Syftet med föreliggande studie var att vinna kunskap om och ge en bild av hur sex pedagoger inom förskolan upplever att det är att arbeta integrerat med asylbarn i den allmänna förskolan och att ge en bild av vad pedagogerna berättar om hur detta arbete organiseras.  För att få svar på studiens frågor har en kvalitativ forskningsintervju använts. Två forskningsfrågor skapades från vilka intervjufrågorna huvudsakligen formades. Forskningsfrågorna var: Vilka förutsättningar för arbetet med asylbarn ger pedagogerna uttryck för och på vilket sätt organiseras den allmänna förskolan för asylbarn. Som analysredskap i studien har den sociokulturella och den interkulturella teorin använts. Studiens resultat visar att integreringen av asylbarn i den allmänna förskolan innebär att pedagogerna har att förhålla sig till att arbeta med asylbarn och deras föräldrar utan att dela språk eller känna till mycket om deras bakgrund. De måste också arbeta i en barngrupp som kan vara extra rörlig och instabil till storlek och dagsform. Resultatet visar också att den goda intention som det är att asylbarnen ska få komma varje dag till den allmänna förskolan gör att tiden på förskolan blir för kort för att pedagogerna ska kunna arbeta mer planerat med asylbarnens språk och egna kultur.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka vilken uppfattning elever i årskurs nio har om hälsa. Ämnet Idrott och hälsa bedrivs på olika sätt och syftet med studien är även att få en klarare bild över hur eleverna upplever att de arbetar med hälsa i undervisningen. Genom intervjuer vill vi höra elevernas tankar och erfarenheter om hälsa och vad de skulle vilja lära sig mer om. Vi vill även veta vad de tycker är viktigt för att kunna påverka sin framtida hälsa.

The aim of this study was to investigate, at first, why students in upper secondary school in Sweden participate or not in Physical education and health (PEH) and also find out what changes the subject need that can affect their participation. To get answers out of the in-vestigation, we formulated questions about what preconceptions the students of an specific group have about participation and non-participation in PEH and what changes the subject need, according to the students, to become a subject for all students. The study was based on a qualitative method, by using interviews of ten students from Swedish upper secondary school. The students were from two schools in a mediumsized region and from different programmes.

The results of the study shows clearly that the content and the grades in PEH affects the student’s participation, which was crucial to whether they felt they wanted to participate actively in the lessons or not. The grades were considered as important and affected the participation even though some of the students were not interested in the content, but they still did the things that the teacher demanded. Despite this, the attitudes towards the subject were positive among the interviewed students. The factors the students think can change the participation to more actively is implement more activities as dance, individual training but also, delimit ballsports. It seems like the interviewed students are searching for meaningfulness in the lessons of the subject with a link between the curriculum and grading criteria.

Sågverken i Sverige letar kontinuerligt efter lösningar för att kunna effektivisera produktionen. I denna studie analyseras specifikt Derome Kinnareds sågens timmerplan. Genom en stopptidsanalys, undersökningar av nya tekniska lösningar, muntliga kommunikationer med personal samt arbetsledare och andra företag införskaffades underlag till analys. Åtgärder som kan utföras för att minimera produktionskostnaderna eller öka produktionen på timmerplan är att implementera ny teknik t.ex. fjärrmätning, digitalisera mätbesked med hjälp av SDC:s arkiv, omorganisera personalstyrkan samt införskaffa bemyndigad mätare. Förslagen indikerar att implementering av dem kan förbättra Kinnaredsågens ekonomi. Beroende på hur mycket företaget är villigt att investera kan det effektiviseras i olika grad. I samband med kommunikation med företagsrepresentanter kom man dock fram till att ny teknik kan vara bättre att implementera vid en nybyggnation.

Bakgrund: Anestesisjuksköterskan arbetar i en komplex vårdmiljö med självständigt ansvar för patientens anestesi under operation och förväntas bedöma och hantera komplexa vårdsituationer. Lärande till yrkesprofession sker delvis under utbildningen till specialistsjuksköterska inom anestesi och delvis inom ramen för det yrkeskollektiv som anestesisjuksköterskan arbetar. För att uppnå kompetens som anestesisjuksköterska krävs vissa komponenter i lärandet till yrkesprofession.

Syfte: Att beskriva anestesisjuksköterskors uppfattningar av lärandet till yrkesprofession.

Metod: Studien har en kvalitativ design med fenomenografisk forskningsansats.  Anestesisjuksköterskor från en operationsavdelning i sydöstra Sverige har intervjuats kring temat lärande till yrkesprofession. Intervjumaterialet har analyserats enligt fenomenografisk metod.

