How To Be Prepared for the Difficult Conversation

In this paper, we present a minor research and development project with a group of teachers in primary school who, in agreement with the school management, have been trained and educated in the challenging task of facilitating ‘The difficult conversation.’ In the project, a reflecting team has been used as a method to consolidate empowerment as an opportunity for the teacher to lead various processes being part of many teachers’ tasks. The main objective of the project was to research if this way of educating can lead to development of empowerment for the whole school. We also wanted to see if we could use a reflecting team in the mentoring process of learning. In their professional relationship with children and their parents, teachers must be more than regular educators. They need to be leaders of professional teams, cooperating with other professionals in dialogues with parents. Sometimes an individual teacher has to take part in difficult conversations and show both leadership and responsibility. Many teachers perceive this as an emotional challenge that concerns themselves as well as their counterparts. It is important to focus on their own teacher competence to facilitate such situations. A possible route to success is developing empowerment in teacher’s professional work. By using a reflecting team in various situations, teachers will experience empowerment as strengthening support in their daily work. The reflecting team method was originally used in therapy, but has over time been redesigned and adapted to an educational method for mentoring, teambuilding, planning and problem solving.publishedVersio

Comparative aspects of volatile fatty acid production in reindeer {Rangifer tarandus tarandus) in northern Norway and on South Georgia

Dietary influence on pH and volatile fatty acids concentrations and production rates in the rumen and distal fermentation chamber (DFC) was investigated in Norwegian reindeer (Rangifer t. tarandus) on South Georgia in summer (SG), and in northern Norway in late summer (NS) and winter (NW). Mean [standard deviation (s)] ruminal pH was similar in SG teindeet (6.46, s = 0.13) and NW reindeer (6.45, s = 0.19), but significantly different from NS reindeer (6.87, s = 0.08)(P < 0.05). Mean DFC pH in SG reindeer (6.92, s = 0.12) and in NS reindeer (6.70, s = 0.16) did not differ significantly. In NW reindeer DFC pH (6.26, s = 0.20) was significantly lower than in the SG and NS animals (P < 0.05). Mean ruminal concentration of volatile fatty acids (VFA) was 92.4 mM (s = 13-3) in SG reindeer, which was significantly larger (P < 0.05) than in NS (71.5 mM, s = 10.2) and NW reindeer (73.3 mM, s = 9.7). In DFC mean VFA concentration was 51.3 mM (s = 11.7), and 48.8mM (s = 14.5) in SG and NW reindeer respectively, and significantly less than in NS reindeer (86.7mM, s = 5.4) (P < 0.05). Mean daily ruminal VFA rate of production was 246.4 kj/kg BM"" in SG teindeer, compared to 195.6 kj/kg BM"" in NS and 193.4 kJ/kgBM0 75 in NW reindeer. Mean daily VFA rate of production in DFC was 8.3 kj/kg BM0 75 in SG reindeer compared to 6.2 kj/kg BM07' in NS and 3.0 kj/kg BM"75 in NW reindeer. The summer pastures on SG and NS were of moderate quality in terms of ruminal VFA production. In winter in northern Norway when forage quality was assumed to be low, both ruminal and DFC pH were low. The high fermentation rate in winter was probably due to easily digestible carbohydrates in the lichens eaten. DFC seems to be of minor importance in these reindeer in terms of VFA energy yield

Comparative aspects of volatile fatty acid production in the rumen and distal fermentation chamber in Svalbard reindeer

Microbial fermentation end products were investigated in Svalbard reindeer at two different locations, on Nordenskioldland (NL) (n=7) and in a marginal area on Nordaustlandet (NA) (n=11), at different seasons. The pH ranged from 6.51-6.70 in rumen contents and from 6.78-7.17 in the distal fermentation chamber (DFC=caecum and proximal part of the colon) on NL compared to 6.10-6.71 in rumen contents and 6.50-7.35 in DFC contents on NA. The ruminal volatile fatty acid concentration ([VFAJ) was 84.5 ± 9.5 mmol/l compared to 63-9 ± 17.6 mmol/kg in the DFC on NL in winter. In autumn, ruminal and DFC [VFA] was high at 113.5 ± 13.0 mmol/l and 90.4 ± 10.9 mmol/kg, respectively. On NA ruminal [VFA] was 85.7 ± 12.4 mmol/l and 59-6 ± 1.3 mmol/kg in the DFC in winter, compared to 107.3 ± 18.4 mmol/l and 102.0 ± 12.7 mmol/kg in rumen and DFC, respectively, in summer. Mean acetate/propionate (A/P) ratios in the rumen indicate fermentation in favour of plant fibre digestion in winter (4.8) but not in autumn (3.0) on NL. On NA, the mean A/P ratio was 5.1 in winter, compared to 4.6 in summer. In all DFC investigated the A/P ratio was higher than 8.9. The initial ruminal [VFA] did not reflect the VFA production measured. On NL, the production rate of VFA was low or not detectable in rumen and DFC in winter, while in autumn the total production rate of VFA was 59.3 kJ/kgW0 75/d, of which 6.5% originated from the DFC. On NA in winter, a total of 121.3 kJ/kgW0 7S/d was estimated of which 17% originated from the DFC, compared to a total of 380.4 kj/kgW0.75/d in summer where the DFC only contributed 2.7%. Plants (grasses and mosses) with low quality in winter do not seem to contribute significantly to the VFA production in rumen and DFC. VFA production in the DFC seems to be of significant importance in reindeer when pastures have low availability but high quality. The concenttation and the rate of VFA production in the DFC contents were not related to the size of the chamber, but to the diet eaten

