Tehran, the capital of Iran has undergone major urbanization in the last century, which has caused uncontrollable urban growth. Poor regulation and control of this growth has given rise to environmental problems including high air and water pollution. In turn, this has led to urban growth towards the mountains in the north, where the environment is better. However, this pressure to develop in the north has increased segregation of the city and created a clear social division of class between the northern and southern parts of the City.

In light of this, and in the context of Tehran as an extremely dense city with limited green space, the City sees a possibility in transforming an unused military airport in the southern districts of the city into a new urban park.

This master thesis explores how to reclaim the 270Ha former airfield and develop it as an urban park with strengthened links to surrounding neighbourhoods.

The work aims to gain an understanding of how large vacant areas can become successful public areas and green places in the community. The work is based on urban theory and site analysis and brings forward design proposals for the park.

Analysis work is divided into an investigative and exploratory stage. The investigative part includes literature studies, data collection and mapping of the city’s urban morphological development, taking into account physical and socio-economic processes. The exploratory part consisted of inventories, site studies and interviews in Tehran, as well as integration analysis with space syntax to explore accessibility and connections in the new park.

Throughout the study shows how and why the city has evolved and highlights a connection between living in the southern districts, which are low-income areas, with also having poor access to public and recreation areas.

This analysis forms the foundations for the design proposal, visualizations and programs presented about how the area can be designed as a new urban city park.

In conclusion, the study highlights that in order to be able to develop new places or renew existing area’s, consideration must be given to urban morphological development. This includes the socio-economic and socio-ecological process. It further concludes, that a ecological viewpoint together with a understanding of the physical environment, the urban landscape identity and the need of people in the context needs to be brought together to plan and create parks and urban spaces

Vi lever i en värld där människor rör sig mellan länder, där kulturella referenser möts, påverkar, sammanflätas och utvecklas med andra och där den ökade globaliseringen gör att jordens befolkning kommer allt närmre varandra. Samtidigt finns nationsgränser varigenom det upprätthålls och produceras normer och värderingar och därigenom riktlinjer för vad som kan ta sig uttryck samt på vilket sätt. Ökad migration till följd av flykt ifrån krig och förföljelse, en önskan om att leva under bättre levnadsvillkor, ökade försörjningsmöjligheter samt möjlighet att leva nära familj och släktingar har stor påverkan på den etniska sammansättningen i många länder. Som ett resultat av detta träffas människor med skilda uppfattningar och idéer, regelbundet möts människor som tänker olika, som ser olika ut och som lever på skilda sätt. Samhällen vari denna process äger rum förändras genom denna kontakt men även utifrån de bilder som överförs via media. Sveriges lagar styrs inte utifrån några religiösa betingelser men det finns fortfarande religiösa inslag i samhällsstrukturen som vilar på en kristen trosåskådning. Sedan invandringen till Sverige ifrån länder med muslimsk majoritet ökat har islam och muslimer kommit att omdebatteras trots att de utgör en minoritet i landet. Människors uppfattningar påverkas bland annat utifrån det massmedier väljer att förmedla, utgångspunkten för denna studie är att utforska de retoriska konstruktioner som förmedlas genom mediet tidning, specifikt Vestmanlands läns tidning, i sammanhang där islam och/eller muslimer omnämns. Genom att analysera ett 40-tal artiklar i tidningen kommer vi åskådliggöra vilka formuleringar, benämningar och ordval som används och som vi menar konstruerar bilder av den verklighet som skribenter och läsare är en del av. Vi kom fram till att vi på daglig basis försöker utmåla andra grupper än den egna med ondska, detta är problematiskt. Vi identifierar andra individer och grupper med ondskefulla värderingar och därigenom separerar vi oss själva från dem. Det är bland annat detta som får oss att känna ett inkluderande och därmed rättfärdigas avståndstagandet gentemot den andra gruppen vilket i sin tur leder till ökad polarisering. Resultatet visar på att den aktuella diskursen om muslimer och islam bibehålls genom att stereotypa uppfattningar repeteras och bekräftas i det massmediala rummet. Dessa uppfattningar vilar många gånger på ovetenskapliga belägg, det som framförs kan vara rena åsiktsyttringar med syfte till att sälja lösa artiklar

We present an overview of the art project Aganta Kairos (To Fish the Metaphysical Time). This project celebrates the neutrino-the ghost particle-which scientists consider a cosmic messenger and the artist regards as a link between people who care about their relationship to the cosmos and question their origins. The artwork is based on a performance of celebration and seeks to build a human community that encompasses different knowledge domains and interpretations of the universe. This intersection of knowledge is realized during the performance of placing a plaque, held with witnesses, and during subsequent exhibitions. Images, sounds, videos, and sculpture testify to the diversity of approaches to questioning our origins, ranging from traditional western science to ancient shamanism. The sites were selected for their global coverage and, for the South Pole, Mediterranean, and Lake Baikal, their connection to ongoing neutrino experiments. In December 2020, a plaque was installed at the South Pole IceCube Laboratory, the seventh and final site. We provide examples of images and links to additional images and videos.

