Vulnerability assessments of pesticide leaching to groundwater

Pesticides may have adverse environmental effects if they are transported to groundwater and surface waters. The vulnerability of water resources to contamination of pesticides must therefore be evaluated. Different stakeholders, with different objectives and requirements, are interested in such vulnerability assessments. Various assessment methods have been developed in the past. For example, the vulnerability of groundwater to pesticide leaching may be evaluated by indices and overlay-based methods, by statistical analyses of monitoring data, or by using process-based models of pesticide fate. No single tool or methodology is likely to be appropriate for all end-users and stakeholders, since their suitability depends on the available data and the specific goals of the assessment. The overall purpose of this thesis was to develop tools, based on different process-based models of pesticide leaching that may be used in groundwater vulnerability assessments. Four different tools have been developed for end-users with varying goals and interests: (i) a tool based on the attenuation factor implemented in a GIS, where vulnerability maps are generated for the islands of Hawaii (U.S.A.), (ii) a simulation tool based on the MACRO model developed to support decision-makers at local authorities to assess potential risks of leaching of pesticides to groundwater following normal usage in drinking water abstraction districts, (iii) linked models of the soil root zone and groundwater to investigate leaching of the pesticide mecoprop to shallow and deep groundwater in fractured till, and (iv) a meta-model of the pesticide fate model MACRO developed for 'worst-case' groundwater vulnerability assessments in southern Sweden. The strengths and weaknesses of the different approaches are discussed

Monitoring of biomarkers in heart failure.

The role of biomarkers is increasingly recognized in heart failure (HF) management, for diagnosis, prognostication, and screening of high-risk patients. Beyond natriuretic peptides and troponins, the utility of novel, emerging biomarkers is less established. This document reflects the key points of a Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) consensus meeting on biomarker monitoring in HF

Datatabeller til bruk i planlegging av sprøyting

Målet med prosjektet har vært å utarbeide et verktøy som indikerer risikoen for utlekking av plantevernmidler til grunnvann og drensvann i potet, vårkorn, høstkorn, oljevekster, gulrot, jordbær og epler under ulike jord- og klimaforhold i Norge. I tilfeller der det finnes ulike alternative midler, kan det mest miljøvennlige alternativet velges. Prosjektet er rettet mot Handlingsplanens mål om bærekraftig bruk av plantevernmidler og å redusere risikoen for negative effekter på helse og miljø og utlysningens faglige prioriteringer om kunnskap om plantevernmidler under norske forhold og da spesielt transport i jord. Målgruppa for prosjektet vil i første rekke være næringsutøvere og rådgivere, men resultatene kan også benyttes av forvaltningen. Modellen MACRO-DB er benyttet til å estimere risikoen for utlekking til drensvann/grunnvann under norske forhold for alle plantevernmidler godkjent i de sju kulturene. Resultatene viser blant annet at områder med mye nedbør gir signifikant høyere risiko for utlekking enn tørrere områder og at ugrasmidler er den gruppen av midler som gir høyest risiko. Videre viser enkelte jordtyper høyere risiko for utlekking enn andre, men dette kan avhenge av klima og type midler. Om jordtypen er drenert eller ikke, kan også ha betydning. Videre er det utviklet tabeller som angir risiko for utlekking av ulike plantevernmidler ved forskjellig klima og jordsmonn dekkende for fire av de største landbruksregionene i Norge. Tabellene skal tilgjengeliggjøres for næringsutøvere og veiledere i hele landet og oppdateres årlig. Resultatene gir brukere av plantevernmidler et verktøy de kan brukeDatatabeller til bruk i planlegging av sprøytingpublishedVersio

The FOOTPRINT software tools: pesticide risk assessment and management in the EU at different spatial scales.

In the EU-project FOOTPRINT three pesticide risk assessment and management tools were developed, for use at different spatial scales. The three FOOTPRINT tools share the same underlying science, based on the consistent identification of environmental characteristics driving the fate of agriculturally applied pesticides and their interpretation to parameterise state of the art modelling applications thus providing an integrated solution to pesticide risk assessment and management in the EU

Molecular Epidemiology of Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality, with increasing prevalence worldwide. Identification of risk markers may enable improved prevention by targeting high-risk individuals, earlier disease diagnosis and treatment, as well as stratification of disease subtypes with different treatment options, thereby minimizing side effects while increasing success rates. The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate associations between proteomic and metabolomic biomarkers, and the development of heart failure and ischemic stroke. Specific objectives were to examine potential causal pathways, and the added value in risk prediction of the identified risk markers. In Studies I–II, we performed proximity extension assay based proteomic profiling of ≥80 circulating proteins in the Swedish cohorts Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors (PIVUS n=901, median age 70), and the Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men (ULSAM, n=685, median age 77). In Study I, we identified nine proteins involved in apoptosis, inflammation, matrix remodeling, and fibrinolysis associated with incident heart failure, including growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15). In Study II, we identified several proteins associated with incident ischemic stroke, including GDF-15. Both studies revealed potential to improve disease risk prediction by using proteomic data. In Study III, we performed mass spectrometry-based metabolomic profiling in plasma or serum samples from PIVUS, ULSAM, and TwinGene (total n=3,924). The metabolites urobilin and sphingomyelin (30:1) were associated with incident heart failure. In Study IV, we followed up on the results of Studies I–II, performing Mendelian randomization analyses (a framework for causal analysis using genetic variants) in 1,053,527 individuals, with 88,448 coronary artery disease cases, 70,305 ischemic stroke cases, and 1,420 heart failure cases. This study supports a causal role of genetically elevated GDF-15 levels in heart failure development, but not in coronary artery disease or ischemic stroke. In conclusion, we identified multiple biomarkers associated with incident heart failure and ischemic stroke, potentially involved in early disease development. We also saw potential to improve disease risk prediction for incident heart failure and ischemic stroke using proteomics data. Our findings encourage further large-scale proteomic, metabolomic, and genetic studies to give new insights into heart failure and stroke pathogenesis

