The Anglo-Saxon stone sculpture of Mercia as evidence for continental influence and cultural exchange

Scholarship has long considered the style of stone sculpture produced in Mercia during the late eighth and early ninth centuries to reflect the direct influence of artistic activities on the Carolingian continent. Written sources point to the dialogue that existed between the Anglo-Saxon kingdom and the Carolingian courts in the years after Offa’s rise to the Mercian throne. This dialogue has been understood to signal Offa’s desire to raise his profile and that of his kingdom in the eyes of Charlemagne and the papacy. Mercian sculpture, unparalleled in its range of form and ornament, has thus been thought to owe its unique character to borrowed contemporary continental styles and motifs. By means of multi-disciplinary research combining art historical, archaeological and historical approaches, this thesis establishes the nature of the relationship between Mercian sculpture and continental artistic production. Examination of the development of Carolingian sculptural styles against the backdrop of the enduring legacy of late Antiquity reveals the variety of artistic models available to Mercian sculptors. Through close analysis of the stylistic parallels between Mercian sculpture and late Antique, eastern Christian, Lombard and Carolingian monumental art, this research reveals the motivations and mechanisms behind the adoption and adaptation of continental motifs. Exploration of the means by which Mercian patrons and artists accessed continental motifs demonstrates the links between the forms and ornament of Mercian sculpture and the types of sites at which sculpture survives. These associations are argued to be reflective of the hierarchy of exchange networks that linked sites in the kingdom with centres of importance on the Continent and further afield. The development of Carolingian and papal monumental art highlights the shared interest in and importance of late Antique imperialism. Despite a parallel agenda, Mercian sculptors are shown to have accessed late Antique artistic sources largely independent of Carolingian intermediaries

Synthesis of well defined, linear-dendritic, end-functionalised poly N-vinyl pyrrolidone additives via reversible addition-fragmentation transfer polymerisation for use in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells

An ongoing challenge in polymer science is the preparation of materials with specific surface properties that differ from the bulk, whilst retaining the advantageous mechanical properties of the bulk polymer. We have explored the use of multi-end functionalised polymer additives, which undergo rapid spontaneous adsorption to a surface or interface, as an efficient method of modifying surface properties. These materials are of potential use in tailoring the hydrophobicity of the gas diffusion layer (GDL) in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), and hence optimising fuel cell efficiency. In this research, reversible addition-fragmentation transfer (RAFT) polymerisation has been used to synthesise a range of well-defined, low molecular weight, end-functionalised poly N-vinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) polymer additives bearing aryl-ether end groups containing up to three, low surface energy, C8F17 fluoroalkyl chains. Polymer end-functionality is introduced via the design of functionalised RAFT chain transfer agents (CTAs). Three novel CTAs have been made in addition to their corresponding end-functionalised PVP additives, in a range of molecular weights. Thin films have been prepared comprised of polymer blends of unfunctionalised PVP and varying percentages of each end-functionalised PVP additive, and these films have been analysed by contact angle measurements, ion beam analysis and atomic force microscopy in order to investigate effects of additive concentration, additive molecular weight, matrix molecular weight, design of functional group and annealing. We have shown that modest amounts of additive (<2.5%) can render the surfaces of bulk PVP hydrophobic and lipophobic

Upgrading of Fire Resistance to Architectural Heritage Escape Route Timber Doors

Original timber stairwell doors in historic masonry apartment buildings of architectural heritage value can be found in the larger cities of Norway. In Oslo, there are around 4000 such buildings, of which many still hold preserved original stairwell doors. The doors often have glass with decorative patterns in the upper parts, and timber panels on the lower part. Old residential buildings are vulnerable to fire due to the building construction and need fire protection upgrades. The stairwell doors are critical elements to prevent fire spread and to keep evacuation routes safe, so their function and condition are important to the level of fire protection in the building. The research work in this paper aims to find retrofit methods for upgrading the fire resistance of these types of doors so they maintain their integrity and insulating properties for up to 30 minutes, at the same time as they maintain their architectural expression. The upgrades must be as little intrusive and destructive as possible. Intermediate scale tests were carried out in a fire resistance test furnace, using different door configurations. The tests lasted between 30 minutes and 42 minutes, with a thermal exposure from the standard time/temperature curve described in EN 1363–1. The results from the tests showed that 40 mm thick laminated wood could withstand up to 30 minutes of fire exposure, thin timber panels could be upgraded using stone wool and robust gypsum boards type R, and that fire-resistant glass could be mounted on the inside of the original glass in different ways. Visual observations indicate that adding smoke seals inside the door leaf are effective for stopping cold and hot smoke. The solutions presented enables the preservation of the original doors’ architectural design, their historical values and aesthetic character.publishedVersio

