Ethnic Diversity and Preferences for Redistribution

In recent decades, the immigration of workers and refugees to Europe has increased substantially, and the composition of the population in many countries has consequently become much more heterogeneous in terms of ethnic background. If people exhibit in-group bias in the sense of being more altruistic to one's own kind, such increased heterogeneity will lead to reduced support for redistribution among natives. This paper exploits a nationwide program placing refugees in municipalities throughout Sweden during the period 1985{94 to isolate exogenous variation in immigrant shares. We match data on refugee placement to panel survey data on inhabitants of the receiving municipalities to estimate the causal effects of increased immigrant shares on preferences for redistribution. The results show that a larger immigrant population leads to less support for redistribution in the form of preferred social benefit levels. This reduction in support is especially pronounced for respondents with high income and wealth. We also establish that OLS estimators that do not properly deal with endogeneity problems - as in earlier studies - are likely to yield positively biased (i.e., less negative) effects of ethnic heterogeneity on preferences for redistribution.income redistribution, ethnic heterogeneity, immigration

Ethnic Diversity and Preferences for Redistribution

In recent decades immigration of workers and refugees to Europe has increased substantially, and the composition of the population in many countries has consequently become much more heterogeneous in terms of ethnic background. If people exhibit in-group bias in the sense of being more altruistic to one's own kind, such increased heterogeneity will lead to reduced support for redistribution among natives. This paper exploits a nationwide program placing refugees in municipalities throughout Sweden during the period 1985{94 to isolate exogenous variation in immigrant shares. We match data on refugee placement to panel survey data on inhabitants of the receiving municipalities to estimate the causal effects of increased immigrant shares on preferences for redistribution. The results show that a larger immigrant population leads to less support for redistribution in the form of preferred social benefit levels. This reduction in support is especially pronounced for respondents with high income and wealth. We also establish that OLS estimators that do not properly deal with endogeneity problems|as in earlier studies|are likely to yield positively biased (i.e., less negative) effects of ethnic heterogeneity on preferences for redistribution.Income redistribution; Ethnic heterogeneity; Immigration

Ethnic Diversity and Preferences for Redistribution

In recent decades, the immigration of workers and refugees to Europe has increased substantially, and the composition of the population in many countries has consequently become much more heterogeneous in terms of ethnic background. If people exhibit in-group bias in the sense of being more altruistic to one's own kind, such increased heterogeneity will lead to reduced support for redistribution among natives. This paper exploits a nationwide program placing refugees in municipalities throughout Sweden during the period 1985{94 to isolate exogenous variation in immigrant shares. We match data on refugee placement to panel survey data on inhabitants of the receiving municipalities to estimate the causal effects of increased immigrant shares on preferences for redistribution. The results show that a larger immigrant population leads to less support for redistribution in the form of preferred social benet levels. This reduction in support is especially pronounced for respondents with high income and wealth. We also establish that OLS estimators that do not properly deal with endogeneity problems|as in earlier studies|are likely to yield positively biased (i.e., less negative) effects of ethnic heterogeneity on preferences for redistribution.Income redistribution, ethnic heterogeneity, immigration

Ethnic Diversity and Preferences for Redistribution

In recent decades, the immigration of workers and refugees to Europe has increased substantially, and the composition of the population in many countries has consequently become much more heterogeneous in terms of ethnic background. If people exhibit in-group bias in the sense of being more altruistic to one's own kind, such increased heterogeneity will lead to reduced support for redistribution among natives. This paper exploits a nationwide program placing refugees in municipalities throughout Sweden during the period 1985-94 to isolate exogenous variation in immigrant shares. We match data on refugee placement to panel survey data on inhabitants of the receiving municipalities to estimate the causal effects of increased immigrant shares on preferences for redistribution. The results show that a larger immigrant population leads to less support for redistribution in the form of preferred social benefit levels. This reduction in support is especially pronounced for respondents with high income and wealth. We also establish that OLS estimators that do not properly deal with endogeneity problems|as in earlier studies|are likely to yield positively biased (i.e., less negative) eects of ethnic heterogeneity on preferences for redistribution.Income redistribution; ethnic heterogeneity; immigration

