Indigenous Spirituality in the Touristic Borderzone: Virtual Performances of Sámi Shamanism in Sápmi Park

For tourists travelling to the northernmost parts of Europe, the tour includes not only experiences of wild nature, Midnight Sun, and Aurora Borealis, but also encounters with the indigenous Sámi people who populate the area. Emblematically represented in tourist guidebooks as reindeer herders, the Sámi stand out as representatives of a life lived in close contact with nature, and as carriers of an indigenous spirituality that reflects a deep concern for the environment and for the powers found in nature. How can this insight be represented or performed in tourism? The article discusses the representation of this image of the Sámi in a theme park in the village of Kárášjohka, Norway. Transposed to the stage of the experience industry in the Sápmi Magic Theatre, a virtual Sámi shaman narrates to tourists the story of an ancient indigenous wise man. This narrative is on the one hand deeply embedded in Western imaginaries about the Noble Savage and about a prelapsarian, pre-colonial past. On the other hand, this myth is represented as something belonging to a more glorious past, and not as part of present-day indigenous life. From the point of view of ethno-politics, such narratives may support Sámi claims of representing a unique culture, while at the same time constituting a threat to the fight for an equal position in contemporary society

A comparison of Optisoap versus commercial soap in preventing protein deposition on hydrophilic contact lenses

This study compared the effectiveness of Optisoap versus other commericial hand soaps in preventing protein deposition of hydrophilic contact lenses due to soap residues. Twelve clean lenses were halved, treated with Optisoap or a commercial soap, and placed in a protein solution. The lenses were inspected for protein deposits after thirty and sixty minutes. No significant difference was found between the Optisoap or the commercial soaps

An in situ XAS study of the cobalt rhenium catalyst for ammonia synthesis

A cobalt rhenium catalyst active for ammonia synthesis at 400 °C and ambient pressure was studied using in situ XAS to elucidate the reducibility and local environment of the two metals during reaction conditions. The ammonia reactivity is greatly affected by the gas mixture used in the pre-treatment step. Following H2/Ar pre-treatment, a subsequent 20 min induction period is also observed before ammonia production occurs whereas ammonia production commences immediately following comparable H2/N2 pre-treatment. In situ XAS at the Co K-edge and Re LIII-edge show that cobalt initiates reduction, undergoing reduction between 225 and 300 °C, whereas reduction of rhenium starts at 300 °C. The reduction of rhenium is near complete below 400 °C, as also confirmed by H2-TPR measurements. A synergistic co-metal effect is observed for the cobalt rhenium system, as complete reduction of both cobalt and rhenium independently requires higher temperatures. The phases present in the cobalt rhenium catalyst during ammonia production following both pre-treatments are largely bimetallic Co–Re phases, and also monometallic Co and Re phases. The presence of nitrogen during the reduction step strongly promotes mixing of the two metals, and the bimetallic Co–Re phase is believed to be a pre-requisite for activity

Mellom borealisme og orientalisme

The article takes as its point of departure a media narrative, relating that Northern Lights tourists from the East are not only visiting the northern areas to experience the celestial phenomenon, as their actual hope is to conceive under the Lights. According to alleged old beliefs in the East, this is supposed to give handsomer, healthier, and more intelligent children. The location of these beliefs in the touristic border zone, and relating it to modern tourism imaginaries and myths, opens new perspectives for the understanding of these narratives. Discussing one possible mediated background for what eventually turns into a migratory legend answers some questions. However, the further development and metamorphosis of the legend, and finally its materializations in the tourism industry opens new perspectives on narrated relations between hosts and guests

Sted, etnisitet og fortelling

The article discusses conflicts connected to the location of ethnicity in a multicultural area of Northern Norway. After a history of heavy Norwegianization, the Sami history of this geographical area is hidden, or even suppressed. Hegemonic narratives refer to Sami history in the area as immigration, displacement, and subsequent acculturation into the Norwegian majority culture. Discourses related to Sami cultural heritage on one hand, and the choice of language for naming places and road signs on the other, show that Sami culture is associated with the past and marginalized, while Norwegian culture is associ­ated with modernity, development and future. It is also significant that contemporary discourses on the localization of ethnicity have textual references to contexts situated outside the places where conflicts actually are placed geographically

Nordlys, magi og turisme

Markedsføringen av naturfenomenet Aurora Borealis, eller nordlyset, har i de siste årene fått en særlig oppmerksomhet når det gjelder oppbyggingen av turisme som et vinterprodukt i Nord-Norge. I dette arbeidet benytter både markedsførerne og opplevelsesbedriftenes guider seg av ulike begreper og fortellinger. Formidlingen tar vanligvis utgangspunkt i det som oppfattes som to ytterpunkter. Som naturfenomen finnes det referanser til lysets naturvitenskapelige forklaring, og til den samtidige forskningen som pågår innenfor dette feltet. Men innenfor turismens markedsføring spiller likevel fortidens fortellinger om magiske og ekstraordinære opplevelser, spirituelle erfaringer, urfolksmyter og norrøn mytologi den viktigste rollen. ââ¬âââ¬âââ¬âMed utgangspunkt i noen historiske framstillinger som tidligere reisende har gjort av nordlyset, presenteres et utvalg av vår egen tids fortellinger om nordlyset slik de kommer fram i markedsføring og i guidenes fortellinger til turistene. Formålet er å komme fram til en forståelse av en langvarig interesse for de arktiske områdene og nordlyset hos tilreisende, og vise hvordan mytiske fortellinger og spirituelle erfaringer innenfor moderne turisme inngår i noen allerede etablerte forståelsesrammer

Ulf Palmenfelt 2017. Berättade gemenskaper. Individuella livshistorier och kollektiva tankefigurer

