Study of ethanol electro-oxidation in acid environment on Pt(3)Sn/C anode catalysts prepared by a modified polymeric precursor method under controlled synthesis conditions

A carbon-supported binary Pt(3)Sn catalyst has been prepared using a modified polymeric precursor method under controlled synthesis conditions This material was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD). and the results indicate that 23% (of a possible 25%) of Sn is alloyed with Pt, forming a dominant Pt(3)Sn phase. Transmission election microscopy (TEM) shows good dispersion of the electrocatalyst and small particle sizes (3 6 nm +/- 1 nm) The polarization curves for a direct ethanol fuel cell using Pt(3)Sn/C as the anode demonstrated Improved performance compared to that of a PtSn/C E-TEK. especially in the intrinsic resistance-controlled and mass transfer regions. This behavior is probably associated with the Pt(3)Sn phase. The maximum power density for the Pt(3)Sn/C electrocatalyst (58 mW cm(-2)) is nearly twice that of a PtSn/C E-TEK electrocatalyst (33 mW cm(-2)) This behavior is attributed to the presence of a mixed Pt(9)Sn and Pt(3)Sn alloy phase in the commercial catalysts (C) 2009 Elsevier B V All rights reserved

Vad säger statistik om arbetslöshet? : En analys av den offentliga debattenom arbetslösheten i Sverige inför valet 2005

This essay examines the public debate concerning the unemployment of Sweden just before the general election 2005. Its main purpose is to analyse what lies behind the huge differences in statistics, as presented by the two leading factions in the debate. It concludes that these differences are foremost a problem of semantics, and that although the two factions have statistical proof of their claims, it is their use of terminology that is in fact their main weapon in the debate.The key word here is the swedish word for employment – sysselsättning – which the two facitons use in entirely different ways, creating a lot of possabilities for interpretation. This has caused a type of debate which is actually about the reinterpretation this word, and those who are to be included in the statistics as being “sysselsatt”, therefore, it is semantics that affects the number of unemployed people in the statistics.

Speak Good English Movement in Singapore : Reactions in Social and Traditional Media

The first Speak Good English Movement, SGEM, took place in 2000, and has been organized annually ever since. Speaking a “standard” form of English is considered to bring increased personal power. However, the SGEM wants the Singaporeans to use “standard” English in their private life as well. A decade after the beginning of the campaign, a Speak Good Singlish Movement was started. Based on studies of language and identity, it is understandable why some Singaporeans might feel the SGEM threatens their identity. However, the reactions towards the campaign are mainly positive. For the purposes of this analysis, Twitter messages, Facebook pages, and newspaper articles from The Straits Times were collected. The SGEM has hailed both direct and indirect praise and criticism in both social and traditional media: Five newspaper articles praise the campaign while five criticize it; the results are nine and seven respectively for social media. This thesis looks at reactions towards the SGEM in both social and traditional media, analyzes how these reactions might relate to the ideas of the power of language, its variety and the relation of language and identity.

Hårda nypor för ett mjukt samhälle? : Om medialisering och rasifiering i utspelspolitikens Sverige

Toughness for a soft society? On medialisation, racialisation and the politics of spin in Sweden In recent years, issues concerning the future of “multicultural Sweden” have become a salient feature in Swedish politics. One important actor in recent years’ debates about the problems confronting “multicultural Sweden” is the Swedish Liberal Party. Since the general election of 2002, the party has gained both publicity and electoral support by focusing the question of “integration of immigrants” in terms of assimilation and intensified demands aimed at the “immigrant Others”. In this article, the party’s recent developments in the area of integration policy is analysed within the framework of two general processes in contemporary politics, the politics of racialisation and the medialisation of politics. The party’s successful interventions in the area of integration policy are built on an intimate as well as complex interplay between racialisation and medialisation. The agenda articulated by the party, further, has several similarities with the agenda of “authoritarian populist” movements throughout Europe.

Näringslivsutveckling i ett regionalt perspektiv : En följeforskningsstudie av projektet InnoWent, Teknikdalen. Slutrapport

Projektet Innowent - en regional arena för samverkan och hållbar tillväxt är ett exempel på ett försök att utveckla samverkan mellan företag och offentliga organisationer i syfte att stärka den regionala ekonomiska utvecklingen. Projektet genomfördes av Stiftelsen Teknikdalen och Högskolan Dalarna. Den här rapporten avgränsas till ”Teknikdalsdelen”. I rapporten fokuseras följande frågeställningar: - Hur beskriver de involverade aktörerna att projektet genomförts och vad det resulterade i? - Vilka erfarenheter kan dras från att i projektform arbeta med att utveckla förutsättningar för att tillväxtföretag kan etableras och om detta skapar regional ekonomisk utveckling i sin förlängning, t.ex. i for av om det underlättar att branschkluster kan etableras? Kluster, d.v.s. ansamlingar av företag som samverkar inom en bransch i en region, anses kunna spela en viktig roll och därför beskrivs några grundläggande tankar om detta fenomen. Eftersom utvecklingen av en inkubator spelat en central roll i projektet, och att dess verksamhet kan i förlängningen antas understödja att kluster bildas, beskrivs vilken funktion en inkubator kan ha för att utveckla nya företag. Då coacher spelar en viktig roll i en inkubator beskrivs några olika infallsvinklar på hur denna roll kan spelas. Avslutningsvis behandla några bakomliggande tankar för att skapa vad som benämns som hållbar affärsutveckling (Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)) och som kan ses som det fundament som delprojektet Hållbar affärsutveckling vilat på. Resultatet av projektet InnoWent (Teknikdalsdelen) kan sammanfattas som att det har bidragit till att utveckla en befintlig inkubator genom att bygga upp en fungerande organisation med ett nätverk av aktörer i form av en utvidgad och bättre organiserad idéjakt. Det inledande steget i inkubatorn har gjorts om till Business Start och antalet antagningstillfällen tredubblats. Projektet har utvecklat en verksamhet runt konceptet hållbar affärsutveckling, bl.a. genom att detta inkluderats i inkubatorn och genom att nya projekt inom detta område håller på att initieras. Det har skett en framgångsrik satsning på att nå ut med information om verksamheten genom att använda sociala medier som Facebook och Twitter, liksom att bygga internationella nätverk. Däremot kvarstår problem att hantera hur företagen, framför allt i det avslutande skedet av inkubatorn, lättare kan få tillgång till riskvilligt kapital. Projektet InnoWent framstår i flera avseenden som framgångsrikt, även om svårigheter inte saknats.

Soft money : private foundations of party politics

In the area of campaign financing in federal elections, one of the most controversial issues is that of soft money. Soft money refers to those funds raised by the national party organizations for use on various grassroots and party-building activities. but which are not subject to the restraints of federal campaign finance law. Critics contend that these party-building activitie, such as generic television advertising, voter registration and get-out-the vote drives, provide ancillary benefits to federal candidates and should, therefore, be subject to federal contribution and expenditure limits. Critics further argue that because these funds are not subject to federal law and do benefit federal candidates, the national parties raise monies in amounts and from sources, such as corporations and unions, that are prohibited under federal law. Efforts to gain a better understanding of soft money have been hampered by a lack of data, as the national parties were not required to disclose their soft money receipts and transactions until 1991. The purpose of this study is to analyze data recently made available in an attempt to add the import of empirical evidence to the debate over soft money. The nature, size and timing of soft money contributions are investigated and national party soft money disbursements are examined. The findings suggest that any attempts to reform the soft money system must first consider its compensatory benefits. Most prominently, this includes the extent to which soft money has promoted the resurgence of the national party organizations in the context of election politics.