Osallistava suunnittelu lasten kanssa: Uusi mobiili rahapalvelukonsepti

Increasingly younger children own a smartphone with an application store and in-app purchasing possibilities. Consequently, they encounter digital currency even before cash. However, there is no service on the Finnish market that would enhance children’s learning and understanding of digital currency. The current practice is that children acquire their weekly allowance as cash. The aim of this thesis was to plan and execute a user-centered co-design concept design process with children in the context of mobile payment. The methods were suitable co-design methods for children based on literature review implemented in a concept creation project. The target group is children aged 7 to 14 years. The empirical study was conducted in a primary school with a school class of eight sixth graders and fourteen second graders. In addition, moodboard interviews were conducted with four families. The results of this thesis are threefold: (1) description of children’s needs relating to mobile payments, (2) a suggestion and illustrations for a new financial mobile concept, (3) evaluation of the chosen methods and a recommendation for the co-design practice with children. Young children seem to have difficulties in understanding the concept of money; for example, they make accidental in-app purchases. Children desire to make online and mobile purchases, but they mainly have only cash. In addition, saving and games are important to children in the context of payments. However, it was found that second graders and sixth graders have rather different needs for the financial mobile concept, and families differ in their practices related to money. The developed concept reflects the presented results. The chosen co-methods were suitable for the process. This thesis suggests considering the age and role of the child in the process, orienting the children to the activities with their own examples, and interpreting the results with great caution. In addition, flexibility is needed from the researcher. Nonetheless, children are creative and talented designers, especially in the mobile field.Yhä nuoremmilla lapsilla on älypuhelin, jossa on sovelluskauppa ja mahdollisuus tehdä ostoja sovelluksissa. Näin ollen he tutustuvat digitaaliseen rahaan jopa ennen käteistä. Suomen markkinoilla ei kuitenkaan ole palvelua, jonka avulla lapsille voitaisiin opettaa digitaalisen rahan ymmärrystä ja oppimista. Nykyinen käytäntö on, että lapset saavat viikkorahansa käteisenä. Tämän diplomityön tarkoituksena oli suunnitella ja toteuttaa käyttäjäkeskeinen osallistava konseptisuunnitteluprosessi lasten kanssa mobiilimaksamisen kontekstissa. Metodina käytettiin sopivia kirjallisuuskatsaukseen pohjautuvia osallistavan suunnittelun työkalun menetelmiä lapsille. Käyttäjäryhmäksi määritettiin 7–14-vuotiaat lapset. Empiirinen tutkimus suoritettiin ala-asteella sellaisen ryhmän kanssa, jossa oli sekä tokaluokkalaisia että kuudesluokkalaisia lapsia. Tämän lisäksi suoritettiin tunnelmatauluhaastatteluita neljän perheen kanssa. Työn tulokset ovat kolmijakoiset: (1) Kuvaus lasten tarpeista mobiilimaksamiseen liittyen, (2) visuaalinen ehdotus uudesta rahankonseptista, (3) valittujen menetelmien arviointi ja suositus osallistavan suunnittelun menetelmien käytöstä lasten kanssa. Nuorilla lapsilla näyttää olevan vaikeuksia ymmärtää rahan käsitettä. He tekevät esimerkiksi vahinko-ostoja sovelluksissa. Lapsilla on halu tehdä ostoksia tietokoneella ja puhelimissa, mutta heillä on yleensä vain käteistä. Tämän lisäksi säästäminen ja pelit olivat tärkeitä mobiilimaksamisen kontekstissa. Tokaluokkalaisilla ja kuudesluokkalaisilla näytti kuitenkin olevan aika erilaiset tarpeet mobiilimaksamisen konseptille, minkä lisäksi perheillä on erilaisia käytäntöjä rahan suhteen. Konseptiehdotuksessa otetaan huomioon nämä löydökset. Valitut osallistavan suunnittelun menetelmät olivat sopivia tälle tutkimukselle. Tämä diplomityö ehdottaa lapsen iän ja roolin huomioimista prosessissa, lasten orientoimista aktiviteetteihin heidän omilla esimerkeillään ja tulosten tulkitsemista harkiten. Tämän lisäksi tutkijalta vaaditaan erityistä joustavuutta. Lapset ovat kuitenkin luovia ja lahjakkaita suunnittelijoita, erityisesti mobiilialalla

