The electrification of personal transport vehicles is one of the strategies to counteract global warming and dependance on fossil fuels. Diesel powered cars are already prohibited in several big cities and the prices for fuel are constantly climbing. Even so, electric cars are still a premium that not everyone can afford as they could an older ICE-car. This means that there can be a gap in the near future were the Swedish working- and middle class can neither afford a new EV nor refuel their combustion engine car. This thesis investigates the possibilities and challenges of electric conversion of an existing, (used) combustion engine car as an alternative to buying a new electric car. The conversion is meant to be a DIY-project that can be carried out by anyone with the capacity to learn all the skills necessary and with sufficient funds to own a car in the first place. Parts of or the whole project can be outsourced to machine shops or similar, if there are areas where knowledge or equipment of the builder are insufficient. This type of conversion proves to be highly modular where the selection of both car and components depends on budget, time, and knowledge. Brushed DC motors offer reliability at a low cost, but with relatively low efficiency. A three-phase induction motor will be a more costly option, but with the benefit of higher efficiency and power. The batteries that are deemed appropriate for the conversion are lead-acid and lithium-ion batteries. Lead-acid batteries are robust and have a low cost. Their low energy density will however result in a higher weight making this type of battery best suited for a small car with short range. Lithium-ion batteries, which are used in commercial EVs, have a high energy density and lower weight. They come at a high cost however, and they require individual monitoring of the cells’ voltage to prevent potential failure. The converted car will have to be registered as a modified vehicle in order to legally be used in Sweden. The original total weight of the car cannot be exceeded during the conversion and because of this, a car with low curb weight and high max load is preferable as a starting point. / Den pågående elektrifieringen av personlig transport är ett av verktygen för att uppnå en hållbar utveckling. I samband med detta stiger bränslepriser och förbud mot dieseldrivna bilar finns numera i flertalet städer. Trots detta är elbilar fortfarande mycket dyra i inköp. Elkonvertering av befintliga (begagnade) bilar kan vara både ekonomiskt och ekologiskt gynnsamt då resultatet blir en cirkulär ekonomi och minskat behov av fossila bränslen, samtidigt som bilägaren ej behöver betala för dyrt bränsle. Detta examensarbete kartlägger möjligheterna och utmaningarna kring elkonvertering av enbegagnad bil med förbränningsmotor som alternativ för att köpa en ny elektrisk bil. Konverteringen skall vara ett DIY-projekt som kan genomföras av alla som har kapaciteten att lära sig de färdigheter som krävs samt har finansiella möjlighten att äga en bil. Delar av eller hela arbetet kan även lämnas bort till en mekanisk verkstad om byggaren saknar kunskap eller utrustningen för att genomföra projektet. Att utföra en sådan konvertering visar sig vara högst modulärt där val av bil eller komponenter behöver fattas utifrån budget, tid och kunskap. Kolborst-DC motorer erbjuder pålitlighet till ett lågt pris men har förhållandevis låg verkningsgrad. Trefas AC motorer innebär högre kostnad men erbjuder högre effektivitet och mer effekt. De batterier som bedöms lämpliga för konverteringen är bly-syra batterier och litium-jonbatterier. Även här skiljer sig kostnad och prestanda. Bly-syrabatterier är robusta och innebär lägre kostnad, men har låg energidensitet och resulterar i hög vikt. De lämpar sig därför för mindre bilar med kort räckvidd. Litium-jonbatterier, som används kommersiellt i dagens elbilar, har hög energidensitet och lägre vikt. De är dock ett mer kostsamt alternativ och kräver cellövervakning för att förhindra potentiellt haveri. Bilen kommer behövas registreras som ombyggt fordon för att lagligt kunna brukas i Sverige. Viktigt är att bilens ursprungliga totalvikt ej överskrids, varför en bil med låg tjänstevikt och hög maxlast är att föredra som utgångspunkt för konverteringen.

