Research question: Is adopting flextime, remote work, and four-day workweeks advantageous to employees and organizations?  Purpose: Advances in technology and the changing nature of work have led to organizations adopting remote work, flextime, and a four-day workweek. The aim is to comprehend how these could affect employees and organizations, then advise organizations on whether to implement them. Employee productivity, satisfaction and well-being are assessed, as well as potential benefits and challenges. The result demonstrates an understanding of advantages, disadvantages, personal interests and critiques, followed by recommendations on facing emerging challenges and suggestions for further research.  Method: The research development is of an inductive nature. A mixed-method technique is used, with 7 respondents contributing to the qualitative research and 120 participants to the quantitative. Most respondents are dispersed around Sweden, but a few from foreign nations are also included to get a global viewpoint. The results are evaluated and contrasted with theoretical data from prior research.  Conclusion: The concepts have proven to be of great interest to employees, with a minority being against some. Many employees feel burned out and unsatisfied with a traditional 5-day workweek, and thus support a 4-day one that would allow more quality time for themselves and to socialize. A vast majority are interested in companies that grant the flexibility to work remotely and schedule their own hours, over those that do not. Trials of the concepts have resulted in increased productivity, and efficiency, better mental and physical health, higher job satisfaction, equality, work-life balance, as well as reduced turnover, burnout, stress and resentment towards management. The concepts would not work for every business or location, but they are highly advantageous to employees and organizations where they suit.

Background: A closed-loop medication system is planned to be implemented at Uppsala University Hospital. Thus, an advanced pharmaceutical validation system called System-Assisted Pharmaceutical VALidation (SAPVAL) is being developed, which aims to identify and manage risk prescriptions, hence reducing potential adverse drug events (ADEs). The system is based on clinical rules that generate an alert due to a "risk score”. As part of SAPVAL, this study focuses on alerts related to an increased risk of bleeding. Aim: This study aims to investigate, gain an enhanced understanding, and determine the clinical significance of alerts generated by one of the clinical rules (rule 2- risk of bleeding) that was developed within SAPVAL. Methods: A cross-sectional retrospective study where alerts 100 from randomly selected patients, with a previously identified risk of bleeding, were investigated in regard to the risk period for potential/true ADEs, undertaken mitigation measures and clinical significance. This was done by accessing the patients’ electronic health records. Results: The risk period for potential ADEs was 29 days. In total, 35 ADEs were identified, with anemia as the most common symptom. Mitigation measures were undertaken for 55 patients, of which the most common were prescription of a proton pump inhibitor and blood transfusions. The clinical evaluation showed that 66% of the 103 included alerts were deemed clinically insignificant. Conclusion: Most alerts were deemed clinically insignificant. This in turn, emphasizes the importance of a system like SAPVAL, where insignificant alerts are filtered away by pharmacists before reaching the physicians, thus reducing problems related to alert fatigue.

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Increasing the milking frequency of early lactation dairy cows increases their milk yield, both during increased milking and after the cows are returned to a normal twice-daily milking schedule. When milked four times a day (4X) for only the first twenty-one days of lactation, the right udder half produces 3 kg/d more milk than the left half, which is milked only two times a day (2X) over the course of lactation (Hale et al., 2003). Alterations to this increased milking frequency (IMF) approach have been investigated in order to maximize production of the animals and determine the most efficient practice for producers. The aim of this study was to determine the appropriate duration of early lactation IMF treatment by increasing milking frequency of early lactation cows for various lengths of time, and subsequently increasing the use of this management practice on Virginia dairy farms. The right udder half of twenty-three primiparous and multiparous Holstein cows were milked 4X for 10, 20, or 40 days at the beginning of lactation, and the left udder half 2X for the entire lactation. Udder-half milk yields were measured at various time points throughout lactation and used to calculate the difference between right (4X) and left (2X) udder halves. Overall, treatment did not have a significant effect on milk yield difference throughout the entire lactation; the udder half differences for each group were -0.45 kg, 1.92 kg and 4.62 kg for the 10 d, 20 d and 40 d treatments (P > 0.05). In addition to the IMF portion of the experiment, two different methodologies were used to investigate the possible mechanism of local regulation of milk yield