| 1. |
- Al-Mashhadi, Ammar Nadhom Farman, et al.
(författare)
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Changes in arterial pressure and markers of nitric oxide homeostasis and oxidative stress following surgical correction of hydronephrosis in children
- 2018
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Ingår i: Pediatric nephrology (Berlin, West). - : Springer. - 0931-041X .- 1432-198X. ; 33:4, s. 639-649
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective Recent clinical studies have suggested an increased risk of elevated arterial pressure in patients with hydronephrosis. Animals with experimentally induced hydronephrosis develop hypertension, which is correlated to the degree of obstruction and increased oxidative stress. In this prospective study we investigated changes in arterial pressure, oxidative stress, and nitric oxide (NO) homeostasis following correction of hydronephrosis.Methods Ambulatory arterial pressure (24 h) was monitored in pediatric patients with hydronephrosis (n = 15) before and after surgical correction, and the measurements were compared with arterial pressure measurements in two control groups, i.e. healthy controls (n = 8) and operated controls (n = 8). Markers of oxidative stress and NO homeostasis were analyzed in matched urine and plasma samples.Results The preoperative mean arterial pressure was significantly higher in hydronephrotic patients [83 mmHg; 95% confidence interval (CI) 80–88 mmHg] than in healthy controls (74 mmHg; 95% CI 68–80 mmHg; p < 0.05), and surgical correction of ureteral obstruction reduced arterial pressure (76 mmHg; 95% CI 74–79 mmHg; p < 0.05). Markers of oxidative stress (i.e., 11- dehydroTXB2, PGF2α, 8-iso-PGF2α, 8,12-iso-iPF2α-VI) were significantly increased (p < 0.05) in patients with hydronephrosis compared with both control groups, and these were reduced following surgery (p < 0.05). Interestingly, there was a trend for increased NO synthase activity and signaling in hydronephrosis, which may indicate compensatory mechanism(s).Conclusion This study demonstrates increased arterial pressure and oxidative stress in children with hydronephrosis compared with healthy controls, which can be restored to normal levels by surgical correction of the obstruction. Once reference data on ambulatory blood pressure in this young age group become available, we hope cut-off values can be defined for deciding whether or not to correct hydronephrosis surgically.Keywords Blood pressure . Hydronephrosis . Hypertension . Nitric oxide . Oxidative stress . Ureteral obstruction
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Gaim, Medhanie, 1983-, et al.
(författare)
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Analyzing competing demands in organizations : a systematic comparison
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Organization Design. - : Springer. - 2245-408X. ; 7:6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Organizational scholars have shown increasing interest in the ways in which managers enact and respond to competing demands and the tensions they prompt as constitutive elements of their organizations. There is now a proliferation of conceptualizations of such competing demands that can be somewhat confusing. We will enhance conceptual clarity by identifying seven constitutive empirical characteristics of competing demands: these consist of the existence of dyadic relations, contradiction, interrelatedness, complementarity, compatibility, simultaneity, and the existence of push-pull forces. We construct a comparative classification of competing demands using these characteristics as our distinguishing features. The result is a more nuanced understanding of how managers approach competing demands that can help scholars to minimize arbitrariness, interpret results, and compare contributions in the area in a much-needed step toward understanding and designing organizations.
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| 4. |
- Gaim, Medhanie, 1983-, et al.
(författare)
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In search of a creative space : A conceptual framework of synthesizing paradoxical tensions
- 2016
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Management. - : Elsevier BV. - 0956-5221 .- 1873-3387. ; 32:1, s. 33-44
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We examine paradoxes in organizations and the organizations’ ability to deal with the resulting paradoxical tensions. Paradoxes constitute contradictory yet interrelated organizational demands that exist simultaneously, with the resulting tensions persisting over time. Irrespective of the prevailing evidence that engaging paradoxes leads to peak performance in the short-term, which reinforces long-term success, the question of how this might be done remains perplexing. Thus, based on pragmatic philosophy, this paper aims to increase our understanding of what constitutes a paradox and suggests a conceptual framework from which organizations and their members can frame and cope with tensions that result from paradoxes. Specifically, we conceptually map a way to achieve a synthesis of paradoxical tensions that is informed by design thinking. This synthesis is said to occur when competing demands are simultaneously fulfilled to their full potential. In this paper, design thinking – as a management concept – is used to refer to the interplay between perspective, structure, process, and mindset. It provides an alternative framing of how organizations approach paradoxes and deal with the resulting tensions.
