The aim of this study is to try to explain the process using both an actor driven perspective as well as a structural perspective examining the reasons why the County Council of Värmland wants to merge with Region Västra Götaland. The answers to the following research questions are sought to shed light on the problem: What constrained the discretion of  the political actors in the choice of region to merge with? Which role did  different political actors play? Does the study provide Game Theory, from Rational Choice theory,  and Path Dependency, from Historic Institutionalism, a new perspective and strength especially  when bringing them together? The study is limited to two policy areas, health care and regional development policy. The structural background is drawn upon the Annual Report 2008 of the County Council Värmland, the Regional Development Program and Regional Transport Infrastructure Plan 2010-2021 by Region Värmland. The chronological order of decisions and events is drawn upon protocols from various regional political organs all linked to the municipal of Värmland and the correspondence between the officials of Värmland?s municipal and the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency of the State.

The focus of this thesis is a specific part of Swedish library policy called library plans. A library plan is a political document created with the purpose of constituting a platform for co-operation between different library systems within a municipality, e.g. through determining and analysing the needs for library activities within municipalities in Sweden.This thesis´ aim is to investigate whether library plans are, or can be used as, a tool for change and thereby increase legitimacy for public libraries in Sweden.We have examined aspects of library plans using theories from change management to determine whether these plans include tools focusing on conditions in organisations that could result in an improved and stronger position in the society for public library. Through the use of theories from new institutionalism we opted for an understanding of the interaction between the libraries and the context in which they are part of.Upon examining 23 library plans, we discovered similarities as well as diversities among them. From our study we have drawn the conclusion that it is important to analyse the specific needs of each different municipality and to consider these individual conditions and needs when developing and composing the library plan.

Vårat syfte är att undersöka vad konsumenterna har för inställning till Falu stadskärna? Vi har i vår uppsats använt oss av både kvalitativ och kvantitativ metod. I den kvalitativa metoden har vi utfört en observation över Falu stadskärna och den låg sedan till grund för vår kvantitativa metod, det vill säga vår enkät. Enkäten har utförts i Falu stadskärna och 200 respondenter deltog enkätintervju. Vi har även intervjuat personer som är väl insatta i Faluns centrumhandel, dels 2 butiksägare och även Faluns centrumledare.

Vårat syfte är att undersöka vad konsumenterna har för inställning till Falu stadskärna?Vi har i vår uppsats använt oss av både kvalitativ och kvantitativ metod. I den kvalitativa metoden har vi utfört en observation över Falu stadskärna och den låg sedan till grund för vår kvantitativa metod, det vill säga vår enkät. Enkäten har utförts i Falu stadskärna och 200 respondenter deltog enkätintervju. Vi har även intervjuat personer som är väl insatta i Faluns centrumhandel, dels 2 butiksägare och även Faluns centrumledare.

This report describes the development of a high-voltage connector at the request of Scandinova Systems AB in Uppsala. The development process is described from the making of a customer demand specification, to the making of drawings for the manufacturing of prototypes. Scandinova develops high-voltage modulators, hence the need for connectors that can handle very large power pulses. Their current connector has several weaknesses that may cause the connector to melt or catch fire. The development began with a number of studies that included the modulator structure and the current connector structure and functions.

Feminist initiative ? an idea analysis.On the fourth of April in the year 2005 Feministic initiative (Fi) was created, it was an main response to the slow changes in the Swedish society, which claimed to establish an equal society. Equality has become one of the major indicators of a contemporary democratic society. The Swedish government has long proclaimed to reach this goal, but even though Sweden currently lies in the front among the democratic societies, while you consider equality issues, especially between the sexes, there is still a lot that need to be done in the Swedish society. Feministic initiative began as an organization and established a political party and participated in the election during the year 2006, but failed to reach a place in the parliament.

Transboundary protected areas are a fairly recent concept that have been increasing in popularity and are increasingly being integrated into large international organizations? environmental policy making. This essay examines the phenomena through the cooperation between two national parks, Parc National des Pyrénées in France and Parque Nacional Ordesa Monte Perdido in Spain. The theoretical framework used in this essay is based upon border theory, focusing on the different factors that influence the behavior of the border dweller and how the different social conceptions of nature influence the way it is managed. The results in this study result from researching published and private documents from the national parks and interviews carried out with staff from the park administrations from both countries.

Wavecraft AB develops medical equipment for heating of organic synthesises. The heating is done with microwaves, which improves the process in both speed and accuracy compared to the more traditional methods where heating elements are used. This report discusses the developement of an automatic lid mechanism for one of Wavecraft's product prototypes. The company assumes that the final product will be integrated by customers into fully automated systems, and the upgrade from a manually to an automatically controlled lid is therefore an important step in the product's developement process.The first stage och the project was an idea generation process. The ideas generated here were organized into five different concepts of which the best one was selected through the use of a concept matrix.

