Denna rapport är resultatet av ett 10 veckor långt examensarbete om logistik i byggbranschen. Rapporten ska redovisa för- och nackdelar med Just In Time-logistik jämfört med lagerföring av material på byggarbetsplatsen. I arbetet ingår även att redovisa vissa extra kostnader som tillkommer i samband med respektive alternativ. Rapporten jämför de olika logistikmetoderna och utgår ifrån tre olika byggprojekt i stockholmsregionen som har helt olika förutsättningar. Målet med rapporten är att ta reda på om byggbranschen kan effektiviseras med Just In Time-logistik. Som hjälp för att nå målet har bland annat intervjuer gjorts och en enkät delats ut till de berörda på varje projekt.  Vad som kostar mest är inte helt enkelt att bestämma då vissa osäkra parametrar ingår i resultatet. Osäkerhet kring eventuella administrativa kostnader och kostnader till följd av förseningar av materialleveranser gör att resultatet inte är helt entydigt. Kostnaderna för att lagerföra material på arbetsplatsen har dock visat sig vara av betydande storlek och Just In Time-logistiken kan då vara ett alternativ att använda sig av istället. Risken för att material skadas minimeras, samt att material måste flyttas mellan olika upplagsplatser och onödiga kapitalkostnader elimineras då Just In Time-leveranser används.   Rekommendationen blir slutligen att alternativ till att lagerföra material på arbetsplatsen bör ses över, exempelvis Just In Time-logistiken som åtminstone i teorin är en värdig ersättare. / This report is the result of a thesis about logistics in the construction industry that has been going on for 10 weeks. The report shall present the advantages and disadvantages of Just In Time logistics and warehousing of materials at the construction site, as well as present some additional costs to be associated with each method. The report compares the different logistics methods and is based on three different projects with very different conditions in the region of Stockholm. The goal is to find out if the construction industry can be improved with Just In Time Logistics. To reach the goal, interviews and a questionnaire was made for all concerned at each project.  Which method that is most profitable is not easy to determine because of some unsettled parameters that the results include. Uncertainty about administrative costs and costs due to delays in material deliveries makes the result less clear. However, the costs related to warehousing of materials have proven to be significant, which could make the Just In Time method an alternative to warehousing. The Just In Time logistics minimizes the damage of stored materials, eliminates the unnecessary capital expenses and the fact that stored materials often need to be moved between storage sites.  The recommendation is ultimately to look for an alternative to warehousing of materials, such as Just In Time logistics, that at least in theory is a worthy substitute.

The premise of this thesis is to explore the transition of spaces through thresholds. This exploration begins with the urban environment and how one transitions through spaces into private spaces. In particular, this thesis addresses battered women and children and how their transition in life relates to transitional spaces. The journey began with research of precedence. However, the existence of shelters for battered women and children is relatively new. Therefore, I began at the roots of housing, community housing, monasteries, orphanages and dormitories. I also drew from my own experiences with roommates, dorm life and group situations. This design reflects the transition of spaces and how that relates to the life of battered women and children. The site is located in Washington, DC. / Master of Architecture

The Mammoth Site in Hot Springs, South Dakota preserves a unique death assemblage of sub-adult and adult male Columbian mammoths (Mammuthus columbi). Extensive work on the site has led to a detailed understanding of the taphonomy of the assemblage; yet the life histories and ecology of these mammoths remain relatively unknown. Tooth enamel from four Mammoth Site mammoth individuals were bulk sampled with one of the individuals (MSL 742) also serially micro-sampled for 𝛿13C, 𝛿18O, and 87Sr/86Sr. Isotopic results indicate that MSL 742 remained within the southern and western Black Hills year-round with no consistent migration patterns. 𝛿13C and 𝛿18O values contain minimal fluctuations, suggesting drinking water and forage was sourced from the local hot springs and surrounding landscape. This study suggests the high level of sloped landscapes in the region may have resulted in a “bull”-only region, explaining the absence of females and juvenile mammoths at the site.

