Paleomagnetic and rock magnetic study with emphasis on the Precambrian intrusions and impact structures in Fennoscandia and South Africa

The importance of supercontinents in our understanding of the geological evolution of the planet Earth has been recently emphasized. The role of paleomagnetism in reconstructing lithospheric blocks in their ancient paleopositions is vital. Paleomagnetism is the only quantitative tool for providing ancient latitudes and azimuthal orientations of continents. It also yields information of content of the geomagnetic field in the past. In order to obtain a continuous record on the positions of continents, dated intrusive rocks are required in temporal progression. This is not always possible due to pulse-like occurrences of dykes. In this work we demonstrate that studies of meteorite impact-related rocks may fill some gaps in the paleomagnetic record. This dissertation is based on paleomagnetic and rock magnetic data obtained from samples of the Jänisjärvi impact structure (Russian Karelia, most recent 40Ar-39Ar age of 682 Ma), the Salla diabase dyke (North Finland, U-Pb 1122 Ma), the Valaam monzodioritic sill (Russian Karelia, U-Pb 1458 Ma), and the Vredefort impact structure (South Africa, 2023 Ma). The paleomagnetic study of Jänisjärvi samples was made in order to obtain a pole for Baltica, which lacks paleomagnetic data from 750 to ca. 600 Ma. The position of Baltica at ca. 700 Ma is relevant in order to verify whether the supercontinent Rodinia was already fragmented. The paleomagnetic study of the Salla dyke was conducted to examine the position of Baltica at the onset of supercontinent Rodinia's formation. The virtual geomagnetic pole (VGP) from Salla dyke provides hints that the Mesoproterozoic Baltica - Laurentia unity in the Hudsonland (Columbia, Nuna) supercontinent assembly may have lasted until 1.12 Ga. Moreover, the new VGP of Salla dyke provides new constraint on the timing of the rotation of Baltica relative to Laurentia (e.g. Gower et al., 1990). A paleomagnetic study of the Valaam sill was carried out in order to shed light into the question of existence of Baltica-Laurentia unity in the supercontinent Hudsonland. Combined with results from dyke complex of the Lake Ladoga region (Schehrbakova et al., 2008) a new robust paleomagnetic pole for Baltica is obtained. This pole places Baltica on a latitude of 10°. This low latitude location is supported also by Mesoproterozoic 1.5 1.3 Ga red-bed sedimentation (for example the Satakunta sandstone). The Vredefort impactite samples provide a well dated (2.02 Ga) pole for the Kaapvaal Craton. Rock magnetic data reveal unusually high Koenigsberger ratios (Q values) in all studied lithologies of the Vredefort dome. The high Q values are now first time also seen in samples from the Johannesburg Dome (ca. 120 km away) where there is no impact evidence. Thus, a direct causative link of high Q values to the Vredefort impact event can be ruled out.

Recommendation of Multimedia Objects Using Metadata and Link Analysis

We investigate methods for recommending multimedia items suitable for an online multimedia sharing community and introduce a novel algorithm called UserRank for ranking multimedia items based on link analysis. We also take the initiative of applying EigenRumor from the domain of blogosphere to multimedia. Furthermore, we present a strategy for making personalized recommendation that combines UserRank with collaborative filtering. We evaluate our method with an informal user study and show that results obtained are promising.

Agreeable Agreement : An Examination into the Quest for a Solid Consensus in Light of Bilateral Doctrinal Dialogues among Anglicans, Lutherans and Roman Catholics

