Andegraund : Istorija i mify leningradskoj neoficial'noj literatury

The history of the Leningrad underground is one of the key themes of late socialism. Samizdat, "black humour", religious syncretism, dissidence, apolitical bohemianism, the pathos of freedom of individuality and the mechanics of literature are closely interlinked with the cultural mythology of this passed epoch. Describing conceptions that, when taken together, form the contemporary understanding of unofficial culture, the author creates a historical portrait of this environment. Amongst the central figures here, there are well-known writers (Bitov, Brodsky, Dovlatov, Khvostenko, Krivulin) and literary activists who still await recognition. The analysis of works, many of which were only distributed in typewritten publications in the 1960s-1980s, gives a preliminary definition of the key factors that united the authors of the unofficial community. The book begins with a critique of the identification of the Soviet underground with political dissidence or with a society living in autonomous independence with regard to the state. Describing the historical development of the various names for this environment (the underground, samizdat, unofficial culture, podpolie and others), the author follows the genesis of the community from its appearance, in the years of "the Thaw", through to perestroika, when it dissolved. Taking the history of the publication of Bitov's "The Pushkin House" as an example, the concept of the unofficial is interpreted as a risky interaction with the authorities. Unofficial culture is then viewed as a late Soviet reflection of the Western underground in the 1950s-1960s. Unlike the radical-utopian-anarchistic source, it proclaimed a liberalist and democratic ideology in the context of the destruction of the socialist utopia. The historical portrait of the community is built up from the perceptions of its members regarding literature practice and rhetorical approaches, with the aid of which these perceptions are expressed. Taking typewritten publications as source material, four main representations are given: privacy, deviancy, criticism and irrationality. An understanding of literature as a private affair, neo-avant-garde deviancy in social and literary behaviour and the pathos of the critical relationship with officialdom and irrational message of literary work, comprise the basis for the worldview of unofficial authors, as well as the poetic system, genre preferences and dictums. An analysis of irrationality, based on the texts of Khvostenko and Bogdanov, leads to a review of the cultural mythologies that were crucial to the unofficial conception of the absurd. Absurd is an homonym. It contains ideas that are important for the worldview of unofficial authors and the poetics of their works. The irrationality of the Soviet order is reflected in the documentary nature of the satirical prose of Dovlatov. The existential absurd of Camus is perceived here as the pointlessness of social realities and the ontological alienation of man, while existentialist practices for consciousness in the "atmosphere of absurd" remain bracketed off. The third homonym of absurd - the conception of reality as an illusion - is a clear demonstration of religious syncretism, where neo-Christian ideas are interweaved with a modernized version of Hinduism, as taken from Rolland s books on Ramakrishna and Vivekananda. The unofficial community was influenced by the ideology of westernization. Even "the East" arrived here via French retellings and accounts. As a whole, unofficial Leningrad culture can be understood as a neo-modernist phenomenon which, unlike the western neo-modernism of the 1940s and 1950s, arose in the years of the Thaw and ended its existence in the mid-1980s.

Teatteri liikkeessä : Työväenteatterit Suomen teatterikentällä ja työväenliikkeessä kaksiteatterijärjestelmän syntyyn asti vuonna 1922

Workers' theatres in Finland until 1922 The topic of this dissertation is the workers' theatres in Finland before the year 1922. The main question is: why did these amateur theatres within the workers' associations become part of the professional theatre field in the 1910s by getting state subsidy as local theatre institutions? How is it possible that they received this status even after the civil war in 1918 when new professional theatres were founded all over the country? The study also asks, what kind of position did workers' theatres have in the workers' associations and in the workers' movement, what did the Social Democrats and Communists think of theatre and in particular of workers' theatre, and what kind of repertoire did the workers' theatres perform? It is a particular feature of Finland that the professional theatre field was not organised and that the workers’ movement had a relatively strong political position. The study concludes that some workers' theatres were the only steady theatre institutions in their surroundings, and thus functioned as local popular theatres performing to all social groups. Although amateur-based, they started to resemble professional theatres. Even though the Social Democratic Party did not have a specific theatre policy, the leaders of the Party appreciated and supported the workers' theatres as educational institutions and worked for their artistic improvement. The workers' theatres were also largely approved of and seen as people's theatres thought to unite and educate the nation and the working class. This reveals the need for national consensus, in the 1910s against the Russian government who worked to dissolve the autonomous position of the Finnish state, and after the civil war (1918) against the threat of a communist revolution. A wave of agitating proletarian theatre was felt in Finland in the early 1920s but it was marginalised by the large anti-communist majority.

