Spectral characteristics of bacteriorhodopsin water solution

The object of the study is bacteriorhodopsin. This light-sensitive protein have been selected as perspective substance for optical and optoelectronic applications. Bacteriorhodopsin carries out pumping protons through the cell membrane. Biomolecule converts light into an electric signal when sandwiched between electrodes. These properties were utilized in this research to implement photosensors on the basis of BR layers. These properties were utilized in this research to the bR water solution. According to the absorption spectra and using Kramers – Kronig relation the extinction coefficient has been calculated, as well as the related change of the refractive index value.

Hydration of carrot seeds in relation to osmotic potential of solution and conditioning method

The objective of this study was to monitor carrot seed hydration in water and osmotic solutions to define appropriate conditions for priming treatment. Two Brasília cultivar carrot seed lots were used. Seeds were imbibed in -1.0 and -1.2 MPa PEG 6000 osmotic solutions and in distilled water, in an incubator BOD at 20ºC, using two different hydration methods: imbibition in moistened paper towel sheets and in aerated solutions. The imbibition curves for each seed lot were drawn after determining seed moisture content at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 24, 48, 72, 96 hours hydration in water and after 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 24, 48, 72, 96, 120, 144, 168, 192, 216, 264, 312 hours hydration in PEG 6000 solutions. Seed hydration in distilled water was faster than in PEG 6000 solutions; the primary root protrusion occurred at 48 hours imbibition as seeds reached 54% moisture content. Osmotic conditioning of carrot seeds should be performed by imbibition in PEG 6000 -1.0 or -1.2 MPa solutions to attain 40% and 45% moisture content (moistened paper) or 40% and 45% (aerated solutions).

Datenherrschaft – an Ethically Justified Solution to the Problem of Ownership of Patient Information

Patient information systems are crucial components for the modern healthcare and medicine. It is obvious that without them the healthcare cannot function properly – one can try to imagine how brain surgery could be done without using information systems to gather and show information needed for an operation. Thus, it can be stated that digital information is irremovable part of modern healthcare. However, the legal ownership of patient information lacks a coherent and justified basis. The whole issue itself is actually bypassed by controlling pa- tient information with different laws and regulations how patient information can be used and by whom. Nonetheless, the issue itself – who owns the patient in- formation – is commonly missed or bypassed. This dissertation show the problems if the legislation of patient information ownership is not clear. Without clear legislation, the outcome can be unexpected like it seems to be in Finland, Sweden and United Kingdom: the lack of clear regulation has come up with unwanted consequences because of problematic Eu- ropean Union database directive implementation in those countries. The legal ownership is actually granted to the creators of databases which contains the pa- tient information, and this is not a desirable situation. In healthcare and medicine, we are dealing with issues such as life, health and information which are very sensitive and in many cases very personal. Thus, this dissertation leans on four philosophical theories form Locke, Kant, Heidegger and Rawls to have an ethically justified basis for regulating the patient infor- mation in a proper way. Because of the problems of property and ownership in the context of information, a new concept is needed and presented to replace the concept of owning, that concept being Datenherrschaft (eng. mastery over in- formation). Datenherrschaft seems to be suitable for regulating patient infor- mation because its core is the protection of one’s right over information and this aligns with the work of the philosophers whose theories are used in the work. The philosophical argumentation of this study shows that Datenherrschaft granted to the patients is ethically acceptable. It supports the view that patient should be controlling the patient information about themselves unless there are such specific circumstance that justifies the authorities to use patient information to protect other people’s basic rights. Thus, if the patients would be legally grant- ed Datenherrschaft over patient information we would endorse patients as indi- viduals who have their own and personal experience of their own life and have a strong stance against any unjustified paternalism in healthcare. Keywords: patient information, ownership, Datenherrschaft, ethics, Locke, Kant, Heidegger, Rawls

Mobile applications, solution for sustainable agriculture? - Study of mAgriculture services in Kenya

