Eurooppalaisen tupakoinnin ehkäisyohjelman vaikutukset nuorten tupakointi-intentioon ja sitä edeltäviin psykososiaalisiin tekijöihin Helsingin yläkouluissa

Tupakointi on yleensä nuoruudessa alkava riippuvuutta aiheuttava tapa, jonka terveysvaikutukset näkyvät vasta myöhemmin. Tupakoinnin ehkäisypolitiikan ja tupakoinnin ehkäisyohjelmien eli interventioiden kohdistaminen nuoriin on olennaista, koska suurin osa tupakoitsijoista aloittaa tupakoinnin nuorena. Vuonna 1997 Helsingissä toteutettiin eurooppalainen koulu- ja yhteisötason tupakoinnin ehkäisyohjelma (ESFA). Intervention teoreettisena viitekehyksenä toimi ASE -malli (asenne, sosiaalinen vaikuttaminen ja pystyvyys -malli). ASE -malli juontaa juurensa Fishbeinin & Ajzenin perustellun toiminnan teoriasta. Suomessa kokeellinen interventio-ohjelma toteutettiin syksystä 1998 kevääseen 2001 koko yläasteen kestävänä pitkittäistutkimuksena. Helsingin yläkouluista valittiin satunnaisesti 13 ohjelmakouluiksi, joissa toteutettiin interventio ja 14 koulua toimi vertailukouluina, joissa toteutettiin normaalia terveysvalistusta. Ohjelma- ja vertailukoulujen oppilaille tehtiin vuosien 1998–2001 aikana neljä laajaa lomakekyselyä, joista käytettiin tässä tutkimuksessa kolmen ensimmäisen vastauksia. Tässä tutkimuksessa tutkittiin sitä, että pystyttiinkö interventiolla vaikuttamaan tupakoinnin aloittamiseen, nuorten tupakointi-intentioon, sosiaalisiin normeihin, vahvistamaan kielteisiä asenteita tupakointia kohtaan, torjumaan sosiaalista painetta ja vahvistamaan pystyvyyttä kieltäytyä tupakasta. Lisäksi tarkasteltiin sitä, polarisoituivatko asenteet enemmän ohjelmaryhmässä kuin vertailuryhmässä. Tutkimuksessa käytettiin muuttujien yhteyksien tutkimisessa korrelaatioanalyysiä ja muuttujien keskiarvojen muuttumista intervention aikana tutkittiin useampisuuntaisen toistettujen mittausten varianssianalyysillä. Intervention aikana nuorten keski-ikä oli 13,8–15,8 vuotta. Intervention lähtötasolla ohjelma- ja vertailukoulujen välillä ei ollut eroja tutkituissa muuttujissa. Intervention aikana tutkituissa muuttujissa tapahtui muutos tupakoinnin kannalta huonompaan suuntaan. Yhdestätoista muuttujasta vain kahdessa muutos oli vähäisempää ohjelmakoulussa, ja lisäksi saatiin muutos kahdessa muuttujassa tytöillä. Lievempi muutos saatiin aikaan ohjelmakoulussa tupakoinnin hyödyt -asenteissa ja sosiaaliset normit vertaiset. Tytöillä muutos saatiin aikaan sosiaalisissa normeissa perhe ja opettaja sekä sosiaalisessa paineessa perhe ja opettaja. Kysymykseen intervention mekanismista ei kuitenkaan saatu vastausta, koska koulujen välille ei syntynyt eroa, mitä selittää, eikä interventiolla pystytty vaikuttamaan intentiota edeltäviin psykososiaalisiin tekijöihin, eli ei ollut tuloksia, mistä edetä. Asenteiden hajonta oli lähes yhtä suurta sekä ohjelma- että vertailukoulussa, joten interventio ei polarisoinut asenteita ohjelmakoulussa. Interventiolla pystyttiin vähentämään tupakoinnin aloittamista ohjelmakoulussa, mutta vaikutus ei tapahtunut teorian mukaan odotettujen kognitiivisten tekijöiden kautta. Tupakointi riskikäyttäytymisenä voi olla nuorilla prototyyppi-käyttäytymishalukkuusmallin mukaan myös ei-intentionaalista, ja siten sosiokognitiivisilla käsitteillä ei voida selittää täysi nuorten tupakoinnin aloittamista.

Vakuutustoiminnan sijoitusriskit

Riskiteorian klassisessa vararikkomallissa mallinnetaan ainoastaan yhtiön kassavirtaa, jossa tapahtuvaa tappiota kuvataan kunakin vuonna satunnaismuuttujilla Q, joiden oletetaan olevan toisistaan riipumattomia ja noudattavan samaa todennäköisyyslakia. Yhtiön tulkitaan olevan vararikossa mikäli Q:den summa ylittää jonain hetkenä yhtiön alkupääoman. Klassisessa vararikkomallissa rahan arvo on siis sama kaikkina ajanhetkinä. Todellisuudessa raha kasvaa korkoa ja vakuutusyhtiö harjoittaa myös riskillistä sijoitustoimintaa, jonka tulos vaikuttaa merkittävästi yhtiön kunkin hetkisen pääoman määrään. Tässä tutkielmassa vararikkomalliin lisätään yhtiön kunkin vuoden sijoitustuottoja kuvaavat satunnaismuuttujat M, jotka täytyy Q:den tapaan olettaa riippumattomiksi sekä samoin jakautuneiksi. Tämäkään malli ei kuvaa todellisen yhtiön tilannetta kovin hyvin, mutta on kuitenkin hieman realistisempi kuin klassinen malli. Yhtiön alkupääoman sekä tarkastelujakson pituuden täytyy lisäksi olettaa lähestyvän ääretöntä. Tällöin on mahdollista muodostaa ns. implisiittistä uusiutumisteoriaa hyödyntäen asymptoottisia tuloksia yhtiön vararikkotodennäköisyydelle.

