Self-reported bruxism : Associated factors among media personnel with or without irregular shift work

Tutkimuksen kohderyhmänä oli mediatyöntekijöitä, joiden toimenkuva on viime vuosina muuttunut yhä kuormittavammaksi epäsäännöllisen vuorotyön sekä jatkuvien teknisten, organisatoristen ja taloudellisten tekijöiden ristipaineessa. Väitöskirjatutkimus on osa laajempaa tutkimushanketta, joka suunniteltiin selvittämään epäsäännöllisen vuorotyön mahdollisia haittoja. Tutkimusta tukivat taloudellisesti Työsuojelurahasto ja Suomen Hammaslääkäriseura Apollonia sekä resurssipanostuksin Hammaslääketieteen laitos (HY), Työterveyslaitos ja Yleisradio Oy. Bruksismi on tahdosta riippumatonta hampaiden narskuttelua tai yhteenpuristamista. Hampaiden narskuttelu on rytmistä jaksoittain toistuvaa puremalihasten toimintaa, joka esiintyy nukkuessa -tavallisimmin kevyen unen ja havahtumisjaksojen yhteydessä. Valveilla ollessa bruksismi on terveillä ihmisillä lähinnä hampaiden yhteenpuristamista. Yleisen käsityksen mukaan toistuvaa unibruksismia esiintyy noin 10 %:lla ja valveilla tapahtuvaa hampaiden yhteenpuristamista noin 20 %:lla. Aiemmin bruksismi kuului kansainvälisen unihäiriöluokituksen (ICSD 1997) mukaan unen erityishäiriöihin, mutta tuorein luokitus (ICSD 2005) listaa sen unen liikehäiriöihin. Väitöstutkimuksen yleisenä tavoitteena oli kartoittaa koetun bruksismin ja uni- valvehäiriöiden yhteyttä. Tutkimus oli poikittainen vertailututkimus epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä ja säännöllisiä päivävuoroja tekevien välillä. Mielenkiinto kohdistui myös bruksismin ja kasvojen alueen kivun mahdolliseen yhteyteen. Lisäksi tutkimuksessa selvitettiin joidenkin tunnetusti unen laatua huonontavien psykososiaalisten, neurologisten ja fysiologisten tekijöiden yhteyttä koettuun bruksismiin. Tutkimuksen kohderyhmän muodosti 750 Yleisradion epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä tekevää työntekijää. Vertailuryhmänä käytettiin samansuuruista satunnaistetusti valittua kaltaistettua Yleisradion työntekijäjoukkoa, joka tekee samankaltaista työtä, mutta säännöllisenä päivätyönä. Kohderyhmälle lähetettiin kyselylomakkeet, jotka kartoittivat koetun bruksismin lisäksi mm. tutkittavien taustatiedot, yleisen terveydentilan, yleisiä koettuja stressioireita ja tuntemuksia, kipuoireita, sekä unen laatua. Lisäksi esitettiin jaksamista ja työympäristöä koskevia kysymyksiä. Kyselyyn vastasi kaikkiaan 874 henkilöä. Kokonaisvastausprosentti oli 58,3 % (53,7 % miehiä). Epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä tekevien vastausprosentti oli 82,3 % ja säännöllistä päivätyötä tekevien ryhmässä 34,3 %. Työtehtävät sisälsivät ohjelmien toimitus- ja tuottamistyötä, teknistä tuotanto- ja tukityötä, sekä esimies- ja hallintotyötä. Miesten keski-ikä vuorotyöryhmässä oli 45,0 (± 10,6) vuotta ja naisten keski-ikä 42,6 (± 10,7) vuotta, vastaavat luvut päivätyötä tekeville olivat 47,4 (± 9,7) ja 45,5 (± 10,1) vuotta. Vuorotyötä tekevistä oli miehiä 56,6 %, päivätyöryhmässä miehien osuus oli 46,7 %. Usein koettua bruksismia havaittiin koko tutkimusjoukossa 10,6 %:lla. Bruksismin esiintyvyydessä ei ollut merkitsevää eroa epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä ja päivätyötä tekevien välillä. Kun bruksismia ja stressiä arvioitiin suhteessa tyytyväisyyteen nykyiseen työaikamuotoon, molemmat olivat merkitsevästi vallitsevimpia niillä, jotka halusivat vaihtaa nykyistä työaikamuotoaan. Epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä tekevät lisäksi ilmoittivat kokevansa enemmän stressiä kuin päivätyötä tekevät sekä olivat tyytymättömämpiä työaikamuotoonsa. Tutkittavista henkilöistä katkonaista unta esiintyi 43,6 %:lla sekä 36,2 % koki unensa virkistämättömäksi. Kasvokipua esiintyi 19,6 %:lla. Usein toistuva bruksaus sekä tyytymättömyys työaikamuotoon olivat erittäin merkitsevästi yhteydessä unihäiriöiden sekä riittämättömän unen oireiden kanssa. Bruksismi ja katkonainen uni osoittautuivat myös kasvokivun taustatekijöiksi. Tutkimus osoitti, että koetulla bruksismilla oli merkitsevä yhteys unihäiriöihin, kasvokipuun, koettuun stressiin ja ahdistuneisuuteen, nuorempaan ikään, runsaampiin hammaslääkäri- ja lääkärikäynteihin sekä siihen että oli tyytymätön työaikamuotoonsa (itse työaikamuoto ei ollut merkitsevä tekijä). Tutkimuksen yhtenä johtopäätöksenä todettiin, että koettu bruksismi voi terveillä työikäisillä henkilöillä olla osa stressaavaa tilannetta ja siihen liittyvää käyttäytymistä. Tämän tiedostaminen terveydenhuollossa voisi olla hyödyllistä.

