Syftet med vår studie är att utifrån ett fenomenologiskt perspektiv bidra till förståelsen för hur kroppsligt samspel uttrycks, uppstår, fortskrider och avslutas i förskolebarns fria inomhuslek samt miljöns och materialets betydelse för detta. För att kunna besvara våra frågeställningar i studien har vi genomfört videoobservationer och fältanteckningar vid två förskolor. Resultatet visar att kroppsligt samspel uttrycks, uppstår, fortskrider och avslutas på många olika sätt. Miljön och materialet har stor betydelse för det kroppsliga samspelet. Vi menar att miljöns utformning och utbudet av material vid sekvenserna har möjliggjort för barnen att mötas i olika lekar. Mycket material på liten yta såg vi, i viss mån, signalerar till kroppsligt samspel och uppmuntrar barnens lust att dela leken. Våra resultat visar att barn under den fria inomhusleken får möjlighet att interagera med varandra i valfri miljö och med valfritt material. Utbudet och tillgången av miljö och material samverkar till barns möjligheter till intersubjektiva möten. / The purpose of this essay is to from a phenomenological perspective understand how physical interactions occur, express, continue and end during preschool children´s free indoor play and the significance of the environment and material have on physical interactions. The study is based on videofilms and notes from groups with 3-year old children in two Swedish preschools. The study shows that physical interactions occur, express, continue and end in many various ways. Environment and material have a big significance for physical interactions. We think that the design of the environment and the supply of material made it possible for the children to meet in different ways of playing. A lot of material in a small area can, in a way, initiate physical interactions and encourage children´s desire to play with each other and to share the play. Our results show that children, during the free indoor play get the possibility to interact with each other in optional environment and with optional material. The supply and access of environment and material cooperate to give children possibilities to intersubjective meetings.

In the more speculative parts of his book, The Conscious Mind (1996), David Chalmers proposes his Double-Aspect theory of information as a fundamental psychophysical law according to which phenomenally realized information is also realized physically. Such a principle connects physical properties to phenomenal properties. The concept of information he adopts has much in common with what is discussed by Shannon (1948). However, there is another concept of information which fits the double-aspect principle explanatorily better while escaping from the counterintuitive notions associated with the interpretation that Chalmers gives, such as panpsychism. In this thesis, I discuss a new concept of information, called pragmatic information, put forward, among others, by Roederer (2003) according to which information and information processing are exclusive attributes of living systems, related to the very definition of life. Roederer considers the concept of interaction as a basic, primordial concept for his task. He identifies two fundamentally different classes of interactions between the bodies that make up the universe as we know it, with the concepts of information and information processing appearing as the key discriminators between the two: Purely physical interactions which occur between inanimate objects and information-driven interactions between certain kinds of complex systems that form the biological domain. I argue that the double-aspect principle best fits the very concept of information related to information-driven interactions. I will further explore two aspects of information-driven interactions in living systems: mechanical and non-mechanical. It seems that the realization of phenomenal consciousness, in accordance with double-aspect principle, can be explained according to the latter aspect. Then, the idea of the existence of non-mechanical information-driven interactions will be fortified by some evidence in quantum mechanics.

The injection of carbon dioxide (CO2) into saline formations for the purpose of limiting greenhouse gas emissions has been proposed as an alternative to the atmospheric venting of carbon dioxide. In the evaluation process for selecting a potential target saline formation for the disposal of carbon dioxide, flow characterisation of the disposed plume should be undertaken by reservoir simulation of the target formation. The movement of injected carbon dioxide in the saline formation is influenced by many factors including the physics of carbon dioxide at deep formation depths and pressure, physical interactions with formation rock and pore water and variations in the rock flow pathways through changes in formation heterogeneity. This thesis investigates the roles of physical interactions on the disposal of carbon dioxide and the ability to contain the injected gas through evaluation of trapping mechanisms such as dissolution of CO2 in formation water and residual gas trapping through the process of gas-water relative permeability hysteresis. Variable formation heterogeneity is evaluated for its impact on the migration of injected CO2 plume movement and the role of formation heterogeneity in impeding or accelerating the immobilisation of injected carbon dioxide. Multiple reservoir simulation studies were conducted to evaluate, initially, the role of different trapping mechanisms in immobilising the movement of injected carbon dioxide and subsequently, the role of variations in formation rock in the migration and trapping of and injected plume of carbon dioxide. The major simulation study shows that the selection process for identifying appropriate saline formations should not only consider their size and permeability but should also consider their degree of heterogeneity endemic to the formation. / A set of reservoir performance metrics were developed for the CO2 disposal projects. The metrics were applied to compare plume migration of injected CO2 (both vertically and laterally) and containment (through dissolution and residual phase trapping) in these studies. The findings demonstrate how formation heterogeneity has a significant impact on the subsurface behaviour of the carbon dioxide. Formation dip influences the rate of migration, with low formation dipping reservoirs having slower rates of vertical migration. Increasing the tortuousity of the migration flow path by either increasing the shale (non-reservoir) content or lengthening the shale baffles in the formation (corresponding to a gradual decrease in reservoir quality), can progressively inhibit the vertical flow of the plume whilst promoting its lateral flow. The increase in the tortuosity of the CO2 migration pathway delays the migration of CO2 and increases the residence time for the CO2 in the formation. Thus, formation heterogeneity impedes the onset of residual gas trapping through hysteresis effects. Ultimately less carbon dioxide is likely to collect under the seal in heterogeneous formations due to increased reservoir contact and long residence times, thereby reducing the risk of seepage to overlying formations. / Given sufficient permeability for economic injection of CO2, then low to mid net-to-gross heterogeneous saline formations with low formation dip and lengthy intra-bedded shales are desirable for selection for the geological disposal of CO2. Detailed reservoir characterisation of any potential geological disposal saline formations is required in order to accurately predict the range of outcomes in the long term flow characterisation of injected CO2 into those formations.