Methods and applications for improving parameter prediction models for stand structures in Finland

This thesis report attempts to improve the models for predicting forest stand structure for practical use, e.g. forest management planning (FMP) purposes in Finland. Comparisons were made between Weibull and Johnson s SB distribution and alternative regression estimation methods. Data used for preliminary studies was local but the final models were based on representative data. Models were validated mainly in terms of bias and RMSE in the main stand characteristics (e.g. volume) using independent data. The bivariate SBB distribution model was used to mimic realistic variations in tree dimensions by including within-diameter-class height variation. Using the traditional method, diameter distribution with the expected height resulted in reduced height variation, whereas the alternative bivariate method utilized the error-term of the height model. The lack of models for FMP was covered to some extent by the models for peatland and juvenile stands. The validation of these models showed that the more sophisticated regression estimation methods provided slightly improved accuracy. A flexible prediction and application for stand structure consisted of seemingly unrelated regression models for eight stand characteristics, the parameters of three optional distributions and Näslund s height curve. The cross-model covariance structure was used for linear prediction application, in which the expected values of the models were calibrated with the known stand characteristics. This provided a framework to validate the optional distributions and the optional set of stand characteristics. Height distribution is recommended for the earliest state of stands because of its continuous feature. From the mean height of about 4 m, Weibull dbh-frequency distribution is recommended in young stands if the input variables consist of arithmetic stand characteristics. In advanced stands, basal area-dbh distribution models are recommended. Näslund s height curve proved useful. Some efficient transformations of stand characteristics are introduced, e.g. the shape index, which combined the basal area, the stem number and the median diameter. Shape index enabled SB model for peatland stands to detect large variation in stand densities. This model also demonstrated reasonable behaviour for stands in mineral soils.

Learning Challenges in Biogas Production for Sustainability : An activity theoretical study of a network from a swine industry chain

This study is about the challenges of learning in the creation and implementation of new sustainable technologies. The system of biogas production in the Programme of Sustainable Swine Production (3S Programme) conducted by the Sadia food processing company in Santa Catarina State, Brazil, is used as a case example for exploring the challenges, possibilities and obstacles of learning in the use of biogas production as a way to increase the environmental sustainability of swine production. The aim is to contribute to the discussion about the possibilities of developing systems of biogas production for sustainability (BPfS). In the study I develop hypotheses concerning the central challenges and possibilities for developing systems of BPfS in three phases. First, I construct a model of the network of activities involved in the BP for sustainability in the case study. Next, I construct a) an idealised model of the historically evolved concepts of BPfS through an analysis of the development of forms of BP and b) a hypothesis of the current central contradictions within and between the activity systems involved in BP for sustainability in the case study. This hypothesis is further developed through two actual empirical analyses: an analysis of the actors senses in taking part in the system, and an analysis of the disturbance processes in the implementation and operation of the BP system in the 3S Programme. The historical analysis shows that BP for sustainability in the 3S Programme emerged as a feasible solution for the contradiction between environmental protection and concentration, intensification and specialisation in swine production. This contradiction created a threat to the supply of swine to the food processing company. In the food production activity, the contradiction was expressed as a contradiction between the desire of the company to become a sustainable company and the situation in the outsourced farms. For the swine producers the contradiction was expressed between the contradictory rules in which the market exerted pressure which pushed for continual increases in scale, specialisation and concentration to keep the production economically viable, while the environmental rules imposed a limit to this expansion. Although the observed disturbances in the biogas system seemed to be merely technical and localised within the farms, the analysis proposed that these disturbances were formed in and between the activity systems involved in the network of BPfS during the implementation. The disturbances observed could be explained by four contradictions: a) contradictions between the new, more expanded activity of sustainable swine production and the old activity, b) a contradiction between the concept of BP for carbon credits and BP for local use in the BPfS that was implemented, c) contradictions between the new UNFCCC1 methodology for applying for carbon credits and the small size of the farms, and d) between the technologies of biogas use and burning available in the market and the small size of the farms. The main finding of this study relates to the zone of proximal development (ZPD) of the BPfS in Sadia food production chain. The model is first developed as a general model of concepts of BPfS and further developed here to the specific case of the BPfS in the 3S Programme. The model is composed of two developmental dimensions: societal and functional integration. The dimension of societal integration refers to the level of integration with other activities outside the farm. At one extreme, biogas production is self-sufficient and highly independent and the products of BP are consumed within the farm, while at the other extreme BP is highly integrated in markets and networks of collaboration, and BP products are exchanged within the markets. The dimension of functional integration refers to the level of integration between products and production processes so that economies of scope can be achieved by combining several functions using the same utility. At one extreme, BP is specialised in only one product, which allows achieving economies of scale, while at the other extreme there is an integrated production in which several biogas products are produced in order to maximise the outcomes from the BP system. The analysis suggests that BP is moving towards a societal integration, towards the market and towards a functional integration in which several biogas products are combined. The model is a hypothesis to be further tested through interventions by collectively constructing the new proposed concept of BPfS. Another important contribution of this study refers to the concept of the learning challenge. Three central learning challenges for developing a sustainable system of BP in the 3S Programme were identified: 1) the development of cheaper and more practical technologies of burning and measuring the gas, as well as the reduction of costs of the process of certification, 2) the development of new ways of using biogas within farms, and 3) the creation of new local markets and networks for selling BP products. One general learning challenge is to find more varied and synergic ways of using BP products than solely for the production of carbon credits. Both the model of the ZPD of BPfS and the identified learning challenges could be used as learning tools to facilitate the development of biogas production systems. The proposed model of the ZPD could be used to analyse different types of agricultural activities that face a similar contradiction. The findings could be used in interventions to help actors to find their own expansive actions and developmental projects for change. Rather than proposing a standardised best concept of BPfS, the idea of these learning tools is to facilitate the analysis of local situations and to help actors to make their activities more sustainable.