This exploratory research seeks to gain insight into the visitors of Persian Fire Festival in Stockholm, their motivation, level of satisfaction and loyalty to the festival. The overall methodology is mixed methods consisting of participant observation and 280 completed online surveys including close-ended and open-ended questions. A Grounded theory analysis has been employed. The most important reason behind the participation has been to strive for the recognition of ethnic cultural identity; to keep the ancient culture alive; to maintain their ancestors legacy and transfer it to the next generation. Most of the visitors experienced positive feelings, showed satisfaction and loyalty, believed that the festival fulfilled their expectations and it should be celebrated officially every year. A minority showed dissatisfaction mostly due to the lack of accessibility to the event venue and might are not loyal to the festival. The first conclusion here is that these motivators are totally different than those mentioned by earlier research (e.g., escape, socialization, novelty, rest, prestige, excitement). Even though the desire to preserve the ancient culture and tradition is very strong, a lack of accessibility to the venue would constitute disloyalty and a barrier to re-attend in such a festival.

Denna studie undersöker potentialen för frodvuxen gran (Picea abies) som isoleringsmaterial i historiska byggnader, med syftet att utvärdera sambandet mellan densitet och värmeledningsförmåga. Bakgrunden till studien ligger i behovet av hållbara och effektiva isoleringsmaterial som kan användas för att förbättra energiprestandan i byggnader samtidigt som de bevarar deras historiska karaktär och estetiska värde. Frodvuxen gran har växt snabbt vilket lett till en lägre densitet än lägsta värdet som finns att tillgå i den svenska standarden för olika materials värmeledningsförmågor. 

Metodologin innefattade både laboratorieanalyser och fältstudier. I laboratoriedelen användes ett hot-disk instrument för att mäta värmeledningsförmåga sedan beräknades densitet och fuktkvot. Fältstudierna genomfördes för att identifiera praktiska tillämpningar och utmaningar vid användning av frodvuxen gran som konstruktionsmaterial. Dessa studier omfattade inspektioner av byggnader uppförda med frodvuxen gran och intervju med ansvarig för uppförandet av dessa byggnader för att utreda dess potentiella funktion som konstruktionsmaterial. 

Huvudresultaten från laboratorieanalyserna visade ett starkt samband mellan densitet och värmeledningsförmåga, vilket indikerar att frodvuxen gran med sin lägre densitet har förbättrade isoleringsegenskaper jämfört med senvuxen gran. Fältstudierna bekräftade att frodvuxen gran kan användas som konstruktionsmaterial i byggnader, men pekade också på dess benägenhet till större rörelser vid uttorkning vilket dock går att räkna på för att undvika att problem uppstår vid torkning. 

Slutsatserna visar att frodvuxen gran kan vara ett värdefullt tillskott till befintliga isoleringsmaterial tack vare dess förbättrade isoleringsförmåga. Studien rekommenderar vidare forskning för att undersöka långsiktiga nedbrytningseffekter och materialets fuktegenskaper, vilket är avgörande för dess praktiska användning i byggnader. Vidare bör forskningen även studera frodvuxen grans förmåga som putsbärare, både för ler- och kalkbruk, för att utreda virkets kompatibilitet med dessa material. 

This paper addresses a design exploration focusing on interactive jewellery and wearable computing that could affect sexual harassment in social contexts in everyday life. Drawing on a design inquiry study that lead to the creation of an interactive and digital necklace named Sunshine, which is a personal alarm connected to an emergency center, this paper focuses on how a piece of digital jewellery can contribute to women’s empowerment in relation to sexual harassment. The functionality of Sunshine is based on a device that will be activated when the user presses a button on the necklace and an alert with the location of the user will be sent to an alarm center. The users press the button when in danger or exposed to violence and/or abuse. This study so forth addresses a design exploration of a piece of jewellery that can be seen as a symbol for women’s safety, unity and equality. The combination of digital technology and fashion design demonstrate that people can be brought together and especially be empowering in social contexts where sexual harassment might be a part of women’s everyday life.

Denna studie undersöker de fyra senaste utgåvorna av läromedlet Religion och liv. Med hjälp av Stuart Halls teori om representation undersöks på vilket sätt kristna, kristen tro och kristet liv framställs i läroböcker för högstadiet. 

On a national scale, statistics relating to moving patterns shows that youths and young adults are the ones who tend to move the most. The case in Västerbotten is similar as in the rest of Sweden and many municipalities are experiencing a population decline. This thesis aims to look into the motives behind moving from the perspective of youths and young adults and through that propose a strategy to strengthen the place attachment youths and young adults feel to their home municipality. The research is centered around Lycksele in Västerbotten.

