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Mid Sweden University

UniversitySundsvall, Sweden

Research output, citation impact, and the most-cited recent papers from Mid Sweden University (Sweden). Aggregated across the NobleBlocks index of 300M+ scholarly works.

Total works
10.2K
Citations
415.1K
h-index
210
i10-index
8.0K
Also known as
Keski-Ruotsin yliopistoMid Sweden UniversityMid Sweden University CollegeMittuniversitetet

Top-cited papers from Mid Sweden University

Four Phases of Mediatization: An Analysis of the Mediatization of Politics
Jesper Strömbäck
2008· The International Journal of Press/Politics1.3Kdoi:10.1177/1940161208319097

Two concepts that have been used to describe the changes with regards to media and politics during the last fifty years are the concepts of mediation and mediatization . However, both these concepts are used more often than they are properly defined. Moreover, there is a lack of analysis of the process of mediatization, although the concept as such denotes a process.Thus the purpose of this article is to analyze the concepts of mediated and mediatized politics from a process-oriented perspective. The article argues that mediatization is a multidimensional and inherently process-oriented concept and that it is possible to make a distinction between four phases of mediatization. Each of these phases is analyzed.The conclusion is that as politics becomes increasingly mediatized, the important question no longer is related to the independence of the media from politics and society. The important question becomes the independence of politics and society from the media.

Cellulose Nanopaper Structures of High Toughness
Marielle Henriksson, Lars A. Berglund, Per Isaksson, Tom Lindström +1 more
2008· Biomacromolecules1.3Kdoi:10.1021/bm800038n

Cellulose nanofibrils offer interesting potential as a native fibrous constituent of mechanical performance exceeding the plant fibers in current use for commercial products. In the present study, wood nanofibrils are used to prepare porous cellulose nanopaper of remarkably high toughness. Nanopapers of different porosities and from nanofibrils of different molar mass are prepared. Uniaxial tensile tests are performed and structure-property relationships are discussed. The high toughness of highly porous nanopaper is related to the nanofibrillar network structure and high mechanical nanofibril performance. Also, molar mass correlates with tensile strength. This indicates that nanofibril fracture controls ultimate strength. Furthermore, the large strain-to-failure means that mechanisms, such as interfibril slippage, also contributes to inelastic deformation in addition to deformation of the nanofibrils themselves.

Health disorders of shift workers
Anders Knutsson
2003· Occupational Medicine1.2Kdoi:10.1093/occmed/kqg048

The effects of shift work on physiological function through disruption of circadian rhythms are well described. However, shift work can also be associated with specific pathological disorders. This article reviews the evidence for a relationship between specific medical disorders and working at night or on shift systems. The strongest evidence exists for an association with peptic ulcer disease, coronary heart disease and compromised pregnancy outcome.

Biodiversity in Dead Wood
Jogeir N. Stokland, Juha Siitonen, Bengt Gunnar Jonsson
2012· Cambridge University Press eBooks1.1Kdoi:10.1017/cbo9781139025843

Fossils document the existence of trees and wood-associated organisms from almost 400 million years ago, and today there are between 400,000 and 1 million wood-inhabiting species in the world. This is the first book to synthesise the natural history and conservation needs of wood-inhabiting organisms. Presenting a thorough introduction to biodiversity in decaying wood, the book studies the rich diversity of fungi, insects and vertebrates that depend upon dead wood. It describes the functional diversity of these organisms and their specific habitat requirements in terms of host trees, decay phases, tree dimensions, microhabitats and the surrounding environment. Recognising the threats posed by timber extraction and forest management, the authors also present management options for protecting and maintaining the diversity of these species in forests as well as in agricultural landscapes and urban parks.

The Association between Job Strain and Atrial Fibrillation: Results from the Swedish WOLF Study
Eleonor I. Fransson, Magdalena Stadin, Maria Nordin, Dan Malm +3 more
2015· BioMed Research International922doi:10.1155/2015/371905

INTRODUCTION: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common heart rhythm disorder. Several life-style factors have been identified as risk factors for AF, but less is known about the impact of work-related stress. This study aims to evaluate the association between work-related stress, defined as job strain, and risk of AF. METHODS: Data from the Swedish WOLF study was used, comprising 10,121 working men and women. Job strain was measured by the demand-control model. Information on incident AF was derived from national registers. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association between job strain and AF risk. RESULTS: In total, 253 incident AF cases were identified during a total follow-up time of 132,387 person-years. Job strain was associated with AF risk in a time-dependent manner, with stronger association after 10.7 years of follow-up (HR 1.93, 95% CI 1.10-3.36 after 10.7 years, versus HR 1.11, 95% CI 0.67-1.83 before 10.7 years). The results pointed towards a dose-response relationship when taking accumulated exposure to job strain over time into account. CONCLUSION: This study provides support to the hypothesis that work-related stress defined as job strain is linked to an increased risk of AF.

