Humans have a tendency to attribute mental states to robots in order to understand, explain, or predict their behavior. These attributions are often spontaneous in nature and occur without deeper reflection or ulterior motive, which in turn raises the question: do people believe that robots possess genuine mental states, or are these attributions made merely in a metaphorical sense?

The current study aims to explicitly explore people's folk-ontological stance towards robots, that is, people's internal beliefs about whether mental states truly exist. The study consisted of a questionnaire that investigated people's ontological perception of thoughts and intentions of today's and future robots. The study was based on three folk-ontological stances, namely psychological realism, psychological non-realism and agnosticism, and further examined how certain individuals felt about their stance, and whether they are rigid or flexible in their belief.

The general societal and cultural view of robots is that they are entities without any mental capacity, which the study's results partly challenge, as half of the participants adopted an ontological position that does not actively deny the existence of thoughts and intentions in robots in general. Furthermore, the study revealed a difference in how current and future robots are perceived, suggesting that people's ontological stance may shift alongside technological development. This study serves as an exploratory contribution to the limited existing research on folk-ontological positions towards robots.

Lugs are commonly used in aircraft structures to transmit loads between parts through a bolt or pin connection. As a result, they are frequently subjected to cyclic loading and therefore susceptible to fatigue failure.  

The current lug fatigue life calculation method is based on fatigue test data of lugs, and is only applicable for straight lugs, subjected to a longitudinal load with constant amplitude. This makes the method limited and unnecessarily conservative, due to the assumption that the load is applied in a single direction. The aim has therefore been to expand the method with model, valid for any lug geometry and load sequence.

The proposed model builds upon an existing method where the fatigue life of a lug is predicted based on the fatigue life of a tested reference lug, through scaling of geometrical and stress quantities. It further introduces a comparison between the stress concentration factors, enabling fatigue life predictions of lugs with arbitrary geometry and load angles by finite element calculations of the tangential stress in the lug. Additionally, damage theory has been applied to predict the fatigue of lugs subjected to arbitrary load sequences by calculating the cumulative damage in each point along the hole edge of the lug.

The validity of the proposed model has been assessed by comparing the predicted fatigue life of lugs to test data, available for a few different lug geometries and different constant load angles.  The calculation model showed a promising agreement between the predictions and test results. To validate the implementation of damage theory, tests with varying load angle and amplitude must be performed.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a neural disorder that successively degrades the myelin sheath surrounding the neurons. This causes inflammation and scar tissue to develop, called lesions. With the help of MRI, lesions can be detected. At the time of writing, there are no known cures for the disorder and diagnosing the disease early is of importance to minimize the symptoms as the disorder progresses. The lesions are manually segmented by radiologist experts, a time consuming process prone to human factor errors. In recent years, multiple machine learning algorithms have been developed to aid radiologists in this task. In this thesis, the LST-AI, nnU-Net, and 2D U-Net models, trained for lesion segmentation on different data, were evaluated and tested on MRI brain images of MS affected patients. The LST-AI, a pre-trained model developed specifically for MS lesion segmentation, was first tested and compared to the other two self trained models. A total of three datasets were used in training and testing, with exception for the nnU-Net that was only trained and tested on two datasets. The results proved that all models were sensitive to low axial resolution and the lack of proper ground truth for all image sequences had a big impact on their performance. The MRI sequences also had to be used separately and due to missing ground truth for the T₁-W and T₂-W, their trained models did not perform well. Because of this, no T₁-W or T₂-W model was tested on other sequences than what they were trained on. The image's sagittal and coronal resolution did not seem to have the same effect as the axial resolution. All three models seemed to perform better on images containing a larger volume of lesions. Overall, given the available data, the nnU-Net models achieved the highest mean Dice scores and IoU, while the self-implemented 2D U-Net model performing the worst. 

Denna studie undersöker hur kommuner kan inkludera industriell symbios vid nya företagsetableringar för att främja resurseffektivitet. Industriell symbios (IS) är en strategi som kan bidra till resurseffektivitet och handlar om att företag och organisationer samarbetar för att optimera resursanvändning genom att utbyta material, energi, vatten, kunskap och/eller biprodukter på ett sätt som skapar gemensamma fördelar. Nya företagsetableringar utgör en möjlighet för kommuner att integrera IS redan från start. I Sverige varierar kommunernas engagemang i frågor som rör IS. Genom att studera fyra kommuners arbetssätt kan studien bidra till en djupare förståelse av hur industriell symbios kan integreras i etableringsprocesser och därmed stödja resurseffektivitet.

Datainsamlingen består av 8 digitala semistrukturerade intervjuer, en styrdokumentsstudie på 15 styrdokument och en allmän litteraturinsamling. I studien identifieras tre centrala roller som kommuner kan ha i relation till företagsetablering: myndighetsutövare, samhällsutvecklare med ansvar för allmänintresset, samt ägare och förvaltare av infrastruktur. Kommunernas arbete med företagsetableringar ser olika ut och anpassas efter kommunernas förutsättningar eftersom det är en lokal fråga som hanteras av kommunerna själva. En central del av kommuners arbete med företagsetableringar är det kontaktskapande näringslivsarbetet, där samverkan med lokala företag, nätverk och organisationer står i fokus.

Studien använder en modell som delar in arbetet med företagsetableringar i tre faser; proaktiv, reaktiv och retroaktiv. Ur kommuners perspektiv har etableringsprocessen ingen tydlig början eller slut, utan är en cirkulär process. Kommunens kan anta olika roller i förhållande till industriell symbios, i denna studie har ett ramverk tagits fram som sammanfattar dessa. Rollerna där är som följer: politisk roll, operativ roll, stödjande roll, och kommunikationsroll. Analysen visar att fallkommunerna i varierande grad intar dessa roller.

När det kommer till etableringar detaljplanerar och marknadsför sig fallkommunerna i den proaktiva fasen, men det är sällan IS är involverat i de aktiviteterna. Den reaktiva fasen visar att det vanligen är företagen som kontaktar kommuner om etableringsfrågor snarare än tvärtom, samt att graden av IS-integrering varierar. I den retroaktiva fasen finns ingen konsensus om vad som görs.

Studien visar att fallkommunernas arbete varierar beroende på deras symbiosfall, politiska vilja och strategiska tillvägagångssätt. Alla fallkommuner arbetar med IS genom att anta en kommunikationsroll, främst genom stimulering av sociala interaktioner, och på ett politiskt sätt genom att vara en auktoritet över mark och på vilket sätt den ska nyttjas. Det framkom även att symbiosarbetet tenderar att vara beroende av projekt snarare än att integreras som en helhet i den kommunala etableringsprocessen. Slutligen pekar studien på fyra viktiga områden för kommuner som vill främja IS vid företagsetableringar: att stimulera nätverkande, förbereda för IS, förankra IS samt vara aktiv i dess genomförande.

This thesis was conducted in collaboration with Lazarus Industrif¨orvaltning AB, a Swedish investment firm focusing on acquiring distressed companies. Lazarus conducts their own due diligence and utilizes internal tools to analyze risk and return for potential investments. However, the firm’s four partners perceived their previous tools as both unclear and unreliable. Through interviews this perception was found to be due to the risk tools giving similar risk scores across different cases, performance metrics not matching the firm’s needs and an overall lack of user-friendliness. 

The purpose of this thesis was to develop improved risk tools to better support Lazarus’ investment analysis process. For this, two main research questions guided the work. First, how can Lazarus improve its company-specific risk analysis tool for evaluating potential investments in a way that aligns with its operations? Second, how can a risk-adjusted return measure be calculated while accounting for risks associated with different financing structures? 

Through a qualitative and abductive method, interviews were held with Lazarus’ four partners. Existing theory was used as a basis for the development decisions suggested during the interviews and the tools were developed iteratively with continuous feedback. This process resulted in two new risk analysis tools. First, a new company specific risk tool based on 19 predefined risk factors with probability × impact scoring and aggregation through a weighted mean model. Second, a redesigned tool for calculating risk-adjusted return based on cash flows through different financing structures and their inherent risk, illustrated by this thesis’ new performance metric MORAC (Multiple On Risk Adjusted Capital). 

The tools improve clarity, usability and alignment with Lazarus’ needs. While tailored for their needs, isolated components of the risk tools could potentially be of use for other investors. Limitations to this thesis include dependence on subjective and qualitative input, and future research could benefit from long-term testing of the tools’ consistency between users, and evaluating whether scores correlate with investment outcomes over time.

Sammanfattning

Bakgrund: Fallen av kronisk njursvikt har ökat i Sverige. Sjukdomen kommer med problematiska symtom och livsuppoffrande behandlingsalternativ. Omvårdnaden kring sjukdomen sker för att minska förekomsten av symtom och minska risken för förvärring av tillståndet. Att leva med en kronisk sjukdom kan orsaka hinder i det dagliga livet.

