD.Results: The incidence rates of childhood onset T1D has continued to increase in Sweden 1977–2007. Age- and sex-specific incidence rates varied from 21.6 (95% CI 19.4–23.9) during 1978–1980 to 43.9 (95% CI 40.7– 47.3) during 2005–2007. Cumulative incidence by birth-cohorts has shifted to a younger age at-onset over the first 22 years of incidence registration. From the year 2000 there was a significant reverse in this trend (p<0.01). In contrast to the increase of T1D, we found no evidence of undetected T2D among Swedish school children. Despite a relatively high incidence in T1D in Sweden there is low cumulative incidence of ESRD, 3.3% at maximum 30 years of duration. We found difference between the sexes regarding long-term risk of developing ESRD that was dependent on the age at onset of T1D. When analyzing how socioeconomic status affects mortality in different age at death groups, we found that having parents that received income support increased mortality up to three times in those who died after 18 years of age.Conclusion: The incidence of childhood onset T1D continued to increase in Sweden 1978-2007. Between the years 1978-1999 there was a shift to a younger age at-onset, but from the year 2000 there is a change in this shift indicating a possible trend break. The prevalence of T2D among Swedish children up to 12 years of age is probably very low. There is still a low cumulative incidence of T1D associated ESRD in Sweden. The risk of developing ESRD depends on age at-onset of T1D, and there is a clear difference in risk between men and woman. Excess mortality among subjects with childhood onset T1D still exists, and low parental socioeconomic status additionally increased mortality in this group.
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| 3. |
- Lind, Yvette, 1986-
(författare)
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Crossing a border : a comparative tax law study on consequences of cross-border working in the Öresund- and the Meuse-Rhine regions
- 2017
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- “Crossing a Border“- A Comparative Tax Law Study on Consequences of Cross-Border Working in the Öresund- and the Meuse-Rhine Regions is a doctoral thesis on tax law and social security law focused on cross-border commuting in the two cross-border regions of the Öresund and Meuse-Rhine. Two mayor aims are addressed: (1) To analyse the problems associated with cross-border working in the Öresund region caused by the legal divergence between Swedish and Danish tax law. The focus lies on individual taxation (primarily legislation related to residents and non-residents), and the social security contributions applicable to these cross-border workers, i.e. cross-border workers regulated in Article 15, Appendix 4, of the Nordic tax treaty also known as the Öresund treaty and the avoidance of double taxation (through the application of tax treaties between the states involved). (2) By comparing the problems, and solutions, associated with cross-border workers in the Meuse-Rhine region, contributions to discussions and analyses on de lege ferenda, in relation to the taxation of cross-border workers in the Öresund region (short-term and long-term) are made. A comparative study is therefore done, comprising the four states of Sweden, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands. This study includes international tax law (domestic tax law, tax treaty law and EU tax law), European Union law and social security law. A theoretical framework comprising coherence, congruence, legal pluralism and polycentricity is applied to the thesis in order to discuss and highlight problems referable to the legal framework applicable to cross-border working. Problems which are discussed comprise, for instance, cross-border working in two or more states at the same time, lacking predictability when anticipating tax-and social security contributions and the lack of coherence and congruence between the tax- and social security systems of the studied states.
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| 4. |
- Bergström, Göran, 1964, et al.