Resultat: Fyra beskrivningskategorier som handlade om lärande till yrkesprofession identifierades. Att lära sig utföra anestesisjukvård, att lära sig tänka och agera som anestesisjuksköterska, att lära sig bemöta patienter och att lära sig samarbeta.

Slutsats: Resultatet visar att för att lära sig vårda en patient i en anestesikontext krävs vissa komponenter. Det är viktigt att vara medveten om dessa komponenter när studenter eller nyanställda skall lära sig yrkesprofessionen. Genom klinisk träning och teoretisk förankring kan anestesisjuksköterskan lära sig vårda komplexa sjukdomstillstånd där patientens säkerhet och integritet bibehålls.

Syftet med denna uppsats har varit att belysa behandlares uppfattningar om syskon och partners upplevelser av att ha en nära person med en ätstörning, samt betydelsen av att involvera dem i den drabbades behandling. Studien genomfördes med en kvalitativ metod där semistrukturerade intervjuer utfördes med 6 behandlare på olika ätstörningsverksamheter i Sverige. Resultat och slutsats visade att syskon och partners, samt andra närstående, är betydelsefulla för patientens tillfriskande. Det är viktigt att syskon och partners involveras i behandling, och att de får information om sjukdom och behandling. Syskon ska inte anta en ansvarsroll, medan partner behöver ta ett visst ansvar i vardagen. Ätstörningar har en tydlig påverkan på partners och syskon, samt på närstående i allmänhet. Närstående bör få goda verktyg till hur de kan vara ett stöd på bästa sätt till den drabbade. Behandlaren ska bemöta närstående med förståelse, respekt och ingen skuldbeläggning. Det är väsentligt för patientens motivation och tillfrisknande att det finns en god och nära relation till de närstående som är involverade i behandlingen. Det finns en brist på forskning inom detta område. Vidare forskning krävs för att stärka studiens resultat och slutsats.

Our purpose with this study was to investigate whether there was any difference between high and low performing students from selected aspects such as choice of studies, achievement, self-image, motivation, confidence and career choices.

A training professional in today's schools requires knowledge of how young people think about their lives for us to help students develop both high-and low-performing students. Students have different conditions, but no matter good or bad conditions, each individual pupil must be allowed to develop.

The concepts used in the study are of study, self-image, motivation, achievement in the future and career choices. In the background, describes these concepts through literature study. The method we have used was semi-structured interviews. Which means a fixed structure, but with room for follow-up questions.

The results of our study indicate that there were clear differences between high-and low-performing students. The differences suggest that the high-performing students were more conscious about their study options than low-performing students. Differences were also in the students' views of themselves,where the high-performance had a lower self- image than the low-performing students had. High performance compared each other more often with other people and was more unsure of themselves, however, the motivation was significantly higher among the high-performance students, performance showed the same results. The high-performing students had a clearer vision of the future and that they had a clearer picture of their career choice than the low-performing students.

Discussion on how we as educators can strengthen each student based on their individual needs have been based on results of the study.

Turismen i Kalmar har ökat de senaste åren, men hamnar till synes i skymundan av Öland och Glasriket. Hur får man besökare att få upp ögonen för Kalmar som primära resmålet och hur får man dem att stanna? Vi har i denna uppsats intresserat oss för att ta reda på hur ett starkt platsvarumärke skapas och vad som således krävs för att bli en framgångsrik destination, samt hur man kan använda sig av platsmarknadsföring för att nå ut med platsvarumärket till potentiella målgrupper.

Uncontrolled open dumping and burning of municipal solid waste (MSW) has resulted in soil, water, and air pollution in many urban cities in India. Landfills are the most common cost-effective solution for MSW management in many developing countries like India. However, the identification of suitable landfill sites always remains a challenging task as it involves the selection of several environmental criteria set by the local authorities. The objective of this study is to identify the most potential landfill sites proposed by the Government in Bengaluru Metropolitan Region, Karnataka state, India using Geographic Information System enabled Analytical Hierarchy Process based multi-criteria evaluation technique. Several criteria and constraints as recommended by the local authorities along with the proximity to the solid waste processing plants are used to identify the potential landfill sites in the study region. The study identified three highly suitable sites (Neraluru, Gudhatti, Madivala) for landfills which are not only environmentally sustainable but also economically attractive as they are closer to the solid waste processing plants minimizing the transportation cost involved in the disposal of solid waste from the source to the final disposal sites in the study region.

Världsmarknaden för läkemedlen beräknades år 2011 till 900 miljarder US$ enligt IMS-health. Marknaden för illegala läkemedel uppskattas vara värd mellan 75-200 miljarder dollar. I Sverige uppskattas den illegala läkemedelsmarknaden till motsvarande ≤0,5 %. Straffet för insmuggling av läkemedel till Sverige är böter eller max 2 års fängelse. Tullverket räknar med att man endast hittar 10 % av det som smugglas in. I andra länder kan straffet variera mellan böter (ekonomisk brottslighet i Afrika) till dödsstraff i Kina.

