The largest project at the AICG lab at Linköping University, Cognitive models for virtual characters, focuses on creating an agent architecture for intelligent, virtual characters. The goal is to create an agent that acts naturally and gives a realistic user experience. The purpose of this thesis is to develop and implement an appropriate learning model that fits the existing agent architecture using an agile project methodology. The model developed can be seen as an online unsupervised reinforcement learning model that enhances experiences through reward. The model is based on Maes model where new effects are created depending on whether the agent is fulfilling its goals or not.The model we have developed is based on constant monitoring of the system.

Klimatologiska förändringar har en direkt påverkan på glaciologiska system genom att förändra glaciärers termiska struktur. Subarktiska Skandinavien har upplevt en klimatologisk uppvärmning sedan 1980-talet och Tarfaladalen har under samma period uppvisat en ökad vintertemperatur med 1°C. Ökade vintertemperaturer medför förändringar i glaciärers temperaturfördelning, då högre temperaturer ger en längre smältsäsong. Storglaciären i Kebnekaisemassivet i svenska Lappland har en polytermal temperaturfördelning med ett kallt ytskikt i ablationsområdet. Det kalla ytskiktet har förtunnats med 22% sedan slutet av 1980-talet och då ingen ökad sommarablation har kunnat konstateras kan den ökade vintertemperaturen vara en indikator för att isyttemperaturen är styrande för det kalla ytskiktets bevarande.

All over the world the urbanisation increases at the expense of green areas. Many plants and animals are endangered today because their habitats gets smaller or disappear. The green areas that are left in city centres and suburbs are often small and surrounded by roads and buildings. Despite this, several studies have shown that these small green areas may house large biological diversity.This project aims to study the biological diversity in small green patches in residential areas. The study has been carried out in Råsunda in Solna municipality (Stockholm county) during the period May?July 2006.Three equivalent areas (5000?10 000 m2) with quite many old oaks were chosen for the study and inventoried for birds and saproxylic insects.

All over the world the urbanisation increases at the expense of green areas. Many plants and animals are endangered today because their habitats gets smaller or disappear. The green areas that are left in city centres and suburbs are often small and surrounded by roads and buildings. Despite this, several studies have shown that these small green areas may house large biological diversity.This project aims to study the biological diversity in small green patches in residential areas. The study has been carried out in Råsunda in Solna municipality (Stockholm county) during the period May?July 2006.Three equivalent areas (5000?10 000 m2) with quite many old oaks were chosen for the study and inventoried for birds and saproxylic insects.

Share repurchases in Sweden has since legalization in 2000 gained momentum. Similar to other corporate events, there are studies that examine whether this affects the share price performance. With studies in the U.S. that measured excess returns of approximately 3,5 percent on the announcement day; Swedish buybacks, holding a tighter regulation is of interest to study. The Stockholm Stock Exchange regulation regarding reporting is also similar to the Stock Exchange in Hong Kong.

European Union has made a new decision that all new built houses by 2020 shallbe near-zero energy houses. Boverket?s definition of near-zero energy housesintends buildings with good energy performance in which a proportion of theamount of energy that must be added to the building is made of renewable energy.Passive House is a set of requirements from FEBY designed to build energyefficient buildings. This is achieved by reducing loss of heat through the buildingenvelope and to take advantage of the passive heat from solar radiation,installation and heat sources like people living in the house.This project has been made with help of Anebyhus and one of their model houseshave been examined from the report?s issues, including Anebyhus?s energyperformance, requirements for the manufacturing and assembly, how theenvelope must be improved to fulfill the requirements for the Passive House andwhat energy calculation programs are available on the market.The report aims to provide solutions for energy efficient houses that are adaptedfor production of house building.Two visits to Anebyhus has been done to study their manufacture and assemblyof building elements.

Increased resource efficiency in an energy system could result in large economic and environmental benefits. Tekniska verken i Linköping AB (Tekniska verken) is responsible for the district heating network in Linköping. Their vision is to create the world?s most resource efficient region. An important step towards this vision is more efficient usage of produced heat, something which could be achieved through integration of a seasonal heat storage in the energy system.

This thesis has been made on behalf of SCA Skog AB to assess the need of boron in Swedishforest fertilization. Boron has been added to Swedish forest fertilizers since the beginning of the1980s. This makes the fertilizers more expensive and therefore has the necessity of boron inSwedish forest fertilization been raised.The Swedish bedrock generally contains small amounts of boron. The boron in the bedrock istightly bound to the mineral tourmaline and mostly unavailable for plants. This leads to that thecontribution of boron to the soil from weathering is very low besides soils with marinesediments.

