I samma takt som produktionen av kläder tilltar, ökar även medvetenheten kring dess miljöpåverkan. Många företag arbetar efter avtal, märkningar och uppförandekoder för att på så vis reducera påverkan, dock kan det vara svårt för konsumenterna att veta vad de faktiskt står för och betyder. Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att undersöka hur kunden ser på fast fashion-företagets miljöarbete, hur företaget själva ser på det, samt om kundens uppfattning går att förändra. Undersökningen är avgränsad till att undersöka företaget Gina Tricot som ett exempel på företeelsen fast fashion- företag. För att kunna analysera informationen används kommunikationsmodellen, där sändaren skickar ett meddelande genom bruset till mottagaren, för att senare få tillbaka feedback från mottagagaren. Den emiriska delen av arbetet består av en intervju, en enkätundersökning samt två dolda observationer. Intervjun genomfördes via mejl med Gina Tricots Hållbarhetschef Marcus Bergman. Enkätundersökningen består av ett flertal frågor kring Gina Tricots miljöarbete samt en informationstext om det här. Den dolda observationen genomfördes i två geografiskt olika butiker, där vi undersökte hur företagets miljöarbete kommuniceras i butiken. Av den insamlade informationen kan man se att kundens och företagets uppfattning om hur de arbetar med miljö skiljer sig åt. Skillnaderna kan bero på olika saker, men främst på brist i företagets kommunikation med sina kunder. / Program: Butikschef, textil och mode

Inner hair cells (IHCs) are the actual sensory receptors in hearing. Immature IHCs generate spontaneous calcium-dependent action potentials. Changing the characteristic of the Ca2Å signals modulates the amplitude and duration of the action potentials in these cells. These spontaneous action potential firing patterns are thought to be important for the development of the auditory system. The aim of this thesis is to gain a deeper understanding of the electrical activity and calcium signalling during development of IHCs from a mathematical point of view. A numerical bifurcation analysis is performed to delineate the relative contributions of the model parameters to the asymptotic behaviour of the model. In particular, we investigate the pattern of periodic solutions including single (normal) spiking, pseudoplateau burstings and complex solutions using two-parameter sections of the parameter space. We also demonstrate that a simplified (three-dimensional) model can generate similar dynamics as the original (four-dimensional) IHC model. This reduced model could be characterised by two fast and one slow or one fast and two slow variables depending on the parameters’ choice. Hence, the mechanisms underlying the bursting dynamics and mixed mode oscillations in the model are studied applying 1-slow/2-fast and 2-slow/1-fast analysis, respectively.

Class of 2007 Abstract / Objectives: In this paper we analyzed the time frame for oncology drugs that were designated as a fast track drug and the time transition from a phase II to phase III clinical trial completion. Methods In our study we utilized oncology drugs that were approved between the years of 2000-2006 (FDA.gov). We then analyzed the CDER data base that provided information to Fast Track drugs that have been approved within the time period as determined by the FDA selection criteria (21 CFR 312.81(a)). Under certain circumstances, the FCA may consider reviewing portions of a marketing application in advance of the complete New Drug Application (NDA) or Biologic License Application (BLA). We will evaluate fast track designated products which may also be eligible to participate in FDA’s Continuous Marketing Applications Pilot 1 or Pilot 2 programs. For our analysis, we specifically selected oncology drugs. In particular, we analyzed 32 drugs from the stated time period. Each fast track drug was then selected and analyzed for its clinical phase development time period based on news announcements during clinical trails. For each announcement we conducted an event study analysis through lexis Nexus with respect to the announcement of a clinical trial enrollment, clinical trials news (Phase I, II, III). Results: The results of our preliminary study show that there was a shorter time to development transition for the fast track oncology drugs. The oncology clinical phase transition from II to three on average lasted 12 months with a range of 2 - 29 months The average length of the phase development had to excludes 4 drugs due to the lack of information provided from the LexisNexis database. The current timeline for fats track drugs has shown a decrease in transition from clinical trials to the market. In the example of Spyrcel, the data from our study had to be excluded, there was a definitive difference in the time to approval process for the drug as compared to other standard review entities. The approvals for dasatinib, or Sprycel, for refractory CML was shown to move through the development to approval in one of the fastest timeframes in modern development. Since its first clinical study on in Gleevec-resistant patients, the medication was decided on entering an accelerated timeline. It took us just 25 months to bring Sprycel from first-in-human dosing to a regulatory submission. In contrast, the industry average for this cycle time is 6.4 years which is three times greater than the cycle time for Sprycel. Conclusions: The new Subpart H regulations state that post-marketing studies to confirm clinical benefit that would consist usually by "studies underway” at the time of accelerated approval, this has not always been the case and is not a requirement (Dagher R, Johnson J, Williams G et al). In conclusion, the accelerated approval program in oncology has been successful in making 18 different products available to patients for 22 different cancer treatment indications since the inception of the fast track program. From the current data and transition information, there is a comparative difference between the clinical phase transitions from phase II to Phase III clinical trials. However, this preliminary data needs to be further evaluated against the standard FDA review process from oncology drugs. Moreover, further studies will be needed to interpret whether the average length of oncology studies biases the value of our study.

