Reviewability of Matters Committed to Agency Discretion

Precis som det finns dialekter i det talade språket kan symboler och färger ha olika betydelser i olika delar av ett land. Dessa visuella dialekter är en del av den ideologi som finns på en plats och påverkar hur text och bild uppfattas och tolkas av befolkningen. Den som designar visuell kommunikation bör därför vara bekant med den ideologi som råder där slutprodukten ska finnas; detta gäller inte minst för förpackningsdesign. Mejeribranschen har traditionellt varit starkt geografiskt indelad i Sverige, men nya förpacknings-, produktions- och logistikmöjligheter har bidragit till att 1960-talets 420 mejerier minskat till 50. De flesta av Sveriges mejerier har dock fortfarande en tydlig geografiskt bunden marknad, något som syns hos tre av de största mejerierna: Norrmejerier, Gefleortens och Skånemejerier. Arla finns i stort sett i hela landet, och är Sveriges största mejeri. Tidigare undersökningar redogör för hur olika grafiska element påverkar kunders val av varumärke i butiker. Det finns dock ingen tidigare studie som behandlar just mjölkförpackningar och den visuella kommunikationens skillnader inom ett land. Denna studie undersöker den visuella kommunikationen på mjölkförpackningar för mellanmjölk (fetthalt 1,5 %) från ovan nämnda mejeriaktörer. Studien behandlar även konsumenters påverkan på den visuella kommunikationen. Teorier som använts för att tolka den empiri som samlats in analyserar bland annat förpackningar och kulturer, men även visuell kommunikation. Exempel på den visuella kommunikationens byggstenar är typografi, färg och designprinciper som hierarki. Semiotiken används för att tyda teckens betydelse. En stor del av datan för denna kvalitativa studie har samlats in under intervjuer av företagsrepresentanter från Norrmejerier, Gefleortens, Skånemejerier och Arla. Datan från intervjuerna visar således varumärkesägarnas tankar kring förpacknings- och  varumärkeskommunikationen. Studiens författare har kompletterat data med hjälp av en analys av förpackningens visuella element. Slutsatser som dras är att Norrmejerier, Gefleortens och Skånemejeriers förpackningar har visuella element som konnoterar lokalt och personligt. Förpackningarna visar också upp situationer där mjölk används eller använts. Arla har inte samma lokala marknad som de övriga, vilket även syns i förpackningens mer abstrakta grafik. Framtagningen av den visuella kommunikationen fungerar som så att mejerierna först tar fram en grunddesign. Sedan samlar de in konsumenters åsikter om denna för att sedan bitvis justera den efter konsumenternas tycke. De grafiska elementen anpassas på så sätt för de lokala konsumenterna och används för att kommunicera varumärkenas identitet. Förändringarna sker evolutionellt, för att konsumenterna ska känna igen förpackningen. Ett exempel på detta är de ränder Arla använt på sina förpackningar sedan 90-talet som i flera omgångar justerats med varumärket. Vid den senaste designförändringen gjordes de mjukare i kanterna för att ge ett mer naturligt intryck. Vad studien visar är att de lokala konsumenterna har en påverkan för hur den visuella kommunikationen ser ut på mjölkförpackningarna i Sverige, men att det i grunden handlar om mejeriets varumärkeskommunikation. Det eftersom de inte baserat sina val om vilket budskap eller vilka beståndsdelar den visuella kommunikationen ska ha på konsumenternas åsikter. Istället har företaget tagit fram en visuell kommunikation utifrån varumärkets personlighet. Företagen har sedan anpassat denna efter feedback de fått från konsumenterna då det är de lokala konsumenterna som avgör om produkten kommer att lyckas på marknaden.Just like there are different accents in a language, symbols and colors may be interpreted differently in different parts of a country. These visual accents are part of the ideology present at a certain place and affects how the population perceives words and images. It is therefore important for the person designing the visual communication to consider the ideology of the consumers. This is also true for packaging design, because the packaging works as an attention grabber in the store. Traditionally, the dairy market in Sweden has been geographically segmented. New technologies in packaging, production, and logistics have led to a decrease in the number of dairy companies in Sweden; the 1960’s 420 dairy companies are today only 50. The dairy companies of Sweden still have a geographically segmented market. This is also true for three of the largest dairy companies: Norrmejerier, Gefleortens, and Skånemejerier. The largest dairy company, Arla, is present in the whole country. This study aims to research the visual communication on milk packaging from the dairy companies listed above. The study examines the consumers’ effect on the design of the visual communication. Previous studies show how different visual elements on the packaging attract the customers’ attention in the store. However, no previous studies examine milk packaging and the variations of the visual communication within a country. Different theories that have been used to analyse the collected data are about packaging design, culture, and visual communication. Typography, color and design principles such as hierarchy are part of the visual communication’s toolbox. Theories about semiotics have been used to interpret the meaning of visual signs. Parts of the data of this qualitative case study have been collected through interviews with representatives from the dairy companies Norrmejerier, Gefleortens, Skånemejerier, and Arla. This data shows the brand owners thoughts about the packaging and brand communication. The authors of this study have analyzed the visual communication of milk packages for milk containing 1,5% fat from each dairy company listed above. The study concludes that the milk packages of Norrmejerier, Gefleortens, and Skånemejerier contain visual elements that stand for local and personal values. The illustrations and photographs also picture situations where milk is or has been used. Arla does not have the same local market as the others, which can be seen in the more abstract design of their packaging. The dairy companies create a design and then asks for feedback from the consumers. The companies later use this information to adjust the packaging after the consumers’ opinions. The visual elements are adapted to the local market and used to communicate the brand identity. The changes in the visual communication are done evolutionary, to keep the packaging recognizable for the consumers. Arla has, for example, changed the appearance of the stripes they have used on the packages since 90’s several times. The latest version of the design softened the corners of the stripes to convey a more natural look - in line with their brand identity. What the study shows is that the local consumers have an impact on the visual communication of the milk packages in Sweden, but fundamentally it is all about the brand communication of the dairy company. This can be seen in the fact that the dairy companies do not choose their design elements after the consumers’ opinions. Instead, they create a design based on the brand identity and adjust it based on the feedback they get from the local consumers to make it more attractive for the consumers