The purpose of this study is to analyse the development and understanding of the idea of consensus in bilateral dialogues among Anglicans, Lutherans and Roman Catholics. The source material consists of representative dialogue documents from the international, regional and national dialogues from the 1960s until 2006. In general, the dialogue documents argue for agreement/consensus based on commonality or compatibility. Each of the three dialogue processes has specific characteristics and formulates its argument in a unique way. The Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue has a particular interest in hermeneutical questions. In the early phases, the documents endeavoured to describe the interpretative principles that would allow the churches to together proclaim the Gospel and to identify the foundation on which the agreement in the church is based. This investigation ended up proposing a notion of basic consensus , which later developed into a form of consensus that seeks to embrace, not to dismiss differences (so-called differentiated consensus ). The Lutheran-Roman Catholic agreement is based on a perspectival understanding of doctrine. The Anglican-Roman Catholic dialogue emphasises the correctness of interpretations. The documents consciously look towards a common future , not the separated past. The dialogue s primary interpretative concept is koinonia. The texts develop a hermeneutics of authoritative teaching that has been described as the rule of communion . The Anglican-Lutheran dialogue is characterised by an instrumental understanding of doctrine. Doctrinal agreement is facilitated by the ideas of coherence, continuity and substantial emphasis in doctrine. The Anglican-Lutheran dialogue proposes a form of sufficient consensus that considers a wide set of doctrinal statements and liturgical practices to determine whether an agreement has been reached to the degree that, although not complete , is sufficient for concrete steps towards unity. Chapter V discusses the current challenges of consensus as an ecumenically viable concept. In this part, I argue that the acceptability of consensus as an ecumenical goal is based not only the understanding of the church but more importantly on the understanding of the nature and function of the doctrine. The understanding of doctrine has undergone significant changes during the time of the ecumenical dialogues. The major shift has been from a modern paradigm towards a postmodern paradigm. I conclude with proposals towards a way to construct a form of consensus that would survive philosophical criticism, would be theologically valid and ecumenically acceptable.

Socialist Realism instead of Formalism : the Formation and Development of the Soviet Music Control System 1932-1950

Whereas it has been widely assumed in the public that the Soviet music policy system had a “top-down” structure of control and command that directly affected musical creativity, in fact my research shows that the relations between the different levels of the music policy system were vague, and the viewpoints of its representatives differed from each other. Because the representatives of the party and government organs controlling operas could not define which kind of music represented Socialist Realism, the system as it developed during the 1930s and 1940s did not function effectively enough in order to create such a centralised control of Soviet music, still less could Soviet operas fulfil the highly ambiguous aesthetics of Socialist Realism. I show that musical discussions developed as bureaucratic ritualistic arenas, where it became more important to reveal the heretical composers, making scapegoats of them, and requiring them to perform self-criticism, than to give directions on how to reach the artistic goals of Socialist Realism. When one opera was found to be unacceptable, this lead to a strengthening of control by the party leadership, which lead to more operas, one after the other, to be revealed as failures. I have studied the control of the composition, staging and reception of the opera case-studies, which remain obscure in the West despite a growing scholarly interest in them, and have created a detailed picture of the foundation and development of the Soviet music control system in 1932-1950. My detailed discussion of such case-studies as Ivan Dzerzhinskii’s The Quiet Don, Dmitrii Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk District, Vano Muradeli’s The Great Friendship, Sergei Prokofiev’s Story of a Real Man, Tikhon Khrennikov’s Frol Skobeev and Evgenii Zhukovskii’s From All One’s Heart backs with documentary precision the historically revisionist model of the development of Soviet music. In February 1948, composers belonging to the elite of the Union of Soviet Composers, e.g. Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev, were accused in a Central Committee Resolution of formalism, as been under the influence of western modernism. Accusations of formalism were connected to the criticism of the conciderable financial, material and social privileges these composers enjoyed in the leadership of the Union. With my new archival findings I give a more detailed picture of the financial background for the 1948 campaign. The independent position of the music funding organization of the Union of Soviet Composers (Muzfond) to decide on its finances was an exceptional phenomenon in the Soviet Union and contradicted the strivings to strengthen the control of Soviet music. The financial audits of the Union of Soviet Composers did not, however, change the elite status of some of its composers, except for maybe a short duration in some cases. At the same time the independence of the significal financial authorities of Soviet theatres was restricted. The cuts in the governmental funding allocated to Soviet theatres contradicted the intensified ideological demands for Soviet operas.