Nykyveistoksen, katsojan ja tilan vuorovaikutteisuudesta: Markus Copperin, Markus Kåhren ja Kimmo Schroderuksen teokset nykytaiteen välineproblematiikan valossa

Tutkielmassani tarkastelen nykykuvanveiston ominaislaatua ja suhdetta modernismin jälkeen syntyneisiin uusiin taiteen tekemisen muotoihin, kuten installaatioon ja performanssiin. Uudet taidemuodot mursivat modernistisen käsityksen välineestä, joka keskittyi taideteoksen fyysiseen olemukseen. Autonomisen veistosobjektin ihanteen sijaan uusissa taiteen tekemisen muodoissa teoksen suhde tilaan ja katsojaan muuttui merkitykselliseksi. Tutkielman tavoitteena on pohtia välineissä tapahtuvaa muutosta kuvanveiston näkökulmasta. Analysoin kolmen suomalaisen nykytaiteilijan, Markus Copperin, Markus Kåhren ja Kimmo Schroderuksen, teoksia ja avaan niiden kautta näkökulmia kuvanveistossa modernismin jälkeen tapahtuneisiin muutoksiin. Taiteilijoiden ammatti-identiteetti on kytköksissä kuvanveistoon. Tutkielman lähtökohtana on ajatus siitä, että kuvanveisto ei ole pysähtynyt modernistisen veistoksen tai monumentaalikuvanveiston perinteisiin. Veistoksen suhde tilaan ja katsojaan voi olla uusien ilmaisumuotojen tavoin merkityksellinen. Tutkielma selvittää nykyveistoksen olemisen tavan piirteitä. Keskeinen tutkimuskysymys on miten teoksen vuorovaikutteinen suhde tilaan ja katsojaan ilmenee ja mikä on sen merkitys teokselle. Tutkielman teoreettisena viitekehyksenä on Rosalind Kraussin käsitys välineestä postmodernissa viitekehyksessä. Aineiston analysointia tukevat myös Kraussin malli kuvanveiston laajentuneesta kentästä sekä installaatiota ja paikkasidonnaista taidetta käsittelevä tutkimuskirjallisuus. Tutkielmassa analysoitavaan aineistoon kuuluvat Copperin, Kåhren ja Schroderuksen teokset ovat pääosin 2000-luvulta. Tarkastelen niitä kolmesta näkökulmasta: ensin teoksen materiaalisuuden, toiseksi teoksen tilallisuuden ja kolmanneksi teoksen ja katsojan välisen suhteen kautta. Tutkielman aineistona on käytetty myös taiteilijoiden haastatteluja. Haastatteluaineisto perustelee teoksissa tehtyjä valintoja ja kertoo taiteilijoiden toiminnan motiiveista. Nykykuvanveisto näyttäytyy tutkielmassa monimuotoisena ja sisäisesti heterogeenisenä taiteen tekemisen käytäntönä. Tutkielman johtopäätöksissä totean, että taiteilijoiden teokset problematisoivat käsityksen veistoksesta tilassa sijaitsevana erillisenä objektina. Teokset määrittyvät eri tavoin suhteessa tilaan ja katsojaan: suhde voi olla riippuvuussuhde tai kieltävä. Katsojasta saattaa tulla etäisen tarkkailijan sijaan teokseen osallistuja. Teoksen, tilan ja katsojan välistä rajaa voi olla vaikea määritellä. Tällöin vuorovaikutteisuus katsojaan ja tilaan määrittää teoksen olemusta, jolloin tämän suhteen huomioiminen on edellytys teoksen olemuksen ymmärtämiselle.

Bovine mastitis caused by coagulase-negative staphylococci : host response and bacterial factors