Is a Majority Enough? Psychological Well-being and Its Relation to Academic and Prosocial Motivation, Self-regulation and Achievement at school

This cross-sectional study analyzed psychological well-being at school using the Self-Determination theory as a theoretical frame-work. The study explored basic psychological needs fulfillment (BPNS), academic (SRQ-A), prosocial self-regulation (SRQ-P) and motivation, and their relationship with achievement in general, special and selective education (N=786, 444 boys, 345 girls, mean age 12 yrs 8 mths). Motivation starts behavior which becomes guided by self-regulation. The perceived locus of control (PLOC) affects how self-determined this behavior will be; in other words, to what extent it is autonomously regulated. In order learn and thus to be able to accept external goals, a student has to feel emotionally safe and have sufficient ego-flexibility—all of which builds on satisfied psychological needs. In this study those conditions were explored. In addition to traditional methods Self-organizing maps (SOM), was used in order to cluster the students according to their well-being, self-regulation, motivation and achievement scores. The main impacts of this research were: a presentation of the theory based alternative of studying psychological well-being at school and usage of both the variable and person-oriented approach. In this Finnish sample the results showed that the majority of students felt well, but the well-being varied by group. Overall about for 11–15% the basic needs were deprived depending on the educational group. Age and educational group were the most effective factors; gender was important in relation to prosocial identified behavior. Although the person-oriented SOM-approach, was in a large extent confirming what was no-ticed by using comparison of the variables: the SEN groups had lower levels of basic needs fulfillment and less autonomous self-regulation, interesting deviations of that rule appeared. Some of the SEL- and GEN-group members ended up in the more unfavorable SOM-clusters, and not all SEN-group members belonged to the poorest clusters (although not to the best either). This evidence refines the well-being and self-regulation picture, and may re-direct intervention plans, and turn our focus also on students who might otherwise remain unnoticed. On the other hand, these results imply simultaneously that in special education groups the average is not the whole truth. On the basis of theoretical and empirical considerations an intervention model was sug-gested. The aim of the model was to shift amotivation or external motivation in a more intrinsic direction. According to the theoretical and empirical evidence this can be achieved first by studying the self-concept a student has, and then trying to affect both inner and environmental factors—including a consideration of the basic psychological needs. Keywords: academic self-regulation, prosocial self-regulation, basic psychological needs, moti-vation, achievement

A capability-based view of organisational renewal : Combining opportunity- and advantage-seeking growth in large, established European and North American wood-industry companies

The purpose of this study was to extend understanding of how large firms pursuing sustained and profitable growth manage organisational renewal. A multiple-case study was conducted in 27 North American and European wood-industry companies, of which 11 were chosen for closer study. The study combined the organisational-capabilities approach to strategic management with corporate-entrepreneurship thinking. It charted the further development of an identification and classification system for capabilities comprising three dimensions: (i) the dynamism between firm-specific and industry-significant capabilities, (ii) hierarchies of capabilities and capability portfolios, and (iii) their internal structure. Capability building was analysed in the context of the organisational design, the technological systems and the type of resource-bundling process (creating new vs. entrenching existing capabilities). The thesis describes the current capability portfolios and the organisational changes in the case companies. It also clarifies the mechanisms through which companies can influence the balance between knowledge search and the efficiency of knowledge transfer and integration in their daily business activities, and consequently the diversity of their capability portfolio and the breadth and novelty of their product/service range. The largest wood-industry companies of today must develop a seemingly dual strategic focus: they have to combine leading-edge, innovative solutions with cost-efficient, large-scale production. The use of modern technology in production was no longer a primary source of competitiveness in the case companies, but rather belonged to the portfolio of basic capabilities. Knowledge and information management had become an industry imperative, on a par with cost effectiveness. Yet, during the period of this research, the case companies were better in supporting growth in volume of the existing activity than growth through new economic activities. Customer-driven, incremental innovation was preferred over firm-driven innovation through experimentation. The three main constraints on organisational renewal were the lack of slack resources, the aim for lean, centralised designs, and the inward-bound communication climate.