Tiedon jakaminen tiimityössä

Knowledge-sharing in a teamwork The study examines the link between knowledge-sharing that takes place in a team and the dimensions and objectives of the team s activities. The question the study poses is: How does knowledge-sharing in a team relate to the team s activities? The exchange of knowledge is examined using knowledge-sharing networks and the conversion model, which describes the process of knowledge formation. The answer to the question is sought through four empirical articles describing the activities of a team from the viewpoint of quality, fairness, power related to knowledge management, and performance. One of the articles used in the study describes the role of networks in work life more generally. It attempts to shed light on the manner in which team-related networks operate as part of a more extensive structure of organizational networks. Finland is one of the most eager users of teamwork, if numbers are used as a yardstick. About half of all Finnish wage earners worked in teams in 2009, and comparisons show that the use of teams in Finland is above the EU average. This study focuses on so-called semi-autonomous teams, which carry out permanent work tasks. In such teams, tasks are interdependent, and teams are jointly responsible for ensuring that the work is done. Team members may also, at least to some extent, agree between themselves on how the tasks are carried out and are able to take part in the decision-making process. Such teamwork makes knowledge-sharing an important element for the team s activities. Knowledge and knowledge-sharing have become a major resource, allowing organizations to operate and even compete in today s increasingly competitive markets. A single team or a single organization cannot, however, possess all the knowledge required for carrying out the tasks assigned to it. Although it is difficult to copy the knowledge generated in an organization, it is important to share the knowledge within and between organizations. External links supply teams and organizations with important knowledge that allows them to keep their operations up-to-date and their structures well-functioning. In fact, knowledge provides teams and organizations with an intangible resource that improves their capacity to interact with their environment and to adjust to it. For this reason, it is important to examine both the internal and external knowledge-sharing taking place in a team. The findings of the study show that in terms of quality, fairness, performance and the knowledge management issues concerning a team, its social network structure is both internally and externally connected with its activities. A team structure that is internally coherent and at the same time open to external contacts, is, with certain restrictions, connected with the quality, fairness, and performance of the team. The restrictions concern differences between procedural and interactional justice, public and private sectors, and the team leaders and ordinary team members. The role of the team leader is closely connected with the management of networks that are considered valuable. The results of the study indicate that teamwork is supervisor-dominated. Thus, teamwork does not substantially strengthen the influence of individual employees as players in knowledge-transfer networks. However, ordinary team members possess important peer contacts inside the organization. Teamwork clearly allows employees to interact in a democratic manner, and here the transfer of tacit knowledge plays an important role. Keywords: teamwork, knowledge-sharing, social networks, organization

Role of Temperature in the Biological Activity of a Boreal Forest

In northern latitudes, temperature is the key factor driving the temporal scales of biological activity, namely the length of the growing season and the seasonal efficiency of photosynthesis. The formation of atmospheric concentrations of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) are linked to the intensity of biological activity. However, interdisciplinary knowledge of the role of temperature in the biological processes related to the annual cycle and photosynthesis and atmospheric chemistry is not fully understood. The aim of this study was to improve understanding of the role of temperature in these three interlinked areas: 1) onset of growing season, 2) photosynthetic efficiency and 3) BVOC air concentrations in a boreal forest. The results present a cross-section of the role of temperature on different spatial (southern northern boreal), structural (tree forest stand - forest) and temporal (day-season- year) scales. The fundamental status of the Thermal Time model in predicting the onset of spring recovery was confirmed. However, it was recommended that sequential models would be more appropriate tools when the onset of the growing season is estimated under a warmer climate. A similar type of relationship between photosynthetic efficiency and temperature history was found in both southern and northern boreal forest stands. This result draws attention to the critical question of the seasonal efficiency of coniferous species to emit organic compounds under a warmer climate. New knowledge about the temperature dependence of the concentrations of biogenic volatile organic compounds in a boreal forest stand was obtained. The seasonal progress and the inter-correlation of BVOC concentrations in ambient air indicated a link to biological activity. Temperature was found to be the main driving factor for the concentrations. However, in addition to temperature, other factors may play a significant role here, especially when the peak concentrations are studied. There is strong evidence that the spring recovery and phenological events of many plant species have already advanced in Europe. This study does not fully support this observation. In a boreal forest, changes in the annual cycle, especially the temperature requirement in winter, would have an impact on the atmospheric BVOC composition. According to this study, more joint phenological and BVOC field observations and laboratory experiments are still needed to improve these scenarios.