in response to IMF treatment. Milk fatty acid analysis was performed on milk samples obtained from the above experiment. Three different groups of fatty acids were analyzed to detect potential changes in the right udder half (4X) when compared to the left (2X); the three groups were denovo, C16, and preformed fatty acids. There was no significant effect of treatment on fatty acid composition of right and left udder halves for any of the three groups (P > 0.05). The second methodology used to explore a possible mechanism behind increased milk yield following IMF treatment was immunohistochemistry of mammary gland tissue samples obtained after IMF treatment in a previous experiment. The key target investigated was a component of the Hippo signaling pathway, Yes-associated protein (YAP). Intensity of YAP staining in the cytoplasmic area of mammary epithelial cells (MEC) and number of YAP-positive stained nuclei located in the MEC were quantified for each of the images obtained. There was no effect of treatment or day on intensity of staining (P > 0.05) with no difference in the intensity of staining between 4X and 2X samples or d 21 and d 60 samples. However, the interaction for treatment x day tended to be significant (P < 0.06), with the d 60 samples tending to have higher intensity of staining than d 21 samples. For YAP-positive nuclei, there was a significant effect of day (P < 0.05), with d 60 samples having significantly more YAP positive nuclei. There was not a significant effect of treatment or treatment x day interaction (P > 0.05) with 2X and 4X samples having the same number of YAP positive nuclei. Results from the first experiment reveal that 40 d of IMF during early lactation is sufficient to produce an increase in milk and component yields throughout lactation. This practice could be implemented on Virginia dairy farms as a way to increase efficiency and milk yield per cow. Results from the second half of this research indicates that further research is needed to investigate the fatty acid content of milk from cows subject to IMF treatment during early lactation. In addition, YAP potentially plays a role in the changes occurring in the mammary gland, with increased intensity of YAP staining and increased number of YAP positive nuclei observed at 60 DIM. Understanding of this protein and its involvement in the mammary gland could lead to identifying a mechanism for which this increase in milk yield and components following IMF is occurring. Further research needs to be done to provide results supporting the current experiment. / MSLFS

Insect herbivory on forest canopies strongly affects ecosystem nutrient cycling and availability in a variety of ways, e.g. by changing the quantity, quality and timing of nutrient input to forest soils. A qualitative method for measurements of ingestion, egestion and exuviation rates of the insect Chrysomela tremulae on leaves of the hybrid Populus tremula x tremuloides were tested in this study with the aim to detect differences in relative nutrient cycling efficiencies. The assimilation efficiency (AD), efficiency of conversion of digested food (ECD) and efficiency of conversion of ingested food (ECI) increased from 1st, through 2nd and 3rd instar larvae with generally higher efficiencies for nitrogen than carbon. Effects on nutrient limitations for the insect were also tested by increasing the C:N ratio of insect diet. A carbohydrate solution was painted onto leaves which resulted in a significant increase in C:N (p&lt;0.0001). This lead to a trend of lengthened developmental time for each ontogenetic stage, as well as higher ingestion rate and lower egestion- and exuviation rates. However, a different method of increasing the C:N ratio is recommended in future experiments since the leaves never truly absorbed the solution.

As atividades agroindustriais familiares destacam-se como alternativas econômicas, podendo ter papel relevante para os agricultores familiares que não obtêm resultados financeiros considerados satisfatórios apenas com as atividades agrícolas. Entretanto, existem inúmeros riscos que podem afetar negativamente essas organizações, tanto em seu ambiente interno, quanto no externo. Nesse sentido, a pesquisa foi conduzida com o objetivo de analisar as percepções de riscos e as estratégias adotadas para gerenciá-los dos tomadores de decisões das agroindústrias familiares no estado do Rio Grande do Sul - RS. Com esta finalidade, os dados foram coletados por meio da aplicação de questionários via e-mail, em feiras locais e em visitas nas próprias agroindústrias familiares, resultando em uma amostra de 72 respondentes. Os dados foram analisados utilizando estatística descritiva, analise fatorial, teste Kruskal-Wallis e o teste de Dunn. Os resultados apresentam as características dos tomadores de decisões e das unidades de produção familiares e mostram que 62,5% da amostra estudada destacam como principal motivação para a criação desse novo empreendimento, o aumento da renda agregando valor à matéria-prima. Além disso, 87% dos respondentes afirmam que a atividade agroindustrial evoluiu desde a sua criação. O estudo revelou a existência de três grupos de agroindústrias familiares, levando em conta a principal matéria-prima utilizada: animal, vegetal e misto. Nesse contexto, criou-se a sigla MPPM para evidenciar as matérias-primas do