Evaluation methods among corporate travel managers

This study examined whether corporate travel planners performed any kind of evaluation among their clients and in that case what that evaluation revealed about the different air lines\u27 performance. A questionnaire was sent out to 100 members of National Business Travel Association (NBTA) all over the U.S. In this questionnaire the respondents were asked to answer 10 questions about if and how the evaluated the performance of the airlines. In the survey, 25% of the respondents said that they did not perform any evaluation at all. The most commonly used evaluation method was to hand-out questionnaires which was used by 37.5%. Focus groups were used by 11% of the respondents as an evaluation method. When asked why they did not perform focus groups 40% said it was too time consuming. None of the respondents indicated that it was too expensive or that they did not have the knowledge. When conducting focus groups the most commonly used method was to pick out participators from a frequent flier list provided by the airlines. The top issued brought up in their evaluation whether they used focus groups or any other kind of evaluation method, was arrival time of the airlines. The highest rated U. S carrier was USAir followed by United and the highest rated transatlantic carrier was British Airways followed by SAS

An "in vitro" analysis of murine thymocyte-stromal cell interactions

This thesis is directed towards two separate but closely related goals; one involves the biology of precursor cells in T-cell development and the second involves the use of retroviral constructs for the establishment of thymic stromal cell lines and its application for studying differentiation of T-cells in vitro. Using the mouse foetal thymic organ culture system, a quantitative assay was devised in which the relative abundance of T-cell progenitors among different populations was estimated by seeding decreasing numbers of precursors into alymphoid thymic rudiments. This limiting dilution approach combined with serial transfer of successfully recolonised precursor cells in organ culture, provided evidence that certain populations seeding the thymus have the potential for extensive cell divisions (up to 10- 12 weeks). Stromal cells from adult and foetal sources were transformed by a temperature sensitive (ts) mutant of SV40 and Ela 12S in order to study interactions between the developing thymocytes and specific elements of the microenvironment. Eighty four cell lines were generated and have been shown to contain properties related to their counterparts in vivo. The thermolabile transforming agent (large T) allowed inactivation of the immortalising gene when the cells were switched to the nonpermissive temperature. Properties like the expression of MHC antigens and the ability to bind thymocytes could be induced by growing ts-derived clones at the nonpermissive temperature, which suggests that although cell proliferation had ceased, the cells were still metabolically active and had reverted to a more 'normal' non-transformed phenotype allowing certain molecules to be expressed at the cell surface. Close interaction of the developing thymocytes with the stroma is essential for the development of functionally mature T-cells. Using a rosette assay unfractionated adult thymocytes were found to bind unstimulated Ela-derived clones resembling epithelial cells (15.5 and 15.18) and also to several other established clones after temperature switching and/or IFNγ treatment. In co-culture with a multipotent bone-marrow derived stem cell clone (A4) it was shown that both proliferation and differentiation into certain myeloid lineages were supported. Furthermore, in co-culture with CD4'CD8' thymocytes, with and without interleukin-7, the growth of this subset could be sustained for ~20 days. In addition, phenotypic changes of thymocytes in these cultures suggest that some of these lines may have the potential to induce differentiation of early precursors. These findings indicate that established cell lines could be useful tools for studying maturation of T-cells in vitro and furthermore, to investigate distinct events in T-cell ontogeny governed by different stromal cell types

Teaching in a multicultural society integrating international issues

This study focused on enabling students to become aware of the global society and to become prepared to be adults in this society. A description of curricular change and international issues are discussed from a historical vantage point. Quotes from the curriculum and the discrimination act will be followed by short reflections, incorporating our experience from Farsta Gymsnaium, Stockholm, Sweden. Finally, a focus of discrimination of students is discussed. These multi-cultural classrooms allow for opportunities for learning about the outside world and its many challenges

Effect of calcium neutralization on elastic and swelling properties of crosslinked poly(acrylic acid) - correlation to inhomogeneities and phase behaviour

Crosslinked hydrogels of poly(acrylic acid) neutralized with calcium hydroxide were synthesized using free radical co-polymerization. The effects of the amount added calcium on the elastic modulus and swelling properties of the gels and the correlation to phase behaviour and structural changes within the gels were studied using texture analysis, gravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis and atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was found that the elastic modulus decreased nonlinearly with increasing amount of added calcium and that the swelling's dependence on the amount of added calcium was complicated. The maximum swelling increased with increasing amount of added calcium until a critical calcium content was reached, upon which the gels phase separated, with a strong decrease in swelling as a result. The changes in properties are explained by the fact that calcium affects the structure of the polymer network during synthesis and by the phase behaviour of the gels. Changes in the gel structure with the addition of calcium were detected with AFM. Furthermore, AFM revealed different phases on the nanometre scale for the sample with a calcium content around which phase separation is macroscopically observed. Finally, it was shown that the sulphur from the initiator potassium persulfate formed crystal like regions with high sulphur and calcium content upon drying of the hydrogels