Denne boken baserer seg på et omfattende intervjumateriale. Sommeren 1995 ble 132 pensjonister i Visby, Gotland intervjuet og bedt om å fortelle om sitt eget liv. Ideen og initiativet til dette omfattende prosjektet kom fra Ulf Palmenfelt selv og Folklivs­arkivet på Gotland, og det ble støttet økonomisk, materielt og med arbeidskraft av arbeidsformidlingen i Visby, Gotlands kommune, og Landsarkivet i Visby. De transkriberte intervjuene er det ene fun­damentet som danner grunnlaget for presentasjonene i boka. Fra det store materialet er noen fortellinger valgt ut og disse får en nærmere gjennomgang og drøfting. De er gruppert under kapitler som tar opp hvordan pensjonistene bruker livshistoriene til å plassere seg selv og sine opplevelser i en narrativ sammenheng: for eksempel kapitlene «Positioneringar», «Emotioner», og «Allmänmänskliga erfarenheter», eller etter de kontekstene som erfaringene framkommer i: «Minnen», «Dialoger», eller «De minsta kollektiven». Som man vil forstå, er samlingen ikke ment å være en vanlig eller konvensjonell folkeminnebok, der minnene grupperes i tematiske kapittel, for så å gi en slags samlet oversikt over de kulturelle, sosiale og økonomiske forholdene i et spesielt landskap, under en spesifikk tidsperiode. I stedet blir det pensjonistene formidler fra sitt eget liv og fra sin egen oppvekst et utgangspunkt for å forstå hvordan minnene blir en individuell innfallsvinkel til fortolkninger av opplevelser som vel kan deles av mange i lokalsamfunnet, men som likevel er personlige byggesteiner i forståelsen av det egne livet. En del av bokens prosjekt er også å vise at forholdet mellom individuelle minner og generell historie ikke på noen måte er ukomplisert og enkelt. Men for å få tak i dette må livsfortellingene fortolkes som ytringer som framkommer i en spesiell kontekst og sammenheng, og ikke som et reservoar av opplysninger fra en tidsperiode som i sin tur kan settes sammen til en ny og syntetiserende fortelling om det som skjedde i en bestemt tidsepoke

Representasjoner av kulturell forskjell

The article analyzes representations of Sámi culture in exhibitions and museums, as they have developed through history. Changing narratives and politics concerning the Sami can be identified, from the âVölkerschauâ with live Sami and reindeer at zoos and World Fairs, to the development of ethnographic collections and museums, and ending in present postcolonial reflections on the political consequences of the representing the âOtherâ. The colonial history of this field requires an ongoing reflection on how these exhibited narratives of the Sámi have been presented and told in specific contexts, and how they relate to other more generalized meta-narratives about indigenous people. The discussion tries to identify these narratives as they are told with the help of cultural objects in glass showcases, wax models in natural habitats, artificial dioramas in museums, and elaborated commentaries and texts. Exhibitors and museum professionals have not merely been descriptive in their work, but also interpretative. Current museum exhibitions about the Sámi must be understood in the light of the authority of earlier narratives, ethnographies, and politics of representation

Quantify the monthly to decadal variability of climate effects on the lower trophic levelse of shelf sea ecosystems

ECOOP WP10, Deliverable no: D10.1.2.1This report describes three studies using multi-decadal simulations of regional coupled hydrodynamics ecosystem models. These models are used to investigate the relationship between lower trophic level marine ecosystems and biogeochemistry, and the physical environment. The models considered here: POLCOMS-ERSEM Atlantic Margin Model run from 1960 to 2003 (NERC and PML) NORWECOM North Sea Model run from 1985-2006 (IMR) ECOSMO (UiB-GFI) North sea and Baltic Sea run 1980-2004 (UiB-GFI) The POLCOMS-ERSEM model is validated using in-situ data from the world ocean data centre and analysed to investigate the potential long term changes in primary production across the period 1960-2004, in the context of model open boundary conditions and drift. The model experiments demonstrate a strong sensitivity of the on-shelf primary production to the oceanic nutrient boundary conditions, suggesting cross-shelf edge nutrient fluxes provide a significant source of variability. The relationship between the model results and the North Atlantic Oscillation are also considered, demonstrating a r~0.65 correlation with on-shelf nutrients and the NAO The NORWECOM model is validated here using time series data from the Dutch coast. Correlations between model variables in a selection of ICES boxes are compared with a number of driving factors. River loads are shown to dominate coastal boxes. The relationships in open-shelf boxes are more ambiguous, although the southerly inflow is demonstrated to have an important role. The validation of the POLCOMS-ERSEM and NORWECOM models both conclude that the simulations have better skill for nutrients than chlorophyll and in open-shelf seas away from the coast. The validation of ECOSMO presented here focuses on zooplankton and comparison with data from the continuous plankton recorder, investigating six different approaches to matching CPR records with model data. Across the North Sea the mean annual cycle shows good agreement between model and CPR. There is also good correlation with along-track variability. EOF and correlation analysis is used to relate the primary production in the North Sea to atmospheric forcing parameters. The EOF patterns tend to match the distribution of summer time stratification, while the wind speed is shows the highest correlation, particularly during the onset and breakdown of stratification. This indicates the strength of cross-thermocline mixing is an important control on primary production variability. The ECOSMO model has been further developed for use in the Baltic by inclusion of nitrogen fixing cyanobacteria. These studies each demonstrate significant control of the inter-annual variability of shelf sea ecosystems through a range of external forcing vectors: oceanic through cross-shelf edge nutrient flux, terrestrial through variations in river nutrient loading, and atmospheric via the wind control of vertical mixing. Each of these vectors potentially mediates climatic variability and climate change