Unintentional Climate Policy: Swedish experiences of carbon dioxide emissions and economic growth 1950-2005

This paper examines the development of carbon dioxide emissions in Sweden, especiallyn with a focus on the absolute reductions during the post-war period, during the 1970s and 1980s. The paper shows that the largest reductions were achieved before the introduction of an active climate policy in 1991. This was in turn the result of significant improvements in energy efficiency and energy conversion, while structural changes were considerably less important. One reason behind this decoupling process may be that the active energy policy put pressure on households and industries to conserve energy and to substitute from oil to electricity and biofuels. The process was substantially reinforced by the development of world oil prices in combination with the development of domestic electricity prices, where nuclear power seems to have played an important role.Sweden; climate policy; economic growth; carbon dioxide reduction; carbon tax

Technical change, carbon dioxide reduction and energy consumption in the Swedish pulp and paper industry 1973-2006

This study examines the historical relation between carbon dioxide emission and output growth in the Swedish pulp and paperindustry 1973-2006. We find that the industry achieved an 80 per cent reduction in CO2 emission. Foremost energy substitution but also efficiently improvement contributed to the reduction. Growing prices of fossil fuel due to market price change and taxes and subvention, explains most of the efficiency improvements and substitution. Taxes on energy explain 40 per cent of the total reduction in CO2 intensity. Most of the reduction took place before the implementation of active climate policy in 1991.Sweden; Climate policy; economic growth; carbon dioxide reduction; carbon tax; paper and plant industry

Дотримання принципу науковості при формуванні у майбутніх викладачів природничих дисциплін сучасної наукової картини світу

(uk) Стаття присвячена актуальній проблемі формування у майбутніх викладачів природничих дисциплін сучасної наукової картини світу.(en) The article is devoted the issue of the day of forming for the future teachers of natural disciplines of modern scientific picture of the world

The historical relation between banking, insurance and economic

We examine empirically the dynamic historical relation between banking, insurance economic (income) growth in Sweden using time-series data from 1830 to 1998. We examine long-run historical trends in the data using econometric tests for cointegration and Granger causality. Our results indicate that the development of domestic banking, but not insurance, preceded economic growth in Sweden during the nineteenth century, while Granger causality was reversed in the twentieth century. We also find that the development of bank lending in the nineteenth century increased the demand for insurance as well as promoting economic growth. In later periods, the development of insurance fosters demand for banking services but only in times of economic prosperity. For the entire period of our analysis, we find that banking is the predominant influence on both economic growth and the demand for insurance. In contrast, the insurance market appears to be driven more by the pace of growth in the economy rather than leading economic development. Therefore, we conclude that financial intermediation, particularly banking, is an important prerequisite for stimulating economic growth and argue that our results could have important policy implications for contemporary emerging economies that are developing their financial and legal infrastructures

Managing policy lapse risk in Sweden's life insurance market between 1915 and 1947

We examine the challenges that Swedish life insurers faced in managing the lapse risk of policies written on the lives of the industrial urban working-class between 1915 and 1947. We observe that with the threat of State socialization of insurance in the 1930s, industrial life insurers modified their business practices to better control policy lapses. Using firm-level data, we also analyze the effect of socio-economic changes, such as rising real wages, interest rate fluctuations and unemployment on life insurance policy lapses. Our results support contemporary tests of the emergency fund and interest rate explanations for the voluntary premature termination of life insurance policies

Competing models of organizational form: risk management strategies and underwriting profitability in the Swedish fire insurance market between 1903 and 1939

Mutual and stock insurers have coexisted and competed against each other in insurance markets for centuries. In this article, we examine the risk management strategies and underwriting profitability of the different organizational forms in Sweden's property fire insurance market between 1903 and 1939. We demonstrate that stock insurers acted as intermediaries between policyholders and reinsurers to operate effectively in the potentially high-risk segments of the fire insurance market. In contrast, nationwide mutual insurers kept larger reserves to balance fluctuations in claims experiences, while local insurance pools relied on social obligation and trust to mobilize capital after adverse fire events.</jats:p

Performance of a 70-mer oligonucleotide microarray for genotyping of Campylobacter jejuni

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Campylobacter jejuni </it>is widespread in the environment and is the major cause of bacterial gastroenteritis in humans. In the present study we use microarray-based comparative genomic hybridizations (CGH), pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and multilocus sequence typing (MLST) to analyze closely related <it>C. jejuni </it>isolates from chicken and human infection.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>With the exception of one isolate, the microarray data clusters the isolates according to the five groups determined by PFGE. In contrast, MLST defines only three genotypes among the isolates, indicating a lower resolution. All methods show that there is no inherit difference between isolates infecting humans and chicken, suggesting a common underlying population of <it>C. jejuni</it>. We further identify regions that frequently differ between isolates, including both previously described and novel regions. Finally, we show that genes that belong to certain functional groups differ between isolates more often than expected by chance.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In this study we demonstrated the utility of 70-mer oligonucleotide microarrays for genotyping of <it>Campylobacter jejuni </it>isolates, with resolution outperforming MLST.</p

Managing policy lapse risk in Sweden's life insurance market between 1915 and 1947

We examine the challenges that Swedish life insurers faced in managing the lapse risk of policies written on the lives of the industrial urban working class between 1915 and 1947. We observe that with the threat of State socialisation of insurance in the 1930s, industrial life insurers modified their business practices to better control policy lapses. Using firm-level data, we also analyse the effect of socio-economic changes, such as rising real wages, interest rate fluctuations and unemployment on life insurance policy lapses. Our results support contemporary tests of the emergency fund and interest rate explanations for the voluntary premature termination of life insurance policies.Published online: 22 Feb 2018Effektivitet och jämlikhet i privat och offentlig försäkring: En analys av det svenska sjukförsäkringssystemet 1900-195

Trust and ambivalence in midwives' views towards women developing pelvic pain during pregnancy: a qualitative study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Swedish midwife plays a significant role in the antenatal care (ANC) system, and a majority of pregnant women are satisfied with their ANC. Pelvic pain during pregnancy (PP) is prevalent. The study investigated the views, perceptions and attitudes of midwives currently working in ANC regarding PP during pregnancy.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The informants were ten midwives between the ages of 35 to 64 years, with a combined experience of 250 years of midwifery. In-depth interviews (n = 4) and one focus group discussion (n = 6) were conducted. The data were interpreted using a qualitative content analysis design.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>PP was considered a common, clinical problem that had most likely increased in prevalence in recent decades and could feature prominently in a woman's experience of pregnancy. The informants had developed a strategy for supporting pregnant women affected by PP. The pregnant woman's fear of not being believed concerning her symptoms and the risk of being regarded as a malingerer were acknowledged. Mistrust between a midwife and a woman might occur when the patient's symptoms were vague and ill defined. PP was not considered as something that complicated delivery, and women experiencing it were advised to await 'the natural course of the pregnancy'.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>PP was considered a common, clinical problem and the informants had developed a strategy for supporting pregnant women affected by PP. However, the woman's fear of not being believed concerning her symptoms of PP was acknowledged and mistrust might occur between a midwife and a woman if vague symptoms were reported.</p