De samhällsbesvärliga

"In inter-war Sweden, the psychiatric diagnosis of psychopathy served as a controversial but powerful tool for the management of people who failed to live up to contemporary civic ideals. The diagnosis was based on theories of a broad spectrum of biologically-based disorders in the borderland between normality and actual mental illness. The disturbances were assumed to manifest themselves as, for example, homosexuality, hysterical attacks, emotional coldness, mythomania, or restlessness. Another controversial diagnosis was paranoia querulans or querulous paranoia, a disease that was linked to the emergence of the modern state and its rule of law, and thought to manifest itself mainly in hyperbolic complaints against supposed wrongdoings. Thus, the disorder implicated an excessive use of one's civil rights. A particular dilemma related to this disease was that the kind of behaviour that had usually led to the diagnosis and subsequent psychiatric confinement, namely a ardent manner of writing letters to public authorities, was precisely what was required for discharge. In De samhällsbesvärliga (The Social Troublemakers), historian of science and ideas Annika Berg examines how patients described as psychopaths or querulants could negotiate for discharge with doctors and authorities in 1930s and 40s Sweden. This was a period in time when the system of psychiatric care in Sweden was greatly expanded in answer to a perceived shortage, but was also transformed into a somewhat more open apparatus with possibilities to apply for preliminary discharge and other forms of outpatient solutions. It was also a time when psychiatry was under attack from different quarters, and psychiatrists were accused of using flexible diagnoses such as psychopathy to confine people wrongly. Against this backdrop, how did the management of psychopaths and querulants fit with contemporary ideals of citizenship and democracy? How did the patients view themselves? And how were negotiations in individual cases affected by notions of, for example, class, gender and sexuality?

Continuing decrease in coronary heart disease mortality in Sweden

BACKGROUND: Deaths from coronary heart disease (CHD) have been decreasing in most Western countries over the last few decades. In contrast, a flattening of the decrease in mortality has been recently reported among younger age groups in some countries. We aimed to determine whether the decrease in CHD mortality is flattening among Swedish young adults. METHODS: We examined trends in CHD mortality in Sweden between 1987 and 2009 among persons aged 35 to 84 years using CHD mortality data from the Swedish National Register on Cause of Death. Annual percent changes in rates were examined using Joinpoint software. RESULTS: Overall, CHD mortality rates decreased by 67.4% in men and 65.1% in women. Among men aged 35–54 years, there was a modest early attenuation from a marked initial decrease. In the oldest women aged 75–84 years, an attenuation in the mortality decrease was observed from 1989 to 1992, followed by a decrease, as in all other age groups. CONCLUSIONS: In Sweden, coronary heart disease deaths are still falling. We were unable to confirm a flattening of the decline in young people. Death rates continue to decline in men and women across all age groups, albeit at a slower pace in younger men since 1991. Continued careful monitoring of CHD mortality trends in Sweden is required, particularly among young adults

Analysis of colorectal cancer morpohology in relation to sex, location and family history

Background: Studies of colorectal cancer (CRC) have suggested different mechanisms of carcinogenesis in men and women, young and old patients, right- and left sided tumors, and sporadic and familial tumors. These differences might be reflected in morphology. Methods: CRCs from 1613 patients operated on in 2004–2006 in Sweden were histologically reviewed. Morphology was examined in relation to sex, age groups, location, and family history. Results: Tumors in the right colon were larger, of higher stage, more often poorly differentiated, more mucin-producing, more often had a peritumoral lymphocytic infiltrate and a high level of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), and more seldom had an infiltrating margin than tumors in the left colon and rectum (p < 0.0001 for most features). Young patients (<60 years) more seldom had multiple tumors but more often had perineural invasion, an infiltrative tumor margin, and high-stage tumors. Three features, TILs, medullary tumors, and invasive tumor margin, were related to sex. Only vascular invasion was related to familiality. Conclusion: Location is the factor that has the most influence on tumor morphology. The results support the idea that different carcinogenic mechanisms may be involved in the right and left colon. Age is the most important determinant for the presence of multiple tumors and is a crucial factor for the aggressiveness of the disease.VR, Cancerfonden, RAH-fondernaManuscrip