The Build-Up of Polyelectrolyte Multilayers of Microfibrillated Cellulose and Cationic Polyelectrolytes
Lars Wågberg, Gero Decher, Magnus Norgren, Tom Lindström +2 more
2008· Langmuir850doi:10.1021/la702481v

A new type of nanocellulosic material has been prepared by high-pressure homogenization of carboxymethylated cellulose fibers followed by ultrasonication and centrifugation. This material had a cylindrical cross-section as shown by transmission electron microscopy with a diameter of 5-15 nm and a length of up to 1 microm. Calculations, using the Poisson-Boltzmann equation, showed that the surface potential was between 200 and 250 mV, depending on the pH, the salt concentration, and the size of the fibrils. They also showed that the carboxyl groups on the surface of the nanofibrils are not fully dissociated until the pH has reached pH = approximately 10 in deionized water. Calculations of the interaction between the fibrils using the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek theory and assuming a cylindrical geometry indicated that there is a large electrostatic repulsion between these fibrils, provided the carboxyl groups are dissociated. If the pH is too low and/or the salt concentration is too high, there will be a large attraction between the fibrils, leading to a rapid aggregation of the fibrils. It is also possible to form polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEMs) by combining different types of polyelectrolytes and microfibrillated cellulose (MFC). In this study, silicon oxide surfaces were first treated with cationic polyelectrolytes before the surfaces were exposed to MFC. The build-up of the layers was monitored with ellipsometry, and they show that it is possible to form very well-defined layers by combinations of MFC and different types of polyelectrolytes and different ionic strengths of the solutions during the adsorption of the polyelectrolyte. A polyelectrolyte with a three-dimensional structure leads to the build-up of thick layers of MFC, whereas the use of a highly charged linear polyelectrolyte leads to the formation of thinner layers of MFC. An increase in the salt concentration during the adsorption of the polyelectrolyte results in the formation of thicker layers of MFC, indicating that the structure of the adsorbed polyelectrolyte has a large influence on the formation of the MFC layer. The films of polyelectrolytes and MFC were so smooth and well-defined that they showed clearly different interference colors, depending on the film thickness. A comparison between the thickness of the films, as measured with ellipsometry, and the thickness estimated from their colors showed good agreement, assuming that the films consisted mainly of solid cellulose with a refractive index of 1.53. Carboxymethylated MFC is thus a new type of nanomaterial that can be combined with oppositely charged polyelectrolytes to form well-defined layers that may be used to form, for example, new types of sensor materials.

Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD): some psychometric data for a Swedish sample
Jan Lisspers, Åke Nygren, Erik Söderman
1997· Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica717doi:10.1111/j.1600-0447.1997.tb10164.x

The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD) was evaluated in a Swedish population sample. The purpose of the study was to compare the HAD with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Spielberger's State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). A secondary aim was to examine the factor structure of the HAD. The results indicated that the factor structure was quite strong, consistently showing two factors in the whole sample as well as in different subsamples. The correlations between the total HAD scale and BDI and STAI, respectively, were stronger than those obtained using the different subscales of the HAD (the anxiety and depression subscales). As expected, there was also a stronger correlation between the HAD and the non-physical items of the BDI. It was somewhat surprising that the factor analyses were consistently extracting two factors, 'depression' and 'anxiety', while on the other hand both BDI and STAI tended to correlate more strongly with the total HAD score than with the specific depression and anxiety HAD subscales. Nevertheless, the HAD appeared to be (as was indeed originally intended) a useful clinical indicator of the possibility of depression and clinical anxiety.