(författare)
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Prevalence of Subclinical Coronary Artery Atherosclerosis in the General Population
- 2021
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Ingår i: Circulation. - Philadelphia : American Heart Association. - 0009-7322 .- 1524-4539. ; 144:12, s. 916-929
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Early detection of coronary atherosclerosis using coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA), in addition to coronary artery calcification (CAC) scoring, may help inform prevention strategies. We used CCTA to determine the prevalence, severity, and characteristics of coronary atherosclerosis and its association with CAC scores in a general population.Methods: We recruited 30 154 randomly invited individuals age 50 to 64 years to SCAPIS (the Swedish Cardiopulmonary Bioimage Study). The study includes individuals without known coronary heart disease (ie, no previous myocardial infarctions or cardiac procedures) and with high-quality results from CCTA and CAC imaging performed using dedicated dual-source CT scanners. Noncontrast images were scored for CAC. CCTA images were visually read and scored for coronary atherosclerosis per segment (defined as no atherosclerosis, 1% to 49% stenosis, or ≥50% stenosis). External validity of prevalence estimates was evaluated using inverse probability for participation weighting and Swedish register data.Results: In total, 25 182 individuals without known coronary heart disease were included (50.6% women). Any CCTA-detected atherosclerosis was found in 42.1%; any significant stenosis (≥50%) in 5.2%; left main, proximal left anterior descending artery, or 3-vessel disease in 1.9%; and any noncalcified plaques in 8.3% of this population. Onset of atherosclerosis was delayed on average by 10 years in women. Atherosclerosis was more prevalent in older individuals and predominantly found in the proximal left anterior descending artery. Prevalence of CCTA-detected atherosclerosis increased with increasing CAC scores. Among those with a CAC score >400, all had atherosclerosis and 45.7% had significant stenosis. In those with 0 CAC, 5.5% had atherosclerosis and 0.4% had significant stenosis. In participants with 0 CAC and intermediate 10-year risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease according to the pooled cohort equation, 9.2% had CCTA-verified atherosclerosis. Prevalence estimates had excellent external validity and changed marginally when adjusted to the age-matched Swedish background population.Conclusions: Using CCTA in a large, random sample of the general population without established disease, we showed that silent coronary atherosclerosis is common in this population. High CAC scores convey a significant probability of substantial stenosis, and 0 CAC does not exclude atherosclerosis, particularly in those at higher baseline risk.
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| 5. |
- Kjellin, Andreas, 1974-
(författare)
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Visualizing Dynamics –The Perception of Spatiotemporal Data in 2D and 3D
- 2008
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In many command and control situations the understanding of dynamic events is crucial. With today’s development of hard- and software architecture, we have the possibility to visualize data in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) images. The aim of this thesis is therefore to investigate different approaches to visualizing dynamic events. The visualization techniques investigated include 2D animation and time representations as markings on a 2D map. In 3D the visualization technique investigated is the “space time-cube” A further aim is to study whether the Cue Probability Learning (CPL) paradigm can be used to evaluate visualizations. By mapping time onto a spatial dimension, in the 2D visualization as lines with different densities and in 3D as height over the map, a simultaneous visualization of space and time is possible. The findings are that this mapping of time onto space is beneficial to users as compared with animations, but the two mapping techniques are not interchangeable. If a task requires judgments of metric spatial properties, a 2D visualization is more beneficial; however, if the task only requires judgments of more qualitative aspects, a 3D visualization is more beneficial. When we look at a 3D visualization, we utilize different sources of depth information. These sources are always present and each defines either a 3D scene or a projection surface. By using these different sources of depth information wisely, a visualization can be created that efficiently shows relevant information to a user while requiring a minimal amount of specialized hardware. Finally, the CPL paradigm seems to be a worthwhile option as an experimental paradigm in visualization experiments. One of the advantages of CPL is that novice users can be trained to be task experts in a controlled and time-efficient way.
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| 6. |
- Lind, Mårten
(författare)
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Opportunities and uncertainties in the early stages of development of CO2 capture and storage
- 2009
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The topic of this thesis is carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage (CCS), which is a technology that is currently being promoted by industries, scientists and governments, among others, in order to mitigate climate change despite a continued use of fossil fuels. Because of the complex nature of CCS and the risks it entails, it is controversial. The aim of this thesis is to analyse how the technology may be further developed in a responsible manner. In the first part of the thesis different methods for capturing CO2 from industrial processes as well as power plants are analysed. The aim is to identify early opportunities for CO2 capture, which is considered important because of the urgency of the climate change problem. Three potential early opportunities are studied: i) capturing CO2 from calcining processes such as cement industries by using the oxyfuel process, ii) capturing CO2 from pressurised flue gas, and iii) capturing CO2 from hybrid combined cycles. Each opportunity has properties that may make them competitive in comparison to the more common alternatives if CCS is realised. However, there are also drawbacks. For example, while capturing CO2 from pressurised flue gas enables the use of more compact capture plant designs as well as less expensive and less toxic absorbents, the concept is neither suitable for retrofitting nor has it been promoted by the large and influential corporations. The second part of the thesis has a broader scope than the first and is multidisciplinary in its nature with inspiration from the research field of Science and Technology Studies (STS). The approach is to critically analyse stakeholder percep-tions regarding CCS, with a specific focus on the CCS experts. The thesis sheds new light on the complexity and scientific uncertainty of CCS as well as on the optimism among many of its proponents. Because of the uncertain development when it comes to climate change, fossil fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions, the conclusion is that CCS has to be further developed and demonstrated. A responsible strategy for a future development of CCS would benefit from: i) a search for win-win strategies, ii) increasing use of appropriate analytical tools such as life-cycle analysis, iii) a consideration of fossil fuel scarcity and increasing price volatility, iv) funding of unbiased research and v) increasing simultaneous investments in long-term solutions such as renewable energy alternatives and efficiency improvements.
