La modernización entre cafetales : San José, Costa Rica, 1880-1930

This work examines the urban modernization of San José, Costa Rica, between 1880 and 1930, using a cultural approach to trace the emergence of the bourgeois city in a small Central American capital, within the context of order and progress. As proposed by Henri Lefebvre, Manuel Castells and Edward Soja, space is given its rightful place as protagonist. The city, subject of this study, is explored as a seat of social power and as the embodiment of a cultural transformation that took shape in that space, a transformation spearheaded by the dominant social group, the Liberal elite. An analysis of the product built environment allows us to understand why the city grew in a determined manner: how the urban space became organized and how its infrastructure and services distributed. Although the emphasis is on the Liberal heyday from 1880-1930, this study also examines the history of the city since its origins in the late colonial period through its consolidation as a capital during the independent era, in order to characterize the nineteenth century colonial city that prevailed up to 1890 s. A diverse array of primary sources including official acts, memoirs, newspaper sources, maps and plans, photographs, and travelogues are used to study the initial phase of San Jose s urban growth. The investigation places the first period of modern urban growth at the turn of the nineteenth century within the prevailing ideological and political context of Positivism and Liberalism. The ideas of the city s elite regarding progress were translated into and reflected in the physical transformation of the city and in the social construction of space. Not only the transformations but also the limits and contradictions of the process of urban change are examined. At the same time, the reorganization of the city s physical space and the beginnings of the ensanche are studied. Hygiene as an engine of urban renovation is explored by studying the period s new public infrastructure (including pipelines, sewer systems, and the use of asphalt pavement) as part of the Saneamiento of San José. The modernization of public space is analyzed through a study of the first parks, boulevards and monuments and the emergence of a new urban culture prominently displayed in these green spaces. Parks and boulevards were new public and secular places of power within the modern city, used by the elite to display and educate the urban population into the new civic and secular traditions. The study goes on to explore the idealized image of the modern city through an analysis of European and North American travelogues and photography. The new esthetic of theatrical-spectacular representation of the modern city constructed a visual guide of how to understand and come to know the city. A partial and selective image of generalized urban change presented only the bourgeois facade and excluded everything that challenged the idea of progress. The enduring patterns of spatial and symbolic exclusion built into Costa Rica s capital city at the dawn of the twentieth century shed important light on the long-term political social and cultural processes that have created the troubled urban landscapes of contemporary Latin America.

Metsäpirulainen : Liikemies Erik Johan Längman (1799-1863) talousjärjestelmän murroksessa

The Forest devil. Businessman Erik Johan Längman (1799 1863) in the transition of economic system In Finnish historiography, Erik Johan Längman (1799-1863) bears a bad reputation of his own level: a mean, profit-seeking businessman who did not care too much about methods in his operations. Although little known, Längman has been praised as one of the pioneers of modern industry in the Grand Duchy of Finland, which belonged to the Russian Empire. From the mid 1830s Längman owned iron mill and several sawmills around the country. The growing demand of the markets in the 1830s, especially in Great Britain, marked a strong stimulus to Finnish lumber industry. At the same time claims for stricter rule over the sawmill industry were raised by high officials. The momentum of the conflict, the Forest Act of 1851, brought an end to illegal overproduction. In this biography, particular emphasis is laid on the entrepreneurial behaviour of Längman, but also on the effect the entrepreneurs had on the Crown s policies. On the other hand, how did the limitations imposed by the Crown guide the actions of the sawmill owners? The solutions adopted by the sawmill owners and the manoeuvring of the government are in a constant dialogue in this study. The Finnish sawmill industry experienced a major change in its techniques and methods of acquiring timber during the 1830s. Längman particularly, with his acquisition organisation, was able to find and reach faraway forests with unexpected results. The official regulating system with its strict producing quotas couldn t follow the changes. When the battle against the sawmill industry really started on, in 1840, it didn t happen for the benefit of iron industry, as argued previously, but to save Crown forests from depletion. After the mid 1840s Längman and the leader of the Finnish nationalistic movement, J. V. Snellman questioned the rationality of the entire regulation system and in doing so they also posed a threat against the aristocratic power. The influential but now also badly provoked chairman of the economic division of senate, Lars Gabriel von Haartman, accused the sawmill-owners harder than ever and took the advantage of the reactionary spirit of imperial Russia to launch the state forest administration. Längman circumvented the conditions of privileges, felled Crown forests illegally and accusations were brought against him for destroying his competitors. The repeated conflicts spoke primarily about a superior business idea and organisational ability. Although Längman spent his last years mostly abroad he still had interests in Finnish timber business when the liberation of sawmill-industry was established, in 1861. Surprisingly, the antagonism around the Crown forests continued, probably even more heated.

Jos heti lataa kaiken ja osoittaa sormella, ei ne nuoret tule mukaan. Järjestöjen mahdollisuudet vaikuttaa nuorten ruokatottumuksiin.

