We report on the design, implementation and performance issues of the DRUBIS (Distributed Rhodes University Biometric Identification System) experimentation framework. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) face-recognition approach is used as a case study. DRUBIS is a flexible experimentation framework, distributed over a number of modules that are easily pluggable and swappable, allowing for the easy construction of prototype systems. Web services are the logical means of distributing DRUBIS components and a number of prototype applications have been implemented from this framework. Different popular PCA face-recognition related experiments were used to evaluate our experimentation framework. We extract recognition performance measures from these experiments. In particular, we use the framework for a more indepth study of the suitability of the DFFS (Difference From Face Space) metric as a means for image classification in the area of race and gender determination.

Thermoluminescence characteristics of two subsidiary glow peaks, one below 100°C and the other above 300°C, have been studied for measurements between 30°C and 500°C in α-Al_2_O_3_:C. The thermoluminescence intensity of the lower temperature peak decreased with storage with a half-life of about 150 s. In contrast, the intensity of the higher temperature peak increased with storage towards some maximum. The peak-temperature of each of the secondary glow peaks was essentially constant with dose, whereas that of the main peak decreased with irradiation. The dose response for the three peaks was similar except for sublinear growth in the higher temperature peak at low dose values. These effects are discussed in terms of changes in the concentration of F+ luminescence precursors brought about by competitive electron retrapping at deep electron-traps or hole-traps. This work refines the physics and application of α-Al_2_O_3_:C luminescence in radiation dosimetry.

<p>Although anti-Semitism is a fact of Arab life, most individuals prefer to describe it as political animosity and religious polemic. This explains why my study has only drawn from works on the subject by Western historians – because no Arab historian has even acknowledged that it exists, let alone written about it.</p><p>In this study I compare and analyze the different views my sources have on some matters related to the subject of Jew-hatred among Arabs; these are Zionism, the origins of Arab nationalism, the legendary age of tolerance in Al-andalus (Muslim Spain) and the treatment of Jews in the Quran. In most of my sources I find that:</p><ul><li>For Arabs, Zionism and Jewishness are one and the same thing. <strong></strong></li><li>The influence of Nazi ideals and prejudices on Arab nationalism and the paranoid attitudes of the region’s leaders effectively stymie any chances of reconciliation between the two peoples.  <strong></strong></li><li>Historical evidences show that the much-praised racial harmony of Al-andalus has been exaggerated for political purposes. <strong></strong></li><li>The negative image of Jews in the Quran has been deliberately misinterpreted in order to keep hatred of Jews alive among Arabs today. <strong></strong></li></ul><p>To see just how effective anti-Semitic indoctrination has been on reasonable, educated people, I sent a simple question to my Arab friends around the world asking them to say what they really think of Jews, hoping to get some candid answers.  But to my great disappointment, not one of them replied.</p>

The overall aim of the present thesis was to develop and characterise an age assessment method based on incremental lines in dental cementum using contemporary bovine teeth and teeth from archaeological faunal assemblages. The investigations also included two other age assessment methods: tooth wear pattern and macroscopic dental measurements. The first permanent mandibular molar and lower jaws from 70 contemporary cattle of known age and 170 archaeological molar sets from ten different Swedish archaeological sites were used. The following conclusions were drawn: • The number of incremental lines in the dental cementum varied between different parts of the tooth root as well as within one and the same individual. The results from contemporary cattle of known age showed a strong relationship between age and incremental lines in the cementum of the distal part of the mesial root (R2=65.5%) and the known ages of the animals. • With the “best” model variation in age could be explained to 65.5% (R2) by the number of incremental lines. Thus, the remaining age variation (approximately 35%) could not be explained by these lines. Other factors than must thus be responsible. However, with the exception of calves born the present material did not reveal any such significant relationship. • The results from cattle of known age indicate that the method of assessing age on the basis of cemental incremental lines is more reliable than other methods such as tooth wear or tooth measurements. However, by combining counting incremental lines and one variable assessing tooth dimension (tooth height) a slightly stronger relationship could be obtained (R2=74.5%). The results from age assessment of the medieval and post-Reformation cattle emphasize the importance of supplementing any age estimation of archaeological assemblages based on dental indicators with characteristics for the particular assessment model. Furthermore, conclusions based on age assessment with such models can not be drawn with any more detailed time scale than about 2 years leaving at best only 25% (R2) of factors influencing the dental indicator(s) utilized in the model unexplained. The accuracy of the age assessment required by the particular historical context in which the archaeological remains are found should thus decide what level of accuracy should be chosen.

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I mitt eksamensarbeide på Carl Malmsten Furniture Studies har jeg ønsket å finne ut i hvilken grad og på hvilken måte fiskeskinn kan anvendes som møbelkledsel. Det har jeg undersøkt med ulike typer av tester. Testene jeg har gjort er på ferdig garvede skinn, som kommer fra Atlantic Leather, et garveri på Island. Jeg tar for meg fire ulike typer fiskeskinn, laks, torsk, steinbit og abbor. Testene er utført med syprøver for å skjøte skinnene sammen til større stykker. Jeg tester også ut slitestyrken og holdbarheten på skinnene og på de ulike sømmene. Det ble utført rivstyrke- og rubbingtester hos Elmo Leather i Borås, og rivstyrketester av de ulike sømmene på de ulike fiskeskinnstypene i samarbeid med materialtekniske laboratoriet ved Linköpings universitet i Linköping. Resultatet av samtlige prøver viser at alle fiskeskinnstypene er mer enn sterke nok til møbelkledsel i offentlige miljøer, som har større krav til slitestyrke. Det viser seg også at selv den enkleste sømmen er holdbar nok til å skjøte stykkene sammen med. Tilslutt har jeg på basis av mine laboratorietester gjort et eget möbel, som jeg synes egner seg for fiskeskinn, en konferanssestol, med skinn av steinbit , og med enkle sømmer som jeg anser som holdbare nok for dette materialet.

