A Business continuity management maturity model : the search for an ISO 22301 Compliant BCM Maturity model

BCM (business continuity Management) is a holistic management process aiming at ensuring business continuity and building organizational resilience. Maturity models offer organizations a tool for evaluating their current maturity in a certain process. In the recent years BCM has been subject to international ISO standardization, while the interest of organizations to bechmark their state of BCM agains standards and the use of maturity models for these asessments has increased. However, although new standards have been introduced, very little attention has been paid to reviewing the existing BCM maturity models in research - especially in the light of the new ISO 22301 standard for BCM. In this thesis the existing BCM maturily models are carefully evaluated to determine whetherthey could be improved. In order to accomplish this, the compliance of the existing models to the ISO 22301 standard is measured and a framework for assessing a maturitymodel´s quality is defined. After carefully evaluating the existing frameworks for maturity model development and evaluation, an approach suggested by Becker et al. (2009) was chosen as the basis for the research. An additionto the procedural model a set of seven research guidelines proposed by the same authors was applied, drawing on the design-science research guidelines as suggested by Hevner et al. (2004). Furthermore, the existing models´ form and function was evaluated to address their usability. Based on the evaluation of the existing BCM maturity models, the existing models were found to have shortcomings in each dimension of the evaluation. Utilizing the best of the existing models, a draft version for an enhanced model was developed. This draft model was then iteratively developed by conducting six semi-structured interviews with BCM professionals in finland with the aim of validating and improving it. As a Result, a final version of the enhanced BCM maturity model was developed, conforming to the seven key clauses in the ISO 22301 standard and the maturity model development guidelines suggested by Becker et al. (2009).

In vitro radioautographic studies of the biodistribution of radiopharmaceuticals on blood elements

In the present study we evaluated the binding of the radiopharmaceuticals sodium pertechnetate (Na 99mTcO4), methylenediphosphonic acid (99mTc-MDP) and glucoheptonate acid (99mTc-GHA) to blood elements using centrifugation and radioautographic techniques. Heparinized blood was incubated with the labelled compounds for 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 24 h. Plasma (P) and blood cells (BC) were isolated and precipitated with 5% trichloroacetic acid (TCA), and soluble (SF) and insoluble fractions (IF) were separated. Blood samples were prepared (0 and 24 h) and coated with LM-1 radioautographic emulsions and percent radioactivity (%rad) in P and BC was determined. The binding of Na 99mTcO4 (%rad) to P was 61.2% (0 h) and 46.0% (24 h), and radioautography showed 63.7% (0 h) and 43.3% (24 h). The binding to BC was 38.8% (0 h) and 54.0% (24 h), and radioautography showed 36.3% (0 h) and 56.7% (24 h). 99mTc-MDP study presented 91.1% (0 h) to P and 87.2% (24 h), and radioautography showed 67.9% (0 h) and 67.4% (24 h). The binding to BC was 8.9% (0 h) and 12.8% (24 h), and radioautography showed 32.1% (0 h) and 32.6% (24 h). 99mTc-GHA study was 90.1% (0 h) to P and 79.9% (24 h), and radioautography showed 67.2% (0 h) and 60.1% (24 h). The binding to BC was 9.9% (0 h) and 20.1% (24 h), and radioautography showed 32.8% (0 h) and 39.9% (24 h). The comparison of the obtained results suggests that the binding to plasma and blood cells in the two techniques used (radioautography and centrifugation) is qualitatively in accordance

Idealismia vai reaalipolitiikkaa : terrorismin vaikutus Euroopan unionin sekä Iso-Britannian uhkamalleihin