Long working hours and risk of coronary heart disease and stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis of published and unpublished data for 603 838 individuals
Mika Kivimäki, Markus Jokela, Solja T. Nyberg, Archana Singh‐Manoux +4 more
2015· The Lancet711doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(15)60295-1

BACKGROUND: Long working hours might increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, but prospective evidence is scarce, imprecise, and mostly limited to coronary heart disease. We aimed to assess long working hours as a risk factor for incident coronary heart disease and stroke. METHODS: We identified published studies through a systematic review of PubMed and Embase from inception to Aug 20, 2014. We obtained unpublished data for 20 cohort studies from the Individual-Participant-Data Meta-analysis in Working Populations (IPD-Work) Consortium and open-access data archives. We used cumulative random-effects meta-analysis to combine effect estimates from published and unpublished data. FINDINGS: We included 25 studies from 24 cohorts in Europe, the USA, and Australia. The meta-analysis of coronary heart disease comprised data for 603,838 men and women who were free from coronary heart disease at baseline; the meta-analysis of stroke comprised data for 528,908 men and women who were free from stroke at baseline. Follow-up for coronary heart disease was 5·1 million person-years (mean 8·5 years), in which 4768 events were recorded, and for stroke was 3·8 million person-years (mean 7·2 years), in which 1722 events were recorded. In cumulative meta-analysis adjusted for age, sex, and socioeconomic status, compared with standard hours (35-40 h per week), working long hours (≥55 h per week) was associated with an increase in risk of incident coronary heart disease (relative risk [RR] 1·13, 95% CI 1·02-1·26; p=0·02) and incident stroke (1·33, 1·11-1·61; p=0·002). The excess risk of stroke remained unchanged in analyses that addressed reverse causation, multivariable adjustments for other risk factors, and different methods of stroke ascertainment (range of RR estimates 1·30-1·42). We recorded a dose-response association for stroke, with RR estimates of 1·10 (95% CI 0·94-1·28; p=0·24) for 41-48 working hours, 1·27 (1·03-1·56; p=0·03) for 49-54 working hours, and 1·33 (1·11-1·61; p=0·002) for 55 working hours or more per week compared with standard working hours (ptrend<0·0001). INTERPRETATION: Employees who work long hours have a higher risk of stroke than those working standard hours; the association with coronary heart disease is weaker. These findings suggest that more attention should be paid to the management of vascular risk factors in individuals who work long hours. FUNDING: Medical Research Council, Economic and Social Research Council, European Union New and Emerging Risks in Occupational Safety and Health research programme, Finnish Work Environment Fund, Swedish Research Council for Working Life and Social Research, German Social Accident Insurance, Danish National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Academy of Finland, Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment (Netherlands), US National Institutes of Health, British Heart Foundation.

Overweight, obesity, and risk of cardiometabolic multimorbidity: pooled analysis of individual-level data for 120 813 adults from 16 cohort studies from the USA and Europe
Mika Kivimäki, Eeva Kuosma, Jane E. Ferrie, Ritva Luukkonen +4 more
2017· The Lancet Public Health672doi:10.1016/s2468-2667(17)30074-9

