The carbon dynamics of northern natural ecosystems contribute significantly to the global carbon balance. Periodic disturbances to these dynamics include insect herbivory. Larvae of autumn and winter moths (Epirrita autumnata and Operophtera brumata) defoliate mountain birch (Betula pubescens) forests in northern Scandinavia cyclically every 9-10 years and occasionally (50-150 years) extreme popul

In most parts of preindustrial Europe, road transport was a crucial part of rural life as it linked the agricultural producers with urban markets. This study focuses on the development of road transport during the agricultural transformation in order to understand its importance in agricultural change. Scania, in southern Sweden, provides the possibility of examining the basic patterns in the road

Cassava cultivars are classified following different criteria, such as cyanogenic glucoside content or starch content. Here, flours from the roots of 25 cassava varieties cultivated simultaneously in a single plantation, were characterized in terms of starch content (SC), amylose content (AC), alpha-amylolysis index (AI) and gel formation ability. Resistant starch content (RS) was measured in 10 o

This paper presents the major outcome of the IEA Hydrogen Implementing Agreement (IEA-HIA) Task 23 “Small-scale reforming for on-site hydrogen supply”. The task is briefly described, including the three sub-tasks: harmonized industrialization, sustainability and renewables and market information. An exclusive network of worldwide suppliers of reformers as well as gas companies has contributed to

Background: Malaria parasites need to synthesize chitinase in order to go through the peritrophic membrane, which is created around the mosquito midgut, to complete its life cycle. In mammalian malaria species, the chitinase gene comprises either a large or a short copy. In the avian malaria parasites Plasmodium gallinaceum both copies are present, suggesting that a gene duplication in the ancesto

Popular Abstract in Swedish Every breath you take – Every move you make Astma och allergier tillhör våra vanligaste folksjukdomar och de har ökat under de senaste fyra decennierna, särskilt bland barn och ungdomar. Under samma period så har inställningen till fysisk aktivitet och olika livsstilsfaktorer i samhället förändrats. Det är allmänt accepterat att fysisk aktivitet är bra for hälsan och viAsthma and allergies are common diseases in adolescents and have increased during the last few decades. All elite level sports activities result in increased risk of asthma and rhinitis regardless of sport practised. Physical activity is at the same time regarded as a health-promoting factor and is recommended both for the prevention and treatment of diseases. The aim of this study was to explore

AIMS: To analyse whether gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) was associated with increases in healthcare utilisation after delivery. METHODS: A longitudinal case-control registry-based study of 579 women with GDM delivered in 1995-2001. Two controls for each case were selected from the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, matched for year of birth, year of delivery, and municipality of r

Chemokine (C-C motif) receptor 2 (CCR2)-signaling can mediate accumulation of microglia at sites affected by neuroinflammation. CCR2 and its main ligand CCL2 (MCP-1) might also be involved in the altered metabolism of beta-amyloid (Aβ) underlying Alzheimer's disease (AD). We therefore measured the levels of CCL2 and three other CCR2 ligands, i.e. CCL11 (eotaxin), CCL13 (MCP-4) and CCL26 (eotaxin-3

Objectives To determine the effect of an ultrasound training course on the performance of pattern recognition when used by less experienced examiners and to compare the performance of pattern recognition, a logistic regression model and a scoring system to estimate the risk of malignancy between examiners with different levels of experience. Methods Using ultrasound images of selected adnexal mass

In this work the structure of ternary GaxIn1-xP nanowires is investigated with respect to the chemical composition and homogeneity. The nanowires were grown by metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy. For the investigation of ensemble fluctuations on several lateral length scales, X-ray diffraction reciprocal space maps have been analyzed. The data reveal a complicated varying materials composition acro

We have studied the effect of a grain boundary in front of a short edge crack on its propagation under cyclic loading conditions in bcc iron. The used model is a combination of a discrete dislocation formulation and a boundary element approach where the boundary is described by dislocation dipole elements, while the local plasticity is modeled by discrete dislocations. The grain boundary is consid

A spectroscopic investigation of the gamma decays from excited states in Er-159 has been performed to study the changing structural properties exhibited as ultrahigh spins (I > 60 (h) over bar) are approached. The nucleus of Er-159 was populated by the reaction Cd-116(Ca-48, 5n gamma) at a beam energy of 215 MeV, and the resulting gamma decays were studied using the Gammasphere spectrometer. New r

Women are stereotypically perceived as worse negotiators than men, which may make them ask for less salary than men when under stereotype threat (Kray et al., 2001). However, the mechanisms of stereotype threat are not yet properly understood. The current study investigated whether stereotype threat effects in salary negotiations can be explained by motivational factors. A total of 116 business st

The best results after a nerve injury with a defect are achieved by a nerve reconstruction procedure using autologous nerve grafts. However, limitations include insufficient amount of suitable donor material and donor site morbidity. The aim of the present thesis was to study alternative nerve grafts, i.e. allo- and xenografts, in rats and mice. Cellular grafts will evoke a rejection in the hos

Background-Late mortality after repair of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection is frequently associated with pulmonary venous obstruction (PVO). We aimed to describe the morphological spectrum of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection and identify risk factors for death and postoperative PVO. Methods and Results-We conducted a retrospective, international, collaborative, population-bas

Purpose - The purpose is to investigate how a retailer identifies critical network actors and gains their support when entering an emerging market. and to examine the role of a firm's relationships with different types of actors on the new market. Design/methodology/approach - The study is of an exploratory nature, and based on an inductive and qualitative research method. A case study of IKEA's e

This antology includes 24 poems by Viktor Rydberg. Each poem has an introducing essay written by a scholar, a teacher, a journalist or an author.