The aim of this study was to investigate the importance of nature for the health and well-being of young adults. A qualitative method was used and data was collected through semi-structured interviews with eleven people from the ages of 15-20. The interviews were transcribed with the results of the study revealing that nearly everyone felt calm and relaxed while they were in a natural environment. The most common motivation to be outdoors was socializing with friends, performing any kind of sport and/or taking walks. Reasons to stay indoors were rainy, cold weather, lack of time, and in some cases circumstances related to their surroundings, such as where they live.

The main purpose of this Master thesis is to illuminate the understanding of local politicians regarding the public libraries and the librarians. We argue that the local politicians´ opinions regarding public libraries and librarians influence the way they act and react in their roles as politicians.In order to achieve the aim of this thesis we focused on following questions:What are the opinions of the politicians:- regarding themselves in relation to the public library?- concerning public libraries in general and its functions especially in the municipalities of their own?- concerning the librarians and their work in a public function?What are the conclusions to be drawn regarding the politicians´ interest and commitment to public libraries in the politic daily-life of the municipalities? Our empiric material consists of qualitative interviews with six politicians elected in two municipalities in the interior of Västerbotten, a northern sparsely populated district. In order to distinguish the various opinions that emerge from the material, we apply a phenomenographic approach. The analysis result we present in three conceivable categories in order to express the different opinions.In general our study points at a positive and favourable attitude to the public library, and all the respondents assume that the municipality ought to offer this service.

The goal of the society to increase the proportion of renewable energy has led to an increased demand of bioenergy e.g. forest biomass. However, there are concerns that removal of biomass will lead to decreased base cation concentrations in the soils and acidification of streams. In order to find in which types of landscape removal of branches and tops could have such negative effects, this study aims to analyse the relations between pH-sensitivity and landscape variables in the Bothnia Bay water district. GIS and digital geographical data were used to analyse the landscape in subcatchments.

A large problem in our society is the diseases that inactivity brings to the population. The lifestyle you have in adolescence is often the same that you have in adulthood. Because of this, prevention should start in youth. The aim of this study was to investigate the experience that youths have of physical education and it?s influence in their spare-time activities.

This essay discusses the development of swords in the southern region of Sweden, Skåne. It attempts to locate the areas in Europe where the swords were first made and, in doing so, trace the communication routes by which people traveled. The essay deals with aperiod of a few hundred years, from the late eighth century to sometime around 1300. In that sense, it is therefore also a time study tracing the cultural changes and developments in Skåne during the era of Christianization. Does the development of swords follow the overall changes in society, from an isolated pagan district to a Catholic European community, or not? In answering this question, eight swords were selected and put under closer observation.

In Sweden you will find the coot chiefly in the southern parts. The species winters in the southern part of the Baltic Sea and along the coasts of northern Europe. The number of coots is heavily decreased by harsh winters. The population of the coots in Sweden is estimated to 20 000 to 30 000 pairs. The region of Dalarna is the random zone for the breeding of coots in Sweden .

This report is the result of a thesis work done at the Department of Engineering Sciences, Uppsala University, and includes 15 ECTS points. The work has been performed at Företag A, a company specializing in electronics whose major product has become a sophisticated tool used by authorities across northern Europe. Företag A has initiated a quality management system according to the criteria set by ISO 9001. Following demands from customers, Company A has now decided to also start working towards a certification according to SS-EN ISO 9001:2008, this work is the foundation for the thesis work. The thesis work has been limited to the production process and the aim has been to enable this process to be certified according to ISO 9001:2008. The work has been performed by analyzing the existing quality management system and the requirements for each process included, whereby the gap between the current and the target state has been mapped. Suggestions have then been made on how this gap can be filled, some of these suggestions have also been carried out during the thesis work. The conclusions drawn are that quality management does not have to be complicated, but quickly becomes so when the complexity of the processes increases.

AbstractAnna Celander: Nicolaus Adam Strungks  två sonator ur Dübensamlingen ? Biografi ? analys ? edition. Uppsala Universitet: Institutionen för Musikvetenskap, uppsats för 60p. 2007The aim of this essay is to contribute to the knowledge of the instrumental music of the Düben Collection in Uppsala, by presenting two sonatas by a rather unknown composer, Nicolaus Adam Strungk. A great deal of the music in the Düben collection comes from Nothern Germany so one purpose has also been to investigate if even Strungk's sonatas have stylistic influenses from that region.

