Water related problems are highlighted as a challenge to sustainable development and the topic of forests and water is gaining increased attention worldwide. Governing forest and water is a complex issue, as the interactions are affected by policies and actors from multiple levels and sectors. In Sweden, forests cover much of the land and forestry is an important land-use, inevitably impacting the water in the landscape. This study aims to understand and explain the existing governance framework around forestry and water in Sweden. Based on the Policy Arrangement Approach, the study?s research questions focused on the actors involved, the formal and informal rules, the resources and power structures and the discourses related to forestry and water in Sweden.

Previous studies have shown that there is a relationship between voluntary disclosure and analysts' forecast accuracy. However, there has been no research conducted specifically on bridges. Bridges contain information on how components such as price, volume, foreign exchange rates and acquisitions have impacted the financial performance between two periods. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate the usage of bridges in quarterly financial information of companies listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. We provide a descriptive mapping of bridges and find that 30 out of 268 companies are presenting bridges as a part of their voluntary disclosures, with large firms being the most frequent users.

SummaryAimThe study examines a theoretical model developed to capture cyclist´s perceptions of the route environment. The survey focuses on if level two and three in the theoretical model captures what it´s intended to do. More specific we ask ourselves how the three appraisals (unsafe/safe by traffic reasons, stimulating/inhibiting route environment, unsafe/safe by other reasons) in the model´s second level relates among themselves and if these three appraisals can capture the degree of environmental well-being/unwell-being in the model´s third level. The questions were: Do the three appraisals differ among themselves? What is the difference/-s in such cases? And, is there a correlation between any of the three appraisals and environmental unwell-being/well-being? What is the correlation in such case? MethodThe gathering of data was done through questionnaires.

AbstractSierra Leone is a very poor country in Africa. Botswana is another country, that has a similar history and the same deposit; diamonds. Botswana has reached economic growth and democracy and Sierra Leone has not.The purpose with this study is to explain why Botswana is more democratic and has reached a better result economic than Sierra Leone.The questions in this study are:What explains the democratic and the economic results in Sierra Leone and Botswana?* Dahl?s institutions that furthers a polyarchy?* Gunnarsson?s and Rojas? institutional explanations?* Diamond?s and Morlino?s ?rule of law??* Other explanations or a combination of the above-mentioned explanations?The method that has been used in this study is a comparative case study with a qualitative contents analysis. The result is that it?s hard to say that one explanation is the right one.

This Masters thesis work describes a comparison between two different methods for estimation of the down channel (base station to mobile subscriber) in Wide-band Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA). The first estimation method, Optimal Feed-forward Channel Estimation (OFCE), is a conventional method that bases the estimates on data that is known to both sender and receiver, so called pilots. The second method, Decision Directed Channel Estimation (DDCE), is an elaboration of OFCE. It also uses user data for estimation. Simulations show that DDCE, in comparison to OFCE, does not attain an improvement in signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) for high bit error rates (BER).

This thesis aims to investigate the information effects of fair value accounting in Nordic real estate companies. As a consequence of the mandatory IFRS adoption in the European Union in 2005, listed Nordic companies are allowed to recognize investment property at fair value in accordance with IAS 40. Theory suggests that fair value accounting should lower information asymmetry. Therefore, this study aims to examine correlation between fair value accounting of investment property and information asymmetry on the stock market. To investigate this, we use bid-ask spread as a proxy for information asymmetry and examine Nordic real estate companies before and after the implementation of IFRS.

In printed text, sound is a somewhat forgotten aspect. The recitation of text is vital in areas like poetry and oratory, but still has no distinct technique of being communicated. Emphasis of a word might be expressed through italics, but no canonic character set or system for vocal delivery of texts exists. With this essay we are creating a foundation for a development of such a character set or system. By studying existing visualisations of sound and comparing these with semiotic and perception-based theories we obtain useful insights for a prospective system for visualisations of vocal sounds.We conclude that the aspects of sound one wants to visualise must be carefully defined since the viewer cannot process infinite amounts of information.