The research questions that the thesis aims to seek answers for are; What could an architectural strategy that aims to support youths in their leisure time and also strengthen their connection to the area look like? and What programmatic aspects are important to consider in such a strategy?

The thesis investigates spatial needs from the perspective of youths and young adults which have been investigated through literature studies and action based research focused on interviews and a workshop. Four themes were common in both interviews and the workshop, these were; closeness to nature, possibility of work, valuable leisure time and a sense of home. To understand how an urban strategy can respond to the themes, strategies applied in other municipalities have been analysed. A finding was that in order for strategies to attract more inhabitants, they need to have a holistic approach and offer a complete lifestyle. Creativity is a theme which came up during interviews and literature studies as a possible platform around which an area can become considered as more attractive.

The proposal is an urban strategy which aims to respond to the common themes from interviews and the workshop by enhancing and encouraging activities taking place and activating social space. This proposal suggests a strategy which aims to strengthen the notion of sense of place to enhance place attachment and through that possibly invite more young adults to move back in the future.

This paper looks upon monsters as a medium; how concentration of fear can result in the demonisation of individuals. It explores how the use of craft, with a focus on stop motion animation, can be used as a tool to build empathy and help to heal fragmentations of society. Working with contemporary mythologies, crafted techniques are metaphorically related to the fragility of societal structures and collective narratives. Hand crafting references relics of consumer culture and explores variable autonomies over personal narrative, investigating imbalances of power.

This paper explores the linguistic construction of the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyj, in Swedish newspapers in 2019 and 2022. Using the framework of Critical Discourse Studies along with Cognitive Linguistics the aim of the study is to gain an understanding of what constructs a heroism discourse surrounding Zelensky. Utilizing the Discourse-Historical Approach as the main method allows for a certain qualitative analysis of news texts which illuminate discursive strategies and possible conceptual metaphors. Findings suggest there has been a shift in the discourse concerning Zelensky, and that he in march 2022 is part of a heroism discourse in which he symbolizes change.

Stereotypes and myths are created by media to simplify and mystify reality. The two are used to form negative stereotypical images that are used as tools of social oppression in today’s white patriarchy. This essay will focus on how Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye depicts black womanhood and motherhood and resists the reductive images of black women through the narrative technique. In the text we find the stereotypical images of the Mammy and the Matriarch in the character Pauline "Polly" Breedlove, both simplifying and mystifying black motherhood but also condescending towards African-American family constellations. The text resists these images by making readers inhabit Polly who at first fits in to the two archetypes, only to then give us additional information and use an engaging narrative technique that invites the reader to decide if Polly really is the Mammy and the Matriarch.

Introduction: Today, humanity is trying to develop in all areas of life, so that we can reach a cleaner, more modern, and more sustainable world. This study highlights the importance of architecture to improve areas of life. This report talks about a type of architectural design. It is called biophilic design which means to combine nature with buildings. This study is about biophilic design in school buildings.

Method: To perform the survey, three different methods were chosen. The first method was a questionnaire sent to college students and high school students, the second method was interviews conducted with knowledgeable architects who have extensive experience in the subject of biophilic design and the last method was literature studies.

Results: All data collected from the questionnaire, the interviews and literature studies are summarized as follows:Most college students and high school students think that when you are closer to nature it makes you feel better and that it would help improve the teaching process. Architects who were interviewed thought that biophilic design in school buildings has both advantages and disadvantages, but in general they support the idea of using and spreading the idea more in Sweden.

Analysis: The analyzed data have shown that it is possible to implement biophilic design on the inside and outside of a school building in unusual ways. But many problems will arise, and one must have the will to continue to maintain these materials. It turned out that having these natural elements in school will contribute to a positive effect on the learning environment and the students themselves. For example, as a more creative, calm, and de-stressing environment. Having a green roof seems like an innovative idea but it requires a lot of maintenance.

Discussion: This study focuses on how to implement biophilic design in a school building and what impact it has on the learning environment. The study addressed what is required to integrate the qualities of nature in the right way to maximize its effects. Studying biophilic design, nature and how it affects people and architecture and its impact on people has helped to lead to a clear result.

Bakgrund: Arkan Asaads Stjärnlösa nätter(2012) är en roman som beskriver livet för tonåriga Amar som kommer från en kurdisk familj, med en far som är överordnad och starkt dominerande i familjen. Romanen belyser tydligt vilka förväntningar som finns på Amar i släkten och hur heder och skam och allt vad det innebär är det som styr i samhället. För att rädda samt bevara familjens heder och för att Amars far ska bli stolt över honom så var enda utvägen att han skulle gifta sig med sin kusin Amina utan egen vilja.

Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur pojkar och mäns position inom hederskultur skildras i Arkan Asaads Stjärnlösa nätter.