grupo misto. Os resultados demonstram que os as fontes de riscos consideradas mais relevantes pelos respondentes foram: situação econômica do país, inflação/deflação e a variação do preço do produto produzido. As estratégias de gestão mais importantes foram: manter-se informado sobre novas tecnologias, utilizar informações de assistência técnica e manter liquidez adequada (produto final). Por fim, entende-se que esses resultados auxiliam os tomadores de decisões destes estabelecimentos e, para o desenvolvimento de políticas públicas nesse segmento. / The family agroindustrial activities are important economic alternatives primarily for family farmers who do not obtain satisfactory financial results only with agricultural activities. However, there are numerous risks that may adversely affect these organizations, both in internal and external environment. The objective of this study was to analyze the perceptional risks and strategies and how to manage them from the decision makers of family farms in the state of Rio Grande do Sul - RS. For this purpose, data were collected through e-mail questionnaires, at local fairs and visits in some family farms, resulting in a sample of 72 respondents. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn test. The results brough up decision makers characteristics and family production units and indicate that 62.5% of the studied population had primary motivation for the creation of this new venture, increased income adding value to raw materials. In addition, 87 % of the sample said that the agroindustrial activity has evolved since its inception. The study revealed the existence of three groups of family agroindustries, taking into account the main raw material: animal, vegetable and those using animal and vegetable (mix). It was created the abbreviation MPPM to highlight the raw materials of the mix group. The results show that the risks from sources considered most important by respondents were: economic situation of the country, inflation / deflation and the change in the price of the product produced. The most important management strategies were: to stay informed about new technologies, using technical assistance information and maintain adequate liquidity (final product). Finally, these results help decision makers of these establishments and for the development of public policies in this segment.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:22:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2009-02-11Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:48:25Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 bertozzo_f_me_botfca.pdf: 710173 bytes, checksum: 1c8e1c2c0b8b25a81c5c78b232c0a30c (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / A mamoneira (Ricinus communis L.) é uma planta oleaginosa de alto valor econômico. O óleo extraído de suas sementes é um dos mais versáteis encontrado na natureza; apresenta inúmeras aplicações em diversas áreas, podendo substituir de forma satisfatória o uso do petróleo em muitos produtos. Atualmente existe um grande interesse em aumentar a produtividade da planta mediante o aumento do número de flores femininas (pistiladas) que, conseqüentemente, aumentará o número de frutos e de sementes. Dessa forma, o objetivo desse trabalho foi através do método de melhoramento denominado seleção massal, selecionar e avaliar plantas de mamoneira da população FCA-UNESP-PB (porte baixo) para aumento da freqüência de flores femininas visando maior produtividade final. A seleção (ciclo de seleção) foi feita no ano de 2007 na fazenda Experimental Lageado e avaliada (ciclo de avaliação) em 2008 nas Fazendas Experimentais Lageado e São Manuel, ambas pertencentes à Faculdade de Ciências Agronômicas – UNESP – campus Botucatu e localizadas, respectivamente, nos municípios de Botucatu – SP e São Manuel – SP. O critério de seleção foram plantas que apresentaram 100% de flores femininas no racemo primário. As plantas com esse fenótipo que sofreram reversão sexual durante o ciclo de desenvolvimento, tiveram seus racemos autofecundados assim que passaram a produzir flores masculinas (estaminadas). Para o ciclo de avaliação foram colhidas sementes do racemo primário das plantas selecionadas com 100% de flores femininas - tratamento 1 (aberto);sementes dos racemos autofecundados dessas plantas inicialmente 100% femininas - tratamento 2 (autofecundado) e sementes colhidas ao acaso que serviram de controle – tratamento 3 (controle). Ao final do ciclo de avaliação pôde ser observado que houve aumento significativo a 1% de probabilidade... / Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) is a high economic value oil crop. The oil extracted from its seeds is one of the most versatile found in nature, has many applications in different areas and it can satisfactorily replace the use of petroleum in many products. Currently there is great interest in increasing the grain yield of the plant by increasing the number of female flowers (pistillate) that, consequently, increase the number of fruit and seeds. The objective of this research was through the method called for mass selection, select and evaluates castor bean plants of the population FCA-UNESP-PB (dwarf height) to increase the frequency of female flowers aimed at increasing grain yield. The selection (selection cycle) was conducted in 2007 in Experimental