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Long-range transboundary air pollution generates pressing environmental problems such as the acidification of lakes and soils, forest decline and loss of biodiversity as well as threats to human health across Europe. The overall aim of this study is to explore the role of scientific expertise in environmental diplomacy by analyzing recent international agreements in the transboundary air pollution

In this thesis spectroscopic techniques have been used in the fields of analytical chemistry, environmental and medical applications. In analytical chemistry, laser induced fluorescence was used to image the separation of substances during capillary electrophoresis. Here, an optical fibre imaging technique facilitated a higher sensitivity compared with a lens imaging technique. The motion of the s

This thesis considers static and dynamic team decision problems in both stochastic and deterministic settings. The team problem is a cooperative game, where a number of players make up a team that tries to optimize a given cost induced by the uncertainty of nature. The uncertainty is modeled as either stochastic, which gives the stochastic team problem, or modelled as deterministic where the team

This dissertation explore young peoples will to become artists. A group of artstudents have been interviewed and severel questions are raised. How do the students perceive their artistry and their role as artists? In what way is artistic creation meaningful to them? What does the relationship between the individual project of becoming an artist and their societal participation look like? As artist

The effect of duration of ischaemia on final infarct size is well established in animal studies, but not fully evaluated in humans. Delayed contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DE-MRI) can be used to distinguish between viable and non-viable myocardium and thus to quantify infarct size. We therefore used DE-MRI to investigate how duration of ischaemia affects final infarct size normalized

Diesel engine developers are facing major challenges when meeting future demands on NOx and particulate emissions. The exhausts after treatment systems are rapidly improving and the technologies available in a few years will be capable of cutting emission levels close to the demanded levels. However, in order to reach the low emissions required in a long-lasting, cost effective way, the potential

The modeling work developed in this thesis can be divided in two main areas of investigations: autoignition related to spark ignition engine and combustion and emissions formation in relation to diesel engines. A first version of a detailed kinetics engine simulation program, extended to handle full cycle calculations, was employed in order to demonstrate the strong effect that nitric oxide from

A number of working children in several regions over the world are mobilising to fight for better working conditions and to gain their rights according to how they interpret the Child Rights Convention (UNCRC) from 1989. Despite the increasing focus on child participation, their approaches and their demands are in many aspects controversial and they are often met with suspicion among diverse actor

This thesis is concerned with the propagation of transient electromagnetic waves in nonlinear media. It consists of a General Introduction and five scientific papers. The General Introduction gives a broad overview of nonlinear electromagnetic phenomena. The emphasis is on the representation of the constitutive functional modeling the material's response to electromagnetic excitation, and the met

The purpose of this study is to identify the factors influencing pupils when they individually solve problems in mathematics in grades 4-9 in the compulsory school (ages: 10-16 years). The method that has been used is an analyses of the solutions of 25 problems given to each grade. Some of the problems were the same in all grades and about 100 pupils participated in each grade. Through an examinat

This thesis has the main focus on ways to improve the blood perfusion estimate, as obtained from a continuous wave Doppler system. Earlier studies have shown large temporal variations in the detected perfusion estimate, due to speckle. Here, a theoretical model to predict frequency dependent characteristics of speckle in continuous wave ultrasound is presented. The model predicts the frequency shi

The performance of cyclones used in occupational hygiene for sampling respirable dust was studied. Test methods for experimental determination of cyclone penetration have been designed and validated. The penetration curve for a sampling cyclone presently used in Europe was measured. The sampler's performance relative to three sampling conventions for respirable dust was determined. The cyclone was

With the increased sophistication of medical implants, there is a growing need for flexible high-speed communication with the implant from outside the body. Today the communication is done by an inductive link between the implant and an external coil at a low carrier frequency. Extended range and communication speed are possible to achieve by increasing the carrier frequency and the bandwidth. One

This thesis deals with models of flat plate collectors, transparent insulation and efficiency factors. An equation for the energy output from a glazed flat plate collector is derived by modelling the collector efficiency factor, F´ as the sum of a constant and a temperature dependent part. An alternative way of testing a flat plate collector, based on this model, is suggested. A complete set of a

It is commonly believed that we live in a culture that is increasingly permeated by visual images. One category of images that we encounter everyday in different media, and that constitutes a large and growing part of media content, is advertisements. Advertisements also have a specific purpose and the images represent, make meaning of, and convey sentiments about phenomena. In this dissertation,

The objective of this thesis is to study the application of ventilation in schools buildings. A number of studies of the application of different forms of ventilation are presented. The main part of the thesis focuses on window opening in a classroom. Analytical models for calculation of the air change caused by window airing are proposed. The models are intended to be a tool for designers and occ

Higher education is facing a range of major challenges during the twenty-first century. Personalised, flexible and open learning are considered among the driving forces, thus, issues of quality must be urgently addressed.This qualitative, multiple-case-study research with single and cross-case analysis focuses on benchmarking e-learning in higher education. The results of this study include provid

This thesis is about voice imitations, more specifically impersonation. Questions are raised about the uniqueness of a person’s voice and speech behaviour and if it is possible to get close to another speaker’s voice and speech. Four main research questions are investigated in different studies. The studies focus mainly on how close the imitation is to the target speaker, and addresses to a lesser

During production of concentrated fruit juices, both physical and chemical losses of aroma compounds occur due to heat treatment such as pasteurisation and evaporation. This leads to an inferior quality of the final product. By recovering the aroma complex from fresh juice and then adding it back to the processed juice, heat treatment can be avoided. Hydrophobic pervaporation is an emerging membr

The study is based on data collected at the LEP II accelerator during the second period of the Large Electron-Positron collider operations (1996-2000). During that time the DELPHI (DEtector with Lepton, Photon and Hadron Identification) experiment collected about 90 Gb of data on tape corresponding to 687-691 pb^-1 of luminosity. The data obtained by the VSAT (Very Small Angle Tagger) e