Från dokument till funktion - En studie över implementeringen av ett projektstyrningsverktyg i en byggverksamhet

Som en naturlig följd av det hårda och konkurrenskraftiga klimat som idag råder inom byggbranschen har organisationer i syfte att stärka sin roll på marknaden valt att satsa på och effektivisera kommunikation och hantering av projektdokumentation. I samband med rådande IT-utveckling har man därför utvecklat projektstyrningsverktyg i hopp om att optimera sin resursanvändning och underlätta det projektbaserade arbetet inom organisationen. Syftet med denna studie har varit att undersöka olika aspekter kring den förändring som sker inom en organisation vid införandet av ett projektstyrningsverktyg. De frågeställningar som legat till grund för studien har behandlat arbetet före respektive efter införandet av ett sådant verktyg, för att se hur det dokumentbaserade arbetet kan komma att påverkas. En avgränsning har gjorts till arbetet kring ett specifikt dokument, riskanalysen, då detta är ett dokument som hanteras och uppdateras löpande under hela byggprocessen. Undersökningen har genomförts som en fallstudie genom intervjuer med deltagare från NCC Construction på avdelning Hus Malmö-Lund, och urvalet har skett genom en kombination av stratifierat urval och möjlighetsurval. Beroende på om deltagarna haft kontakt med projektstyrningsverktyget eller inte har de sedan placerats in i kontroll- eller testgrupp. Då studien utförts i liten skala är det svårt att avgöra i vilken utsträckning arbetet förändrats. Studien bidrar med föreslagna åtgärder och vidareutvecklingar för en optimerad användning av verktyget. Studiens resultat kan tänkas vara av intresse för företag och organisationer med en förhoppning om att effektivisera och förbättra arbetsrutiner med ett projektstyrningsverktyg liknande det författarna valt att studera

Akutsjuksköterskors upplevelser av arbetsmiljön på somatiska akutmottagningar - en litteraturstudie

I media beskrivs frekvent kris inom hälso- och sjukvård, framför allt brist på sjuksköterskor. Syftet med den här litteraturstudien var att belysa krisen vidare och beskriva hur akutsjuksköterskor upplevde sin arbetsmiljö på somatiska akutmottagningar. Tretton vetenskapliga artiklar valdes ut och genomgick en granskning. I resultatet kom det fram fem teman som var stress och hög arbetsbelastning, organisatoriska problem, bristande patientsäkerhet, otillräckligt stöd från arbetsgivare och förbättring av arbetsmiljö. Litteraturstudien visade att många akutsjuksköterskor idag arbetade i en ohållbar arbetsmiljö som påverkade både omvårdnad och akutsjuksköterskors hälsa negativt. Patientsäkerheten har visat sig bli påverkad på grund av bristande arbetsmiljö. En stor orsak till problemet var en bristande organisation. Förslag till förbättring av arbetsmiljö beskrevs i resultatet

Not dead yet: Diatom resting spores can survive in nature for several millennia

Premise: Understanding the adaptive capacities of species over long timescales lies in examining the revived recent and millennia-old resting spores buried in sediments. We show for the first time the revival, viability, and germination rate of resting spores of the diatom Chaetoceros deposited in sub-seafloor sediments from three ages (recent: 0 to 80 years; ancient: similar to 1250 (Medieval Climate Anomaly) and similar to 6600 (Holocene Thermal Maximum) calendar year before present.Methods: Recent and ancient Chaetoceros spores were revived to examine their viability and germination rate. Light and scanning electron microscopy and Sanger sequencing was done to identify the species.Results: We show that similar to 6600 cal. year BP old Chaetoceros resting spores are still viable and that the vegetative reproduction in recent and ancient resting spores varies. The time taken to germinate is three hours to 2 to 3 days in both recent and ancient spores, but the germination rate of the spores decreased with increasing age. The germination rate of the recent spores was similar to 41% while that of the ancient spores were similar to 31% and similar to 12% for the similar to 1250 and similar to 6600 cal. year BP old resting spores, respectively. Based on the morphology of the germinated vegetative cells we identified the species as Chaetoceros muelleri var. subsalsum. Sanger sequences of nuclear and chloroplast markers identified the species as Chaetoceros muelleri.Conclusions: We identify a unique model system, Chaetoceros muelleri var. subsalsum and show that recent and ancient resting spores of the species buried in sediments in the Baltic Sea can be revived and used for long-term evolutionary studies