Von der Kür zur Pflicht

Nachhaltigkeitsberichterstattung wird mal als Bedingung effektiven Nachhaltigkeitsmanagements gesehen, mal als PR-Masche. In einer vierteiligen Serie beleuchtet ÖkologischesWirtschaften den Status quo sowie mögliche Zukunftsszenarien. In Teil 1 fordert die Autorin ver pflichtende Nachhaltigkeitsberichterstattung nach internationalen Standards

Implementation of On-line Partial Discharge Measurements in Medium Voltage Cable Network

The reliability of power supply has become an increasingly significant factor in modern society. The aging of the existing network, the increased quality requirements of electric supply and the risk of major interruptions due to storms are factors that are driving towards the cabling of the distribution network. It is important to develop a condition management process for medium voltage cables to be able to optimize the construction and total life cycle costs of such of a cable network. Due to its hidden structure the condition of a cable network can be evaluated only by means of measurements. It is widely acknowledged that a clear dependence exists between the deterioration of the cable and partial discharges. For years, partial discharge measurements have been used as part of condition management in case of single expensive electrical equipment like generator etc. and it is proofed to be a working solution. The goal of this work is to bring out the main principles of on-line partial discharge measurements and the current situation in case of extruded medium voltage cables. In addition, aging and other phenomena leading to faults and partial discharges related to these phenomena in extruded medium voltage cables have been studied. Finally, guidelines about how on-line partial discharge measurements could be used as part of condition monitoring of medium voltage cables have been created. The nature of this work is a literature survey and the source material mainly consists of international publications. The temperature, voltage stress and moisture are the main factors that accelerate the aging of solid insulation. Thus overloading should be avoided, voltage stresses should be minimized and water proof components should be used. Cable joints and terminations seem to be the most fault prone components in the medium voltage cable network and in most cases partial discharges can be spotted before the breakdown. It is also noted that the quality of workmanship in the installation of cable accessories plays an important role while the reliability of these components is concerned. This work concludes that on-line partial discharge measurements are the most suitable for detecting problems in the cable joints, terminations or metallic shield. The evaluation of the general condition of a cable system is very challenging with current on-line partial discharge measurement systems because voltage above normal operation voltage can’t be used during measurements. In addition, in many cases also the measurement sensitivity is not good enough. With continuous measurements, reliable time to next breakdown estimations can be made. The biggest challenges for continuous measurements are related to their cost-effectiveness. The future will show whether these kinds of measurement increase or not

Vem prioriterar i svensk sjukvård?

Artikeln behandlar det rättsliga regelverket kring prioriteringsplattformeni svensk hälso- och sjukvård. Av intresse är de rättsliga gränsernaför prioriteringsplattformen i en kris likt coronapandemin. Krisen haräven aktualiserat frågan om prioriteringsbeslut kan bli föremål för domstolsprövning.Möjligheten att prioriteringsbeslut kan bli föremål fördomstolsprövning undersöks utifrån perspektivet om prioriteringsbeslutkan utgöra vad som inom den rättsliga terminologin benämns ”överklagbartförvaltningsbeslut” mot bakgrund av den generella överklagbarhetenenligt förvaltningslagen (2017:900). Även potentiella effekter för prioriteringsplattformengivet möjligheten att överklaga prioriteringsbeslututforskas. Statens medicinsk-etiska råd (Smer) tar i sin rapport Etiska vägvalvid en pandemi från år 2020 bland annat upp prioriteringsutmaningarcoronapandemin har ställt oss inför. De prioriteringsfrågor som tas upp iartikeln har tidigare inte diskuterats och ställer oss inför nya utmaningar.De kan i grunden påverka hur prioriteringar görs i hälso- och sjukvården,inte minst under en pandemi