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| 5. |
- Gaim, Medhanie, 1983-
(författare)
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Paradox As the New Normal : essays on framing, managing and sustaining organizational tensions
- 2017
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Metaphorically, the idiom “you cannot have your cake and eat it too” describes fundamental tensions at the heart of today’s organizations. Engaging tensions may seem implausible or even impossible. However, there exists evidence, given the increasingly complex environment, that both are vital to organizational success. To succeed, therefore, requires that organizations be able to manage, embrace, and transcend tensions. Consequently, the overall purpose of this thesis is to advance our understanding of tensions in general, and in creativity-based contexts in particular.The purpose is achieved through five self-contained yet complementary papers. The conceptual parts, which resulted in three papers, include a literature review on tensions, from which inspirations and ideas from different disciplines have been drawn in order to add value to the literature specifically addressing tensions. In parallel with this conceptual work, I explore tensions (a paradox, to be specific) in a specific context (architecture), an effort that results in two papers. Consequently, in the conceptual work, I focus on what “could be,” while in the empirical work I focus on “what is.”The findings highlight that first, theorizing about tensions calls for conceptual clarity. This was accomplished by identifying and then assembling core features that scholars use to conceptualize tensions. In doing so, the thesis contributes to the ways in which tensions are “represented” by reducing confusion and by making the assumptions behind tensions clear. Second, the thesis establishes that dealing with tensions productively requires a shift from thinking (and doing) based on a contingency approach towards contemporary approaches. Given the nature of the empirical context and the challenges therein, a true shift of this order necessitates framing tensions as paradoxes. In the same vein, the thesis indicates the need to rethink the central question; currently, that question is predominantly “how can we accommodate both A and B?” Given the nature of the empirical context, the question can be shifted to “why not C?” Doing so breaks away from focusing on the existing competing options and turns the focus towards something new. Moreover, dealing with tensions through this lens prevents neutralizing them and settling for a bland halfway point between one extreme and the other. Third, the thesis challenges the taken-for-granted assumption in the literature that dealing with tensions as paradoxes necessitates temporal compromise, separation, or resolution. In the thesis, I argue that dealing with paradoxes is possible without separating. This is so because simultaneously engaging paradoxes allows organizations to tap their energy and opens up new possibilities. In this case, the thesis contributes to the literature by empirically studying architectural firms. This empirical study shows that dealing with paradoxes requires an intricate interplay between what I call paradoxical mindsets and practices—which comprise organization members’ emotions, cognition, and behaviors—and organizational conditions that embed such mindsets and practices into the organization’s system. Fourth, the thesis makes a point that not all tensions require an action move. Accordingly, the thesis establishes that dealing with paradoxes may not necessarily entail action moves but rather a space to engage in dialogue so as to connect opposites, move outside of them, and situate them in a new relationship. In doing so, the presence of tension is appreciated and complementarity is sought. That is, the challenge is to be able to embrace paradoxes and not to resolve them.The thesis concludes that although it is challenging to tap the power of paradoxes, it is not impossible. This thesis shows that this goal can be accomplished by accepting that paradoxes are normal, and then seeking to transcend them. In so doing, organizations can unleash the “slices of genius” in their members.
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| 6. |
- Gaim, Medhanie, 1983-, et al.
(författare)
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The role of space for a paradoxical way of thinking and doing : a study of idea work in architectural firms
- 2019
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Ingår i: Creativity and Innovation Management. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0963-1690 .- 1467-8691. ; 28:2, s. 265-281
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- It is well established that engaging paradoxes and the role of space are important aspects of idea work. Although the significance has been recognized, studies that focus on the intersection between space and paradox are scarce. Accordingly, this article explores the intersection and focuses on the role of space in idea work characterized by paradoxes. More specifically, the aim of this article is twofold. First, the article aims at identifying the spatial conditions that enable organization members to think and act paradoxically. Second, the article aims at exploring how spatial conditions evoke a paradoxical way of thinking and doing. Based on three Scandinavian architectural firms, and through abductive inference, four spatial conditions are identified and outlined. The conditions are conceptualized as organized chaos, boundary(less)ness, premeditated spontaneity, and (re)framing. From the results, and through the discussion, the notion of “generative space” is introduced to explain the overall importance of spatiality, as well as how the interrelatedness of the conditions facilitates a paradoxical way of thinking and doing in idea work.
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| 7. |
- Lundin, Rolf A, et al.
(författare)
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Projectification Revisited/Revised
- 2015
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The original notion of projectification related to organizations and project management was straightforward. Activities formerly regarded or handled as normal matters or routines were transformed to be projects with a specific task associated with each project and a focus on efficiency in terms of time lapse and resources. However, over time the notion has appeared in a wide set of narratives.In this paper we provide examples of narratives intending to pave the way for an academic discussion aiming towards theorizing projectification processes. We include evidence of a need to see beyond the simplistic notions and also allude to meta-theory.