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) are the most common bacteria isolated in bovine subclinical mastitis in many countries, and also a frequent cause of clinical mastitis. The most common species isolated are Staphylococcus (S) chromogenes, S. simulans, S. epidermidis, and S. xylosus. One half of the intramammary infections (IMI) caused by CNS persist in the udder. The pathogenesis of IMI caused by CNS is poorly understood. This dissertation focuses on host response in experimental intramammary infection induced by S. chromogenes, S. epidermidis and S. simulans. Model for a mild experimental CNS infection was developed with S. chromogenes (study I). All cows were infected and most developed subclinical mastitis. In study II the innate immune response to S. epidermidis and S. simulans IMI was compared in eight cows using a crossover design. A larger dose of bacteria was used to induce clinical mastitis. All cows became infected and showed mild to moderate clinical signs of mastitis. S. simulans caused a slightly stronger innate immune response than S. epidermidis, with significantly higher concentrations of the interleukins IL-1beta and IL-8 in the milk. The spontaneous elimination rate of the 16 IMIs was 31%, with no difference between species. No significant differences were recorded between infections eliminated spontaneously or remaining persistent, although the response was stronger in IMIs eliminated spontaneously, except the concentration of TNF-α, which remained elevated in persistent infections. Lactoferrin (Lf) is a component of the humoral defence of the host and is present at low concentrations in the milk. The concentration of Lf in milk is high during the dry period, in colostrum, and in mastitic milk. The effect of an inherent, high concentration of Lf in the milk on experimental IMI induced with S. chromogenes was studied in transgenic cows that expressed recombinant human Lf in their milk. Human Lf did not prevent S. chromogenes IMI, but the host response was milder in transgenic cows than in normal cows, and the former eliminated infection faster. Biofilm production has been suggested to promote persistence of IMI. Phenotypic biofilm formation and slime producing ability of CNS isolates from bovine mastitis was investigated in vitro. One-third of mastitis isolates produced biofilm. Slime production was less frequent for isolates of the most common mastitis causing species S. chromogenes and S. simulans compared with S. epidermidis. No association was found between the phenotypic ability to form biofilm and the persistence of IMI or severity of mastitis. Slime production was associated with persistent infections, but only 8% of isolates produced slime.

Kirjallisuusosa: Alzheimerin taudin rottamallien vastaavuus tautiin ihmisessä ja mallien käyttökelpoisuus

Kirjallisuusosa: Alzheimerin taudin hoitoon olisi tarvetta uusille taudinkulkuun vaikuttaville lääkeaineille. Niiden kehittämiseksi tarvitaan eläinmalleja, joissa esiintyy taudin patofysiologisia piirteitä. Rottamalleista vanhemmat skopolamiini- tai MK-801-häirintä sekä ikääntyneiden rottien käyttö eivät kovin hyvin vastaa taudin patofysiologiaa, vaikka niissä eläimen muisti käyttäytymiskokeissa onkin heikentynyt. Uudemmat transgeeniset rottamallit ja mallit, joissa annetaan Aβ:a aivoihin, ilmentävät huomattavasti paremmin Alzheimerin taudin kaltaista tilaa aivoissa ainakin Aβ:n osalta. Taupatofysiologiaa ei silti kummassakaan näistä malleista juuri esiinny. Toisaalta Aβ:lla näyttäisi olevan huomattavasti tau:ta suurempi rooli taudissa, joten sen ilmeneminen mallissa onkin keskeisempi tekijä. Nämä mallit ilmentävät melko suurelti osin yhtä hyvin Alzheimerin taudin patofysiologiaa. Aβ:n antaminen on hieman yksinkertaisempi suorittaa käytännössä, sillä siinä ei tarvitse luoda transgeenista kantaa. Toisaalta transgeenisessa mallissa Aβ-patofysiologia syntyy enemmän Alzheimerin taudin kaltaisesti solujen sisällä eikä valmiita aggregoituvia Aβ-peptidejä anneta ulkopuolelta aivoihin. Molemmat mallit ovat kuitenkin käyttökelpoisia, ja soveltuvat erityisesti Aβ:an vaikuttavien lääkeaineiden kehittämiseen. Kokeellinen osa: Kokeen tarkoituksena oli validoida kohotettu ristikko-sokkelo (elevated plus-maze, EPM) hiirillä kognitiomallina. Kokeessa käytettiin kahden koekerran (trial, T) menetelmää, jossa koekertojen pituus oli viisi minuuttia. Näin saatiin useita oppimista kuvaavia parametreja. Hiirille yritettiin saada muistihäiriö aikaviiveen avulla (koekertojen väli 1-18 vrk) tai antamalla muskariinireseptoriantagonistia skopolamiinia (0,1-0,8 mg/kg i.p.) 30 minuuttia ennen T1:tä. Nämä kokeet suoritettiin sekä C57BL/6J- että ICR:(CD-1)-hiirillä. Aikaviivekokeissa ainut ryhmä, jolla oli viitettä unohtamisesta, oli ICR:(CD-1)-hiirien 18 vrk:n ryhmä. Tämän perusteella tutkittiin vielä 21 vuorokauden aikaväli, mutta selvää muistihäiriötä ei esiintynyt. Skopolamiini ei häirinnyt muistia ICR:(CD-1)-hiirillä, mutta C57BL/6J-hiirillä 0,2 mg/kg:n annoksesta ylöspäin merkitsevä muistihäiriö esiintyi. Näin ollen jatkokokeissa käytettäväksi valittiin skopolamiinin annos 0,2 mg/kg C57BL/6J-hiirillä, ja siinä tutkittiin donepetsiilin (0,3, 0,8 ja 1,5 mg/kg s.c), memantiinin (5,0 ja 10,0 mg/kg s.c) ja kokeellisen 5-HT6-antagonistin SB742457:n (1,5 ja 6,0 mg/kg s.c) muistia parantavia vaikutuksia. Tutkittavat lääkeaineet annettiin 40 minuuttia ennen T1:tä ja skopolamiini 30 minuuttia ennen. Memantiinilla (5,0 mg/kg) oli selkeä skopolamiinin heikentämää kognitiota parantava vaikutus ja donepetsiilillakin (1,5 mg/kg) suuntaus tähän. Tulosten perusteella malli näyttäisi soveltuvan muisti- ja oppimisvaikutusten tutkimiseen käytettäväksi malliksi.

