The Effects of Identity and Natives’ Attitudes in Young Refugee Immigrants’ Experiences and Perspectives of Integration in Larvik

The ongoing global refugee crisis has brought urgency to questions related to how integration of refugee immigrants should be approached in order to produce desirable social and economic outcomes, both for the immigrants and for the communities in which they arrive. Considering the complexity of identities in integration processes, and the significance of different attitudes towards refugee immigrants, sociocultural aspects of integration require elaborate examination - particularly from the perspective of immigrants themselves. Therefore, this study explores young refugee immigrants’ experiences of integration in Larvik, with specific attention to the roles of identity formation and perceptions of natives’ attitudes. The main objective of the study is to present suggestions as to how young refugee immigrants’ voices and experiences of integration can be incorporated into narratives and policies of integration. A qualitative research design guided by interpretivist and constructivist positions has been utilized in order to address the research problem and research questions, and to fulfill the research objective. Empirical findings are presented as a result of a thematic analysis of primary data collected through participant observation and semi-structured interviews with young refugee immigrants situated in Larvik, Norway. Key findings indicate that both the national identity and young refugee immigrants’ own cultural and ethnic backgrounds have played crucial roles in their experiences of integration, and that it must be seen as decisive for their well-being to be able to establish and maintain connections to both. By expressing signs of positive and welcoming attitudes, the majority population can lower the informal bar for what it takes to become a part of larger society, enable promotion and acceptance of ethnic diversity and thus enhance the benefits of identifying with more than one cultural background. Based on these findings, this study suggests an increased focus on highlighting positive aspects of immigration and integration, facilitating cultural exchange and raising awareness among young refugee immigrants on the benefits of being multicultural in integration policies, initiatives and narratives

Orkney pilgrimage: perspectives of the cult of St. Magnus

The early Christian cults of saints and relics as well as the act and process of pilgrimage were central themes in the religious practice of the Middle Ages. The veneration of saints and relics, the belief in miracles, and the act of pilgrimage were aspects of Christianity rapidly adopted by the converted population of the North Atlantic. This thesis focuses on St Magnus, Earl of Orkney († c. 1116), the cult and pilgrimage process which emerged about a century after the conversion of the Northern Isles. The physical monuments and primary sources, are seen as defining the cult, the pilgrimage process, as well as outlining a trace of the route. St Magnus cult and pilgrimage are also discussed within a comparative context; of the Norse cultural sphere, and of the medieval Universal Church

A user's guide to NORVECOM V2.0. the norwegian ecological model system

A coupled 3 dimensional Physical-Chemical-Biological model system, NORWECOM, has been developed through cooperation between several Norwegian institutions. The physical module is based on the Princeton Ocean Model already well documented in several reports. This guide is an attempt to give an introduction to the Chemical-Biological module, and will hopefully help new users to understand the flow between and processes inside the various subroutines. The guide will concentrate on how the chemical-biological dynamics is formulated in the module. Why these formulations is preferred to others, is not a part of such a guide

A user's guide to NORVECOM V2.0. the norwegian ecological model system

A coupled 3 dimensional Physical-Chemical-Biological model system, NORWECOM, has been developed through cooperation between several Norwegian institutions. The physical module is based on the Princeton Ocean Model already well documented in several reports. This guide is an attempt to give an introduction to the Chemical-Biological module, and will hopefully help new users to understand the flow between and processes inside the various subroutines. The guide will concentrate on how the chemical-biological dynamics is formulated in the module. Why these formulations is preferred to others, is not a part of such a guide

Røykgasseksponering og helseeffekter ved brann i vegtunnel. En litteraturstudie med fokus på nye krav til sikkerhetstyring.

