Privacy is a topic of ever-increasing interest in the modern, connected world. With the advent of smart phones, the boundary between internet and the personal sphere has become less distinct. Most users of smart phones have very vague ideas of how various apps intrude on their privacy. At Karlstad University, one of the research groups at the Department of Computer Science is dedicated to research on privacy and protection thereof in general, and one research project is about increasing knowledge of how apps collect personal information about its users. This master thesis is about the development of a visualization tool that processes data collected from Android devices by a surveillance app developed within the aforementioned research project. The app keeps record of the usage of what in Android is termed Dangerous Permissions. The info collected is when such an event occurs, which app has requested the permission, the permission requested as well as the geographical location at the time of the event. Over time, more than 2 million such events has been recorded and collected in this manner. Previously, two student projects have developed different web based tools for visualizing the data collected. With this thesis work, a desktop application was developed; a visualization tool that imports the aforementioned data into a database connected to the tool. The graphical user interface of the visualization tool allows an analyst or scientific researcher to do detailed and fine-grained searches in that database and present the result in various charts, thereby visualizing how the apps ask for information that can be used for identifying and surveying individuals, thereby intruding on their privacy. The visualization tool is carefully designed with the aim for it to be scalable and extendable, through an architecture that allows for continuous development of further visualizations as well as other analysis functionality. / Frågan om personlig integritet får allt större betydelse den moderna, uppkopplade världen. Med smartmobilernas intåg har gränsen mellan internet och den privata sfären blivit allt mindre distinkt. Det stora flertalet användare av smartmobiler har mycket vaga begrepp om hur olika appar inkräktar på den personliga integriteten. Vid Karlstads Universitet och Avdelningen för Datavetenskap fokuserar forskningsgruppen PriSec – Privacy and Security – bl.a. på att förbättra den personliga integriteten. Ett av forskningsprojekten syftar till att öka medvetenheten om hur appar i smartmobiler och liknande, samlar in information om dess användare. Denna masteruppsats beskriver utvecklingen av ett verktyg för visualisering av data som insamlats från smartmobiler, läsplattor, etc., med operativsystemet Android. Detta har skett medelst en övervakningsapp som utvecklats inom det ovan nämnda forskningsprojektet. Appen i fråga håller reda på användningen av det som i Android kallas ”Dangerous Permissions” (eller på svenska: farliga privilegier). Den information som samlas in är vilka privilegier det gäller, vilka appar som använder dessa farliga privilegier, när detta sker och var mobilen befinner sig vid det aktuella tillfället. Mer än 2 miljoner sådana händelser har registrerats och samlats in. Tidigare har två studentprojekt utvecklat olika web-baserade verktyg för att visualisera det data som insamlats på detta sätt. I detta uppsatsarbete har en desktopapplikation utvecklats – ett verktyg för visualisering som importerar den nyss nämnda datan till en databas ansluten till verktyget. Via verktygets grafiska användargränssnitt kan analytiker och forskare göra precisionssökningar i databasen och presentera resultatet i olika diagram, på så sätt visualiserande hur apparna använder information som kan användas för att identifiera och kartlägga den person som använder smartmobilen i fråga, vilket inkräktar på deras personliga integritet. Visualiseringsverktyget är noggrant designat med målet att det skall vara skalbart och utbyggbart, genom en arkitektur som tillåter fortgående utveckling – såväl av ytterligare visualiseringar som annan funktionalitet för analys av innehållet i databasen.