Poverty and the Environment : Investment Poverty and the Role of Assets in Generating Welfare for Farmer Households in the Province of Herrera, Panama

Köyhiä maanviljelijöitä on usein syytetty kehitysmaiden ympäristöongelmista. On väitetty, että eloonjäämistaistelu pakottaa heidät käyttämään maata ja muita luonnonvaroja lyhytnäköisesti. Harva asiaa koskeva tutkimus on kuitenkaan tukenut tätä väitettä; perheiden köyhyyden astetta ja heidän aiheuttamaansa ympäristövaikutusta ei ole kyetty kytkemään toisiinsa. Selkeyttääkseen köyhyys-ympäristö –keskustelua, Thomas Reardon ja Steven Vosti kehittivät investointiköyhyyden käsitteen. Se tunnistaa sen kenties suuren joukon maanviljelijäperheitä, jotka eivät ole köyhiä perinteisten köyhyysmittareiden mukaan, mutta joiden hyvinvointi ei ole riittävästi köyhyysrajojen yläpuolella salliakseen perheen investoida kestävämpään maankäyttöön. Reardon ja Vosti korostivat myös omaisuuden vaikutusta perheiden hyvinvointiin, ja uskoivat sen vaikuttavan tuotanto- ja investointipäätöksiin. Tässä tutkimuksessa pyritään vastaamaan kahteen kysymykseen: Miten investointiköyhyyttä voidaan ymmärtää ja mitata? Ja, mikä on viljelijäperheiden omaisuuden hyvinvointia lisäävä vaikutus? Tätä tutkimusta varten haastateltiin 402 maanviljelijäperhettä Väli-Amerikassa, Panaman tasavallan Herreran läänissä. Näiden perheiden hyvinvointia mitattiin heidän kulutuksensa mukaan, ja paikalliset köyhyysrajat laskettiin paikallisen ruoan hinnan mukaan. Herrerassa ihminen tarvitsee keskimäärin 494 dollaria vuodessa saadakseen riittävän ravinnon, tai 876 dollaria vuodessa voidakseen ravinnon lisäksi kattaa muitakin välttämättömiä menoja. Ruoka- eli äärimmäisen köyhyyden rajan alle jäi 15,4% tutkituista perheistä, ja 33,6% oli jokseenkin köyhiä, eli saavutti kyllä riittävän ravitsemuksen, muttei kyennyt kustantamaan muita perustarpeitaan. Molempien köyhyysrajojen yläpuolelle ylsi siis 51% tutkituista perheistä. Näiden köyhyysryhmien välillä on merkittäviä eroavaisuuksia ei vain perheiden varallisuuden, tulojen ja investointistrategioiden välillä, mutta myös perheiden rakenteessa, elinympäristössä ja mahdollisuuksissa saada palveluja. Investointiköyhyyden mittaaminen osoittautui haastavaksi. Herrerassa viljelijät eivät tee investointeja puhtaasti ympäristönsuojeluun, eikä maankäytön kestävyyttä muutenkaan pystytty yhdistämään perheiden hyvinvoinnin tasoon. Siksi investointiköyhyyttä etsittiin sellaisena hyvinvoinnin tasona, jonka alapuolella elävien perheiden parissa tuottavat maanparannusinvestoinnit eivät enää ole suorassa suhteessa hyvinvointiin. Tällaisia investointeja ovat mm. istutetut aidat, lannoitus ja paranneltujen laiduntyyppien viljely. Havaittiin, että jos perheen hyvinvointi putoaa alle 1000 dollarin/henkilö/vuosi, tällaiset tuottavat maanparannusinvestoinnit muuttuvat erittäin harvinaisiksi. Investointiköyhyyden raja on siis noin kaksi kertaa riittävän ravitsemuksen hinta, ja sen ylitti 42,3% tutkituista perheistä. Heille on tyypillistä, että molemmat puolisot käyvät työssä, ovat korkeasti koulutettuja ja yhteisössään aktiivisia, maatila tuottaa paremmin, tilalla kasvatetaan vaativampia kasveja, ja että he ovat kerryttäneet enemmän omaisuutta kuin investointi-köyhyyden rajan alla elävät perheet. Tässä tutkimuksessa kyseenalaistettiin yleinen oletus, että omaisuudesta olisi poikkeuksetta hyötyä viljelijäperheelle. Niinpä omaisuuden vaikutusta perheiden hyvinvointiin tutkittiin selvittämällä, mitä reittejä pitkin perheiden omistama maa, karja, koulutus ja työikäiset perheenjäsenet voisivat lisätä perheen hyvinvointia. Näiden hyvinvointi-mekanismien ajateltiin myös riippuvan monista väliin tulevista tekijöistä. Esimerkiksi koulutus voisi lisätä hyvinvointia, jos sen avulla saataisiin paremmin palkattuja töitä tai perustettaisiin yritys; mutta näihin mekanismeihin saattaa vaikuttaa vaikkapa etäisyys kaupungeista tai se, omistaako perhe ajoneuvon. Köyhimpien perheiden parissa nimenomaan koulutus olikin ainoa tutkittu omaisuuden muoto, joka edisti perheen hyvinvointia, kun taas maasta, karjasta tai työvoimasta ei ollut apua köyhyydestä nousemiseen. Varakkaampien perheiden parissa sen sijaan korkeampaa hyvinvointia tuottivat koulutuksen lisäksi myös maa ja työvoima, joskin monesta väliin tulevasta muuttujasta, kuten tuotantopanoksista riippuen. Ei siis ole automaatiota, jolla omaisuus parantaisi perheiden hyvinvointia. Vaikka rikkailla onkin yleensä enemmän karjaa kuin köyhemmillä, ei tässä aineistossa löydetty yhtään mekanismia, jota kautta karjan määrä tuottaisi korkeampaa hyvinvointia viljelijäperheille. Omaisuuden keräämisen ja hyödyntämisen strategiat myös muuttuvat hyvinvoinnin kasvaessa ja niihin vaikuttavat monet ulkoiset tekijät. Ympäristön ja köyhyyden suhde on siis edelleen epäselvä. Köyhyyden voittaminen vaatii pitkällä tähtäimellä sitä, että viljelijäperheet nousisivat investointiköyhyyden rajan yläpuolelle. Näin heillä olisi varaa alkaa kartuttaa omaisuutta ja investoida kestävämpään maankäyttöön. Tällä hetkellä kuitenkin isolle osalle herreralaisia perheitä tuo raja on kaukana tavoittamattomissa. Miten päästä yli tuhannen dollarin kulutukseen perheenjäsentä kohden, mikäli elintaso ei yllä edes riittävään ravitsemukseen? Ja sittenkin, vaikka hyvinvointi kohenisi, ei ympäristön kannalta parannuksia ole välttämättä odotettavissa, mikäli karjalaumat kasvavat ja eroosioalttiit laitumet leviävät.