Syfte: Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur vuxna personer upplever att det dagliga livet påverkas av kronisk njursvikt.

Metod: En litteraturstudie med systematisk ansats genomfördes. Artiklarna som valdes var gjorda med kvalitativ metod. Databassökningen genomfördes i Cinahl, Scopus och Pubmed. Artiklarna kvalitetsgranskades och analyserades i form av en innehållsanalys.

Resultat: Fyra teman identifierades: Utmanande fysiska hinder och livsstilsförändringar, Socialt utanförskap och relationella svårigheter, Att balansera livet med njurersättande behandling och Ekonomisk problematik. Det dagliga livet med kronisk njursvikt påverkades av symtom, begränsningar och restriktioner. Det sociala livet och relationer drabbades negativt och den njurersättande behandlingen gjorde det svårt att få ihop livspusslet, och bidrog till utmanande känslor. Ekonomin blev påverkad i form av minskade inkomster och ökade utgifter.

Slutsats: Kronisk njursvikt medförde begränsningar för personerna vilket ledde till social isolering. Sjuksköterskan behöver inneha förståelse för hur begränsningarna påverkar och hur den sociala isoleringen kan motiveras till att brytas genom coping-strategier, för att uppnå livskvalitet.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to analyze corneal topography relative to astigmatism, higher order aberrations, and corneal curvatures in Terrien marginal degeneration using 3-dimensional anterior-segment optical coherence tomography.

Methods: Twenty-nine eyes of 15 Finnish patients from a tertiary referral center had topographic axial power maps classified into 4 patterns by visual grading: crab claw (CC), mixed (M), arcuate (A), and normal. Regular astigmatism, keratometry, higher order aberrations, maximal corneal thinning, apex thickness, and curvature changes relative to best fit sphere toward maximal peripheral thinning were compared.

Results: Four, 9, and 12 eyes were classified as CC, M, and A, respectively; 1 as normal with clinical disease; and 3 as normal with unilateral disease. Median follow-up was 2.3 (range, 0-7.2) years. Three eyes changed pattern. Patients with the CC pattern were the youngest when diagnosed, progressed more rapidly, exhibited cavities in superior quadrants with anterior bulging, and had greater higher order posterior aberrations. Patients with the M pattern were older, progressed slower, and showed superonasal asymmetric corneal steepening extending centrally, often with asymmetric bow tie. Patients with pattern A showed little progression and were the oldest when diagnosed, with maximal corneal thinning equally in all quadrants. According to the Wang classification, the median stage was 4, 2, and 2 in CC, M, and A patterns, respectively, whereas it was always 2 by the Süveges classification.

Conclusions: Terrien marginal degeneration is characterized by distinct corneal topographic patterns that differ in tomographic features, suggesting existence of subtypes in addition to different stages of disease. Patients representing CC and M patterns might benefit from more frequent monitoring.

Understanding the drivers of teacher mobility is vital for maintaining workforce stability and educational equity in Sweden’s rapidly evolving school system. This thesis examines how both objective workplace conditions and teachers’ subjective well‐being shape two distinct forms of career mobility—inter‐school transfers and exits from the profession—using a longitudinal, nationally representative sample of 5,873 compulsory and upper‐secondary teachers drawn from four waves (2006, 2009, 2012, 2018) of the Swedish National Agency for Education’s Attitudes to School survey.

First, I apply domain‐specific principal component analysis to reduce dozens of correlate survey items into robust latent indices, yielding parsimonious measures of five well‐being factors (overall satisfaction, autonomy, competence, effectiveness, trust) and three workplace‐condition factors (resource adequacy, classroom environment, school climate). These component scores serve as predictors in two parallel generalized additive models with spline‐augmented terms for age and perceived authority, allowing for the flexible, data‐driven modeling of non‐linear career‐stage effects.

Results reveal that material conditions—especially well‐prioritized resources, supportive school climate, and longer same‐school tenure—are the strongest deterrents of planned school transfers, whereas intrinsic well‐being factors—most notably meaningfulness, satisfaction, and stress—dominate intentions to leave teaching altogether. Employment in independent (voucher‐funded) schools significantly raises transfer intentions but not attrition. The flexible age spline uncovers an early‐career “risk window” (ages 20–28) and a “late‐career cushion” (post‐38) for both mobility pathways, and perceived authority exhibits a U‐shaped relationship with transfer risk, highlighting the importance of balanced school governance.

By disentangling transfer versus attrition pathways and deploying a longitudinal GAM framework, this study offers novel empirical and conceptual insights into teacher mobility in Sweden. It underscores the need for targeted retention strategies—improving school-level resources and climate to discourage transfers, and strengthening teachers’ sense of meaningfulness and stress management to curb exits—and provides a methodological template for future, cross‐national investigations into non‐linear career‐stage dynamics.

Over the past decade, Participatory Budgeting (PB) has emerged as a widely adopted process for enhancing democratic engagement and strengthening citizen involvement in planning and decision-making. In Sweden, the implementation of PB initiatives have remained relatively limited, with a few cases primarily in rural planning, as. The purpose of this thesis is to highlight this research void by investigating the role of PB in Swedish rural planning, focusing on its current use, evolution, impact on local democracy and planning process, and the key challenges and opportunities tied to its implementation. This is conducted through a case study of the five municipalities of Gislaved, Lund, Nässjö, Trelleborg, and Uppsala, and is carried out employing a multi-method approach that combines semi-structured interviews with civil servants, document analysis and descriptions from the municipalities in their documents and websites. 

The analysis is conducted through thematic coding, connecting the theoretical framework with the findings from across the five municipalities. To support this analysis, key concepts including the Theory of Change, the four principles for generating social change, and Empowered Participatory Governance (EPG), are applied to contextualize and interpret the results. The analysis reveals that despite political support and significant efforts to enhance meaningful participation and representation, challenges remain. For PB to fulfill its democratic potential, municipalities must improve inclusive outreach, transparent processes, and systematic evaluation. Furthermore, expanding PB to broader community involvement and integrating it with long-term planning strategies could enhance its effectiveness in addressing rural challenges and creating social change. 

Background: Few studies have examined the effects of lower carbohydrate diets on glucose control in persons with type 1 diabetes (T1D). The objective of the study was to investigate whether a moderate carbohydrate diet improves glucose control in persons with T1D.

Methods: A randomised, multicentre, open-label, crossover trial over 12 weeks. There were 69 individuals assessed for eligibility, 54 adults with T1D and HbA1c ≥ 58 mmol/mol (7.5%) were randomised. Interventions were moderate carbohydrate diet versus traditional diet (30 vs 50% of total energy from carbohydrates) over four weeks, with a four-week wash-out period between treatments. Masked continuous glucose monitoring was used to evaluate effects on glucose control. The primary endpoint was the difference in mean glucose levels between the last 14 days of each diet phase.

Findings: 50 individuals were included in the full analysis set with a mean baseline HbA1c of 69 mmol/mol (8.4%), BMI 29 kg/m2, age of 48 years, and 50% were female. The difference in mean glucose levels between moderate carbohydrate and traditional diet was -0.6 mmol/L, 95% CI -0.9 to -0.3, p < 0.001. Time in range increased during moderate carbohydrate diet by 4.7% (68 min/24 h) (95% CI 1.3 to 8.0), p = 0.008. Time above range (>10 mmol/L) decreased by 5.9% (85 min/24 h), 95% CI -9.6 to -2.2, p = 0.003. There were no significant differences in the standard deviation of glucose levels (95% CI -0.3 to 0.0 mmol/L, p = 0.15) or hypoglycaemia in the range <3.9 mmol/L (95% CI -0.4 to 2.9%, p = 0.13) and <3.0 mmol/L (95% CI -0.4 to 1.6%, p = 0.26). Four participants withdrew, none because of adverse events. There were no serious adverse events including severe hypoglycaemia and ketoacidosis. Mean ketone levels were 0.17 (SD 0.14) mmol/L during traditional and 0.18 (SD 0.13) mmol/L during moderate carbohydrate diet (p = 0.02).

Interpretation: A moderate carbohydrate diet is associated with decreases in mean glucose levels and time above range and increases in time in range without increased risk of hypoglycaemia or ketoacidosis compared with a traditional diet in individuals with T1D.

For the first time in a telemonitoring context, we apply the Rome Proposal (RP), recently adopted by GOLD 2023, to assess the severity of exacerbations (ECOPD). So far, we have analysed 387 study weeks, which include only 18 ECOPDs; 4 mild, 13 moderate and 1 severe according to the criteria from RP. There is a promising potential of telemonitoring based on the RP.

