Islam as a missional religion

Originally published in: Svensk missionstidskrift = Swedish missiological themes, vol. 94(2006) p. 55-79, see http://www.teol.uu.se/digitalAssets/6/6177_SMT4_04.pdf. - A response to an article of Lisbeth Mikaelsson in the same issue: "Missional religion – with special emphasis on Buddhism, Christianity and Islam" (p. 523-538)

Somali Women in Minnesota and Norway. A Comparison

My aim with this thesis is to synthesize the existing literature related to the integration processes of Somali women in Minnesota and Norway. To guide the assembly of a comprehensive overview, I adopt a postcolonial feminist approach, along with an intersectional framework. By illuminating how race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender and religion intersect, I seek to destabilize dominant perceptions surrounding the integration processes of Somali women. In order to achieve these aims: I will collect literature from diverse sources to map out what is known of how the intersections of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender and religion are linked to contextual factors shape the ability Somali women in Norway and Minnesot

Matrix Theory of Elastic Wave Scattering: Application to Scattering of Transverse Waves

New calculations of elastic wave scattering using Visscher\u27s matrix theory have transverse waves incident on axially symmetric defects. Longitudinal incident waves considered with the results in agreement with those obtained previously by Visscher. interesting features for incident transverse waves will be presented as well as some aspects of the calculation (e.g. convergence, accuracy, and computer time)

Competition and extrinsic motivation in the band classroom: A review of literature and suggestions for educational practice

Public school bands teach students valuable artistic expression as they work together to learn and perform music in instrumental ensembles. Music educators who claim this purpose need to sustain student interest and involvement in band to continue the art form, because band is an elective course in which students join voluntarily. Factors that motivate students to participate in band include the intrinsic desire for music and the extrinsic stimuli for participation, including a large emphasis on competitions

Calculations of Elastic Wave Scattering from Voids and Crack-Like Defects by the Method of Optimal Truncation

Visscher\u27s method of optimal truncation for solving elastic wave scattering problems has been applied to voids having surface cracks and sharp edges including some for which experimental data are becoming available. A number of interesting aspects of these results will be discussed and comparisons with existing experimental data presented

Effect of PCBs in plasma on risk of postmenopausal breast cancer

Background: Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are a group of persistent organic pollutants suspected to cause negative health effects such as cancer. However, the findings on breast cancer are inconsistent, and lack data on larger populations. The objective in this master thesis is to study the association between estimated plasma concentration of summed PCBs and the incidence of postmenopausal breast cancer overall, as well as hormonal receptor positive and negative postmenopausal breast cancer. Methods: I used data from 48,675 participants in the population-based Norwegian Women and Cancer cohort and predicted summed PCB concentrations from a previously developed linear regression model. Participants were afterwards categorized into tertiles of low, medium, and high levels of summed PCBs. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression was used to assess the association between PCB exposure and incidence of postmenopausal breast cancer, including selected subtypes. Results: I found significant associations between higher predicted plasma concentrations of summed PCBs and the incidence of postmenopausal breast cancer (Moderate vs low: HR = 1.09, 95 % CI: 0.97-1.23, high vs low: HR = 1.22, 95 % CI: 1.08-1.38, p trend < 0.01), including ER+ (Moderate vs low: HR = 1.01, 95 % CI: 0.97-1.25, high vs low: HR = 1.18, 95 % CI: 1.04-1.35, p trend = 0.013) and PR+ (Moderate vs low: HR = 1.20, 95 % CI: 0.97- 1.47, high vs low: HR = 1.27, 95 % CI: 1.02-1.57, p trend = 0.036) subtypes. No association was found when assessing ER- and PR- postmenopausal breast cancer (ptrend ER- = 0.627, ptrend PR- = 0.580). Conclusion: Higher predicted plasma concentrations of summed PCB increase the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer, ER+ and PR+ postmenopausal breast cancer, but not ER- and PR- postmenopausal breast cancer

Contrast Mechanisms in the Thermoacoustic Microscope

The thermoacoustic microscope [1–9] uses a modulated particle beam (electrons, photons or ions) as a heat source on (or near) the surface of the sample, and a piezoelectric transducer attached elsewhere on the sample as a detector of acoustic waves generated by the beam. The modulation frequency is typically 103 to 107 Hz, so the acoustic signal is in the sonic to ultrasonic range. These acoustic signals are used to produce images of surface and near surface features of the solid by scanning the source over the face of the sample. In order to make full use of this type of microscope as a quantitative NDE tool, one must be able to interpret the images in terms of the physical properties of the features being imaged. The interpretation of an image resulting from variations in, say, the elastic constants as if it were caused by variations in, say, thermal expansion coefficient, could lead to totally incorrect conclusions about the nature of a defect. This paper summarizes a theoretical analysis which can form a basis for assessing the relative importance of different contrast mechanisms

Process Control in IC Manufacturing with Thermal Waves

In today’s semiconductor market, manufacturers face a daunting challenge. Product concepts evolve rapidly in response to rapidly changing markets while design rules, i.e., device geometries, become increasingly smaller and wafers become larger. Devices must run faster, reliability must improve and the resultant increasing complexity in IC design and fabrication technology intensifies the need for tighter controls of process variables. To compete effectively in this market, manufacturers must improve both product development and product manufacturing processes