I denne oppgaven har jeg studert hvilke toksiske gasser som utvikler seg ved branner i kjøretøy i vegtunneler. Videre så jeg på de akutte og kroniske medisinske helseeffekter av disse toksiske gasser på det menneskelige legemet. Metoden jeg brukte var en systematisk review, der jeg gjorde et systematisk litteratursøk i fem databaser og identifiserte 3684 artikler. PRISMA utsilingen og litt «snowballing», gjorde at jeg til slutt satt igjen med 65 artikler for dybdelesing. Disse artiklene utgjør hovedgrunnlaget av den kunnskap som presenteres i oppgaven. Resultatene av søket var at de toksiske gassene, som dannes i bilbranner, er av prinsipielt to typer. Den ene er lokalirriterende i luftveier med alvorlige lungeskader som følger. Den andre er de systemtoksiske. Disse gassene hemmer utnyttelsen av oksygen i kroppen. De akutte helseeffekter av de ulike gasser rammer først og fremst de organer som er følsomme for oksygenmangel, dvs. hjerne og hjertet. Litteratursøket avslørte imidlertid store kunnskapshull når det gjelder kroniske helseeffekter. For å monitorere pasientene, trenger man medisinsk kunnskap om de toksiske gassene sine virkninger. Sykebilene må ha med nødvendig prehospitalt utstyr med til skadested. Sykehusene må også være beredte til å behandle på høyt nivå eller sende i fra seg pasienten til regionsykehus. Et viktig moment er å definere våre begrensinger (constraints) ved tunnelbranner. Det gjelder hvor mye tid vi har til rådighet når vi vet konsekvensene av branngassenes virkning. Hvor fort klarer de som er eksponert for røykgasser å evakuere seg selv og hvor vanskelig blir det? Dersom tunneleier ikke tar hensyn til disse sikkerhetsbegrensingene bryter de med de grunnleggende prinsippene bla. om nullvisjon og samvirke. Videre peker denne oppgaven på at medisinsk kunnskap er et relativt nytt perspektiv i sikkerhetsarbeidet til tunneler i Norge. Litteratursøket har også frembrakt til dels ny medisinsk kunnskap, riktignok litt fragmentarisk og noe utenom tunnelsettingen, men må ses på som en viktig del av arbeidet med å sette begrensinger i sikkerhetsarbeidet. Oppgaven har pekt på store mangler i kunnskap om kroniske helseeffekter etter røykgasseksponering. Det stimulerer til å gjøre videre studier for å skaffe ny empirisk kunnskap gjennom både retrospektive og prospektive metoder.In this thesis I have studied which toxic gases develop in fires in vehicles in road tunnels. Furthermore, I looked at the acute and chronic medical health effects of these toxic gases on the human body. The method I used was a systematic review, where I did a systematic literature search in five databases and identified 3684 articles. The PRISMA screening and a bit of "snowballing", made me end up with 65 articles for deep reading. These articles form the main basis of the knowledge presented in the thesis. The results of the search were that the toxic gases, which are formed in car fires, are in principle of two types. One is irritating to the respiratory tract with severe lung damage as a result. The other is the systemic toxins. These gases inhibit the utilization of oxygen in the body. The acute health effects of the various gases primarily affect the organs that are sensitive to lack of oxygen, i.e., the brain and heart. However, the literature search revealed large gaps in knowledge regarding chronic health effects. To monitor patients, medical knowledge about the effects of the toxic gases is needed. The ambulances must have the necessary prehospital equipment with them to the scene of the accident. The hospitals must also be prepared to treat at a high level or send the patient to a regional hospital. An important factor is to define our constraints for tunnel fires. It is about how much time we have available when we know the consequences of the effect of the fire gases. How quickly are those exposed to smoke gases able to evacuate themselves and how difficult will it be? If the tunnel owner does not take these safety restrictions into account, they violate the basic principles, e.g., about zero vision and collaboration. Furthermore, this thesis points out that medical knowledge is a relatively new perspective in the safety work for tunnels in Norway. The literature search has also produced some new medical knowledge, albeit a bit fragmentary and somewhat outside the tunnel context but must be seen as an important part of the work of setting limits in safety work. The thesis has pointed to major deficiencies in knowledge about chronic health effects after smoke gas exposure. It stimulates further studies to acquire new empirical knowledge through both retrospective and prospective methods

Recent warming and freshening of the Norwegian Sea observed by Argo data

Climate variability in the Norwegian Sea, comprising the Norwegian and Lofoten Basins, was investigated based upon monthly estimates of ocean heat and freshwater contents using data from Argo floats during 2002–18. Both local air–sea exchange and advective processes were examined and quantified for monthly to interannual time scales. In the recent years, 2011–18, the Norwegian Sea experienced a decoupling of the temperature and salinity, with a simultaneous warming and freshening trend. This was mainly explained by two different processes; reduced ocean heat loss to the atmosphere and advection of fresher Atlantic water into the Norwegian Sea. The local air–sea heat fluxes are important in modifying the ocean heat content, although this relationship varied with time scale and basins. On time scales exceeding 4 months in the Lofoten Basin and 6 months in the Norwegian Basin, the air–sea heat flux explained half or even more of the local ocean heat content change. There were both a short-term and long-term response of the wind forcing on the ocean heat content. The monthly to seasonal response of increased southerly wind cooled and freshened the Norwegian Basin, due to eastward surface Ekman transport, and increased the influence of Arctic Water. However, after about a 1-yr delay the ocean warmed and became saltier due to an increased advection of Atlantic Water into the region. Increased westerly winds decreased the ocean heat content in both cases due to increased transport of Arctic Water into the Norwegian Sea.publishedVersio