Freshwater Fishing Strategies in Early Modern Sami Households

Fish were absolutely necessary for survival for many households in preindustrial societies. Because fishing waters are considered a common-pool resource, it is difficult to exclude users, and the catch is subtractable. To learn what strategies were in place to avoid fish-stock depletion and secure continuous harvests, we investigated how Indigenous Sami households in Lule lappmark, Sweden, used low-productive freshwaters between 1660 and 1780. Our aim is to show how they conducted fishing and how it was linked to rules for fishing. Our sources are contemporary 17th- and 18th-century accounts and local court rulings. Rules for fishing were developed in a self-governance context. Users and fishing areas were well defined, and users often had exclusive rights to fish. Inheritance was important but not a sufficient prerequisite to obtain access. Our research covers a period during which abundant but low-yield fishing waters per household declined, making it more difficult to survive

Self-Governance and Sami Communities

This open access book uses an interdisciplinary approach that not only focuses on social organization but also analyzes how societies and ecological settings were interwoven. How did early modern indigenous Sami inhabitants in interior northwest Fennoscandia build institutions for governance of natural resources? The book answers this question by exploring how they made decisions regarding natural resource management, mainly with regard to wild game, fish, and grazing land and illuminate how Sami users, in a changing economy, altered the long-term rules for use of land and water in a self-governance context. The early modern period was a transforming phase of property rights due to fundamental changes in Sami economy: from an economy based on fishing and hunting to an economy where reindeer pastoralism became the main occupation for many Sami. The book gives a new portrayal of how proficiently and systematically indigenous inhabitants organized and governed natural assets and how capable they were in building highly functioning institutions for governance

Carotenoid Extraction from Locally and Organically Produced Cereals Using Saponification Method

Carotenoids are important phytochemicals contributing nutritional health benefits in the human diet, with a significant contribution from cereals as one of the major food component around the world. Different methods have been described and adopted for the extraction and isolation of carotenoid compounds. Saponification can be seen as an option for carotenoid extraction from cereals as it converts retinol esters to retinol and removes other abundant compounds such as triglycerides. Extraction of carotenoids content of locally adapted and organic cereals have been limitedly investigated and was, therefore, evaluated in the present study, with a specific aim to understand genotypic and local cultivation effects and interactions. Therefore, 17 diverse cereal genotypes of local origin were grown organically in four localities and evaluated for carotenoid content and composition by HPLC. The results showed a large variation in content and composition of carotenoids in locally adapted and organically grown cereal genotypes, with lutein as the dominating type in wheat and rye, while zeaxanthin was the dominating type in barley. High-level genotypes showed values (9.9 mg/kg of total carotenoids) similar to the highest values previously reported in specific types of wheat. The barley genotypes showed relatively high stability in carotenoids content within and between cultivation locations, while large interactions were found with the cultivation location for the rest of the genotypes, indicating their local adaptation. The local adaptation of the cereal genotypes evaluated contributes large opportunities for local production of high value, highly nutritious food products, while the direct value of these genotypes for conventional plant breeding for varieties performing similar over broad environmental ranges, are more limited

Sensitivity to environmental irritants and quality of life in COPD

It is a common clinical experience that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) complain of airway symptoms provoked by environmental irritants like chemicals and scents, although few studies can confirm such connections. The aim was to study the prevalence of airway symptoms induced by chemicals and scents in a group of patients with newly diagnosed CPOD and to analyze any relation to illness severity and quality of life. Eighty-one patients with COPD were recruited to the study. By mail they were asked to answer three questionnaires regarding symptoms, quality of life, and social and emotional influence of airway symptoms induced by environmental irritants. A majority (62%) of the COPD patients claimed to be hyperreactive to chemicals and scents. As a group they scored higher on a questionnaire measuring social and emotional influences of such environmental irritants compared to healthy control subjects. Further, high scores were more common among patients with a very severe form of COPD and among patients with regular use of β2-stimulants. High scores were also associated with significantly more airway symptoms and, in some aspects, with impaired quality of life. In conclusion, the results of this study show that airway symptoms induced by environmental irritants are common in patients with COPD and that this increased airway sensitivity follows the impairment of lung capacity. The mechanisms behind this remain unclear

Trace element geochemistry of ancient slags

About one hundred samples from bloomery sites in Viby parish in Närke (Sweden), dated between 900 BC to 1000 AD, have been investigated using petrographic methods, microprobe analyses as well as chemical analyses for major, minor and trace elements. Samples from a 16th century smithy were included. The results are used to discriminate between bloomery and smithing slags according to the physico-chemical conditions reached. They also provide clues to whether or not a certain ore was used, and can be applied for estimating the amount of iron produced at the site