The aim of this thesis is to explore consumer perceptions regarding the emerging trend among traditional clothing stores in Gothenburg, Sweden, where a section of their retail space is dedicated to reselling pre-loved clothing. Additionally, it seeks to investigate the factors influencing consumers' preference for these sections over conventional thrift stores. Employing a qualitative approach, the study conducts 10 shop-along sessions comprising semi-structured interviews and unstructured observations in four traditional clothing stores, each featuring an integrated pre-loved section. The theoretical framework encompasses consumer value theory, supplemented by the Means-End Chain Theory, which is utilized to analyze the findings. Results reveal a positive response from participants toward pre-loved initiatives, indicating an overall favorable perception. Findings show that consumers perceive pre-loved initiatives as multiple valuable, including economic savings, functional quality, social value, and an enjoyable, empowering, and satisfying experience. Furthermore, various factors such as curated pieces, well-organized sections, unique garments, and diverse assortments influence consumers, leading to different consequences and values such as feeling efficient, self-fulfillment/self-expression, and enjoyment, thus favoring pre-loved initiatives over conventional thrift stores. In conclusion, the study sheds light on the growing preference for pre-loved initiatives among consumers in traditional clothing stores.

Datum: 26:e juni 2019 Nivå: C-uppsats, i företagsekonomi, specialisering marknadsföring. Institution: Institutionen för ekonomi, teknik och samhälle - Luleå Tekniska Universitet Författare: Sara Bohlin Handledare: Maria Ek Styvén Titel: Fördelar och nackdelar med att konsumera secondhandkläder Nyckelord: Secondhandkläder, secondhand, traditionellt tillverkade kläder, kläder, miljömedvetenhet, prismedvetenhet, behov av att vara unik, modeintresse, behov av att visa status upplevelse av ofräschhet. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att få en ökad förståelse för konsumenters drivkrafter när det gäller att köpa eller inte köpa secondhandkläder. Metod: Deduktiv studie med ett kvalitativt tillvägagångsätt som genomförts med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Slutsats: Slutsatserna som drogs efter intervjuerna var att de vanligaste anledningarna till att köpa secondhandkläder var miljömedvetenhet, prismedvetenhet och modeintresse. De av de intervjuade som köpte mycket secondhandkläder utryckte alla på något sätt att de också hade ett behov av att ha en unik stil. Den vanligaste anledningen till att inte köpa secondhandkläder var modeintresse. Detta visade sig genom att de flesta av de intervjuade som köpte få eller inga kläder på secondhand också svarade att de var intresserade av mode. / Date: June 26, 2019 Level: C-uppsats, thesis in business Administration, Specialization Marketing Institution: Department of Business Administration, Technology and Social Sciences - Luleå University of Technology Author: Sara Bohlin Title: Advantages and disadvantages of consuming second-hand clothes Tutor: Maria Ek Styvén Key words: Second-hand clothes, second-hand, traditionally made clothes, clothes, environmentalism, price sensitivity, need for uniqueness, fashion involvement, need for status, perception of contamination. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to better understand what, motivates consumers to buy or not to buy second-hand clothes. Method: A deductive study with a qualitative approach that was implemented using semi-structured interviews. Conclusion: The conclusions drawn after the interviews were that the most common reasons for buying second-hand clothes were environmentalism, price sensitivity and fashion involvement. Those of the interviewed who bought a lot of second-hand clothes all expressed in some way that they also had a need to have a unique style. The most common reason for not buying second-hand clothes was fashion involvement. This was shown by the fact that most of the interviewees who bought few or no clothes on second-hand, also replied that they were interested in fashion.