This is a 15 hp (10 p) thesis in biology at the programme for Horticulture Management at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp. In this literature study we have processed, reviewed and arranged facts and research, to make it more available for those who want to know more about establishment or cultivation of mosses. Our client is Fredriksdal?s Museums and Gardens in Helsingborg who are planning to establish a moss garden. The information is meant to be used by Fredriksdal and other similar facilities.

Jordbruket står idag inför utmaningen att öka produktionen av biogas-substrat utan att öka konkurrensen om jordbruksareal för foder- och livsmedelsproduktion. Fånggrödor odlas idag för att reducera jordbrukets kväveläckage till vattendrag. Genom litteraturstudie, intervjuer samt fältförsök undersöktes potentialen för att använda fånggrödor som biogas-substrat (då som mellangrödor), samt huruvida biogaspotentialen förhöjdes genom en mindre kvävegiva i samband med sådden av mellangrödan. Från tidigare publicerad litteratur kunde ses att endast en del utav det upptagna kvävet i fånggrödan återfanns i markprofilen till nästkommande gröda. De två huvudsakliga källorna till kväveförluster var lustgasavgång samt läckage av lättomsättbart kväve över vintern, med varierande nivåer på kväve-förluster beroende på lokal och gröda.

På grund av ökad urbanisering och exploatering av grönområden i stadsnära miljöer fragmenteras och reduceras arters habitat vilket bland annat ligger till grund för den globalt minskade biologiska mångfalden. För att stärka och förbättra arters möjlighet till spridning i landskapet, och därmed säkra en hög biologisk mångfald, efterfrågas insamling av data och utveckling av nya metoder för att identifiera ekologiska kärnområden och för att analysera habitatnätverk. Syftet med den här studien är därför att 1) kartera och sammanställa biotoper i en biotopdatabas utifrån tolkning av infraröda flygbilder med digital stereofotogrammetri, 2) undersöka olika metoder att samla in data med hjälp av laser- och höjddata, och 3) att tillämpa landskapsekologisk analys på underlag i biotopkarteringen.Resultatet validerar att tolkning av infraröda flygbilder med digital stereofotogrammetri är en utmärkt källa för att kartera biotoper som medför en tolkningsnoggrannhet på 86 %. Valideringen av kateringen genomfördes med fältkontroller som utvärderades i felmatriser. En metod har även undersökts baserat på tidigare studier för att uppskatta busk- och krontäckning med hjälp av laserdata, men eftersom det saknas validering av resultatet bör den användas som en indikator för att visuellt uppskatta busk- och krontäckning i dagsläget.

The use of the robust and durable woody ground Covers is increasing, not in the least in public places. The group includes low shrubs of different height that effectively build low, tight vegetation that Covers the ground. Despite all the good qualities the knowledge about them is quite low and there are ideas about them of being dull. The woody ground Covers manage to struggle against weeds effectively by competing for nourishment and water, but above all, by the canopy of the ground Covers that prevent the weeds from getting enough light. In that way the woody groundCovers can effectively compete with the annual weeds.

Hemp is an annual energy crop that fits very well in Swedish crop rotations. It is an interesting crop with many benefits, for example its ability to establish a large quantity of biomass in one year. Hemp is easy to grow and out-competes unwanted weeds through its aggressive growth pattern without the need for pesticides. Interest in growing hemp and other energy crops is currently decreasing, apparently because of high grain prices. These high prices give a higher net profit that we believe could partly Cover the cost of hemp cultivation, while the hemp in turn would improve the crop rotation and thus repay its debts in the form of increased yields of other crops. The great disadvantage of hemp is the lack of knowledge about spring harvest of the crop.

In this essay a model of a potential illegal hunter?s decision-making is created and presented in order to provide an overview of important parts of the complexities associated with the current Swedish predator policy. A comparison is made between a livestock owner?s economic incentives, and the expected costs faced by the potentially caught lawbreaker. In accordance with economic theory the benefits and costs of illegal hunting are compared and thus the optimal choice is determined where marginal costs and benefits are equal.

Abstract This Concept Analysis according to Walker & Avant (1995) studies the concept of uncertainty in the nursing context. It consists of four parts where uncertainty in general have been encircled in a semantic analysis (part one) and a qualitative content analysis consisting of an questionnaire, distributed to the staff members at one nursing and medicine institution, with an open question about the meaning of uncertainty (part two). The third part is a literature study of the nursing context to find out how uncertainty is described (part three). Part four is the actual concept analysis based on the three first parts. Uncertainty in the nursing context is an individual conscious experience witch is changeable and impressionable. It is chained together with its antecendents and consequences.