I Utvecklingsländerna uppskattas 10-30 % av alla läkemedel som säljs vara förfalskade, jmf 1 % I-länderna. l. Förekomsten av förfalskade läkemedel har många allvarliga konsekvenser på människor som exempelvis, utebliven effekt, toxiska reaktioner, förgiftningar, som kan i värsta fall leda till döden. Ett annat alvarligt problem är resistensutveckling, ökad spridning av smittsamammasjukdomar som exempel, tuberkulos och/ eller HIV/AIDS.

Syftet med detta examensarbete är att besvara frågan: Vilka problem ger den ökande förekomsten av förfalskade läkemedel i samhället. Undersökningen fokuserar på livstidsläkemedel, dvs ett läkemedel en person måste ta resten av sitt liv för behandling av sin kroniska sjukdom.

För att komma till rätta med de problem, som förfalskade läkemedel, skapar krävs ett mer utvecklat samarbete mellan olika läkemedelsmyndigheter, läkemedelsföretag, internationella polisorganisationer, tull m.fl. Arbetet med att utveckla förpackningar som är svåra att förfalska bör intensifieras. Straffsatser bör kanske ses över. Det är viktigt att öka medvetandet bland allmänheten om risker med att köpa läkemedel utanför apotek (t ex via nätet).

The photovoltaic (PV) panel can produce electrical energy that is very environmentally friendly and easy to use. The use of PV panels is suitable for supplying peak loads or at night using batteries as energy storage. However, the battery needs to manage for control, and the battery can last long. The solution to battery management problems is through research about the battery charging system. The DC-DC converter used is the Single Ended Primary Inductance Converter (SEPIC) type. Voltage Control of the battery charging using Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS). In the simulation of bright conditions, ANFIS controls can track the charging point set point and obtain a voltage response with a rise time of 0.0028 s, a maximum overshoot of 0.027 %, a peak time of 0.008 s, and a settling time of 0.0193 s. When charging a solar tracker, PV battery gets a 0.25 % increase compared to a fixed PV panel. PV solar tracker can follow the direction of the sun's position. The irradiation value and maximum temperature affect the input voltage and input current that enters the converter. © The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2020.

World energy consumption increases with time, so that occur an energy imbalance. Many breakthroughs have developed to utilize renewable energy. The photovoltaic system is one of the easy-to-use renewable energies. The power conversion from PV fixed is still low, so the PV system is designed using the active dual-axis solar tracker. The PV tracker position can be adjusted to change the sun position to get maximum efficiency. The active dual-axis solar tracker system is integrated with the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm to keep PV operating at a maximum power point even though input variations change. The active dual-axis solar tracker system integrated with the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm to keep PV operating at a maximum power point even though input variations change. Tracking test simulation had done by comparing the output power of a fixed PV system with the active dual-axis solar tracker. Type-2 fuzzy logic based MPPT successfully increased the average output power by 10.48 % with the highest increase of 17.48 % obtained at 15:00 West Indonesia Time (GMT+7). The difference in power from a fixed PV system with the active dual-axis solar tracker of 36.08 W is from the output power worth 206.3 to 242.4 W. © The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2020.

Solid waste management is a challenge for the cities' authorities in developing countries mainly due to the increasing generation of waste, the burden posed on the municipal budget as a result of the high costs associated to its management, the lack of understanding over a diversity of factors that affect the different stages of waste management and linkages necessary to enable the entire handling system functioning. An analysis of literature on the work done and reported mainly in publications from 2005 to 2011, related to waste management in developing countries, showed that few articles give quantitative information. The analysis was conducted in two of the major scientific journals, Waste Management Journal and Waste Management and Research. The objective of this research was to determine the stakeholders' action/behavior that have a role in the waste management process and to analyze influential factors on the system, in more than thirty urban areas in 22 developing countries in 4 continents. A combination of methods was used in this study in order to assess the stakeholders and the factors influencing the performance of waste management in the cities. Data was collected from scientific literature, existing data bases, observations made during visits to urban areas, structured interviews with relevant professionals, exercises provided to participants in workshops and a questionnaire applied to stakeholders. Descriptive and inferential statistic methods were used to draw conclusions. The outcomes of the research are a comprehensive list of stakeholders that are relevant in the waste management systems and a set of factors that reveal the most important causes for the systems' failure. The information provided is very useful when planning, changing or implementing waste management systems in cities.