DNA methylation holds prognostic information in relapsed precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Background: Few biological markers are associated with survival after relapse of B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL). In pediatric T-cell ALL, we have identified promoter-associated methylation alterations that correlate with prognosis. Here, the prognostic relevance of CpG island methylation phenotype (CIMP) classification was investigated in pediatric BCP-ALL patients. Methods: Six hundred and one BCP-ALL samples from Nordic pediatric patients (age 1-18) were CIMP classified at initial diagnosis and analyzed in relation to clinical data. Results: Among the 137 patients that later relapsed, patients with a CIMP-profile (n = 42) at initial diagnosis had an inferior overall survival (pOS(5years) 33%) compared to CIMP+ patients (n = 95, pOS(5years) 65%) (p = 0.001), which remained significant in a Cox proportional hazards model including previously defined risk factors. Conclusion: CIMP classification is a strong candidate for improved risk stratification of relapsed BCP-ALL.Peer reviewe

DNA Methylation Signatures Predict Cytogenetic Subtype and Outcome in Pediatric Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)

Pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disease composed of clinically relevant subtypes defined by recurrent cytogenetic aberrations. The majority of the aberrations used in risk grouping for treatment decisions are extensively studied, but still a large proportion of pediatric AML patients remain cytogenetically undefined and would therefore benefit from additional molecular investigation. As aberrant epigenetic regulation has been widely observed during leukemogenesis, we hypothesized that DNA methylation signatures could be used to predict molecular subtypes and identify signatures with prognostic impact in AML. To study genome-wide DNA methylation, we analyzed 123 diagnostic and 19 relapse AML samples on Illumina 450k DNA methylation arrays. We designed and validated DNA methylation-based classifiers for AML cytogenetic subtype, resulting in an overall test accuracy of 91%. Furthermore, we identified methylation signatures associated with outcome in t(8;21)/RUNX1-RUNX1T1, normal karyotype, and MLL/KMT2A-rearranged subgroups (p < 0.01). Overall, these results further underscore the clinical value of DNA methylation analysis in AML

DNA Methylation Signatures Predict Cytogenetic Subtype and Outcome in Pediatric Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)

Pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disease composed of clinically relevant subtypes defined by recurrent cytogenetic aberrations. The majority of the aberrations used in risk grouping for treatment decisions are extensively studied, but still a large proportion of pediatric AML patients remain cytogenetically undefined and would therefore benefit from additional molecular investigation. As aberrant epigenetic regulation has been widely observed during leukemogenesis, we hypothesized that DNA methylation signatures could be used to predict molecular subtypes and identify signatures with prognostic impact in AML. To study genome-wide DNA methylation, we analyzed 123 diagnostic and 19 relapse AML samples on Illumina 450k DNA methylation arrays. We designed and validated DNA methylation-based classifiers for AML cytogenetic subtype, resulting in an overall test accuracy of 91%. Furthermore, we identified methylation signatures associated with outcome in t(8;21)/RUNX1-RUNX1T1, normal karyotype, and MLL/KMT2A-rearranged subgroups (p < 0.01). Overall, these results further underscore the clinical value of DNA methylation analysis in AML

DNA methylation-based subtype prediction for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked Files. This article is open access.We present a method that utilizes DNA methylation profiling for prediction of the cytogenetic subtypes of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cells from pediatric ALL patients. The primary aim of our study was to improve risk stratification of ALL patients into treatment groups using DNA methylation as a complement to current diagnostic methods. A secondary aim was to gain insight into the functional role of DNA methylation in ALL.We used the methylation status of ~450,000 CpG sites in 546 well-characterized patients with T-ALL or seven recurrent B-cell precursor ALL subtypes to design and validate sensitive and accurate DNA methylation classifiers. After repeated cross-validation, a final classifier was derived that consisted of only 246 CpG sites. The mean sensitivity and specificity of the classifier across the known subtypes was 0.90 and 0.99, respectively. We then used DNA methylation classification to screen for subtype membership of 210 patients with undefined karyotype (normal or no result) or non-recurrent cytogenetic aberrations ('other' subtype). Nearly half (n = 106) of the patients lacking cytogenetic subgrouping displayed highly similar methylation profiles as the patients in the known recurrent groups. We verified the subtype of 20% of the newly classified patients by examination of diagnostic karyotypes, array-based copy number analysis, and detection of fusion genes by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq). Using RNA-seq data from ALL patients where cytogenetic subtype and DNA methylation classification did not agree, we discovered several novel fusion genes involving ETV6, RUNX1, and PAX5.Our findings indicate that DNA methylation profiling contributes to the clarification of the heterogeneity in cytogenetically undefined ALL patient groups and could be implemented as a complementary method for diagnosis of ALL. The results of our study provide clues to the origin and development of leukemic transformation. The methylation status of the CpG sites constituting the classifiers also highlight relevant biological characteristics in otherwise unclassified ALL patients.Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research RBc08-008 Swedish Cancer Society CAN2010/592 Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation 11098 Swedish Research Council for Science and Technology 90559401 Swedish Research Council FORTE Swedish Research Council FORMAS Swedish Research Council VINNOVA Swedish Research Council VR 259-2012-2

DNA methylation-based subtype prediction for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Peer reviewe

Utbytesstudier : En fenomenologisk studie om upplevelsen av utbytesstudier och att möta en annan kultur

