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Playgrounds that communicate heritage : applying museological practices to playgrounds
Get PDFSince the communication of an area’s local heritage to children not only offers intangible benefits to children, but also ensures the continued preservation of the heritage itself, it is important to develop ways in which such communication can be undertaken. Through taking inspiration from current museological practices, this paper discusses how playgrounds can be developed as a tool to communicate an area’s local heritage to children. After a theoretical foundation regarding heritage, children, place, play, and museology is laid out, this paper presents a design project meant to exemplify how a heritage based playground could be designed. To conclude, this paper highlights three potential ways in which current museological practices can be implemented into the design of playgrounds in order to communicate cultural heritage to children
Studying gene expression scaling with cell size in Arabidopsis thaliana : the role of the nuclear RNA exosome complex
Get PDFThe scaling of organ size with body size - known as morphological allometry - is a
fundamental mechanism observed in all organisms (Mirth et al. 2016). Scaling mechanisms
have also been shown at a cellular level, with mRNA levels linearly scaling with cell size, but
knowledge about the cellular processes controlling it has been limited (Berry et al. 2022).
However, recent evidence in human cells suggest that nuclear mRNA transcripts - through a
negative feedback mechanism - inhibit transcription of Pol II, so that Pol II concentrations
remain constant in relation to cell size (Berry et al. 2022b). Here, we applied this hypothesis
to plants by studying how transcription scaling was affected by mutations disrupting the
nuclear RNA exosome complex in A. thaliana. We performed smFISH, and compared the
mutants hen2-4 and rrp4-2 with Col-0. We found that the mutants accumulated more
transcripts with increasing cell size than WT, but remarkably, the increased number of
transcripts in the mutants were found in the cytoplasm and not in the nucleus. This suggests
that loss of nuclear exosome functionality - meaning decreased mRNA decay - results in an
increased nuclear mRNA export. This could mean that the cell is trying to minimize nuclear
transcript accumulation to prevent inhibition of synthesis of new mRNAs, indicating that a
negative feedback of nuclear mRNA is also operating in plants
Mycoplasma bovis epidemiologi på tjurstation
Get PDFMycoplasma bovis är en svårbehandlad och smittsam bakterie som orsakar sjukdom hos nötkreatur i alla åldrar och kan drabba alla produktionsformer. Bakterien orsakar stora ekonomiska förluster och djurlidande och är av växande betydelse för svenska besättningar. Syftet med detta arbete var att sammanställa data om smittspridningen av M. bovis vid tjurstationen i Skara och karantäns-anläggningen i Falkenberg samt att utvärdera de smittskyddsåtgärder som började vidtas i december 2020. Arbetet genomfördes genom analys av serumantikroppar med ID Screen ELISA och samman-ställning av svabbar från näshåla och genitalia med realtids-PCR.
Den största andelen av serologiskt positiva djur inkluderade i studien hade ursprung i Danmark men det förekom även positiva djur vid import från Finland och inköp av tjurar från Sverige. Under den undersökta tidsperioden serokonverterade 3,1 % vilket visar på smittspridning. Åtgärdernas effekt kunde ej fastställas då det saknades en kontrollgrupp, men då smittspridning förekom antas de ej varit tillräckliga för att helt stoppa smittspridningen, alternativt att åtgärderna inte tillämpades vid alla tillfällen.
Det finns trots omfattande forskning fortsatt stora kunskapsluckor gällande M. bovis patogenes och epidemiologi. Till dags dato är enigheten om bakteriens smittspridning begränsad och detta arbetes resultat belyser vikten av ytterligare forskning för att utforma effektiva åtgärder och mot-verka smittspridningen.Mycoplasma bovis (M. bovis) is a contagious bacterium that causes disease poorly responsive to treatment in cattle of all ages and can affect all types of production. The infection causes significant economic loss and animal suffering and is of growing importance for Swedish herds. The purpose of this study was to compile data on the spread of M. bovis at the bull station in Skara and the quarantine facility in Falkenberg and to evaluate the infection control measures that began in December 2020. The study was conducted through analysis of serum antibodies with ID Screen ELISA and analysis of swabs from the nasal cavity and genitals with real-time PCR.
The majority of serologically positive animals included in the study originated from Denmark, but positive animals also occurred in imports from Finland and in bulls purchased from Sweden. During the investigated period, 3.1% seroconverted, indicating a spread of the infection. The effect of the measures could not be determined as there was no control group, but since the spread of infection occurred, it is assumed that the measures were not sufficient to completely stop the spread or that the measures were not applied on all occasions.