Aims: The older the youngsters are, the more important role hobbies and leisure time activities have in their life. That is why various activities organized by the non-profit organizations have an important role concerning the development of food habits of youngsters. This study has three main themes. The themes and their respective study questions are: 1. The youngsters' conceptions on healthy eating and food choice: What kind of food do youngsters consider as healthy? How do they see their own eating habits from this point of view? 2. The youngsters and the significance of everyday food-related information: How do the youngsters perceive the role of different actors and these actors' role regarding their own food habits and food choice? 3. The possibilities of the organizations that work with youngsters to improve their food habits: What kind of role do the non-profit organizations have on the youngsters' food habits and healthy food choice? Methods: This study comprises of two types of data. First, a quantitative internet-based survey (N=582) was used to collect data on the 9th graders conceptions and understandings. The data was analyzed with the SPSS-program. Means, cross-tabulations, Pearson´s correlations and t-test were calculated from the data. The qualitative data was collected using interviews. The respondents were 12 experts from non-profit organizations. The interviews were analyzed with the qualitative content analysis. Results and conclusions: The non-profit organizations studied have good possibilities to communicate with youngsters through their hobbies. As part of their activities these organizations are able to influence on health-promoting lifestyle and food habits of youngsters. In order to reach more youngsters, these organizations should actively act e.g. in virtual societies of youngsters. Youngsters will participate when activities are voluntary and exhilarating. From the point of food habits doing, learning and identifying are the most important factors to engage the young. Also the models of peers and adults are important. Non-profit organizations should offer youngsters activities but these organizations should also influence on society.

"Ei kansa elä vain leivästä" : Suomen Taideyhdistys ja kuvataiteen kannattajakunnan muotoutuminen Helsingissä 1846-1865.

Tutkielma käsittelee kuvataideyleisön muotoutumista Suomen Taideyhdistyksen piirissä 1800-luvun puolivälissä sosiaalihistoriallisesta näkökulmasta. Tärkein lähdemateriaali on Suomen Taideyhdistyksen arkisto, jonka avulla tarkastellaan laajemmin yhdistyksen ideaa, sen jäsenyyttä, maanlaajuista jäsenkartuntaa ja johtokunnan taiteen kannattajiin suuntaamaa missiota toiminnan alkuvuosikymmeninä. Yhdistyksen helsinkiläinen jäsenistö vuosina 1846−1865 on luokiteltu kymmeneen luokkaan jäsenluettelossa annettujen nimikkeiden perusteella. Lähdeaineiston ja sen pohjalta tehdyn luokittelun avulla analysoidaan pääkaupungin jäsenkuntaa ja sen suhdetta koko maan jäsenistöön. Jäsenkunnasta nostetaan esille myös joitakin kiinnostavia yksilöitä. Tutkielman pääasiallinen teoreettinen viitekehys on Sosiologi Everett Rogersin malli innovaatioiden diffuusiosta. Taiteen kannattaminen uutena ideana vertautuu tutkielmassa uuteen keksintöön ja sen leviämiseen. Tutkielmassa osoitetaan, että kuvataiteen saadessa 1800-luvun kuluessa uudenlaisia merkityksiä myös taiteen yleisö määrittyi uudelleen. Vuonna 1846 perustetulla Suomen Taideyhdistyksellä oli tässä ratkaiseva ja aktiivinen rooli. Taiteen kannattajakunnan ydin oli Helsingissä, jossa vaikutti yhdistyksen lähinnä korkeista virkamiehistä ja professoreista koostunut johtokunta. Taideyhdistyksen toiminnan vakiintuessa taiteen kannattamisen idea levisi ja sitä levitettiin yhä useammille paikkakunnille sekä laajempiin kansankerroksiin. Yhdistyksen jäsenkuntaan liittyi lähinnä säätyläistöä, mutta taidenäyttelytoiminta tavoitti myös alempia yhteiskuntaluokkia. Taideyhdistyksen helsinkiläisessä jäsenkunnassa virkamiehistön rooli oli suuri. Alkuvaiheessa liittyneet yhteiskunnalliselta statukseltaan korkeat henkilöt saivat hallitsijan vakuuttumaan toiminnan luotettavuudesta. Taiteen kannattajakunta muodostui kuitenkin kasvavassa määrin alemmasta virkamiehistöstä ja elinkeinojen harjoittajista. Merkittävä osuus oli myös Keisarillisen Aleksanterinyliopiston opettajilla ja siellä tutkinnon suorittaneilla. Tärkein taiteen pääkaupunkilaista kannattajakuntaa yhdistänyt sosiaalinen viitekehys olikin yliopisto. Sen antama koulutus, sivistys ja henkinen pääoma olivat taustalla suurimmalla osalla yhdistykseen Helsingissä liittyneistä. He kuuluivat pääsääntöisesti aktivoituvaan sivistyneistöön, joka syntyi sääty-yhteiskunnan vanhojen rakenteiden hämärtyessä ja yliopistotutkintojen saadessa yhä suurempaa yhteiskunnallista merkitystä.