Approximately 60 000 people yearly get skin cancer in Sweden, and around 500 people pass away as a result. Malignant melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer, and is in 9 of 10 cases a result of dangerous UV rays from the sun. Men are the most affected, since on average over 150 more men than women suffer from malignant melanoma yearly, but an absolute majority of the cases could have been prevented through proper protection against the sun. At the same time, the average person encounters thousands of advertising messages each day, and millions of Swedish crowns are invested in advertisements. Thus, advertising can be considered influential on the modern person, and the aim of this study is therefore to investigate how advertisement for SPF affects Swedish men’s attitude towards the use of SPF. 

To answer its purpose, the study relies on theories on attitude, consumer behavior and market communication. Specifically, the theory of planned behavior, perceived value, and motivation, and narrative and argumentative advertising messages, and the AIDA model, respectively. The study is qualitative with a deductive approach. To gather data, interviews were conducted and the results were analysed thematically. Furthermore, extracted themes were analysed with the chosen theories in order to answer the purpose of the study. 

The conclusion of the study shows that there are different factors which influence Swedish men’s attitude towards using SPF, as well as health being a driving factor and that the behavior of Swedish men is, overall, rational based on this. Swedish men perceive the content of SPF commercials in different ways and advertising can also affect their attitude towards use of SPF in differently. Furthermore, the attention, as well as interest, of Swedish men can be raised and maintained in different ways. Thus, SPF brands which want to affect the attitude of Swedish men are recommended to accentuate the importance of SPF in regard to skin protection, as well as to show the consequences of lack of SPF use and, through rational arguments, show the value of using SPF. It is also recommended to ensure that the advertisement catches, as well as maintains, the attention and interest of the Swedish men, and is adapted to Swedish men as well as the situation. Since this is possible to accomplish through different methods, further research is recommended to reach sufficient insight into in which way this is done most appropriately. 

Purpose: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of a novel deep learning attenuation correction software (DLACS) for myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) using a cadmium-zinc-telluride (CZT) cardio dedicated camera with invasive coronary angiography (ICA) correlation for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) in a high-risk population.

Methods: Retrospective study of 300 patients (196 males [65%], mean age 68 years) from September 2014 to October 2019 undergoing MPI, followed by ICA and evaluated by means of quantitative angiography software, within six months after the MPI. The mean pre-test probability score for coronary disease according to the European Society of Cardiology criteria was 37% for the whole cohort. The MPI was performed in a dedicated CZT cardio camera (D-SPECT Spectrum Dynamics) with a two-day protocol, according to the European Association of Nuclear Medicine guidelines. MPI was retrospectively evaluated with and without the DLACS.

Results: The overall diagnostic accuracy of MPI without DLACS to identify patients with any obstructive CAD at ICA was 87%, sensitivity 94%, specificity 57%, Positive Predictive Value 91% and Negative Predictive Value 64%. Using DLACS the overall diagnostic accuracy was 90%, sensitivity 91%, specificity 86%, Positive Predictive Value 97% and Negative Predictive Value 66%.

Conclusion: Use of the novel DLACS enhances performance of the MPI using the CZT D-SPECT camera and achieves improved results, especially avoiding artefacts and reducing the number of false positive results.

This study explores how a digital adjudication support tool affects mental workload in the MUNI-KASS tactical board game and how the digital tool's interface can be improved. The game is used to investigate unmanned and autonomous systems' impact on command and control in a maritime setting. A distributed cognition approach was taken to analyze the game and the adjudicator role. This analysis identified the adjudicator as an active agent with substantial influence over how MUNI-KASS is played and not a mechanistic rule enforcer. The digital tool functioned as a cognitive artifact that helped externalize rule and game mechanic logic. A combined hierarchical task analysis and cognitive load analysis identified tasks with high intrinsic load. Mental workload was measured with NASA-TLX for manual and digitally assisted adjudication. 

The digital tool was designed to automate tasks involving sensors, unit positions, and combat outcomes. This approach was validated as these tasks were identified as having the highest intrinsic load. The NASA-TLX showed an overall decrease in mental workload when adjudicators used the tool, especially for these tasks.

To evaluate the interface of the digital tool, participatory design workshops informed the design process together with an application of Mayer's cognitive theory of multimedia learning principles. The design process identified four primary principles to include in the interface design: Coherence, spatial contiguity, segmenting, and signaling. This study provides a structured evaluation of adjudicator workload and proposes iterative and theory-driven design recommendations for digital support tools. It provides a prototype for the user interface of the digital tool as well as a discussion on how digital aids strengthen the quality of wargames and why they may become a mandatory part of future wargaming.

Most systems in the physical world are spatio-temporal in nature. The clouds move over our heads, vehicles travel on the roads and electricity is transmitted through vast spatial networks. Machine learning offers many opportunities to understand and forecast the evolution of these systems by making use of large amounts of collected data. However, building useful models of such systems requires taking both spatial and temporal correlations into account. We can not accurately forecast the weather in Linköping without knowing if there is hot air blowing in from the south. Similarly, we can not predict if a vehicle is about to make a left turn without knowing its position and velocity relative to other vehicles on the road. This thesis proposes a set of methods for accurately capturing such spatio-temporal dependencies in machine learning models. 

At the core of the thesis is the idea of using graphs as a way to represent the spatial relationships in spatio-temporal systems. Graphs offer a highly flexible framework for this purpose, in particular for situations where observation locations do not lie on a regular spatial grid. Throughout the thesis, spatial graphs are constructed by letting nodes correspond to spatial locations and edges the relationships between them. These graphs are then used to construct different machine learning models, including graph neural networks and probabilistic graphical models. Combining such graph-based components with machine learning methods for time series modeling then allows for capturing the full spatio-temporal structure of the data. 

The main contribution of the thesis lies in exploring a number of methods using graph-based modeling for spatio-temporal data. This includes extending temporal graph neural networks to handle data observed irregularly over time. Temporal graph neural networks are also used to develop a model for vehicle trajectory forecasting, where the edges of the graph correspond to interactions between traffic agents. The thesis additionally includes work on Bayesian modeling, where a connection between Gaussian Markov random fields and graph neural networks allows for building scalable probabilistic models for data defined using graphs. 

A motivation for the methods developed in this thesis is the increasing use of machine learning in earth science. Capturing relevant spatio-temporal relationships is central for building useful models of the earth system. The thesis includes numerous experiments making use of weather and climate data, as well as application-driven work specifically targeting weather forecasting. Recent years have seen rapid progress in using machine learning models for weather forecasting, and the thesis makes multiple contributions in this direction. A probabilistic weather forecasting model is developed by combining graph-based methods with a latent variable formulation. Lastly, machine learning limited area models are also explored, where graph neural networks are used for regional weather forecasting.   

Background/objectives: Improved global data allow for a new understanding of what impact the food we produce, eat and dispose of has on the environment, human health and Nature's resources. The overall goal is to guide decision-makers and individuals by providing in-depth knowledge about the effects of their dietary preferences on human and environmental health.

Methods: The method is to investigate ways to reduce environmental degradation and to secure healthy food supplies in an urbanizing world, and to quantify the options.

Results: Reviewed articles show that by eating less meat-based food and more plant-based and soilless food, as well as reducing food waste and recycling urban-disposed nutrients as fertilizers, we could reduce agriculture's land requirement by 50% to 70% while still securing a healthy food supply. Less land under cultivation and pasture would reduce global emissions to air and water to a similar extent, and allow Nature to reclaim freed areas in order to catch more carbon and rejuvenate biodiversity. Thus, we could avoid further environmental degradation such as the current clearing of new fields needed under a business-as-usual regime. Presently, some 17 million people die each year due to poor diets, which is more than double the 7 million deaths since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. A return to more plant-based diets with unchanged intake of proteins but less calories, sugar, salt and fat combined with less red meat and ultra-processed food would reduce foremost non-communicable diseases by up to 20% and prolong life. The article suggests that the international focus has gradually turned to the food sector's big contribution to climate change, biodiversity loss and harmful chemicals as well as to poor human health. It argues that this century's rapid population growth and urbanization give urban residents a pivotal role in food's impact on agricultural areas, which today cover half of the globe's inhabitable areas. Their food demand, rather than the activities of farmers, fishermen or loggers, will guide remedial measures to be taken by individuals, industry and the public sector. A tool to calculate the potential environmental footprints of individual or societal measures is presented.

Conclusions: Measures to make the agrifood sector more sustainable are still pending full recognition in international fora such as the UN COP Summits. Smart cities fitted with infrastructures to recycle macro- and micro-nutrients and organic matter have the potential to ameliorate human-induced impacts such as emissions to air and water bodies, crossing planetary boundaries, and polluting extraction of N (nitrogen), P (phosphorus) and K (potassium). Rapid results are within reach since dietary change and the turn-around time of nutrients in food is short compared to decades or centuries for recycled materials in cars or buildings.