Pro gradu -tutkielman aihe on terrorismin vaikutus Euroopan unionin ja Ison-Britannian uhkamalleihin. Päämääränä, tässä tutkielmassa, on selvittää, miten terrorismi ilmenee Euroopan unionin ja Ison-Britannian turvallisuusstrategioissa. Turvallisuusstrategiassa kuvataan uhkat ja riskit, joista on muodostettu uhkamallit, joita vastaan varaudutaan strategian mukaisesti. Terrorismi on jaoteltu tässä tutkimuksessa Europolin -mallin mukaisesti: uskonnollinen terrorismi, etnis-nationalistinen terrorismi, vasemmistolainen ja anarkistiterrorismi, oikeistolainen terrorismi sekä yhden asian terrorismi. Tässä tutkielmassa käytetään Euroopan unionin ja Ison-Britannian määritelmää terrorismista. Tutkielman teoreettinen lähestymistapa on liberalismin mukainen, jossa keskeisenä tutkimuskohteena ovat valtiot sekä kansainväliset instituutiot, jotka muodostavat luonteeltaan anarkisen kansainvälisen järjestelmän. Liberalismin ajatuksen mukaisesti valta kansainvälisessä järjestelmässä koostuu taloudellisista, poliittisista, sosiaalisista sekä sotilaallisista resursseista, esimerkiksi Euroopan unionilla on merkittävä määrä valtaa kansainvälisessä järjestelmässä vaikka sillä ei olekaan omaa sotilaallista komponenttia. Kansainvälisen järjestelmän anarkiaa on mahdollista hallita kansainvälisien instituutioiden sekä yhteisten normien avulla. Tutkimusmenetelmänä käytetään asiakirja- ja kirjallisuustutkimusta. Lähdeaineistona on käytetty julkisia virallisia dokumentteja, aiheeseen liittyvää tieteellistä kirjallisuutta, julkisen median artikkeleita sekä tutkielmaani kirjoitusvaiheessa lukeneiden asiantuntijoiden kommentit aiheesta. Terrorismi on ollut keskeinen osa Euroopan unionin ja Ison-Britannian turvallisuusstrategioita koko 2000-luvun. Sen vaikutus näkyy mm. turvallisuusstrategioissa, lainsäädännössä, instituutioissa sekä median artikkeleissa. Terrorismi on hyvin syvälle juurtunut ilmiö maailmanlaajuisesti, joten sen merkitys tulee todennäköisesti säilymään hyvin korkeana prioriteettina sekä Euroopan unionin että Ison-Britannian uhkamalleissa vaikka ei-sotilaalliset uhkat ovatkin nousseet haastamaan sen aseman keskeisimpänä kylmän sodan jälkeisenä uhkana.

Development of finite elements for analysis of biomechanical structures using flexible multibody formulations

The absolute nodal coordinate formulation was originally developed for the analysis of structures undergoing large rotations and deformations. This dissertation proposes several enhancements to the absolute nodal coordinate formulation based finite beam and plate elements. The main scientific contribution of this thesis relies on the development of elements based on the absolute nodal coordinate formulation that do not suffer from commonly known numerical locking phenomena. These elements can be used in the future in a number of practical applications, for example, analysis of biomechanical soft tissues. This study presents several higher-order Euler–Bernoulli beam elements, a simple method to alleviate Poisson’s and transverse shear locking in gradient deficient plate elements, and a nearly locking free gradient deficient plate element. The absolute nodal coordinate formulation based gradient deficient plate elements developed in this dissertation describe most of the common numerical locking phenomena encountered in the formulation of a continuum mechanics based description of elastic energy. Thus, with these fairly straightforwardly formulated elements that are comprised only of the position and transverse direction gradient degrees of freedom, the pathologies and remedies for the numerical locking phenomena are presented in a clear and understandable manner. The analysis of the Euler–Bernoulli beam elements developed in this study show that the choice of higher gradient degrees of freedom as nodal degrees of freedom leads to a smoother strain field. This improves the rate of convergence.

Iso-Britannia vastakumouksellisessa sodassa : turvallisuusjoukkojen käyttöperiaatteet Malaijalla (1948-1960) ja Keniassa (1952-1960)