The aim of this paper is to examine how the Swedish political parties the Sweden Democrats (SD), Social Democrats (S), and the Moderates (M) relate to the principle of freedom of expression and the burning of the Quran, which has sparked a Koran crisis as well as a security crisis in Sweden in 2023. The analysis methodology applied in this study is a descriptive idea analysis, which aims to identify values, descriptions, and prescriptions conveyed by the parties during their speeches and debates. The paper also applies three theoretical perspectives:Sociological institutionalism, rational choice institutionalism and John Stuart Mill's harm principle, to explain and evaluate the parties' arguments and positions through institutional factors, rational choice, and moral principles. The study reveals noteworthy disparities in the perspectives of the parties concerning the significance of freedom of expression, the causes and consequences of the Koran burnings, and the appropriate measures to deal with the situation. This research facilitates comprehension of the political discourse and the course of action associated with a contentious and delicate topic that impacts the democracy and security of Sweden.

Socialstyrelsen (2021) reports that 8300 children and young people in Sweden were placed on a so called HVB during 2020. HVB stands for hem för vård eller boende which in english terms is equal to a home for care or housing. HVB was during 2020 the second most common form of placement for children and adolescents. Socialstyrelsen (2018) reports that social workers working within HVB are responsible for meeting young people's care needs in the form of various treatments. Research done by Mattson (2010) suggests that HVB is a closed environment, which can result in social workers that are active in these care homes become identification objects for the young people who are placed in these care homes. 

 Treatment staff in HVB homes work with adolescents who are in need of support and help. Social workers are expected to work gender-consciously to meet the individual needs of adolescents. Previous research shows that HVB is a complex environment that requires flexibility on the part of treatment staff and that interventions do not always lead to the best results. Newly graduated social workers are expected to possess knowledge as critical awareness of how gender affects treatment work.

We have chosen to investigate how newly graduated social workers who are active in HVB homes reflect about the fact that gender is done in treatment work and how they act with adolescents as gender awareness is part of the newly graduated social workers' education. The results of the study showed that the reflections of newly graduated social workers confirm previous research's explanation that gender is made in the treatment work with adolescents and which in turn affects how the staff's treatment work is designed. The result highlights that norms, stereotypes and gender perceptions that society produces affect the treatment work despite the social workers' gender awareness through education. Through the study, we also see the desire to counteract these gender notions and its ability to influence treatment work but that it is difficult.

Background As global aging accelerates, routinely assessing the functional status and morbidity burden of older patients becomes paramount. The aim of this study is to assess the validity of the comprehensive clinical and functional Health Assessment Tool (HAT) based on four cohorts of older adults (60 + years) from the Swedish National study on Aging and Care (SNAC) spanning urban, suburban, and rural areas.Methods The HAT integrates five health indicators (gait speed, global cognition, number of chronic diseases, and basic and instrumental activities of daily living), providing an individual-level score between 0 and 10. The tool was constructed using nominal response models, first separately for each cohort and then in a harmonized dataset. Outcomes included all-cause mortality over a maximum follow-up of 16 years and unplanned hospital admissions over a maximum of 3 years of follow-up. The predictive capacity was assessed through the area under the curve (AUC) using logistic regressions. For time to death, Cox regressions were performed, and Harrell's C-indices were reported. Results from the four cohorts were pooled using individual participant data meta-analysis and compared with those from the harmonized dataset.Results The HAT demonstrated high predictive capacity across all cohorts as well as in the harmonized dataset. In the harmonized dataset, the AUC was 0.84 (95% CI 0.81-0.87) for 1-year mortality, 0.81 (95% CI 0.80-0.83) for 3-year mortality, 0.80 (95% CI 0.79-0.82) for 5-year mortality, 0.69 (95% CI 0.67-0.70) for 1-year unplanned admissions, and 0.69 (95% CI 0.68-0.70) for 3-year unplanned admissions. The Harrell's C for time-to-death throughout 16 years of follow-up was 0.75 (95% CI 0.74-0.75).Conclusions The HAT is a highly predictive, clinically intuitive, and externally valid instrument with potential for better addressing older adults' health needs and optimizing risk stratification at the population level.

Inom bild- och bildkonstämnet har sparsamhet och återvinning ständigt varit en grundläggande del. På grund av de globala klimatfrågorna har hållbar utveckling blivit aktuellt inom alla livsområden, utbildningsnivåer och läroämnen. Denna studie fokuserar på värdet av bild- och bildkonstutbildning som ett komplext verktyg för att lyfta fram hållbar utveckling och dess miljöaspekter. Syftet är att ta reda på vilka möjligheter två bild- och bildkonstlärare, från Sverige och Finland, ser på ämnet i relation till miljöundervisning. Studien fokuserar på två lärares uppfattningar om bild- och bildkonstämnets möjligheter samt de värderingar som styr urvalet för innehållet. Resultatet visar att ämnet bild- och bildkonst har många olika möjligheter när det gäller undervisning inom hållbarhet som ett verktyg för att få fram de nya perspektiv som konst kan erbjuda. Avslutningsvis visade studien att lärares intresse för miljöfrågor ger dem mer inspiration, dock påverkar detta inte direkt innehållet i undervisningen.

