In studies of serum, in the early 1930s, from patients with pneumonia, a factor was found. It could agglutinate certain pneumococcal species. This factor, which later became known as C-reactive protein (CRP), increased sharply during the early and middle stages of the disease. CRP was identified as an acute phase protein and found especially in bacterial infections. CRP is synthesized in the liver by stimulation of interleukin 6 (IL-6), which is produced by the monocytes, and consists of five non-covalently bound subunits.The aim of this study was to compare two different analytical instruments (Vitros 5.1 FS Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics and QuikRead CRP Orion Diagnostica) for CRP analysis.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how the legal protection against sexual harassment at work functions, and where to draw the line. The study is limited to focus on the sexual harassment directed at women from men, because it usually occurs that way even though only a few report the incidents. The results are discussed from a gender perspective on how the distribution of power is between men and women as a way to explain sexual harassment.Sexual harassment is currently protected by the discrimination law and the EU principle of equal treatment for men and women. For a behavior to be considered as sexual harassment it has to be unwanted by the receiving party and the person practicing the harassments must be aware that the behavior is perceived as offensive. The behavior shall be of a sexual nature and contribute to a disadvantage for the victim in the form of a violation of that persons integrity.It is the victim that determines whether the behavior is perceived as sexual harassment or not, what one person believes is a friendly behavior may be perceived as offensive by another.

The purpose of this thesis is to study how femininity and masculinity is portraited in theeditorials of four Swedish lifestyle magazines; Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Moore and Slitz. Themain questions we based our study on are: What kind of relationship does the editor in chiefcreate with the intended reader? What conception of the world does the editor in chief createin the editorials? How does the editor in chief portray masculinity and femininity?In order to answer the questions above we performed a qualitative analysis of the editorials offour lifestyle magazines published during 2007. We used a discourse analysis with emphasison gender and how the editorials constructed masculinity and femininity and its stereotypicaltraits.Furthermore we based our results on a theory of the socially constructed gender. According tothis theory gender is constructed during our childhood and adolescense by the individuals andthe society surrounding us.

The project is a practical and theoretical test of IP telephony with Skype in order to form a base for a comparison between IP-Telephony with Skype and the Public Switched Telephony Network (PSTN). PSTN is the common standard that most of us use for telephony today. The objective for the study is to simplify the choice between PSTN and IP-Telephony for the Swedish private customer user group. The project is supposed to answer the following questions. - How easy is it to start using IP-telephony with Skype? - How is the quality of IP-telephony compared to PSTN? - Are all services provided by PSTN available and accessible using the IP-solution? - How are the usability and the availability of support with IP telephony? - Is IP-telephony a cheaper solution and in that case under which circumstances? Within the project a collection of practical and theoretical tests have been performed to be able to form an opinion on the IP-solution in the following areas, installation, function, quality, usability, costs, accessibility and security.

The purpose of this study was to understand what the care recipients considering as care quality in their long-term eldercare. Our intention has been to contribute a bit to the development of the care work. Previous studies show that user surveys are carried out regularly but there is very few studies that are based on care recipients own opinions and experiences. The main questions in the study have been to examine what is considered as good elder care from a user perspective. Even to understand the characteristics of a good meeting with the care staff and also examine how the elder care in Nybro municipality can improve.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om en BB-avdelning i Mellansverige uppfyllde UNICEF/WHO´s kriterier för en amningsvänlig vård, samt att jämföra resultaten med tidigare utvärderingar från åren 1996, 1997, 1998 och 2002. Syftet var också att undersöka vad som påverkat mammorna i beslutet att vilja amma. Amningsvänlig vård utgår från ?Tio steg till lyckad amning? och är en global amningsstrategi. Studien genomfördes i form av intervjuer med 40 nyförlösta mammor samt 22 intervjuer med personal.

The energy that the earth receives from the sun hourly has potential to cover a year?s energy demand in the world. Further, this type of energy is environmentally friendly, natural and free of cost. This report covers solar energy in an urban environment and consists of a case study of installations of photovoltaic cells in a part of the city of Stockholm. It is mainly the economic aspects that are covered but there is also a discussion about the practical consequences and the sustainability as a result of integration of solar energy in an urban environment. The aim of the study is to present results from economic calculations for utilization of solar energy in chosen buildings in Kungsholmen in Stockholm.