Ethnic Diversity and Preferences for Redistribution

In recent decades, the immigration of workers and refugees to Europe has increased substantially, and the composition of the population in many countries has consequently become much more heterogeneous in terms of ethnic background. If people exhibit in-group bias in the sense of being more altruistic to one's own kind, such increased heterogeneity will lead to reduced support for redistribution among natives. This paper exploits a nationwide program placing refugees in municipalities throughout Sweden during the period 1985{94 to isolate exogenous variation in immigrant shares. We match data on refugee placement to panel survey data on inhabitants of the receiving municipalities to estimate the causal effects of increased immigrant shares on preferences for redistribution. The results show that a larger immigrant population leads to less suport for redistribution in the form of preferred social benet levels. This reduction in support is especially pronounced for respondents with high income and wealth. We also establish that OLS estimators that do not properly deal with endogeneity problems|as in earlier studies|are likely to yield positively biased (i.e., less negative) effects of ethnic heterogeneity on preferences for redistribution

Svenska sojabönor - finns marknadsmöjligheter?

The large-scale soy cultivation has negative consequences for the habitat of local populations because of the intensive use of pesticides and the destruction of rain forests and eco-systems. GM soya, varieties are often used. The majority of Swedish people, however, do not want GM products in their food. It will be hard in future to ensure GM free food, particularly foods that come from countries where GM crops are grown on a large scale. It is very difficult to avoid cross- contamination when both GM and non-GM crops are grown in the same area. A large part of the soybeans in Sweden are imported from Brazil, a country where the growing of GM crops today is rapidly increasing. New trends in eating habits as well as consumers with major health and environmental interests are seeking food produced with as little environmental damage as possible. At the same time they want the food to be healthy, simple to prepare and taste good. An increasing number of people wish to reduce their intake of traditional dairy products, meat and fish, therefore increasing the need for alternative protein rich products. Soy is probably the best option here, containing perfectly balanced protein. Soy is regarded to have health benefits that few other crops can be compared to, especially for women. Soy foods are perfect examples to bring forward in today’s debate, where public concerns on the decline of food quality and an increased interest in healthy food are at the top of the agenda. Climate change can cause issues but also creates new opportunities for crop growth. We note that it is possible to grow soy in Sweden. Swedish soy cannot compete with cheap imported soy feed; however, a small production of high quality soy foods should be possible. High quality is therefore more important than high yield in Swedish soybean cultivation. Swedish soy production, with its unique value has great potential in the food market and provides an alternative to imported soy. While production increases, so will the recognition of soybean as a viable food alternative

Det dubbla kompetenskravet: En studie av lärarstudenters utveckling av kompetenser inom en ny lärarutbildning

I föreliggande studie undersöks lärarstudenters utveckling av kompetenser inom lärarutbildningen. Studien har sin bakgrund inom de utbildningstrender som har som ambition att föra samman en socialpedagogisk omsorgstradition med en skolämnesinriktad utbildningstradition, där vi menar att lärarutbildningen för lärare i fritidshem utgör ett exempel. Fokusgruppintervjuer har använts för att intervjua 16 avgångsstudenter på lärarprogrammet med inriktning mot arbete i fritidshem på ett lärosäte i Sverige. Intervjuerna analyserades med hjälp av tematisk analys och visar att utbildningen erbjuder skilda lärandemiljöer för utveckling av kompetenser som svarar mot ett dubbelt kompetenskrav: Återskapare, Medskapare och Nyskapare. Analysen tydliggör både skillnader och likheter mellan de tre kompetenserna men det är samtidigt viktigt att se dem som komplementära. Återskapare kännetecknas av en anpassad och reproducerad kompetensutveckling där studenterna aktivt väljer att bli antingen lärare inom fritidshemmet eller i sitt praktisk estetiska skolämne. Medskapare kännetecknas av att studenterna anpassar sig till utbildningens genomförande och producerar en parallell kompetens och blir lärare i fritidshemmet och sitt skolämne. Nyskapare har drag av en produktiv - kreativ kompetens där studenterna använder sina praktisk estetiska ämneskunskaper inom fritidshemmets verksamhet, och sin fritidspedagogiska kompetens i undervisningen av det praktisk estetiska ämnet. Resultatet diskuteras avslutningsvis i relation till utbildningens förmåga att erbjuda en kreativ kompetens.  Abstract“The dual competence requirement - A study of teacher student competences in a new teacher education” examines students dealing with a dual competence requirement in teacher education. The study has its’ background in educational trends that aim to bring together a social pedagogical tradition with an educational tradition, with a focus on teacher training in School age educare (fritidshem). Focus group interviews have been used to interview 16 students in teacher education at a university in Sweden with a focus on working in school-age educare. A thematic analysis was implemented, where development of three different competences emerged that correspond to a dual competence requirement, which is Re-creators, Co-Creators and Innovators. The analysis highlights both the differences and similarities between the three competences, while also showing how the competences complement each other. The Re-creators are characterized by adapted and reproduced skills development, in which the student actively chooses to become either a teacher in the school-age educare or his subject. The Co-creators are characterized by the students adapting to the education’s implementation and producing parallel skills and becoming teachers in the school-age educare and their subject. The Innovators feature a productive creative competence in which the students use their practical aesthetic subject knowledge in the school-age educare activities, and their school-age educare skills in the teaching of the practical aesthetic subject. Findings are discussed in relation to the offering of creative skills.&nbsp