Eurasian Neogene large herbivorous mammals and climate

The development and changes in the distribution of herbivorous mammal communities during the Neogene is complex. The Eurasian scale environmental patterns reflect the large scale geographical and climatic patterns. The reorganization of these affect the biome distribution throughout the continent. The distribution of mammal taxa was closely associated with the distribution of biomes. In Eurasia the Neogene development of environments was twofold. The early and middle Miocene that seemed to have been advantageous for mammals was followed by drying of environments during the late Neogene. The mid-latitude drying was the main trend, and it is the combined result of the retreat of Paratethys, the uplift of Tibetan Plateau and changes in the ocean currents and temperatures. The common mammals were "driving" the evolution of mammalian communities. During the late Miocene we see the drying affecting more and more regions, and we see changes in the composition of mammalian communities.

Forest inventory-based large-scale forest biomass and carbon budget assessment: new enhanced methods and use of remote sensing for verification

In recent years, concern has arisen over the effects of increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the earth's atmosphere due to the burning of fossil fuels. One way to mitigate increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration and climate change is carbon sequestration to forest vegeta-tion through photosynthesis. Comparable regional scale estimates for the carbon balance of forests are therefore needed for scientific and political purposes. The aim of the present dissertation was to improve methods for quantifying and verifying inventory-based carbon pool estimates of the boreal forests in the mineral soils. Ongoing forest inventories provide a data based on statistically sounded sampling for estimating the level of carbon stocks and stock changes, but improved modelling tools and comparison of methods are still needed. In this dissertation, the entire inventory-based large-scale forest carbon stock assessment method was presented together with some separate methods for enhancing and comparing it. The enhancement methods presented here include ways to quantify the biomass of understorey vegetation as well as to estimate the litter production of needles and branches. In addition, the optical remote sensing method illustrated in this dis-sertation can be used to compare with independent data. The forest inventory-based large-scale carbon stock assessment method demonstrated here provided reliable carbon estimates when compared with independent data. Future ac-tivity to improve the accuracy of this method could consist of reducing the uncertainties regarding belowground biomass and litter production as well as the soil compartment. The methods developed will serve the needs for UNFCCC reporting and the reporting under the Kyoto Protocol. This method is principally intended for analysts or planners interested in quantifying carbon over extensive forest areas.