BackgroundAlthough overweight and obesity have been studied in relation to individual cardiometabolic diseases, their association with risk of cardiometabolic multimorbidity is poorly understood. Here we aimed to establish the risk of incident cardiometabolic multimorbidity (ie, at least two from: type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, and stroke) in adults who are overweight and obese compared with those who are a healthy weight.MethodsWe pooled individual-participant data for BMI and incident cardiometabolic multimorbidity from 16 prospective cohort studies from the USA and Europe. Participants included in the analyses were 35 years or older and had data available for BMI at baseline and for type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, and stroke at baseline and follow-up. We excluded participants with a diagnosis of diabetes, coronary heart disease, or stroke at or before study baseline. According to WHO recommendations, we classified BMI into categories of healthy (20·0–24·9 kg/m2), overweight (25·0–29·9 kg/m2), class I (mild) obesity (30·0–34·9 kg/m2), and class II and III (severe) obesity (≥35·0 kg/m2). We used an inclusive definition of underweight (<20 kg/m2) to achieve sufficient case numbers for analysis. The main outcome was cardiometabolic multimorbidity (ie, developing at least two from: type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, and stroke). Incident cardiometabolic multimorbidity was ascertained via resurvey or linkage to electronic medical records (including hospital admissions and death). We analysed data from each cohort separately using logistic regression and then pooled cohort-specific estimates using random-effects meta-analysis.FindingsParticipants were 120 813 adults (mean age 51·4 years, range 35–103; 71 445 women) who did not have diabetes, coronary heart disease, or stroke at study baseline (1973–2012). During a mean follow-up of 10·7 years (1995–2014), we identified 1627 cases of multimorbidity. After adjustment for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, compared with individuals with a healthy weight, the risk of developing cardiometabolic multimorbidity in overweight individuals was twice as high (odds ratio [OR] 2·0, 95% CI 1·7–2·4; p<0·0001), almost five times higher for individuals with class I obesity (4·5, 3·5–5·8; p<0·0001), and almost 15 times higher for individuals with classes II and III obesity combined (14·5, 10·1–21·0; p<0·0001). This association was noted in men and women, young and old, and white and non-white participants, and was not dependent on the method of exposure assessment or outcome ascertainment. In analyses of different combinations of cardiometabolic conditions, odds ratios associated with classes II and III obesity were 2·2 (95% CI 1·9–2·6) for vascular disease only (coronary heart disease or stroke), 12·0 (8·1–17·9) for vascular disease followed by diabetes, 18·6 (16·6–20·9) for diabetes only, and 29·8 (21·7–40·8) for diabetes followed by vascular disease.InterpretationThe risk of cardiometabolic multimorbidity increases as BMI increases; from double in overweight people to more than ten times in severely obese people compared with individuals with a healthy BMI. Our findings highlight the need for clinicians to actively screen for diabetes in overweight and obese patients with vascular disease, and pay increased attention to prevention of vascular disease in obese individuals with diabetes.FundingNordForsk, Medical Research Council, Cancer Research UK, Finnish Work Environment Fund, and Academy of Finland.

Security of the Internet of Things: Vulnerabilities, Attacks, and Countermeasures
Ismail Butun, Patrik Osterberg, Houbing Song
2019· IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials663doi:10.1109/comst.2019.2953364

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) constitute one of the most promising third-millennium technologies and have wide range of applications in our surrounding environment. The reason behind the vast adoption of WSNs in various applications is that they have tremendously appealing features, e.g., low production cost, low installation cost, unattended network operation, autonomous and longtime operation. WSNs have started to merge with the Internet of Things (IoT) through the introduction of Internet access capability in sensor nodes and sensing ability in Internet-connected devices. Thereby, the IoT is providing access to huge amount of data, collected by the WSNs, over the Internet. Hence, the security of IoT should start with foremost securing WSNs ahead of the other components. However, owing to the absence of a physical line-of-defense, i.e., there is no dedicated infrastructure such as gateways to watch and observe the flowing information in the network, security of WSNs along with IoT is of a big concern to the scientific community. More specifically, for the application areas in which CIA (confidentiality, integrity, availability) has prime importance, WSNs and emerging IoT technology might constitute an open avenue for the attackers. Besides, recent integration and collaboration of WSNs with IoT will open new challenges and problems in terms of security. Hence, this would be a nightmare for the individuals using these systems as well as the security administrators who are managing those networks. Therefore, a detailed review of security attacks towards WSNs and IoT, along with the techniques for prevention, detection, and mitigation of those attacks are provided in this paper. In this text, attacks are categorized and treated into mainly two parts, most or all types of attacks towards WSNs and IoT are investigated under that umbrella: “Passive Attacks” and “Active Attacks”. Understanding these attacks and their associated defense mechanisms will help paving a secure path towards the proliferation and public acceptance of IoT technology.

Co-production, the third sector and the delivery of public services
Taco Brandsen, Victor Pestoff
2006· Public Management Review653doi:10.1080/14719030601022874

Abstract In recent years, public management research has paid increasing attention to the third sector, especially to its role in the provision of public services. Evidence of this is the rising number of publications on the topic, as well as a growing number of sessions and papers on the topic in academic conferences of the EGPA and IRSPM. However, much of the discussion on its role is motivated at least as much by ideology as by fact. We still lack a comprehensive empirical understanding of what happens when the third sector is drawn into public service provision. In this collection on Co-Production: The Third Sector and the Delivery of Public Services, we will try to enhance this understanding by presenting several new studies on the subject. We also introduce the concepts of co-production, co-management and co-governance as a conceptual framework that enables us to better understand such developments.