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| 8. |
- Peleli, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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Renal denervation attenuates NADPH oxidase-mediated oxidative stress and hypertension in rats with hydronephrosis
- 2016
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Ingår i: American Journal of Physiology - Renal Physiology. - : American Physiological Society. - 0363-6127 .- 1522-1466 .- 1931-857X. ; 310:1, s. F43-F56
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Hydronephrosis is associated with development of salt-sensitive hypertension. Studies suggest that increased sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) and oxidative stress play important roles in renovascular hypertension. This study aimed to investigate the link between renal SNA and NADPH oxidase (NOX) regulation in the development of hypertension in rats with hydronephrosis. Hydronephrosis was induced by partial unilateral ureteral obstruction (PUUO) in young rats. Sham surgery or renal denervation was performed at the same time. Blood pressure was measured during normal, high and low salt diets. Renal excretion pattern, NOX activity and expression, as well as components of RAAS were characterized. On normal salt diet, PUUO rats had elevated blood pressure compared with controls (115±3 vs 87±1 mmHg), and displayed increased urine production and lower urine osmolality. Blood pressure change in response to salt loading (salt-sensitivity) was more pronounced in the PUUO group compared with controls (15±2 vs 5±1mmHg). Renal denervation in PUUO rats attenuated hypertension (97±3mmHg) and salt-sensitivity (5±1mmHg), and normalized renal excretion pattern, whereas the degree of renal fibrosis and inflammation was not changed. NOX activity and expression, as well as renin and AT1A receptor expression, were increased in renal cortex from PUUO rats, and normalized by denervation. Plasma sodium and potassium levels were elevated in PUUO rats and normalized after renal denervation. Denervation in PUUO rats was also associated with reduced NOX expression, superoxide production and fibrosis in the heart. This study emphasizes a link between renal nerves, NOX function, and development of hypertension.
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| 9. |
- Torroba, Ignacio, et al.
(författare)
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Loop Closure Detection Through Environmental Indicators In Underwater SLAM
- 2019
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- A key step in Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) with autonomous robots is the ability to recognize when the vehicle is revisiting an area. The recognition of salient features allows re-localization to a previously visited place, forming a so-called loop closure. Loop closures enable autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to reduce the unbounded navigation drift experienced when mapping unknown terrain. However, the scarcity of recognizable features in unstructured sub-sea environments makes disambiguation of places a challenging problem. In this work we study the application of water analysis sensors mounted on an AUV to construct descriptors of underwater environments. Since these sensors measure very different properties of the areas compared to terrain sensors, these descriptors could increase robustness against perceptual aliasing on place recognition and thus improve loop closure detection in a SLAM framework. We present a method to create and compare these spatial descriptors, test it with several data sets collected with an AUV in two different geographical locations and analyze their potential use for loop closure detection.
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| 10. |
- Wåhlin, Nils, et al.
(författare)
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Guest editorial
- 2015
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Ingår i: International Journal of Managing Projects in Business/Emerald. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1753-8378 .- 1753-8386. ; 8:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Culture is an important part of the society and economy. People tend to evaluate progress through the delivery and survival of cultural artifacts whether that is in tangible terms or through memory of spectacular events. In this way project management has much to offer society. Recent developments highlight how cultural issues in general become necessary for city and community development in order to maintain their attraction as livable places both for citizens and organizations. The variety of cultural activities range from performing and visual arts, music scenes and theaters, to concentrated efforts related to cultural festivals and large-scale Capital of Culture-years including multitudes of artistic expressions. Although it is widely acknowledged that culture matters to society, our understanding of how cultural projects are organized remain under-studied. This lack of knowledge is further emphasized when we consider how core cultural activities are related to creative industries and business development. A wide spectrum of artistic expressions is considered to stimulate co-creation and creativity between different spheres of activities, but the question is how. Despite the complexity of weaving together cultural activities of various types, projects stand out as a common denominator. Organizing by projects energize collaborative actions and provide arenas for creative exploration of the opportunities that lie ahead.The idea for a special issue on organizing cultural projects was triggered by a research project conducted at Umeå School of Business and Economics concerning the European Capital of Culture initiative in the City of Umeå, Sweden, which was implemented during 2014 (Wåhlin, 2012). We investigated how such a large-scale initiative was organized and planned before, during and after the event and how each phase of the implementation comprised challenges of various kinds. One prominent feature that stood out was the use of projects both when it came to assembling the program in its entirety as well as when it came to energizing small scale initiatives among cultural practitioners (Näsholm and Blomquist, 2015). The tendency of projectification really became obvious and made us aware of a more general trend of organizing cultural activities through projects all over Europe not least stimulated by the European Union (Lundinet al., 2015a). By stretching the boundaries of the normal routines every city seems to strive for turning the conditions of the creative city (Andersson, 2011) into action by empowering and stimulating citizens in co-creative projects. When considering such endeavors we mean that the notion of the projective city seems more appropriate and relevant (APROS/EGOS, 2015).
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| 11. |
- Wåhlin, Nils, et al.
