By tracing intertextual shifts in policy over time, I examine how discourse is constructed in particular ways within the same institution, at different times. I look at the ways in which the construction of EFA by the World Bank can be compared and contrasted between 2001 and 2007. Guiding my inquiry are considerations of how education has been linked to economic rationality and has become understood as a means through which to improve well-being, particularly for those who are from lower income states. The questions that have guided my inquiry are as follows: How is it that education comes to be exercised as a tool for integration in the international political economy? What type of knowledge informs the creation of the key documents and how are the appropriate ends, as constructed by the particular form of knowledge, manifested in EFA documents? / Theoretical, International and Cultural Studies in Education

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A method called SRICOS-EFA is presented in this dissertation for scour prediction. The method is based on the calculation of two basic parameters: the maximum depth of scour and the initial rate of scour. The maximum depth of scour is based on an equation obtained from flume tests and the initial rate is based on an equation giving the initial shear stress obtained from numerical simulations. The initial scour rate is then read on the Erosion Function Apparatus (EFA) erosion function curve at the corresponding value of the calculated shear stress. A hyperbola is used to connect the initial scour rate to the maximum scour depth and describes the complete scour depth vs. time curve. The erodibility function curve can be measured in the EFA. As the results show, the SRICOS-EFA method can handle the multi-flood hydrograph and multilayer soil system. It can be used to solve the complex pier and contraction scour alone; it can also handle the superposition of complex pier scour and contraction scour. A simplified SRICOS-EFA method was developed based on the case histories for contraction scour. EFA tests were performed to investigate the influence of different pH values and different levels of salinity on the soil erodibility. An attempt was made to find the correlation between the critical shear stress, and the initial slope of the erodibility function on the one hand and some geotechnical parameters on the other. A solution for future hydrograph prediction was developed in this dissertation. The prediction consists of using a past hydrograph, preparing the frequency distribution plot for the daily stream flows, sampling the distribution randomly and preparing a future hydrograph, which has the same mean and standard deviation as the measured hydrograph. A frequency distribution plot of scour depths can be used to quote a scour depth with a corresponding probability of occurrence and risk level based on future hydrographs. In the verification process, 10 bridge case histories and 3 scour databases were used to check whether the method is good enough to provide sound results in real cases.

A method called SRICOS-EFA is presented in this dissertation for scour prediction. The method is based on the calculation of two basic parameters: the maximum depth of scour and the initial rate of scour. The maximum depth of scour is based on an equation obtained from flume tests and the initial rate is based on an equation giving the initial shear stress obtained from numerical simulations. The initial scour rate is then read on the Erosion Function Apparatus (EFA) erosion function curve at the corresponding value of the calculated shear stress. A hyperbola is used to connect the initial scour rate to the maximum scour depth and describes the complete scour depth vs. time curve. The erodibility function curve can be measured in the EFA. As the results show, the SRICOS-EFA method can handle the multi-flood hydrograph and multilayer soil system. It can be used to solve the complex pier and contraction scour alone; it can also handle the superposition of complex pier scour and contraction scour. A simplified SRICOS-EFA method was developed based on the case histories for contraction scour. EFA tests were performed to investigate the influence of different pH values and different levels of salinity on the soil erodibility. An attempt was made to find the correlation between the critical shear stress, and the initial slope of the erodibility function on the one hand and some geotechnical parameters on the other. A solution for future hydrograph prediction was developed in this dissertation. The prediction consists of using a past hydrograph, preparing the frequency distribution plot for the daily stream flows, sampling the distribution randomly and preparing a future hydrograph, which has the same mean and standard deviation as the measured hydrograph. A frequency distribution plot of scour depths can be used to quote a scour depth with a corresponding probability of occurrence and risk level based on future hydrographs. In the verification process, 10 bridge case histories and 3 scour databases were used to check whether the method is good enough to provide sound results in real cases.