Toisen maailmansodan jälkeisenä ajanjaksona Iso-Britannia joutui useisiin vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin konflikteihin siirtomaarakenteiden purkautumisen ja maailmanpoliittisen tilanteen johdosta. Tutkielma käsittelee Ison-Britannian turvallisuusjoukkojen käyttöperiaatteita vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin konflikteissa Malaijalla vuosina 1948–1960 ja Keniassa vuosina 1952–1960. Tutkimus on luonteeltaan kvalitatiivinen tutkimus. Tutkimusmenetelmänä on käytetty lähdeaineistoon perustuvaa sisällönanalyysia. Lähdeaineisto koostuu pääsääntöisesti ulkomaalaisissa sotakouluissa tehdyistä opinnäytetöistä sekä tutkimus- ja aikalaiskirjallisuudesta. Lisäksi lähteenä on käytetty Britannian asevoimien ohjesääntöjä vastakumouksellisesta sodankäynnistä. Britannian vastakumouksellisen sodankäynnin taisteluoppi korosti sodan poliittista ratkaisua. Toisen maailmansodan jälkeisessä taisteluopissa uhkamalli muodostui Mao Tse-Tungin oppien mukaisesti taistelevasta kumouksellisesta liikkeestä. Malaijalla ja Keniassa kumouksellisen toiminnan raamit olivat monin osin yhtenäiset. Kapinalliset pystyttiin määrittämään selväksi vähemmistöryhmittymäksi koko kansakunnan osalta. Kapinallisten toiminta- aluetta olivat pääsääntöisesti maiden rajojen sisäpuolelle rajoittuvat harvaan asutut viidakko- ja metsäalueet. Britannian turvallisuusjoukkojen toiminnan perustana ollut ohjesääntö määritteli turvallisuusjoukkojen tärkeimmäksi tehtäväksi kumouksellisten eristämisen väestöstä, minkä avulla kumouksellisilta riistettiin toimintansa kannalta elintärkeät resurssit. Poliisivoimilla sekä paikallisesta väestöstä perustetuilla kodinturvajoukoilla kontrolloitiin ja valvottiin asuttuja alueita sotilasvoimien suorittaessa operaatioita viidakko- ja metsäalueiden laitamilla ja syvyydessä. Samanaikaisesti toteutetut uudelleenasuttamisen ohjelmat ja elintarvikkeiden säätelyt vaikeuttivat kapinallisten tukeutumista väestöön ja pakottivat heidät vetäytymään syrjäseuduille. Tutkielman tärkeimpänä havaintona voidaan pitää turvallisuusjoukkojen käyttöperiaatteiden yhtäläisyyttä Malaijalla ja Keniassa. Turvallisuusjoukkojen rakenne ja periaatteellinen käyttö noudattivat molemmissa konflikteissa samaa kaavaa perustuen Malaijan alkuvuosien havaintojen pohjalta laadittuun käsikirjaan. Turvallisuusjoukkojen käyttöön vaikuttaneet asteittaiset toimenpiteet kapinallisten eristämiseksi väestöstä, johtaen aina heidän voimiensa lopulliseen tuhoamiseen, olivat käyttöperiaatteiden kannalta ohjaava tekijä. Konflikteista saatujen havaintojen perusteella pystyttiin määrittelemään turvallisuusjoukkojen toimijoille selkeät roolit ja tehtäväkentät kriisien eri vaiheissa.

Tietointensiivisen asiantuntijapalveluyrityksen kansainvälistymisen haasteiden tunnistaminen - Iso-Britannian markkinat

Työssä tutkitaan tietointensiivisen asiantuntijapalveluyrityksen kohtaamia mahdollisia haasteita sen kansainvälistyessä Iso-Britannian markkinoille.

Protection of plasmid DNA by a Ginkgo biloba extract from the effects of stannous chloride and the action on the labeling of blood elements with technetium-99m

Ginkgo biloba extract (EGb) is a phytotherapeutic agent used for the treatment of ischemic and neurological disorders. Because the action of this important extract is not fully known, assays using different biological systems need to be performed. Red blood cells (RBC) are labeled with technetium-99m (Tc-99m) and used in nuclear medicine. The labeling depends on a reducing agent, usually stannous chloride (SnCl2). We assessed the effect of different concentrations of EGb on the labeling of blood constituents with Tc-99m, as sodium pertechnetate (3.7 MBq), and on the mobility of a plasmid DNA treated with SnCl2 (1.2 µg/ml) at room temperature. Blood was incubated with EGb before the addition of SnCl2 and Tc-99m. Plasma (P) and RBC were separated and precipitated with trichloroacetic acid, and soluble (SF-P and SF-RBC) and insoluble (IF-P and IF-RBC) fractions were isolated. The plasmid was incubated with Egb, SnCl2 or EGb plus SnCl2 and agarose gel electrophoresis was performed. The gel was stained with ethidium bromide and the DNA bands were visualized by fluorescence in an ultraviolet transilluminator system. EGb decreased the labeling of RBC, IF-P and IF-RBC. The supercoiled form of the plasmid was modified by treatment with SnCl2 and protected by 40 mg/ml EGb. The effect of EGb on the tested systems may be due to its chelating action with the stannous ions and/or pertechnetate or to the capability to generate reactive oxygen species that could oxidize the stannous ion.