Intermittent renewables, thermal power and hydropower - complements or competitors?

Around 80% of the electricity demand in the world is still supplied by fossil fuelled power or nuclear, i.e. thermal generation. Wind and solar power is integrated into the electricity generation systems to decrease the amount of carbon dioxide emissions associated with the generation of electricity as well as to enhance security of supply. Wind and solar power plants differ from thermal generation in two important ways: they have very low running costs (and high capital costs) and a generation level that depends on external elements. Due to the low running costs there are strong economic incentives for the employment of wind and solar power to supply the electricity demand once the capacity has been put in place. However, the share of the load that can be supplied by wind and solar power in a certain hour or second varies irregularly since it depends on prevailing wind speeds, solar irradiation and cloudiness. Thermal units are most efficiently run continuously at rated power. However, in a mixed renewable-thermal system they may have to compensate for fluctuations in wind and solar generation. Thus, depending on the characteristics of the renewable- thermal system, part of the decrease in fuel costs and emissions realised by wind and solar power may be offset by a reduced efficiency in the operation of the thermal plants. This chapter discusses the interaction between intermittent renewable power and thermal power, and investigates briefly the impact of including a more controllable renewable source such as hydropower in these mixed systems

Vasemman aivopuoliskon aivoinfarktin sairastaneiden tutkimushenkilöiden kielellisen ymmärtämisen ja kielellisen työmuistin kuntoutuminen vuoden seurannassa