Detection of interictal epileptiform discharges: A comparison of on-scalp MEG and conventional MEG measurements

Objective: Conventional MEG provides an unsurpassed ability to, non-invasively, detect epileptic activity. However, highly resolved information on small neuronal populations required in epilepsy diagnostics is lost and can be detected only intracranially. Next-generation on-scalp magnetencephalography (MEG) sensors aim to retrieve information unavailable to conventional non-invasive brain imaging techniques. To evaluate the benefits of on-scalp MEG in epilepsy, we performed the first-ever such measurement on an epilepsy patient. Methods: Conducted as a benchmarking study focusing on interictal epileptiform discharge (IED) detectability, an on-scalp high-temperature superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer (high-Tc SQUID) system was compared to a conventional, low-temperature SQUID system. Coregistration of electroencephalopraphy (EEG) was performed. A novel machine learning-based IED-detection algorithm was developed to aid identification of on-scalp MEG unique IEDs. Results: Conventional MEG contained 24 IEDs. On-scalp MEG revealed 47 IEDs (16 co-registered by EEG, 31 unique to the on-scalp MEG recording). Conclusion: Our results indicate that on-scalp MEG might capture IEDs not seen by other non-invasive modalities. Significance: On-scalp MEG has the potential of improving non-invasive epilepsy evaluation. (C) 2020 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier B.V

Are preserved coastal water bodies in Spanish Mediterranean basin impacted by human activity? Water quality evaluation using chemical and biological analyses

The Spanish Mediterranean basin is particularly susceptible to climate change and human activities, making it vulnerable to the influence of anthropogenic contaminants. Therefore, conducting comprehensive and exhaustive water quality assessment in relevant water bodies of this basin is pivotal. In this work, surface water samples from coastal lagoons or estuaries were collected across the Spanish Mediterranean coastline and subjected to target and suspect screening of 1,585 organic micropollutants by liquid chromatography coupled to ion mobility separation and high resolution mass spectrometry. In total, 91 organic micropollutants could be confirmed and 5 were tentatively identified, with pharmaceuticals and pesticides being the most prevalent groups of chemicals. Chemical analysis data was compared with data on bioanalysis of those samples (recurrent aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) activation, and estrogenic receptor (ER) inhibition in wetland samples affected by wastewater streams). The number of identified organic contaminants containing aromatic rings could explain the AhR activation observed. For the ER antagonistic effects, predictions on estrogenic inhibition potency for the detected compounds were used to explain the activities observed. The integration of chemical analysis with bioanalytical observations allowed a comprehensive overview of the quality of the water bodies under study

Program Leadership from a Nordic Perspective - Managing Education Development

Nordic Five Tech (N5T) is a strategic alliance between five technical universities in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The overall aim is to “utilize shared and complementary strengths and create synergy within education, research and innovation”. In this paper we focus on university educational development issues by investigating the program leadership at five Nordic technical universities. Specifically, the paper compares definitions, views and experiences of education leadership in the Nordic Five Tech (N5T) universities. The paper does this by, first, reviewing the definitions of roles and responsibilities for program directors at each university, and second, by presenting results from a survey carried out in March 2012 among program directors at the N5T universities. Based on this data, we analyze how program directors experience their role, their possibilities to lead, and their opportunities of learning to lead. How is time for reflection and development as leaders handled at the different universities? The paper goes on to consider what impact the mandate of the leadership role has on the possibilities for developing educational programs. For instance, how can program directors ensure that learning objectives concerning generic skills and abilities are reached? How can program directors drive implementation of integrative and value-oriented topics such as sustainable development, innovation and entrepreneurship