During the recent years, mobile services have spread to many different sectors, including education, health and agriculture, while changing the practices in those fields. Agriculture sector is under pressure to fill the ever-crowing food demand, while suffering from lack of agriculture resources (such as water and soil) and climate change, as well as figuring how to involve young people in the agriculture sector, in order to replace aging farmers. These issues create a need to bring new sustainable solutions to the agriculture sector. This is the demand, which mobile agriculture, mAgriculture, services are trying to answer. This thesis will examine the mAgriculture services in the Kenyan market. The thesis will provide an overview of the currently available mAgriculture services, their outcome and issues with which they are struggling. The thesis will also present recommendations on how to improve currently existing services and processes behind them. Secondly, thesis will provide four ideas for new services, which would answer for the needs of the farmers. Suitable business models, regarding the new services, are also covered. The thesis focuses with the young farmers as a target group, but findings are also applicable with other potential target groups as well.

Trade rules and exchange rate misalignments: in search for a WTO solution

The debate on the link between trade rules and rules on exchange rates is raising the attention of experts on international trade law and economics. The main purpose of this paper is to analyze the impacts of exchange rate misalignments on tariffs as applied by the WTO - World Trade Organization. It is divided into five sections: the first one explains the methodology used to determine exchange rate misalignments and also presents its results for Brazil, U.S. and China; the second summarizes the methodology applied to calculate the impacts of exchange rate misalignments on the level of tariff protection through an exercise of "misalignment tariffication"; the third examines the effects of exchange rate variations on tariffs and their consequences for the multilateral trading system; the fourth one creates a methodology to estimate exchange rates against a currency of the World and a proposal to deal with persistent and significant misalignments related to trade rules. The conclusions are present in the last section.

Value-based selling of the column connection solution as part of project sales

The objective of this study was to find out how third party influencers can facilitate value-based selling in a network and how suppliers should aim to impact on these third party influencers to facilitate value-based selling. The study considers construction industry, selling the column connection solution and third party influencers. Third party influencers examined in this study were structural designers. The study also aims to find out structural designers’ value drivers and the differences between the market areas that this study related to. The theoretical part of the study focuses on two separate areas. The first part of the theory focuses on a value-based selling concept: what it is, what it requires and what are the main barriers for value-based selling. The second part of the theory examines value creation in networks. The present knowledge over value creation in networks and different network actors are presented. Project marketing is also discussed briefly because this study’s topic, which is highly related to project business. The results reveal structural designers’ value drivers considering the usage of the column connection solution and present ways how suppliers should aim to impact structural designers to facilitate value-based selling. The main result of the study indicates that third party influencers can have a positive impact on facilitating value-based selling. Structural designers are communicating more or less with all the salient actors in different project phases and they can act as sponsors to support the sales of Peikko’s column connection solution and promote solution to other actors involved to the project. This requires that structural designers can understand the actual benefits of how the solution can improve their and their customers’ business.

Earning logics of a portal solution for a medical device manufacturer

The need behind this thesis was in the development of a more modern earning logic for a pelvic floor muscle home training device to which a portal solution is going to be introduced as a part of new upgraded version of the device. The goal is to offer useful guidelines and recommendations for the medical device manufacturer to use in the process of creating the new business model around the new product version. In the theoretical part of this thesis, the used theoretical frameworks for business model generation and pricing models are presented. The special characteristics of healthcare technology industry are also introduced as initial data for the empirical part. The empirical data is collected via interviews and meetings from both inside and outside of the company to gain a comprehensive picture of the issue at hand. The needed changes in the business model as well as possible pricing options are gone through in the empirical chapters with the main focus being on the incoming revenue streams and pricing. As results of the thesis recommendations are presented for the changes that are needed in the business model after the introduction of the portal solution. The results of this thesis can be used for finishing the development process of the new version of the device and especially the earning logic of it.