(in English): This Thesis deals with the phenomenon of indirect translation. Since indirect translation is still relatively common in the Czech culture, but at the same time rather understudied, the aim of this Thesis is to describe the phenomenon in more detail and with the help of an actual text analysis to investigate the influence this method has on the final translation. Two texts were chosen for the analysis, both written by the Dutch historian Johan Huizinga, being a characteristic sample of the bibliography of Czech indirect translations of Dutch written works. Compiling this bibliography was one of the tasks of this Thesis. It documents the extent to which indirect translation was used in past and present, and it also shows what kind of texts are most likely to be translated indirectly. Finally, the chosen texts were reduced (using sample method) to fragments that were then analysed in terms of stylistic and semantic shifts. According to the analysis the most common shifts appeared to the stylistic ones, mostly those that result in weakening the original style of the author in favour of the translator's own style. What the semantic shifts concerns, in comparison with the mediating translation they seem to occur twice as often in the mediated translation.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T13:31:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Andrea.pdf: 1279654 bytes, checksum: a0de2590f9818f5e6c9492531bfd610b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-06-04 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Tobacco use may be considered a global epidemic and has a great impact on health as well as social, economic and sanitarian consequences. Besides the damage to smoker s health, second hand smoke is very critical to collective health and environment. It is the third leading preventable cause of death in the world. Tobacco control is a public health issue and has been the target of an international framework convention. Among tobacco control policies in Brazil, the 9294/96 law that forbids smoking indoors was chosen to be the purpose of this study. This law is not widely accepted by entertainment establishments (restaurants, bars, fast-food places, cafes, disco houses). Implied is the need to better understand owners and managers rationale concerning to this political issue. In fact, it is important to identify the factors that may influence their decision to adopt this law. For this, an exploratory study was conducted in two phases: a qualitative phase with 11 face-to-face interviews in which the content analysis generated a questionnaire answered by 60 participants in the quantitative phase. To guarantee validity, a panel of 8 experts analyzed the instrument and it was retested by a sub sample of 30 participants. Statistical tests performed showed that 73,3% of participants do not favor the law mentioned above, and that there is no significant difference of opinion among all the segments investigated. Data showed that both political and social factors play a relevant role in this matter. Both variables can not be analyzed apart from each other, as SANDOVAL (2001) and AIRHIHENBUWA (1995) had defended in their theoretical models (political conscientiousness and PEN- 3, respectively). Based on these models, some arguments identified were the law is not enforced, government initiatives are culturally discredited, competition between establishments is great, and owners and managers fear that they would lose business. There is inter- and intra-group favoritism that leads establishments to accept smokers behavior. Data suggests that tobacco control policies for these places must be revisited / O tabagismo é uma epidemia global que provoca danos sérios à saúde, com conseqüências sociais, econômicas e sanitárias. Além dos malefícios que causa à saúde do próprio fumante, a fumaça exalada pelo consumo dos derivados do tabaco também é prejudicial à saúde coletiva e ao meio ambiente. A Poluição Tabágica Ambiental é a terceira maior causa de morte evitável no mundo. Trata-se de uma questão de saúde pública que ganhou notória ênfase nas últimas décadas, dando origem ao primeiro tratado mundial de saúde pública, que fixa padrões internacionais para o controle do tabaco. Entre as políticas no Brasil, destacou-se, para fins do presente estudo, a Lei n.º 9.294/96, que proíbe fumar em ambientes fechados. Essa lei não chega a ser amplamente adotada pelos estabelecimentos do ramo do entretenimento (restaurante, bar, lanchonete, danceteria, café, shopping center), o que pode ser considerado como um fenômeno político e reforça a necessidade de se entender que fatores compõem a lógica dos seus proprietários e gerentes. Para tanto, uma pesquisa exploratória foi conduzida em duas etapas: uma qualitativa, com 11 entrevistas face a face, cuja análise do seu conteúdo gerou um questionário, aplicado a 60 participantes na fase quantitativa. Para validação desse instrumento, foi feita uma avaliação por 8 profissionais de diferentes áreas de atuação e a sua reaplicação com uma subamostra de 30 participantes. Os testes estatísticos revelaram que 73,3% dos pesquisados não adotam a lei e que não existem divergências de opinião significativas entre os diversos segmentos investigados. Além disso, os dados apontam uma inter-relação de fatores políticos e sociais como pano de fundo da decisão de se adotar ou não a lei em questão. Ficou claro que essas variáveis não podem ser analisadas isoladamente, corroborando o pressuposto pelos modelos teóricos utilizados para explicar esse fenômeno, isto é, o modelo de consciência política (SANDOVAL, 2001) e o PEN-3 (AIRHIHENBUWA, 1995). Com base nesses modelos, alguns argumentos foram identificados: a lei não é regulamentada; as ações do governo estão ou são culturalmente desacreditadas; a concorrência com outros estabelecimentos do mesmo ramo é grande e seus administradores temem perder a clientela; existe um favorecimento inter e intragrupal que leva os estabelecimentos à conivência com o comportamento dos fumantes. Os resultados sugerem que as políticas de controle do tabaco para essas empresas carecem de adequação