Ultrasound-assisted surface engineering of pharmaceutical powders

Effective processing of powdered particles can facilitate powder handling and result in better drug product performance, which is of great importance in the pharmaceutical industry where the majority of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are delivered as solid dosage forms. The purpose of this work was to develop a new ultrasound-assisted method for particle surface modification and thin-coating of pharmaceutical powders. The ultrasound was used to produce an aqueous mist with or without a coating agent. By using the proposed technique, it was possible to decrease the interparticular interactions and improve rheological properties of poorly-flowing water-soluble powders by aqueous smoothing of the rough surfaces of irregular particles. In turn, hydrophilic polymer thin-coating of a hydrophobic substance diminished the triboelectrostatic charge transfer and improved the flowability of highly cohesive powder. To determine the coating efficiency of the technique, the bioactive molecule β-galactosidase was layered onto the surface of powdered lactose particles. Enzyme-treated materials were analysed by assaying the quantity of the reaction product generated during enzymatic cleavage of the milk sugar. A near-linear increase in the thickness of the drug layer was obtained during progressive treatment. Using the enzyme coating procedure, it was confirmed that the ultrasound-assisted technique is suitable for processing labile protein materials. In addition, this pre-treatment of milk sugar could be used to improve utilization of lactose-containing formulations for populations suffering from severe lactose intolerance. Furthermore, the applicability of the thin-coating technique for improving homogeneity of low-dose solid dosage forms was shown. The carrier particles coated with API gave rise to uniform distribution of the drug within the powder. The mixture remained homogeneous during further tabletting, whereas the reference physical powder mixture was subject to segregation. In conclusion, ultrasound-assisted surface engineering of pharmaceutical powders can be effective technology for improving formulation and performance of solid dosage forms such as dry powder inhalers (DPI) and direct compression products.

Thin-Layer Chromatography with Ultraviolet and Mass Spectrometric Detection: From Preparative-Layer to Miniaturized Ultra-Thin-Layer Technique