Collection of sewage from toilets in a closed tank provides good protection for the environment and health. The closed tank reduces emissions of fertilizing substances, and other substances that may pose a risk, such as pathogens and drug residues. To reduce the water volume in the tank, it is advantageous to connect an extremely low-flush toilet, which means that the average flush volume is a maximum of 1 liter per flush. It is important that the toilet system is reliable for the technology to be used to a greater extent. This study examines experiences and functioning of extremely low-flush toilets to identify possible deficiencies and possible areas for improvement. Information has been obtained through telephone interviews and online surveys. The result shows that most respondents are generally satisfied with their extremely low-flush toilets. For the system to function optimally, it must be properly installed and maintained. There are some deficiencies that are more common, such as interruptions caused by flushing of incorrect objects or incorrect installation, but also some occasional errors. Many malfunctions appear to be caused by improper use or installation. There may be a need to develop certain technology components, such as the alarm function. The sound when flushing can be perceived as too loud. It is important that there are clear instructions for installation, maintenance, and use, as well as functioning service networks in case of problems.

A second nearly complete skeleton of the fossil ailurid Pristinailurus bristoli was recently recovered from the Hemphillian (late Miocene) Gray Fossil Site of northeast Tennessee. It appears to be significantly larger than the previously known skeleton of P. bristoli, which was surprising as the living red panda Ailurus fulgens is thought to be generally monomorphic, including between sexes. Here the presence of significant size difference in the geometric means of cranial and postcranial measurements and canine area in the two specimens of P. bristoli is tested relative to the distribution of size differences in intersex and intrasex pairs of A. fulgens. The presence of sexual dimorphism in these dimensions is also assessed in A. fulgens using t-tests. We report the first evidence of sexual dimorphism in both upper and lower canine area in A. fulgens. We also found evidence of significantly greater body size difference in the two specimens of P. bristoli than that present in A. fulgens. This could reflect a variety of causes, including the presence of multiple species or subspecies, a greater range of ecologically driven variability, or the presence of sexual dimorphism. We argue tentatively for sexual dimorphism as the most plausible explanation for the apparent size range of P. bristoli.

The distribution of substance P (SP) binding sites in guinea-pig airway was examined by in vitro autoradiography with tritium and iodine-labeled SP. Specific SP binding sites were most abundant in tracheobronchial smooth muscle but were also detected in the mucosa/submucosa. Binding within the mucosa/submucosa was especially high in the region of glands. Binding of iodine-labeled SP to cartilage was negligible. Tritium-labeled SP bound non-specifically to airway cartilage. These observations are consistent with the proposed effects of SP-containing afferent nerves on airway resistance and vascular permeability. The localization of specific SP binding sites suggests that SP may also affect exocrine glands in the respiratory tract.

The occurrences of Staphylea L. (Staphyleaceae) fossils have been abundantly documented from the Cenozoic of Eurasia, but none has been confirmed from North America to date. In this study, we describe Staphylealevisemia sp. nov. on the basis of seed remains from the latest Miocene to earliest Pliocene of northeastern Tennessee, southeastern USA. The seeds are characterized by a smoothly inflated body, a large hilar scar perforated by several vascular traces and bordered by a distinctive lip-like rim, a cuticle coating the seed coat interior, and seed coat section containing weakly developed tiny lumina. According to the paleogeographic distribution of the genus, it is hypothesized that Staphylea originated from western Eurasia no later than the late Oligocene, and arrived in eastern North America no later than the late Neogene, most possibly through the North Atlantic land bridges like many other seed plants.

The Gray Fossil Site (GFS) of northeastern Tennessee has yielded a diverse salamander fossil assemblage for the southern Appalachian Mio-Pliocene. This assemblage includes at least five taxa (Ambsytoma sp.; Plethodon sp., Spelerpinae, gen. et sp. indet., Desmognathus sp.; and Notophthalmus sp.) from three families (Ambystomatidae, Plethodontidae, and Salamandridae, respectively). All taxa are present in the area today and support a woodland-pond interpretation of the site. Reported specimens represent the earliest record of their families in the Appalachian Mountains (and the earliest record of Plethodontidae and Ambystomatidae east of the Mississippi River); with the Notophthalmus sp. vertebrae being the only Mio-Pliocene body fossil known for the Salamandridae in North America. The Desmognathus sp. specimens may help shed light on the evolutionary origins of the genus Desmognathus, which purportedly has its roots in this region during the Mio-Pliocene.