Teoretisk bakgrund: De teoretiska ramverken som ligger till grund för denna studie är Connells (2008) maskulinitetsteori och det intersektionella perspektivet och dess maktstrukturer. Vi använder oss också av Schlytter och Rexvid (2016) definition av heder och skam samt Hanssons (2010) beskrivning av heder på individ- och gruppnivå.

Metod: Vi har valt att göra en närläsning av verket, där vi kommer att analysera samt tolka den, för att tolka den på bästa sätt kommer vi att stödja oss på hermeneutiken, tolkningsläran. Vi gör en kvalitativ innehållsanalys vilket innebär att vi fokuserar på specifika delar av verkets innehåll och de delar som är relevanta i denna studie är patriarkala maktstrukturer inom familjer, hederskultur och skam.

Resultat: Analysen visar att Asaad (2012) skildrar män och pojkar i familjer med hedersrelaterade värderingar och normer som dominanta, aggressiva, hotfulla och våldsamma. Läsaren får också en inblick i den traditionella familjeordningen i Amars familj och den består av Casim med högsta status, mamman som är underordnad pappan och sönerna med högre status än dottern. Men resultatet visar också att Amar är ett offer för hederskulturen då han efter påfrestningar och påtryckningar tvingas gifta sig med sin kusin och tvingas glömma bortegna målsättningar i livet -- allt i hederns namn. Analysdelen visar hur heder och skam präglar Amars familj. På så sätt visar analysen att skam och heder går hand i hand i familjer med hedersrelaterade värderingar och normer, vilket Amars släkt har. Skammens roll är betydligt större och har mer inflytande över familjen än vad kärlek och respekt har. 

Bakgrund: Hafsah Faizals We hunt the flame från 2019 är en roman vars berättelse utspelar sig i Arawiya, en värld inspirerad av Ancient Arabia (en värld som fanns innan Islams uppkomst). I berättelsen får vi följa Zafira, en 17-årig kvinna som på grund av samhällets normer får klä ut sig till man, en berömd jägare. Romanen belyser tydligt Arawiyas samhälleliga normer och vad som förväntas av det manliga respektive det kvinnliga könet. För att få chansen att rädda sin hemstad var enda alternativet för henne att klä ut sig till en man eftersom om någon hade vetat om hon var kvinna hade hennes prestationer och hjältelika gärningar blivit fråntagna henne.

Syfte: Syftet med vårt arbete är att undersöka hur Zafira Bint Iskandar i We Hunt the Flame skildras utifrån ett genusperspektiv och de rådande könsnormerna i romanens värld. Vi ska undersöka om hon är en normbrytare eller inte.

Teoretisk bakgrund: De teoretiska ramverken som ligger till grund för vårt arbete är Yvonne Hirdmans teori om genusordningen och Maria Nikolajevas motsatsschema.

Metod: Den valda metoden för detta arbete är en närläsning, vi gör en karaktärsanalys på Zafira för att se hur hon framställs i boken, utifrån Hirdmans genusteori. Vidare stödjer vi oss på den kvalitativa tolkningsmetoden, det hermeneutiska synsättet, men även Nikolajevas motsatsschema.

Resultat: Analysen visar att Arawiya är ett mansdominerat patriarkalt samhälle där kvinnan är underordnad mannen. Zafira får på grund av omständigheterna dölja sin könstillhörighet för att kunna försörja sin familj. Det gör hon genom att bete sig på ett stereotypiskt maskulint sätt. Genom våra teoretiska utgångspunkter har vi mött en kvinnlig karaktär som kritiserar ett samhälle som begränsar kvinnan, och som bryter mot stereotypiska egenskaper genom att agera på ett sätt som anses vara manligt. I Arawiya är kvinnors positioner begränsade där de inte kan exempelvis bli kalifens efterträdare eller styra ett land. Genom analysen får vi se tydligt hur Hirdmans genusordning bekräftas i Arawiya. Zafira beskrivs ha typiskt manligt kodade egenskaper som att vara självständig, stark, modig, beskyddande och folkets försörjare. Dessa manligt kodade egenskaper är det som stärker hennes mansroll som hon intar då. Trots detta så betyder det inte att hon inte framställs som kvinnlig, då hon gör det i viss mån. Hon betraktades vara sårbar och visar även rädsla vilket är en typiskt kvinnlig egenskap. Det vi har kommit fram till är att protagonisten Zafira Bint Iskandar uppvisar kritik mot genusordningen och bryter mot könsnormerna i Arawiya och faller framförallt i den manliga kategorin i stället för den kvinnliga.