The present challenge in drug discovery is to synthesize new compounds efficiently in minimal time. The trend is towards carefully designed and well-characterized compound libraries because fast and effective synthesis methods easily produce thousands of new compounds. The need for rapid and reliable analysis methods is increased at the same time. Quality assessment, including the identification and purity tests, is highly important since false (negative or positive) results, for instance in tests of biological activity or determination of early-ADME parameters in vitro (the pharmacokinetic study of drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion), must be avoided. This thesis summarizes the principles of classical planar chromatographic separation combined with ultraviolet (UV) and mass spectrometric (MS) detection, and introduces powerful, rapid, easy, low-cost, and alternative tools and techniques for qualitative and quantitative analysis of small drug or drug-like molecules. High performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) was introduced and evaluated for fast semi-quantitative assessment of the purity of synthesis target compounds. HPTLC methods were compared with the liquid chromatography (LC) methods. Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI MS) and atmospheric pressure matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization MS (AP MALDI MS) were used to identify and confirm the product zones on the plate. AP MALDI MS was rapid, and easy to carry out directly on the plate without scraping. The PLC method was used to isolate target compounds from crude synthesized products and purify them for bioactivity and preliminary ADME tests. Ultra-thin-layer chromatography (UTLC) with AP MALDI MS and desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (DESI MS) was introduced and studied for the first time. Because of the thinner adsorbent layer, the monolithic UTLC plate provided 10 100 times better sensitivity in MALDI analysis than did HPTLC plates. The limits of detection (LODs) down to low picomole range were demonstrated for UTLC AP MALDI and UTLC DESI MS. In a comparison of AP and vacuum MALDI MS detection for UTLC plates, desorption from the irregular surface of the plates with the combination of an external AP MALDI ion source and an ion trap instrument provided clearly less variation in mass accuracy than the vacuum MALDI time-of-flight (TOF) instrument. The performance of the two-dimensional (2D) UTLC separation with AP MALDI MS method was studied for the first time. The influence of the urine matrix on the separation and the repeatability was evaluated with benzodiazepines as model substances in human urine. The applicability of 2D UTLC AP MALDI MS was demonstrated in the detection of metabolites in an authentic urine sample.

Across the Oceans : Development of Overseas Business Information Transmission, 1815-1875

Earlier studies have shown that the speed of information transmission developed radically during the 19th century. The fast development was mainly due to the change from sailing ships and horse-driven coaches to steamers and railways, as well as the telegraph. Speed of information transmission has normally been measured by calculating the duration between writing and receiving a letter, or between an important event and the time when the news was published elsewhere. As overseas mail was generally carried by ships, the history of communications and maritime history are closely related. This study also brings a postal historical aspect to the academic discussion. Additionally, there is another new aspect included. In business enterprises, information flows generally consisted of multiple transactions. Although fast one-way information was often crucial, e.g. news of a changing market situation, at least equally important was that there was a possibility to react rapidly. To examine the development of business information transmission, the duration of mail transport has been measured by a systematic and commensurable method, using consecutive information circles per year as the principal tool for measurement. The study covers a period of six decades, several of the world's most important trade routes and different mail-carrying systems operated by merchant ships, sailing packets and several nations' steamship services. The main sources have been the sailing data of mail-carrying ships and correspondence of several merchant houses in England. As the world's main trade routes had their specific historical backgrounds with different businesses, interests and needs, the systems for information transmission did not develop similarly or simultaneously. It was a process lasting several decades, initiated by the idea of organizing sailings in a regular line system. The evolution proceeded generally as follows: originally there was a more or less irregular system, then a regular system and finally a more frequent regular system of mail services. The trend was from sail to steam, but both these means of communication improved following the same scheme. Faster sailings alone did not radically improve the number of consecutive information circles per year, if the communication was not frequent enough. Neither did improved frequency advance the information circulation if the trip was very long or if the sailings were overlapping instead of complementing each other. The speed of information transmission could be improved by speeding up the voyage itself (technological improvements, minimizing the waiting time at ports of call, etc.) but especially by organizing sailings so that the recipients had the possibility to reply to arriving mails without unnecessary delay. It took two to three decades before the mail-carrying shipping companies were able to organize their sailings in an optimal way. Strategic shortcuts over isthmuses (e.g. Panama, Suez) together with the cooperation between steamships and railways enabled the most effective improvements in global communications before the introduction of the telegraph.

