Mappings of finite distortion: compactness of the branch set

We show that an entire branched cover of finite distortion cannot have a compact branch set if its distortion satisfies a certain asymptotic growth condition. We furthermore show that this bound is strict by constructing an entire, continuous, open and discrete mapping of finite distortion which is piecewise smooth, has a branch set homeomorphic to $(n-2)$-dimensional torus and distortion arbitrarily close to the asymptotic bound

The Shift of Techno-Economic Paradigm and Its Effects on Regional Disparities

During the 1900?s we first lived thorough shift from the agricultural era to the industrial era. Nowadays, we are in the middle of the shift from the industrial era to the information era. The new era has several definitions based on different theories. At the same time, we talk about information society (knowledge is forming the main productivity factor), network society (new communication technology is connecting people), post-industrial society (change in production paradigm), service society (emphasis on services instead of production), expert society (increasing importance of skilled people and experts), learning society (learning ability becomes a critical factor), postmodern society (modernisation leads to individualism), innovation society (innovation is the driving force of economic growth), risk society (risks and uncertainty are increasing in society) and consumer society (consumer needs steer economic activities) These definitions reflect the different points of view of assessing the development we have been experiencing during the recent years. Each of these definitions emphasises different phenomena embedded in the change of present techno-economic paradigm, and each of them builds a basis for the assessment of the requirements of the changing environment. Although the definitions and theories describing the present change are mostly very abstract, some concrete indicators can be determined to describe the phase of the trajectory in the changing process of the society. The changes in the society should be assessed at regional level, especially as regional dimension is gaining importance in the development policies at the European level. In the regional context the question to rise first is, how the shift of techno-economic paradigm appears in the regional level and what its effect is on emerging regional disparities. Secondly, is it possible to evaluate, how the region?s adaptability to the shift of techno-economic paradigm correlates to its economical success. In the current study, an indicator is created to describe a regions? adaptability to the shift of techno-economic paradigm. The variables included in the adaptability indicator are derived from the theories describing the present society. The Finnish urban regions are used as the source of empirical data in this study. All Finnish urban regions are assessed based on the adaptability indicator and further on, the values of the adaptability indicator are compared to the respective values of indicators describing the economic success of the same regions.. Admittedly, the adaptability indicator does not describe the studied phenomenon completely, it might even be considered provocative. However, it gives some interesting results about the different kinds of development trajectories of urban regions, and gives valuable information for regional decision-making.

The War at Home, the War Abroad : (Trans)Formations of Far-Right Activism in Contemporary Japan

The past decade has been a period of rising nationalism and right-wing populism all over the world. It is evident that the influence of conservative right-wing ideologies is increasing, and with it the radical elements of the movement are empowered to push their ambitions more visibly and actively. Therefore, interest in the study of the far right, rather than the more prominent ‘mainstream-populist right’, is not misplaced. On a general level, research on radical movements can inform us what attracts people to controversial ideologies; how marginal organisations gather support, and how they go about realising their goals. On a normative level, it can also instruct us on how to counter such movements. In mid-2000s, a new strain of far right emerged in Japan and caused upheaval with their xenophobic rhetoric and activism, leading up to the formulation of Japan’s first hate speech law in 2016 andshowing that the Japanese far right is not a fixed presence. Instead, it is something that evolves according to its changing environment, and thus it would be unlikely that the global developments would leave the Japanese far right unaffected. This thesis analyses the transformation of the contemporary Japanese far right movement by means of a qualitative case study. It adds to the literature on Japanese far right and broader study of far right in general by calling attention to the strategies and rhetorics contemporary Japanese far right groups utilise, and how those features compare with the past. The two case study organisations, Nadeshiko Action and Nihon Seinensha, are chosen for their key aspects within the right-wing spectrum, but also on a ‘most-different’ basis in relation to each other, to allow for a more informative comparison between the cases and better generalisability. Data on the two groups is gathered from online publications and blog posts on their own websites and analysed via inductive content analysis. Social movement theory, with special emphasis on the concepts of advocacy and framing, is used to evaluate the degree of change and identify rhetorical trends in the activism of the case studies. The findings show that the Japanese far right is highly adaptable, and despite their core ideology remaining constant, the lines between the different strains of the movement are blurring as they try to relocate themselves from the marginal to the mainstream, while simultaneously seeking new, effective ways to mobilise support and promote their agendas

Practicing feminism : Principles and knowledge-practices of feminist grassroots organizing