This study evaluates the performance of Starlink satellite internet service under conditions of obstruction and motion. With the increasing reliance on stable and high speed internet connectivity for various applications, understanding the limitations and capabilities of emerging technologies like Starlink is critical. This research aims to provide insights into how obstructions as well as the movement of the Starlink dish, affect the overall performance and reliability of the Starlink network. By conducting experiments using a Starlink kit, we assess the performance of Starlink under different conditions: without obstruction, with obstruction, and in motion. The tests were carried out by setting up the Starlink equipment in various locations and also by moving it using a trolley to simulate motion. We utilized tools such as iPerf3 and Wireshark to capture and analyze network performance data, focusing on metrics like bandwidth and retransmissions. The results indicate that obstructions significantly impact Starlink’s performance, causing severe throughput fluctuations, increased TCP retransmissions and a different pattern in the distribution of these retransmissions. In motion, Starlink experiences throughput drops that recover over time, though with slightly reduced overall performance compared to the baseline. The study suggests that obstruction and motion introduce considerable variability in connection stability. Future work should explore extended test durations, higher motion speeds, and varied locations to comprehensively evaluate Starlink’s performance under different conditions.

Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is highly prevalent and debilitating disorder. Treatments exist but are not accessible and/or helpful for all patients, indicating a need for accessible treatment alternatives. The aim of the present trial was to evaluate internet-delivered psychodynamic therapy (IPDT) with and without therapist guidance, compared to a waitlist control condition, in the treatment of adults with SAD. In this randomized, clinical trial, we tested whether IPDT was superior to a waitlist control, and whether IPDT with therapeutic guidance was superior to unguided IPDT. Participants were recruited nationwide in Sweden. Eligible participants were ≥ 18 years old and scoring ≥ 60 on the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale self-report (LSAS-SR) whilst not fulfilling any of the exclusion criteria. Included participants were randomly assigned to IPDT with guidance (n = 60), IPDT without guidance (n = 61), or waitlist (n = 60). The IPDT intervention comprised eight self-help modules based on affect-focused dynamic therapy, delivered over 8 weeks on a secure online platform. The primary outcome was SAD symptoms severity measured weekly by the LSAS-SR. Primary analyses were calculated on an intention-to-treat sample including all participants randomly assigned. Secondary outcomes were depressive symptoms, generalized anxiety, quality of life, emotion regulation and defensive functioning. At post-treatment, both active treatments were superior to the waitlist condition with guided treatment exhibiting larger between group effects than unguided treatment (d = 1.07 95% CI [0.72, 1.43], p < .001 and d = 0.61, 95% CI [0.25, 0.98], p = .0018) on the LSAS-SR respectively. Guided IPDT lead to larger improvements than unguided IPDT (d = 0.46, 95% CI [0.11, 0.80], p < .01). At post-treatment, guided IPDT was superior to waitlist on all secondary outcome measures. Unguided IPDT was superior to waitlist on depressive symptoms and general anxiety, but not on emotion regulation, self-compassion or quality of life. Guided IPDT was superior to unguided PDT on depressive symptoms, with a trend towards superiority on a measure of generalized anxiety. At six and twelve month follow-up there were no significant differences between guided and unguided IPDT. In conclusion, IPDT shows promising effects in the treatment of SAD, with larger benefits from guided IPDT compared to non-guided, at least at post-treatment. This finding increases the range of accessible and effective treatment alternatives for adults suffering from SAD. The study was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials (NCT05015166).

This thesis investigates the potential of GPT-4o, a large language model, in converting unstructured postal address data into ISO 20022-compliant structured formats. ISO 20022 is a globally recognized standard crucial for financial messaging interoperability and security. The research explores the challenges of standardizing diverse, unstructured postal address formats and evaluates GPT-4o's performance using metrics like precision, recall, and F1-score. Two datasets were created using DeepParse address data, one dataset for evaluating initial performance and identifying problems to further refine the prompt. The other dataset was used together with the refined prompt for final evaluation. The findings reveal that GPT-4o demonstrates high accuracy in structuring address data, achieving an average F1-score of over 96%. However, challenges remain in handling numerical elements and country-specific formats. Refinements in prompts and country-specific examples show promise for improving accuracy. This study highlights GPT-4o's potential for address parsing, offering a potential solution for organizations transitioning to ISO 20022 compliance. Future work will focus on refining datasets for more accurate results and exploring tailored prompts to enhance performance further.

Climate change is an urgent global problem, where companies have a big responsibility to mitigate their emissions and attain sustainability. The concrete industry is especially relevant in this context, as the building and real estate industry accounts for a significant climate impact and the concrete production is a large source of carbon emissions. At the same time, the industry finds itself in an economically pressured situation, which poses specific challenges for their sustainability work. Cooperation in the supply chain has proven to be a critical factor to enable green innovation and effective reduction of climate impact, as it facilitates sharing of resources and knowledge. Meanwhile, this work is both complex and resource-intensive, which makes it important to understand the mechanisms that drive industry collaboration and the types of environmental benefits such collaboration can generate, based on the identified challenges in the concrete indu This study investigates just that by carrying out a qualitative investigation of the concrete industry. Previous research calls for investigations into the impact of relational aspects The theoretical framework places the study in a context of network theory, links, knowledge sharing and cooperation, which is combined with theory on sustainability initiatives within the supply chain and socalled green competencies. Together, the framework constitutes a context where the qualitative investigation can answer the research questions with an interpretative approach.  The study finds that cooperation within the concrete industry is driven by trust and shared goals, the individual plays a big role in knowledge sharing where a driving force is the confidence ability. Cooperation pursuit of relational fulfillment, not only to gain economic benefits, which confirms the foundational premise of network theory that actors' actions cannot be separated from their social relationships. It also emerges that a central network position, which in itself entails significant responsibility and opportunities, largely depends on the individual s absorptive capacity to leverage the position. The results also clearly indicate that strong relationships play a crucial role in the operational aspect of the industrys climate efforts. The analysis and discussion show that collaboration and relationship building within the concrete industry is driven by four key mechanisms, (1) trust and shared goals, (2) relational fulfillment, (3) the individual s absorptive capacity and (4) the  confidence in its own ability.  Further, it is shown that three types of environmental benefits can be generated by collaboration within the concrete industry based on the identified challenges in the industrys climate efforts. The challenges and their respective environmental benefit are:

• Customer's willingness to buy --> Increased customer willingness to use climate-improved concrete. 
• Influence over clients --> Strengthened client influence to promote greater adoption of climate-improves concrete. 
• Balance between climate and profitability --> Balancing the trade-off between climate goals and profitability. 

In summary, this study shows that collaborations within the concrete industry, through strong relationships, shared goals, and effective knowledge sharing, can generate significant environmental benefits.

Deeptech companies play a central role in the technological and societal development of the future, while simultaneously facing unique challenges that distinguish them from other types of startups. Long development cycles, high capital requirements, and uncertainty regarding the structure of the business model make their growth journey particularly complex. This report aims to deepen the understanding of how business models look and evolve within deeptech companies during different growth phases. Based on an identified research gap, the study aims to investigate growth phases in deeptech companies and categorize activities that consti- tute the business model in each respective phase. For this purpose, a data structure based on Amit & Zott’s WHWW dimensions, what, how, who, and why, is used to capture the logic and dynamics of the business model rather than just its structural setup. The material is based on a combination of literature review and empirical data collected through semi-structured interviews with individuals active in deeptech companies. After eleven interviews, the report, through an abductive analysis using the Gioia method, identified four distinct growth phases: 1a–the preparation phase, 1b–the build-up phase, 2–the market penetration phase, and 3–the transformation phase. 

Each phase involves work with specific activities and changes in the business model’s structure and focus. 1a–The preparation phase concerns validating technology and market, attracting grant funding, and building an initial core team. In the 1b–build-up phase, the focus shifts toward capital acquisition, market positioning, and scalability. A key research contribution is the division of the early growth phase into two distinct sub-phases: 1a–the preparation phase and 1b–the build-up phase. In the 1a–preparation phase, the focus is on reducing uncertainty around technology and market through analyses and collaborations with universities, incubators, and public actors. The activities are mainly led by the founder and often take place in research- oriented environments. In the 1b–build-up phase, the company has been formalized and is moving toward the market. The focus shifts to raising capital, growing the team, acquiring customers, and generating initial revenue. Activities are more commercially oriented and involve external actors such as investors, partners, and customers. The division of this phase provides a more nuanced view compared to previous literature, which has treated this phase as a homogeneous unit. The division was made because empirical data clearly shows that the purpose, actors, and activities differ between the two parts. This division enables a more precise understanding of the challenges and needs that deeptech companies face in their very earliest stages of development. It also illustrates how the transition from research to market occurs gradually and requires shifting competencies, resources, and strategies over time. The 2–market penetration phase is characterized by product adaptation together with customers and extended partnerships, while the 3–transformation phase occurs once the company has reached financial stability. The transformation phase entails organizational restructuring and strategic pivoting to ensure continued survival and future growth, which means the company is no longer considered a startup, and this is where the report’s focus ends. Unlike existing literature, which outlines five phases, the authors of this report, based on empirical findings, propose that the final two phases can be merged into one, as this more accurately reflects when in time the activities should be carried out. Thus, the authors present four growth phases, where the first phase begins earlier than suggested by existing literature. 