The purpose of the present study was to develop a measure of the Emotional Antecedents of Alcohol Use (EAAU) and investigate its psychometric properties. Focus groups and three pilot studies were conducted to develop and define the construct of alcohol consumption as a means of emotion regulation. Items were written based upon focus group results, existing published instruments, and a review of the literature. Independent raters evaluated the initial item pool for face validity and the initial EAAU was given to small pilot samples (N=64, N=39) to investigate initial internal consistency and content validity. Results of pilot studies suggested that the EAAU is a valid measure of alcohol consumption and positively associated with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT; r = 0.445, p < .001; r = 0.607, p < .001). The EAAU was then administered to a larger sample (N=301) to investigate the structure of the instrument. Exploratory factor analysis results implied that a 14-factor model was the best fitting and most parsimonious and sufficient factor solution to represent the structure of the EAAU scores produced by the current sample. These 14 distinct emotional domains were interpreted as representing the following: (1) Relaxation, (2) Fear/Worry, (3) Reservation, (4) Negative High Arousal, (5) Shock, (6) Sedation, (7) Sadness, (8) Fatigue, (9) Anger, (10) Happiness, (11) Alertness, (12) Annoyance, (13) Serenity, and (14) Positive High Arousal. Results suggested the EAAU demonstrates convergent validity as small to moderate positive relationships were noted between the EAAU and measures of alcohol expectancies (r = 0.374, p < .001) and alcohol-related problems (r = 0.292, p < .001). Results supported marginal discriminant validity of the EAAU as negligible to small negative relationships were noted between the EAAU and a measure of self-esteem (r = -0.157, p = .007). Additionally, the EAAU demonstrated initial evidence of predictive validity as EAAU subscale scores were found to be predictive of difficulties in emotion regulation (R2 = .128, F(14, 286) = 2.991, p < .001) and alcohol consumption (R2 = .111, F(14, 286) = 2.539, p = .002). Lastly, gender and drinker status differences in EAAU scores were found. Males (M=267.74, SD=80.07) were found to obtain higher EAAU scores (t(290) = -2.59, p = .010) in comparison to women (M=244.47, SD=73.26), while problem drinkers (M=281.21, SD=69.81) were found to obtain higher EAAU scores (t(299) = 7.459, p < .001) in comparison to social drinkers (M=218.87, SD=74.61). Study limitations, implications, and future research directions are discussed.

Master of Science / Civil Engineering / Stacey Tucker / Recent climate changes may affect the stability of our infrastructure in many ways. This study investigated the effects of fine-grained soil temperature on erosion rate. If climate change is shown to affect the erodibility of soils the impacts must be identified to monitor the stability of existing infrastructure, improve design of levees and structures founded in erosive environments, and to prevent sediment loss and stream meanders. Fine-grained soil erosion is complicated by the dynamic linkage of multiple parameters, including physical, biological and geochemical properties. This study held constant all parameters that influence fine-grained soil erodibility while only varying soil temperature in order to study the effects it has on erodibility. This study also confirmed previous findings that water temperature affects soil erodibility. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of fine-grained soil temperature on erosion rate. This study also instrumented a turbidity sensor to reliably map soil erosion. Based on this research, the conclusion was made that an increase in soil temperature increases soil erosion rate. The turbidity sensor was a valuable tool for comparing soil erosion. Future studies should investigate the effects soil temperatures below room temperature, the magnitude of temperature increase or decrease, and the effects of cyclic heating and cooling on fine grained soil erodibility.

Prior research has indicated that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Criterion A2 (i.e., the stipulation that an individual must experience intense fear, helplessness, or horror during an event that threatened the life or physical integrity of oneself or others to be eligible for the PTSD diagnosis; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th, ed., text rev., DSM-IV-TR; APA, 2000) is not positively predictive of PTSD diagnostic status. However, the exact reason for the poor predictive validity is unclear. It may be that changing the operational definition of Criterion A2 (e.g., broadening the definition to include additional peritraumatic reactions) will improve its predictive validity. The current investigation attempted to answer this question, as well as examining several other aspects of the peritraumatic experience. Specifically, three studies were conducted. Study 1 examined whether the ability of the peritraumatic response to predict PTSD can be improved by reconstituting the operationalization of this experience. Study 2 investigated whether this new operationalization of the peritraumatic experience can differentiate between PTSD and other psychiatric disorders (i.e., Major