Thesis (M Med.(Family Medicine))--University of Limpopo, 2010. / OBJECTIVE: In order to obtain optimal results using sputum smear microscopy for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) detection in the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB), good quality sputum with an adequate volume of at least 5.0ml is required. An inadequate amount of sputum sample may result cases of active PTB being missed. This study was aimed at showing that a single sputum sample of at least 5.0ml would lower the chances of missing active PTB cases, and increase sputum smear positivity by microscopy thus enabling prompt treatment of PTB, and restricting its transmission. METHODS: An analytical cross sectional study was carried out at Dr George Mukhari Hospital in Pretoria, South Africa. Two sputum samples, one of 5.0ml and the other with 2.0ml were collected from each adult patient suspected of having active PTB. Sputum collection was supervised and patients were given instructions on how to enhance sputum expectoration. Sputum samples were processed using the N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NaLc-NaOH) method and stained with Auramine O. Sputum analysis was done with the aid of fluorescence microscopy. Following microscopy, both the 2.0ml and 5.0ml specimens were sent for culture using the Middlebrook broth medium, and culture results were available after 6-8 weeks. Using the culture results as gold standard, the yield through microscopy of the 2.0ml specimen versus the 5.0ml specimen for each patient were compared and analysed. RESULTS: A Total of 330 sputum samples were analysed of which 77 were found to be culture positive. A sensitivity of 76.6% and specificity of 99.6% was obtained for AFB test in the 5.0ml specimens; while in the 2.0ml samples the sensitivity was 75.3%, with a specificity of 99.2%. The difference in the smear positivity rate of 76.6% obtained using the 5.0ml sputum specimen compared to the 75.3% obtained using the 2.0ml specimen from patients suspected of having TB in this study was statistically insignificant – ascribable to the small sample size. CONCLUSION: In this study, the volume of sputum collected did not determine a better AFB test yield in the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis in patients suspected of having TB.

<p>The Fast Factorized Back Pro jection (FFBP) algorithm is a computationally efficient </p><p>algorithm for image formation in a Very High Frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (VHF </p><p>SAR) system. In this report an investigation of the feasibility of using an FPGA with a </p><p>hard CPU core to calculate the FFBP in real-time has been done. Two System on a Chip </p><p>designs for this task have been proposed for calculating the FFBP. A simplified version of </p><p>the FFBP has also been implemented in Matlab and used during this pro ject. The result </p><p>is that the computationally intensive parts, such as index generating and interpolation </p><p>calculations, should be implemented in the logic part of the FPGA and the CPU should </p><p>handle scheduling. This kind of modular system is easy to maintain and upgrade.</p>

