A visit to the Technical Information and Documentation Centre (TIDC) of the European Space Agency (ESA) at ESTEC

The purpose of my visit (18.-22.1.1999) to the Technical Information and Documentation Centre (TIDC) of European Space Agency (ESA) at ESTEC was to study the information and library services available for the ESA community. The emphasis was on the services which are available via web at all ESA establishments around the world. Other objectives for the visit were to study the tools used to provide these web services and the organisational structure of TIDC

Taakses jätät kaiken muun, kuin maailmaa ei ois:metaforat Disneyn piirroselokuvien suomenkielisten laulujen sanoituksissa

Tiivistelmä. Tarkastelen kandidaatintutkielmassani erilaisia kielikuvia Disneyn piirroselokuvien suomenkielisten laulujen sanoituksissa. Tutkin, minkä tyyppisiä kielikuvia sanoituksissa käytetään ja kuinka usein saman tyyppiset metaforat toistuvat. Tutkin metaforia George Lakoffin ja Mark Johnsonin luoman kognitiivisen metaforateorian avulla. Metaforia tutkimalla pyrin määrittelemään niiden taustalla olevat käsitemetaforat

Effects of optical beam angle on quantitative optical coherence tomography (OCT) in normal and surface degenerated bovine articular cartilage

2010-2011 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalAccepted ManuscriptPublishe

T2 relaxation time mapping reveals age- and species-related diversity of collagen network architecture in articular cartilage

SummaryObjectiveThe magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) parameter T2 relaxation time has been shown to be sensitive to the collagen network architecture of articular cartilage. The aim of the study was to investigate the agreement of T2 relaxation time mapping and polarized light microscopy (PLM) for the determination of histological properties (i.e., zone and fibril organization) of articular cartilage.MethodsT2 relaxation time was determined at 9.4T field strength in healthy adult human, juvenile bovine and juvenile porcine patellar cartilage, and related to collagen anisotropy and fibril angle as measured by quantitative PLM.ResultsBoth T2 and PLM revealed a mutually consistent but varying number of collagen-associated laminae (3, 3–5 or 3–7 laminae in human, porcine and bovine cartilage, respectively). Up to 44% of the depth-wise variation in T2 was accounted for by the changing anisotropy of collagen fibrils, confirming that T2 contrast of articular cartilage is strongly affected by the collagen fibril anisotropy. A good correspondence was observed between the thickness of T2-laminae and collagenous zones as determined from PLM anisotropy measurements (r=0.91, r=0.95 and r=0.91 for human, bovine and porcine specimens, respectively).ConclusionsAccording to the present results, T2 mapping is capable of detecting histological differences in cartilage collagen architecture among species, likely to be strongly related to the differences in maturation of the tissue. This diversity in the MRI appearance of healthy articular cartilage should also be recognized when using juvenile animal tissue as a model for mature human cartilage in experimental studies

Depth-wise progression of osteoarthritis in human articular cartilage: investigation of composition, structure and biomechanics

SummaryObjectiveOsteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by the changes in structure and composition of articular cartilage. However, it is not fully known, what is the depth-wise change in two major components of the cartilage solid matrix, i.e., collagen and proteoglycans (PGs), during OA progression. Further, it is unknown how the depth-wise changes affect local tissue strains during compression. Our aim was to address these issues.MethodsData from the previous microscopic and biochemical measurements of the collagen content, distribution and orientation, PG content and distribution, water content and histological grade of normal and degenerated human patellar articular cartilage (n=73) were reanalyzed in a depth-wise manner. Using this information, a composition-based finite element (FE) model was used to estimate tissue function solely based on its composition and structure.ResultsThe orientation angle of collagen fibrils in the superficial zone of cartilage was significantly less parallel to the surface (P<0.05) in samples with early degeneration than in healthy samples. Similarly, PG content was reduced in the superficial zone in early OA (P<0.05). However, collagen content decreased significantly only at the advanced stage of OA (P<0.05). The composition-based FE model showed that under a constant stress, local tissue strains increased as OA progressed.ConclusionFor the first time, depth-wise point-by-point statistical comparisons of structure and composition of human articular cartilage were conducted. The present results indicated that early OA is primarily characterized by the changes in collagen orientation and PG content in the superficial zone, while collagen content does not change until OA has progressed to its late stage. Our simulation results suggest that impact loads in OA joint could create a risk for tissue failure and cell death