According to historical sources and pottery chronology, the Iron Age in southern Levant spans between approximately 1200 to 587 BC. This roughly 600 years’ period encompass ancient Israel and its neighbor’s history as it is described in Old and New Testament, i.e. “Biblical archeology”. The aim with this paper is to investigate how the copper industry was organized in biblical Edom, i.e. presently southern Jordan, during Iron age, and if this organization could be related to the biblical kings David and Solomon. The methodological departure will be maximalist, which sees the Bible and archeology complementing each other in getting an image of the history, the society, and the religion of these areas in ancient times. Archeologists of this school argue that some of the biblical narratives are more or less correct, as long as archeological evidence does not dismiss them. For theoretical concepts there will be used a typology of chieftain and early states where the notion of chieftain is used to characterize social complexity in stateless societies while the model of early state capture more complex societies. 

Two approaches will be discussed. The first one is represented by Israel Finkelstein and his team who suggest that one should lower the dates of the assemblages of Iron Age from late 1100 century to 1000 century BC in a Low chronology. The second approach is argued by Thomas Levy and his team. He wishes to focus on the role of metallurgy in Edom and states that we have proof that complex societies were active 900- 800 BCE and 300 years before the scholars first assumed, during David and Solomon’s time, High chronology. This will shed a new light on Old Testament´s narrative. 

Plato´s Republic is maybe the most widely read philosophical work of all times. It is the earliest surviving, systematic utopia in Europe´s history and continues to inspire people today. But who did Plato want to address with his work and why? In this paper I will discuss these issues. My thesis is that Plato wanted to direct his Republic to people, men and women, who have a good character and love wisdom in order to make them to think radically differently from the traditional norms. If these would-be philosophers could challenge the old-fashioned way of seeing things they could take the lead to establish a just society. I will also discuss critically two alternative approaches from other philosophers.

This text examines the sovereignty concept in Sayyid Qutb´s final book Milelstones, with a focus on the political and non-political aspects of the concept. The analysis also examines potentially radical and extreme aspects in the concept. The findings show that Qutb´s sovereignty concept is a practical theology focused on what God´s sovereignty means for Muslims in belief and practice. God´s sovereignty is an encompassing concept to Qutb, which means that His exclusive right to sovereignty should permeate through the souls of Muslims and guide their actions in all spheres of life, including in politics. In a concrete form, this means that God´s law and principles should be implemented. Qutb´s sovereignty concept is not extreme, but radical because it challenges established secular orders and the hegemonic assumption in modern discourses that human beings have a right to sovereignty. 

“We are neither living nor dying, we are something in between”

Since the beginning of history, the living and the dead have been separated. This has made it almost im- possible to co-live together under one roof. We, ‘the living’, have even created “deathscapes” which have set a clear boundary between us and them, ‘the dead’. In every society, with its own cultural norms and rituals, they act with the dead in their own way - some are buried, others are burnt, but what is common across all societies is that they are not evident in our lives anymore. Looking at it from an urban perspective, the dead occupy a big patch of land in every city. This acts as a burden, as it makes “forbidden spaces” where the living is not able to be part of it.

However, in each topic, there is a lesson that can be learned from it. In this case, it’s a 6km stretch informally and formally built, with a rich history and poor squatters who have no choice except to dwell with the dead. This is City of the Dead, located in Cairo, Egypt. The extreme lack of housing has pushed a part of society to live informally in cemeteries, where they have learned to co-live in the same room as the dead; they’ve embraced the idea of sleeping next to the dead, working and playing on those deathscapes.

But ever since the government announced that they will demolish those deathscapes as a part of demolishing all informal settlements in Cairo, the time has come to make a stand against this decision, instead learning from their “life hack” and applying it throughout the City of the Dead – creating a society where the dead and living are not separated, maximizing the lost potentials in cases such as City of the Dead and making them not looked down upon and marginalized. This thesis aims to design the city and improve the lives of people living in these cemeteries, dealing with each case with care and compassion.

Denna studie handlar om textsamtalets påverkan på elevers läsförståelse. Studien utgår från en undersökning som genomfördes i två skolklasser. Det är två högstadieskolor inom Hallands län och klasserna har delats in i grupp A och B. Grupperna har fått besvara sex frågor till H.C. Andersens saga Flickan med svavelstickorna men testet har bedrivits på två olika sätt. Grupp A fick texten och sex frågor att besvara individuellt utan någon hjälp. Grupp B fick använda sig av ett textsamtal med sina klasskamrater innan de fick besvara de sex frågorna individuellt. Resultatet som framställs från de olika skolorna jämförs på individuell nivå men skolorna jämförs även på skolnivå då det är stora skillnader dem emellan.  Studien har sin relevans då undersökningar har visat att elevers kunskaper inom läsförståelse blir allt sämre och därför är det av vikt att komma fram med strategier för hur vi kan motverka detta.  Resultatet denna studie visar är att samtalet gynnar många elever. Fler elever kan besvara innehållsfrågor till en text efter att ha samtalat om den.

