Vole populations in northern Scandinavia vary in cycles with peaks every third or fourth year as described by the National Environmental Monitoring Programme of small mammals (NEMP). Some vole species have declined in population numbers since the NEMP started in 1971, especially the grey-sided vole (Myodes rufocanus) which is nearly extinct in the forested region. Since small mammals are an important food source for several avian and mammalian predators, the decline in vole numbers is expected to have consequences for the whole food chain, especially if other vole species start to decline in numbers. This study tried to test the hypothesis that presence and abundance of M. rufocanus (a specialist species) and Myodes glareolus (a generalist species) can be predicted by patch size and connectivity of forest patches >60 years old with a minimum of 15% pine >100years old.

Benthic diatoms are used in Sweden for monitoring water quality in run-ning water; the method is also frequently used in other countries in Europe. One of the problems of the diatom method is the need for sedimentation of the fresh sample, to be able to decant the over standing water and add alco-hol as a preservations solution. To my knowledge, no results have been published about how long the settling time must be to ensure that the ben-thic diatoms really have settled down to avoid a loss of the diatoms when decanting the over standing water. The aim of my investigation was to improve the Swedish method where the benthic diatoms are used for water quality monitoring. I wanted to find out the appropriate time necessary to wait until all diatoms have settled down before decanting the over standing water. First, fresh benthic diatom samples were taken in the river Fyrisån and the lake Mälaren on different days. After arriving in the laboratory, I waited three different times (30 min, 60 and 180 min) for the diatoms to settle.

Under början av 1990-talet inledde Volvo Personvagnar i Olofström en process där övervakning av robotiserad MIG/MAG-svetsning var i fokus. Det ledde fram till ett forskningsprojekt som resulterade i att Stefan Adolfsson, Lunds tekniska högskola/Blekinge tekniska högskola, 1998 presenterade avhandlingen Automatic Quality Monitoring in GMA Welding using Signal Processing Methods [5]. I den presenterades ett SPRT-baserat övervakningskoncept för övervakning av MIG/MAG-svetsning med kort- och spraybåge. För att få fram ett kostnadseffektivt övervakningssystem uppkom tanken att använda vanliga PC-datorer som plattform. De erbjuder hög beräkningskapacitet till förhållandevis låg kostnad.

There is a need for correct and adequate pain assessment in horses. Methadone is used in pain management in horses but the full pharmacokinetic picture of methadone is not yet known. The aim of this pilot study was to develop a behaviour protocol and suggest a reliable recording method for use in a larger research project with an aim to potentially correlate behaviours to concentration of methadone in blood. In this study two coldblooded trotters were given methadone intravenously with doses of 0.1 mg/kg for horse 1 and 0.2 mg/kg for horse 2. The horses were videotaped pre and post methadone administration.

Sustainability work is something that is emphasized more and more. Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, is discussed and the question of how much responsibility companies should really take is frequently in the news. Companies tend to ask themselves how much responsibility they should take. CSR is a common concept of companies environmental and social work and a concept we tend to see here and there in our modern society. CSR includes companies? social responsibilities, both in terms of carbon footprint, working conditions, social responsibility and more.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine how venture capitalists implement ESG issues internally, as well as before the investment decision and during the investment period.Theoretical framework: The theoretical framework consists of previous studies that identify different driving forces behind the work of the ESG and present a number of different strategies for implementing ESG issues in the investment process.Method: This study aims at providing an understanding of a phenomenon which implies an inductive approach. This thesis applies a qualitative method of data collection in the form of semi-structured interviews. The sample in this study consists of venture capital companies that were members of the SVCA (Swedish Venture Capital Association) during the time of the survey, 2015.Result: The empirical findings in this thesis consist of a presentation of the data that was generated from eleven interviews conducted with eleven different investors in the venture capital sector.Conclusion: This study indicates a lack of written policies regarding internal work with ESG-issues which were offset by the application of the "unwritten" policies. Implementation of ESG-issues during the pre-investment phase was dominated by an avoidance of investments in sectors which lead to a negative impact on society. During the post-investment phase ESG-issues was integrated by monitoring the portfolio companies' operations.

Abstract Anna Degerman (2012) Uppföljning, utvärdering och utveckling i enlighet med förskolans reviderade läroplan (Lpfö-98 rev), Monitoring, evaluation and development in accordance to preschool curriculum, Specialpedagogik, Skolutveckling och ledarskap, Lärande och samhälle, Malmö högskola. Syfte: Föreliggande undersökning har syftet att undersöka hur fem förskolechefer i en sydsvensk kommun anser att det nya kapitlet ?Uppföljning, utvärdering och utveckling? i Lpfö-98 reviderad ska tolkas och hur det kommer att påverka kvalitetsarbetet inom respektive förskola samt att undersöka hur specialpedagogens roll i samband med utvärdering kan se ut. Teori: Studien utgår från ett kommunikativt och relationsinriktat perspektiv, Ahlberg (2001). Utvärdering ses som ett slags lärande och bör involvera förskolans alla aktörer. Metod: En kvalitativ intervjustudie utifrån en hermeneutisk ansats. Resultat: Förskolecheferna i undersökningen tydliggör att det kommer att ske vissa förändringar i förskolornas kvalitetsarbete på grund av det nya kapitlet ?Uppföljning, utvärdering och utveckling?. Förändringarna kommer att bli tydligast på avdelningsnivå där den största utmaningen tycks vara att uppnå en likvärdig kvalitet i arbetet med uppföljning, utvärdering och utveckling mellan avdelningarna.