Acne or pimples is an inflammatory skin reaction that occurs when the sebaceous glands or hair follicles become inflamed. This skin reaction is seen as a rash on or under the skin and mainly involves the face. Acne is most common in adolescence but can affect people of all ages. Acne is considered a contributing factor to social isolation, low self-esteem, depression, and suicidal thoughts.

During the 1950s, a new acne drug containing the active substance isotretinoin was developed. The drug began to be used in the early 1980s and is today the most effective drug in treating severe acne. Isotretinoin is a vitamin A acid derivative (13-cis-retonic-acid) that belongs to the drug group retinoids. Isotretinoin is intended for the treatment of severe scarring acne, as well as where the treatment of acne with other drugs such as antibiotics or topical treatment has not given the desired result. Isotretinoin is an effective drug in treating severe acne, but unfortunately also a drug that can cause troublesome and severe side effects. As isotretinoin crosses the blood-brain barrier, studies have been performed on whether there is a link between treatment with isotretinoin and mental reactions. There is a high incidence of psychiatric symptoms and suicidal ideation in people suffering from acne. It is difficult to distinguish whether the mental symptoms are drug-related or not.

The purpose of this literature review was to investigate whether there may be an association between the treatment of acne with the drug isotretinoin and the onset of psychiatric symptoms as well as suicide. To find relevant articles for this work, a search was performed in the PubMed database through Linnaeus University's library, which resulted in six relevant studies. Different self-assessment scales evaluated depression, anxiety, and quality of life in selected studies. The results of the studies are unequivocal, where none of the studies showed a connection between the occurrence of psychiatric symptoms and suicidal thoughts when treating acne with the drug isotretinoin. On the contrary, it indicated an improvement in psychiatric conditions reflected in acne reduction. However, there is insufficient evidence that these results can rule out the emergence of psychiatric symptoms and suicidal thoughts during treatment.

Within any ecosystem, information needs are shared to be fulfilled and to support the ecosystem in a way or another. They are vital for designing appropriate information systems that will provide those needs. In this thesis, the gravel road ecosystem is studied, where efficient information sharing is not enabled due to the lack of appropriate information systems. Thus,when focusing on the gravel roads ecosystem, information plays a crucial role regarding the maintenance acts upon these roads. Moreover, not enough literature investigates theinformation needs of gravel roads stakeholders with the aim to improve the maintenance ofthese roads.

Therefore, this thesis intends to elicit information needs of gravel road stakeholders by performing an exploratory case study. The case study forms a part of an ongoing project with the goal to build a cloud-based information system for a sustainable gravel road maintenance. Data were collected through telephone- and online-based interviews with several key stakeholders in Sweden and were thereafter structured through template analysis. The major findings were a set of information needs and several needed sensors within the pre-mentioned information system. This thesis concluded that the future cloud-based information system in the ongoing project is a useful system for sharing vital information among future gravel roads stakeholders, considering the variety of needed information that affects the maintenance of the gravel roads.

Within any ecosystem, information sharing is essential. In this paper, the Swedish gravel road ecosystem is studied, where information plays a crucial role for the effective management of operations and maintenance. However, efficient information sharing is not enabled due to the lack of appropriate information systems. For addressing this issue, this paper intends to elicit information needs of gravel road stakeholders to support the design of a cloud-based information system. The main purpose is to explore the information needs of stakeholders within the Swedish gravel road ecosystem. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 11 participants representing key stakeholders in the ecosystem. Template analysis was used for analyzing the interview results. The major findings were a set of information needs covering road identification and condition, weather conditions, accessibility and traffic, maintenance policy, and sensor data. The results form a comprehensive information model for the further development of a cloud-based gravel road management system that would contribute to increased traffic safety and comfort, lower maintenance and management costs, and better decision-making abilities.

Modern software systems are increasingly more connected, pervasive, and dynamic, as such, they are subject to more runtime variations than legacy systems. Runtime variations affect system properties, such as performance and availability. The variations are difficult to anticipate and thus mitigate in the system design.

Self-adaptive software systems were proposed as a solution to monitor and adapt systems in response to runtime variations. Research has established a vast body of knowledge on engineering self-adaptive systems. However, there is a lack of systematic process support that leverages such engineering knowledge and provides for systematic reuse for self-adaptive systems development. 

This thesis proposes the Autonomic Software Product Lines (ASPL), which is a strategy for developing self-adaptive software systems with systematic reuse. The strategy exploits the separation of a managed and a managing subsystem and describes three steps that transform and integrate a domain-independent managing system platform into a domain-specific software product line for self-adaptive software systems.