O aproveitamento de células vivas de leveduras - Saccharomyces cerevisiae - como probiótico, e, componentes extraídos da parede celular desta levedura, como aditivos, para desejadas funções, têm sido objeto de interesse cada vez maior, pelos resultados promissores até então obtidos e, concomitantemente, pelo excedente de biomassa de leveduras gerado pela indústria de etanol e cerveja no Brasil. Por estes motivos, foram conduzidos dois experimentos, um com o objetivo de investigar a possibilidade de utilizar o milho como um veículo alternativo para a levedura S. cerevisiae - como probiótico, e outro, com o propósito de estudar a capacidade de reduzir danos promovidos pelas aflatoxinas, das leveduras vivas, das termolisadas e mananoligossacarídeos. O primeiro experimento foi montando em um arranjo fatorial 2x2x5, constituído de duas concentrações de leveduras (1 e 2%), grãos de milho com dois teores de umidade (16 e 20%) e 5 períodos de armazenamento (0, 15, 30, 90 e 110 dias), distribuído ao acaso, com 4 repetições. O outro estudo, foi um bioensaio, conduzido durante 28 dias, com ratos Wistar, em um experimento com delineamento inteiramente casualizado, com 7 tratamentos e 5 repetições. A concentração de células aplicadas nos grãos de milho não influenciou a viabilidade das leveduras durante o armazenamento. A umidade do substrato interferiu no desenvolvimento da viabilidade, e que, em substratos com maiores teores de umidade foram observadas menores médias de viabilidade durante o armazenamento. A viabilidade das células de leveduras permaneceu constante por 30 dias e aos 90 dias em armazenamento foram observadas reduções no número de células viáveis. As leveduras apresentaram viabilidade de 70% aos 110 dias em armazenamento. A inoculação de leveduras vivas em grãos de milho, visando a sua utilização como probiótico, é uma técnica viável. Os tratamentos com levedura termolisada e mananoligossacarídeos não foram capazes de reduzir os danos promovidos pelas aflatoxinas em nível de hepatócitos. As leveduras vivas foram capazes de reduzir os danos promovidos pelas aflatoxinas em nível celular. / The utilization of live cells of yeasts - Saccharomyces cerevisiae - as probiotic, and, extracted components of the cellular wall of this yeast, as addictive, to desired functions, have been object of interest, due the promising results until then obtained and, simultaneously, for the excess of biomass of yeasts generated by the etanol and beer industry in Brazil. For these reasons, two experiments were led, one with the objective of investigate the possibility to use the corn as an alternative vehicle for the yeast S. cerevisiae - as probiotic, and other, with the purpose of studying the capacity to reduce damages promoted by the aflatoxins of the live yeasts, termoliseds and mananoligossacarides. The first experiment was mounted in a factorial arrangement 2x2x5, constituted of two concentrations of yeasts (1 and 2%), corn grains with two moisture contents (16 and 20%) and 5 storage periods (0, 15, 30, 90 and 110 days), random arrangement, with 4 replications. The other study, was a bioassay, led during 28 days, with rats Wistar, in completely randomzed desing, with 7 treatments and 5 repetitions. The concentration of applied cells in the corn grains did not influence the viability of the yeasts during the storage. The moisture of the substrate interfered in the development of the viability, and that in substrate with bigger moisture contents smaller viability averages were observed during the storage. The viability of the cells of yeasts remains constant for 30 days and to the 90 days in storage reductions were observed in the number of viable cells. The yeasts presented viability from 70% to the 110 days in storage. The inoculation of live yeasts in corn grains, aiming its use as probiotic, is a viable technique. The treatments with yeast termolised and mananoligossacarídes were not capable of reducing the damages promoted by the aflatoxins in hepatocites level. The live yeasts were capable to reduce the damages caused by the aflatoxins in cellular level.

Cell and organelle membranes consist of a complex mixture of phospholipids that determine their size, shape, and function. Among the distinct types of phospholipids found in membranes of living organisms, phosphatidylcholine (PC) is the most abundant. The rate-limiting step of the predominant pathway for PC synthesis in eukaryotic cells is catalysed by the enzyme, CTP: phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase α (CCTα or PCYT1A). CCTα has a critical role in lipid metabolism and also has direct clinical relevance as mutations in CCTα result in an interesting spectrum of human diseases, such as lipodystrophy with fatty liver, growth plate dysplasia and cone-rod related dystrophy. Numerous biochemical and structural studies on purified CCTα have revealed its membrane-bound activation and suggested that it acts as a lipid compositional sensor, yet the in vivo mechanism of how CCTα senses and regulates PC levels in membranes remains unclear. Here I show that in budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pct1, the yeast homolog of CCTα, is intranuclear and translocates to the nuclear membrane in response to changes in membrane properties and the need for membrane PC synthesis. By aligning imaging with lipidomic analysis and data-driven modelling, Pct1 membrane association is demonstrated to correlate with membrane stored curvature elastic stress estimates. Furthermore, this process occurs inside the nucleus, although nuclear localization signal mutants can compensate for the loss of endogenous Pct1. These data suggest an ancient mechanism by which CCTα senses lipid packing defects and regulates phospholipid homeostasis from the nucleus. Additionally, I identified the importance of mammalian CCTα in early adipogenesis and investigated the enzymatic function of PCYT1A mutants in fibroblasts from lipodystrophic patients. The allele Val142Met is evaluated to be the main cause of loss-of-function in the compound heterozygous mutations by using yeast survival assay. These results collectively provide preliminary evidence for the pathogenicity of PCYT1A mutations in adipose tissue. From yeast to humans, this study uncovers the critical role of Pct1/CCTα in maintaining the internal membrane environment.