This study aims at exploring the rhetorical processes underpinning condolences, as expressed by Saudi Arabian governmental authorities on social media, with a focus on Twitter. Taking its starting point in January of 2015, when the Charlie Hebdo shooting took place in Paris, this study looks comparatively at several acts of terror in order to answer whether these different attacks elicited different responses, and if so, what knowledge can be drawn from this conclusion. Furthermore, this study examines the role of social media in public diplomacy, and in the production and distribution of political discourse, especially as it relates to statements of condolences and expressions of solidarity mediated through twitter. In order to explore this, rhetorical criticism (Mral 2008; Foss 2004; Peirce 2003) is combined with pentadic criticism (Burke 1945) and performativity theory (Rosenberg 2018; Zivi 2016; Gregson and Rose 2014) to form the methodology. A key theoretical concept in this study is “grievability,” which aims at understanding why some deaths are grieved and others are not (Butler 2009; Butler 2004; Butler 2003). As this study shows, mourning itself can be understood as rhetoric, serving political and diplomatic functions rather than being an expression of actual, sincere solidarity or grief. This study also shows that tweets from official government sources can be seen as a performance of public diplomacy, and as performative of the official’s own position. Lastly, it is argued that offering condolences are a way to purchase “humanitarian capital,” which is becoming increasingly important in global politics.

This study utilizes ethnographic methods to inquire how ideas of masculinities are perceived by English-language media professionals and media audiences in Egypt. Using semi-structured interviews and a survey, the aim is to find common narratives on how masculinity is perceived on personal levels and what terms are used to describe men and masculinities, which in turn can be used as the basis for further analysis of Egyptian media content. The word “narrative” in itself is used to convey personal experience, and the telling of those experiences, rather than generalizable data applicable to the larger population. Found are several common themes, such as emphasized heterosexuality, and the expectation of men as providers and protectors, which is related, by the respondents, to the nation and the military. Protection and militarism relates to ideas of strength, honor, and courage. Men are almost exclusively seen as possessors of power. The ‘head of the household,’ and the head of state, both portrayed as iconized leaders, emerge as the quintessence of Egyptian masculine identity, whether that identity is contested or not.

Abstract

Titel:” It's a wonder you've survived everything you've done "- a qualitative study of four young men's stories of going in and out of crime.

Authors: Ahmed Abdi & Therese Hildemar

Institution: University of Gävle, Department of Social Work and Criminology, VT 2020.  

Juvenile crime is a debated topic in society. The purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences of ex-criminals on the factors that have contributed to how they developed and got out of their criminal lifestyle. The study has been conducted by semi-structured interviews with four young men, former criminals. The results of the interviews showed that several factors worked together as to why the men developed a criminal lifestyle: growing up with a single mother, narcotics abuse, defective education and the feeling of wanting to belong to a community. The reason why these young men get out of criminality varies. Factors that did play apart were imprisonment, treatment of substance abuse or that they were no longer able to maintain a criminal lifestyle. The conclusion is that it is not possible to point out a factor as decisive, but there are various factors that play a crucial role in informants' development and termination of criminal behavior.

Migration and re-migration of economically and socially marginalized Ethiopian women and girls has become a phenomenon. Based on interviews with 12 Ethiopian migrant women returned from the Middle East and the Gulf States, the primary aim of this thesis is to describe and study Ethiopian women migrants’ circular migration to the Middle East. I will mainly focus on how social dynamics in the family, gender relations and economic circumstances are intricate. The process of women’s migration and how the expectations of the family can be gender differentiated are discussed. Further, the migrant women’s power relation when class and ethnicity determine their position is discussed. Relations with the sending family and the issues related to the women who return, as well as problems affecting them at home and in the destination countries, are looked at. Various and complex issues of migration and the women’s roles are discussed with reference to the women’s experiences. Migration provides women with opportunities for social and economic mobility but can also subject them to ethnic discrimination, exploitation, and abuse. The movement is generally seen as voluntary labor migration and it has placed them in a vulnerable position both at home and abroad. Their migration is interconnected to the economic need but also the responsibilities they have towards their family and kin.

Svenska medborgare har anslutit sig till terrororganisationen Daish. Många av dessa individer kommer från Göteborg. Syftet med denna forskning är att undersöka hur det kom sig att göte-borgare är överrepresenterade bland svenska Daish-medlemmar. Många av Daish-resenärerna har återvänt till Göteborg. I denna forskning undersöks också Göteborg stads strategi för åter-vändande Daish-medlemmar och hur radikaliseringsprocessen ser ut för individer som ansluter sig till våldsbejakande extremism.

I denna uppsats tillämpade vi kvalitativ metod med semistrukturerade intervjuer. Materialet i uppsatsen grundar sig på intervjuer med två göteborgare som har anslutit sig till Daish och sedan återvänt till Göteborg. Intervjuer har också hållits med tre poliser och två so-cialarbetare som arbetar mot våldsbejakande extremism i Göteborg.