Conservation tillage systems in sugarbeet without use of glyphosate

Mit drohenden Indikationseinschränkungen von Glyphosat im Ackerbau und dem eventuellen mittelfristigen Wegfall des Wirkstoffes stellt sich die Frage, wie und ob Mulchsaatsysteme von Sommerungen aufrechterhalten werden können. Am Beispiel von Zuckerrüben werden Ergebnisse aus drei Feldversuchsjahren präsentiert, in denen die Wechselwirkungen von Zwischenfrüchten und Bodenbearbeitungssystemen auf die Unkrautpopulationen und die Zuckerrübenetablierung aufgezeigt werden. Es wurden je nach Standort 12 bis 35 Systeme in 2 bzw. 4 Wiederholungen geprüft. Die Ergebnisse fallen sehr unterschiedlich aus. Je nach Jahreswitterung, Bodenbearbeitungssystem, Zwischenfrucht und Herbizideinsatz kann eine Zuckerrübenmulchsaat ohne Glyphosateinsatz sehr gut funktionieren aber auch scheitern. In vielen Fällen bedeutet ein Glyphosatverzicht einen deutlich höheren Aufwand an Bodenbearbeitung und teilweise auch einen zusätzlichen Einsatz von Herbiziden.With the threat of restrictions on glyphosate use and the possible omission of the active substance in the medium term, the question arises as to whether and how soil conservation tillage systems of annual spring crops can be maintained. Using sugar beet, results from three years of field trials are presented in which the interactions between catch crops and soil tillage systems on weed populations and sugar beet establishment are demonstrated. Depending on the location, 12 to 35 systems were tested in 2 or 4 replications. The results are very different. Depending on the weather conditions, tillage system, catch crop and herbicide use, sugar beet seed without glyphosate can work very well, but it can also fail. In many cases, a waiver of glyphosate means a significantly higher effort for tillage and, in some cases, also an increase in the use of herbicides

IL-18 and IL-18 binding protein are related to disease severity and parasitemia during falciparum malaria

Background - Several inflammatory molecules participate in the immune response to malaria. Interleukin (IL)-18 is an inflammatory cytokine activated by NLRP3 inflammasomes. In clinical falciparum malaria, with and without HIV co-infection, data on IL-18 and in particular on its binding protein, IL-18bp, is scarce. Methods - Clinical data and blood samples were collected from adults in Mozambique with P. falciparum infection, with (n = 70) and without (n = 61) HIV co-infection, from HIV-infected patients with similar symptoms without malaria (n = 58) and from healthy controls (n = 52). In vitro studies were performed in endothelial cells using hemozoin crystals. Results - (i) IL-18 and IL-18bp were markedly up-regulated during falciparum malaria with particular high levels in malaria patients co-infected with HIV and severe malaria disease. (ii) In the malaria group as a whole, both IL-18 and IL-18bp were positively correlated with disease severity, parasitemia, and endothelial cell activation as assessed by vWF in plasma. (iii) Whereas there was no change in IL-18 levels in malaria patients co-infected with HIV during follow-up, the patients with malaria only had slightly increased IL-18 levels. Further, the IL-18pb levels declined and thereby contributed to an increase in IL-18/IL-18bp ratio in all subgroups of malaria patients. (iv) IL-27, previously shown to be up-regulated in this malaria cohort, markedly induced a release of IL-18bp from endothelial cells in vitro, and notably, this presumably anti-inflammatory effect was counteracted by hemozoin. Conclusions - Our findings suggest that the IL-18 system could be an important mediator in the immune pathogenesis during falciparum malaria, potentially also representing a target for therapy