Kansalaisuus työyhteisön arjessa : Maahanmuuttajien kertomuksia työelämästä

Citizenship in the everyday of a work community. Immigrants narratives of working life. Through globalisation and the mobility of workforce, citizenship has gained new forms, and the mere legal definition of citizenship no longer gives a comprehensive view of the citizenship of an individual. Also the social, cultural and financial dimensions of it are related to the concept of citizenship. In Finland, full citizenship is promoted, according to the Integration Act and social security system, by the requirement that immigrants should mainly get their livelihood through work. In my study I approach citizenship on four levels: the global, national, work community and private levels. In the study, the global has constituted the largest possible context, which refers to the local affects of global processes. The local and the global come together in the research in that globalisation is realised on the local level, i.e. in small communities such as work communities. The objective of the study is to examine how the citizenship of immigrants who live and work in Finland is constructed in the everyday life of a work community. The most central concept of the study is cultural script, which is based on prevailing forms of knowing, and which are constructed in different ways in different times and cultures. Conflicts of scripts in the working life and difficulties in understanding and applying them are in the centre of the study. In the study, the working life experiences of immigrants are approached through narrative research. The research material consists of the working life narratives of nine immigrants who live and work in Finland permanently. Each interviewee has been interviewed 2 4 times so the research material consists of 26 interviews. The material has been analysed from the points of view of perception, feeling and action. Deborah Tannen s and William Labov s as well as Matti Hyvärinen s method of expectancy analysis to locate cultural scripts has been utilised to organise the research material. In addition, David Herman s concepts of participatory roles and event types formed in narratives have been used in the analysis of the material. The basis in the analysis is that the world, events and experiences do not define the available processes; they are always culturally and individually anchored choices of the speaker and narrator. The most important results of the study are related to the gap between globalisation and everyday life. The discussion about the future need for workforce due to the changing population structure as well as about the benefits for national economy brought by internationalisation has continued in Finland for years. However, the working life narratives of the immigrants interviewed for the study show that an average citizen and member of a work community does not immediately encounter the macro level benefits in, for example, the mobility of workforce. In most of the working life narratives there was a point in speaking and saying, in which the immigrant worker either dares to speak or falls silent. Sometimes the courage to speak was related to language skills but more to the courage to be seen and to be part of a Finnish work community. Other workers that either speak their colleague with an immigrant background into a part of their work community or marginalise the colleague with their silence have an important role in a Finnish work community. In several working life narratives, the script of the Finnish working life and work community, the way to work, was opened to the immigrant and the so-called script exchange did not take place. The study shows that working life experiences and inclusion and exclusion built on the working life have an important role in the construction of active citizenship. The detailed analysis of the working life experience narratives gives new, relevant research data about citizenship as inclusion.

Changing Paradigms in Biblical Criticism : 2 Kings 22:1 23:30 in the Flux of Discourses

The subject and methodology of biblical scholarship has expanded immense-ly during the last few decades. The traditional text-, literary-, source- and form-critical approaches, labeled historical-critical scholarship , have faced the challenge of social sciences. Various new literary, synchronic readings, sometimes characterized with the vague term postmodernism, have in turn challenged historicalcritical, and social-scientific approaches. Widened limits and diverging methodologies have caused a sense of crisis in biblical criticism. This metatheoretical thesis attempts to bridge the gap between philosophical discussion about the basis of biblical criticism and practical academic biblical scholarship. The study attempts to trace those epistemological changes that have produced the wealth of methods and results within biblical criticism. The account of the cult reform of King Josiah of Judah as reported in 2 Kings 22:1 23:30 serves as the case study because of its importance for critical study of the Hebrew Bible. Various scholarly approaches embracing 2 Kings 22:1 23:30 are experimentally arranged around four methodological positions: text, author, reader, and context. The heuristic model is a tentative application of Oliver Jahraus s model of four paradigms in literary theory. The study argues for six theses: 1) Our knowledge of the world is con-structed, fallible and theory-laden. 2) Methodological plurality is the neces-sary result of changes in epistemology and culture in general. 3) Oliver Jahraus s four methodological positions in regard to literature are also an applicable model within biblical criticism to comprehend the methodological plurality embracing the study of the Hebrew Bible. 4) Underlying the methodological discourse embracing biblical criticism is the epistemological ten-sion between the natural sciences and the humanities. 5) Biblical scholars should reconsider and analyze in detail concepts such as author and editor to overcome the dichotomy between the Göttingen and Cross schools. 6) To say something about the historicity of 2 Kings 22:1 23:30 one must bring together disparate elements from various disciplines and, finally, admit that though it may be possible to draw some permanent results, our conclusions often remain provisional.