Ecological processes and large-scale climate relationships in northern coniferous forests

Ilmasto vaikuttaa ekologisiin prosesseihin eri tasoilla. Suuren mittakaavan ilmastoprosessit, yhdessä ilmakehän ja valtamerien kanssa, säätelevät paikallisia sääilmiöitä suurilla alueilla (mantereista pallopuoliskoihin). Tämä väistöskirja pyrkii selittämään kuinka suuren mittakaavan ilmasto on vaikuttanut tiettyihin ekologisiin prosesseihin pohjoisella havumetsäalueella. Valitut prosessit olivat puiden vuosilustojen kasvu, metsäpalojen esiintyminen ja vuoristomäntykovakuoriaisen aiheuttamat puukuolemat. Suuren mittakaavan ilmaston löydettiin vaikuttaneen näiden prosessien esiintymistiheyteen, kestoon ja levinneisyyteen keskeisten sään muuttujien välityksellä hyvin laajoilla alueilla. Tutkituilla prosesseilla oli vahva yhteys laajan mittakaavan ilmastoon. Yhteys on kuitenkin ollut hyvin dynaaminen ja muuttunut 1900-luvulla ilmastonmuutoksen aiheuttaessa muutoksia suuren mittakaavan ja alueellisten ilmastoprosessien välisiin sisäisiin suhteisiin.

Topographical, structural and geophysical characterization of fracture zones: implications for groundwater flow and vulnerability

The main objective of this study is to evaluate selected geophysical, structural and topographic methods on regional, local, and tunnel and borehole scales, as indicators of the properties of fracture zones or fractures relevant to groundwater flow. Such information serves, for example, groundwater exploration and prediction of the risk of groundwater inflow in underground construction. This study aims to address how the features detected by these methods link to groundwater flow in qualitative and semi-quantitative terms and how well the methods reveal properties of fracturing affecting groundwater flow in the studied sites. The investigated areas are: (1) the Päijänne Tunnel for water-conveyance whose study serves as a verification of structures identified on regional and local scales; (2) the Oitti fuel spill site, to telescope across scales and compare geometries of structural assessment; and (3) Leppävirta, where fracturing and hydrogeological environment have been studied on the scale of a drilled well. The methods applied in this study include: the interpretation of lineaments from topographic data and their comparison with aeromagnetic data; the analysis of geological structures mapped in the Päijänne Tunnel; borehole video surveying; groundwater inflow measurements; groundwater level observations; and information on the tunnel s deterioration as demonstrated by block falls. The study combined geological and geotechnical information on relevant factors governing groundwater inflow into a tunnel and indicators of fracturing, as well as environmental datasets as overlays for spatial analysis using GIS. Geophysical borehole logging and fluid logging were used in Leppävirta to compare the responses of different methods to fracturing and other geological features on the scale of a drilled well. Results from some of the geophysical measurements of boreholes were affected by the large diameter (gamma radiation) or uneven surface (caliper) of these structures. However, different anomalies indicating more fractured upper part of the bedrock traversed by well HN4 in Leppävirta suggest that several methods can be used for detecting fracturing. Fracture trends appear to align similarly on different scales in the zone of the Päijänne Tunnel. For example, similarities of patterns were found between the regional magnetic trends, correlating with orientations of topographic lineaments interpreted as expressions of fracture zones. The same structural orientations as those of the larger structures on local or regional scales were observed in the tunnel, even though a match could not be made in every case. The size and orientation of the observation space (patch of terrain at the surface, tunnel section, or borehole), the characterization method, with its typical sensitivity, and the characteristics of the location, influence the identification of the fracture pattern. Through due consideration of the influence of the sampling geometry and by utilizing complementary fracture characterization methods in tandem, some of the complexities of the relationship between fracturing and groundwater flow can be addressed. The flow connections demonstrated by the response of the groundwater level in monitoring wells to pressure decrease in the tunnel and the transport of MTBE through fractures in bedrock in Oitti, highlight the importance of protecting the tunnel water from a risk of contamination. In general, the largest values of drawdown occurred in monitoring wells closest to the tunnel and/or close to the topographically interpreted fracture zones. It seems that, to some degree, the rate of inflow shows a positive correlation with the level of reinforcement, as both are connected with the fracturing in the bedrock. The following geological features increased the vulnerability of tunnel sections to pollution, especially when several factors affected the same locations: (1) fractured bedrock, particularly with associated groundwater inflow; (2) thin or permeable overburden above fractured rock; (3) a hydraulically conductive layer underneath the surface soil; and (4) a relatively thin bedrock roof above the tunnel. The observed anisotropy of the geological media should ideally be taken into account in the assessment of vulnerability of tunnel sections and eventually for directing protective measures.