Luokanopettajien käsityksiä ilmiöpohjaisesta opetuksesta

Tiivistelmä. Perusopetuksen opetussuunnitelman perusteissa 2014 tuodaan esille velvoite toteuttaa opetuksessa vähintään yksi monialainen oppimiskokonaisuus lukuvuodessa. Yksi tapa toteuttaa monialainen oppimiskokonaisuus on ilmiöpohjainen opetus, joka on käsitteenä noussut esille vuosien 2007–2008 välisenä aikana. Ilmiöpohjaisuudella viitataan pedagogiseen lähestymistapaan, jossa yhdistetään eri oppiaineita ja pyritään rakentamaan syvällinen ymmärrys tutkittaessa todellisen maailman ilmiötä. Ilmiöpohjaisessa oppimisessa tärkeää on oppilaan aktiivinen rooli ja aito toimijuus. Tämän pro gradu -tutkielman tarkoituksena on selvittää luokanopettajien käsityksiä ilmiöpohjaisesta opetuksesta. Näkökulma tutkimuksessa on luokanopettajien käsityksissä ja heidän tavoissaan toteuttaa ilmiöpohjaisia oppimiskokonaisuuksia. Tutkimus on laadullinen tutkimus, joka toteutettiin fenomenografisella tutkimusotteella. Fenomenografia pyrkii selvittämään, kuinka ympärillä oleva maailma tulee esille ja rakentuu ihmisen tietoisuudessa. Jokainen ihminen rakentaa omanlaisensa käsityksen tietystä, samasta ilmiöstä. Tässä tutkimuksessa ilmiönä on ilmiöpohjainen opetus ja tutkimuksen kohteena on luokanopettajien käsitykset aiheesta. Tutkimuksen empiirinen osio toteutettiin kyselylomakkeen avulla. Kysely julkaistiin talven 2015–2016 aikana kahdella internetissä olevalla foorumilla, ja sen lisäksi se lähetettiin sähköpostitse joukolle opettajia. Kyselyyn vastasi yhteensä 11 luokanopettajaa. Luokanopettajien kokemukset ilmiöpohjaisesta opetuksesta vaihtelivat melko paljon. Osa oli opettanut ilmiöpohjaisesti kahden oppimiskokonaisuuden verran, kun taas osalla kokemusta oli kertynyt jopa 25 kokonaisuuden verran tai opetus tapahtui pääosin ilmiöpohjaisuuteen perustuen. Tutkimustuloksista nousee monia hyödyllisiä näkökulmia ilmiöpohjaisuuteen liittyen. Tutkimustuloksista ilmenee, että luokanopettajien käsitykset ilmiöpohjaisuudesta vastasivat suhteellisen hyvin tutkimusta varten kerättyä teoreettista viitekehystä. Tämä ei kuitenkaan näkynyt aina käytännössä, sillä luokanopettajien tavoissa toteuttaa ilmiöpohjaista opetusta oli välillä eroavaisuuksia tutkimuksen teoreettisen viitekehyksen kanssa. Eroavaisuuksia ilmeni muun muassa oppimiskokonaisuuksien kestoissa sekä oppilaiden osallistamisessa oppimiskokonaisuuksien suunnitteluun. Oppilaan rooli nähtiin oppimiskokonaisuuksissa aktiivisena toimijana, mutta tämä ei toteutunut läheskään aina vielä kokonaisuuksien suunnittelussa. Haasteena ilmiöpohjaisessa opetuksessa nähtiin erityisesti arvioinnin toteuttaminen, oppilaiden aito osallisuus sekä ajankäyttö. Sen sijaan ilmiöpohjaisen opetuksen eduiksi nähtiin oppimisen ilo, mielekkyys ja kokonaisvaltaisuus

Регіональні й глобальні наслідки незалежності Косово

У статті розглянуто регіональні й міжнародні аспекти проголошення незалежності Косово. Проаналізовано конфліктні аспекти косовської проблеми у регіональному й глобальному контекстах.В статье рассматриваются региональные и международные аспекты провозглашения независимости Косово. Проанализировано конфликтные аспекты косовской проблемы в региональном и глобальном контекстах.The article presents the regional and international aspects of Kosovo Independents. Special attention is to the conflict of Kosovo in the regional and global context

Evaluation of composition and mineral structure of callus tissue in rat femoral fracture.

ABSTRACT. Callus formation is a critical step for successful fracture healing. Little is known about the molecular composition and mineral structure of the newly formed tissue in the callus. The aim was to evaluate the feasibility of small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) to assess mineral structure of callus and cortical bone and if it could provide complementary information with the compositional analyses from Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microspectroscopy. Femurs of 12 male Sprague-Dawley rats at 9 weeks of age were fractured and fixed with an intramedullary 1.1 mm K-wire. Fractures were treated with the combinations of bone morphogenetic protein-7 and/or zoledronate. Rats were sacrificed after 6 weeks and both femurs were prepared for FTIR and SAXS analysis. Significant differences were found in the molecular composition and mineral structure between the fracture callus, fracture cortex, and control cortex. The degree of mineralization, collagen maturity, and degree of orientation of the mineral plates were lower in the callus tissue than in the cortices. The results indicate the feasibility of SAXS in the investigation of mineral structure of bone fracture callus and provide complementary information with the composition analyzed with FTIR. Moreover, this study contributes to the limited FTIR and SAXS data in the field

Effects of bright light treatment on psychomotor speed in athletes

Purpose: A recent study suggests that transcranial brain targeted light treatment via ear canals may have physiological effects on brain function studied by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) techniques in humans. We tested the hypothesis that bright light treatment could improve psychomotor speed in professional ice hockey players. Methods: Psychomotor speed tests with audio and visual warning signals were administered to a Finnish National Ice Hockey League team before and after 24 days of transcranial bright light or sham treatment. The treatments were given during seasonal darkness in the Oulu region (latitude 65 degrees north) when the strain on the players was also very high (10 matches during 24 days). A daily 12-min dose of bright light or sham (n = 11 for both) treatment was given every morning between 8–12 am at home with a transcranial bright light device. Mean reaction time and motor time were analyzed separately for both psychomotor tests. Analysis of variance for repeated measures adjusted for age was performed. Results: Time x group interaction for motor time with a visual warning signal was p = 0.024 after adjustment for age. In Bonferroni post-hoc analysis, motor time with a visual warning signal decreased in the bright light treatment group from 127 ± 43 to 94 ± 26 ms (p = 0.024) but did not change significantly in the sham group 121 ± 23 vs. 110 ± 32 ms (p = 0.308). Reaction time with a visual signal did not change in either group. Reaction or motor time with an audio warning signal did not change in either the treatment or sham group. Conclusion: Psychomotor speed, particularly motor time with a visual warning signal, improves after transcranial bright light treatment in professional ice-hockey players during the competition season in the dark time of the year