An EDTA-β-cyclodextrin adsorbent for the adsorption of rare earth elements and its application in preconcentration of ultratrace rare earth elements from seawater

The objectives of this work were synthesizing an EDTA-β-CD adsorbent and investigating its adsorption potential and applications in preconcentration of REEs from aqueous phase. The adsorption capacity of EDTA-β-CD was investigated. The adsorption studies were performed by batch techniques both in one- and multi-component systems. The effects of pH, contact time and initial concentration were evaluated. The analytical detection methods and characterization methods were presented. EDTA-β-CD adsorbent was synthesized successfully with high EDTA coverage. The maximum REEs uptake was 0.310 mmol g-1 for La(III), 0.337 mmol g-1 for Ce(III) and 0.353 mmol g-1 for Eu(III), respectively. The kinetics of REEs onto EDTA-β-CD fitted well to pseudo-second-order model and the adsorption rate was affected by intra-particle diffusion. The experimental data of one component studies fitted to Langmuir isotherm model indicating the homogeneous surface of the adsorbent. The extended Sips model was applicable for the isotherm studies in three-component system. The electrostatic interaction, chelation and complexation were all involved in the adsorption mechanism. The preconcentration of RE ions and regeneration of EDTA-β-CD were successful. Overall, EDTA-β-CD is an effective adsorbent in adsorption and preconcentration of REEs.

The importance of package design to Japanese consumers: The role of visual and informational elements of package design in decision making

The importance of package design as a marketing tool is growing as the competition in retail environment increases. However, there is a lack of studies on how each element of package design affects consumer decisions in different countries. The objective of this thesis is to study the role of package design to Japanese consumers. The research was conducted through an experiment with a sample of 37 Japanese female participants. They were divided into two groups and were given different tasks: one group had to choose a chocolate for themselves, and the other for a group of friends. The participants were presented with 15 different Finnish chocolate boxes to choose from. The qualitative data was gathered through observation and semi-structured interviews. In addition, data from questionnaires was quantified and all the data was triangulated. The empirical results suggest that visual elements strongly affect the decision making of Japanese consumers. Image was the most important element which acted as both, a visual and an informational aspect in the experiment. Informational elements on the other hand have little effect, especially when the context is written in a foreign language. However, informational elements affected participants who were choosing chocolates for a group of friends. A unique finding was the importance of kawaii (cuteness) to Japanese consumers.

Essential regulatory elements for NHE3 gene transcription in renal proximal tubule cells

The objectives of the present study were to identify the cis-elements of the promoter absolutely required for the efficient rat NHE3 gene transcription and to locate positive and negative regulatory elements in the 5’-flanking sequence (5’FS), which might modulate the gene expression in proximal tubules, and to compare this result to those reported for intestinal cell lines. We analyzed the promoter activity of different 5’FS segments of the rat NHE3 gene, in the OKP renal proximal tubule cell line by measuring the activity of the reporter gene luciferase. Because the segment spanning the first 157 bp of 5’FS was the most active it was studied in more detail by sequential deletions, point mutations, and gel shift assays. The essential elements for gene transcription are in the region -85 to -33, where we can identify consensual binding sites for Sp1 and EGR-1, which are relevant to NHE3 gene basal transcription. Although a low level of transcription is still possible when the first 25 bp of the 5’FS are used as promoter, efficient transcription only occurs with 44 bp of 5’FS. There are negative regulatory elements in the segments spanning -1196 to -889 and -467 to -152, and positive enhancers between -889 and -479 bp of 5’FS. Transcription factors in the OKP cell nuclear extract efficiently bound to DNA elements of rat NHE3 promoter as demonstrated by gel shift assays, suggesting a high level of similarity between transcription factors of both species, including Sp1 and EGR-1.