Eurasian large mammal dynamics in response to changing environments during the Late Neogene

Nisäkkäiden levinneisyyteen, niiden morfologisiin ja ekologisiin piirteisiin vaikuttavat ympäristön sekä lyhyet että pitkäkestoiset muutokset, etenkin ilmaston ja kasvillisuuden vaihtelut. Työssä tutkittiin nisäkkäiden sopeutumista ilmastonmuutoksiin Euraasiassa viimeisen 24 miljoonan vuoden aikana. Tutkimuksessa keskityttiin varsinkin viimeiseen kahteen miljoonaan vuoteen, jonka aikana ilmasto muuttui voimakkaasti ja ihmisen toiminta alkoi tulla merkittäväksi. Tämän takia on usein vaikea erottaa, kummasta em. seikasta jonkin nisäkäslajin sukupuutto tai häviäminen alueelta johtui. Aineistona käytettiin laajaa venäjänkielistä kirjallisuutta, josta löytyvät tiedot ovat kääntämättöminä jääneet aiemmin länsimaisen tutkimuksen ulkopuolelle. Työssä käytettiin myös NOW-tietokantaa, jossa on fossiilisten nisäkkäiden löytöpaikat sekä niiden iät.

Struggles over resources and representations in territorial conflicts in the Northern Autonomous Atlantic Region (RAAN), Nicaragua

Territoriality is a central issue in indigenous peoples struggles. The territorial struggles involve struggles over the control of natural resources and over political participation and representation, but also over the perception of territorial rights and the symbolic representation of the territory. These struggles are carried through both in material and symbolic ways through recurring to different discourses and representations that provide legitimation for the territorial claims of the group. The study is located in the Northern Autonomous Atlantic Region of Nicaragua. The study concerns the territorial strategies, conceptions and practices of the indigenous people and other actors. Territorial conflicts exist between the autonomous region and the central government of Nicaragua, between mestizo settlers and indigenous people, between different indigenous groups, and between these and development agents such as conservation projects. The study focuses on how territorial discourses and representations are used to legitimate territorial control. Environmental, historical and cartographical discourses are the most important discourses recurred to. The influence of discourses and representations on the territorial practices and policies of the different actors, the links between the local struggles and global processes, and the broader structural factors impacting on the territorial struggles are also analysed. Among the structural factors are the problems related to land tenure and management and the use of natural resources, the advance of the agricultural frontier, the institutional weaknesses of the central and regional governments and the legislative processes. The territorial discourses are both recurred to in a strategic way and also grounded in local ideals and practices. The discourses have produced real effects for example in legislation, land tenure systems, political representation and environmental practices. Although the use of discourses and representations are an important power tool in territorial struggles, territorial control cannot be effectively accomplished merely through representing territorial claims in a legitimate way or through reforming legislation, as the conflicts are also largely a result of structural factors affecting the region. The fieldwork was carried out during a total of twelve months between 2000 and 2002. The research methods used were semi-structured interviews, participant observation and participatory research methods. A broad range of literary sources were also used to collect data. The study is located within the field of critical political geography with a discursive political ecology approach. It can be called a critical realist approach to the discursive analysis of indigenous territoriality.

Computational Methods for Detecting Large-Scale Chromosome Rearrangements in SNP Data

Large-scale chromosome rearrangements such as copy number variants (CNVs) and inversions encompass a considerable proportion of the genetic variation between human individuals. In a number of cases, they have been closely linked with various inheritable diseases. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are another large part of the genetic variance between individuals. They are also typically abundant and their measuring is straightforward and cheap. This thesis presents computational means of using SNPs to detect the presence of inversions and deletions, a particular variety of CNVs. Technically, the inversion-detection algorithm detects the suppressed recombination rate between inverted and non-inverted haplotype populations whereas the deletion-detection algorithm uses the EM-algorithm to estimate the haplotype frequencies of a window with and without a deletion haplotype. As a contribution to population biology, a coalescent simulator for simulating inversion polymorphisms has been developed. Coalescent simulation is a backward-in-time method of modelling population ancestry. Technically, the simulator also models multiple crossovers by using the Counting model as the chiasma interference model. Finally, this thesis includes an experimental section. The aforementioned methods were tested on synthetic data to evaluate their power and specificity. They were also applied to the HapMap Phase II and Phase III data sets, yielding a number of candidates for previously unknown inversions, deletions and also correctly detecting known such rearrangements.