Applying the ASPL strategy is however not straightforward as it involves challenges related to variability and uncertainty. We analyzed variability and uncertainty to understand their causes and effects. Based on the results, we developed the Autonomic Software Product Lines engineering (ASPLe) methodology, which provides process support for the ASPL strategy. The ASPLe has three processes, 1) ASPL Domain Engineering, 2) Specialization and 3) Integration. Each process maps to one of the steps in the ASPL strategy and defines roles, work-products, activities, and workflows for requirements, design, implementation, and testing. The focus of this thesis is on requirements and design.

We validate the ASPLe through demonstration and evaluation. We developed three demonstrator product lines using the ASPLe. We also conducted an extensive case study to evaluate key design activities in the ASPLe with experiments, questionnaires, and interviews. The results show a statistically significant increase in quality and reuse levels for self-adaptive software systems designed using the ASPLe compared to current engineering practices.

We envision an Autonomic Software Product Line (ASPL). The ASPL is a dynamic software product line that supports self adaptable products. We plan to use reflective architecture to model and develop ASPL. To evaluate the approach, we have implemented three autonomic product lines which show promising results. The ASPL approach is at initial stages, and require additional work. We plan to exploit online learning to realize more dynamic software product lines to cope with the problem of product line evolution. We propose on-line knowledge sharing among products in a product line to achieve continuous improvement of quality in product line products.

Software quality is critical in today's software systems. A challenge is the trade-off situation architects face in the design process. Designers often have two or more alternatives, which must be compared and put into context before a decision is made. The challenge becomes even more complex for dynamic software product lines, where domain designers have to take runtime variations into consideration as well. To address the problem we propose extensions to an architectural reasoning framework with constructs/artifacts to define and model a domain's scope and dynamic variability. The extended reasoning framework encapsulates knowledge to understand and reason about domain quality behavior and self-adaptation as a primary variability mechanism. The framework is demonstrated for a self-configuration property, self-upgradability on an educational product-line.

Software architecture serves as a foundation for the design and development of software systems. Designing an architecture requires extensive analysis and reasoning. The study presented herein focuses on the architectural analysis and reasoning in support of engineering self-adaptive software systems with systematic reuse. Designing self-adaptive software systems with systematic reuse introduces variability along three dimensions; adding more complexity to the architectural analysis and reasoning process. To this end, the study presents an extended Architectural Reasoning Framework with dedicated reasoning support for self-adaptive systems and reuse. To evaluate the proposed framework, we conducted an initial feasibility case study, which concludes that the proposed framework assists the domain architects to increase reusability, reduce fault density, and eliminate differences in skills and experiences among architects, which were our research goals and are decisive factors for a system's overall quality.

Advances in computing technologies are pushing software systems and their operating environments to become more dynamic and complex. The growing complexity of software systems coupled with uncertainties induced by runtime variations leads to challenges in software analysis and design. Self-Adaptive Software Systems (SASS) have been proposed as a solution to address design time complexity and uncertainty by adapting software systems at runtime. A vast body of knowledge on engineering self-adaptive software systems has been established. However, to the best of our knowledge, no or little work has considered systematic reuse of this knowledge. To that end, this study contributes an Autonomic Software Product Lines engineering (ASPLe) methodology. The ASPLe is based on a multi-product lines strategy which leverages systematic reuse through separation of application and adaptation logic. It provides developers with repeatable process support to design and develop self-adaptive software systems with reuse across several application domains. The methodology is composed of three core processes, and each process is organized for requirements, design, implementation, and testing activities. To exemplify and demonstrate the use of the ASPLe methodology, three application domains are used as running examples throughout the report.

This work studies systematic reuse in the context of self-adaptive software systems. In our work, we realized that managing variability for such platforms is different compared to traditional platforms, primarily due to the run-time variability and system uncertainties. Motivated by the fact that recent trends show that self-adaptation will be used more often in future system generation and that software reuse state-of-practice or research do not provide sufficient support, we have investigated the problems and possibly resolutions in this context. We have analyzed variability for these systems, using a systematic reuse prism, and identified a research gap in variability management. The analysis divides variability handling into four activities: (1) identify variability, (2) constrain variability, (3) implement variability, and (4) manage variability. Based on the findings we envision a reuse framework for the specific domain and present an example framework that addresses some of the identified challenges. We argue that it provides basic support for engineering self-adaptive software systems with systematic reuse. We discuss some important avenues of research for achieving the vision.