Onko varhaisen tuen päiväkoti mahdollinen? : Tutkimus varhaiskasvatuksen yhteisöllisestä kehittämisestä

Is the early childhood day care facility possible? The research considering communal development of the early education. In Finland mothers and fathers look after 400 000 pre-school children. Half of these attend day care facilities, in which 50 000 staff are employed. The aim of this research is to develop co-operation practices within the day care centre. This research refines and expands my own interest in and knowledge of day care management and content development. The basis of the research draws upon ethnographic material covering the period 1999–2005. The day care centre chosen as a central informant was the first suburban centre founded in 1963, and it provided a rich local and welfare state research perspective. It became clear that the day care facility’s co-operation practices formed the basis of bringing up children and at the same time produced a new multi-operational and multi-layered community for child participation. Adult day care centre workers bringing up the children as a professional work and solutions defining the conditions for the work are expressed in a child’s upbringing. This obviously has an impact in where as the development of communities. From the human and community scientific point of view, the group of youngest children will take up a future position as key players in communities as essential actors and reformers. The research was carried out as multiphase and multiscientific practical research and iterative data formation. The results verified that the co-operation between parents and day care staff produces important benefits for all the stakeholders. However, the day care staff has difficulties in implementing the benefits. During the research process, it became clear that conceptually day care staff saw the practices as ”very important, but not easily realised in practice”. As a result this demanded further research to address this issue and to extend this to the carefacility’s co-operation practises and their communal and social conditions. The research looks at the carefacility’s co-operation with key stakeholders. At the same time it undertakes an analytical and historical examination of carefacilitys’s with an experimental focus as two day care centres chosen as experimental objects. The results of the research showed that the benefits gained by children were determined by the day care centre’s socio-political structure and the parent’s resources. The research framework categorised early childhood education as generational and gender based structures. As part of the research, the strains endemic to these formations have been examined. The system for bringing up children was created as part of a so called welfare state project by implemented by the Day Care Act in year 1973. The law secured the subjective right for every pre-school child to have access to day care facilities. The law also introduced a labour and sosiopolitical phase and the refinement of the day care facility’s education-care concept. The latest phase that started during the early 1990´s was called the market-based social services strategy. As a result of this phase, state support was limited and the screening function of the law was relaxed. This new strategy resulted in a divisive and bureaucratic social welfare system, that individualised and segregated children and their parents, leaving some families outside the communal and welfare state benefit net. The modern day care centre is a hybrid of different aims. Children spend longer and more irregular time in day care. The families are multicultural and that requires more training for the staff. The work in day care has been enhanced, for example he level of education for the staff has been lowered and productivity has been improved. However, administrative work and different kinds of support and net work functions together with the continuous change have taken over from the work done face to face with children. Staff experiences more pressure as the management and the work load has increased. Consequently the long-term planning and daily implementation of the nuclear task of the day care facility is difficult to control. This will have an effect on both motivation and manageability of the work. Overall quality of the early childhood upbringing has been weakened. The possibilities for the near future were tested in the two day care centres chosen as an experi-ment objects. The analysis of these experiments showed that generative interaction work will benefit everyone: children, parents and employees. The main results of the research are new concepts of an early support day care centre, which can be empirically and theoretically possi-ble for development the near future. Key words: Day care facility’s co-operation practises, early childhood education as generational structure, child’s multi-operational and multi-layered community, multi-subjective operator, generative interaction work, communal composition.

Halvennettu työ : Pätkätyö ja sukupuoli sopimusyhteiskuntaa edeltävissä työmarkkinakäytännöissä

Unvalued Work. Gender and fragmented labour before national collective bargaining Systematically irregular work creates economic and social insecurity. A novelty? To think that globalisation results in unprecedented labour conditions turns out to be questionable when the idea is put in perspective. In the light of history there is nothing new in the frequency of today s short-term employment, for instance, ranking genders in labour relations in an old custom. Unvalued Work (Halvennettu työ) examines the regulation and management of labour before the time of collective bargaining. In the study present trends engage in a dialogue with empirical findings from the past. Preventing trade unions to take the initiative has been and remains an employer interest. The analysis focuses on female employment in the 1920s and 1930s. The inferences challenge to ask on what conditions the history of Finnish labour relations warrants on the whole speaking of contractual security, stable earnings and regular waged work that provides livelihood. Success in selling one s labour is not synonymous with good employment that yields decent income. Juxtaposing labour relations between the world wars and the 21st century helps us to understand the currently transforming labour market. Present policies are informed by past choices and patterns of thought. Unvalued Work (Halvennettu työ) offers instruments for making sense of today s labour relations.