Global and National Burden of Diseases and Injuries Among Children and Adolescents Between 1990 and 2013
Hmwe Hmwe Kyu, Christine Pinho, Joseph A. Wagner, Jonathan C. Brown +4 more
2016· JAMA Pediatrics632doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2015.4276

IMPORTANCE: The literature focuses on mortality among children younger than 5 years. Comparable information on nonfatal health outcomes among these children and the fatal and nonfatal burden of diseases and injuries among older children and adolescents is scarce. OBJECTIVE: To determine levels and trends in the fatal and nonfatal burden of diseases and injuries among younger children (aged <5 years), older children (aged 5-9 years), and adolescents (aged 10-19 years) between 1990 and 2013 in 188 countries from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2013 study. EVIDENCE REVIEW: Data from vital registration, verbal autopsy studies, maternal and child death surveillance, and other sources covering 14,244 site-years (ie, years of cause of death data by geography) from 1980 through 2013 were used to estimate cause-specific mortality. Data from 35,620 epidemiological sources were used to estimate the prevalence of the diseases and sequelae in the GBD 2013 study. Cause-specific mortality for most causes was estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble Model strategy. For some infectious diseases (eg, HIV infection/AIDS, measles, hepatitis B) where the disease process is complex or the cause of death data were insufficient or unavailable, we used natural history models. For most nonfatal health outcomes, DisMod-MR 2.0, a Bayesian metaregression tool, was used to meta-analyze the epidemiological data to generate prevalence estimates. FINDINGS: Of the 7.7 (95% uncertainty interval [UI], 7.4-8.1) million deaths among children and adolescents globally in 2013, 6.28 million occurred among younger children, 0.48 million among older children, and 0.97 million among adolescents. In 2013, the leading causes of death were lower respiratory tract infections among younger children (905.059 deaths; 95% UI, 810,304-998,125), diarrheal diseases among older children (38,325 deaths; 95% UI, 30,365-47,678), and road injuries among adolescents (115,186 deaths; 95% UI, 105,185-124,870). Iron deficiency anemia was the leading cause of years lived with disability among children and adolescents, affecting 619 (95% UI, 618-621) million in 2013. Large between-country variations exist in mortality from leading causes among children and adolescents. Countries with rapid declines in all-cause mortality between 1990 and 2013 also experienced large declines in most leading causes of death, whereas countries with the slowest declines had stagnant or increasing trends in the leading causes of death. In 2013, Nigeria had a 12% global share of deaths from lower respiratory tract infections and a 38% global share of deaths from malaria. India had 33% of the world's deaths from neonatal encephalopathy. Half of the world's diarrheal deaths among children and adolescents occurred in just 5 countries: India, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Pakistan, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Understanding the levels and trends of the leading causes of death and disability among children and adolescents is critical to guide investment and inform policies. Monitoring these trends over time is also key to understanding where interventions are having an impact. Proven interventions exist to prevent or treat the leading causes of unnecessary death and disability among children and adolescents. The findings presented here show that these are underused and give guidance to policy makers in countries where more attention is needed.

Towards a ‘patient-centred’ operationalisation of the new dynamic concept of health: a mixed methods study
Machteld Huber, Marja van Vliet, M Giezenberg, Björn Winkens +3 more
2016· BMJ Open571doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2015-010091

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate among stakeholders the support for the new, dynamic concept of health, as published in 2011: 'Health as the ability to adapt and to self-manage', and to elaborate perceived indicators of health in order to make the concept measurable. DESIGN: A mixed methods study: a qualitative first step with interviews and focus groups, followed by a quantitative survey. PARTICIPANTS: Representatives of seven healthcare stakeholder domains, for example, healthcare providers, patients with a chronic condition and policymakers. The qualitative study involved 140 stakeholders; the survey 1938 participants. RESULTS: The new concept was appreciated, as it addresses people as more than their illness and focuses on strengths rather than weaknesses. Caution is needed as the concept requires substantial personal input of which not everyone is capable. The qualitative study identified 556 health indicators, categorised into six dimensions: bodily functions, mental functions and perception, spiritual/existential dimension, quality of life, social and societal participation, and daily functioning, with 32 underlying aspects. The quantitative study showed all stakeholder groups considering bodily functions to represent health, whereas for other dimensions there were significant differences between groups. Patients considered all six dimensions almost equally important, thus preferring a broad concept of health, whereas physicians assessed health more narrowly and biomedically. In the qualitative study, 78% of respondents considered their health indicators to represent the concept. CONCLUSIONS: To prevent confusion with health as 'absence of disease', we propose the use of the term 'positive health' for the broad perception of health with six dimensions, as preferred by patients. This broad perception deserves attention by healthcare providers as it may support shared decision-making in medical practice. For policymakers, the broad perception of 'positive health' is valuable as it bridges the gap between healthcare and the social domain, and by that it may demedicalise societal problems.