Functional Analysis of MrpL55, Vig and Mat1 Acting at the Crossroad of Cell Cycle, Transcription and Metabolism Regulation

Cell proliferation, transcription and metabolism are regulated by complex partly overlapping signaling networks involving proteins in various subcellular compartments. The objective of this study was to increase our knowledge on such regulatory networks and their interrelationships through analysis of MrpL55, Vig, and Mat1 representing three gene products implicated in regulation of cell cycle, transcription, and metabolism. Genome-wide and biochemical in vitro studies have previously revealed MrpL55 as a component of the large subunit of the mitochondrial ribosome and demonstrated a possible role for the protein in cell cycle regulation. Vig has been implicated in heterochromatin formation and identified as a constituent of the RNAi-induced silencing complex (RISC) involved in cell cycle regulation and RNAi-directed transcriptional gene silencing (TGS) coupled to RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) transcription. Mat1 has been characterized as a regulatory subunit of cyclin-dependent kinase 7 (Cdk7) complex phosphorylating and regulating critical targets involved in cell cycle progression, energy metabolism and transcription by RNAPII. The first part of the study explored whether mRpL55 is required for cell viability or involved in a regulation of energy metabolism and cell proliferation. The results revealed a dynamic requirement of the essential Drosophila mRpL55 gene during development and suggested a function of MrpL55 in cell cycle control either at the G1/S or G2/M transition prior to cell differentiation. This first in vivo characterization of a metazoan-specific constituent of the large subunit of mitochondrial ribosome also demonstrated forth compelling evidence of the interconnection of nuclear and mitochondrial genomes as well as complex functions of the evolutionarily young metazoan-specific mitochondrial ribosomal proteins. In studies on the Drosophila RISC complex regulation, it was noted that Vig, a protein involved in heterochromatin formation, unlike other analyzed RISC associated proteins Argonaute2 and R2D2, is dynamically phosphorylated in a dsRNA-independent manner. Vig displays similarity with a known in vivo substrate for protein kinase C (PKC), human chromatin remodeling factor Ki-1/57, and is efficiently phosphorylated by PKC on multiple sites in vitro. These results suggest that function of the RISC complex protein Vig in RNAi-directed TGS and chromatin modification may be regulated through dsRNA-independent phosphorylation by PKC. In the third part of this study the role of Mat1 in regulating RNAPII transcription was investigated using cultured murine immortal fibroblasts with a conditional allele of Mat1. The results demonstrated that phosphorylation of the carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of the large subunit of RNAPII in the heptapeptide YSPTSPS repeat in Mat-/- cells was over 10-fold reduced on Serine-5 and subsequently on Serine-2. Occupancy of the hypophosphorylated RNAPII in gene bodies was detectably decreased, whereas capping, splicing, histone methylation and mRNA levels were generally not affected. However, a subset of transcripts in absence of Mat1 was repressed and associated with decreased occupancy of RNAPII at promoters as well as defective capping. The results identify the Cdk7-CycH-Mat1 kinase submodule of TFIIH as a stimulatory non-essential regulator of transcriptional elongation and a genespecific essential factor for stable binding of RNAPII at the promoter region and capping. The results of these studies suggest important roles for both MrpL55 and Mat1 in cell cycle progression and their possible interplay at the G2/M stage in undifferentiated cells. The identified function of Mat1 and of TFIIH kinase complex in gene-specific transcriptional repression is challenging for further studies in regard to a possible link to Vig and RISC-mediated transcriptional gene silencing.