Lightcurve inversion for asteroid spins and shapes

Knowledge of the physical properties of asteroids is crucial in many branches of solar-system research. Knowledge of the spin states and shapes is needed, e.g., for accurate orbit determination and to study the history and evolution of the asteroids. In my thesis, I present new methods for using photometric lightcurves of asteroids in the determination of their spin states and shapes. The convex inversion method makes use of a general polyhedron shape model and provides us at best with an unambiguous spin solution and a convex shape solution that reproduces the main features of the original shape. Deriving information about the non-convex shape features is, in principle, also possible, but usually requires a priori information about the object. Alternatively, a distribution of non-convex solutions, describing the scale of the non-convexities, is also possible to be obtained. Due to insufficient number of absolute observations and inaccurately defined asteroid phase curves, the $c/b$-ratio, i.e., the flatness of the shape model is often somewhat ill-defined. However, especially in the case of elongated objects, the flatness seems to be quite well constrained, even in the case when only relative lightcurves are available. The results prove that it is, contrary to the earlier misbelief, possible to derive shape information from the lightcurve data if a sufficiently wide range of observing geometries is covered by the observations. Along with the more accurate shape models, also the rotational states, i.e., spin vectors and rotation periods, are defined with improved accuracy. The shape solutions obtained so far reveal a population of irregular objects whose most descriptive shape characteristics, however, can be expressed with only a few parameters. Preliminary statistical analyses for the shapes suggests that there are correlations between shape and other physical properties, such as the size, rotation period and taxonomic type of the asteroids. More shape data of, especially, the smallest and largest asteroids, as well as the fast and slow rotators is called for in order to be able to study the statistics more thoroughly.

The Role of Abduction in Self-Similarity

Based on the Aristotelian criterion referred to as 'abductio', Peirce suggests a method of hypothetical inference, which operates in a different way than the deductive and inductive methods. “Abduction is nothing but guessing” (Peirce, 7.219). This principle is of extreme value for the study of our understanding of mathematical self-similarity in both of its typical presentations: relative or absolute. For the first case, abduction incarnates the quantitative/qualitative relationships of a self-similar object or process; for the second case, abduction makes understandable the statistical treatment of self-similarity, 'guessing' the continuity of geometric features to the infinity through the use of a systematic stereotype (for instance, the assumption that the general shape of the Sierpiński triangle continuates identically into its particular shapes). The metaphor coined by Peirce, of an exact map containig itself the same exact map (a map of itself), is not only the most important precedent of Mandelbrot’s problem of measuring the boundaries of a continuous irregular surface with a logarithmic ruler, but also still being a useful abstraction for the conceptualisation of relative and absolute self-similarity, and its mechanisms of implementation. It is useful, also, for explaining some of the most basic geometric ontologies as mental constructions: in the notion of infinite convergence of points in the corners of a triangle, or the intuition for defining two parallel straight lines as two lines in a plane that 'never' intersect.

Il canto sospeso de Luigi Nono

This article explains how Nono's Il canto sospeso (1956), for solo voices, choir and orchestra, is structured in a logic of counterbalances for each musical action, overlapping a harmonic or ‘intuitive’ geometry, with a contrasting or ‘anti-intuitive’ plot. Unlike the typical relationships with the golden ratio, found in many musical examples in which it appears ‘naturally’ (see Tatlow 2001), intervals in the prime numbers series here are perceived as ‘counter-rhythm’; as a form of a counterintuitive distribution, or, as Jameson (2003:vii) suggests, as “a very irregular way” of apparent distribution.