The Sand Catcher                                                       The thesis project The Sand Catcher investigates the encounter between permanent structures and an ever-changing landscape. The migrating sand dune Råbjerg Mile in northern Denmark is 40 meters high and moves more than 15 meters every year. By introducing a solid structure on the site, the fast movement of the sand dune is emphasised and thereby our view of time and space.Through intuitively building models with varied openings and densities I investigated how architectural elements react with sand. From these experiments a series of spatial features and effects were found, generated from the meeting with the sand.The Sand Catcher is a solid and permanent structure. The sand is the liquid element that generates new spaces, circulations and experiences.

Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) is not considered to be a native species to Swedish forests. It´s origin is the pacific coast of Northern America, an area that is dominated by a coastal climate which makes it likely to believe that it would be well suited for growing in the south-west of Sweden. This study aims to investigate the gain in production that can be reached by growing sitka spruce instead of Norway spruce (Picea abies) in the county of Halland. A regression model based on data from forest experiments was produced to explain the gain in production. This model was based on elevation and annual precipitation. The model was then used to create a map layer in arcGIS that shows the gain of volume in comparison to Norway spruce in percent. An analysis was carried out to find what share of the forestland in Halland county that fell into four different classes of production gain.

This study explores the selection processes regarding fictional literature in English as asecond language education. The aim is to illustrate the relationship between the knowledgeteachers seek to pass on to their students and how the governing documents and the Westernliterary canon affect which literature that is chosen. The study uses qualitative interviews withsix teachers from different gymnasial schools in Northern Sweden. The results show thatteachers use literature as a tool for teaching grammar, lexicon, language structure and storytellingskills. In the more advanced English courses, the teachers prefer to exert more controlover which literature is read, mainly due to the fact that the governing documents specificallyrequire a presence of older, culturally established works.

The Sand Catcher                                                       The thesis project The Sand Catcher investigates the encounter between permanent structures and an ever-changing landscape. The migrating sand dune Råbjerg Mile in northern Denmark is 40 meters high and moves more than 15 meters every year. By introducing a solid structure on the site, the fast movement of the sand dune is emphasised and thereby our view of time and space.Through intuitively building models with varied openings and densities I investigated how architectural elements react with sand. From these experiments a series of spatial features and effects were found, generated from the meeting with the sand.The Sand Catcher is a solid and permanent structure. The sand is the liquid element that generates new spaces, circulations and experiences.

This study illuminates chosen parts of the present opportunities, in the Western World, for parents and children to choose which school the child will attend (freedom of choice), along with possible consequences that may follow. My research questions are: 1) Do tendencies show that freedom of choice leads to increased segregation, and if that is the case, how is it manifested and does it matter? 2) What relations between the student composition of schools and teachers' expectations and attitudes toward students are there? 3) Do the results from previous studies match with the result from my interviews? The methods used for answering the questions are literature studies and interviews made with six teachers who are working in two upper secondary schools in the northern part of Sweden, i.e. three from each school.The result shows that freedom of choice, regarding schools, seems to lead to student compositions that contribute to increased segregation in societies. It leads to more homogenous student compositions, in the form of ethnicity and social class, in schools in general, with consequences like different expectations and attitudes among teachers depending on the status of the composition.

The purpose of this study was to increase the level of knowledge in the field of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for wind power. The study includes six wind power farms in the County of Västerbotten in northern Sweden. The main questions were: What are the real dimensions of roadways and land claims for both roads and wind power turbines? How do those dimensions correlate with the dimensions stated in the EIA? Are there any differences in values of the dimensions between the wind power farms that are included in this study? The width of the roadways and the land claims for both roads and wind turbines in wind power farms were examined on site. The results from the examinations were compared with the dimensions available in the EIA for each wind power farm.

This report presents an investment calculation based on an assumed initial investment of a new saw line to an existing sawmill. In order to get as close to reality as possible, we have received data material from northern forest owners who recently made an initial investment in their sawmill in Kåge. In order to calculate and evaluate investments are several different methods, but we, we have chosen to use the discounted cash flow method. The method sums up with the help of a fixed cost of capital together with any future costs and revenues, thereby giving a present value of the investment. We also do a sensitivity analysis to examine how selected factors affect the investment research they change. The study is carried out to a fictitious investment, and therefore the result should not only be studied as a result of the figures. The purpose of this study was that with the help of an investment calculation studying the profitability of a hypothetical investment, and by means of a sensitivity analysis to study the sensitivity of investment to changes. The result demonstrates that the calculations according to the present value method requires a lot of information of the prospective investment.