This Master’s thesis studies feminist politics by exploring internal organizing practices and the principles guiding them in grassroots activism. The internal organizing practices of feminist movements have not been studied extensively; this thesis aims to fill some of that gap and underline the insights into the political ideas and desires of activists that can be gained when internal practices are analyzed. The research objectives are to shed light on the politics of internal practices, highlight the knowledge and experience generated in grassroots movements as well as analyze the political ideas and desires of feminists by focusing on their organizing practices. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with altogether twelve feminist grassroots organizers. The concept of knowledge-practices is used to highlight the perspective of activists as knowledge-producers and that knowledge is generated through embodied and lived experience. Prefigurative politics as a form of knowledge-practice is used to focus on the politics of practices and the groups as a space for experimenting with and creating the desired feminist future in the present. Feminist principles are identified and analyzed as well as how they are put to practice according to the research participants. The research shows that the feminist activists interviewed view feminism as a broad concept which entails an active strive for equality and a struggle against all forms of inequality. Additionally feminism is described as something in itself, as opposed to being only a reaction towards inequality. The study contributes with perspectives that view feminism as a particular way of being in and organizing the world in which all forms of oppression and inequalities are recognized and to be dismantled. The study finds that the activists emphasize low and transparent hierarchies over non-hierarchical organizing and that organizing should be according to the time and energy resources in a group. Despite their importance, the principles prove difficult in practice. The challenges and tensions that occur when organizing according to the discussed feminist principles become a central part of organizing as well as of this study. Diversity and inclusivity are presented as feminist principles by the research participants, but the analysis in the thesis shows that they also reproduce the power structures they are intended to dismantle. The study suggests that accessibility and safer spaces provide more practical perspective on organizing according to feminist principles. While the thesis gathers feminist practices and principles, it is also concluded that feminist practices are contextual and situated. Feminist principles are emphasized, but how organizers put the principles to practice varies according to the specific needs and desires of groups.Denna pro gradu-avhandling studerar feministisk politik genom att utforska interna organiseringspraktiker och principerna som styr dem. Interna organiseringspraktiker i feministiska rörelser har inte forskats omfattande; avhandlingen ämnar fylla en del av denna lucka och lyfta fram hur en analys av interna praktiker kan erbjuda insikter om aktivisters politiska idéer och begär. Forskningens syfte är att belysa det politiska i interna praktiker, betona kunskapen och erfarenheterna som framkallas i gräsrotsrörelser samt att analysera feministers politiska idéer och begär genom att fokusera på deras organiseringspraktiker. Tio halvstrukturerade intervjuer utfördes med sammanlagt tolv feministiska gräsrotsorganisatörer. Begreppet kunskapspraktiker (knowledge-practices, har inte använts på svenska) används för att framhäva aktivisternas roll som kunskapsskapare och att kunskap formas genom levd och förkroppsligad erfarenhet. Prefigurativ politik som en sorts kunskapspraktik används för att betona det politiska i interna praktiker och att grupperna fungerar som en plats för att experimentera och i nutid skapa den feministiska framtid som eftersträvas. Feministiska principer identifieras och analyseras samt hur de enligt forskningsdeltagarna praktiseras. Forskningen visar att de feministiska aktivisterna som intervjuades använder feminism som ett brett begrepp som innefattar en aktiv strävan efter jämlikhet och en kamp mot alla former av ojämlikhet. Dessutom beskrivs feminism som något i sig självt i motsats till att enbart vara en reaktion på ojämlikhet. Studien erbjuder perspektiv på feminism som ett partikulärt sätt att vara i och organisera världen där alla former av förtryck och ojämlikheter erkänns och avvecklas. Avhandlingen visar att aktivister betonar låga och transparenta hierarkier framom icke-hierarkisk organisering och att grupper ska organisera i enlighet med den tid och energi (resources) som finns i gruppen. Trots att principerna är viktiga, visar de sig vara svåra i praktiken. Utmaningarna och spänningarna som uppstår då det organiseras enligt de feministiska principerna blir en central del av att organisera sig samt av denna avhandling. Diversitet (diversity) och inklusivitet (inclusivity) framställs som feministiska principer av forskningsdeltagarna men analysen pekar på att de också reproducerar maktstrukturerna som de ämnar att upplösa. Studien hävdar att tillgänglighet (accessibility) och tryggare rum (safer spaces) erbjuder mer praktiska perspektiv på att organisera sig enligt de feministiska principerna. Emedan avhandlingen samlar feministiska principer och praktiker, drar den även slutsatsen att feministiska praktiker är kontextuella och situerade. Feministiska principer betonas, men hur organisatörer praktiserar principerna beror på de specifika behov och begär i grupperna