Effect of blanching time on selective mineral elements extraction from the spinach substitute (Tetragonia expansa) commonly used in Brazil

The true spinach (Spinacia oleracea) does not grow well in warm climates and for that reason is not commercialized in Brazil. Instead, a spinach substitute (Tetragonia expansa), originally from New Zealand, is widely used in the country. There is scant information on the mineral profile and none on the soluble mineral fraction of this vegetable. The solubility of a mineral is one of the important factors for its absorption. For this reason, the calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, copper, zinc, potassium, and sodium soluble fractions in the raw spinach substitute were determined and the effect of blanching times on the solubility of these minerals was investigated. Blanching times of 1, 5, and 15 minutes were employed. The magnesium, manganese, potassium, and sodium soluble fractions increased sizably with shorter blanching time. Longer blanching time (15 minutes) caused large losses of minerals. The soluble mineral fractions can contribute poorly to diet in terms of potassium, magnesium, manganese, and zinc. The spinach substitute cannot be considered a dietary source of calcium, iron and copper due to the insolubility of these minerals in the vegetable, possibly caused by the large oxalate content.

Measuring Effectiveness of Marketing Message: The Role of Verbal, Visual and Brand Elements

The aim of this paper is to study the role of verbal, visual and brand elements while meas-uring effectiveness of marketing message. The thesis is written in the context of mobile gaming industry. The object of the study is marketing message. To achieve the aim, the main research question was formulated: How do the elements of marketing message, such as verbal, visual and brand, affect the consumer’s attitude toward the ad, emotional response and attention capture? The theory development chapter lays on three corner stones – analysis of previous litera-ture on marketing message and its elements, namely verbal, visual and brand; overview of literature on attitude formation and particularly attitude toward the ad. In addition, investiga-tion of key points of emotional response and attention capture literature finalizes the chap-ter. The empirical part consists of experiment, conducted with 27 participants. Experiment includes the self-report semantically anchored scale, measuring the attitude toward the ad, as well as autonomic measures – eye tracking (attention capture) and facial expressions (emotional response). The results of the experiment showed that the size of the brand element – the logo – has an effect on the attention capture and the overall attitude toward the ad. The bigger the logo, the more time people spend viewing it, and they realise the message is more educa-tional and factual. The measure related to the visual element – the visual complexity – in-creases the intensity of participant’s facial expression. While the measure of verbal ele-ment – the contrast between text and background colours – leads to a better attitude to-ward the ad. The higher the contrast between text and background, the more known the message appears to the viewer.

The effect of a diet education with six iso-caloric meals on the body weight and blood glucose of diabetes type 2 patients

The treatment of Diabetes should not only be sought through drug administration; diet is also a part of its treatment. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of a diet with six meals having equal calories on the body weight and blood glucose on diabetes type 2 patients. This research is an Experimental study conducted in 2009 on 181 patients with diabetes. The patients visited the IDSF (Iranian Diabetes Society of Fars) weekly and the patients to be studied were randomly divided into two groups of 85 and 96 patients, respectively. The participants were repeatedly requested to consume their calculated calorie in six equal parts. The average age in the Experimental and Control groups were 51.2 ± 13.3 and 53.1 ± 9.4, respectively. The mean body weight and fasting blood glucose at the beginning of the study in Experimental and Control groups were 66.3 ± 9.4 and 69.1 ± 11.1 kg, 198.9 ± 35.1, and 199.8 ± 39.1 mg.dL-1, respectively. At the end of the study, however, the values were 63.5 ± 7.5 and 66.98 ± 9 kg, 139.5 ± 34.6 and 164.2 ± 22.1 mg.dL-1, respectively. Only the mean fasting blood glucose at the end of the study revealed a significant difference (p-value = 0.001). The results show that educating those afflicted with Diabetes Type 2 aiming at changing their diet can greatly help them manage their blood glucose.