Interaction between ERAP Alleles and HLA Class I Types Support a Role of Antigen Presentation in Hodgkin Lymphoma Development

Simple Summary Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a common lymphoma in young adults derived from B cells. Emerging evidence suggests that antigen presentation by the malignant B cells is critically involved in HL pathogenesis. In fact, genetic variants of the antigen presenting Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA) are strongly associated with HL susceptibility. Interestingly, the endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase (ERAP)1 and ERAP2 genes, that code for enzymes that process antigens, also appear to be associated. In this study, we show that genetic variants of ERAP genes strongly affect expression levels of ERAP1 and ERAP2. In addition, we find that certain ERAP variants interact with specific HLA class I types in HL patients. This suggests that mechanisms that determine the repertoire of antigens that are presented to the immune system, affect the chance of developing HL. Our findings therefore support a prominent role of antigen presentation in HL susceptibility. Genetic variants in the HLA region are the strongest risk factors for developing Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), suggesting an important role for antigen presentation. This is supported by another HL-associated genomic region which contains the loci of two enzymes that process endogenous proteins to peptides to be presented by HLA class I, i.e., endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 (ERAP1) and ERAP2. We hypothesized that ERAP and HLA class I type interact in HL susceptibility, as shown previously for several autoimmune diseases. We detected ERAP1 and ERAP2 expression in tumor cells and cells in the microenvironment in primary HL tissue samples. Seven ERAP SNPs and ERAP1 haplotypes showed strong associations with RNA and protein levels of ERAP1 and ERAP2 in LCLs and HL cell lines. Analysis of HLA class I types, ERAP SNPs and ERAP haplotypes by direct genotyping or imputation from genome-wide association data in 390 HL patients revealed significant interactions between HLA-A11, rs27038 and the rs27038 associated ERAP haplotype, as well as between HLA-Cw2 and rs26618. In conclusion, our results show that ERAP and HLA class I interact in genetic susceptibility to HL, providing further evidence that antigen presentation is an important process in HL susceptibility and pathogenesis

The Role of the MYC/miR-150/MYB/ZDHHC11 Network in Hodgkin Lymphoma and Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma

We previously described involvement of the MYC/miR-150/MYB/ZDHHC11 network in the growth of Burkitt lymphoma (BL) cells. Here we studied the relevance of this network in the two other B-cell lymphomas: Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Expression levels of the network components were assessed at the RNA and protein level. The effect of modulating levels of the network components on cell growth was determined through GFP competition assay. AGO2-RNA immunoprecipitation was performed to validate targeting by miR-150. Expression levels of MYC, MYB and ZDHHC11 were increased, while miR-150 levels were decreased similar to the pattern observed in BL. The knockdown of MYC, MYB and ZDHHC11 decreased the growth of HL and DLBCL cells. In contrast, overexpression of miR-150 did not induce clear phenotypes in HL, and limited the effects in DLBCL. This could not be explained by the differences in overexpression levels. Furthermore, we showed that in HL, ZDHHC11 and MYB are efficiently targeted by miR-150. To conclude, MYC, MYB and ZDHHC11 are critical for the growth of HL and DLBCL cells consistent with the role observed in BL cells, while low endogenous miR-150 levels appeared to be less critical for the growth of HL and DLBCL cells despite the effective targeting of ZDHHC11 and MYB