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that manifests as an increased level of glucose in the blood. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 347 million people have diabetes worldwide. In year 2004, 3.4 million people died from the consequences of high blood glucose. In the Swedish population the prevalence of diabetes is estimated to 3-4 %, out of which 85-90% are Type 2. Among senior citizens a prevalence of diabetes is seen in Sweden up to 14 - 15%.

Introduction:Corporate limits becoming more diffuse due to the globalization taking place and requirements for analytical strategies are becoming more fundamental parts of organizations. Business Intelligence systems are hot and not without reason, today's world is spinning faster and with a flow of information that is constantly increasing Business Intelligence promises to introduce a support that will render a better decision-making, something that everyone wants.Problem Discussion:The local government business has today demands from the Swedish School-inspection to analyze and create adequate target images to the school and students meet curriculum goals and guidelines. Therefore, local government activities has increasingly begun to implement Business Intelligence tools, with the purpose to facilitate strategic and operational decisions were the result plays an increasing role in today's society.Purpose:This study evaluates how the analysis tool Qlikview fulfills the function of monitoring and controlling the improved student achievement in public schools.Method:The evaluation has been conducted qualitative interviews with staffs that have leadership positions in each municipality and management and possess a deep knowledge of the analysis tool and its processes.Conclusion:The evaluation has shown positive effects on the monitoring and control of student performance through better control of school operations..

Under början av 1990-talet inledde Volvo Personvagnar i Olofström en process där övervakning av robotiserad MIG/MAG-svetsning var i fokus. Det ledde fram till ett forskningsprojekt som resulterade i att Stefan Adolfsson, Lunds tekniska högskola/Blekinge tekniska högskola, 1998 presenterade avhandlingen Automatic Quality Monitoring in GMA Welding using Signal Processing Methods [5]. I den presenterades ett SPRT-baserat övervakningskoncept för övervakning av MIG/MAG-svetsning med kort- och spraybåge. För att få fram ett kostnadseffektivt övervakningssystem uppkom tanken att använda vanliga PC-datorer som plattform. De erbjuder hög beräkningskapacitet till förhållandevis låg kostnad. Examensarbetets mål är att implementera det SPRT-baserade övervakningskonceptet i LabVIEW på en PC och utvärdera realtidsegenskaperna.

Bakgrund: Pupillövervakning är en del i den neurologiska bedömningen med hög relevans för neurokirurgiska intensivvårdspatienter. Den finns även beskriven som del i smärt- och sederingsövervakning. Syfte: Att undersöka hur specialistsjuksköterskor inom neurokirurgisk intensivvård använder sig av pupillövervakning i sitt arbete. Metod: Studien utfördes som en semistrukturerad intervjustudie. Sex sjuksköterskor verksamma inom neurokirurgisk intensivvård intervjuades.

Episodic gaming is a relatively new phenomenon, that hasn?t been as extensively explored as other areas in game research. In this paper we research how episodic narratives and gameplay engage players compared to regular continuous storytelling. By exploring this we get a better understanding of how to design games that captivate players to the point of them wanting to play the next episode.  A user study is conducted where ten players play two episodes each of an episodic game. We apply observations and interviews to capture a large amount of empirical data.

Today's fierce competition means that companies constantly must develop their business and internal processes. Focus on processes and continuous improvement is something that characterizes Lean Production which ICA logistics are applying with their concept Leading Logistics. Standardized routines for handling damaged gods were insufficient at the ICA distribution center in Kungälv. Handling and registration of damaged gods were not performed uniformly, resulting in problems with controlling and monitoring the process.The purpose of this thesis was to analyze and make recommendations how the process of internal handling of damaged gods could be improved. Therefore a comprehensive understanding was needed of the entire material flow through the warehouse and important quality aspects such as product safety and delivery reliability.The methods used are literature reviews, interviews and observations to produce a comprehensive process mapping of the current situation at the distribution center.

If Sweden want to be able to compete internationally with its production capacity,it is important to work actively with production development and production ofresource-and time-efficient. This report is a bachelor thesis of 15 hp conducted atthe University of Halmstad. Using the principles of continuous improvement andLean Production, the author developed a concept for HAGS Aneby AB to changeto the customer order driven assembly of spring toys.First of all, the theories of Lean Production, logistics and ergonomics are used tobuild and present a theoretical framework for further examination. Then, toachieve the target, the current assembly process is analyzed to develop some firstconceptual ideas for improvement. In order to develop the best advice, theconcepts are evaluated against the company?s requirementsThe developed action plan gives recommendations on how the company shouldrestructure their assembly process and the organization of the related departmentin order to produce spring toys in a more time efficient and lean way.

Title:Balanced scorecard in the public sector - the balancing of conflicting objectives.Level:Final assignment for Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.Authors:Erika Sundström and Lisette Lundstedt.Tutor:Stig Sörling and Tomas Källquist.Date:2014-05-20.Purpose:The purpose of our study, from a management perspective, is to increase understanding of how the public sector can develop and use the balanced scorecard to balance conflicting objectives.Method:Hermeneutic approach, Literature review, Qualitative case study.Result and conclusion:Under certain conditions, the balanced scorecard can help to deal with conflicting objectives in a public organization. Stakeholders and objectives are important factors for a balanced control. This is due to the fact that many different stakeholders often leads to the creation of conflicting objectives. Numerous and unclear objectives lead to both conflict and uncertainty. The organization?s structure and culture are other factors that also influence.