Zakrisdal and the west coast region of Karlstad was at one time a protected area where the ammunition factory AmF Zakrisdal 1941-1994 was situated. This factory manufactured explosives for the Swedish armed forces and for export. In this context it is an interesting paradox that the production of ammunition, mines and armorpiercing grenades for more than 50 years has preserved the environment surrounding the factory.The factory is now gone and the production is moved to Karlskoga. Plans are being made to build housing for 3-4000 residents and other enterprises within the area. The area now stands before yet another change, most likely the most profound to date.The inspiration for this work comes from the economic historic Jan Jörnmark. He is interested in the remains of old abandoned industries. His work has caught the interest of the public and me with his Photography’s of deserted places, available at www.jornmark.se. In his academic work he has studied the process of creative destruction as formulated by the national economist Joseph Schumpeter and the effect of that process to Swedish Base Industries. The process of creative destruction describes how the introduction of new technology and new products destroy the old system of production in an ongoing process of revolutions. The entrepreneur is in this process the instigator “The agent of change”.The purpose of this essay is to investigate how a limited geographical area and the environment in its vicinity are affected by political, economic, demographic and ideological change. What consequences have changes in those sociological fields had in past times and what will they be in the future. The impact of “big events” on the “small world” will be studied with the area of Zakrisdal in Karlstad as an example, and with Joseph Schumpeter’s theory of creative destruction as the scientific tool. My studie shows that the ”Agents of change” effect on the overlaying structure unconditionally affect the lower layers in the hierarky, and ultimately the landscape itself. I can see more than one layer of entreprenures. Changes in ideological, political, technical or economic development opens oppurtiunities for entreprenures on one level while the door closes on another. The freedom to operate either grows or shrink depending on the terms set by the ”Agents of change” higher in the hierarky.

No description available.

Syftet har varit att utforska mötet mellan olika naturrums ”tilltal” och en dansares svar på detta tilltal. Avsikten är mer preciserat att utifrån ett fenomenologiskt perspektiv, beskriva innehåll och struktur på subjektiva upplevelser och erfarenheter såsom de framträder i mötet mellan naturen som fenomen och rörelse som improvisation och gestaltning. Syftet har lett fram till följande frågeställningar: Vad uppfattar jag av de utvalda naturrummen? Vad väcker de olika naturrummen för rörelser i mig som dansare? Hur framträder dessa upplevelser för mig på ett reflekterande plan? Metoden i denna studie har varit en explorativ studie dvs. utforskande. Jag reste till var och ett av de Nordiska länderna och sökte upp naturrum som var specifika för landet i vilka jag improviserade fram dansfraser. Mötet mellan naturrummen och dess element och mitt sätt att söka sammanhang och associationer gav impulser till mina rörelser. Ramar för dansimprovisationen sattes i termer av tid, yta och att dansimprovisationen skulle genomföras utan åskådare. Datainsamlingen har bestått av autobiografiska processdagboksanteckningar tillsammans med ett film- och fotomaterial från de olika platserna. En senare del i databearbetningen blev också att låta den konstnärliga processen komma till uttryck genom en utställning på ett galleri i Stockholm där film, foton och utdrag ur processdagboken ställdes ut. Med hjälp av ett fenomenologiskt perspektiv har jag uppmärksammat och beskrivit subjektiva erfarenheter av mötet mellan de olika naturrummen och rörelseimprovisationen. Vidare har Monroe Beardsleys kriterier för en estetisk upplevelse använts som ett redskap i mitt utforskande. Resultat/Slutsats  Det fenomenlogiska angreppssättet öppnade för ett flerfaldigt sätt att samla in dokumentation på och visade sig vara värdefullt för att få en ökad förståelse för det samspel som jag erfor mellan mitt inre tillstånd och naturens påverkan på mina rörelser. Det gick att uppfatta olikheter i de rörelser som gestaltades och i de upplevelser och erfarenheter som kom att dokumenteras i de olika naturrummen. Genom att undersöka och beskriva upplevelsernas innehåll och struktur framträdde, såväl prereflexiva som reflexiva erfarenheter. I mötet mellan naturens tilltal och den uppkomna rörelsegestaltningen framstod kroppen som subjekt och objekt, men också som ett tillstånd av både och. En slutsats av studien är betydelsen av att undersöka innehåll och struktur på subjektiva erfarenheter som ett led i att kunna uppmärksamma och utveckla ett språk för dessa upplevelser och erfarenheter.

This is a study concerning Hegel’s critic of Rousseau’s common will and shows how Hegel’s concept of freedom should be understood from this criticism. This is done first of all through a study of Rousseau’s social contract and Hegel’s Philosophy of Right. The different state theories which Rousseau and Hegel represent, are evaluated separately, first Rousseau’s then Hegel’s to see how Hegel’s philosophy is a continuation of Rousseau’s philosophy. The most important concepts of this essay are Rousseau’s ”moral freedom” and Hegel’s concept of the ethical system. / Detta är en studie om Hegels kritik av Rousseaus allmänvilja och visar hur Hegels frihetsbegrepp ska förstås utifrån denna kritik. Detta görs först och främst genom en studie av Rousseaus verk samhällsfördraget och Hegels verk Rättsfilosofin. De olika statsteorierna som Rousseau och Hegel representerar behandlas var och en för sig, först Rousseaus sedan Hegels för att se hur Hegel bygger vidare sin filosofi utifrån Rousseau. Huvudbegrepp i uppsatsen är moralisk frihet eller moralitet och sedlighet.