Excimer laser refractive surgery : corneal wound healing and clinical results

Although the first procedure in a seeing human eye using excimer laser was reported in 1988 (McDonald et al. 1989, O'Connor et al. 2006) just three studies (Kymionis et al. 2007, O'Connor et al. 2006, Rajan et al. 2004) with a follow-up over ten years had been published when this thesis was started. The present thesis aims to investigate 1) the long-term outcomes of excimer laser refractive surgery performed for myopia and/or astigmatism by photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) and laser-in situ- keratomileusis (LASIK), 2) the possible differences in postoperative outcomes and complications when moderate-to-high astigmatism is treated with PRK or LASIK, 3) the presence of irregular astigmatism that depend exclusively on the corneal epithelium, and 4) the role of corneal nerve recovery in corneal wound healing in PRK enhancement. Our results revealed that in long-term the number of eyes that achieved uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA)≤0.0 and ≤0.5 (logMAR) was higher after PRK than after LASIK. Postoperative stability was slightly better after PRK than after LASIK. In LASIK treated eyes the incidence of myopic regression was more pronounced when the intended correction was over >6.0 D and in patients aged <30 years.Yet the intended corrections in our study were higher for LASIK than for PRK eyes. No differences were found in percentages of eyes with best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) or loss of two or more lines of visual acuity between PRK and LASIK in the long-term. The postoperative long-term outcomes of PRK with two different delivery systems broad beam and scanning laser were compared and revealed no differences. Postoperative outcomes of moderate-to-high astigmatism yielded better results in terms of UCVA and less compromise or loss of two more lines of BCVA after LASIK that after PRK.Similar stability for both procedures was revealed. Vector analysis showed that LASIK outcomes tended to be more accurate than PRK outcomes, yet no statistically differences were found. Irregular astigmatism secondary to recurrent corneal erosion due to map-dot-fingerprint was successfully treated with phototherapeutic keratectomy (PTK). Preoperative videokeratographies (VK) showed irregular astigmatism. However, postoperatively, all eyes showed a regular pattern. No correlation was found between pre- and postoperative VK patterns. Postoperative outcomes of late PRK in eyes originally subjected to LASIK showed that all (7/7) eyes achieved UCVA ≤0.5 at last follow-up (range 3 — 11 months), and no eye lost lines of BCVA. Postoperatively all eyes developed and initial mild haze (0.5 — 1) into the first month. Yet, at last follow-up 5/7 eyes showed a haze of 0.5 and this was no longer evident in 2/7 eyes. Based on these results, we demonstrated that the long-term outcomes after PRK and LASIK were safe and efficient, with similar stability for both procedures. The PRK outcomes were similar when treated by broad-beam or scanning slit laser. LASIK was better than PRK to correct moderate-to-high astigmatism, yet both procedures showed a tendency of undercorrection. Irregular astigmatism was proven to be able to depend exclusively from the corneal epithelium. If this kind of astigmatism is present in the cornea and a customized PRK/LASIK correction is done based on wavefront measurements an irregular astigmatism may be produced rather than treated. Corneal sensory nerve recovery should have an important role in the modulation of the corneal wound healing and post-operative anterior stromal scarring. PRK enhancement may be an option in eyes with previous LASIK after a sufficient time interval that in at least 2 years.

Effect of water vapour stabilization of raw materials on the quality of the inhalation product

Generation of raw materials for dry powder inhalers by different size reduction methods can be expected to influence physical and chemical properties of the powders. This can cause differences in particle size, size distribution, shape, crystalline properties, surface texture and energy. These physical properties of powders influence the behaviour of particles before and after inhalation. Materials with an amorphous surface have different surface energy compared to materials with crystalline surface. This can affect the adhesion and cohesion of particles. Changes in the surface nature of the drug particles results in a change in product performance. By stabilization of the raw materials the amorphous surfaces are converted into crystalline surfaces. The primary aim of the study was to investigate the influence of the surface properties of the inhalation particles on the quality of the product. The quality of the inhalation product is evaluated by measuring the fine particle dose (FPD). FDP is the total dose of particles with aerodynamic diameters smaller than 5,0 μm. The secondary aim of this study was to achieve the target level of the FPD and the stability of the FPD. This study was also used to evaluate the importance of the stabilization of the inhalation powders. The study included manufacturing and analysing drug substance 200 μg/dose inhalation powder batches using non-stabilized or stabilized raw materials. The inhaler formulation consisted of micronized drug substance, lactose <100μm and micronized lactose <10μm. The inhaler device was Easyhaler®. Stabilization of the raw materials was done in different relative humidity, temperature and time. Surface properties of the raw materials were studied by dynamic vapour sorption, scanning electron microscopy and three-point nitrogen adsorption technique. Particle size was studied by laser diffraction particle size analyzer. Aerodynamic particle size distribution from inhalers was measured by new generation impactor. Stabilization of all three raw materials was successful. A clear difference between nonstabilized and stabilized raw materials was achieved for drug substance and lactose <10μm. However for lactose <100μm the difference wasn’t as clear as wanted. The surface of the non-stabilized drug substance was more irregular and the particles had more roughness on the surface compared to the stabilized drug substances particles surface. The surface of the stabilized drug particles was more regular and smoother than non-stabilized. Even though a good difference between stabilized and non-stabilized raw materials was achieved, a clear evidence of the effect of the surface properties of the inhalation particles on the quality of the product was not observed. Stabilization of the raw materials didn’t lead to a higher FPD. Possible explanations for the unexpected result might be too rough conditions in the stabilization of the drug substance or smaller than wanted difference in the degree of stabilization of the main component of the product <100μm. Despite positive effects on the quality of the product were not seen there appears to be some evidence that stabilized drug substance results in smaller particle size of dry powder inhalers.