Background: The Minimal Important Difference (MID) and Smallest Detectable Change (SDC) are methods used to identify the smallest changes in Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) that are of relevance to the patients. Data on these parameters is, however, limited for elbow conditions including traumatic injuries. The aim of this study was, therefore, to estimate the MID and SDC for three commonly used PROMs after elbow trauma; the Oxford Elbow Score (OES), Quick Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand (QuickDASH) and Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE).

Methods: One hundred patients, 67 females, aged ≥18 years (mean age 52.4 years (standard deviation, 18.2)), who had sustained a fracture, tendon rupture or dislocation affecting the elbow, completed the OES, QuickDASH, and SANE 3-5 months after injury (T1) and again after a minimum of 3 weeks (T2). A transition item with a 7-level scale, enquiring about the situation with the elbow, was also completed at T1 and T2. The difference in scores between T1 and T2 was calculated (change scores). The MID was assessed using the mean change method; a response of "slightly better" or "slightly worse" was defined as being a clinically significant change. The SDC was estimated by calculating the standard error of measurement based on 2 administrations (1- to 3-week interval) of PROMs in a separate group of patients who had sustained an elbow injury 1- 2 years previously.

Results: The most common diagnosis was fracture of the proximal radius (n = 33). Eighteen patients responded slightly better and 5 slightly worse on the transition item and had mean change scores of 7.9 (9.3) for the OES and -7.4 (11.4) for the QuickDASH. Assessment of SDC was based on 56 patients having sustained an elbow injury between September 2019 and October 2020. The SDC was: 12.1 for the OES, 11.4 for the QuickDASH, and 1.94 for the SANE.

Conclusion: Change scores need to exceed 12.1 points for the OES, 11.4 points for the QuickDASH, and 1.94 points for the SANE in order to measure change with clinical relevance and not due to measurement errors.

Seaweed is a marine-based organism that is often found along coastlines - wet, slippery, and overlooked. Yet beneath its unassuming exterior lies significant potential as a sustainable resource. Rich in nutrients and with generally low requirements for cultivation, seaweed offers great promise in supporting food security, bioremediation, and the transition to a more circular bio-economy. Despite its benefits, the seaweed industry in Sweden remains underdeveloped, with limited infrastructure and high costs stopping its growth. 

The study's research area is to explore the integration of seaweed-based processes into Sweden's existing marine-based sectors, with particular focus on the Sotenäs Symbiotic Network (SSN) - an industrial symbiosis (IS) cluster on the West Coast of Sweden. The case of Sotenäs is interesting due to its established infrastructure and focus on marine-based synergies, offering a unique place for seaweed to be integrated. The integration of seaweed is investigated through so-called symbiosis opportunities, specific techniques, or synergies that focus on incorporating seaweed or improving the cost-effectiveness of seaweed-based processes. 

To answer the purpose of the study, a pre-study was conducted to identify symbiosis opportunities, supported by a literature overview providing theoretical frameworks, as well as qualitative interview study serving as the primary data collection method. Respondents to the interview study include seaweed producers, local industrial actors, and researchers focused on seaweed. Three analytical frameworks were applied to address the research questions: SWOT analysis to identify general barriers and opportunities; IS emergence theory to trace an eventual development of the symbioses; and IS role theory to understand necessary collaborative functions. 

The result of the interview study highlights several promising symbiosis opportunities for the local context including "residual heat in post-harvest processes", "shared facilities & services" and "cultivation in process water". The industry is in its early stages of development, so it is expected that the processes are largely considered to be in a budding stage - dependent on existing symbiotic efforts and highly dependent on local infrastructure and cooperation to emerge. In particular, residual heat symbiosis is shown to be contextually well suited to the Sotenäs context due to the collocation of marine and industrial actors, available heat, and supportive infrastructure. Shared facilities -though reliant on existing collaboration - are noted for their potential to scale beyond Sotenäs and be applied in other symbiosis networks.

Despite their feasibility, progress is hindered by barriers such as high operational costs, lack of a market, and absence of committed "champions" - individuals who engage and drive symbiosis efforts forward - thereby making it a slow progress for all associated symbiosis opportunities. Alongside these champions, specialized competence and increased institutional support must emerge to help these symbiosis opportunities mature. 

The findings emphasize that while physical and infrastructure prerequisites may exist in Sotenäs, social and institutional drivers for seaweed-based processes are not yet there. Meanwhile, the research highlights potential for cost reduction through cross-sectoral collaboration. By adopting an IS perspective, the study lays a basis for reducing the costs of seaweed-based processes, thus enhancing their potential for a wider, more sustainable use. 

Objective: Incisional negative pressure wound therapy (iNPWT) applied over all incisions after lower extremity bypass in the prevention of surgical site infections (SSIs) is unclear. The primary and secondary aims of this study were to investigate if prophylactic iNPWT after the elective lower extremity bypass prevents SSI and other surgical wound complications.

Methods: This was a multicenter, parallel, randomized controlled trial. Patients undergoing elective lower extremity bypass in 3 hospitals were randomized to either iNPWT or standard dressings. SSIs or other wound complications were assessed within the first 90 days by wound care professionals blinded to the randomized result. The validated Additional treatment, Serous discharge, Erythema, Purulent exudate, Separation of deep tissues, Isolation of bacteria, and Stay (ASEPSIS) score was used to objectively assess the wounds. ASEPSIS score ≥21 is defined as an SSI. Unilateral and bilateral groups were analyzed with the Fisher exact test and the McNemar test, respectively.

Results: In the unilateral group (n = 100), the incidence of SSI in the iNPWT group was 34.9% (15/43), compared with 40.3% (23/57) in the control group, according to the ASEPSIS score (P = .678). In the bilateral group (n = 7), the SSI rate was 14.3% (1/7) in the iNPWT group compared with 14.3% (1/7) in the control group (P = 1.00). In the unilateral group, there was a higher wound dehiscence rate in the control group (43.9%) compared with the iNPWT group (23.3%) (P = .0366). No serious iNPWT-related adverse events were recorded.

Conclusions: There was no reduction of SSI rates in leg incisions with iNPWT compared with standard dressings in patients undergoing elective lower extremity bypass, whereas iNPWT reduced the incidence of wound dehiscence.

The rise of e-commerce and growing sustainability challenges have led to an increased need for sustainable and smart delivery solutions. One delivery method that has rapidly gained popularity is parcel lockers. This self-service option has become attractive due to its unrestricted pickup times and positive environmental impact. The aim of this study is to examine where parcel lockers should be placed to meet demand and maximize accessibility for the city’s population. The study focuses on the city centre of Örebro, which is considered representative of a medium-sized Swedish city. Variables such as population density, age, leisure activity and employment status have been analysed to estimate where demand is highest. To gain insights into sustainable parcel locker placement, a literature review was conducted using keywords related to parcel locker use and GIS analysis. Additionally, an interview was held with the head of distribution at PostNord in Örebro to better understand the current placement strategy. A GIS-based analysis was then performed to identify the most suitable locations for parcel lockers. An estimated demand model was developed to calculate the expected number of parcels ordered by individuals based on demographic variables. Finally, a location-allocation analysis was conducted using ArcGIS Pro to identify the locations that resulted in the highest coverage. The GIS analysis resulted in a new proposed placement that increased coverage by approximately 12%. In this scenario 21 parcel lockers retained their current locations, while 16 were relocated. The analysis also indicates that expanding the number of parcel lockers could further improve coverage. Based on this study the conclusions are that it is beneficial to place parcel lockers in areas with a high population density. However, it can also be beneficial to place them in areas where people circulate and commercial areas, near highly populated areas. Hence, this can increase sustainability.

Objectives: To describe acute and long COVID-19 symptoms among older elderly Swedes and to find predictive factors for the development symptoms associated with acute and long COVID.

Material and methods: A questionnaire about general and oral health was mailed to all 80-year-olds (born 1942, n = 6299) and 90-year-olds (born 1932, n = 1904) in two Swedish counties. Participants reporting COVID-19 were asked to complete an additional questionnaire.