Le gyre subpolaire de l'Atlantique Nord est le siège de la plus importante floraison (bloom) phytoplanctonique de l'océan global. Cet événement biologique majeur joue un rôle crucial sur le fonctionnement des écosystèmes océaniques et sur le cycle global du carbone. L'objectif de cette thèse est de mieux comprendre les processus bio-physiques qui contrôlent la dynamique du bloom phytoplanctonique et l'export de carbone à différentes échelles spatio-temporelles. Dans une première étude, basée sur des données satellites climatologiques, le gyre subpolaire a été biorégionalisé en fonction des différents cycles annuels de biomasse phytoplanctonique. Les conditions de mélange, couplées à l’intensité de la lumière de surface, contrôlent l’initiation du bloom printanier au sein des différentes biorégions. La nouvelle génération de flotteurs BGC-Argo a permis, dans une deuxième étude, d’explorer des processus à des échelles plus fines, en particulier pendant la période hivernale jusqu’à présent très peu étudiée. En hiver, des restratifications intermittentes et locales de la couche de mélange, liées à des processus de sous-mésoéchelle, initient des blooms transitoires qui influencent la dynamique du bloom printanier. Enfin, une troisième étude a montré que la variabilité haute-fréquence de la profondeur de la couche de mélange pendant la transition hiver-printemps joue aussi un rôle crucial sur l’export de carbone. / The North Atlantic Subpolar Gyre exhibits the largest phytoplancton bloom of the global ocean. This major biological event plays a crucial role for the functioning of marine ecosystems and the global carbon cycle. The aim of this thesis is to better understand the bio-physical processes driving the dynamics of the phytoplankton bloom and carbon export at various spatiotemporal scales.In a first study, based on satellite data at a climatological scale, the subpolar gyre is bioregionalized according to distinct annual phytoplankton biomass cycles. The light-mixing regime controls the phytoplankton bloom dynamics in the different bioregions.In a second study, the new generation of BGC-Argo floats allowed for processes to be explored at a finer scale, especially during the overlooked winter season. In winter, intermittent and local restratifications of the mixed layer, triggered by sub-mesoscale processes, initiate transient winter blooms impacting the spring bloom dynamics.Finally, a third study showed how the high-frequency variability of the mixed layer depth during the winter-spring transition plays a crucial role on carbon export.

Media designed to elicit Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) has been used for years for relaxation and improved sleep. Recent research has shown that experiencing ASMR lowers markers for stress, and can induce a relaxed mood. In this thesis, the use of ASMR in a somaesthetic design process was used to define experiential qualities of relaxation. Somaesthetic sensitivity training, ASMR exploration, a material exploration, and a workshop produced several themes relevant to relaxation. Out of these, the themes with the most promise for this project were selected and further examined through the formation of the artifact The Rice Walker, a walking-based artifact for ASMR-inspired relaxation. Using a thematic analysis, the foundations for three experiential qualities of relaxation were identified: Allowing for Anticipation, Softness, Gentleness, and Gradual Transitions, and Control Without Demands. These qualities can be used to expand the soma design space, or could be used in the development of relaxing human-computer interactions. / Media designad för att framkalla ASMR har använts i flera år för avslappning och bättre sömn. Ny forskning har visat att upplevd ASMR sänker stressmarkörer, och kan leda till ett avslappnat tillstånd. I detta examensarbete utforskades användandet av ASMR i en somaestetisk designprocess för att definera experientiella kvalitéer av avslappning. Somaestetisk träning, utforskning av ASMR, en förstapersons material utforskning, samt en workshop resulterade i flera teman relevanta för avslappning. Av dessa valdes de teman med bäst möjlighet till utveckling ut, och dessa teman utvärderades mer utförligt i skapandet av artifakten The Rice Walker som använder gång för att ge känslan av ASMR-inspirerad avslappning. Tre kvalitéer identifierades genom en tematisk analys: Allowing for Anticipation, Softness, Gentleness, and Gradual Transitions, och Control Without Demands. Dessa kvalitéer kan utöka soma design-området, och kan användas i utvecklingen av avslapppnande människo-dator interaktioner.