Polarization studies in electromagnetic scattering by small Solar-system particles

In remote-sensing studies, particles that are comparable to the wavelength exhibit characteristic features in electromagnetic scattering, especially in the degree of linear polarization. These features vary with the physical properties of the particles, such as shape, size, refractive index, and orientation. In the thesis, the direct problem of computing the unknown scattered quantities using the known properties of the particles and the incident radiation is solved at both optical and radar spectral regions in a unique way. The internal electromagnetic fields of wavelength-scale particles are analyzed by using both novel and established methods to show how the internal fields are related to the scattered fields in the far zone. This is achieved by using the tools and methods that were developed specifically to reveal the internal field structure of particles and to study the mechanisms that relate the structure to the scattering characteristics of those particles. It is shown that, for spherical particles, the internal field is a combination of a forward propagating wave with the apparent wavelength determined by the refractive index of the particle, and a standing wave pattern with the apparent wavelength the same as for the incident wave. Due to the surface curvature and dielectric nature of the particle, the incident wave front undergoes a phase shift, and the resulting internal wave is focused mostly at the forward part of the particle similar to an optical lens. This focusing is also seen for irregular particles. It is concluded that, for both spherical and nonspherical particles, the interference at the far field between the partial waves that originate from these concentrated areas in the particle interior, is responsible for the specific polarization features that are common for wavelength-scale particles, such as negative values and local extrema in the degree of linear polarization, asymmetry of the phase function, and enhancement of intensity near the backscattering direction. The papers presented in this thesis solve the direct problem for particles with both simple and irregular shapes to demonstrate that these interference mechanisms are common for all dielectric wavelength-scale particles. Furthermore, it is shown that these mechanisms can be applied to both regolith particles in the optical wavelengths and hydrometeors at microwave frequencies. An advantage from this kind of study is that it does not matter whether the observation is active (e.g., polarimetric radar) or passive (e.g., optical telescope). In both cases, the internal field is computed for two mutually perpendicular incident polarizations, so that the polarization characteristics can then be analyzed according to the relation between these fields and the scattered far field.

Physical properties of a boreal clay soil under differently managed perennial vegetation

