This paper investigates whether the traditional accrual based trading strategy first documented by Sloan (1996) can be refined using fundamental analysis. Specifically, this is done by implementing the composite signal F_SCORE introduced by Piotroski (2000) to identify financially strong or weak firms. We find that by applying both investment models simultaneously, in a model we call P_KOMB, the mean market-adjusted return earned by an investor exploiting the accrual anomaly can be increased by 14.8% annually. This is achieved by taking a long position in strong firms (as defined by the composite signal) in the lowest accrual portfolio, while an offsetting short position is taken in weak firms in the highest accrual portfolio, repeated annually between 1997 and 2007. Consistent with prior studies, positive market-adjusted returns can be attained through assessment of accruals as well as key value drivers found in historical financial data.

The aim with this work has been to examine the climate changes and what these has meant, and will mean during the present century, for plants that have not been hardy in Sweden. A lot of new species can probably be grown today in Sweden's most southern parts, due to an increase in the average annual temperature by 1?C. There is a need of information about these new species and their hardiness. The insufficient information about the subject has been the background to this work.

Issues related to knowledge assessment and its consequences for both the individual and the entire school system are topical in today's school debate. The mere fact that didactic issues that focus on assessment are discussed actively not only in scholastic environments but even in media and other communities is further proof that knowledge assessment is an important and complex phenomenon in our lives.The subject that I have chosen to look into is about how the work with assessment issues is handled in Swedish as well as Russian elementary school's early years. The goal with this study is to see how my studies have been conducted with a qualitative approach by which I collected qualitative information in the form of documents, papers and interviews. To make the approach even more appropriate for my area of research, I have chosen to merge two qualitative research methods. The first is a qualitative content analysis which analyses the governing documents.

Title: Globalization ? Meeting a new market Author: Anna Nubäck Supervisor: Anders Nilsson Institution: School of Management, Blekinge Tekniska Högskola Course: Master in business administration, 15 credits (FED006) Purpose: The purpose of this essay is partly to create an understanding of the decision to establish a branch in Japan and especially to look at if and how the Swedish company in this study has adjusted its corporate culture to suit the Japanese market. Method: Data is collected thru a number of semi constructed interviews. A first telephone interview was followed by an interview made face to face that was also followed up by interviews performed over telephone. E-mails have been used to clear and correct collected data.

The main subject with this master thesis is to take a closer look at university libraries specially Gothenburg University Librarys operation of marketing the librarys user contact, how it receives various users demands and carry out the interactive and strategic marketing. Marketing is planning, structuring, implementation, analysis and controls of carefully formulated programs, designed to bring voluntary interactions and relations with the target markets, for the purpose of achieving organisational and user satisfaction objectives. The structure of this thesis covers three main parts. Part I reflects the researchers approach to the subject. Marketing researchers such as Grönroos, Kotler, Bryson, De Sáez and Gummesson among others are presented.

The report aims to examine how property owners position themselves to reach their targetmarket, and which strategies they use when positioning their product. The investigation has beencarried out mainly in the form of a case study in which a number of interviews with Stockholmreal estate companies has been conducted, focusing on commercial property market segment.The interviews have resulted in identification of common and specific strategies among thecompanies. These strategies have been analyzed in the light of the theory by Philip Kotler andKevin Lane Keller, focusing on how an offer should be designed to reach a competitive position.It can be concluded that positioning is a key activity for successfully addressing the targetmarket. Successful positioning mandates three key requirements to be met; determining thecategory to which the offer belongs, identifying similarities and differences compared to thecompetitors and developing a brand mantra. The result of the case study concludes that theproperty companies work similar in many ways.

This master thesis deals with events, dynamics and problems of mediated information seeking within the context of a new information service called "Book a librarian". The study, based on a survey and interviews both in academic and public libraries and participant observations in academic libraries, has its theoretical base in the cognitive theory of information retrieval interaction. The cognitive view is used to throw light upon the need of an ongoing dialogue during the session in order to detect the information needs of the user and to conduct a successful retrieval of information. The communicative interaction is seen as threepart interaction between the intermediary, the user and the information system, where the current cognitive states of all three participants are involved. The study shows that the cognitive obstacles for a successful mediation and information retrieval are mostly connected to participants current knowledge of the subject and of the retrieval techniques.