Aivoinfarkti aiheuttaa suurelle osalle sairastuneista erilaisia elämänlaatua heikentäviä vajaatoimintoja ja haittoja, muun muassa kognitiivisten toimintojen vaikeuksia. Nämä vaikeudet aiheuttavat sekä kansantaloudellista kuormitusta että heikentävät sairastuneiden henkilöiden elämänlaatua. Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli tarkastella miten vasemman aivopuoliskon aivoinfarktin sairastaneiden tutkimushenkilöiden kielellinen ymmärtäminen, kielellinen työmuisti ja neurologiset yleisoireet kuntoutuvat vuoden seurannan aikana. Lisäksi tarkasteltiin, onko akuuttivaiheessa todetulla afasialla, iällä, sukupuolella tai koulutuksen pituudella merkitystä kuntoutumisprosessissa ja ovatko kielellisen ymmärtämisen taidot, kielellinen työmuisti tai neurologinen status yhteydessä toisiinsa. Tutkimukseen osallistui 36 vasemman aivopuoliskon aivoinfarktin sairastanutta tutkimushenkilöä, joille tehtiin samat tutkimukset kymmenen päivän sisällä sairastumisesta sekä kuuden ja 12 kuukauden jälkeen sairastumisesta. Tutkimuksissa heidän kielellistä ymmärtämistään mitattiin WAB-testin (Western Aphasia Battery) ymmärtämisen tehtävillä ja esittämällä kyllä/ei-kysymyksiä juuri kerrotusta kertomuksesta. Kielellistä työmuistia mitattiin saman kuullun kertomuksen mieleen palauttamistehtävällä (toistokerrontatehtävä), ja neurologista statusta arvioitiin NIHSS-mittarilla (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale). Koko aineistossa tutkimushenkilöiden kielellinen ymmärtäminen ja kielellinen työmuisti palautuivat sekä neurologiset yleisoireet lievittyivät akuuttivaiheen ja kuuden kuukauden välillä. Kuuden kuukauden jälkeen ei enää havaittu tilastollisesti merkitseviä muutoksia. Korkea ikä, vähäiset koulutusvuodet ja akuuttivaiheessa todettu afasia olivat yhteydessä siihen, että kielellisessä työmuistissa ei havaittu muutosta seurannan aikana. Yksittäisten taustamuuttujien vaikutuksista kuntoutumisprosessissa ei kuitenkaan voi tehdä yleistäviä johtopäätöksiä, sillä taustamuuttujat olivat kietoutuneet toisiinsa. Hyvät kielellisen ymmärtämisen taidot olivat yhteydessä kielellisen työmuistin toimivuuteen, ja kielellisen ymmärtämisen taidot akuuttivaiheessa myös ennustivat kielellisen työmuistin toimivuutta puolen vuoden päässä sairastumisesta. Lievät neurologiset yleisoireet olivat yhteydessä hyviin kielellisen ymmärtämisen taitoihin WAB-testistöllä mitattuna, mutta kielellisen työmuistin toimivuuteen ne eivät sen sijaan olleet yhteydessä seurannan missään vaiheessa. Tämä tutkimus osoitti, että vaikka kielellisen ymmärtämisen taidot kuntoutuvat vuoden seurannan aikana, kielellisen työmuistin taidot pysyvät joissain ryhmissä akuuttivaiheen tasolla. Kielellisen työmuistin tarkastelun tulisikin olla tärkeä puheterapeuttinen väline lievien kielellisten vaikeuksien arvioinnissa. Kognitiivisten toimintojen yhteys, joka myös tuli tutkimuksessa esille, osoittaa puheterapeutin ja neuropsykologin yhteistyön merkityksen. Jatkossa olisi kiinnostavaa tarkastella, miten aivoinfarktikuntoutujat ymmärtävät ja muistavat yksittäisiä kertomuksia laajempia kokonaisuuksia. Tällöin voitaisiin paremmin huomioida muun muassa tarkkaavaisuuden ja väsymisen merkitys

Wind power in thermal power systems

Abstract Wind power is a key technology in the effort to transform the power system in order to reduce its climate impact. However, the ability of wind power to reduce CO2-emissions depends on the properties of the power system. As large-scale wind power is integrated in a power system (typically 20% wind power grid penetration and beyond), the intermittent nature of wind power will result in an increase in variations in load on the other units in the system (e.g. thermal power plants). There are three main alternatives for the power system to respond to this increase in variations; by an increase in power plant cycling (i.e. starting/stopping), by an increase in part load operation hours or by wind power curtailment. In a system dominated by thermal base load units, the integration of large-scale wind power might thus result in an increase in costs and emissions related to thermal operation and/or an increase in wind power curtailment. This work investigates consequences of large-scale wind power integration in a thermal power system. Operation of units in a regional thermal power system have been investigated and quantified by means of modelling. Furthermore, the possibility to reduce the influence from wind power variations by means of introducing a variation moderator or demand side management has been evaluated. A variation moderator is a unit with the ability to reallocate power in time. Pumped hydro power stations, compressed air energy storages, batteries and transmission lines providing power exchange are examples of variation moderators which are all investigated in this work. Demand side management will allow for some flexibility in the allocation of parts of the load and in this work evaluates the ability of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV:s) to provide such flexibility. The simulations are carried out with a simplified version of the western Denmark power system as a starting point. This, since this system already has a high share of wind power and wind power data is available. For the system studied, simulations show that for 24% wind power grid penetration, variations in wind power generation results in start-up emissions corresponding to 5% of the total CO2-emissions of the power generation system. It is also shown that the inclusion of start-up and minimum load level aspects has an impact on the dispatch of units in the system. By integration of a moderator in the wind-thermal system, emissions are reduced with 7.2% mainly due to a decrease in power plant cycling. At wind power grid penetration levels of around 20%, a daily balanced moderator is sufficient, whereas more extensive storage capacity is required at higher wind power penetration levels such as for the 40% penetration level investigated in this work. The ability of PHEV:s to manage wind power variations depends strongly on the choice of PHEV integration strategy. With a strategy where the power system is free to allocate the load in time, emissions from the power system (excluding vehicles) are up to 6% lower than a corresponding system without PHEV:s. A passive approach to PHEV integration results in increased emissions from the system. For the system studied, the PHEV share of the electricity consumption should be around 12% to obtain maximum reduction in emission. This, since this share of PHEV capacity approximately corresponds to the difference in average load between night and day (evens out variations in load profile)

teaterlärare

Syftet med detta arbete är att undersöka vilken syn gymnasielärare och elever har på estetiska läroprocesser och schemaläggning. Inledningsvis ges en litteraturöversikt kring estetiska läroprocesser och tidsanvändning i skolan. Sex kvalitativa intervjuer har genomförts, tre med gymnasielärare och tre med gymnasieelever om deras syn på dessa frågor. Uppsatsen avslutas med ett diskussionskapitel där litteraturen vävs samman med resultaten från intervjuerna. Framförallt eleverna har en traditionell syn på schemaläggning och det tycks råda en hierarki mellan de estetiska och de teoretiska ämnena. Schemaläggningen är en viktig faktor för läroprocessernas kvalitet men även andra faktorer spelar in