Resultaten visar att Göteborg sticker ut i listan bland Sveriges särskilt utsatta om-råden, och att orsaken till att Göteborg är överrepresenterat beror på segregation och utanför-skap. Resultaten visar att vissa stadsdelar i Göteborg har hög arbetslöshet, låg utbildning och dåliga skolresultat. Klyftan mellan utsatta områden och övriga Göteborg växer. Invånarna i dessa områden upplever detta som orättvist, diskriminerande samt att det väcker frustration. Undersökningen visar att klyftan utnyttjas av individer med religiös, klan eller patriarkal makt som ersätter den demokratiska strukturen i de segregerade stadsdelarna. Terrororganisationen Daish är en av aktörerna som har utnyttjat övriga samhällets frånvaro i utsatta stadsdelar. In-formanterna påpekar att Daish-rekryterare överöser religiös propaganda på individer som redan är frustrerade på samhället.

This piece of research examines how the speech Beyond Vietnam by Martin Luther King Jr. is framed by four newspapers in the United States. The aim of the thesis is to contribute to the existing body of research in framing as a field of study in general. More specifically, the aim is to expand the existing literature on media research regarding Martin Luther King Jr. while he was alive. Entman’s definition of framing is operationalized through the use of a deductive method. The results show that King is framed in a negative manner. In terms of framing, Conflict Frame is the most common frame used by newspapers in response to King’s speech. This is most likely due to the cold war politics prevalent during this era. 

This research focuses on the emergence of 'digital walls' that can project images onto almost all or even the entirety of interior (and perhaps exterior) walls, and what implications this might have for how we arrange our rooms. It demonstrates the arrangement, i.e., the way that domestic products are arranged physically, of rooms changes in the domestic environment in a complex scenario when using large screens. Due to the fast-growing demand for large screens, this product could potentially be available to be used by people in their home environments; however, it does not yet exist in reality at this scale. Constructing large screens can be carried out using different production methods. Here, this concept is called the digital wall, a very thin wall-sized interactive screen. The characteristics of the digital wall will vary to be able to create different scenarios. One such scenario is a space in the home where the surface of the wall is covered with screens, which allows multiple possibilities to experience and interact with digital content. 

In this research, the social gathering space of homes, nowadays called the living room, is considered as a highly relevant space for installing the digital wall. In this space, the conceptual framework outlines the basic elements of the research and demonstrates the relationships between people’s interactions with the digital wall and domestic products in the domestic environment. I show two examples from design history to understand how arrangement changes impact the home environment: the transformation of the parlor to the living room, and entry of the television into the living room. These two examples are focused on the place in the home where people gather for socializing. The discussion of these examples led to the elaboration of the relationships between the elements in the conceptual framework.

I explored relevant design research methodologies to bring this future scenario into the present to understand the relationships between people and the digital wall. I applied research through design and the constructive design research approaches to frame the design research methodology. In this thesis, I set up seven series of design studies in two cluster groups: Supportive studies and Main studies. All of the design studies were conducted in the Design Research Lab, the actual space for carrying out the design experiments, prototyping the digital wall, and the setting of the experiments for user participation. The Lab was fully equipped with relevant technology and allowed me to use multiple methods to collect data while people were experiencing the design study sessions. The Lab was useful as a platform to understand user experiences, barriers for interactions as well as people's experiences in a simulated space of a domestic environment. 

The main contribution of this research is to understand the forms of arrangement changes when people use the digital wall in homes. The research demonstrates two significant implications that are seen in two forms of arrangements: tangible arrangement and imperceptible arrangement. These findings are useful for both designers and users of the elements of domestic contexts and the relations that can be shaped by the presence of a digital wall in home environments. This understanding may provide design guidelines in future scenarios in which the digital wall is used in homes. The findings are also beneficial for designing the domestic environment, improving the arrangement of space, and raising the requirements for designing domestic products.

This paper presents the possibilities of a design lab that can be used in evaluation processes for different design subjects in design education. Three student projects from different domains are studied to explore how utilizing a design lab for user involvement can affect the design process. The Design Lab is situated at Mid Sweden University and can project images, video and online materials on three walls and provide sound. Different tools to collect data are available, such as video cameras, equipment for psychophysical measurement and software for analysis. The studies show that design students can use the lab to prototype different scenarios or environments as well as to display large subjects at an appropriate scale. The study found that the Design Lab offers possibilities to involve diverse groups of users, such as people with disabilities, the elderly and even dogs, which gave the students the possibility to obtain feedback from the specific users that could provide the most valuable input.