This study investigates the experience of exchange studies from a phenomenological perspective. Phenomenology studies the sentence structure of the phenomenon and places the lifeworld as a central concept. Husserl (2002/1954) described the lifeworld as a coherent universe of objects where we, all of us living with another in this world, may be conscious of the world as a universal horizon. In this study the lifeworld of exchange students is investigated with emphasis on their experience of the exchange. The aim of the study is to highlight the sentence structure in the experience of living as an exchange student which involves a meeting with a different culture. Seven interviews were conducted with exchange students that participated in at least one semester of higher education abroad and the resulting data was analyzed using the EPP method. This method describes the general meaning structure of the phenomenon and identifies several distinguishing features. For this study ten features were identified; an expectation and openness relative an uncertain future, a deliberate break, a part of something bigger, a deliberate approach to cultural codes, an encounter with different values, new interactions and relations, language difficulties, a new environment, a creation of identity and a personal development and responsibilities. The results indicate that the experience of exchange studies may not always be unproblematic since it’s often difficult to gain access to the culture and society of the host country. However, the experience also seems to be rewarding and is characterized by a personal development and a change in the perception of both oneself and people from other cultures. The results also show that the exchange student may gain a feeling of living in a global society where all possibilities are present.Denna studie utgår ifrån en fenomenologisk ansats. Fenomenologins uppgift är att beskriva ett fenomens meningsstruktur där ett centralt begrepp är livsvärlden. Enligt Husserl (2002/1954) belyser livsvärlden den verklighet som man ständigt befinner sig i tillsammans med andra människor. Grundvalen för denna studie är att studera utbytesstudenters livsvärld där upplevelsen av utbytesstudier är i fokus. Syftet med studien är att beskriva meningsstrukturer i upplevelsen av att leva som utbytesstudent och som inbegriper ett möte med en annan kultur. Sju intervjuer har genomförts med utbytesstudenter som alla studerat minst en termin inom högre utbildning vid ett värduniversitet i ett annat land. De aktuella data som behandlats har analyserats med hjälp av studiens valda metod, Empirical phenomenological psychologial (EPP-metoden). Resultatet beskriver det aktuella fenomenets meningsstruktur som en helhet och visar vilka de generella kännetecknen är. De generella kännetecknen som framkommit i studien är; en förväntan och en öppenhet inför en obestämd framtid, ett medvetet uppbrott, en del i att uppnå något större, ett medvetet förhållningssätt till kulturella koder, ett möte med andra värderingar, nya interaktioner och relationer, svårigheter med språket, ändrade livsvillkor, ett identitetsskapande, en personlig utveckling och ett ansvarstagande. Resultatet indikerar att upplevelsen av utbytesstudier och att möta en annan kultur inte är helt oproblematisk då det ibland är svårt att få tillträde till värdlandets kultur och samhälle. Dock verkar upplevelsen även vara en värdefull tid som präglas av en utveckling och ett ifrågasättande av tidigare föreställningar om en själv och människor från andra kulturer. Resultatet påvisar också att utbytesstudenten kan ha en känsla av att leva i en global värld där alla möjligheter finns

Effect on district heating systems in Dalarna County from energy efficiency measures in buildings - a scenario study to 2050

Energi Intelligent is a program in Dalarna County with the purpose of finding ways of enhancing the efficiency of energy use and thereby be able to reach a more sustainable use of energy resources[1]. The basis of this program is the energy goal that has been prepared for Dalarna County published in Dalarnas miljömål[2].  The energy goal is divided into a number of intermediate goals, the sixth, Delmål 6, is to reduce energy consumption in buildings with 50 percent until 2050, and with 30 percent until 2025[3].   There are often a large number of different sectors involved that have got differing opinions and intentions. This makes the task far more complex than simply reducing energy consumption, because energy efficiency is one goal and that would mean that power companies would not be able to continue increasing their profit.   The aim of this project was to analyze the effects on energy production when reducing the use of heat demand in buildings until 2050. The district heating systems constitutes the main part of heating of buildings in the county and that is why it has been analyzed in this project.  The simulation tool that was suggested in the declaration of the thesis work was LEAP, the Long range energy alternative planning system tool for simulating different scenarios over years from the base year of the model.  The idea was to build energy models of Falun district heating system and Borlänge district heating system in LEAP. Scenarios were defined for the energy goals and then simulated in a model of district heating system. Simulation of the district heating systems were made from the scenarios; reducing the district heating production with 30 percent until 2025 and 50 percent until 2050. The results from the analysis showed that for Falun district heating system the reduction of district heat demand will lead to decreased heat and electricity production and there will be no need for further investment. In Borlänge district heating system capacity is lower than the total capacity of all the available waste resources and there have been discussions about investing in a third municipal waste incineration boiler that would increase the total capacity so Borlänge district heating system could have waste incineration that covers the resources of the fuel cost favorable municipal and industrial waste