e-Tourism beyond COVID-19: a call for transformative research
Ulrike Gretzel, Matthias Fuchs, Rodolfo Baggio, Wolfram Höepken +4 more
2020· Information Technology & Tourism568doi:10.1007/s40558-020-00181-3

This viewpoint article argues that the impacts of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 call for transformative e-Tourism research. We are at a crossroads where one road takes us to e-Tourism as it was before the crisis, whereas the other holds the potential to transform e-Tourism. To realize this potential, e-Tourism research needs to challenge existing paradigms and critically evaluate its ontological and epistemological foundations. In light of the paramount importance to rethink contemporary science, growth, and technology paradigms, we present six pillars to guide scholars in their efforts to transform e-Tourism through their research, including historicity, reflexivity, equity, transparency, plurality, and creativity. We conclude the paper with a call to the e-Tourism research community to embrace transformative research.

The COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity for escaping the unsustainable global tourism path
Dimitri İoannides, Szilvia Gyimóthy
2020· Tourism Geographies563doi:10.1080/14616688.2020.1763445

The COVID-19 pandemic has halted mobility globally on an unprecedented scale, causing the neoliberal market mechanisms of global tourism to be severely disrupted. In turn, this situation is leading to the decline of certain mainstream business formats and, simultaneously, the emergence of others. Based on a review of recent crisis recovery processes, the tourism sector is likely to rebound from this sudden market shock, primarily because of various forms of government interventions. Nevertheless, although policymakers seek to strengthen the resilience of post-pandemic tourism, their subsidies and other initiatives serve to maintain a fundamentally flawed market logic. The crisis has, therefore, brought us to a fork in the road–giving us the perfect opportunity to select a new direction and move forward by adopting a more sustainable path. Specifically, COVID-19 offers public, private, and academic actors a unique opportunity to design and consolidate the transition towards a greener and more balanced tourism. Tourism scholars, for example, can take a leading role in this by redesigning their curriculum to prepare future industry leaders for a more responsible travel and tourism experience.

The effects of plant litter on vegetation: a meta‐analysis
Shaojun Xiong, Christer Nilsson
1999· Journal of Ecology562doi:10.1046/j.1365-2745.1999.00414.x

Summary 1 We used data from 35 independently published studies world‐wide to analyse the effects of plant litter on the germination, establishment, species richness and above‐ground biomass of plants. Overall, the short‐term effects of litter on vegetation were mostly negative, although their magnitude varied with vegetation variable, study method, experimental duration, latitude, habitat, type and quantity of litter and target species. 2 Species richness was more affected than above‐ground biomass by litter, suggesting that litter may play a direct role in structuring plant communities as well as influencing competition in productive habitats. Litter had a stronger overall effect on plant germination than on establishment, suggesting that a litter‐reducing disturbance will have more effect early in the growth season. 3 On average, vegetation was more affected by litter in field than in glasshouse studies and during 2‐year than during 1‐year studies. The effect on biomass switched from negative after 1 year to positive after 3 years. 4 The absolute effects of litter on germination and establishment decreased and the absolute effects on above‐ground biomass increased with latitude. Ecosystem type also influenced the effects significantly. 5 Vegetation was generally more depressed by higher litter quantities. Litter composed of forbs and tree leaves had a stronger effect on vegetation than grass litter. The impact of a certain type of litter may therefore be related to its decomposition rate. 6 Tree species were more affected than forbs and grasses by litter, at least at the colonization stage.