BYTESKOSTNADER OCH MARKNADSMAKT : Estimering av bolånemarknadens byteskostnader och dess påverkan på marknadsmakt

When consumers demand to change from one mortgage institution to another within a homogenous market, they tend to face both monetary and non-monetary switching costs. As a result, a consumer lock-in effect arises making it difficult and costly to change provider, which hamper the consumer mobility on the market. The objective of this paper is to measure these consumer switching costs on the Swedish mortgage market and how this affect market power. First, the consumer switching costs is estimated by applying Shy’s (2002) model. Secondly, Lerner Index is calculated to measure marker power, which is used to study the influence of switching costs on market power by applying a Random Effects Model. The results shows that consumers on the Swedish mortgage market face a switching cost that are approximately between 4-5% of the consumer mortgage. However, no significant influence of switching costs on market power is found. Furthermore, the results mirror a complex market where further research is needed

BYTESKOSTNADER OCH MARKNADSMAKT : Estimering av bolånemarknadens byteskostnader och dess påverkan på marknadsmakt

When consumers demand to change from one mortgage institution to another within a homogenous market, they tend to face both monetary and non-monetary switching costs. As a result, a consumer lock-in effect arises making it difficult and costly to change provider, which hamper the consumer mobility on the market. The objective of this paper is to measure these consumer switching costs on the Swedish mortgage market and how this affect market power. First, the consumer switching costs is estimated by applying Shy’s (2002) model. Secondly, Lerner Index is calculated to measure marker power, which is used to study the influence of switching costs on market power by applying a Random Effects Model. The results shows that consumers on the Swedish mortgage market face a switching cost that are approximately between 4-5% of the consumer mortgage. However, no significant influence of switching costs on market power is found. Furthermore, the results mirror a complex market where further research is needed

Balancing Electricity Supply and Demand in a Carbon-Neutral Northern Europe

This work investigates how to balance the electricity supply and demand in a carbon-neutral northern Europe. Applying a cost-minimizing electricity system model including options to invest in eleven different flexibility measures, and cost-efficient combinations of strategies to manage variations were identified. The results of the model were post-processed using a novel method to map the net load before and after flexibility measures were applied to reveal the contribution of each flexibility measure. The net load was mapped in the space spanned by the amplitude, duration and number of occurrences. The mapping shows that, depending on cost structure, flexibility measures contribute to reduce the net load in three different ways; (1) by reducing variations with a long duration but low amplitude, (2) by reducing variations with a high amplitude but short duration and low occurrence or (3) by reducing variations with a high amplitude, short duration and high occurrence. It was found that cost-efficient variation management was achieved by combining wind and solar power and by combining strategies (1–3) to manage the variations. The cost-efficient combination of strategies depends on electricity system context where electricity trade, flexible hydrogen and heat production (1) manage the majority of the variations in regions with good conditions for wind power while stationary batteries (3) were the main contributors in regions with good conditions for solar power

The moral imperative of children’s academic excellence: Tensions and contradictions in Chinese middle-class parenting styles

It is well documented that Chinese parents invest enormous amounts of time, resources and emotions in their children’s education, as if a life worthwhile is a life where education and self-cultivation is at the fore. Taking part in and excelling in educational activities is a moral imperative that marks childhood, whereby achieving in school is not only an act of filial piety, but also a patriotic deed, where the good-student-subject contributes to the advancement of the nation. Educational desire, seen across China and other East Asian societies, feeds off and contributes to an intrinsic web of subjects and public and private institutions that govern themselves as much as they are governed by the state. One key set of actors, subsumed in this web, is parents who both set goals and aspirations for their children’s academic achievement, and manage, support and coach their children in achieving these goals, often with the help of tutors and extra-curricular schools. This paper explores some of the tensions and contradictions in Chinese middle-class parenting styles aiming at academic excellence on part of their young children. Drawing on fieldwork in Beijing, Shanghai and Singapore, various norms and practices are delineated, pointing at tensions and contradictions of the moral imperative of children’s academic excellence. As we show, these tensions cannot be understood without taking into account aspirations for social mobility and intergenerational relations on the one hand, and concerns over (mental) health and wellbeing and the moral imperative of being a good parent on the other hand