Results: Overall response rate was 66 % (n = 5375). Affirmative responses to having been sick/tested positive for COVID-19 were reported by 577 persons. Response rate to the COVID-19 questionnaire was 49 %. The majority (88 %) reported some general symptoms during the acute stage while 44 % reported orofacial symptom/s. Reporting of any form of long-COVID general symptoms was 37 and 35 % for orofacial symptoms. Predictive factors for contracting COVID-19 (based on self-report from 2017) were living in elderly housing/senior care facility (OR 1.6, CI 1.0-2.3), large number (>10) of weekly social contacts (OR 1.5, CI 1.3-1.9), being married (OR 1.4, CI 1.1-1.7) and high school/university education (OR 1.3 CI 1.1-1-6). The highest odds ratio for general symptoms of long-COVID were a single complete denture (OR 5.0, CI 2.0-12.3), reporting bad breath (OR 3.7, CI 1.9-7.2) and daytime dry mouth (OR 2.2, CI 1.1-4.2). Regarding long-COVID orofacial symptoms, the highest risk factors were bad breath (OR 3.8, CI 1.9-7.5) and a single complete denture in one jaw (OR 3.4, CI 1.2-9.8).

Conclusion: Long-COVID general and orofacial symptoms are common among older elderly COVID-19 survivors CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Oral microorganisms may be responsible for development of long-COVID symptoms. Health personnel managing COVID-19 patients should carefully examine dental status, especially in those having acrylic-based removable dentures, for oral signs and symptoms. If found, rigorous oral hygiene procedures should be carried out including cleaning/disinfection of the denture.

Although distinctions between the study of persons, the study of populations, and the study of mechanisms are helpful for illuminating mismatches between research assumptions, problems, and methods, it may be difficult to construe these as entirely discrete branches of psychological science. I suggest that it is more appropriate to view person-levelness (or person-sensitivity) as an ideal we should actively aspire toward, within the constraints placed by other goals such as generalizability and feasibility, when pursuing knowledge about indi-viduals. It is an ideal that we can never hope to perfectly realize—the degree to which it is realized will always be a matter of degree, and there is therefore no clear line of demarcation between the person level and other branches of psychology. This ideal can nonetheless stimulate more person-sensitive conceptualizations, measurements, and analyses.

Randomized placebo-controlled cardiovascular outcomes trials of pharmacological blood pressure lowering were performed already inthe1960s, andthescientificevidencesupporting the use of antihypertensive drugs as a cornerstone for cardiovascular protection has grown ever since.1 Today, 4 classes of antihypertensive drugs are considered the most rational drugs of choice because of their proven ability to reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events: inhibitors of the reninangiotensin system (angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers), calcium channel blockers, thiazides and related diuretics, and beta blockers. Emerging drug classes that appear on the horizon include selective aldosterone synthase inhibitors, dual blockers of endothelin hypertension were randomized to treatment with either the angiotensin receptor blocker olmesartan (20 mgdaily) orto1of2doses(240or480mgdaily)of the novel angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitor sacubitril/allisartan. Patients were included based on their systolic office blood pressure, which was required to be 150 to 179 mm Hg at study initiation, following a wash-out period during which participants on prior antihypertensive therapy (approximately 90% of the study cohort) terminated their treatment. After 12 weeks of treatment, the baseline-adjusted changes in office systolic blood pressure (which was the primary outcome) was 23 mmHgwitholmesartan 20 mg daily, 25 mm Hg receptorsAandB,andinjectableblockersofhepatic angiotensinogen mRNA synthesis.2

The importance of virtual care has been highlighted by the recent pandemic which emphasized the need for effectively providing care remotely. In addition, the development of a range of emerging technologies to support virtual care has accelerated this trend. Technologies may vary in complexity from low (e.g., technologies that can be used easily by patients) to high (e.g., use of sophisticated software and hardware to support virtual care). In this article virtual care is first defined, followed by a discussion of a range of virtual care technologies. A framework is then described that can be used to consider and reason about virtual care in terms of both technology complexity as well as patient complexity. Examples of virtual care that can be considered using the framework are provided. It is argued that achieving an appropriate fit between the level of complexity of the technology involved and patient context will lead to improved care and ultimately precision virtual care. Implications of the approach presented are explored.

This thesis aims to investigate the possibility and solutions for bridging SQL dialectdifferences in the programming platform Storm. Storm currently supports four databasemanagement systems through its SQL library: PostgreSQL, MariaDB, MySQL andSQLite. The dialect differences addressed in this work consider both syntactic variationsand instances where certain functionality is supported by some database managementsystem but absent from others. The focus was on the SQL language extension within theStorm SQL library, which means inline programming with SQL in Storm. We have madethe RETURNING functionality for the DELETE-, UPDATE-, and INSERT-queriesuniversal for all database management systems. Furthermore, the INSERT-query can bewritten both with and without the keyword ”INTO”. These additions have also beenmeasured in terms of time performance to see the trade-offs of making functionalityand syntactic variations universal. The results of the performance tests show clearperformance degradations for universal functionality implementations in comparison toits native counterpart for PostgreSQL and MariaDB, while being minor for SQLite. Weconclude that the syntactic variations did not have any notable performance differences.The contribution of this thesis is improved flexibility for the SQL language extension inStorm and a method for testing performance of the additions, inspired by other papers.This thesis contributes to a framework that could be used

This thesis explores how sustainability metrics, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), can be further integrated into commercial property valuation in the Swedish market. It aims to identify key drivers and barriers to this integration, using the concepts of absorptive capacity and policy network theory. The thesis is guided by three research questions: (1) How can ESG metrics be further integrated into commercial property valuation? (2) To what extent does the absorptive capacity of the valuation profession facilitate or hinder this integration? (3) What perspectives and arguments are put forward by different stakeholders regarding ESG integration? To answer these questions, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a range of stakeholders in the Swedish real estate sector. A qualitative thematic analysis was carried out, supported by a review of previous literature and theoretical insights.

The findings show that while ESG awareness is increasing, integration into valuation remains limited. Key drivers include a growing understanding of ESG’s contribution to long-term asset value and alignment with investor and regulatory expectations. However, barriers such as the lack of standardized valuation methods, insufficient empirical evidence, especially for social and governance aspects, and varying competence levels hinder progress. Earlier research has noted the relevance of ESG but also gaps between sustainability goals and valuation practice. This thesis confirms those gaps and highlights differing stakeholder views on whether ESG should be integrated without stronger market-based evidence. It also reflects on potential unintended consequences, such as the risk of reinforcing gentrification and social exclusion, highlighting the need for ethical consideration alongside methodological development. This thesis concludes that enhanced absorptive capacity through education, shared standards, and stakeholder collaboration is essential. Valuation institutions are unlikely to lead change but may follow market developments. Some stakeholders express openness to adapting practices in response to long-term value creation from sustainable assets, while some are more skeptical.

The increasing demands for mobility, scalability, and security in industrial networks challenge the limitations of traditional Virtual Private LAN Services (VPLS), which rely on static MAC-based forwarding. This thesis explores the possibility to integrate the Host Identity Protocol (HIP) with Software-Defined Networking (SDN) to enable dynamic identity-based routing in SDN-controlled VPLS environments. A prototype controller was implemented using Ryu and evaluated in a simulated network based on real-world topologies. Two routing policies—shortest path and least hop—were compared using latency and hop count as performance metrics. Results show that dynamic routing based on Host Identity Tags (HITs) enables per-connection policy selection, allowing for trade-offs between latency and privacy. While shortest path routing offered better performance, least hop routing reduced exposure to intermediary nodes, enhancing privacy. The findings suggest that identity-based routing in SDN-controlled VPLS can offer flexible, context-aware routing decisions suitable for industrial applications requiring both security and efficiency.

Background: People with HIV (PWH) have a high burden of coronary plaques; however, the comparison to people without known HIV (PwoH) needs clarification.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine coronary plaque burden/phenotype in PWH vs PwoH.

Methods: Nonstatin using participants from 3 contemporary populations without known coronary plaques with coronary CT were compared: the REPRIEVE (Randomized Trial to Prevent Vascular Events in HIV) studying PWH without cardiovascular symptoms at low-to-moderate risk (n = 755); the SCAPIS (Swedish Cardiopulmonary Bioimage Study) of asymptomatic community PwoH at low-to-intermediate cardiovascular risk (n = 23,558); and the PROMISE (Prospective Multicenter Imaging Study for Evaluation of Chest Pain) of stable chest pain PwoH (n = 2,291). The coronary plaque prevalence on coronary CT was compared, and comparisons were stratified by 10-year atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk, age, and coronary artery calcium (CAC) presence.