Naturopplevelsen og kreativitetens pusterom: Vår altfor-menneskelige dialog med verden

Med utgangspunkt i personlige erfaringer og empiriske undersøkelser, tar jeg i denne oppgaven fatt på å gi et filosofisk svar på hvorfor naturopplevelsen ser ut til å stimulere til kreativitet. Jeg bruker spesifikke momenter fra Graham Harmans objektorienterte ontologi til å argumentere for at artefakter døyver opplevelser av verden som annen og fremmed fra vår egen 'livsverden', og dermed bidrar til å 'innsnevre' kreativitetens 'pusterom'. Det som kunne vært en inspirerende dialog med verdens fremmede objekter blir til en enveisdialog der objekter 'taler' på våre egne premisser. "Artefakt" oversettes til "tause objekter". Grunnen til at artefakter forstås som tause, er at vår relasjon til dem – fordi de er ment som flittige tjenere for vår prediksjon og kontroll over fremtiden – tvinger objektene til å krystalliseres til selv-identiske, varige størrelser, og at selv-identiske objekter, dersom vi følger de tekniske detaljene i Harmans teori om estetiske opplevelser, ikke er i stand til å trigge opplevelser av verden som annet og fremmed fra vår egen ‘livsverden’. Naturopplevelsen blir dermed et spørsmål om vår relasjon til objekter og hvorvidt objektene er gjenstand for kontroll over fremtiden idet de oppleves

Gjelder det en «business judgement rule» i norsk aksjeselskapsrett?

En komparativ analyse av domstolenes tilbakeholdenhet ved overprøving av det forretningsmessige skjønn, samt tersklene for å ilegge personlig erstatningsansvar i norsk og i amerikansk aksjeselskapsret

Forage chemistry and the digestive system in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus) in northern Norway and on South Georgia

Comparative chemical and botanical analyses of the reticulo-rumen content (RR) and the fill of the digestive system were carried out in free-living Norwegian reindeer {Rangifer t. tarandus) on South Georgia (SG) in summer (mean body mass (BM) = 74 kg, n - 10), and in northern Norway in late summer (NS) (mean BM = 77 kg, n = 6) and winter (NW) (mean BM = 60 kg, n = 11). The RR of SG reindeer contained mainly grasses, while grasses dominated in NS reindeer and woody plants and lichens in NW reindeer. Mean ruminal plant cell-wall contents (CWC) comprised 37% of organic dry matter (OM) in SG reindeer and 50 and 69% in NS and NW reindeer, respectively. The high CWC in NW reindeer was due to high intake of lichens containing as much as 45% hemi-cellulose. Mean ruminal content of lignin was as low as 5% of OM in SG reindeer, which was different (P < 0.05) from NS (14%) and NW reindeer (15%), respectively. The mean total gastro-inresrinal tract (GIT) (fill and tissue) weight was 27% of BM in SG reindeer, different (P < 0.05) from NS (18% of BM) and NW reindeer (22% of BM), respectively. Wet weight RR content was 14.5% of BM in SG reindeer, not different from NS (12.2% of BM) and NW reindeer (14.2% of BM). The ratio between the wet weight content of the distal fermentation chamber (DFC) and the RR wet weight content was 1:10 in SG reindeer, different (P < 0.05) from NS (1:14) and NW reindeer (1:14). We did not find any significant differences between the intestinal lengths of the groups investigated. It was concluded that the degree of fill of the different parts of GIT in reindeet seems to be related to the lignin content of plants eaten and not only of seasonal changes in appetite and availability of plants. Our data stress the fact that reindeer are highly adaptable to a wide range of different dietary plants, even in the southern hemisphere

The bacteriology of the small intestinal mucosa of free-living reindeer

Bacteria in close associaton with the intestinal mucosa are thought to protect the mucosa from pathogenic microorganisms. The pH of the small intestinal mucosa and the viable populations of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria associated with the proximal and distal jejunal mucosa, were measured in four free-living reindeer in winter. The anaerobic bacterial populations were characterized. The median pH of the mucosa of the duodenum was 6.6 (n=4) at point 0.2 m from the pyloric sphincter. The mucosal pH increased along the length of the intestine to 8.3 at 14 m and then decreased to 7.9 at 19.8 m from the pyloric sphincter. Examination by transmission electron microscopy and cultivation techniques failed to reveal any bacteria on the mucosa of the proximal jejunum in two of the animals. In two other reindeer the median anaerobic bacterial densities in the proximal jejunum ranged from 25-2500 cells/g mucosa. The median anaerobic bacterial populations in the distal jejunum ranged from 80 to 20000 bacteria/g mucosa (n=4). The anaerobic population of bacteria in the proximal jejunum was dominated by streptococci and unidentified gram positive rods. Bacteroidaceae, streptococci and unidentified gram positive rods were common in the distal jejunum. The low density and the species diversity of bacteria in the small intestine suggests that these microorganisms are inhibited by components in the natural winter diet of reindeer. Bacteria evidently play a minor role in protection of the mucosa of reindeer in winter

Flame curtain kilns produce biochar from dry biomass with minimal methane emissions

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