Optimal Use of Treatment Modalities and Treatment Results of Osteosarcoma and Soft Tissue Sarcomas

Soft tissue sarcomas are malignant tumours of mesenchymal origin. Because of infiltrative growth pattern, simple enucleation of the tumour causes a high rate of local recurrence. Instead, these tumours should be resected with a rim of normal tissue around the tumour. Data on the adequate margin width are scarce. At Helsinki University Central Hospital (HUCH) a multidisciplinary treatment group started in 1987. Surgical resection with a wide margin (2.5 cm) is the primary aim. In case of narrower margin radiation therapy is necessary. The role of adjuvant chemotherapy remains unclear. Our aims were to study local control by the surgical margin and to develop a new prognostic tool to aid decision-making on which patients should receive adjuvant chemotherapy. Patients with soft tissue sarcoma of the extremity or the trunk wall referred to HUCH during 1987-2002 form material in Studies I and II. External validation material comes from the Lund university sarcoma registry. The smallest surgical margin of at least 2.5 centimetres yielded local control of 89 per cent at five years. Amputation rate was 9 per cent. The proposed prognostic model with necrosis, vascular invasion, size on a continuous scale, depth, location and grade worked well both in Helsinki material and in the validation material, and it also showed good calibration. Based on the present study, we recommend the smallest surgical margin of 2-3 centimetres in soft tissue sarcoma irrespective of grade. Improvement in local control was present but modest in margins wider than 1 centimetre. In cases where gaining a wider margin would lead to a considerable loss of function, smaller margin is to be considered combined to radiation therapy. Patients treated with inadequate margins should be offered radiation therapy irrespective of tumour grade. Our new prognostic model to estimate 10-year survival probability in patients with soft tissue sarcoma of the extremities or trunk wall showed good dicscrimination and calibration. For time being the prognostic model is available for scientific use and further validations. In the future, the model may aid in clinical decision-making. For operable osteosarcoma, neoadjuvant multidrug chemotherapy followed by delayed surgery and multidrug adjuvant chemotherapy is the treatment of choice. Overall survival rates at five years are approximately 75 per cent in modern trials with classical osteosarcoma. All patients diagnosed and reported to the Finnish Cancer Registry with osteosarcoma in Finland during 1971-2005 form the material in Studies III and IV. Limb-salvage rate increased from 23 per cent to 78 per cent during 1971-2005. The 10-year sarcoma-specific survival for the whole study population improved from 32 per cent to 62 per cent. It was 75 per cent for patients with a local high-grade osteosarcoma of the extremity diagnosed during 1991-2005. This study outlines the improved prognosis of osteosarcoma patients in Finland with modern chemotherapy. The 10-year survival rates are good also in an international scale. Nonetheless, their limb-salvage rate remains inferior to those seen for highly selected patient series. Overall, the centralisation of osteosarcoma treatment would most likely improve both survival and limb-salvage rates even further.

Biokaasun tuotannon ja lietelannan jakeistamisen taloudelliset vaikutukset nautatilalle

Työn tavoitteena on tutkia nautatilojen lannan käsittelytapojen taloudellista kannattavuutta. Tutkimuksessa verrataan lietelannan vaihtoehtoisia käsittelytapoja, joita ovat (a) lietteen levittäminen peltoon ilman esikäsittelyä, (b) lietelannan jakeistaminen typpipitoiseen nestejakeeseen ja fosforipitoiseen kuivajakeeseen sekä (c) lannan hyödyntäminen biokaasun tuotannossa. Aineistona tutkimuksessa käytetään aiempia tutkimustuloksia sekä Vieremällä sijaitsevien nautatilojen (21 kpl) tietoja. Menetelmänä käytetään lineaarista ohjelmointia ja malli ratkaistaan GAMS -ohjelmaa käyttämällä. Teoriana tutkimuksessa on tuotanto- ja kustannusteoria. Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan kuinka eläintiheys, peltolohkorakenne sekä kustannusten muutokset vaikuttavat lannankäsittelyyn. Tutkimuksessa havaitaan, että kun kaikkea lietettä ei voida levittää tilan hallinnassa oleville pelloille, on lietteen jakeistaminen kannattavaa, jos jakeistuskustannus ei ylitä 1,2 €/m3. Sijoituslevityksen havaitaan olevan hajalevitystä kannattavampaa, paitsi typen hinnan ollessa hyvin alhainen hajalevitys on kannattavampi vaihtoehto. Korkea typpikustannus ja lietteen jakeistuskustannus tekevät biokaasun tuotannosta kannattavan vaihtoehdon, jos biokaasulaitos sijaitsee hyvin lähellä tilaa. Lietteen jakeistaminen on kannattavaa alueilla, joilla lannanlevityspinta-alasta on niukkuutta. Jakeistettavaa lietettä on kuitenkin oltava vähintään 20 000 m3/a, jotta jakeistuslaitteen hankkiminen on kannattavaa. Biokaasun tuotannon ei katsota olevan tällä hetkellä kannattava lannan käsittelyvaihtoehto, koska laitoksen olisi saatava tarvittava raaka-ainemäärä kaikissa tapauksissa alle kahden kilometrin säteeltä, eikä tämän katsota onnistuvan. Vieremän tiloista ainoastaan yksi tila sijaitsee riittävän lähellä suunniteltua laitoksen sijaintipaikkaa.

