Septic tanks with subsequent soil treatment systems (STS) are a common treatment technique for domestic wastewater in rural areas. Phosphorus (P) leakage from such systems may pose a risk to water quality (especially if they are located relatively close to surface waters). In this study, six STS in Sweden (11-28 years old) were examined. Samples taken from the unsaturated subsoil beneath the distr

The objectives were to investigate the prevalence and predictors for falls and dizziness among people younger and older than 80 years of age. The sample was drawn from the Swedish National study on Aging and Care (SNAC) and comprised 973 and 1273 subjects with data on the occurrence of falls and dizziness respectively at baseline. Follow-ups were made after 3- and 6-years. Data included socio-demo

A novel technique to identify and split clusters created by multiple charged particles in the ATLAS pixel detector using a set of artificial neural networks is presented. Such merged clusters are a common feature of tracks originating from highly energetic objects, such as jets. Neural networks are trained using Monte Carlo samples produced with a detailed detector simulation. This technique repla

CNS-active drugs are used relatively often during pregnancy. Use during early pregnancy may increase the risk of a congenital malformation; use during the later part of pregnancy may be associated with preterm birth, intrauterine growth disturbances and neonatal morbidity. There is also a possibility that drug exposure can affect brain development with long-term neuropsychological harm as a result

We present an extensive experimental and theoretical study of the proximity effect in InAs nanowires connected to superconducting electrodes. We fabricate and investigate devices with suspended gate-controlled nanowires and nonsuspended nanowires, with a broad range of lengths and normal-state resistances. We analyze the main features of the current-voltage characteristics: the Josephson current,

In this paper, we analyze the performance of regularized channel inversion (RCI) precoding in multiple-input single-output (MISO) broadcast channels with confidential messages under transmit-side channel correlation. We derive a deterministic equivalent for the achievable per-user secrecy rate which is almost surely exact as the number of transmit antennas and the number of users grow to infinity

Service life planning and performance classification are key issues in the building sector. Well-functioning 'performance models' are absolutely essential to predict the service life and functionality of buildings, building assets, and building products overtime. Different types of performance models have been established for various building materials, but cannot necessarily transferred to wood-b

The aim of this study was to investigate how the biomass of extramatrical mycorrhizal mycelia (EMM) is influenced by the addition of different phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and PK fertilizers in peatland forests with variable P and K availability. Four fertilizers were used: apatite, biotite, Rauta-PK (TM) (apatite and ferrosulphate) and a test fertilizer (50% apatite and 50% recycled iron phospha

A secondary sexual character may act as an honest signal of the quality of the individual if the trait bears a cost and if its expression is phenotypically condition dependent. The cost of increasing the trait should be tolerable for individuals in good condition but not for those in a poor condition. The trait thus provides an honest signal of quality that enables the receiver to choose higher qu

Wavelet-based statistical parametric mapping (WSPM) is an extension of the classical approach in fMRI activation mapping that combines wavelet processing with voxel-wise statistical testing. We recently showed how WSPM, using graph wavelets tailored to the full gray-matter (GM) structure of each individual’s brain, can improve brain activity detection compared to using the classical wavelets that

Objectives. Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a liver disease which, if untreated, may lead to liver cirrhosis and hepatic failure. Limited data exist regarding factors predicting the long-term outcome. The aims of this study were to investigate symptoms at presentation, prognostic features, management and treatment in relation to long-term outcome of AIH. Material and methods. A cohort of 473 Swedish

The transparency regulator hypothesis (TRH) proposes that ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is a main driving force behind diel vertical migration (DVM) of zooplankton in clearwater systems. While previous studies have mainly studied DVM in relation to the TRH on a spatial scale across systems we here focus on long-term trends in a single system in order to assess if UVR explains observed patterns in DV

In order to design a solar energy system with optimized performance a through knowledge of solar radiation data for a considerably long period (20-25 years) is a pre-requisite. For developing countries like Pakistan, the need of empirical models to assess the feasibility of solar energy utilization seems inevitable due to the absence and scarcity of trust-worthy solar radiation data. We present su

This thesis has evaluated the immunological- and epidemiological aspects of human papillomavirus transmission dynamics and its effect on circumcision. Effective prophylactic vaccines are based on type-specific neutralizing antibodies. A major neutralizing epitope is defined by the monoclonal antibody H16.V5. To investigate the importance of this epitope for overall immunogenicity of HPV16, we en

The influence of counterions and co-ions on the stability and thickness of foam films stabilized by anionic dodecyl sulfate (DS(-)) has been studied in a thin film pressure balance. Particularly, the effect on the properties of foam films of (i) the counterions Li(+), Na(+), and Cs(+) of DS(-) and (ii) monovalent inorganic salts added to sodium dodecyl sulfate solutions is considered. Generally, a

In this paper, we introduce a novel sparse method for joint estimation of the direction of arrivals (DOAs) and pitches of a set of multi-pitch signals impinging on a sensor array. Extending on earlier approaches, we formulate a novel dictionary learning framework from which an estimate is formed without making assumptions on the model orders. The proposed method alternatively uses a block sparse a

Abstract The aim of this qualitative study was to examine the different facets of meaning that people who are severely mentally ill and unemployed may find in their everyday occupations. Twelve unemployed people with severe mental illness, six who attended day centres and six who did not, were interviewed regarding their experience of meaning in everyday occupations. The data were analysed with co

Alpha(1)-microglobulin is a 26 kDa plasma and tissue glycoprotein that belongs to the lipocalin protein superfamily. Recent reports show that it is a reductase and radical scavenger and that it binds heme and has heme-degrading properties. This study has investigated the protective effects of alpha(1)-microglobulin against oxidation by heme and reactive oxygen species in the human erythroid cell l