For several years Uppsala University together with several companies has been involved in a WISENET project aimed at improving railway transport security. By placing a sensor system near the wheels of each wagon, the temperature of the bearings can be measured and transmitted to a collector placed centrally on the wagon. This in turn transmits the collected data to RFID receivers placed intermittently along the railway.As the signals are transmitted wirelessly, problems may occur as the antennas get dirty or coated with ice and snow. To determine the effects of these coatings, several tests were performed examining the reflection coefficient S11, the impedance Z11 and the efficiency eta of an antenna, and how they varied when various coatings were placed over the antenna. Examined coatings were ice, snow and water to determine the effects of weather, and various metal-based coatings: powdered iron both pure and partially oxidized, and iron ore granules.

Mitt examensarbete innefattar en fönsterutredning för radhusområdet Skeppsvägen i Bålsta. Fastighetsägare är Håbohus AB och examensarbetet har skrivits för Skanska Sverige AB. Arbetet har skrivits på plats i Bålsta där Skanska Direkt AB har eget kontor och erhåller idag totalentreprenaden för renovering av Skeppsvägen. Arbetets syfte är att klart och tydligt redovisa eventuell effekt och energibesparing vid byte av befintliga fönster och altandörrar.Undersökning av fönster och altandörrar har gjorts okulärt, med värmekamera och med fuktkvotsmätare. Vid den okulära besiktningen noterades färgsläpp på fönster.

External forces have significant impact on organisations. This study analyzes the implications of one type of external forces in aid-focused NGOs through two qualitative case studies where it is investigated if Sida?s reporting requirements have the intended effects: learning and control using a theoretical framework where it is recognised that the requirements may also result in dysfunctional behaviour: decoupling and colonisation. The study shows that when the demands are the result of institutional pressure rather than an ambition to generate learning and control, the demands tend to be unrealistic and the NGOs therefore decouple the formal fulfilment of the demands from the actual activities. It is argued that a partnership, which incorporates trust and dialogue, is a prerequisite, not only for learning, but also control.

External forces have significant impact on organisations. This study analyzes the implications of one type of external forces in aid-focused NGOs through two qualitative case studies where it is investigated if Sida?s reporting requirements have the intended effects: learning and control using a theoretical framework where it is recognised that the requirements may also result in dysfunctional behaviour: decoupling and colonisation. The study shows that when the demands are the result of institutional pressure rather than an ambition to generate learning and control, the demands tend to be unrealistic and the NGOs therefore decouple the formal fulfilment of the demands from the actual activities. It is argued that a partnership, which incorporates trust and dialogue, is a prerequisite, not only for learning, but also control.

With increased deployment ofintermittent renewable energy, such aswind and solar power, energy storagebecomes necessary to help reduceproduction peaks. Thermoelectric EnergyStorage is a method still in researchphase, which stores electricity in hotwater at a temperature of 120 ° C. Thisthesis aims to examine whether theThermoelectric Energy Storage would bepossible to integrate into existingpower generation such as a combined heatand power plant, and how the technologypotentially could function in theelectricity market. ThermoelectricEnergy Storage consists of a chargingprocess and a discharging process, bothoperating by the working fluid CO2. Toincrease the efficiency of theThermoelectric Energy Storage, wasteheat from the district heating networkis integrated.A model of the Thermoelectric EnergyStorage has been developed and it wascalculated by thermodynamic propertiesof the working fluid, CO2, in thevarious process steps.

For several years Uppsala University together with several companies has been involved in a WISENET project aimed at improving railway transport security. By placing a sensor system near the wheels of each wagon, the temperature of the bearings can be measured and transmitted to a collector placed centrally on the wagon. This in turn transmits the collected data to RFID receivers placed intermittently along the railway.As the signals are transmitted wirelessly, problems may occur as the antennas get dirty or coated with ice and snow. To determine the effects of these coatings, several tests were performed examining the reflection coefficient S11, the impedance Z11 and the efficiency eta of an antenna, and how they varied when various coatings were placed over the antenna. Examined coatings were ice, snow and water to determine the effects of weather, and various metal-based coatings: powdered iron both pure and partially oxidized, and iron ore granules.

Cuttings of Lonicera xylosteum L. were treated with willow extract to study the response in rooting capacity. The extracts were prepared by mixing chopped pieces of Salix x smithiana Willd. with water in a warring blender. The investigation comprised 2 types of salix extracts based on differences and dynamics between twigs in winter dormancy and twigs with new shoots. To explore the rooting response, three tests were made.

Denna studie syftar till att undersöka om den grundläggande synen på identiteter USA:s ledande politikers besitter går att utläsa i strategiskt viktiga tal med koppling till USA:s insats i Afghanistan. Syftet är också att undersöka vad dessa synsätt haft för inverkan på konfliktrelationerna i detta fall. Den besvarar därför vilken grundläggande syn George W. Bush och Barack Obama uppvisat gällande identiteter. Den berör också vilken påverkan dessa identitetssyner haft för USA:s konfliktinställning och hur det förklarar konfliktutvecklingen.För att besvara dessa frågeställningar presenteras ett teoretiskt ramverk bestående av Carol Bacchis teori om problemformuleringens betydelse samt de essentialistiska och konstruktivistiska perspektiven.