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| 7. |
- Lind, Patrik, 1976-
(författare)
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Regionbildning : En institutionell studie av Region Skåne, Västra Götalandsregionen, och "Region Svealand"
- 2010
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Based on the concept of path-dependence, this thesis examines regional representatives’ notion of rationalizations in three Swedish regions. In the provinces of Skåne and Västra Götaland the responsibility for welfare issues like health care, regional development, communications, and culture, is appointed to the two organizations Region Skåne and Västra Götalandsregionen. Both organizations are results of merger processes between old organizations called landsting, with a smaller geographical scale and less responsibility. In Svealand three landsting formally have applied for a similar fusion like the ones in Skåne and in Västra Götaland. The idea behind these fusions is that rationalizations in the field of welfare, are achieved by changing the scale of production, from lesser to larger units. This thesis shows that the perceived effect of rationalization by fusion, can take time. Old norms, values, and cultures that emanate from the landsting are for example conceived by the regional representatives in Västra Götaland and in Svealand, to prevent what kind of rationalizations the organizations are able to accomplish. In Skåne, on the contrary, the notion that the regional organization has overcome its historically defined problems, dominate. In that sense, Västra Götalandregionen and the region-building process in Svealand are path-dependent. But Region Skåne, on the other hand, has overcome its historical institutional legacy. This thesis highlights the importance of examining organization histories to be able to understand why certain decisions are hard to make, and why institutions evolve or not. This is also important to acknowledge when the regions’ representatives try to construct regions. From this perspective, the thesis tries to clarify how people’s expectations can delay what kind of rationalizations an organization can implement and how these expectations seem to legitimize what decisions the organization are able to take. The thesis also tries to clarify one way of using the concept of “path-dependence” in academic studies by the usage of ideal types.
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| 8. |
- Ekblom Bak, Elin, 1981-, et al.
(författare)
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Accelerometer derived physical activity patterns in 27.890 middle‐aged adults : The SCAPIS cohort study
- 2022
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0905-7188 .- 1600-0838. ; 32:5, s. 866-880
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The present study aims to describe accelerometer-assessed physical activity (PA) patterns and fulfillment of PA recommendations in a large sample of middle-aged men and women, and to study differences between subgroups of socio-demographic, socio-economic, and lifestyle-related variables. A total of 27 890 (92.5% of total participants, 52% women, aged 50–64 years) middle-aged men and women with at least four days of valid hip-worn accelerometer data (Actigraph GT3X+, wGT3X+ and wGT3X-BT) from the Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study, SCAPIS, were included. In total, 54.5% of daily wear time was spent sedentary, 39.1% in low, 5.4% in moderate, and only 0.1% in vigorous PA. Male sex, higher education, low financial strain, born in Sweden, and sedentary/light working situation were related to higher sedentary time, but also higher levels of vigorous PA. High BMI and having multiple chronic diseases associated strongly with higher sedentary time and less time in all three PA intensities. All-year physically active commuters had an overall more active PA pattern. The proportion fulfilling current PA recommendations varied substantially (1.4% to 92.2%) depending on data handling procedures and definition used. Twenty-eight percent was defined as having an “at-risk” behavior, which included both high sedentary time and low vigorous PA. In this large population-based sample, a majority of time was spent sedentary and only a fraction in vigorous PA, with clinically important variations between subgroups. This study provides important reference material and emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive assessment of all aspects of the individual PA pattern in future research and clinical practice.