Results: Compared to SCAPIS and PROMISE PwoH, REPRIEVE PWH were younger (50.8 ± 5.8 vs 57.3 ± 4.3 and 60.0 ± 8.0 years; P < 0.001) and had lower ASCVD risk (5.0% ± 3.2% vs 6.0% ± 5.3% and 13.5% ± 11.0%; P < 0.001). More PWH had plaque compared to the asymptomatic cohort (48.5% vs 40.3%; P < 0.001). When stratified by ASCVD risk, PWH had more plaque compared to SCAPIS and a similar prevalence of plaque compared to PROMISE. CAC = 0 was more prevalent in PWH (REPRIEVE 65.2%; SCAPIS 61.6%; PROMISE 49.6%); among CAC = 0, plaque was more prevalent in PWH compared to the PwoH cohorts (REPRIEVE 20.8%; SCAPIS 5.4%; PROMISE 12.3%, P < 0.001).

Conclusions: Asymptomatic PWH in REPRIEVE had more plaque than asymptomatic PwoH in SCAPIS but had similar prevalence to a higher-risk stable chest pain cohort in PROMISE. In PWH, CAC = 0 does not reliably exclude plaque.

Purpose: To explore whether previous participation in clinical studies increases adherence to management guidelines in acute uncomplicated diverticulitis (AUD).

Methods: This retrospective cohort study was designed to give a SNAPSHOT of the management of AUD at six hospitals, three of which had participated in the AVOD trial comparing antibiotic versus non-antibiotic treatment of AUD. Patients with AUD were included from March 2019 through June 2020 and followed for 90 days. The primary outcome was treatment of AUD categorised by antibiotic treatment and inpatient or outpatient management compared between AVOD and non-AVOD hospitals. Descriptive statistics were compiled, and differences between hospitals were assessed with Pearson's chi-squared test.

Results: The cohort included 449 patients with AUD of which 63% were women and the median age was 63 (IQR: 52-73) years. Patient characteristics were comparable across the hospitals. Antibiotics were administered to 84 (19%) patients and 113 (25%) patients were managed as inpatients. Management varied significantly between AVOD and non-AVOD hospitals. The mean proportion of patients treated with antibiotics was 7% at AVOD hospitals compared to 38% at non-AVOD hospitals (p < 0.001). The mean proportion of in-hospital management was 18% at AVOD hospitals versus 38% at non-AVOD hospitals (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Most patients with AUD were managed according to current guidelines. However, the management varies between hospitals and previous participation in clinical studies may increase knowledge of and adherence to guidelines.

Religious communities, which have historically played a strong role in both religious life and social work, seem to once again be a place where young people seek, not only spiritual guidance, but also community and security. The purpose of this study is to look in to how Christian churches/communities at a local level in Linköping, Sweden work with youth in relation to mental illness and psychological well-being. By interviewing representatives from these Christian churches, the study aims to shed light on their views on mental health, the activities or support measures they offer young people, and how these efforts relate to their religious and theological perspectives. Through a qualitative research design, semi-structured interviews were conducted with representatives from four different Christian denominations: Svenska kyrkan, Pingstkyrkan, Equmeniakyrkan och Ryttargårdskyrkan (EFK). The results show that several congregations experience an increased interest among young people in existential questions and the role of faith in difficult times. Many congregations offer support through relationships, conversation, and community activities, although their work is not always described as mental health support in a professional sense. The study also highlights a need for more education and competence in this area among those who work with youth in church settings. Overall, the study contributes to a deeper understanding of the role of religion and faith-based communities in supporting young people's mental health in today's society.

Background: Currently, there is a paucity of guidelines relating to displays used for digital pathology making procurement decisions, and optimal display configuration, challenging. Experience suggests pathologists have personal preferences for brightness when using a conventional microscope which we hypothesized could be used as a predictor for display setup. Methods: We conducted an online survey across six NHS hospitals, totalling 108 practicing pathologists, to capture brightness adjustment habits on both microscopes and displays. A convenience subsample of respondents was then invited to take part in a practical task to determine microscope brightness anddisplay luminancepreferences in thenormalworkingenvironment.Anoveladaptationfor alightmeter was developed to directly measure the light output from the microscope eyepiece. Results: The survey (response rate 59% n=64)indicates81%ofrespondentsadjustthebrightnessontheirmicroscope. In comparison, only 11% report adjusting their digital display. Display adjustments were more likely to be for visual comfort and ambient light compensation rather than for tissue factors, common for microscope adjustments. Part of this discrepancy relates to lack of knowledge of how to adjust displays and lack of guidance on whether this is safe; But, 66% felt that the ability to adjust the light on the display was important. Twenty consultants took part in the practical brightness assessment. Light preferences on the microscope showed no correlation with display preferences, except where a pathologist has a markedly brighter microscope light preference. All of the preferences in this cohort were for a display luminance of <500 cd/m2, with 90% preferring 350 cd/m2 or less. There was no correlation between these preferences and the ambient lighting in the room. Conclusions: We conclude that microscope preferences can only be used to predict display luminance requirements where the microscope is being used at very high brightness levels. A display capable of a brightness of 500 cd/m2 should be suitable for almost all pathologists with 300 cd/m2 suitable for the majority. Although display luminance is not frequently changed by users, the ability to do so was felt to be important by the majority of respondents. Further workneeds to beundertakento establish the relationship between diagnostic performance, luminance preferences, and ambient lighting levels.

The main purpose of the study is to reveal the positioning of Tove Jansson in Swedish newspapers between 1949–1972. This is done by examining book reviews of Tove Jansson's prose literature, from Trollkarlens hatt (1948) to Lyssnerskan (1972), as well as interviews and Tove Jansson's essay "Den lömska barnboksförfattaren" (1962). The reviews are analysed discoursively and certain words are coded and highlighted as examples of subject positioning of Tove Jansson. Tove Jansson's positioning is then categorized thematically into different personas. The subject positioning of Tove Jansson is then compared to the artistic ideals: genius and bohemian.

Den ökade användningen av AI-teknologier i samhället ställer höga krav på utbildningssektorn att förbereda framtida generationer för att verka i ett sådant samhälle (Linderoth et al., 2024). Nyckelpersoner i denna utveckling är lärare. Lärare behöver kunskap om vad dessa teknologier kan användas till och också när de bör och inte bör användas i undervisning. Den här kritiska och medvetna blicken för AI-verktygens möjligheter och risker behöver introduceras redan under lärarutbildningen, vilket också ställer krav på lärarutbildares AI-litteracitet (Sperling et al., 2024).

Det här projektet har tagit sin utgångspunkt i det högaktuella utvecklingsbehovet att införa AI-litteracitet och AI-didaktik i lärarutbildningen. I såväl projektet som i den här rapporten menar vi i första hand generativ AI, när vi inte explicit uttrycker något annat. Generativ AI definieras som ett slutanvändarverktyg vars tekniska implementering innefattar en generativ modell som baseras på ’deep learning’ (Lee et al., 2025). Typiska exempel på generativ AI är Microsofts Copilot, Open AI’s ChatGPT och Googles Gemini.

AI-litteracitet definieras i rapporten som kunskap om AI (t.ex. språkmodeller och hur dessa fungerar), kunskap om användning av AI (t.ex. promptning, alltså hur man ställer frågor), och socioetisk kompetens, (t.ex. hur AI kan användas på ett ansvarsfullt och etiskt sätt i olika sammanhang) (Long & Magerko, 2020). AI-didaktik handlar om hur och när AI kan användas som ett verktyg för och i undervisning. Frågor om på vilket sätt AI-användande hjälper eller stjälper utveckling av kunskaper och förmågor hos den lärande aktualiseras.

Projektets mål har varit att utveckla designkriterier för hur AI-litteracitet och AI-didaktik kan implementeras i lärarutbildningens kurser, vilket också får implikationer för andra delar av högskolesektorn. Därigenom syftar projektet till att öka lärarutbildares förmåga att förbereda och rusta lärarutbildningens studenter för framtidens arbetsmarknad och skola. Det betyder konkret att vi i projektet, i Linköpings universitets lärarprogram, dels implementerat ett forskningsbaserat innehåll, dels utprövat undervisningsmodeller i inriktningarna förskoleklass och årskurs 1—3, samt årskurs 4—6.

This study explores how the presence of avatars influences decision-making in human-robot interaction and whether who the avatar is representing makes a difference. In a virtual reality setting, participants encountered a robot attempting to cut in line at a supermarket checkout. The robot was presented either without an avatar or with avatars in in four different variations where either a feminine or masculine avatar is shown with a young looking appearance and with an elderly appearance. The aim was to examine whether the appearance of the avatars affected participants’ willingness to let the robot go ahead of them in a queue. Additionally, the participant was under time pressure to increase the cost of compliance.

Although the statistical results were not significant, descriptive data and participant reflections suggest that the presence of a human-like avatar led to more thoughtful decision-making and, in some cases, increased compliance. The elderly avatar seemed to evoke more empathy. Participants often asked for more information about the robot’s situation, such as whether it was in a hurry or carrying many items, highlighting the role of context in shaping responses.