Designing a software architecture requires architectural reasoning, i.e., activities that translate requirements to an architecture solution. Architectural reasoning is particularly challenging in the design of product-lines of self-adaptive systems, which involve variability both at development time and runtime. In previous work we developed an extended Architectural Reasoning Framework (eARF) to address this challenge. However, evaluation of the eARF showed that the framework lacked support for rigorous reasoning, ensuring that the design complies to the requirements. In this paper, we introduce an analytical framework that enhances eARF with such support. The framework defines a set of artifacts and a series of activities. Artifacts include templates to specify domain quality attribute scenarios, concrete models, and properties. The activities support architects with transforming requirement scenarios to architecture models that comply to required properties. Our focus in this paper is on architectural reasoning support for a single product instance. We illustrate the benefits of the approach by applying it to an example client-server system, and outline challenges for future work. © 2016 IEEE.

We describe ongoing work on a variability mechanism for Autonomic Software Product Lines (ASPL). The autonomic software product lines have self-management characteristics that make product line instances more resilient to context changes and some aspects of product line evolution. Instances sense the context, selects and bind the best component variants to variation-points at run-time. The variability mechanism we describe is composed of a profile guided dispatch based on off-line and on-line training processes. Together they form a simple, yet powerful variability mechanism that continuously learns, which variants to bind given the current context and system goals.

This report describes a work in progress to develop Autonomic Software Product Lines (ASPL). The ASPL is a dynamic software product line approach with a novel variability handling mechanism that enables traditional software product lines to adapt themselves at runtime in response to changes in their context, requirements and business goals. The ASPL variability mechanism is composed of three key activities: 1) context-profiling, 2) context-aware composition, and 3) online learning. Context-profiling is an offline activity that prepares a knowledge base for context-aware composition. The context-aware composition uses the knowledge base to derive a new product or adapts an existing product based on a product line's context attributes and goals. The online learning optimizes the knowledge base to remove errors and suboptimal information and to incorporate new knowledge. The three activities together form a simple yet powerful variability handling mechanism that learns and adapts a system at runtime in response to changes in system context and goals. We evaluated the ASPL variability mechanism on three small-scale software product lines and got promising results. The ASPL approach is, however, is yet at an initial stage and require improved development support with more rigorous evaluation. 

More than two decades of research have demonstrated an increasing need for software systems to be self-adaptive. Self-adaptation is required to deal with runtime dynamics which are difficult to predict before deployment. A vast body of knowledge to develop Self-Adaptive Software Systems (SASS) has been established. We, however, discovered a lack of process support to develop self-adaptive systems with reuse. To that end, we propose a domain-engineering based methodology, Autonomic Software Product Lines engineering (ASPLe), which provides step-by-step guidelines for developing families of SASS with systematic reuse. The evaluation results from a case study show positive effects on quality and reuse for self-adaptive systems designed using the ASPLe compared to state-of-the-art engineering practices.

We describe ongoing work in knowledge evolution management for autonomic software product lines. We explore how an autonomic product line may benefit from new knowledge originating from different source activities and artifacts at run time. The motivation for sharing run-time knowledge is that products may self-optimize at run time and thus improve quality faster compared to traditional software product line evolution. We propose two mechanisms that support knowledge evolution in product lines: online learning and knowledge sharing. We describe two basic scenarios for runtime knowledge evolution that involves these mechanisms. We evaluate online learning and knowledge sharing in a small product line setting that shows promising results.

The concept of variability is fundamental in software product lines and a successful implementation of a product line largely depends on how well domain requirements and their variability are specified, managed, and realized. While developing an educational software product line, we identified a lack of support to specify variability in quality concerns. To address this problem we propose an approach to model variability in quality concerns, which is an extension of quality attribute scenarios. In particular, we propose domain quality attribute scenarios, which extend standard quality attribute scenarios with additional information to support specification of variability and deriving product specific scenarios. We demonstrate the approach with scenarios for robustness and upgradability requirements in the educational software product line.

Forests are essential for life, providing various ecological, social, and economic benefits worldwide. However, one of the main challenges faced by the world is the forest damage caused by biotic and abiotic factors. In any case, the forest damages threaten the environment, biodiversity, and ecosystem. Climate change and anthropogenic activities, such as illegal logging and industrial waste, are among the principal elements contributing to forest damage. To achieve the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to forests and climate change, detecting and analyzing forest damages, and taking appropriate measures to prevent or reduce the damages are essential. To that end, we envision establishing a Smart Forest Observatories (SFOs) network, as shown below, which can be either a local area or a wide area network involving remote forests. The basic idea is to use Monitor, Analyze, Plan, Execute, and Knowledge (MAPE-K) architecture from autonomic computing and self-adaptive software systems domain to design and develop the SFOs network. The SFOs are planned to collect, analyze, and share the collected data and analysis results using state-of-the-art methods. The principal objective of the SFOs network is to provide accurate and real-time data to policymakers and forest managers, enabling them to develop effective policies and management strategies for global forest conservation that help to achieve SDGs related to forests and climate change.