(författare)
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Materializing urban design through boundary spaces
- 2015
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This paper involves an exploration of how architecture, landscape and construction spaces contribute in urban design by providing incentives for interaction and emergence of collaborative ventures during a large cultural development initiative. The paper contains an analysis of how spaces becomes boundary mechanisms facilitating the translation of a cultural vision. By elaborating on ‘boundary spaces’ to explain the materialization of an urban strategy we use a praxeological outlook as it is framed in the strategy-as-practice literature. When we more closely delves into how spaces can be set in motion and become generative platforms we use the notion of action nets. Methodologically, the paper investigates how such strivings are articulated, planned and implemented in a local context by using a narrative approach comprised by analyses of narrative infrastructures. By mediating different layers of interpretation, boundary spaces turn into artifacts exceeding strategic projections.
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| 12. |
- Wåhlin, Nils, 1955-
(författare)
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Organizing and designing affectice spaces in projective cities
- 2015
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- For 54% of the global population, living, working and playing takes place in urban areas, a proportion that is expected to increase to 66% by 2050. Considering the importance of cities, it is understandable that organization scholars have become interested in the way organizing is translated into ongoing actions and how these actions are assembled in the city context. This paper proposes a conceptual vocabulary allowing to incorporate analysis of the complexity of city management endeavours. Our group of researchers followed the materialization of a large cultural development initiative. In our conducted studies we refused to treat the city as a stable and separate entity; rather, we saw it as a meshwork connecting heterogeneous components without homogenizing. This multiplicity is especially obvious in the cultural arena on which various activities are meshed together, resulting in an overflow of cultural expressions. Such expressions are meant to entertain, provoke and instil reflexivity among the citizens, but also raise the question of how they can be managed. In the studied case; public, private and voluntary initiatives became assembled and repeatedly translated into what we call projectified practices. Such practices included creation of a temporary organization as a way to manage short-term activities, but also construction of affective spaces as a way to strategize long-term investments related to urban design as a whole. These practices opened for new collaborative efforts, but also resulted in new excluding mechanisms, typical for what can be called a projective city.
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| 13. |
- Wåhlin, Nils, 1955-
(författare)
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Projective cities : provoking and constraining overflow in urban development
- 2015
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- For 54% of the global population, living, working and playing takes place in urban areas, a proportion that is expected to increase to 66% 2050. Considering the importance of cities, organization scholars have become interested in the way organizing is translated into ongoing actions and how these actions are assembled in the city context. This paper describes urban development as a situated practice and proposes a conceptual vocabulary comprehensive enough to incorporate the complexity of such strategic endeavours as the performing of a 'city of culture'. Our group of researchers followed the materialization of a large developmental cultural initiative, attempting to understand how organizing were shaped in the context of this initiative. As a way of analysing ongoing actions, we refused to treat the city as a stable and separate entity; rather, we saw the city as a meshwork: heterogeneous assemblies emerging on its terrain. Such assemblies are open to multifarious ways of organizing which mixes initiatives in nets of action. This is certainly obvious in the cultural arena where various activities are meshed together comprising an overflow of cultural expressions. Such expressions entertain, provoke and instil reflexivity among the citizens but also raise the question of how these activities can be managed by organizational devices. In our case public, private and voluntary initiatives became assembled, in concert and contest, and were repeatedly translated into what we conceptualize as projectified practices. These practices included creation of a temporary organization as a way to timely manage short-term activities, but also projective elements as a way to strategize long-term investments related to urban development as a whole. Such practices opened for new collaborative efforts comprising multiple projects and multiple arenas, but also resulted in new excluding mechanisms significant to what can be called the projective city.
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| 14. |
- Wåhlin, Nils, 1955-
(författare)
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Projective Cities : Organizing Large Cultural Development Initiatives
- 2015
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Ingår i: Culture and Growth. - Sibiu : Lucian Blaga University Press. ; , s. 44-68
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Cities are the dynamic places within which living, working and playing is performed for over fifty per cent of the global population. In recent years, organization scholars who study cities have become interested in the way organizing is translated into ongoing actions and how these actions are assembled in the city context. This paper describes city development as a situated practice and proposes a conceptual vocabulary comprehensive enough to incorporate the complexity of such strategic endeavours as the performing of a ‘city of culture’. Our group of researchers followed the materialization of a large developmental-cultural initiative, attempting to understand how organizing and strategizing were shaped in the context of this initiative. As a way of analysing ongoing actions, we refused to treat the city as a stable and separate entity; rather, we saw the city as a meshwork: heterogeneous assemblies emerging on its terrain. Public and private initiatives worked in tandem, in concert and contest, and were repeatedly translated into projectified practices. Projectifying and projecting city development could thereby be described as an attempt to shape and form what we call projective cities. A projective city comprises multiple projects, multiple arenas and multiple forces – not always co-created in harmony with its citizens.
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| 15. |
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