Professional Driving : An Emphasis on Organizational Safety Climate

According to the literature and statistical figures, professional drivers constitute a high-risk group in traffic and should be investigated in connection with the factors related to safe driving. However, safety-related behaviours and outcomes among professional drivers have attracted very little attention from safety researchers. In addition, comparing different professional and non-professional driver groups in terms of critical on-the-road characteristics and outcomes has been indicated in the literature as being necessary for a more comprehensive understanding of driver groups and the nature of driving itself. The aim of the present study was to investigate professional driving from a safety climate stand point in relation to predominant driving-related factors and by considering the differences between driver groups. Hence, four Sub-studies were conducted according to a framework emphasizing the relationships between safety climate, driver groups, driver stress, human factors (i.e., driver behaviour and performance) and accidents. Demographic information, as well as data for driver behaviour, performance, and driver stress was collected by questionnaire. The data was analysed using factor analysis, analysis of covariance as well as hierarchical and logistic regression analysis. The results revealed multi-dimensional factor structures for the safety climate measures. Considering the relationships between variables, differences were evidenced regarding on-the-road stress reactions, risky driver behaviours and penalties, between the various professional and non-professional driver groups. Driver stress was found to be related to accidents. The results also indicated that the safety climate has positive relationships with both driver behaviour and performance, and as well as involvement in accidents. The present study has a number of critical implications resulting from the fact that the way in which the effects of safety climate on professional driving were investigated, as well as the differences between professional and non-professional driver groups, was unique. Additionally, for the first time, a safety climate scale was developed specifically for professional drivers. According to the results of the study and to previous literature, a tentative model was proposed representing a possible route for the relationships between safety climate, human factors, driver stress, driver groups and accidents, by emphasizing the effects of safety climate.

Modelling vacuum arcs : from plasma initiation to surface interactions

A better understanding of vacuum arcs is desirable in many of today's 'big science' projects including linear colliders, fusion devices, and satellite systems. For the Compact Linear Collider (CLIC) design, radio-frequency (RF) breakdowns occurring in accelerating cavities influence efficiency optimisation and cost reduction issues. Studying vacuum arcs both theoretically as well as experimentally under well-defined and reproducible direct-current (DC) conditions is the first step towards exploring RF breakdowns. In this thesis, we have studied Cu DC vacuum arcs with a combination of experiments, a particle-in-cell (PIC) model of the arc plasma, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the subsequent surface damaging mechanism. We have also developed the 2D Arc-PIC code and the physics model incorporated in it, especially for the purpose of modelling the plasma initiation in vacuum arcs. Assuming the presence of a field emitter at the cathode initially, we have identified the conditions for plasma formation and have studied the transitions from field emission stage to a fully developed arc. The 'footing' of the plasma is the cathode spot that supplies the arc continuously with particles; the high-density core of the plasma is located above this cathode spot. Our results have shown that once an arc plasma is initiated, and as long as energy is available, the arc is self-maintaining due to the plasma sheath that ensures enhanced field emission and sputtering. The plasma model can already give an estimate on how the time-to-breakdown changes with the neutral evaporation rate, which is yet to be determined by atomistic simulations. Due to the non-linearity of the problem, we have also performed a code-to-code comparison. The reproducibility of plasma behaviour and time-to-breakdown with independent codes increased confidence in the results presented here. Our MD simulations identified high-flux, high-energy ion bombardment as a possible mechanism forming the early-stage surface damage in vacuum arcs. In this mechanism, sputtering occurs mostly in clusters, as a consequence of overlapping heat spikes. Different-sized experimental and simulated craters were found to be self-similar with a crater depth-to-width ratio of about 0.23 (sim) - 0.26 (exp). Experiments, which we carried out to investigate the energy dependence of DC breakdown properties, point at an intrinsic connection between DC and RF scaling laws and suggest the possibility of accumulative effects influencing the field enhancement factor.

Constructing a Community : Myths and Realities of the Open Development Model

The open development model of software production has been characterized as the future model of knowledge production and distributed work. Open development model refers to publicly available source code ensured by an open source license, and the extensive and varied distributed participation of volunteers enabled by the Internet. Contemporary spokesmen of open source communities and academics view open source development as a new form of volunteer work activity characterized by hacker ethic and bazaar governance . The development of the Linux operating system is perhaps the best know example of such an open source project. It started as an effort by a user-developer and grew quickly into a large project with hundreds of user-developer as contributors. However, in hybrids , in which firms participate in open source projects oriented towards end-users, it seems that most users do not write code. The OpenOffice.org project, initiated by Sun Microsystems, in this study represents such a project. In addition, the Finnish public sector ICT decision-making concerning open source use is studied. The purpose is to explore the assumptions, theories and myths related to the open development model by analysing the discursive construction of the OpenOffice.org community: its developers, users and management. The qualitative study aims at shedding light on the dynamics and challenges of community construction and maintenance, and related power relations in hybrid open source, by asking two main research questions: How is the structure and membership constellation of the community, specifically the relation between developers and users linguistically constructed in hybrid open development? What characterizes Internet-mediated virtual communities and how can they be defined? How do they differ from hierarchical forms of knowledge production on one hand and from traditional volunteer communities on the other? The study utilizes sociological, psychological and anthropological concepts of community for understanding the connection between the real and the imaginary in so-called virtual open source communities. Intermediary methodological and analytical concepts are borrowed from discourse and rhetorical theories. A discursive-rhetorical approach is offered as a methodological toolkit for studying texts and writing in Internet communities. The empirical chapters approach the problem of community and its membership from four complementary points of views. The data comprises mailing list discussion, personal interviews, web page writings, email exchanges, field notes and other historical documents. The four viewpoints are: 1) the community as conceived by volunteers 2) the individual contributor s attachment to the project 3) public sector organizations as users of open source 4) the community as articulated by the community manager. I arrive at four conclusions concerning my empirical studies (1-4) and two general conclusions (5-6). 1) Sun Microsystems and OpenOffice.org Groupware volunteers failed in developing necessary and sufficient open code and open dialogue to ensure collaboration thus splitting the Groupware community into volunteers we and the firm them . 2) Instead of separating intrinsic and extrinsic motivations, I find that volunteers unique patterns of motivations are tied to changing objects and personal histories prior and during participation in the OpenOffice.org Lingucomponent project. Rather than seeing volunteers as a unified community, they can be better understood as independent entrepreneurs in search of a collaborative community . The boundaries between work and hobby are blurred and shifting, thus questioning the usefulness of the concept of volunteer . 3) The public sector ICT discourse portrays a dilemma and tension between the freedom to choose, use and develop one s desktop in the spirit of open source on one hand and the striving for better desktop control and maintenance by IT staff and user advocates, on the other. The link between the global OpenOffice.org community and the local end-user practices are weak and mediated by the problematic IT staff-(end)user relationship. 4) Authoring community can be seen as a new hybrid open source community-type of managerial practice. The ambiguous concept of community is a powerful strategic tool for orienting towards multiple real and imaginary audiences as evidenced in the global membership rhetoric. 5) The changing and contradictory discourses of this study show a change in the conceptual system and developer-user relationship of the open development model. This change is characterized as a movement from hacker ethic and bazaar governance to more professionally and strategically regulated community. 6) Community is simultaneously real and imagined, and can be characterized as a runaway community . Discursive-action can be seen as a specific type of online open source engagement. Hierarchies and structures are created through discursive acts. Key words: Open Source Software, open development model, community, motivation, discourse, rhetoric, developer, user, end-user