Forskningen kring effektiva marknader är uppdelad; ena sidan påstår att marknaden är fullständigt effektiv och det inte går att skapa någon form av överavkastning. Andra sidan hävdar tvärtemot att endast historisk information reflekteras i dagens priser. På kort sikt kan det finns en viss ineffektivitet och de flesta erkänner att marknaden innehåller anomalier Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka om det existerar systematiska fel beträffande informationsflöden som pekar mot att den svenska aktiemarknaden inte är av semi-stark form eller stark form av effektivitet Vi utgår från tre metodologiska ställningstaganden; utgångspunkt, forskningsansats samt kunskapssyn. En deduktivt kvantitativ metod tillämpas och vi applicerar metoden för event study. Vi finner stöd för att det finns systematiska fel i marknaden beträffande informationsflöden i form av aktierekommendationer. Resultaten antyder att den svenska aktiemarknaden inte är av starkt effektiv form och i ett fall av fyra finner vi att den inte heller besitter semi-stark form. / Research concerning efficient markets are divided into two camps; the one hand, claims that the market is fully efficient and it is not possible to create any kind of excess returns. The other side argues the contrary that only historical information are reflected in today’s prices. Short term, there is some inefficiency and most recognize that the market contain anomalies The purpose is to investigate whether there exist indications regarding flows of information to the Swedish stock market suggesting a semi-strong form or strong form of efficiency. We start from three methodological statements; starting point, the research approach and epistemological beliefs. A deductive quantitative methodology is used, and we apply the method of event study. We find evidence for the existence of systematic errors in the market in terms of flows of information in the form of stock recommendations. The results suggest that the Swedish stock market is not of the strong efficient form and in one case out of four, we find that it does not possess the semi-strong form.

More than half of all cases of breast cancer occur among women without any known risk factors. More research is needed on suspected risk factors in order to refine current breast cancer screening tools. The objectives of this thesis were: to determine the breast cancer risk associated with known risk factors (ethnicity, family history, breast biopsy, age at menarche, age at first birth, alcohol, HRT, and BMI), suspected risk factors (smoking, second-hand smoke exposure, smoked/grilled foods, and NSAID use), and to examine the above associations according to tumour receptor status, histologic grade, and menopausal status, with potential confounders also considered. This thesis project was conducted within the framework of the Molecular Epidemiology of Breast Cancer study, a case-control study of women in Vancouver, BC and Kingston, ON, with 1140 cases and 1169 controls recruited from 2005-2010. Information was collected from a detailed questionnaire. Cases and controls were similar in terms of age at menarche, age at first birth, smoking history, second-hand smoke exposure, lifetime smoked/grilled food consumption, HRT, and BMI. Among cases, there were significantly less Europeans and more Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino subjects compared to controls. Cases were more likely to have a first degree relative with breast cancer, as well as a previous benign breast biopsy. Alcohol consumption and past NSAID usage was higher among controls. The level of education completed was higher among controls. Cases were also more likely to be postmenopausal. Family history was associated with breast cancer risk (OR=1.59, CI=1.30-1.94), as was BMI (OR=1.28, CI=1.05-1.58 for overweight and OR=2.28, CI=1.35-3.86 for obese class II). Second-hand smoke was also found to be associated with breast cancer risk (OR=1.42, CI=1.02-1.97 for individuals with a less than 10 pack-year smoking history). Due to reduced sample size with stratification and marginally significant results, it is not possible to draw definitive conclusions regarding pathology sub-types. In summary, these results provide support for the association between several risk factors and breast cancer risk. More research is needed to ascertain how receptor status, histologic grade, and menopausal status affect these associations. / Thesis (Master, Community Health & Epidemiology) -- Queen's University, 2011-08-15 19:43:06.689

As there are more than 1.4 billion smartphones sold every year in the world and around four million smartphones in Sweden. In recent years there has been a growing concern to move from a linear economic system to a circular economic system. Smartphones and other electronic equipment stand for the largest growing waste streams in the European Union. The rising prices of raw materials used in smartphone manufacturing over the last decades, along with the fact that these minerals are being mined in conflict stricken areas and the growing environmental awareness among people makes the refurbished smartphone’s market very current. Thus, it is of great interest to investigate consumer behaviour linked to refurbished smartphones as it is still in its early stages. As such, many of the barriers identified in this thesis can be linked to the communication of refurbished smartphones. The purpose of this thesis is to get a deeper understanding of how companies can communicate to break the barriers that exists for the consumer