Environmental status of the Skagerak and North Sea 2000

An environmental status for year 2000 of the North Sea and Skagerrak has been done based on outputs from a biophysicaf model (NORWECOM). The model results suggests that in year 2000 the mean annua1 primary production in the North Sea was the highest in the period 1985-2000, and that the net inflow through the English Channel, due to an extreme strong influx in the fourth quarter, was the highest on an annua1 basis in the period 1955-2000. Also the oxygen levels and sedimentation rates in the North Sea and Skagerrak have been examined, and a eutrophication assessment conclude that, except for the winter values of nitrate, eutrophication is not a big problem in most of the Skagerrak and Kattegat area. Key words : Skagerrak, North Sea, environmental status NORSK SAMMENDRAG: En koblet fysisk, kjemisk og biologisk havmodell (NORWECOM) er brukt for å simulere år 2000 i Nordsjøen og Skagerrak. Resultatene fra denne modelkjøringen er så brukt for å lage en miljøstatus for dette året. I statusen presenteres blant annet verdier for primærproduksjon, oxygen-nivå, sedimenteringsrate og vanntransport inn til Nordsjøen. Til slutt blir det gitt en vurdering av eutrofieringsgraden i Skage- rak og Kattegat basert på referanseverdier foreslått av svenske miljøstyresmakter

Eutrophication Scenaria from Reduced Nutrient Loads to the North Sea

The environmental effects of river nutrient loads to the North Sea have been investigated using a numerical biophysical model, NORWECOM, to perform different reduction scenarios. The simulations demonstrate that the river nutrients have a significant contribution on the annual primary production, both in the southern North Sea, in Skagerrak and along the Norwegian west coast. A 50% reduction in the loads of N and P reduces the primary production with 10-30% in the southern North Sea, and 5-10% in Skagerrak and along the Norwegian west coast. Scandinavian rivers only contribute to the 1-2% level in these reductions, thus continental rivers has the major effect on the environment in all downstream areas. However, it should be noted that this reduction, even in the southern North Sea, is less than the natural variability of the production of phytoplankton. A reduction only in the P values, shows that the production regime in the southern North Sea is phosphorous limited, while nitrogen is the limiting nutrient in the northern North Sea. Focusing on the N/P ratio as a possible proxy for eutrophication, a reduction in the N and P loads reduces this ratio by a similar factor, while a reduction in the P loads only, increases it. Based on this it is proposed to use the N/P ratio for eutrophication assessment

Temporal and spatial hydrographic variability in the Skagerrak

This report addresses the tempora1 and spatial variability in the hydrography of the Skagerrak by means of statistical investigations including frequency analyses and spatial correlations. The analysis is based on the fixed hydrographic section across the Skagerrak between Torungen (Arendal), Norway and Hirtshals, Denmark, close to a full year of temporally highly resolved hydrographic measurements by moored automatic current meters, placed off the coast from Torungen, and modelled output from the coupled physical-chemical-biological model system NORWECOM. NORSK SAMMENDRAG: Rapporten omhandler variabilitet i hydrografien i Skagerrak. Ved hjelp av statistiske metoder analyseres variasjonsmønstre i rom og tid. Metodene brukt omfatter frekvensanalyse og romlig korrelasjonsanalyse. Analysen tar utgangspunkt i det faste hydrografiske snittet som går på tvers av Skagerrak fra Torungen (Arendal) til Hirtshals, nær et år med tidsmessig godt oppløste strømmålinger fra en fast montert automatisk strømmåler plassert utenfor Torungen og modellresultater fra den fysisk-kjemisk-biologiske modellen NORWECOM

Dynamical controls on the longevity of a non-linear vortex : The case of the Lofoten Basin Eddy

The Lofoten Basin is the largest oceanic reservoir of heat in the Nordic Seas, and the site of important heat fluxes to the atmosphere. An intense permanent anticyclone in the basin impacts the regional hydrography, energetics, and ecosystem. Repeated sampling of this Lofoten Basin Eddy from dedicated cruises, autonomous profiling gliders, and acoustically-tracked subsurface floats enables the documentation of its dynamics and energetics over the course of 15 months. The eddy core, in nearly solid-body rotation, exhibits an unusually low vertical vorticity close to the local inertial frequency and important strain rates at the periphery. Subsurface floats as deep as 800 m are trapped within the core for their entire deployment duration (up to 15 months). The potential vorticity is reduced in the core by two orders of magnitude relative to the surroundings, creating a barrier. In the winter, this barrier weakens and lateral exchanges and heat flux between the eddy and the surroundings increase, apparently the result of dynamical instabilities and a possible eddy merger. Based on a simple energy budget, the dissipation timescale for the eddy energy is three years, during which wintertime convection seasonally modulates potential and kinetic energy.publishedVersio