<p>Generation IV (Gen IV) is a developing new generation of nuclear power reactors which is foreseen to bring about a safer and more sustainable production of nuclear power. A Swedish research program called GENIUS aims at developing the Gen IV technology, with emphasis on lead-cooled fast reactors. The present work is part of the GENIUS project, and deals with safeguards aspects for an envisioned future 100 MW Gen IV demonstration facility including storage and reprocessing plant. Also, the safeguards licensing aspects for the facilities have been investigated and results thereof are presented.</p><p>As a basis for the study, the changed usage and handling of nuclear fuel, as compared to that of today, have been examined in order to determine how today's safeguards measures can be modified and extended to meet the needs of the demonstration facility. Safeguards approaches have been considered for within and between each unit at the demonstration facility, with the main focus on system aspects rather than proposing safeguards instrumentation on a detailed level.</p><p>The proposed safeguards approach include the implementation of well-tried measures that are used at currently existing nuclear facilities as well as suggestions for new procedures. The former include, among others, regular inventory verifications, containment and surveillance measures as well as non-destructive and destructive measurements of nuclear materials. The traditional approaches may be improved and supplemented by modern techniques and approaches such as nuclear forensics, safeguards-by-design and improved on-line monitoring of streams of nuclear material. The safeguards approach for the demonstration facility should be outlined early in the licensing process, such that the facility units can be designed in a way that allows for implementation of adequate safeguards measures with minimal intrusion on the regular activities.</p><p>For operating a nuclear facility in Sweden, two separate permits are required. A license application for a new facility shall be handed both to the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority and to the environmental court, which in parallel prepare for decisions according to the Nuclear Activities Act and the Environmental Code, respectively. In terms of the Swedish legislation, there are no fundamental differences between Gen IV facilities and currently existing plants. However, comprehensive investigations and evaluations would be required in order to license new Gen IV facilities.</p>

Electromagnetic scattering by 3-D arbitrarily shaped homogeneous dielectric objects is characterized. In the analysis, the method of moments is first employed to solve the combined field integral equation for scattering properties of these three-dimensional homogeneous dielectric objects of arbitrary shape. The fast multipole method, and the multi-level fast multipole algorithm are implemented into our codes for matrix-vector manipulations. Specifically, four proposals are made and discussed to increase convergence and accuracy of iterative procedures (conjugate gradient method). Numerical results are obtained using various methods and compared to each other. / Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)

Uppsatsen har som syfte att undersöka gällande rätt för internprissatta royaltybetalningar från fast driftställe till moderbolag. Problemet är att varken korrigeringsregeln eller artiklarna 9 och 12 i modellavtalet är tillämpliga. Hur ser möjligheterna ut i den interna rätt för att förhindra att nämnda transaktion utnyttjas i skatteundandragande syfte? Kan artikel 7 i modellavtalet användas för att förhindra sådant? Royalty beskattas som regel i inkomstslaget näringsverksamhet på grund av delaktighetstanken. Den innebär att royaltybetalningar räknas som del i fast driftställe beläget i Sverige. Korrigeringsregeln så väl som artikel 9 fastslås som icke tillämpliga på grund av kravet att avtal föreligger mellan parterna. Artikel 12 kan inte heller tillämpas då royaltyer från fasta driftställen hänvisas till artikel 7. Armlängdsprincipen är den röda tråden inom internprissättning och går ut på att alla transaktioner ska bedömas som om de gjorts mellan skilda enheter eller fristående bolag. Alla lagregler i uppsatsen bygger på denna teori. Artikel 7 i modellavtalet är tillämplig på fasta driftställen och fastslår att inkomster som kan härröras till fasta driftställen ska beskattas i källstaten. I svensk praxis fastslås att korrigeringsregeln ska tillämpas i första hand, men när den möjligheten inte finns är nästa alternativ ofta uttagsbeskattning. Författaren fastslår att felaktigt prissatta royaltybetalningar från fast driftställe till dess moderbolag uppfyller kriterierna för uttagsbeskattning. Diskussionen om nya, alternativa lösningar undersöks där införandet av källskatt respektive slopande av skatten är de ledande åsikterna. Författaren är av åsikten att uttagsbeskattningen utgör gällande rätt men att en förändring bör ske och medan ett slopande av skatten skulle vara den mest enhetliga lösningen, skulle en källskatt innebära ett bättre skydd mot skatteundandragande. / The purpose of the thesis is to investigate the law in force regarding transfer pricing of royalties from permanent establishments (PE) to a parent company. The problem occurs because neither the rule of adjustment (korrigeringsregeln) nor articles 9 and 12 of the OECD model convention are applicable. What pos-sibilities exists in internal Swedish law to prevent the PE and parent company from using transfer pricing of royalty payments to ease the tax burden? Can article 7 be used in hindering capacity in regards to such a transaction? Royalties are generally taxed as income of business due to the principle of par-ticipation (delaktighetestanken), which means that the royalty is considered part of a PE situated in Sweden. The rule of adjustment as well as article 9 are ruled not to be applicable due to the lack of a legally binding contract between the parties. Article 12 point 3 directs royalties from PE’s to article 7 and is therefore not applicable in this situation. A basic principle in regards to transfer pricing is the so called arm’s length method and this is highly important in dealings with PE’s or associated companies to make sure that the transactions are han-dled at market price. The application of article 7 was analyzed with the result that income related to the PE is taxed in the Source state and the Source stated is allowed to adjust the income of the PE if incorrect transfer pricing occurs with the purpose of tax evasion. The Swedish internal tax system has a possibility to extract withdrawal taxes (uttagsbeskattning) in some cases when assets are removed from a company or PE. The conclusion is that these rules apply when incorrectly priced royalties are moved from the PE to the parent company. Alternatives are examined and the author comes to the conclusion that a source tax on royalties would facilitate the application of tax on royalties as well as prevent tax evasion. However, in light of the circumstances that approximately 90% of royalty payments exiting Sweden are submitted to different kinds of ex-emption to taxation, a complete abolishment of taxation on royalties would not be unreasonable.