Lageado farm and evaluate (evaluation cycle) in 2008 in Experimental Lageado and Experimental São Manuel farms, both belonging to the Agriculture College of São Paulo State University – UNESP - campus Botucatu, located respectively in Botucatu – SP and São Manuel – SP cities. The selection criterion was plants that had 100% female flowers on the first raceme. Plants with this phenotype had their racemes selfed when they start to produce male (staminate) flowers (sex reversal). For the evaluation cycle were harvested seeds of the first raceme of selected plants with 100% female flowers – treatment 1 (open); seeds of selfed racemes with plants initially 100% female – treatment 2 (selfed) and seeds taken at random who served as control - treatment 3 (control). At the end of evaluation cycle can be observed that there was significant increase with 1% of probability... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Flowering dogwood (Cornus florida L.) populations have experienced severe declines caused by dogwood anthracnose in the past three decades. Mortality has ranged from 48 to 98%, raising the concern that genetic diversity of this native tree has been reduced significantly. Microsatellite data were used to evaluate the level and distribution of genetic variation throughout much of the native range of the tree. In the first conducted study, we found that genetic variation in areas affected by anthracnose was as high as or higher than areas without die-offs. We found evidence of four widespread, spatially contiguous genetic clusters. However, there was little relationship between geographic distance and genetic difference. These observations suggest that high dispersal rates and large effective population sizes have so far prevented rapid loss of genetic diversity. The effects of anthracnose on demography and community structure are likely to be far more consequential than short-term genetic effects. The second study examined levels and distribution of genetic variation of C. florida throughout Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP). Significant genetic structure at both landscape and local levels were found. We infer that two genetic clusters exist within the park, mostly separated by the main dividing ridge of the Great Smoky Mountains. The differentiation is statistically significant, but subtle, with gene flow evident through low-elevation corridors. It seems unlikely that recent demographic dynamics have resulted in a depletion of genetic variation in flowering dogwoods.

BAKGRUND: Bröstcancer är allmänt känt i samhället, men få känner till den ärftliga aspekten av bröstcancer. Genom ett blodprov kan vårdpersonal påvisa om kvinnor har en genmutation, som ger ökad risk för bröstcancer, eller inte. SYFTE: Syftet med studien är att beskriva kvinnors upplevelser av att leva med ärftligt ökad risk för bröstcancer. METOD: En kvalitativ litteraturstudie där 14 vetenskapliga artiklar har analyserats. RESULTAT: Kvinnorna som lever med ärftligt ökad risk för bröstcancer lever med en ständig oro och osäkerhet. Varje kvinna är unik och hennes erfarenheter är därav individuella. Trots denna individualitet kan vissa mönster identifieras. De mest framstående ämnesområdena är oro och osäkerhet samt svårighet att hantera hotet. DISKUSSION: Kvinnorna med ärftligt ökad risk för bröstcancer ser till familjens bröstcancererfarenheter vid hantering av den egna situationen. Detta är relevant för all vårdpersonal då det är av vikt att förstå patienten och hennes unika situation. / BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is commonly known through out the society, but few people are aware about the hereditary aspect of breast cancer. Through a blood test the healthcare professionals can determine if women have a genetic mutation, that increase the risk of getting breast cancer, or not. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to describe women's experience of living with an increased hereditary risk of breast cancer. METHOD: A qualitative literature study where 14 scientific articles were analysed. RESULT: Women who live with an increased hereditary risk of breast cancer live under constant worry and uncertainty. Each woman is unique and her experience is therefore very individual. Despite this individuality certain key point can be identified. The most distinguished subject areas are anxiety and uncertainty together with difficulty to handle the threat. DISCUSSION: Women with increased hereditary risk of breast cancer see to their family's breast cancer history when dealing with their own situation. This is important for all medical staff due to the importance of understanding the patient and her unique situation.

There are two objectives of this study.The first one was to study the new instrument Deltack fromPrufbau, and with the new knowledge, study the interaction between blanket and paper.Deltack is a new instrument to measure the ink splitting force. Blankets from an earlier study doneby GATF have been montered on 12 different Deltack print forms and those have together with Deltackbeen the base for this project.This study together with information from GATF’s study shows that some of the blankets have ahigher capability to adsorb ink. Those blankets generate a sharper shape on the force curve, they havea lower dot gain, but they print not as good solid.