The Gray Fossil Site in northeastern Tennessee preserves materials from a 5-million-year-old ecosystem, including wood from nearby trees. Trees provide a unique perspective into ecosystems as they are immobile during their lifetime. As such, tree rings convey information about precipitation and temperature for a given location. As southern Appalachia is one of North America’s most biodiverse regions, and modern climates are warming, understanding the warmer past climate of the Gray Fossil Site can help predict the region’s future. This study consists of three parts: conservation of wood remains, identification of taxonomic groups represented by the fossil wood, and the measured organic content of fossil wood from the Gray Fossil Site. When excavated, the wood is saturated due to a modern local high water table. A variety of drying methods from paleontology, archaeology, and dendrology were compared on saturated samples, from string wrapping to refrigeration, alcohol replacement to microwaving. The method least likely to cause warping and cracking is to wrap specimens in cotton string to slow drying. Microscopic examination of the wood reveals tree rings that have identifying features. Utilizing identification keys for tree rings, each specimen with visible rings can be identified. Taxa represented by fossil wood specimens are like those present in pre-modern forests. Finally, loss on ignition tests reveal that the Gray Fossil Site wood lacks extensive permineralization or mineral replacement. As the wood is 80-90% organic, alpha-cellulose can be extracted. The presence of alpha-cellulose, albeit stained with iron oxides, indicates that future stable isotope analyses are possible.

Multiple regression and discriminant analysis procedures are commonly used to develop forest site quality models. 'When they contain many independent variables relative to sample size, these models may be subject to predicton bias. Fit statistics such as R2 in regression and classification tables in discriminant analysis show the apparent model accuracy but this may be a biased estimate of the model's actual accuracy. Sample splitting methods such as cross-validation and the bootstrap can be used to get an unbiased actual accuracy estimate. A discriminant procedure called classification tree analysis uses cross-validation to build the classifier with the greatest estimated actual accuracy. Because cross-validation is used in model development, the model is less likely to be over-fit with insignificant variables when compared with stepwise linear discriminant analysis. Classification tree analysis and linear discriminant analysis were used to develop models that discriminate prime vs. nonprime ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) sites. Prime sites are defined as having site index 25 greater than 7.6 meters; nonprime sites have site index 25 less than 7.6 meters. Forest habitat type, percent sand content, and soil pH were incorporated in both models. The cross-valiation estimate of classification tree actual accuracy was 88 percent. A random bootstrap estimate of the linear discriminant function actual accuracy was 80 percent. viii A multiple regression model developed with random plots revealed little useful information and was biased when applied to prime site plots. The conventional regression approach using random plots may be misleading if one is interested in identifying relatively rare prime sites. Forest habitat types within the ponderosa pine series in southern Utah were examined as site quality indicators. The site index range within any one habitat type was broad. However, the best ponderosa pine sites consistently occurred in only Pinus ponderosa/Quercus gambelii, and Pinus ponderosa/Symphoricarpos oreophilus habitat types; or in habitat types within the Pseudotsuga menziesii or Abies concolor series. Therefore forest habitat type when used with other site variables may be useful in predicting prime sites. The effect of aspect at the upper elevational limit of ponderosa pine was examined by comparing mean site index and mean initial 10 year diameter increment on southerly and northerly slopes from two cinder cones. Southerly aspects on both cinder cones had greater mean diameter increment. Southerly aspects on the highest elevation cinder cone had the greatest mean site index. There was no significant difference in mean site index on the lower elevation cinder cone. Optimal aspect for height and diameter growth may differ due to l) the effect of density on diameter increment; and/or 2) available soil water limiting height growth during the spring and ambient temperature/solar radiation limiting diameter growth in late summer. Optimal aspect for forest production is not constant but varies with tree species, elevation, latitude, and other factors affecting site microclimate.