The potential of microbial ecological indicators to guide ecosophisticated management of hydrocarbon-contaminated soils

Soil is an unrenewable natural resource under increasing anthropogenic pressure. One of the main threats to soils, compromising their ability to provide us with the goods and ecosystem services we expect, is pollution. Oil hydrocarbons are the most common soil contaminants, and they disturb not just the biota but also the physicochemical properties of soils. Indigenous soil micro-organisms respond rapidly to changes in the soil ecosystem, and are chronically in direct contact with the hydrophobic pollutants on the soil surfaces. Soil microbial variables could thus serve as an intrinsically relevant indicator of soil quality, to be used in the ecological risk assessment of contaminated and remediated soils. Two contrasting studies were designed to investigate soil microbial ecological responses to hydrocarbons, together with parallel changes in soil physicochemical and ecotoxicological properties. The aim was to identify quantitative or qualitative microbiological variables that would be practicable and broadly applicable for the assessment of the quality and restoration of oil-polluted soil. Soil bacteria commonly react on hydrocarbons as a beneficial substrate, which lead to a positive response in the classical microbiological soil quality indicators; negative impacts were accurately reflected only after severe contamination. Hydrocarbon contaminants become less bioavailable due to weathering processes, and their potentially toxic effects decrease faster than the total concentration. Indigenous hydrocarbon degrader bacteria, naturally present in any terrestrial environment, use specific mechanisms to improve access to the hydrocarbon molecules adsorbed on soil surfaces. Thus when contaminants are unavailable even to the specialised degraders, they should pose no hazard to other biota either. Change in the ratio of hydrocarbon degrader numbers to total microbes was detected to predictably indicate pollutant effects and bioavailability. Also bacterial diversity, a qualitative community characteristic, decreased as a response to hydrocarbons. Stabilisation of community evenness, and community structure that reflected clean reference soil, indicated community recovery. If long-term temporal monitoring is difficult and appropriate clean reference soil unavailable, such comparison could possibly be based on DNA-based community analysis, reflecting past+present, and RNA-based community analysis, showing exclusively present conditions. Microbial ecological indicators cannot replace chemical oil analyses, but they are theoretically relevant and operationally practicable additional tools for ecological risk assessment. As such, they can guide ecologically informed and sustainable ecosophisticated management of oil-contaminated lands.

Jos olisin viisas niin siivoisin : Lasten luovat prosessit päiväkodissa

It has been found usually to talk in the early childhood education in connection with the creativity about arts and skills and about play. In this treatise, the creativity is approached besides play but also from the point of view of the creativity of the everyday. The starting point for the study is the view according to which the creativity is complex interaction between a creative person and an environment. The theoretical body of the study is the Componential theory of creativity of Amabile (1996). The process which is open and product which is new and suitable or acceptable were defined creative. In the opinion of many researchers, the creativity is a phenomenon that has determined in a certain time and place so the creativity is examined from the point of view of the social constructionism. As creative processes in the day nursery it has been defined pretend play, child´s involvement and children´s agentive perception which is based on the Children´s agentive perception theory of Reunamo (2007). The purpose of the study is to clarify how the child's personal factors and the social environment affect the creative processes of children in the day nursery. This Master's thesis is based on the Children' s agentive perception uncovered study led by Jyrki Reunamo (2010) which was carried out in the spring of 2010 in Keski-Uusimaa and in Hämeenlinna and Taiwan. From the study, a name has also been used "on the sources of Orientation", a research project and development project. The study includes the children's evaluation sector, the observation sector, the children's interview sector and the evaluation sector of the pedagogic environment. 891 Children 1-7 year-old by age participated in the study. All the sectors which belong to the study of Reunamo were utilized in this treatise and the Finnish day nurseries or preschool groups which had participated in the study were marked off as the target group. The main component analysis, sum variables, the correlation coefficients, Mann-Whitney s U-test and Kruskall-Wallas test were used for the statistical examination of the quantitative material. In this treatise it was noticed, both the personal properties of the child and a social environment, that they affected all the examined creative processes which also had a significant connection with each other statistically. The definition of creativity was filled best by the participative answers. However, the number of the participative answers was only 8% in the questions concerning adults. That raised the question whether an attempt should be made to have effect so that the children's better participation also in the interaction with the adults would be possible in the educational culture of the day nursery. In the further study, the conscious building of the social environment which supports the creativity from a social constructionism point of view could indeed be an interesting task. The treatise is suitable for an examination of the interaction between the child's person and a social environment especially from the point of view of the creativity.