Background: 1985 saw the beginnings of a population-based biobank in Västerbotten County, Sweden. In 1999, a start-up genomics company, UmanGenomics, obtained ‘all commercial rights’ to the biobank. The company introduced an ethics policy, which was well received in prestigious journals, focusing on public oversight and informed consent. Aims: To explore how social anthropology can aid understanding of the challenges posed by the new role of the biobank in Västerbotten, and thus complement more established traditions in the field of medical ethics. An anthropological study of the ethics policy was executed. Theoretical perspective: Inspired by the anthropology of policy and social science perspectives on ethics and morality, the policy was studied at three analytical levels: policymakers (who formulate the policy), policy workers (who implement the policy, primarily nurses who obtain informed consent) and target group (for whom and on whom the policy is supposed to work: the potential donors to the biobank). Methods: Policymakers, nurses, and potential donors were interviewed, donations observed, and official documents analysed to mirror the moral problematizations made at the three levels in each other and to study the practical implications of the policy. To extend the reliability of the findings two surveys were executed: one among the general population, one among donors. Results: The qualitative studies show that policymakers distinguish between blood and data differently to potential donors. Informed consent seems more important to policymakers than potential donors, who are more concerned about political implications at a societal level. Among the respondents from the survey in the general public, a majority (66.8%) accepted surrogate decisions by Research Ethics Committees; a minority (4 %) stated informed consent as a principal concern; and genetic research based on biobank material was generally accepted (71%). Among the respondents to the survey in donors, 65% knew they had consented to donate a blood sample, and 32% knew they could withdraw their consent; 6% were dissatisfied with the information they had received; and 85% accepted surrogate decisions by Research Ethics Committees. Discussion: The ethics policy constitutes a particular naming and framing of moral problems in biobank-based research which overemphasises the need for informed consent, and underemphasises other concerns of potential donors. This embodies a political transformation where access to stored blood and medical information is negotiated in ethical terms, while it also has unacknowledged political implications. In particular, the relations between authorities and citizens in the Swedish welfare state are apparently transforming: from mutual obligation to individual contracts. Conclusion: Anthropology contributes to medical ethics with increased awareness of the practical implications of particular research ethical initiatives. This awareness promotes appreciation of the political implications of ethics policies and raises new issues for further consideration.

In this work, a constitutive theory is developed, within the context of continuum mechanics, to describe the creep deformation of single crystal superalloys. The con- stitutive model that is developed here is based on the fact that as bodies deform the stress free state that corresponds to the current configuration (referred to as the "natural configuration", i.e., the configuration that the body would attain on the removal of the external stimuli) evolves. It is assumed that the material possesses an infinity of natural (or stress-free) configurations, the underlying natural configuration of the body changing during the deformation process, with the response of the body being elastic from these evolving natural configurations. It is also assumed that the evolution of the natural configurations is determined by the tendency of the body to undergo a process that maximizes the rate of dissipation. Central to the theory is the prescription of the forms for the stored energy and rate of dissipation functions. The stored energy reflects the fact that the elastic response exhibits cubic symmetry. Consistent with experiments, the elastic response from the natural configuration is assumed to be linearly elastic and the model also takes into account the fact that the symmetry of single crystals does not change with inelastic deformation. An ap- propriate form for the inelastic stored energy (the energy that is `trapped' within dislocation networks) is also utilized based on simple ideas of dislocation motion. In lieu of the absence of any experimental data to corroborate with, the form for the inelastic stored energy is assumed to be isotropic. The rate of dissipation function is chosen to be anisotropic, in that it reflects invariance to transformations that belong to the cubic symmetry group. The rate of dissipation is assumed to be proportional to the density of mobile dislocations and another term that takes into account the damage accumulation due to creep. The model developed herein is used to simulate uniaxial creep of <001>, <111> and <011> oriented single crystal nickel based su- peralloys for a range of temperatures. The predictions of the theory match well with the available experimental data for CMSX-4. The constitutive model is also imple- mented as a User Material (UMAT) in commercial finite element software ABAQUS to enable the analysis of more general problems. The UMAT is validated for simple problems and the numerical scheme based on an implicit backward difference formula works well in that the results match closely with those obtained using a semi-inverse approach.