We have the tradition in Sweden to build villas and houses with a wooden framework. It has become natural for us because we have so much forest in our country. Building with wood has advantages, it is easy to process, but also disadvantages, as it is sensitive to moisture.Finland has long made use of the thermal blocks to build villas. It is a type of bricks that are a bit like a sandwich element, with a core of EPS and concrete on both sides of the core material. The concrete is hollow, so that after the walls has been bricked up you pour concrete into the hollow bricks.The issue of this report is to find out if concrete can be an alternative to wood as framework material in villas.

During football games neuromuscular fatigue occuring following eccentric movements such as sprint, jump and run that occur during games. To avoid injury, overtraining and performance decreases, it is important to know when players are recovered. The aim of the pilotstudy was to investigate physiological changes that occur during football matches and if they affect the recovery pattern after several games in professional football players. The method was divided into two sub-studies in which 12 professional footballers, in substudy 1 performed counter movement jump (CMJ) and drop jump (DJ) from 40 cm and fill out a recovery form for muscle soreness 36 hours before, 12-16 and 60-64 hours after 11 different competetive games. Blood samples were taken on the players in connection with one match to examine the activity of muscle enzyme creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) of the players.

The report describes an ecodesign thesis performed by the author at the ÅF EcoDesign Center. The basic idea of ecodesign is to develop products with a minimized environmental load, without neglecting other significant product aspects such as function and price. During the last couple of years the public interest in environmental friendly products has increased, which has made it possible for companies to make a profit from their investments in ecodesign. To meet the increasing market for ecodesign services ÅF started the ÅF EcoDesign Center, where the company has gathered all of their competence in ecodesign in order to help companies to become greener. The task was to develop a tool for an Eco Screening.

The project is a practical and theoretical test of IP telephony with Skype in order to form a base for a comparison between IP-Telephony with Skype and the Public Switched Telephony Network (PSTN). PSTN is the common standard that most of us use for telephony today. The objective for the study is to simplify the choice between PSTN and IP-Telephony for the Swedish private customer user group. The project is supposed to answer the following questions. - How easy is it to start using IP-telephony with Skype? - How is the quality of IP-telephony compared to PSTN? - Are all services provided by PSTN available and accessible using the IP-solution? - How are the usability and the availability of support with IP telephony? - Is IP-telephony a cheaper solution and in that case under which circumstances? Within the project a collection of practical and theoretical tests have been performed to be able to form an opinion on the IP-solution in the following areas, installation, function, quality, usability, costs, accessibility and security. In order to study usability, a test group of ten persons have been used to evaluate the usability of the system.

Australia is one of the largest producers and consumers of fossil fuels in the world. In a society where the effects of fossil fuels on global warming are constantly discussed, the nation?s production and consumption are subject to debate. Problems arise when negative aspects of consumption, such as emissions of greenhouse gases, are put in relation to an increased need of energy and economic growth. However, it is important to distinguish between different types of fossil fuels when it comes to their individual impact on the environment and to analyze the possibilities to increase the more environmental friendly ones.

The purpose of this study is to achieve an understanding of how a CE- marking process is conducted and to identify the relevant factors that must be considered in such a process. We have conducted our study at Lo?vhults Svets & Smide AB (Lo?vhults) in Skruv, Sma?land Sweden, which are manufacturing brackets for small covering constructions.To understand how a CE-marking process is conducted several documents and provisions have been reviewed to achieve a basic understanding and insight of the subject. It thus led to that guideline ETAG 015 were studied and the factors to be considered in the CE-marking of brackets were identified. Together with Jan-A?ke Johansson at Lo?vhults we agreed on four different brackets to investigate for a potential CE-marking.

This master thesis is commissioned by Permobil AB. The report describes thoroughly the developing process of an adjustable backrest for wheelchairs. The target group for the backrest are people that suffer from scoliosis or other spinal diseases. Because of insufficient pressure distribution usage of traditional backrests is not an option for them.The current solution has got a frame that is made by several adjustable links that is held in place by friction. Between the links velcro tapes are attached that is adjusts the depth.

Population growth leads to an increased need for new buildings, both residential and commercial. The regulations of structural design also changes with time. From a sustainable community perspective it may be profitable if existing buildings, that no longer performs their original function, are reconditioned. Knowledge and understanding of the surroundings of the residence must be available. Regulations regarding accessibility to all has increased.