Interactions between harmful algae and calanoid copepods in the Baltic Sea

The aim of the studies reported in this thesis was to examine the feeding interactions between calanoid copepods and toxic algae in the Baltic Sea. The central questions in this research concerned the feeding, survival and egg production of copepods exposed to toxic algae. Furthermore, the importance of copepods as vectors in toxin transfer was examined. The haptophyte Prymnesium parvum, which produces extracellular toxins, was the only studied species that directly harmed copepods. Beside this, it had allelopathic effects (cell lysis) on non-toxic Rhodomonas salina. Copepods that were exposed to P. parvum filtrates died or became severely impaired, although filtrates were not haemolytic (indicative of toxicity in this study). Monospecific Prymnesium cell suspensions, in turn, were haemolytic and copepods in these treatments became inactive, although no clear effect on mortality was detected. These results suggest that haemolytic activity may not be a good proxy of the harmful effects of P. parvum. In addition, P. parvum deterred feeding, and low egestion and suppressed egg production were consequently observed in monospecific suspensions of Prymnesium. Similarly, ingestion and faecal pellet production rates were suppressed in high concentration P. parvum filtrates and in mixtures of P. parvum and R. salina. These results indicate that the allelopathic effects of P. parvum on other algal species together with lowered viability as well as suppressed production of copepods may contribute to bloom formation and persistence. Furthermore, the availability of food for planktivorous animals may be affected due to reduced copepod productivity. Nodularin produced by Nodularia spumigena was transferred to Eurytemora affinis via grazing on filaments of small N. spumigena and by direct uptake from the dissolved pool. Copepods also acquired nodularin in fractions where N. spumigena filaments were absent. Thus, the importance of microbial food webs in nodularin transfer should be considered. Copepods were able to remove particulate nodularin from the system, but at the same time a large proportion of the nodularin disappeared. This indicates that copepods may possess effective mechanisms to remove toxins from their tissues. The importance of microorganisms, such as bacteria, in the degradation of cyanobacterial toxins could also be substantial. Our results were the first reports of the accumulation of diarrhetic shellfish toxins (DSTs) produced by Dinophysis spp. in copepods. The PTX2 content in copepods after feeding experiments corresponded to the ingestion of <100 Dinophysis spp. cells. However, no DSTs were recorded from field-collected copepods. Dinophysis spp. was not selected by the copepods and consumption remained low. It seems thus likely that copepods are an unimportant link in the transfer of DSTs in the northern Baltic Sea.