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| 9. |
- Lind, Emma, 1974-
(författare)
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Genetic response to pollution in sticklebacks; natural selection in the wild
- 2013
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The last century, humans have been altering almost all natural environments at an accelerating rate, including the Baltic Sea that has highly eutrophicated areas and many coastal industries such as Pulp-mills. For animals living in a habitat that changes there are basically two alternatives, either to cope with the change or become locally extinct. This thesis aims to investigate if recent anthropogenic disturbance in the Baltic Sea can affect natural populations on a genetic level through natural selection.First, we found a fine-scale genetic structure in three-spine sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) populations along the Swedish coast (paper I), indicating limited gene-flow between populations in geographic proximity. Different genetic markers, specifically Amplified Fragment Lenght Polymorpism (AFLP, and microsatellites, gave different results, highlighting the heterogeneous character of genomes which demonstrates that it is important to choose a genetic marker that is relevant for the question at hand. With a population genomic approach, and a multilocus genetic marker (AFLP), we detected convergent evolution in genotype composition in stickleback populations living in environments affected by pulp-mill effluent (paper II) and in highly eutrophicated environments (paper III), compared to adjacent reference populations. We found loci, in both studies (paper II, III), that were different from a neutral distribution and thus probably under divergent selection for the habitat differences investigated. The selective effect from pulp-mill effluents were more pronounced, but the two different habitats had mutual characters (AFLP loci). In paper IV, we converted five anonymous AFLP loci to sequenced markers and aligned them to the stickleback genome. Four out of five loci aligned within, or close to, coding regions on chromosome I, chromosome VIII, chromosome XIX and chromosome XX. One of the loci, located on chromosome VIII and identified as under divergent selection in both paper II and III, has been identified in other studies as to be under selection for fresh water adaptation, including Baltic Sea stickleback populations.In conclusion, anthropogenic alterations of natural environments can have evolutionary consequences, probably adaptive, for the animals living there and the evolutionary response exhibited by natural populations can be very fast.
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| 10. |
- Lind, Martin
(författare)
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Det svårgripbara nätverket : en sociologisk studie av företagare i nätverk
- 2002
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The questions for this study are: 1. What are networks? 2. How do networks work? These questions are answered by means of two different investigations. The first is chiefly theoretical and the second is primarily empirical. The theoretical investigation begins with an examination of four different concepts of networks used in social research: network as a perspective, network as a phenomenon, network as a research method and network as a method for development. The concept is then further investigated on three levels. On the first level, the parts of a network and the relationships between these parts are analysed. The second level focuses on the emergent properties of a network. The emergent properties refer to those irreducible features that make it a network, and that at the same time mark the difference between networks and other types of social entities (organizations, rituals etc.). Two such properties form the starting point for the examination, namely value-adding and diffusion. The third level of analysis places the network in relation to space and organization. This three level analysis is used throughout the thesis. In the empirical section, four cases of entrepreneurial networks are examined. The aim of the case studies is to identify the network and to study how the network works. What in the example is the network? How does the network work in the actual case? What does the network do? What properties can be assigned to the network and the way it works? Or, more comprehensively, from the examination of four cases of networks, what conclusions can be drawn about what networks are and how they function? From the case studies I have concluded that personal ties are fundamental to a network, and that the chains of production are a type of tie that may, but does not have to, occur when the network is activated in an entrepreneurial context. For the entrepreneurs and their enterprises, the social exchange has no value in itself, but if it can add value, for example as a lubricant in coordinating production chains, it fulfils an important purpose. I have also concluded that what makes an entrepreneurial network a network is not the coordination of production chains, but the personal relationships that manage these chains. Thus it is not the coordination itself, but the way of coordinating that is of importance. Networks can be found in structures of many different types of ties, but for the emergent properties to emerge there has to be a structure of personal ties at the core. I have assumed that a network is not a method or a perspective, but a social entity with certain properties. The investigation has provided support for this assumption. There is extensive research on SME networks, industrial districts and value-adding chains that shows that networks in production contexts form social constellations with their own distinctive features and ways of working. The relationship between networks and space is temporary, but not essential. Networks can be bound to places, but they do not have to be. An important structural difference between organizations and networks is that networks are formed of separate units that cooperate, while organizations form a single unit that may, but does not have to be characterized by cooperation. The most important conclusion from the comparison of organizations and networks is that these concepts together provide a better explanation of the case studies than either of the concepts alone. To understand and explain the complex social interplay that occurs in the case studies, it is a great advantage to use networks and organizations as concepts for different social entities with different properties and different ways of working.
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