P-8 and the Trilateral Partnership. The operational significance and influence on Norwegian security policy

The background for and the strategic context of this thesis is the threat posed by Russian submarines to Norway and NATO in the North Atlantic. In light of this, the study examines the significance of the P-8 and the trilateral partnership of Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States, by asking two research questions: - What is the operational significance of the P-8 and the trilateral partnership? - How does the P-8 and the trilateral partnership influence Norwegian security policy? It is an explorative and inductive study, which answers the research questions through a qualitative analysis. The thesis uses deterrence, crisis stability and maritime airpower theory, as well as Norwegian Security policy and defence concept, with emphasis on integration and reassurance to frame the discussion. The thesis concludes that the P-8 will provide Norwegian decision-makers with an agile platform with significantly improved capability for ASW and ISR. The trilateral partnership integrates the three partner nations and improves NATOs ASW capability when facing Russian submarines in the North Atlantic. The P-8 and the partnership influence deterrence positively by integrating Norway, NATO and the US, and provide tools for improving crisis stability. However, given the impermanency of American Poseidons, there is a need to establish a trilateral P-8 concept that merges training, exorcises and operations as a signal of presence and integration in the North Atlantic. The contribution of the P-8 in Norway’s policy of reassuring Russia is important as Norway increasingly develops a force structure with so-called offensive strategic capabilities. Of particular importance to reassurance is enhancements in intelligence contributions. Provided the strategic context, improved capabilities and the Norwegian force structure, the influence of the P-8 is decisive for the Norwegian security policy.Bakgrunnen for denne oppgaven og den strategiske konteksten er trusselen Russiske ubåter utgjør for Norge og NATO i Nord-Atlanteren. I lys av dette undersøker oppgaven betydningen av P-8 og trilateralt samarbeidet mellom Norge, Storbritannia og USA, gjennom å stille to forskningsspørsmål: - Hva er den operative betydningen av P-8 og det trilaterale partnerskapet? - Hvordan påvirker P-8 og det trilaterale partnerskapet norsk sikkerhetspolitikk? Studien er eksplorativ og induktiv, og benytter kvalitativ metode for å besvare forskningsspørsmålene. Analysen nyttiggjør teorier for avskrekking, krisestabilitet og maritim luftmakt, i tillegg til norsk sikkerhetspolitikk med vekt på integrasjon og beroligelse, som rammeverk for diskusjonen. Oppgaven konkluderer med at P-8 vil tilføre norske beslutningstakere en fleksibel plattform som i betydelig grad bedrer evnen til anti-ubåt krigføring (ASW) og informasjonsinnhenting (ISR). Det trilaterale samarbeidet integrerer de tre partnernasjonene og bedrer NATOs evne til ASW i møte med russiske ubåter. P-8 og det trilaterale partnerskapet påvirker avskrekking positivt gjennom integrering av Norge, NATO og USA, og tilbyr muligheter for å bedre krisestabiliteten. På en annen side er det forventet at amerikansk tilstedeværelse med P-8 vil være av en mindre permanent karakter. Dette medfører et behov for et trilateralt P-8 konsept som sammenslår trening, øvelser og operasjoner i Nord-Atlanteren. P-8s bidrag innen beroligelse er av sentral karakter, ettersom Norge i økende grad satser på avskrekkende kapabiliteter i styrkestrukturen. Spesielt viktig er økt kapasitet innen etterretningsbidragene. Med utgangspunkt i den strategiske konteksten, forbedrede kapabiliteter og den norske styrkestrukturen, er innflytelsen til maritime patruljefly av avgjørende betydning for norsk sikkerhetspolitik

A Comparison of Methods for Modelling Survival Time for Cancer Patients

I denne oppgaven brukte vi tre typer overlevelsesanalysemodeller for å modellere overlevelsestiden til pasienter som lider av endetarmskreft og pasienter som lider av hode- og halskreft. Disse modellene var Cox-regresjon, Aalens additive regresjonsmodell og akselererte levetidsmodeller. Målet med denne oppgaven var å sammenligne den målte ytelsen til disse modellene ved hjelp av å bruke concordance index og Brier score som ytelsesberegninger. Vi estimerte disse ved å bruke en metode som heter "repeated stratified k-folds" for å kryssvalidere de målte resultatene. Vi delte datasettene opp i fire og gjentok dette 25 ganger, for å oppnå totalt 100 "folds". Dette gav oss muligheten til å kalkulere ytelsesberegningene 100 ganger per modell. Vi benyttet denne løsningen på begge datasettene. Cox-regresjon oppnådde høyest concordance index på begge datasettene. For å forstå modellenes nøyaktighet de første fem årene visualiserte vi Brier scoren over tidsperioden tolv til 60 måneder. Alle modellene viste en trend. Dette indik- erte at modellene blir mindre nøyaktige over tid. De fleste modellene hadde svært liknende resultater målt med Brier score, men Aalens additive regresjonsmodell hadde noe svakere resultater.In this thesis, we used three types of survival-analysis models to model the overall survival time for patients suffering from rectal cancer and head and neck cancer. These models were Cox proportional hazards, Aalen’s additive fitter and acceler- ated failure time models. The goal was to compare the performance in terms of the measured concordance index and Brier scores. The performance metrics were estimated using a repeated stratified k-folds cross- validation scheme. With four splits and 25 repeats, we achieved 100 estimates of the performance for each model. This was done for both data sets. The Cox proportional hazards model achieved the highest concordance index measured on both data sets. When we visualised the measured Brier scores over the time period of 12 to 60 months in order to interpret the models’ overall performance for the five first years. All models showed a rising trend in the measured Brier score. This indicates less accurate predictions over time. The models had similar Brier scores, with the exception of Aalen’s additive fitter. This model had a slightly poorer result when time increased.

Developing and implementing a cross-cultural digital intervention on teachers\u27 professional well-being in a Norwegian context

Teaching is considered a stressful occupation, characterized by a high workload and lack of resources, which may result in burnout and turnover. In Norway, turnover rates among teachers are high, and focusing on actions to retain teachers in their jobs is therefore essential. School interventions have mainly focused on the students, whereas less attention has been given to the teachers. Thus, in the current chapter, we describe the development and implementation of a digital intervention aimed at increasing teachers’ professional well-being in a Norwegian context, and what factors may have affected the quality of this implementation. First, we present the concept of professional well-being, and the development of the digital intervention using the theoretical framework of the Job-Demands Resources Model (JD-R) (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). Second, we describe some core characteristics of implementation quality, specifically drawing on implementation quality frameworks. Third, we describe how the digital intervention was implemented in the Norwegian school context, and further, how factors at the school level and the individual level might have related to the quality of the implementation. Finally, we present a conclusion and some learning points related to future interventions aimed at teacher professional well-being in a Norwegian context. (DIPF/Orig.

The Behavioral Effects of Learning Outdoors

A growing number of schools around the United States have begun adding outdoor learning to their curriculum in hopes to improve the education of K-12 students. Teachers are not only focusing on what is available in the classroom, but also looking at nearby surroundings that could benefit their students. Lund and Gaigher (as cited in Palavan, Cicek, and Atabay, 2016), state that learning outdoors is defined as a method of experimental learning through all senses by way of exposure to the natural environment and provides students with more opportunities from which to learn. Learning outdoors is an authentic experience for students allowing them the chance to explore and investigate the world from outside the classroom (Bourne, 2000; Lieberman & Hoody, 1998; Louv, 2008; Sobel, 2005). This research found learning outdoors could have benefits not only to students, but also teachers. The natural world is available and accessible for all to learn from and appreciate