Fusarium graminearum is one of the most important pathogens on cereals and causes major crop losses around the world. The most cultivated cereal in Sweden is winter wheat. F. graminearum produces both sexual and asexual spores for dispersal. Multiple factors affect the production of these spores.

AbstractThe recruiting of lay judges to the district courts is managed by the political parties. Despite repeated efforts the parties do not succeed in recruiting lay judges that reflect the structure of the inhabitants. Why not? This is the fundamental issue of this essay.This study is a multiple case study of two parties with different success in their recruiting work. The purpose is to study the process of nomination regarding lay judges at the district courts, at the latest election (2006).

Dark Tourism is a relatively new concept, but as a phenomenon it has existed for centuries in the form of pilgrimages and gladiator games. The term includes visits to places associated with death and disaster, and has in more recent years become a highlighted tourist niche. This paper addresses the phenomenon of Dark Tourism and the reasons behind a visit to such an attraction. To find out the motive behind people's visits, interviews were conducted with respondents who have previously visited one or more Dark Tourism sites. A total of 32 people were interviewed about what influenced them to go to such a macabre place.

Vi har varit en grupp på fyra studenter som på tio veckors tid skall ha utvecklat några applikationer, samt ett bibliotek för att kunna hantera diverse gester till ett system som kan hantera flera användare samtidigt. Vi har fått i uppdrag av Luleå Tekniska Universitet att prova denna relativt nya teknik och se vad den kan ha för kapacitet och användningsområden i framtiden. Min uppgift i arbetet var att hjälpa till att utveckla ett bibliotek för att hantera olika gester som en användare kan tänkas göra. I detta examensarbete så berättar jag om hur man skall kunna upptäcka komplexa gester i ett system där flera användare kan påverka samtidigt. Jag kommer med denna rapport att ta upp de problem jag har haft, vilka lösningar jag har kommit fram till samt vad jag ser på möjliga framtida tillägg till biblioteket.

That we have a great need to be encouraged is coated in a variety of motivational theories. Despite our awareness of this need, studies show that Swedish employees feel a lack of encouragement in the workplace. The purpose of this report is to examine the factors that affect our ability to give others encouragement.Empirical data were collected through questionnaires from 91 people in the workplace. Correlation between the experience of giving and receiving encouragement, self-image, outlook on mankind and stress in the workplace are examined using a linear Multiple Regression Analysis. Correlation between the experience of giving and receiving encouragement is examined using Pearsons test of correlation.The results show that there is no significant correlation between the experience of giving and receiving encouragement, self-image, outlook on mankind and stress.

Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease that mainly strikes young people in working age, twice as many women than men falls ill. Approximately 85 % suffers from MS-related fatigue that divides itself from common fatigue in that way that it is persistent and does not disappear in spite of sleep. This fatigue is experienced of many as one of the most difficult symptoms, which has considerable impact on the everyday life. Aim: The aim with the study was to elucidate how MS-related fatigue was experienced by persons with MS. Method: The study has been implemented as a literature study through systematic review of scientific articles.

This master thesis states the following questions: Is it easy or difficult to retrive information from a mobile phone manual? How can the search process be described among user for a mobile phone manual? What similarities and differeces can be identified between users? Arhe there any variables that affect search performance such as reading skills or technical domain knowledge? Eight mobile phone users participated in an empirical observation and the scope was to find information in a paper version of a mobile phone manual according to given tasks. The results shows that some users has problems to retrieve information due to that the correct page in the mobile phone manual could not be located. The results show that the user is using several search strategies, for example the table of contents and the index, when trying to locate information. The results also revel that the user initiates multiple search steps before the correct information can be located.

This Masters thesis work describes a comparison between two different methods for estimation of the down channel (base station to mobile subscriber) in Wide-band Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA). The first estimation method, Optimal Feed-forward Channel Estimation (OFCE), is a conventional method that bases the estimates on data that is known to both sender and receiver, so called pilots. The second method, Decision Directed Channel Estimation (DDCE), is an elaboration of OFCE. It also uses user data for estimation. Simulations show that DDCE, in comparison to OFCE, does not attain an improvement in signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) for high bit error rates (BER).