Has the school dropped the democrasy? : The role of school in declining turnout - with the magnifier on textbook in business economics

Syftet med undersökningen är att få ökad kunskap om skolans roll i det minskade intresset för varje form av ett partipolitiskt engagemang bland ungdomar, manifesterat i ett minskat valdeltagande för förstagångsväljare. Speciellt önskas kunskap om skolan problematiserar samhällsföreteelser i undervisningsstoffet för att stimulera till deltagande i den demokratiska processen.   Den metod som används är en kvantitativ och kvalitativ text- och läroboksanalys med ett läroplansteoretisk perspektiv. Behandlingen av medbestämmandelagen, MBL, i läroböckerna i företagsekonomi, utgivna efter 1993 utgör exempel.   Det resultat som framkom är att MBL behandlas mycket olika. Olika synsätt på undervisnings syfte (konceptioner) framträder. Två läromedel (båda utgivna 1993) problematiserar frågan och redovisar motsättningar gällande MBL, en med ett samhällsperspektiv, den andra ur ett företagarperspektiv. Övriga gör ett konstaterande i ett ekonomiskt rationellt/vetenskapligt angreppssätt. Två aktuella läroböckerna behandlar inte alls frågan. Tendensen eller attityden till MBL är positiv i tre och negativ i fyra av läroböckerna. Textomfånget har minskat från 1 procent eller mer (1993) till mindre än 1/10-dels procent av böckernas textmassa.   Slutsatsen är att moderna läromedlen i företagsekonomi inte utnyttjar stoffets möjligheter till att stimulera till politiskt engagemang genom kritisk granskning av olika företeelser, självständiga ställningstaganden eller genom att påvisa den politiska konflikten bakom lagstiftningen

Energy efficient buildings, the 2030 Agenda and the Swedish environmental goal system

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by all United Nations member states in 2015. Since then, the Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has become a broad framework for sustainable development. In Sweden, the ecological dimension of the 2030 Agenda is represented by the national environmental goal system, which the environmental quality objectives (EQOs) are an integral part of. Currently only one of the EQOs is reached. However, since the 2030 Agenda is experiencing a global momentum, it may be used to increase the pace in the work towards the EQOs.  This study aims to examine how the 2030 Agenda can be used as a tool for working towards the Swedish environmental goal system. This is done through an actor analysis based on literature studies and qualitative interviews, where the work towards the Agenda and the national environmental goals in different sectors is analyzed. In addition to the actor analysis, a case study is conducted to investigate how energy efficient buildings can contribute to reaching SDG 11 and the EQOs Reduced climate impact and A Good Built Environment. The case study concerns the office building Trikåfabriken in Stockholm’s Hammarby Sjöstad district. Trikåfabriken’s energy use is analyzed through the software VIP-Energy, and further energy efficiency measures are evaluated. These include adding more solar panels to the roof, increasing the solar protection on windows and decreasing the activity in the building. The results show that most studied actors work with the 2030 Agenda to some extent, but few outside of the public sector are actively working with the EQOs. There is however a consensus that the Agenda correlates with the EQOs. The case study shows that Trikåfabriken contributes to reaching SDG 11 and the EQOs Reduced climate impact and A Good Built Environment due to its design and embedded technologies. Regarding further energy efficiency measures, the results show that a reduced activity would lead to a higher energy use, whereas the two other measures would reduce it.

Utformning av en kommunikations- och dataöverföringsarkitektur till IBDn : Utformning av en kommunikations- och dataöverföringsarkitektur som är anpassad till SAAB:s Intelligent Behavior Detector

Denna rapport undersöker möjligheten att bryta ner ett stort program till mindre och enkaler moduler och skapa en dataöverförings- och kommunikationsarkitektur mellan dem. Dataöverföringen skall vara dynamisk för att olika moduler skall under exekvering ha möjlighet att byta modul den vill ha data ifrån samt centralisera koden och kommunikationen skall optimera antalet meddelandeöverföringar. Arbetet resulterar i två arkitekturer som uppfyller tidigare satta målen i ett parallellt system, arbetet analyseras sedan analytiskt och styrkor och svagheter undersöks. Arkitekturerna medför att många problem med att utveckla stora system undviks och detta skapar fler möjliga kopplingar, mindre komplexa moduler samt centralisering av funktionalitet i programmet