Reproducibility of Gene Expression Signatures in Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Multiple gene expression signatures with biological or prognostic subgroups have been published in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). With exception of the cell of origin (COO) classifier, these were not validated in independent cohorts. The aim of the study was to reproduce four gene expression signatures capturing multiple biological subgroups using the NanoString platform. In addition, we aimed to identify potential associations between the signatures and portray the heterogeneity of DLBCL. We show that, in an independent cohort of clinically well-defined patients, these signatures can co-occur in the same patient and that each classifier captures a different aspect of the biological heterogenous panorama of DLBCL. Beside COO, there is clear evidence of different immune and MYC signatures. A direct comparison in our cohort showed that these signatures reflect independent biological features. More comparative studies with gene expression profiles need to be conducted to enable a further integration and to help develop new taxonomy systems for clinical utility. ABSTRACT: Multiple gene expression profiles have been identified in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Besides the cell of origin (COO) classifier, no signatures have been reproduced in independent studies or evaluated for capturing distinct aspects of DLBCL biology. We reproduced 4 signatures in 175 samples of the HOVON-84 trial on a panel of 117 genes using the NanoString platform. The four gene signatures capture the COO, MYC activity, B-cell receptor signaling, oxidative phosphorylation, and immune response. Performance of our classification algorithms were confirmed in the original datasets. We were able to validate three of the four GEP signatures. The COO algorithm resulted in 94 (54%) germinal center B-cell (GCB) type, 58 (33%) activated B-cell (ABC) type, and 23 (13%) unclassified cases. The MYC-classifier revealed 77 cases with a high MYC-activity score (44%) and this MYC-high signature was observed more frequently in ABC as compared to GCB DLBCL (68% vs. 32%, p < 0.00001). The host response (HR) signature of the consensus clustering was present in 55 (31%) patients, while the B-cell receptor signaling, and oxidative phosphorylation clusters could not be reproduced. The overlap of COO, consensus cluster and MYC activity score differentiated six gene expression clusters: GCB/MYC-high (12%), GCB/HR (16%), GCB/non-HR (27%), COO-Unclassified (13%), ABC/MYC-high (25%), and ABC/MYC-low (7%). In conclusion, the three validated signatures identify distinct subgroups based on different aspects of DLBCL biology, emphasizing that each classifier captures distinct molecular profiles

The 2005 World Health Organization Reevaluation of Human and Mammalian Toxic Equivalency Factors for Dioxins and Dioxin-Like Compounds

In June 2005, a World Health Organization (WHO)-International Programme on Chemical Safety expert meeting was held in Geneva during which the toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) for dioxin-like compounds, including some polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), were reevaluated. For this reevaluation process, the refined TEF database recently published by Haws et al. (2006, Toxicol. Sci. 89, 4-30) was used as a starting point. Decisions about a TEF value were made based on a combination of unweighted relative effect potency (REP) distributions from this database, expert judgment, and point estimates. Previous TEFs were assigned in increments of 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, etc., but for this reevaluation, it was decided to use half order of magnitude increments on a logarithmic scale of 0.03, 0.1, 0.3, etc. Changes were decided by the expert panel for 2,3,4,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran (PeCDF) (TEF = 0.3), 1,2,3,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran (PeCDF) (TEF = 0.03), octachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin and octachlorodibenzofuran (TEFs = 0.0003), 3,4,4′,5-tetrachlorbiphenyl (PCB 81) (TEF = 0.0003), 3,3′,4,4′,5,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl (PCB 169) (TEF = 0.03), and a single TEF value (0.00003) for all relevant mono-ortho-substituted PCBs. Additivity, an important prerequisite of the TEF concept was again confirmed by results from recent in vivo mixture studies. Some experimental evidence shows that non-dioxin-like aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonists/antagonists are able to impact the overall toxic potency of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and related compounds, and this needs to be investigated further. Certain individual and groups of compounds were identified for possible future inclusion in the TEF concept, including 3,4,4′-TCB (PCB 37), polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans, mixed polyhalogenated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans, polyhalogenated naphthalenes, and polybrominated biphenyls. Concern was expressed about direct application of the TEF/total toxic equivalency (TEQ) approach to abiotic matrices, such as soil, sediment, etc., for direct application in human risk assessment. This is problematic as the present TEF scheme and TEQ methodology are primarily intended for estimating exposure and risks via oral ingestion (e.g., by dietary intake). A number of future approaches to determine alternative or additional TEFs were also identified. These included the use of a probabilistic methodology to determine TEFs that better describe the associated levels of uncertainty and "systemic” TEFs for blood and adipose tissue and TEQ for body burde