Despite extensive research, there are still significant gaps in knowledge regarding the pathogenesis and epidemiology of M. bovis. To date, knowledge on the bacteria's spread is limited, and the results of this study highlight the importance of further research to design effective measures and prevent the spread of infection
Wolf inter-territorial variation in prey use and selection in a multi-ungulate system
Get PDFGrey wolves (Canis lupus), as generalists and opportunistic predators, are highly adaptable and have shown to thrive on a wide variety of prey species. The wolf population in Scandinavia has recently been expanding from prey systems dominated by moose (Alces alces) and roe deer (Capreolus
capreolus) in central Scandinavia to more southern areas in Sweden where multiple ungulate species are potential prey. This study investigated the inter-territorial variation in feeding behaviour of wolves in pairs and packs across Sweden, using a new DNA-method for prey detection on 1564
wolf scat samples. Based on the frequency of occurrence of prey species in the scats, the diet of wolves was mainly dominated by large ungulates with moose as the main prey in central Sweden, and roe deer followed by moose in southern Sweden. Wolves expanded their diet by including a higher proportion of alternative ungulate species where their abundance increased towards the south.
Comparing prey selection across wolf territories showed that moose was overall selected, roe deer was consumed proportional to its abundance and red deer (Cervus elaphus), fallow deer (Dama dama) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) were in general avoided, but with a large variation among
territories. Wolves’ selection for moose was negatively influenced by high abundances of fallow deer, suggesting dietary shifts due to the presence of alternative prey species. These findings have management and conservation implications by showing how the presence of alternative ungulate species lowered the consumption and selection of the main prey, moose
En förvildad stad
Get PDFSamhällen och ekosystem är beroende av en välmående och produktiv naturlig omgivning, då det bidrar till värdefulla ekosystemtjänster. Städerna fortsätter att växa och förtätas, vilket begränsar potentiella grönytor att skapas. När fler människor och funktioner ska samsas på samma yta, lämnas lite utrymme för naturen att få finnas och växa. Den grönska som dominerar i staden är den ordnade grönskan, den av människan utvalda och skötta. Vi anser att det i urbana miljöer saknas en variation, en flerskiktad växtlighet, vilken har en större potential att bidra med fler värden och bättre motståndskraft. Denna studie syftar till att undersöka hur vi kan komplettera den befintliga växtligheten i staden och hur det kan upplevas, genom en undersökande litteraturstudie och andra länders visionära projekt. Den urbana miljön är en viktig reklampelare för naturvärden, då den urbana estetiken påverkar människors syn på naturen. Det är viktigt att ta hänsyn till upplevelsen och att grönytorna accepteras för att de ska kunna bli långsiktigt hållbara. Den urbana människan har förlorat kopplingen till naturen, vilket har bidragit till en kunskapslucka för vad naturen är, hur den fungerar och ser ut. Genom att tillföra förvildade ytor, naturliga processer och växtlighet inspirerad av naturen, kan luckan bli mindre. I den undersökande studien svarar vi på var dessa förvildade ytor kan vara och hur de kan se ut.Societies and ecosystems depend on well functioning and productive natural environments that are contributing with valuable ecosystem services. Cities continue to grow, and the increased urbanization is limiting the amount of available green spaces in the cities, as more people are living in condensed spaces, leaving little chance for nature to grow. On top of that, the green spaces that are dominating the cities are hand-picked and carefully planned by humans. We believe that urban environments need more diverse biotopes, which potentially could contribute with more positive benefits for both ecosystems and human well-being. The purpose of this study is to investigate the possibilities of (re)growing our cities with more natural and diverse green spaces through the examination of different case-studies and urban nature projects. The urban environment is an important advertising pillar for natural values, as the urban aesthetics affect humans' view on nature. It is important that we focus on how we experience nature, and that the green spaces need to be accepted by humans for it to be a long term sustainable solution. City people have lost their connection with nature and developed a wrong perception of nature, caused by a lack of knowledge on how ecosystems really work and look like. Providing our cities with green spaces, natural processes and plant life, inspired by how nature really works, could help fill this knowledge gap. In this study we provide examples on how we can bring back nature into cities - and what it could look like
Natur mot stressrelaterad psykisk ohälsa
Get PDFPsykisk ohälsa är vanligt i dagens samhälle och antalet personer som lider av
psykiska besvär ökar. De flesta drabbas någon gång av psykisk ohälsa under sitt liv
(Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2022). Enligt Folkhälsomyndigheten (2023) har andelen av
befolkningen i Sverige som lider av psykiska besvär ökat under 2000-talet, både
bland barn och vuxna. År 2020 uppgav 14,6% av Sveriges befolkning mellan 16 och
84 år att de var stressade, och 7,4% uppgav att de led av allvarlig psykisk
påfrestning (Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2020). År 2022 hade andelen som kände sig
stressade stigit till 15,4%, och andelen som led av allvarlig psykisk påfrestning låg på
9% (Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2022). Dessa siffror visar en uppåtgående trend inom
stressrelaterad psykisk ohälsa, både allvarlig och lindrigare. Den psykiska hälsan
påverkas av en mängd olika faktorer, till exempel hur vi lever. Det finns ett antal
saker man kan göra för att skapa en större resiliens mot att drabbas av psykisk
ohälsa (Folkhälsomyndigheten). Två av de saker som nämns är fysisk aktivitet och
att tid för återhämtning är viktigt (Folkhälsomyndigheten). Att vistas i naturen kan ge
återhämtning och avslappning vid stressrelaterade besvär, till exempel
utmattningssyndrom. En studie gjord av Roger Ulrich (1984) bevisade att natur i sig
främjar återhämtning och läkning hos människor. En mängd studier har sedan dess
undersökt hur människans hälsa och välmående påverkas av naturen. Ett av
Folkhälsomyndighetens (2023) råd för att förbättra sin psykiska hälsa är att komma
ut i naturen. Studier har visat både kognitiva fördelar, förbättring av humöret, den
mentala hälsan och det känslomässiga välbefinnandet av att vistas i natur (Weir,
2020; Coutts & Hahn, 2015). Olika naturtyper kan ge olika grad av återhämtning, och
vissa har visat sig vara mer gynnsamma än andra. Rekreationsskogar i sin tur är
populära utflyktsmål som samlar många människor som vill njuta av friluftsliv. Denna
resurs borde kunna utnyttjas för återhämtning och avslappning genom medveten
planering och skötsel. Genom att skapa specifika naturtyper med speciella
karaktärsdrag och ha riktad skötsel bör man kunna skapa rekreationsskogar med en
hög grad av återhämtning för psyket. Ofta är skogarna skötta av kommunerna, och
dessa skulle potentiellt sett kunna spara pengar genom att erbjuda miljöer som ger
optimal återhämtning vid psykisk trötthet och därmed minska antalet personer som till
exempel blir sjukskrivna eller behöver söka sig till vården för dessa problem. Därmed
bör skräddarsydda rekreationsskogar som en resurs för förbättring av den psykiska
hälsan hos dess besökare vara attraktiva att använda sig av. Frågan är om denna
resurs utnyttjas eller ens tas med i beräkningarna vid planering och utformning av
skötsel i rekreationsskogar. Med medveten planering och skötsel skulle dagens
rekreationsskogar troligen kunna utvecklas och användas ännu bättre för
återhämtning
Utilization of wireless sensor bolus technology: Evaluating rumen pH dynamics and production metrics in dairy cows subjected to SARA-inducing diets
Get PDFWith the intensification of the cattle farming system, a high amount of easily fermentable carbohydrates is being fed to increase production and fulfill the nutrient requirement of the cows. Feeding high amounts of easily degradable carbohydrates such as starch can reduce the rumen pH of cows, resulting in the condition subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA). SARA has a great impact on the production, health, and welfare of the cow, leading to a decreased economy for the farmer. Hence, the diagnosis of SARA is important in the early stages. Diagnosis of SARA is done on the basis of rumen pH. The technology used previously for the determination of rumen pH was highly expensive and invasive and did not provide accurate data on rumen pH. With the advancement of technology, a wireless sensor bolus was developed, which is non-invasive, farmer-friendly, and provides continuous monitoring of rumen pH. The efficacy of this technology and its ability to detect minute variations in rumen pH are still in question. Moreover, due to its battery lifespan and drift over time, the use of this technology in real farm conditions is highly expensive and unfeasible. Considering it, an alternative indicator of SARA must be found, which should be noninvasive, cheap, and accurate. Hence, this study aims to monitor the effect of SARA inducing diet on rumen pH using a wireless sensor bolus, together analyze the effect of inducing diet on milk yield (MY), dry matter intake (DMI), and milk parameters, such as milk fat, milk protein and milk fat to protein ratio.
A continous study was performed on 25 primiparous cows in 3 periods lasting for 52 days. Rumen sensor bolus was applied on the first day of the study. Then, a low concentrate diet containing a 48:52 concentrate-to-silage ratio was fed for the first 9 days (CONT1 period). Then, from day 10 to 32, the SARA inducing diet containing a 64:36 concentrate-to-silage ratio was fed (SAR2 period). Finally, the study was ended by feeding the same CONT1 diet from day 33 to day 52 (RECOV3). During the period, rumen pH was monitored every day throughout the period. Daily DMI and MY was measured throughout the period. A sampling of milk was done for the last two days of each period to analyze the milk parameters.