ESPOOLAISTEN KOETTU TERVEYS - Pienalue-estimoinnin soveltaminen aluetasoisen tiedon tuottamiseen

Koettu terveys on subjektiivinen mittari, jota voidaan käyttää objektiivisten mittareiden ohella kunnan sosiaali- ja terveyspolitiikan onnistumisen arviointiin sekä ohjaamaan palveluiden järjestämistä. Tutkimuksessa selvitettiin mahdollisuuksia tuottaa pienalue-estimointimenetelmillä tietoa Espoon eri alueiden 20–64 -vuotiaan väestön kokemasta terveydestä. Erityisesti työ keskittyi selvittämään; kuinka pienille Espoon alueille voidaan tuottaa luotettavaa tietoa käytettävissä olevasta otosaineistosta ja miten käytetty mallitaso sekä otoskoon kasvattaminen muiden pääkaupunkiseudun asukkaiden vastauksilla vaikuttaa estimointitulokseen? Tutkimusaineistona käytettiin vuoden 2008 aikana Helsingin sosiaalialan osaamiskeskuksen keräämän Pääkaupunkiseudun hyvinvointitutkimus -aineiston lisäksi Aluesarjat-tilastotietokannasta sekä Tilastokeskuksen Väestötilastopalvelusta saatavaa tietoa. Pienalue-estimointimenetelminä käytettiin malliavusteista GREG-estimointia sekä malliperusteista EBLUP-estimointia. Sekä Espoon että koko pääkaupunkiseudun otosaineistosta muodostettujen yksikkö- ja aluetason mallien parametrien ja Espoon eri alueiden 20–64 -vuotiaaseen väestöön liittyvän tiedon avulla tuotettiin alue-estimaatteja Espoon pien-, tilasto- ja suuralueille. Koetun terveyden aluekeskiarvon estimointi onnistui kaikilla aluetasoilla kyseisen aluetason malliin perustuvalla EBLUP-estimaattorilla. GREG-estimaattori onnistui vain suuraluetason estimoinnissa, muilla aluetasoilla alueiden pienet otoskoot huononsivat GREG-estimaatin tarkkuutta. Yksikkötason sekamallin huono selitysvoima ja mallista puuttuva selittäjä huononsivat siihen perustuvan EBLUP-estimaattorin tarkkuutta. Estimoinnin kannalta mallitasoa tärkeämmäksi osoittautui mallin hyvyyden toteutuminen. Voiman lainaaminen kohdejoukon ulkopuoliselta otokselta heikensi satunnaisvaikutuksen merkitsevyyttä ja alue-estimaattien välistä vaihtelua sekä lisäsi estimaattien tarkkuutta. Pienaluetiedon tuottaminen onnistuu EBLUP-estimaattoreilla jopa 85 pienalueelle noin 800 havainnon otosaineistosta, mikäli käytössä on luotettavaa lisäinformaatiota ja hyvä malli. GREG-estimaattori sallii huonomman mallin käytön, mutta edellyttää suurempia pienalueittaisia otoskokoja kuin EBLUP-estimaattorit. EBLUP-estimaattoreiden etuna on alueittaisen otoskoon lisäksi mahdollisuus perustaa estimointi sekä yksikkötasoiseen että aluetasoiseen malliin. Pienalueestimointimenetelmät lisäävät otosaineistojen hyödyntämismahdollisuuksia. Onnistumisen takaa menetelmiin sisältyvien, aineistoon ja malliin kohdistuvien vaatimusten huomiointi tiedonkeruun suunnitteluvaiheessa mm. kysymysten asettelussa. Pienalue-estimointimenetelmien käyttö edellyttää tilastollista osaamista, kriittisyyttä saatuja tuloksia kohtaan ja vastuullisuutta tuloksia julkaistaessa. Laatuvaatimukset täyttävät pienalue-estimaatit soveltuvat hyvin päätöksenteon tueksi, kun halutaan vertailla alueita ja kohdentaa resursseja tarvelähtöisesti.