Generation IV (Gen IV) is a developing new generation of nuclear power reactors which is foreseen to bring about a safer and more sustainable production of nuclear power. A Swedish research program called GENIUS aims at developing the Gen IV technology, with emphasis on lead-cooled fast reactors. The present work is part of the GENIUS project, and deals with safeguards aspects for an envisioned future 100 MW Gen IV demonstration facility including storage and reprocessing plant. Also, the safeguards licensing aspects for the facilities have been investigated and results thereof are presented. As a basis for the study, the changed usage and handling of nuclear fuel, as compared to that of today, have been examined in order to determine how today's safeguards measures can be modified and extended to meet the needs of the demonstration facility. Safeguards approaches have been considered for within and between each unit at the demonstration facility, with the main focus on system aspects rather than proposing safeguards instrumentation on a detailed level. The proposed safeguards approach include the implementation of well-tried measures that are used at currently existing nuclear facilities as well as suggestions for new procedures. The former include, among others, regular inventory verifications, containment and surveillance measures as well as non-destructive and destructive measurements of nuclear materials. The traditional approaches may be improved and supplemented by modern techniques and approaches such as nuclear forensics, safeguards-by-design and improved on-line monitoring of streams of nuclear material. The safeguards approach for the demonstration facility should be outlined early in the licensing process, such that the facility units can be designed in a way that allows for implementation of adequate safeguards measures with minimal intrusion on the regular activities. For operating a nuclear facility in Sweden, two separate permits are required. A license application for a new facility shall be handed both to the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority and to the environmental court, which in parallel prepare for decisions according to the Nuclear Activities Act and the Environmental Code, respectively. In terms of the Swedish legislation, there are no fundamental differences between Gen IV facilities and currently existing plants. However, comprehensive investigations and evaluations would be required in order to license new Gen IV facilities.

With the advent of more powerful, less expensive computing resources, more and more attention is being given to Monte Carlo techniques in design application. In many circles, stochastic solutions are considered the next best thing to experimental data. Statistical uncertainties in Monte Carlo calculations are typically determined by the first and second moments of the tally. For certain types of calculations, there is concern that the uncertainty estimate is significantly non-conservative. This is typically seen in reactor eigenvalue problems where the uncertainty estimate is aggravated by the generation-to-generation fission source. It has been speculated that optimization of the random walk, through biasing techniques, may increase the non-conservative nature of the uncertainty estimate. A series of calculations are documented here which quantify the reliability of the Monte Carlo Neutron and Photon (MCNP) mean and uncertainty estimates by comparing these estimates to the true mean. These calculations were made with a liquid metal fast reactor model, but every effort was made to isolate the statistical nature of the uncertainty estimates so that the analysis of the reliability of the MCNP estimates should be relevant for small thermal reactors as well. Also, preliminary reactor physics calculations for two different special isotope production test assemblies for irradiation in the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) were performed using MCNP and are documented here. The effect of an yttrium-hydride moderator to tailor the neutron flux incident on the targets to maximize isotope production for different designs in different locations within the reactor is discussed. These calculations also demonstrate the useful application of MCNP in design iterations by utilizing many of the codes features. / Graduation date: 1992