Depressive Disorder, Substance Use Disorders). Study 3 explored how different methodologies for assessing responses to trauma cues (i.e., retrospective reports, self-report and psychophysiological data gathered from a laboratory-based trauma monologue) compare in their ability to predict PTSD. Two-hundred thirty four female crime victims (151 victims of rape; 83 victims of physical assault) were recruited as part of a National Institute of Mental Health (Dr. Patricia Resick, Principal Investigator) prospective longitudinal study designed to examine factors associated with recovery from a recent assault. Results indicated that, consistent with past literature, the three Criterion A2 variables (i.e., peritraumatic fear, helplessness, and horror) were not predictive of PTSD diagnostic status or PTSD symptom severity. However, peritraumatic anxiety was predictive of PTSD diagnostic status, and a dimensional variable assessing the dissociative emotions was predictive of PTSD symptom severity. The predictive utility of the peritraumatic experience was found to be unique to PTSD; although peritraumatic anxiety was predictive of PTSD diagnostic status, none was predictive of the other forms of psychopathology examined (i.e., MDD, Substance Use Disorders). Finally, results indicated that several of the peritraumatic responses were predictive of both self-reported distress and measures of arousal (i.e., amplitude of skin conductance responses) during a laboratory-based trauma monologue. However, the three sets of measures (i.e., peritraumatic responses, self-reported distress, and psychophysiological responses) were differentially predictive of PTSD. Limitations of the study, as well as implications of the findings, are discussed. / Psychology

Background: The importance of data increases for current and future companies. As a result of prominent research within the field of information and communication technology, the interest in Internet of Things (IoT) and its industrial applications has grown strong from both research and the public sector. Due to advancements in the technological infrastructure, the IoT-solutions are available to the broader market, but despite being accredited with praise and promise of real potential, current IoT-solutions are mostly utilized by large enterprises (LE:s). A fundamental understanding for the cause of the aforementioned unbalance was acquired by revisiting theory and former studies of technology diffusion. It appears that the challenge for IoT-solutions resonates with a recurring phenomenon within diffusion of new technology. As a result from rapid advancements, technology often finds itself in a productivity paradox. This basically means that practitioners perceive them as too expensive and too complicated to use, thusly, they won’t be as productive as required to generate enough economic value. Therefore, new technologies can paradoxically be unproductive. As demanded from research and commercial actors, this study seeks to deepen the understanding for the cause of Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SME:s) Intention to use IoT-solutions, hence bridging the current market unbalance and gap in research. Objective: The purpose of the study is to deepen the understanding for SME:s Intention to use IoT-solutions. Therefore, the study is based on the research question: Which factors can explain SME:s Intention to use IoT- solutions? Methods: To find a proper tool for analysis, the author probed the literature of technology acceptance models related to sociology and psychology. With an explorative research design, an adapted version of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and use of Technology (UTAUT) was developed according to the reaming parts of the literature review. 6 hypotheses were formulated based on the research question and UTAUT. Thereafter, a survey was used to collect quantitative data from 165 SME:s within the Swedish sector of manufacturing. The hypotheses were tested with the support of Explorative Factor Analysis (EFA) and multiple regression analysis in SPSS. Results: The main result shows that Performance expectancy, Facilitating conditions, Social Influence and Price value exerts a significant correlation with the Intention to use IoT- applications. Effort Expectancy and Hindering conditions was to be found insignificant. The factors explained 27,9% of the total variance within the Intention. An additional effect from the survey reveals a low amount of knowledge for IoT- solutions amongst the responding SME:s. Conclusions: In light of the objective, the result provides both practical and theoretical implications. Practically, commercial actors can use the findings from this study to influence the Intention to use IoT-applications within the Swedish manufacturing sector by operationalizing Performance expectancy, Facilitating conditions, Social Influence and Price value. From a theoretical perspective, the extended and validated version of the current technology acceptance models, UTAUT-FP, can be applied for future research. / Bakgrund: Dataflödet intar en alltmer central funktion för sam- och framtidens företag. Som ett resultat av framstående forskning och tekniska landvinningar på området för informations- och kommunikationsteknologi har ett uppseendeväckande intresse för Internet of Things (IoT) - och dess industriella tillämpningar - vuxit fram. Med den nödvändig infrastrukturen väl på plats är dagens IoT-lösningar tillgängliga för en bred marknad. Men trots lovord om oumbärliga konkurrensfördelar så återfinns majoriteten av dagens IoT-lösningar likväl hos stora företag (SF). En grundläggande förståelse för orsaken förvärvades genom att återbesöka teori och tidigare studier över acceptans för nya teknologier. Problemet med IoT-lösningar visar sig resonera med ett återkommande fenomen för spridning av ny teknologi. Som ett resultat av hastig teknikutveckling uppstår regelbundet en så kallad produktivitetsparadox. Det visar sig att frontlinjens teknologier alltid löper risken att upplevas som för dyra och komplicerade i relation till hur mycket värde användaren uppfattar att de skapar. För att överbrygga dagens låga användning av IoT-lösningar efterfrågar forskare och kommersiella aktörer sålunda en djupare förståelse för vad som formar Små och Medelstora Företags (SMF:s) Intention till att använda ny teknologi, i denna studie IoT-lösningar. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att fördjupa kunskapen om varför SMF inte använder IoT- lösningar. Således utformas studien efter forskningsfrågan: Vilka faktorer kan förklara SMF:s Intention till att använda IoT-lösningar? Metod: För att hitta ett adekvat analysverktyg sonderade författaren fältet av beteendevetenskapens adoptionsmodeller för ny teknologi. Utifrån en explorativ forskningsansats anpassades Unified Theory of Acceptance and use of Technology (UTAUT). I enlighet med studiens litteraturgenomgång bildade författaren således UTAUT-FP. Med bas i forskningsfrågan och UTAUT-FP utvecklades 6 hypoteser. Med en enkätundersökning samlades kvantitativa data in från 165 SMF. Med Explorativ Faktoranalys (EFA) och linjär regressionsanalys kunde studiens hypoteser testats i SPSS. Resultat: Studiens primära resultat visar att faktorerna Prestationsföväntning, Underlättande förhållanden, Socialt inflytande och Prisbild utövar en signifikant korrelation med Intentionen till att använda IoT-lösningar. Indirekta Hjälpmedel och Förhindrande förhållanden var insignifikanta för Intentionen. Faktorerna förklarar 27,9% av Intentionens varians. En bieffekt av studiens enkätundersökning lyckas spegla SMF:s okunskap kring studiens särskilda aspekter av IoT-lösningar. Slutsatser: I ljuset av forskningsfrågan generar studiens resultat dels praktiska, dels teoretiska implikationer. Praktiskt medför resultatet att dagens leverantörer delges en djupare insikt för hur de kan påverka SMF:s inställning och således Intention till IoT-lösningar genom att operationalisera resultatet för Prestationsföväntning, Underlättande förhållanden, Socialt inflytande och Prisbild. Teoretiskt bidrar studien med en validerad adoptionsmodell för IoT- lösningar - UTAUT-FP.

Municipal sewage sludge (MSS) management varies widely between countries and legislative regimes. Within the European directive for sewage treatment France applies over half of MSS to arable land, while The Netherlands has banned the practice (Kelessidis et al, 2012). In Sweden, 34% of MSS is applied to agricultural lands; despite this, ocial government reports recommend banning the practice over pollution concerns, alongside the most common alternative of land reclamation (Ekane et al, 2020). This is the result of two decades of disagreement, complicated by dual perceptions of MSS as a valuable resource to be returned to the ecocycle vs an unsanitary waste product requiring careful disposal (Ekman Burgman, 2022).  Previous studies have analyzed novel treatment technologies including multiple forms of phosphorus and nitrogen extraction from various stages of MSS treatment, but holistic system analyses are scarce (Bagheri et al 2023). Based on literature review and emerging technologies in Sweden, hydrothermal carbonisation (HTC) is identified as a keystone technology, and can be supported by secondary treatment via nitrogen stripping and phosphorus extraction from liquid and ash waste streams respectively. HTC is an anaerobic thermal treatment of wet organic waste resulting in solid hydrochar and liquid process water products. To address the lack of holistic assessments, an environmental and techno-economic assessment framework (ETEA) is applied to model three MSS treatment scenarios. Each scenario models treatment of MSS by anaerobic digestion (AD) and mechanical dewatering of digested sludge followed by:  REF: A reference case of storage and arable land application of dewatered digested sludge (DDS)  ALT1: DDS treatment by Oxypower HTC with Aqua2N nitrogen recovery from process and reject water.  ALT2: The treatment described by ALT1, followed by hydrochar mono-incineration and Ash2Phos phosphorus extraction.  ETEA is conducted in four stages using data collected from literature and public and private partners. Qualitative and quantitative process flow mapping defines the scenarios and models material and energy flows through the systems. An attributional comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) alongside techno-economic analysis (TEA) follows. The LCA has a gate to grave scope with a functional unit of one ton of total solids treated. Finally, results are evaluated using sensitivity and data uncertainty analysis to identify hotspots and knowledge gaps in the system.  