acceptance of refurbished smartphones in the Swedish market. Earlier studies have also focused on refurbishment as a concept rather than the consumer’s responses towards it. The study will be conducted in Sweden which has not been done previously. Therefore, our study will contribute to a deeper understanding of the consumer behaviour in the refurbished smartphone market in Sweden and thus aid companies in their communication of refurbished smartphones. To fulfil the purpose, a qualitative study has been conducted through semi-structured interviews. The sample groups were environmental enthusiasts, technology experts, refurbished product buyers, second hand buyers and companies. From the interviews five themes were derived: initial response, benefits, risks, barriers and communication. The findings and conclusions of the thesis are derived from the themes and subthemes that were created. There are many barriers and risks that make people avoid purchasing refurbished smartphones. The findings suggest that the consumers’ initial response are generally very positive and many consumers would consider a refurbished smartphone as their next smartphone purchase. Another finding is that a lack of knowledge about refurbishment lead to doubts about refurbished smartphones. The barriers found were lack of awareness, lack of thrill of newness, naming of refurbished products and lack of knowledge. The largest barrier, was lack of awareness. A solution to resolve this barrier could be to communicate the refurbishment process. A major finding was that that the environmental aspects were a vital purchase criteria for the consumers, however, not the most vital aspect. Moreover, societal benefits were raised regarding refurbished products in terms of benefitting the entire society. The biggest risk detected in the study was the performance, risk as the consumer may believe that the smartphone will be in a poor condition even though it has been refurbished. A big risk was the financial risk in terms of the substantial price for a refurbished smartphone. To reduce this the companies could adapt to the market standard and sell their refurbished smartphones in package deals. Our findings suggest that price should be communicated in combination with warranty and also environmental aspects, however, the environmental aspect is often abstract. The companies should consider using branding more to communicate these messages. Word of mouth was seen to be important and companies should utilise customer reviews more. In terms of emotional and rational appeals both should be used, however, what appeal that the companies should focus on emphasise on is not obvious.

The objective of the present doctoral thesis is to describe the reception of Czech literature in Spain between 1900 and 2015 with a special emphasis on German as a mediating language for translation between Czech and Spanish, placing Czech research of this phenomenon into a broad international context of investigating the role of languages and cultures in multilingual communities. The thesis further explores issues partially covered by previous research (Uličný 2005, Špirk 2011, 2014, Cuenca 2013). The theoretical part first provides a short historical context of both countries, commenting on their bilateral relations during the 20th century, analysing the publishing sector and describing the official censorship. It then provides a detailed investigation of indirect translations and introduces diverse methods in which they can be explored, highlighting the importance of paratextual material, that is paratexts (Genette 1982, 1987) and metatexts (Popovič 1975, 1983), and the influence of censorship and dominant ideology (Abellán 1980, 1982, 1987; Neuschäfer 1994). Methodologically, the present work relies on Czech and Slovak translation studies (Levý, Popovič) and the Spanish TRACE project (Rabadán, Merino). The empirical part uses the methodological tools of critical discourse analysis, author's...

The Online Clothing Reselling Platforms (OCRPs) industry foresees ongoing significant market growth, building upon the expansion it has achieved in recent years. This trend makes it essential to understand how website usability factors affect consumer behaviour and identify practical opportunities for optimization in this specific context of e-commerce. Through empirical research, this study aims to contribute to the existing gap in the literature by analyzing the effect of usability factors on purchase intention and developing a practical usability framework that can guide designers and developers towards the successful implementation of usability factors that facilitates consumer decision-making and purchase intention.  To address the research gap, a mixed-methods multiple case study approach was utilized, combining a heuristic evaluation, a survey of 186 participants, and usability testing with six participants augmented by eye-tracking software and semi-structured interviews. The research was conducted on two key OCRPs, building upon existing knowledge of website usability factors as well as empirical findings.  The results indicate that navigability, content relevance, credibility, and simplicity are positively correlated with increased purchase intention in OCRPs. The study suggests that these four website usability factors should be prioritized when designing and developing these platforms. Based on these findings, a practical usability framework was created to provide designers and developers with actionable insights that can assist them in prioritizing and optimizing website usability to increase purchase intention. The framework lists practical guidelines per usability factor and demonstrates the factors’ interdependence. The framework is designed to further enable the growth of OCRPs by increasing purchase intention through website usability.