Variation in rumen pH across periods and fluctuations in rumen pH within a day was seen in this study. A significant drop in mean rumen pH and an increase in the mean duration of a cow with rumen pH 6 was reported in the SAR2 period, which instantly reverted back to normal when the low concentrate diet was fed during the RECOV3 period. Using the rumen pH metrics, cows that were likely to be in SARA were identified. No changes were observed in MY throughout the periods. Significant differences in results were observed for DMI and milk parameters. Considering the results of this study and the outcomes from other studies, it was concluded that the rumen sensor bolus was able to detect minute changes in rumen pH throughout the day, making it an efficient device for monitoring rumen pH in cows. Additionally, the use of other parameters, such as DMI, MY, and milk parameters, as indicators of SARA demands more studies that include the factors that have a direct effect on those parameters
Influence of tree species on tree-related micro-habitats in a broadleaf forest in eastern Skåne, Sweden
Get PDFIn this thesis, the effects of different tree species and tree size on tree related micro-habitats (TreMs) in a broadleaf forest at Krubbemölla in Skåne, southern Sweden, have been studied. The hypothesis was that there are different amounts and types of TreMs on different tree species and that there are more TreMs on larger (older) tree individuals. The results show that there is a large difference between tree species and what kind, variation and amount of TreMs that occur on different species. Salix caprea had the highest amount of TreM variation, epiphytic structures and fruiting bodies. Quercus robur had the largest amount of crown deadwood and the largest amount of TreMs per individual tree together with S. caprea. Fagus sylvatica and S. caprea had the greatest number of cavities and tree injuries. Prunus avium had the greatest number of exudates, but excrescences did not seem to differ between species. Fruiting bodies and excrescences did not have many observations in the study area and thus these data may not be reliable. The difference between large and small trees was noticeable for the most part when observing all of the species together, except for fruiting bodies and exudates. For the total amount of TreMs there was a clear difference between the large and small trees for all species. Other aspects that determine which and how many TreMs there will be in a specific area are discussed. S. caprea and Q. robur should be kept and promoted in the area to increase biodiversity, but other species should also be maintained as they provide other types of TreMs
Home range and movement of reindeer (Rangifer t. tarandus) in three Sámi reindeer herding districts in Norway - Influence of winter feeding and weather
Get PDFReindeer husbandry is an essential part of the indigenous Sámi society carrying cultural and ecological significance, both historically and today. Herders face issues such as loss of pastures to expanding infrastructure, a decline of lichens and deteriorating conditions of pastures due to climate change. Because of this, many herders are forced to use feed the animals in the winter. Within the research project WELFED, GPS data was collected from 90 reindeer across three different herding districts in Norway; Rákkonjárga, Ildgruben and Riast/Hylling, with varying feeding practices. The purpose of this thesis was to examine how home range size, overlap and movement rate was affected by supplementary feeding during two periods in the winter of 2022/23. The first time period took place before feeding had started, while the second time period was set when winter feeding was used in two of the studied districts. Movement was also analysed in relation to different weather parameters.
Home range size was found to be significantly larger, and step length significantly longer, during feeding in Rákkonjárga compared to the timeperiod before feeding, while the opposite was true in Ildgruben. In Riast, no feeding occurred in the winter of 2022/23 and no significant difference could be detected between the two time periods. Multiple linear regression models revealed that wind speed had a significantly negative effect on step length during the first time period, when feeding had not started, while precipitation had a significantly negative effect in the second time period, when feeding occurred in two areas.
The results from this thesis imply that feeding practices and weather conditions influence home ranges and movement of reindeer. As reindeer husbandry confronts escalating challenges, such as climate change and encroaching infrastructure, supplementary feeding is thought to become a growing practice among herders. The results revealed here, together with previous studies and knowledge, underscores the need for careful consideration when implementing such measures. Concerted efforts among Sámi communities, government agencies and competing land use is essential for preserving a sustainable future for reindeer herding
Does herbivory change the chemical and organoleptic properties in vegetables?
Get PDFA commonly held belief is that organic vegetables are tastier than their conventionally grown counterparts. Vegetables grown without insecticides are more often attacked by herbivores. This herbivory leads to the emissions of compounds called herbivore induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) that often are perceivable for humans in taste and/or smell. In this study, we hypothesized that part of the difference in perceived quality in organic vegetables is due to the changes in biochemistry following herbivory, that could be detectable for humans. We investigated the difference in volatile emissions and organoleptic qualities between induced and non-induced vegetables. To do this, volatile emissions of three species of vegetables induced by Spodoptera littoralis larvae and their non-induced counterparts were analysed through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Thereafter an organoleptic test was held with volunteers to determine the difference in taste. All vegetables displayed a difference in volatile emissions between induced and non-induced plants and endive, Chicorium endivia, displayed a difference in smell. This concludes that herbivores do make a difference in volatile emissions of plants and that these differences also can be smelled in endive