Piles of deadwood are often retained in forests after management to support the biodiversity ofsaproxylic organisms which depend on deadwood to survive. Any knowledge about the crucial role ofpiles as suitable habitat of saproxylic organisms compared to single distributed deadwood objects thatare around the piles would help conservation actors to motivate more forest owners to supportsaproxylic organisms during their management. Therefore to give facts to this the saproxylic fauna ofdifferent pile positions (up and low) was studied and compared to distributed deadwood samplesaround each pile. Our study was focused on saproxylic beetles. Some other parameters such asdiameter, deadwood volume, pile volume and decay stage were assessed to define any effect.

The aim of this Masters thesis is to identify discourses within the school library field and to analyse which professional identities the discourses result in for school librarians. The empirical data consist of 71 articles from Swedish journals concerning school libraries and school librarians, between the years 2000-2003. The theory and method used is a discourse analysis which is inspired by Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe. This form of discourse analysis was chosen since it was useful when identity was the focus of study. The analysis is accomplished in three steps.

The aim of this paper is to find an algorithm to establish and maintain a virtual enclosure around a mobile unit. The area may take any form and should be scalable up to and including national borders. The enclosure is managed on the mobile unit. The target system is Android. Smartphones, tablets and more recently, cameras is examples of mobile units.

Title: "It is logical, but not logical at all compared to every other logical thing." - A study about how students in upper secondary school reflect about their studies in Pitch and music theory.Pitch and music theory is a compulsory subject for music students in the art programme of upper secondary school of Sweden. The aim of the subject is to develop the students? knowledge about music theory concepts in order to help them play and create music on their own. The aim of this paper is to discuss how students talk about ear training and music theory. Qualitative group interviews were carried out with two student groups from the first and second year of the upper secondary school.

AimThe aim of this study was to evaluate the activity recorded with electromyography (EMG) fine-wire electrodes, in transversus abdominis (TrA) and rectus abdominis (RA) while performing various stabilization exercises, and to investigate how the level of activation was affected by specific instructionsMethodTen physically active women (27.1 ± 5.5year, 1.74 ± 0.05 m, 67.1 ± 8.6 kg) performed six different stabilization exercises (four lying supine with bent knees and hips and two in four point kneeling). They performed two sets of exercises, the first without and the second with specific instructions. The specific instruction was ?abdominal hollowing to activate? TrA. The fine-wire electrodes were inserted bilateral into TrA and RA with an injection needle with guidance from an ultrasound.

Queen Kristina of Sweden (1626-1689) is a person who has been widely studied during the years. She is known as the monarch who left the Swedish throne and the protestant faith in favour of the catholic Rome. Even though Kristina left her powerful position as queen of Sweden she never gave up her dignity as a sovereign.  My purpose with this study is to analyse historians and other scholars different research concerning Kristina?s notorious execution of Monaldesco in 1657.

This thesis examines history of the subject of mechatronics and innovation. The main reason tostudy mechatronics from a historical point of view is that it has never been done to a greater extent before. An overview is justified because various definitions have been used over the decades, but nowadays the subject has become more established. Focus in this thesis is mainly on development of the subject of mechatronics at Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. Innovation is the other aspect of this thesis.

Natural and environmental issues are everyday parts in preschool but when educators shall consciously work with sustainable development they tend to stop at recycling and what is necessary to be done for achieving the Grön Flagg-certification. I have been observing various preschools and noticed that sustainable development is flawed, often because of the teachers lack of interest, knowledge and in some cases both. Out of this grew an idea of making a project that could help the teachers see how the work with the subject in a fun and educational way can become a part of the preschools everyday routine. I made a tutorial booklet with basic facts and activities relating to sustainable development and the three questions in my report were how much knowledge and interest the teachers initially have, if the tutorial booklet could help the teachers to produce new knowledge and interest for the topic and if it turned out to be easier for them to provide educational activities within the subject. There were three departments that participated in my survey and the methodology of collecting data was an anonymous survey with the teachers' own comments in response.