<p>INVID Jönköping AB is an IT-consultant company. They are a part of the INVID-group that employ about 140 people and are represented in ten different locations in Sweden. INVIDs business areas include development and customization of web applications. The company has been developing a web publishing tool, INVID Publisher.NET. Small- and medium sized companies are offered hosting of a complete web portal/platform with Content Management System/Customer Relationship Management (CMS/CRM) functionality. Customers can manage the content published on web pages. They can choose among a set of templates were there are modules for example text/html and news. To find the right template for the purpose can be a difficult task for the customer.</p><p>The purpose of our report is to an answer two main questions:</p><p>• How to develop modules for DotNetNuke?</p><p>• What is the foundation for the architecture and structure of DotNetNuke?</p><p>Our goal was to create modules with the programming language VB.NET and server technology ASP.NET. We would take advantage of the DotNetNuke web application framework for developing modules that offer the customer a way to easily and effectively build new web pages with INVID Publisher .NET. The starting point for the module we have developed is based on analysis of former existing module that INVID AB was not comfortable with. We analysed and discussed the problems that the old module constituted. During the development of the module we also received feedback on our work from our tutor on INVID and other members of the development team.</p><p>Our work has lead to a template module were the customer can create new web pages based on templates and also create new templates. INVID and we also consider our module to be graphically well designed.</p><p>In the future it’s possible to further develop our module to a great extent because we have followed the principles of DotNetNuke and have written program code that is object-oriented, reusable, and extensible and is based on good programming principles and prominent design patterns.</p> / <p>INVID Jönköping AB är ett IT-konsult bolag. De ingår i INVID-gruppen som totalt sysselsätter drygt 140 personer och finns representerade på tio orter i Sverige. De är verksamma inom ett flertal IT-områden, däribland utveckling och anpassning av webbapplikationer. Företaget har under en tid arbetat med att utveckla ett webbpubliceringsverktyg, INVID Publisher.NET. Små- och medelstora- företag erbjuds en komplett webbportalplattform med Content Management System/Customer Relationship Management (CMS/CRM) funktionalitet sammankopplat med webbhotelltjänster som företaget erbjuder. Kunder har möjlighet att själva påverka det innehåll som finns publicerat på webbsidor. De kan välja bland ett antal mallar där det finns moduler för bl.a. text/bild och nyheter. Att hitta rätt mall för ändamålet kan dock vara svårt för kunden.</p><p>Vårt examensarbetes frågeställningar var följande:</p><p>• Hur utvecklar man en modul för DotNetNuke?</p><p>• Vad ligger till grund för DotNetNukes arkitektur och uppbyggnad?</p><p>Vårt mål var att skapa en eller flera moduler med programmeringsspråket VB.NET och servertekniken ASP.NET. Vi avsedde också att lära oss webbapplikationsramverket DotNetNuke för att bygga modul(er) som erbjuder kunden att enkelt och effektivt bygga nya sidor i INVID Publisher .NET. Utgångspunkten för den modul som vi utvecklade bygger på analyser av tidigare existerande mallmodul som företaget (INVID AB) inte var nöjda med. Vi analyserade och diskuterade de problem som den gamla modulen medförde. Under utvecklingens gång fick vi feedback på vårt arbete från vår handledare på företaget och andra personer från utvecklingsavdelningen.</p><p>Examensarbetet har resulterat i en fungerande mallmodul där kunden kan med lätthet skapa nya sidor utifrån mallar och även skapa nya mallar. Uppdragsgivaren och vi anser att modulen som utvecklats är mycket grafiskt väldesignad.</p><p>I framtiden kan modulen vidareutvecklas framgångsfullt bl.a. tack vare att vi i vårt utvecklingsarbete har följt DotNetNuke-ramverket och dess principer strikt. Vi har även skrivit kod som bl.a. karakteriseras av att den är objektorienterad, återanvändbar, utbyggbar och bygger på goda programmeringsprinciper och framstående designmönster.</p>

Seed germination has many impacts on the uses of seeds, and is an important subject for study. Seed germination is regulated at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. Therefore, it is important to study how polyadenylation regulates gene expression during seed germination. To this end, a modified Illumina GAIIx sequencing protocol (described in Chapter Two) was developed that allows deep coverage of poly(A) site position and distribution. Alternative polyadenylation (APA) regulates gene expression by choosing one potential poly(A) site on a precursor RNA consequentially shortening/lengthening the mRNA relative to other possible sites. To further explore this phenomenon, genes affected by APA during seed germination and other developmental stages were identified (Chapter Three). These genes were categorized based on the location of poly(A) sites. Several genes were chosen to demonstrate how APA, especially that occurring in the coding regions and 5’ untranslated regions, might down regulate