Facial recognition technology has become a ubiquitous tool in security and personal identification. However, the rise of this technology has been accompanied by concerns over inherent biases, particularly regarding ethnic and gender. This thesis examines the extent of these biases by focusing on the influence of dataset imbalances in facial recognition algorithms. We employ a structured methodological approach that integrates AI-generated images to enhance dataset diversity, with the intent to balance representation across ethnics and genders. Using the ResNet and Vgg model, we conducted a series of controlled experiments that compare the performance impacts of balanced versus imbalanced datasets. Our analysis includes the use of confusion matrices and accuracy, precision, recall and F1-score metrics to critically assess the model’s performance. The results demonstrate how tailored augmentation of training datasets can mitigate bias, leading to more equitable outcomes in facial recognition technology. We present our findings with the aim of contributing to the ongoing dialogue regarding AI fairness and propose a framework for future research in the field.

This comparative analysis is based on two theoretical frameworks, called implementation theory and agenda-setting theory, which aims to investigate how the reception of refugees from the year 2015 in Sweden differs in comparison to the reception of refugees in year 2022 as well as looks into how this has affected the Swedish society. The implementation theory focuses on how the reception of refugees is handled within political decisions and changes while the agenda-setting theory centers around how the reception of refugees in the media affected the population further analyzing how these two cases have affected the Swedish society as a whole. The material used for this analysis mostly derives from Swedish government websites and relevant articles that are applied to the chosen theories. With this, the study concludes that the reception of refugees in 2015 shows a case of failure, in relation to the implementation theory, while the reception of refugees in 2022 shows a case of success. In addition to this the reception of refugees portrayed in the media differs in 2015 compared to 2022 which resulted in immigrants from 2015 having a harder time in society as opposed to the immigrants in 2022 being more welcomed and supported in the community in accordance with the agenda-setting theory. From this the Swedish society was affected in negative ways dividing people in 2015 but changing in 2022 because of unity that influenced the community in more positive ways.

The Traditional Islamic Approach is rooted in Islamic teachings and principles, emphasizing the importance of justice, compassion, and dialogue as mean to achieve peace. In contrast, the Islamic Iranian Counterpoise Approach is a more contemporary approach that reflects the Iranian government’s national interest and aims to counteract the influence of Western Powers in the region. This study will make a comparative analysis that will examine the traditional Islamic and Islamic Iranian counterpoise approaches towards regional peace. The study also examines the similarities and differences between these two approaches, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses under the umbrella of Islamic republic of Iran. The analysis explores from the theoretical foundations of both approaches previously used by the scholars in both historical and cultural contexts, as well as their practical applications in the Middle East. The findings suggest that while both approaches have their merits, the traditional Islamic approach offers a more sustainable and inclusive approach to regional peace. This approach prioritizes peaceful conflict resolution, dialogue, and mutual respect, that is a key to fostering long-term stability and harmony in the region. In contrast, the Islamic Iranian counterpoise approach, while effective in countering external influence, may lead to increased tensions and conflicts in the region. Overall, the analysis contributes to the on-going debate on approaches to regional peace in the Middle East, providing insights into the historical and contemporary factors that shape these approaches and their implications for regional security and stability.

A search for muon neutrinos from Kaluza-Klein dark matter annihilations in the Sun has been performed with the 22-string configuration of the IceCube neutrino detector using data collected in 104.3 days of live time in 2007. No excess over the expected atmospheric background has been observed. Upper limits have been obtained on the annihilation rate of captured lightest Kaluza-Klein particle (LKP) WIMPs in the Sun and converted to limits on the LKP-proton cross sections for LKP masses in the range 250-3000 GeV. These results are the most stringent limits to date on LKP annihilation in the Sun.

We present the results of searches for high-energy muon neutrinos from 41 gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) in the northern sky with the IceCube detector in its 22 string configuration active in 2007/2008. The searches cover both the prompt and a possible precursor emission as well as a model-independent, wide time window of -1 hr to + 3 hr around each GRB. In contrast to previous searches with a large GRB population, we do not utilize a standard Waxman-Bahcall GRB flux for the prompt emission but calculate individual neutrino spectra for all 41 GRBs from the burst parameters measured by satellites. For all of the three time windows, the best estimate for the number of signal events is zero. Therefore, we place 90% CL upper limits on the fluence from the prompt phase of 3.7 x 10(-3) erg cm(-2) (72 TeV-6.5 PeV) and on the fluence from the precursor phase of 2.3 x 10(-3) erg cm(-2) (2.2-55 TeV), where the quoted energy ranges contain 90% of the expected signal events in the detector. The 90% CL upper limit for the wide time window is 2.7 x 10(-3) erg cm(-2) (3 TeV-2.8 PeV) assuming an E-2 flux.