Results combining alternative scenarios based on current trends show the potential of emerging technologies to multiply WWTP nitrogen and phosphorus recovery by five and two times respectively, while simultaneously improving net energy recovery by three times. LCA results show reductions of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by between 60-70%. Considering emerging MSS technologies from a systems perspective provides critical context that can improve their economic viability. Combining intelligent systems design with these technologies, the models demonstrate how future MSS treatment can provide both good sanitation and recovery of nutrient and energy resources. Integration of these systems will accelerate the transition from wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) to water resource recovery facilities (WRRF). / Hanteringen av kommunalt avloppsslam (MSS) varierar kraftigt mellan länder och lagstiftande regimer. Inom det europeiska direktivet för avloppsrening tillämpar Frankrike över hälften av MSS på åkermark, medan Nederländerna har förbjudit detta (Kelessisdis et al, 2012). I Sverige tillämpas 34 % av MSS på jordbruksmark; Trots detta rekommenderar ociella regeringsrapporter att man förbjuder praxis på grund av föroreningsproblem, vid sidan av det vanligaste alternativet med landåtervinning (Ekane et al, 2020). Detta är resultatet av två decennier av oenighet, komplicerat av dubbla uppfattningar om MSS som en värdefull resurs som ska återföras till kretsloppet jämfört med en ohälsosam avfallsprodukt som kräver noggrann hantering (Ekman Burgman, 2022).  Tidigare studier har analyserat nya reningstekniker inklusive flera former av fosfor- och kväveextraktion från olika stadier av MSS-behandling, men holistiska systemanalyser är få (Bagheri et al 2023). Baserat på litteraturgenomgång och framväxande teknologier i Sverige, identifieras hydrotermisk karbonisering (HTC) som en nyckelstensteknik, och kan stödjas av sekundär rening via kvävestrimning och fosforextraktion från flytande respektive askavfallsströmmar. HTC är en anaerob termisk behandling av vått organiskt avfall som resulterar i fast hydrochar och flytande processvattenprodukter. För att komma till rätta med bristen på holistiska bedömningar, tillämpas ett ramverk för miljö- och teknikekonomisk bedömning (ETEA) för att modellera tre MSS-behandlingsscenarier. Varje scenario modellerar behandling av MSS genom anaerob rötning (AD) och mekanisk avvattning av rötslam följt av:  REF: Ett referensfall av lagring och applicering av åkermark av avvattnat rötslam (DDS)  ALT1: DDS-behandling av Oxypower HTC med Aqua2N kväveåtervinning från process- och rejektvatten.  Behandlingen som beskrivs av ALT1, följt av monoförbränning av kolväte och fosforextraktion av Ash2Phos.  ETEA genomförs i fyra steg med hjälp av data som samlats in från litteratur och oentliga och privata partners. Kvalitativ och kvantitativ processflödeskartläggning definierar scenarierna och modellerar material- och energiflöden genom systemen. En attributionell jämförande livscykelanalys (LCA) tillsammans med teknisk-ekonomisk analys (TEA) följer. LCA har en grind till graven omfattning med en funktionell enhet på ett ton av totalt behandlat fast material. Slutligen utvärderas resultaten med hjälp av känslighets- och dataosäkerhetsanalys för att identifiera hotspots och kunskapsluckor i systemet.  Resultat som kombinerar alternativa scenarier baserade på nuvarande trender visar potentialen hos framväxande teknologier för att multiplicera reningsverkens kväve- och fosforåtervinning med fem respektive två gånger, samtidigt som nettoenergiåtervinningen förbättras med tre gånger. LCA-resultat visar minskningar av växthusgasutsläpp (GHG) med mellan 60-70%. Att överväga framväxande MSS-teknologier ur ett systemperspektiv ger ett kritiskt sammanhang som kan förbättra deras ekonomiska bärkraft. Genom att kombinera intelligent systemdesign med dessa teknologier visar modellerna hur framtida MSS-behandling kan ge både bra sanitet och återvinning av närings- och energiresurser. Integration av dessa system kommer att påskynda övergången från reningsverk för avloppsvatten (WWTP) till anläggningar för återvinning av vattenresurser (WRRF).

Background: Current research has demonstrated that aspirin and fish oil (EFA) increase plasma levels of specialized pro-resolution molecules (SPMs). This study investigates their effects on SPM precursor pools in platelet rich fibrin (PRF). Methods: Twenty healthy volunteers were randomly assigned to take aspirin; EFA or aspirin and EFA. Four hours later, SPM precursor levels were quantified using combined Liquid Chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The differences between the groups: Aspirin (yes or no), EFA (yes or no), were analyzed by ANCOVA, testing for group differences after covarying out the baseline value. Results: There were 4 significant interactions, 1 with an aspirin effect, 2 with an EFA effect, and 64 with no difference between the groups. The significant interaction effect was found for the following lipidome: LPE(20:4), LPI(16:1), LPI(18:1), and LPI(20:3). Aspirin decreased the LPG(16:4) levels, and EFA decreased the LPE(22:5) and PG(16:0/18:0) lipidomes. Conclusions: Some SPM precursor pools in PRF were increased following supplementation.