gene expression by generating truncated transcripts. In animal oocytes, maternally-derived mRNAs are stored with short poly(A) tails and reactivated by the cytoplasmic polyadenylation complex. It has been reported that seeds also contain stored mRNAs. Moreover, germination and its completion are less sensitive to de novo transcription inhibitors than to poly(A) polymerase inhibitors. Together, these considerations suggest that stored RNA without or with a short poly(A) tail (stored, unadenylated RNA) may be present in dry seed and function in seed germination upon reactivation by cytoplasmic polyadenylation. To further explore this, in Chapter Four, mRNA polyadenylation was studied through the course of germination using a combination of transcriptional inhibitors and the modified sequencing protocol described in Chapter Two. 273 putative stored, unadenylated RNAs were identified. Gene ontology analysis revealed that genes whose products are involved in translation are overrepresented; these genes encode 21 60S- and 10 40S-ribosomal proteins. These results indicate that transcripts whose products are involved in translation might be a major component of the stored, unadenylated RNA pool and, more importantly, translation might be the first cellular process to be activated during seed germination.

Microstructure changes that occur during the deformation and heat treatments involved in wrought processing of metals are of central importance in achieving the desired properties or performance characteristics in the finished products. However, thorough understanding of the evolution of microstructure during thermo-mechanical processing of metallic materials is largely hampered by lack of methods for characterizing reliably their local (anisotropic) properties at the sub-micron length scales. Recently, remarkable advances in nanoindentation data analysis techniques have been made which now make it possible to obtain quantitative information about the local mechanical properties of constituent individual grains in polycrystalline metallic samples. In this work, a novel approach that combines mechanical property information obtained from spherical nanoindentation with the complementary structure information measured locally at the indentation site, using Electron Backscattered Diffraction (EBSD), is used to systematically investigate the local structure-property relationships in fcc metals. This work is focused on obtaining insights into the changes in local stored energies of polycrystalline metallic samples as a function of their crystal orientation at increasing deformation levels. Furthermore, using the same approach, the evolution of mechanical properties in the grain boundary regions in these samples is studied in order to better understand the role of such interfaces during deformation and recrystallization processes. The findings provide valuable information regarding development of stored energy gradients in polycrystalline materials during macroscopic deformation.

Optical spectroscopy combined with mass spectrometry provides a unique opportunity to probe the intrinsic properties of biologically-relevant ions in the gas phase, free from the interfering effects of solvent interactions in the condensed phase. Electrospray ionization allows large biomolecules to be transferred intact into the gas phase for mass analysis. Modern mass spectrometers provide excellent sensitivity, mass-resolution and can efficiently isolate a single ionic species from a complex mixture. However, the extent to which biomolecules retain their solution-phase conformations in the gas phase is largely unknown. Therefore, there is considerable interest in applying spectroscopic methods to biological ions in vacuuo. Due to the low number densities of ions in storage devices, traditional absorption measurements are not feasible, requiring more sensitive analytical methods. Two such techniques are laser-inducedfluorescence (LIF) and photo-dissociation (PD) action spectroscopy, both of which measure the consequence of absorption. The work in this dissertation describes applications of optical spectroscopic methods to interrogate mass-selected ions using a variety of ion storage apparatus including a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer, a quadrupole ion trap and an electrostatic ion storage ring. First, the conformations of small cationized arginine complexes have been investigated using infrared multiple-photon dissociation (IRMPD) action spectroscopy in the IR fingerprint region of the spectrum (200-1800 cm-1). Second, an apparatus incorporating a quadrupole ion trap has been constructed in our laboratory to perform LIF and PD-action spectroscopy. The gas-phase fluorescence and photodissociation properties of three Rhodamine dyes have been investigated including fluorescence excitation and dispersed fluorescence spectra. Finally, the latter chapters describe the use of electronic action spectroscopy to investigate a model chromophore of the green fluorescent protein (GFP), p-hydroxybenzylidene-2,3-dimethylimidazolone (HBDI). The body of work in this dissertation highlights the integration of gas-phase spectroscopy and mass spectrometry to elucidate the fundamental photophysical properties of biological and related ions.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references.