Projektet avser att undersöka vilka fördelar ett mindre familjehus kan dra av ett kombinationssystem med bergvärme och en uteluftkonvektor vid byte till en mer effektiv bergvärmepump. Uteluftkonvektorn är ett komplement till det befintliga borrhålet som är underdimensionerat mot den nya bergvärmepumpen. Under sommarhalvåret drivs utekonvektorn för återhämtning av hålet. Vid de varmaste dagarna på året återladdas även borrhålet av utekonvektorn.I detta arbete undersöks hur den årliga värmefaktorn och temperaturen i borrhålet påverkas av en kombinationslösning jämfört med att endast använda energibrunnen. En analys gjordes på hur husets effektbehov varierar under ett år med hänsyn till svensk byggnorm under 1980-talet, då huset byggdes. Från denna information kunde de olika driftfallen undersökas och fastställas.

The following study is a discourse analysis of the concept of critical thinking within pre-school teacher education. It considers the following questions: how does the concept of critical thinking appear in policy documents, central to the pre-school teacher education, and which possible conceptions of critical thinking are conveyed by students and teachers active within the education. Additionally, the study seeks to discuss, as well as suggest a possible relation, between the findings of those two questions. In reviewing the material (consisting of five semi-structured interviews with students and teachers, and of a selection of policy documents central to the education), I argue the existence of a sort of project within the education, which presents critical thinking as a higher value. At the same time, I argue that the concept is not defined or concretized. This project, however, as I suggest while drawing upon Foucault?s ideas of discourse and government, involves a rather high degree of control.

Kvinnors underrepresentation är ett problem på flera sätt. För det första är det ett demokratiskt problem att hälften av ett lands befolkning är underrepresenterad då de politiska besluten inte speglar hela befolkningens erfarenheter och värderingar. För det andra handlar det om en resursfråga då kvinnliga erfarenheter och värderingar inte tas tillvara vid beslutsfattandet och viktig kunskap går till spillo. För det tredje handlar det om intressen då kvinnliga intressen prioriteras bort eftersom det inte finns någon som kan föra kvinnors talan. Enligt jämställdhetslagens §13 måste alla arbetsgivare upprätta en jämställdhetsplan som ska innehålla en översikt över de åtgärder som behövs på arbetsplatsen för att förbättra jämställdheten.

The Swedish Institute is a public agency promoting Swedish interest, national image and confidence around the world. This work attempts to investigate how communication and a process over time influences and effects public diplomacy. The analytic discussion is based on a single case study research of this Institute representing ideas in the international science field of public diplomacy. The theoretical ideas of public diplomacy are placed in a theoretical perspective of social constructivism. The method is qualitative, with excerpts taken from interviews, literature, newspapers, articles, state public reports and social media.

With higher prices for oil and increased focus on fossil fuels impact on the environment the heating sector are searching for alternative fuels. Pellets are a quite new product whose production has risen exponential in recent years. Today there are small-, medium-and large-scale users, where the large-scale consumers are the heating sector. The heating sector is mainly using oil to cover the increased demand during cold periods. The purpose of this study is to analyze the potential of pellets if it would replace thermal power plants oil and coal. The study will also analyze the economic impact a conversion would mean for a heating plant and if the pellet is a reasonable substitute. 2008 statistics from the Swedish district heating association were analyzed and a calculation was performed to determine how many tons of pellets is needed to replace coal and oil.

This report describes the planning and the accomplishment of the final diploma workat the study program Mechanical Engineering, Department of Engineering Sciences, Uppsala University. Two students carried out the diploma work at GE HealthcareHusbyborg in Uppsala.The aim of the diploma work was to develop and improve existing processequipment for 11C-radiochemistry in PET. The process equipment was to be dividedinto smaller independent modules to make it more flexible. Part of the existingprocess equipment is an oven that is supposed to perform a specific chemicalreaction. One of the main goals was to study and improve this oven.The work could be divided into three main phases: 1.Present concepts for one module, and interface between different modules.

This thesis tackles the subject concerning arguments as a conceptual basis forunderstanding the general strategy of the European Union Commission on issuesconcerning EU-harmonized environmental taxes, politically delicate and intergovernmentaldependent. The Commission's official proposals, communications and other relevant documents are subject to inquiry, where the theoretical bases are that harmonized environmental taxes in the EU is an issue conceived as supported by academic debate, and where the institutional arrangement in relation to an European-national dimension alongside the discursive context, allows meaningfulspace for arguments. The study makes a distinction between substantial (environmental cancerns in itself) and instrumental (other benefits, mostly economic ones) rationality as a foundation in various types of arguments.The study's main findings are that the Commission's official documents over the past 20 years, have been trying to keep a strong image of reason and knowledge based arguments for an EU-wide environmental tax reform. In particular, the types of arguments tend to appeal to the Member States by stressing the instrumental rationality in a European environmental tax reform, indicating the value of good arguments as a part of the Commission's main strategies. In sum, this may have further theoretical suggestions concerning questions of environmental and elimate change policies in a European context or other more general studies relying on theoretical assumptions of logics of argument, legitimacy or studies of motives behind action strategies in politically sensitive issues such as taxation at supranationallevel..