Bakgrund: Det senaste decenniet har allt fler stormarknader och lågprisbutiker öppnat vilket har lett till att de mindre livsmedelsbutikerna blivit utsatta för större konkurrens. Parallellt med att stormarknaderna tagit marknadsandelar i dagligvarubranschen har även större fokus riktats mot ökat samarbete och informationsdelning i försörjningskedjan, så kallat Supply Chain Management (SCM). Inom dagligvarubranschen har Efficient Consumer Response (ECR) utvecklas ur samma idéer som SCM men med fokus på livsmedel och dess försörjningskedjor. I grund och botten handlar ECR om företagens gemensamma arbete för att integrera verksamheter, minska kostnader samt producera största möjliga nytta för slutkonsumenten. Med tanke på den ökade konkurrensen i dagligvaruhandeln samt det faktum att det finns ont om tidigare forskning om små och medelstora företag (SME:s) relaterat till SCM/ECR, är det intressant att undersöka hur dessa företag påverkas av samarbetet.

Syftet med denna studie var att utforma och reliabilitetspröva enkätfrågor om äldre personers attityd till styrketräning. En enkät bestående av 47 frågor och påståenden delades ut till 31 äldre (60-81 år) personer som fick besvara enkäten vid två separata tillfällen. Varje enskild fråga analyserades för test-retestreliabilitet på tre olika sätt: 1/ Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) 2/ Absolut reliabilitet med 80% respektive 95% konfidensnivå samt 3/ Proportion of agreement (PA) med PA% och PA ±1%. Enligt gränsvärden som sattes för acceptabel reliabilitet hade 16 frågor ett värde på ICC <0,50, 11 frågor ett pa(%) <60%, 16 frågor ett värde &lt;80% på pa ±1%, nio frågor en absolut reliabilitet av =>2,0 vid 95% säkerhet och 12 frågor en absolut reliabilitet =>1,5 vid 80% säkerhet. Dessutom visade analysen av absolut reliabilitet att det för 2/3 av frågorna krävs två skalsteg för att påvisa en skillnad vid 95% säkerhet.

This essay is about democracy and how a democracy index can be used as a tool to illustratethe gap between reality and ideal. The purpose of this study can be expressed by two researchquestions: Does the Economist Intelligence Unit's (EIU) democracy index illustrate thedistance between reality and the ideal of democracy presented by Dahl? and Can the EIU'sdemocracy index be modified by a) internal adjustments and b) using the variables includedin World Economic Forum?s (WEF) equality index?By using a combination of theories (Dahl?s theory of democracy, Rawls theory of justice andchosen theories critical to liberal democracy) as an analytical framework the following twoquestions have been answered:1) Which of the variables included in the EIU's democracy index have the potential to capturethe level of political equality?2) Which of the variables included in the WEF?s equality index have the potential to capturethe degree of political equality?By using a quantitative method the study?s third and last question has been answered:3) How strong is the rank correlation between the EIU?s democracy index and the WEF?sequality index, that is; how strong is the rank correlation coefficient (rho)?The data presented by the WEF?s equality index indicate that women are systematicallydiscriminated against as a group. From a democratic perspective the EIU may need tomeasure inequalities at a group level in order to capture the lack of political equality betweenindividuals. By reformulating some of the EIU?s variables, by revising the EIU?s point systemand by using the variables included in the WEF's equality index to extend EIU?s democracyindex, the chances of capturing the gap between reality and the ideal of democracy presentedby Dahl would likely increase..

A new code for corporate governance was introduced for major companies in Sweden in July 2005. This act is to some degree a follower to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act that was introduced in the U.S.A. after the Enron scandal. The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the effect on the controller in response to the introduction of this new act. Three controllers in major Swedish companies was interviewed and asked if and how they had been affected by this new act.

The aim of this work is to develop new conceptual designs for the fairings that are situated between the fin and the rear fuselage on the new version of the JAS 39 Gripen aircraft, called the Gripen E/F. The designs presented should show a profit in the form of lower weight. To achieve weight loss, the possibilities of using other construction materials other than those which are available at Saab today were studied. Therefore, a material survey was carried out in which the market for modern construction materials was studied to get an idea of today?s level of technology.

Goodwill accounting has for a long time been, and with the implementation of IFRS in 2005, has become an even bigger issue. Critics mean that reporting of goodwill impairments is subject to discretion that can be used by the managers. We have applied a study made by Carlin and Finch (2009) on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm during 2006-2012. Our study contains 50 of the 255 public companies at 2012-12-31. The purpose of the study is to investigate if companies use an opportunistic discount rate when testing for impairment in goodwill and if the relation between goodwill and net profit before taxes, goodwill intensity, is an incentive for opportunism.

This essay is about democracy and how a democracy index can be used as a tool to illustratethe gap between reality and ideal. The purpose of this study can be expressed by two researchquestions: Does the Economist Intelligence Unit's (EIU) democracy index illustrate thedistance between reality and the ideal of democracy presented by Dahl? and Can the EIU'sdemocracy index be modified by a) internal adjustments and b) using the variables includedin World Economic Forum?s (WEF) equality index?By using a combination of theories (Dahl?s theory of democracy, Rawls theory of justice andchosen theories critical to liberal democracy) as an analytical framework the following twoquestions have been answered:1) Which of the variables included in the EIU's democracy index have the potential to capturethe level of political equality?2) Which of the variables included in the WEF?s equality index have the potential to capturethe degree of political equality?By using a quantitative method the study?s third and last question has been answered:3) How strong is the rank correlation between the EIU?s democracy index and the WEF?sequality index, that is; how strong is the rank correlation coefficient (rho)?The data presented by the WEF?s equality index indicate that women are systematicallydiscriminated against as a group. From a democratic perspective the EIU may need tomeasure inequalities at a group level in order to capture the lack of political equality betweenindividuals. By reformulating some of the EIU?s variables, by revising the EIU?s point systemand by using the variables included in the WEF's equality index to extend EIU?s democracyindex, the chances of capturing the gap between reality and the ideal of democracy presentedby Dahl would likely increase..