This paper investigates the outcome of ageing on taxes and hospitalisation of the elderly using panel data on 23 Swedish county councils 1980-1999. We test two hypotheses; whether a larger share of elderly has no negative effect on bed days per elderly person and no positive effect on tax rates. We reject the first hypothesis but fail to reject the second hypothesis. Further we cannot reject the h

Five polymeric films were studied to determine their ability to retain the colour, weight and texture of broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. Italica "Monterey"). The materials were oriented polypropylene (OPP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and two different low-density polyethylenes (LDPE), one of which contained a sachet reported to absorb ethylene. The broccoli was packaged and stored at 4 and 10 de

Six pure strains of obligate anaerobes capable of degrading the toxin beta-N-oxalyl-L-alpha, beta-diaminopropionic acid (beta-ODAP) contained in grass pea (Lathyrus sativus) have been isolated from cow rumen. The new isolates were identified as Megasphaera elsdenii (five different genotypes) and Clostridium bifermentans using 16S rDNA analysis. The beta-ODAP degrading efficiency of the isolates wa

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a multifactorial, polygenic autoimmune disease. For effective treatment and control of RA, understanding of disease pathways and identification of genes involved are essential. Animal models are efficient tools to identify such pathogenic mechanisms and genes underlying the disease process. In the present study, collagen antibody induced arthritis (CAIA), a mouse model

Low-energy particle production perpendicular to the event plane in three-jet events produced in Z decays in e(+)e(-) annihilation is measured and compared to that perpendicular to the event axis in two-jet events. The topology dependence of the hadron production ratio is found to agree with a leading-order QCD prediction. This agreement and especially the need for the presence of a destructive int

In Swedish public debate, economists have been more influential than any other category of social scientists. We examine the views of five great Swedish economists on the role of the university economist in the public arena. What did they say about scholarly objectivity and value judgements, about political commitment and educating the people? The five economists are Knut Wicksell, Gustav Cassel,

A novel process for the production of biodegradable lubricant-based stocks from epoxidized vegetable oil with a lower pour point via cationic ion-exchange resins as catalysts was developed. This involves two steps, first, ring-opening reactions by alcoholysis followed by esterification of the resultant hydroxy group in the first step. The ring-opening reaction of epoxidized soybean oil with differ

In the first essay of this thesis we develop a model for calculating the net expected value of a swap agreement subject to dual-default risk. The main explanatory variable for the net expected return of a swap is the default intensity of each party measured by the credit rating of the firm. We derive the net expected return of the swap as a function of the credit rating of the firm receiving the f

In this paper, we are concerned with the charging and electrokinetic behavior of colloidal particles exhibiting a high surface charge in the alkaline pH range. For such particles, a theoretical approach has been developed in the framework of the primitive model. The charging and electrokinetic behavior of the particles are determined by the use of a Monte Carlo simulation in a grand canonical ense

We have analysed 994 sites for oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes located within human chromosome bands. The data presented disclose that: 1) These cancer genes build ridges as well as hot spots, which are not related to the position of other types of genes present in these chromosomes. 2) The frequency of cancer genes is not directly related to chromosome length, to the number of DNA bases per

Class I and class II MHC-restricted T cells specific for proteins present in myelin have been shown to be involved in autoimmunity in the central nervous system (CNS). It is not yet known whether CD1d-restricted T cells reactive to myelin-derived lipids are present in the CNS and might be targeted to influence the course of autoimmune demyelination. Using specific glycohpid-CD1d tetramers and clon

Taking Fëdor Dostoevskij’s and Ljudmila Petrusevskaja’s writings as its starting point, this dissertation explores two different forms of disintegration of worth. In both cases, a world is described where human beings have lost contact with a unique centre of worth – a position in space linked to an irrevocable course of events in time. In Dostoevskij, this disintegration takes place on the level

During a study of microfungi in Swedish coniferous forest soils (Soderstrom &Baath, 1978), a fungus was isolated which did not match any genus or species hitherto described. It is introduced here as a new species and genus.

The conceptual shift in the expectations of the wireless users from voice towards multimedia, from availability towards acceptable quality, and from stand-alone towards group-oriented computing has a significant impact on today's networks in terms of the need for mobility, quality of service (QoS) and multicasting. Ad hoc networks, being independent of any fixed infrastructure, can provide mobile

This paper reports on multiconfiguration Dirac-Hartree-Fock calculations for intercombination lines in highly charged silicon-like ions. Results for wavelengths, fine structure, transition rates, branching ratios and lifetimes are reported and compared with other theories and experiments. A review of the experimental situation is presented, and deviations from expected smooth trends along the sequ

Background. The procedure of human islet isolation needs further optimization and standardization. Here, we describe techniques to enhance enzymatic digestion and minimize mechanical forces during the digestion process. The isolation protocol has also been modified to meet current GMP (cGMP) standards. Moreover, the impact of donor- and process-related factors was correlated to the use of islets f