Health-related quality of life and survival outcomes in prostate cancer

The aim of health care is to maximize health, and in practice, health must be produced in the context of scarce resources. In order to make wise resource allocations, health economic analyses are needed, often in the context of Health Technology Assessment (HTA). Health economic analyses concentrate on assessing the economic value of interventions, whereas full HTA also considers other aspects of decision-making. In recent years, the concept of value-based health care (VBHC) has emerged on the side of traditional health economic analyses. They both try to answer questions concerning the value of interventions in health care - i.e., the relationship of outcomes and investments needed. The objective in VBHC is also to find such actions that can improve the cost-effectiveness of health care dynamically over time. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is a patient-reported outcome measure which, in combination with survival data, can produce quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained needed as the outcome measure in cost-utility analyses (CUA). This thesis generates real-world data for the use of health economic analyses and compares outcomes of conventional treatment strategies in PC. According to the systematic literature review in this study, preference-based HRQoL data in PC patients are still scarce. HRQoL of PC patients was measured in different stages of the disease (Local, Locally Advanced and Metastatic) and in patients undergoing different treatments with two HRQoL instruments, namely the generic 15D and disease-specific EORTC QLQ-C30. HRQoL data were obtained from 1050 and clinical background data from 1024 patients. The mean age of the patients at baseline was 66.5 years, and most of the patients were in an early stage of the disease as only 59 (6%) of the patients were metastatic at the time of the diagnosis. Even though the mean 15D score of Local and Locally advanced patients did not differ from that of the age-standardized male population, there was a statistically significant difference on the dimensions of depression and distress among all patient groups, which indicates that there are psychological side effects from the awareness of cancer diagnosis. Out of the five functioning scales in the EORTC QLQ-C30 instrument, patients in the Local and Locally advanced groups scored the lowest in emotional function, which can indicate anxiety, worrying, irritation, and/or depression due to the awareness of the diagnosis. The four major treatment strategies during the first year after diagnosis were active surveillance (n=226), radiation (n=280), radical surgery (n=299) and hormonal treatment (n=62). The mean follow-up time in the survival analysis was 77.7 months, and at the end of the follow-up, 84.4% of patients were alive. Median overall survival was 53.8 months (95% CI 44.5 – 63.2 months) in the hormonal group, and median survival for the other groups was not reached. Prostate cancer was a rare cause of death, especially in the active surveillance and surgery groups. The hormonal treatment group had the lowest HRQoL and survival among the studied treatment groups, and consequently, also experienced the least number of QALYs during the two-year follow-up. Outcomes of the three other treatment groups were similar in terms of HRQoL and overall survival, and thus also regarding the number of QALYs experienced.Terveydenhuollon tavoite on maksimoida terveyttä, joka käytännössä tapahtuu niukkojen resurssien vallitessa. Taloudellisessa arvioinnissa tarkastellaan intervention taloudellista arvoa, kun taas laajemmassa menetelmäarviointi (HTA) käsittää myös muita elementtejä kuten tasapuolisuus ja oikeudenmukaisuus. Viime vuosina perinteisen taloudellisen arvioinnin rinnalle on syntynyt käsite arvoon perustuvasta terveydenhuollosta (value-based health care, VBHC). Molemmat pyrkivät vastaamaan kysymykseen terveydenhuollon interventioiden arvosta eli vaikuttavuuden ja tarvittavien investointien suhteesta. VBHC:n tavoite on myös löytää sellaisia toimia, jotka voivat parantaa terveydenhuollon kustannusvaikuttavuutta dynaamisesti yli ajan. Kun intervention aikaansaama, potilaan itse raportoima muutos terveyteen liittyvässä elämänlaadussa yhdistetään tietoon elossaoloajan muutoksesta, voidaan laskea muutos laatupainotetuissa elinvuosissa, jota tarvitaan vaikuttavuusmittarina kustannusutiliteettianalyysissä.Tämän väitöskirjatutkimuksen puitteissa tuotettiin tietoa eturauhassyöpäpotilaiden terveyteen liittyvästä elämänlaadusta terveydenhuollon arjen olosuhteissa ja verrattiin yleisimpien eturauhassyövän hoitolinjojen vaikuttavuutta. Tutkimuksessa tehdyn järjestelmällisen kirjallisuuskatsauksen perusteella preferenssipohjaisten elämänlaatumittareiden käyttö eturauhassyöpäpotilailla on harvinaista. Tässä väitöskirjatutkimuksessa mitattiin eturauhassyöpäpotilaiden terveyteen liittyvää elämänlaatua taudin eri vaiheissa (paikallinen, paikallisesti edennyt ja metastaattinen tauti) ja eri hoidoissa kahdella eri elämänlaatumittarilla, jotka olivat geneerinen 15D ja sairaus-spesifi EORTC QLQ-C30. Elämänlaatutieto saatiin 1050 potilaalta ja kliiniset taustatiedot 1024 potilaalta. Potilaiden keski-ikä tutkimukseen tullessa oli 66,5 vuotta ja suurin osa heistä oli taudin varhaisessa vaiheessa. Metastaattisessa taudin vaiheessa oli tutkimuksen alussa 59 potilasta (6 %). Paikallisessa ja paikallisesti edenneessä taudissa 15D:n tuottaman keskimääräinen elämänlaatulukema ei eronnut ikävakioidun miesväestön lukemasta, mutta masennuksessa ja ahdistuneisuudessa havaittiin kaikissa taudin tiloissa tilastollisesti merkitsevä ero ikävakioituun miesväestöön verrattuna, mikä viittaa syöpädiagnoosin psyykkisiin vaikutuksiin. EORTC QLQ-C30:n viidestä toiminnallisesta ulottuvuudesta potilaat raportoivat alhaisimmat pisteet tunne-ulottuvuudessa, mikä voi viitata syöpädiagnoosiin liittyvään huoleen, pelkoon, hermostuneisuuteen ja/tai masennukseen. Neljä merkittävintä hoitolinjaa ensimmäisen vuoden aikana diagnoosista olivat aktiivinen seuranta (n=226), sädehoito (n=280), radikaalileikkaus (n=299) ja hormonaalinen hoito (n=62). Keskimääräinen seuranta-aika elinaika-analyysissä oli 77,7 kuukautta ja seuranta-ajan lopussa 84,4 % potilaista oli elossa. Elossaoloajan mediaani hormonaalista hoitoa saaneilla potilailla oli 53,8 kuukautta (95 %:n luottamusväli 44,5 – 63,2 kuukautta). Muissa hoitoryhmissä mediaania ei saavutettu seuranta-aikana. Eturauhassyöpä oli harvinainen kuolinsyy etenkin aktiivisen seurannan ja leikkaushoidon ryhmissä. Hormonaalisen hoitoryhmän potilailla oli alhaisin elämänlaatu ja elossaoloaika, ja näin ollen myös alhaisin määrä saavutettuja QALY:ja kahden vuoden aikana tutkimuksen alusta. Kolmen muun hoitoryhmien erot elämänlaadussa, kokonaiselossaoloajassa ja näin ollen myös saavutetuissa QALY:issa olivat vähäisiä