Adaptation and Acclimation of Photosynthetic Microorganisms to Permanently Cold Environments
Rachael M. Morgan‐Kiss, John C. Priscu, Tessa Pocock, Loreta Gudynaite‐Savitch +1 more
2006· Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews556doi:10.1128/mmbr.70.1.222-252.2006

Persistently cold environments constitute one of our world's largest ecosystems, and microorganisms dominate the biomass and metabolic activity in these extreme environments. The stress of low temperatures on life is exacerbated in organisms that rely on photoautrophic production of organic carbon and energy sources. Phototrophic organisms must coordinate temperature-independent reactions of light absorption and photochemistry with temperature-dependent processes of electron transport and utilization of energy sources through growth and metabolism. Despite this conundrum, phototrophic microorganisms thrive in all cold ecosystems described and (together with chemoautrophs) provide the base of autotrophic production in low-temperature food webs. Psychrophilic (organisms with a requirement for low growth temperatures) and psychrotolerant (organisms tolerant of low growth temperatures) photoautotrophs rely on low-temperature acclimative and adaptive strategies that have been described for other low-temperature-adapted heterotrophic organisms, such as cold-active proteins and maintenance of membrane fluidity. In addition, photoautrophic organisms possess other strategies to balance the absorption of light and the transduction of light energy to stored chemical energy products (NADPH and ATP) with downstream consumption of photosynthetically derived energy products at low temperatures. Lastly, differential adaptive and acclimative mechanisms exist in phototrophic microorganisms residing in low-temperature environments that are exposed to constant low-light environments versus high-light- and high-UV-exposed phototrophic assemblages.

In Search of a Standard: four models of democracy and their normative implications for journalism
Jesper Strömbäck
2005· Journalism Studies549doi:10.1080/14616700500131950

Abstract The literature discussing the impact of media and journalism upon democracy, typically criticizes both media and journalism for their content and their negative effects on some aspects of democracy. In turn, this raises the question of identifying news standards by which the quality of news journalism might be evaluated. But neither the proposed news standards nor the criticism levelled against them specify with sufficient clarity the model of democracy to be used as a normative departure. This article argues that the question of proper news standards cannot be addressed in isolation from the question of different normative models of democracy. In order to discover news standards by which the quality of news journalism can or should be evaluated, it analyzes four normative models of democracy and their demands upon citizens: procedural democracy, competetive democracy, participatory democracy and deliberative democracy. Building upon that analysis, the article asks: What normative implications for media and news journalism follow from the distinctive perspectives of procedural, competitive, participatory and deliberative democracy? Keywords: JournalismDemocracyNormative ModelsNews Standards This article was largely written while the author was a guest scholar at the University of Florida during the Fall of 2004 funded by The Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education (STINT). The author would like to thank STINT for the funding and Professor Lynda Lee Kaid for providing such a stimulating research environment.

Process-Based Ecological River Restoration: Visualizing Three-Dimensional Connectivity and Dynamic Vectors to Recover Lost Linkages
G. Mathias Kondolf, Andrew J. Boulton, S. J. O'Daniel, Geoffrey C. Poole +4 more
2006· Ecology and Society530doi:10.5751/es-01747-110205

Kondolf, G. M., A. J. Boulton, S. O'Daniel, G. C. Poole, F. J. Rahel, E. H. Stanley, E. Wohl, A. Bång, J. Carlstrom, C. Cristoni, H. Huber, S. Koljonen, P. Louhi, and K. Nakamura 2006. Process-based ecological river restoration: visualizing three-dimensional connectivity and dynamic vectors to recover lost linkages. Ecology and Society 11(2): 5. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-01747-110205

Material choices for triboelectric nanogenerators: A critical review
Renyun Zhang, Håkan Olin
2020· EcoMat505doi:10.1002/eom2.12062

Abstract A triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) is a novel technology with applications in many areas, including energy harvesting, self‐powered sensing, medication, and electronics. The materials used as triboelectric layers are diverse and include polymers, metals, and inorganic materials. The most commonly used materials are dielectric polymers such as PTFE, FEP, PDMS, and Kapton. Green materials, such as cellulose‐based materials, have recently gained increasing interest, and the performance of TENGs using cellulose materials has improved. The material choices are of great importance for TENGs since the triboelectric effects of the materials are fundamental for TENGs. To design a TENG for a particular application, several parameters need to be considered, such as power density, stability, flexibility, and sustainability. This critical review will summarize and evaluate the material choices for TENGs in different applications. image