The physical properties of surface soil horizons, essentially pore size, shape, continuity and affinity for water, regulate water entry into the soil. These properties are prone to changes caused by natural forces and human activity. The hydraulic properties of the surface soil greatly impact the generation of surface runoff and accompanied erosion, the major concern of agricultural water protection. The general target of this thesis was to improve our understanding of the structural and hydraulic properties of boreal clay soils. Physical properties of a clayey surface soil (0 - 10 cm, clay content 51%), with a micaceous/illitic mineralogy subjected to three different management practices of perennial vegetation, were studied. The study sites were vegetated buffer zones located side by side in SW Finland: 1) natural vegetation with no management, 2) harvested once a year, and 3) grazed by cattle. The soil structure, hydraulic properties, shrinkage properties and soil water repellency were determined at all sites. Two distinct flow domains were evident. The surface soil was characterized by subangular blocky, angular blocky and platy aggregates. Hence, large, partially accommodated, irregular elongated pores dominated the macropore domain at all sites. The intra-aggregate pore system was mostly comprised of pores smaller than 30 μm, which are responsible for water storage. Macropores at the grazed site, compacted by hoof pressure, were horizontally oriented and pore connectivity was poorest, which decreased water and air flux compared with other sites. Drying of the soil greatly altered its structure. The decrease in soil volume between wet and dry soil was 7 - 10%, most of which occurred in the moisture range of field conditions. Structural changes, including irreversible collapse of interaggregate pores, began at matric potentials around -6 kPa indicating, instability of soil structure against increasing hydraulic stress. Water saturation and several freezethaw cycles between autumn and spring likely weakened the soil structure. Soil water repellency was observed at all sites at the time of sampling and when soil was dryer than about 40 vol.%. (matric potential < -6 kPa). Therefore, water repellency contributes to water flow over a wide moisture range. Water repellency was also observed in soils with low organic carbon content (< 2%), which suggests that this phenomenon is common in agricultural soils of Finland due to their relatively high organic carbon content. Aggregate-related pedofeatures of dense infillings described as clay intrusions were found at all sites. The formation of these intrusions was attributed to clay dispersion and/or translocation during spring thaw and drying of the suspension in situ. These processes generate very new aggregates whose physical properties are most probably different from those of the bulk soil aggregates. Formation of the clay infillings suggested that prolonged wetness in autumn and spring impairs soil structure due to clay dispersion, while on the other hand it contributes to the pedogenesis of the soil. The results emphasize the dynamic nature of the physical properties of clay soils, essentially driven by their moisture state. In a dry soil, fast preferential flow is favoured by abundant macropores including shrinkage cracks and is further enhanced by water repellency. Increase in soil moisture reduces water repellency, and swelling of accommodated pores lowers the saturated hydraulic conductivity. Moisture- and temperature-related processes significantly alter soil structure over a time span of 1 yr. Thus, the pore characteristics as well as the hydraulic properties of soil are time-dependent.

Liminal Belonging: West African male asylum seekers’ narratives of the asylum experience whilst in Finland

The dominant discourses on the issue of asylum have placed it on a uniquely higher level of scrutiny as a politically very sensitive area for social research. Today, member states within the EU have implemented stricter policies to control new arrivals, whilst instituting statutory procedures to manage the existing asylum claims. In 2010, the number of applicants for asylum in Finland totalled 5988, out of which 1784 were given positive decisions. This thesis endeavour to highlight asylum seekers in the discourses about them by adding their voices to the discussions of them in contemporary Finland. Studies, which has concentrated on asylum seekers in Finland, uses the living conditions within asylum reception centres to assess the impacts of structural barriers on asylum seekers’ efforts to deal with the asylum process. By highlighting the impacts of the entire asylum process, which I believe starts from the country of origin; I focus on examining narratives of dealing with the experience of liminality whilst waiting for asylum, and then explore areas of possible participation within informal social networks for West African asylum seekers in Finland. The overall aim is to place the current research within the broader sociological discussion of ‘belonging’ for asylum seekers who are yet to be recognized as refugees, and who exist in a state of limbo. Methodologically, oral interviews, self-written autobiographical narratives, and ethnographic field work are qualitatively combined as data in this thesis for an empirical study of West African male asylum seekers in Finland. Narrative analysis is employed to analyze the data for this thesis. The ethnographic research data for the study began in May 2009 and ended in August of 2010. Altogether, ten interviews and four self-written narratives were collected as data. In total seven hours of audio recording were made, along eleven pages of hand-written autobiographical narratives. Field observation notes are employed in the study to provide contexts to the active interactional processes of interpretation throughout the analysis. Findings from the study suggest that within the experience of liminality, which surrounds the entire asylum process, participations within informal social networks are found to be important to the process of re-making place and the sense of belonging. My study shows that this is necessary to countering the experience of boredom, stress and social isolation, which permeate all aspects of life for West African asylum seekers, whilst they wait for asylum decisions in Finland.