Levande, tryggt & attraktivt - Skapandet av ett människovänligt stadsrum i Kallerstad

The essay aims to examine how Kallerstad can develop into a lively, safe and attractive urban space. Today the area consists of a mainly industrial landscape. The plan from the municipality of Linköping is to transform Kallerstad into a new city area. To answer the question of how the area can be developed to a lively, safe and attractive urban space a case study of Kallerstad has been done. This has been combined with a document analysis of documents from the municipality as well as an interview with one of the municipal officials. The theories are mainly based on Jane Jacobs's book The death and life of great American cities and Jan Gehl's book Life Between Buildings. It was concluded that Kallerstad have to develop into a people-friendly urban space. People are the key for the area to be lively, safe and attractive. Therefore the area has to be planned so it attracts a variety of people and activities

Traw-Predigt, Bey dem Fürstlichen Beylager Dess Durchläuchtigen Hochgebornen Fürsten unnd Herren Herren Jacobi, Hertzogen in Liefflandt, zu Churland und Semgallen, etc. etc. unnd der Durchläuchtigen, Hochgebornen Fürstinnen unnd Fräwlein Frl. Louisen Charlotten Gebornen Marggräfin und Chur-Fürstlichen Princessin zu Brandenburg ... zu Königsberg in Preussen am 30 Sept. A. 1645

TÜR-i eksemplari R Est.A-1320 (konvoluut) 7. alligaat (defektne - lõpp puudub)http://tartu.ester.ee/record=b1275313~S1*es

Exploring the Relationship Between a Football Club’s Financial and Competitive Performance: An Empirical Analysis of English Premier League Clubs

Objectives The main objective of this study was to explore the relationship between a football club’s competitive and financial performance. Another objective was determining the effect the chosen explanatory variables had on the sampled clubs’ annual revenues. Discussing and analysing how certain qualitative variables such as ownership structure and investment habits affect the clubs financial and competitive performance was also among the research objectives. Summary This study utilized empirical methods in the form of panel regression analysis to observe how quantitative variables encompassing league performance and financial success of the sampled football clubs affect their annual total revenues. The effects of various qualitative variables, such as club ownership structure and investment habits, on the sampled clubs’ financial and competitive performance were also discussed. Conclusions Three of the four explanatory variables were deemed statistically significant and showcased a positive relationship with the dependent variable – revenue. The number of achieved English Premier League points was found to have the strongest positive effect, followed by the clubs’ level of wage expenditure, followed by the level of transfer expenditure. The study ultimately found empirical evidence supporting a positive relationship between a football club’s financial and competitive performance. However, the study also acknowledged that there were still many important qualitative and quantitative variables that the regression model did not account for