Novel surgical and imaging methods of the middle ear and temporal bone

Välikorvaleikkauksiin usein liittyvän välikorvan ja kuuloluuketjun kirurgisen rekonstruktion tavoitteena on luoda olosuhteet, jotka mahdollistavat hyvän kuulon sekä välikorvan säilymisen tulehduksettomana ja ilmapitoisena. Välikorvan rekonstruktiossa on käytetty implanttimateriaaleina perinteisesti potilaan omia kudoksia sekä tarvittaessa erilaisia hajoamattomia biomateriaaleja, mm. titaania ja silikonia. Ongelmana biomateriaalien käytössä voi olla bakteerien adherenssi eli tarttuminen vieraan materiaalin pintaan, mikä saattaa johtaa biofilmin muodostumiseen. Tämä voi aiheuttaa kroonisen, huonosti antibiootteihin reagoivan infektion kudoksessa, mikä usein käytännössä johtaa uusintaleikkaukseen ja implantin poistoon. Maitohappo- ja glykolihappopohjaiset biologisesti hajoavat polymeerit ovat olleet kliinisessä käytössä jo vuosikymmeniä. Niitä on käytetty erityisesti tukimateriaaleina mm. ortopediassa sekä kasvo- ja leukakirurgiassa. Niitä ei ole toistaiseksi käytetty välikorvakirurgiassa. Korvan kuvantamiseen käytetään ensisijaisesti tietokonetomografiaa (TT). TT-tutkimuksen ongelmana on potilaan altistuminen suhteellisen korkealle sädeannokselle, joka kasvaa kumulatiivisesti, jos kuvaus joudutaan toistamaan. Väitöskirjatyö selvittää uuden, aiemmin kliinisessä työssä rutiinisti lähinnä hampaiston ja kasvojen alueen kuvantamiseen käytetyn rajoitetun kartiokeila-TT:n soveltuvuutta korvan alueen kuvantamiseen. Väitöskirjan kahdessa ensimmäisessä osatyössä tutkittiin ja verrattiin kahden kroonisia ja postoperatiivisia korvainfektioita aiheuttavan bakteerin, Staphylococcus aureuksen ja Pseudomonas aeruginosan, in vitro adherenssia titaanin, silikonin ja kahden eri biohajoavan polymeerin (PLGA) pintaan. Lisäksi tutkittiin materiaalien albumiinipinnoituksen vaikutusta adherenssiin. Kolmannessa osatyössä tutkittiin eläinmallissa PLGA:n biokompatibiliteettia eli kudosyhteensopivuutta kokeellisessa välikorvakirurgiassa. Chinchillojen välikorviin istutettiin PLGA-materiaalia, eläimiä seurattiin, ja ne lopetettiin 6 kk:n kuluttua operaatiosta. Biokompatibiliteetin arviointi perustui kliinisiin havaintoihin sekä kudosnäytteisiin. Neljännessä osatyössä tutkittiin kartiokeila-TT:n soveltuvuutta korvan alueen kuvantamiseen vertaamalla sen tarkkuutta perinteisen spiraali-TT:n tarkkuuteen. Molemmilla laitteilla kuvattiin ohimo- eli temporaaliluita korvan alueen kliinisesti ja kirurgisesti tärkeiden rakenteiden kuvantumisen tarkkuuden arvioimiseksi. Viidennessä osatyössä arvioitiin myös operoitujen temporaaliluiden kuvantumista kartiokeila-TT:ssa. Bakteeritutkimuksissa PLGA-materiaalin pintaan tarttui keskimäärin korkeintaan saman verran tai vähemmän bakteereita kuin silikonin tai titaanin. Albumiinipinnoitus vähensi bakteeriadherenssia merkitsevästi kaikilla materiaaleilla. Eläinkokeiden perusteella PLGA todettiin hyvin siedetyksi välikorvassa. Korvakäytävissä tai välikorvissa ei todettu infektioita, tärykalvon perforaatioita tai materiaalin esiin työntymistä. Kudosnäytteissä näkyi lievää tulehdusreaktiota ja fibroosia implantin ympärillä. Temporaaliluutöissä rajoitettu kartiokeila-TT todettiin vähintään yhtä tarkaksi menetelmäksi kuin spiraali-TT välikorvan ja sisäkorvan rakenteiden kuvantamisessa, ja sen aiheuttama kertasäderasitus todettiin spiraali-TT:n vastaavaa huomattavasti vähäisemmäksi. Kartiokeila-TT soveltui hyvin välikorvaimplanttien ja postoperatiivisen korvan kuvantamiseen. Tulokset osoittavat, että PLGA on välikorvakirurgiaan soveltuva, turvallinen ja kudosyhteensopiva biomateriaali. Biomateriaalien pinnoittaminen albumiinilla vähentää merkittävästi bakteeriadherenssia niihin, mikä puoltaa pinnoituksen soveltamista implanttikirurgiassa. Kartiokeila-TT soveltuu korvan alueen kuvantamiseen. Sen tarkkuus kliinisesti tärkeiden rakenteiden osoittamisessa on vähintään yhtä hyvä ja sen potilaalle aiheuttama sädeannos pienempi kuin nykyisen korva-spiraali-TT:n. Tämä tekee menetelmästä spiraali-TT:aa potilasturvallisemman vaihtoehdon erityisesti, jos potilaan tilanne vaatii seurantaa ja useampia kuvauksia, ja jos halutaan kuvata rajoitettuja alueita uni- tai bilateraalisesti.