The study also raises ethical questions about the design of persuasive systems, especially in public settings. As artificial intelligence and social robots become more common, designers need to consider how visual cues, and persuasive strategies affect human decision making. This research contributes to a better understanding of how people respond to robots in everyday situations and opens new questions for future studies on human-robot interaction. 

In the face of challenges such as climate change, high rents, and segregation, real estate development plays a central role in addressing these societal problems. The choice of building materials impacts both carbon footprints, rent levels, and the design of buildings for sustainability. To drive progress, Agenda 2030 and the global goals have been formulated as guidelines for sustainable development. The purpose of this study is to highlight sustainable real estate development in Linköping Municipality, particularly how material choices can balance ecological, economic, and social aspects. The study is based on qualitative interviews with Stångåstaden, Bonava, and Sweco, three key players in the municipality's real estate sector. The results show that these actors actively work to reduce environmental impact, choose eco-friendly materials, ensure long-term economic sustainability, and promote social sustainability. At the same time, economic sustainability is highlighted as a particular challenge, as ecological solutions are often costly. Therefore, the work of the three actors is about achieving the greatest possible sustainability within realistic budget constraints. Differences in priorities between the actors are illustrated, which is analyzed with support from stakeholder theory, which forms the theoretical foundation of the thesis. 

Introduction The study investigates how to integrate a BIM model with a logistics system to increase traceability and Circular Economy in the construction industry. The study is carried out with the company AFRY in Gothenburg. The focus of this study is data about different materials and what benefits it can bring to different parts of the construction industry to know what is built into the building to increase the traceability and Circular Economy. Method The method used in this study was a mixed method where the study combined qualitative and quantitative approaches to obtain a more comprehensive picture. The data collection techniques chosen were workshops with key personnel from the project that the work was a part of, semi-structured interviews with respondents from different parts of the construction process, and a scenario analysis testing whether data feedback was possible. Results The empirical study includes 12 interviews, 2 workshops and a scenario analysis. The interviews provide a picture of what the industry looks like today and how to implement the concept of data re-entry. The workshops are held with key people where a more business-like model is developed to bring the concept to life. Finally, the scenario analysis shows how to re-enter data from a logistics system into a BIM model. Analysis The empirical evidence is analysed and contrasted with the collected theory, where a clear connection can be seen between some previous research and the collected theory. The analysis also presents the parts where theory and empirical evidence do not agree. The empirical evidence and theory are analysed according to the four research questions of the study. Discussion The discussion like the analysis pits the different parts against each other in a discursive text where the author's position on the empirical evidence and previous research is included. During this chapter, the purpose of the study, data quality, the ITO dimensions and how long the implementation of the data return may take are discussed. Keywords BIM, Construction industry, Data return, Digital tools, Logistics systems, Implementation

Understanding and modeling the reflectance properties of materials is essential in various fields, for example during the development and evaluation of camouflage materials. An important concept for this purpose is the Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function, BRDF, which describes how light is reflected from a surface as a function of both the incident and viewing angles. While BRDF is typically measured in indoor laboratories, there is significant value in developing methods for outdoor measurements under natural illumination, particularly for studying large or context specific samples. However, this introduces challenges in managing environmental variables.

The aim of this project was to design a first useful methodology for measuring BRDF using the sun as the light source. A theoretical model was proposed to isolate the direct sunlight component by comparing radiometric measurements of both reference and sample materials under sunlit and shaded conditions. Measurements were performed with a high dynamic range camera sensitive to the visible spectrum, mounted onto an adjustable boom to alter the zenith angle. Images of the sample materials and the reference material were captured and the data was then used to calculate the BRDF of the different sample materials. Ingoing and outgoing angles were determined using a solar position algorithm program together with a mechanical angle measurement device on the boom. The results showed strong agreement between outdoor BRDF measurements and indoor laboratory measurements, performed with a 633 nm laser scatterometer, with only minor deviations.

A limitation of the project was the boom that only allowed measurements within a fixed plane, which did not align with the incident plane of the sunlight. As a result, the measurement predominantly captured diffuse reflection, limiting characterization of specular materials. For future work, a drone based system flying in a hemispherical pattern could enable a broader angular sampling, allowing for detailed BRDF mapping of more specular or inhomogeneous materials in three dimensions.

In the field of simulators, there is a trend towards reusable components and tools speeding up development and ideally ensuring reliable ease of use. This thesis studies the API of the Inhumate RTI, a communication infrastructure for distributed real-time systems designed in part to be used in simulators. To study it, a traffic simulator was implemented and its code analysed for complexity metrics. The result is a four-part system allowing arbitrary traffic scenarios to be simulated and viewed freely by a user using either of two visualisation options. Code analysis shows that the Inhumate RTI allows simple data exposure on the consumer side. Results are inconclusive on the producer side, but indicate that it yields higher complexity. More data is needed to make reliable conclusions.

Following the introduction of the new EU directive, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), together with the reporting framework European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), sustainability reporting has become an increasingly central issue for companies within the EU. Despite this, implementation of the new standards is not straightforward. One of the twelve standards perceived as particularly challenging is the standard on resource use and circular economy (CE), referred to as ESRS E5. In this context, it becomes relevant to examine how the manufacturing industry can respond to the reporting requirements of ESRS E5. This thesis maps the opportunities and challenges associated with reporting in accordance with ESRS E5, as well as the implementation of resource-efficient and circular practices within the manufacturing sector. The study also investigates key activities and tools that companies may use for both reporting and implementation of ESRS E5. The work is based on a comprehensive document and literature review, along with eleven qualitative interviews—seven with sustainability managers from major Swedish manufacturing firms and four with subject matter experts.

The results show that reporting according to ESRS E5 can help identify business opportunities and support operational improvements through increased insights, and serve as a valuable basis for strategic and business model development. There is also long-term economic potential, although initial costs may be high and it is challenging to directly attribute financial benefits to the implemented activities. Furthermore, differences in reporting ambition levels are noted, along with uncertainties regarding the definition and measurement of CE. The most common barriers to reporting relate to difficulties in data collection, partly rooted in decentralized organizational structures and broad product portfolios. Facilitating data collection may require the implementation of compatible data systems, internal training, and the standardization of data collection processes. To address the identified challenges and harness the potential benefits, an action plan has been developed focusing on two key areas: mapping the current state and creating an implementation plan for integrating ESRS E5 into company operations. The plan outlines key activities and tools for how ESRS E5 reporting and the implementation of resource-efficient and circular practices can be realized. This thesis contributes insights into how sustainability reporting according to ESRS E5 can be implemented in a way that leverages identified opportunities and addresses perceived challenges.

This thesis investigates how data protection law interacts with democratic freedoms (right to privacy and freedom of expression) by comparing EU and US regulatory systems. The European Union bases its GDPR on rights-based principles that establish privacy as a core fundamental value while the United States maintains a fragmented system that focuses on economic and national security needs.

The research evaluates how different systems either restrict or facilitate digital surveillance practices and personal data exploitation while either protecting or undermining democratic participation and freedom of expression. The study uses liberal democratic theory specifically John Rawls and Jürgen Habermas to establish privacy as an essential structural right which supports civic autonomy and free discourse and political participation.

Methodologically, this thesis uses doctrinal legal analysis together with public expert interviews and case studies of Schrems II, Cambridge Analytica and major Big Tech enforcement actions. The EU's liberal democratic principles are well-designed but their enforcement varies widely which weakens their effectiveness while the U.S. legal system allows commercial and state surveillance practices that violate basic democratic principles.

This thesis advocates for transatlantic cooperation to establish a system which combines strong rights-based protections with enforceable oversight mechanisms. The research provides specific policy suggestions for both jurisdictions before emphasizing the necessity for future studies on algorithmic governance and cross-border data regulation.

This research positions privacy and freedom of expression within democratic frameworks to advance discussions about constitutional rights' ability to survive a datafied power structure evolution.

This qualitative study inquires about how Outdoor Education can be used as a tool to support motivation and well-being of pre-school teachers. Eleven pre-school teachers, five from Sweden and six from Italy, with experience in Outdoor Education, were interviewed about their perspectives and experiences of teaching in the outdoors. Data was analysed using thematic analysis, through the lens of Self-Determination Theory and its three core needs: autonomy, competence and relatedness.

The results of this study show an overall positive contribution of Outdoor Education on teachers’ perceived autonomy, competence and relatedness between teachers and students, teachers and teachers, students and students, and a closer relationship with nature. An interconnection between the well-being of teachers and the well-being of students also emerged, suggesting the need for future investigations about this topic.

However, further research on Outdoor Education and its importance for teachers should be conducted in order to fill the gap that is currently present in the field of Outdoor Education research, especially when it comes to investigate its impact on teachers.