To understand how different design solutions affect users, designers traditionally use different evaluation methods that mainly rely on conscious feedback from the users. However, the complexity of human behaviour, where a large part is unconscious, point to a need for an extended tool box addressing the part not accessible to human conscious knowledge. Here, we describe a design research lab where traditional methods are complemented with tools to measure physiological signals influenced by emotional and sympathetic responses. These tools include galvanic skin response (GSR), electrocardiograph (ECG), and electroencephalograph (EEG). Typical sessions with acquired data of conscious and unconscious user reactions are described. The large body of data collected, which also require non-design expertise for interpretation, suggest that a further development towards simplified output data of the unconscious reactions is needed to allow wider use within industrial design work.

To understand how different design solutions affect users, designers traditionally use different evaluation methods that mainly rely on conscious feedback from the users. However, the complexity of human behaviour, where a large part is unconscious, point to a need for an extended tool box addressing the part not accessible to human conscious knowledge. Here, we describe a design research lab where traditional methods are complemented with tools to measure physiological signals influenced by emotional and sympathetic responses. These tools include galvanic skin response (GSR), electrocardiograph (ECG), and electroencephalograph (EEG). Typical sessions with acquired data of conscious and unconscious user reactions are described. The large body of data collected, which also require non-design expertise for interpretation, suggest that a further development towards simplified output data of the unconscious reactions is needed to allow wider use within industrial design work.

The present project investigates the impact of the grammaticalised progressive on event conceptualisation in English and Persian. It applies the Heidelberg–Paris framework using single event descriptions for analysis at the sentence level and story re-narrations at the discourse level. The empirical data test the hypothesis that the progressive has an impact on information selection and discourse structuring in event conceptualisation in terms of infrequent endpoint encodings and language-specific patterns of perspective-taking in structuring discourse. Languages lacking the grammaticalised progressive clearly show different effects.

There are system-based similarities/differences in aspect between English and Persian. They have the progressive in common but differ with respect to the imperfective–perfective distinction. This difference is manifested as an increase in the use of the progressive in English. In contrast, the Persian system with two aspectual non-past forms which are possible for expressions of ongoingness leads to decreased use of the particular dāštan-progressive.

The key finding for the single, motion event descriptions is that the dāštan-progressive in Persian shows less frequent endpoint encodings, like in English, as compared to languages lacking the progressive. However, the imperfective bare mi-form is associated with frequent endpoints while English shows no such association because the progressive must always be used.

In narratives, differences emerge again due to the different typology. When the uses of the progressives in re-narrations are differentiated for clause type, the progressive in English is used equally in main and sub-clauses, though more dominantly in sub-clauses in Persian. These sub-results speak about differences in perspective-taking between these L1s.

The analysis of the complexities involved in aspect establishes that the bare mi-form in Persian can denote ongoingness in cases where the progressive is obligatory in English as it has no optional verb form. Consequently, the typological difference of the absence/presence of the imperfective–perfective categories leads to a significant increase in the use of the progressive in English, which results in a cross-linguistically different, and L1-specific, patterns of perspective-taking in the narrative discourse in English and Persian. Thus, despite the fact that the L1s have the progressive aspect, their principles of use differ as they are dependent on the relevant aspectual system.

Relating the results to linguistic relativity and cross-linguistic influence, the study shows that owing to the grammatical category of the progressive in common, event conceptualisation is similar in English and Persian in terms of infrequent endpoint encodings in single motion event descriptions, despite the overall typological difference. However, L1-related influence on the principles of use of the progressive in L2 English is considerable in the narrative discourse of the advanced L2 users of English as they seemingly proceed from the principles of use in L1 Persian towards those in L1 English.

The present study investigates L1 influence on the structuring of events in adult second language acquisition, focusing on temporal perspectivation in film re-tellings by very advanced L2 speakers of English with L1 Persian. The analysis focuses on contrasts in perspectivation with regard to the role of grammaticalised temporal structures of the speaker’s L1, which provides specific means of temporal perspectivation in event representations that differ from English. When organising information for expression in a story-telling task in the L2, grammaticalised L1 features can result in L1-influenced, temporal relations between events that advance the story line, showing transfer as well as possible L2-specific patterns (Carroll, von Stutterheim and Nüse, 2004). Such L1 influence has been established in cross-linguistic analyses of the verbalisation of perceptual input in Germanic, Romance, Semitic, and Slavic languages by the Heidelberg group. The current investigation replicates an analysis of retellings of a film clip by von Stutterheim and Lambert (2005) and Carroll and Lambert (2006), involving an Iranian language, Persian, as L1.

While progressivity is a prominent feature of the temporal frame in film retellings in English, language change in Persian has led to the following changes for this grammatical category: the conventional mi-prefixed imperfective retains progressivity, while a new periphrastic progressive presents an alternative to this form, along with progressive constructions with verbal nouns.

The critical results will be retrieved from a quantitative analysis of the L1 Persian data indicating how much the periphrastic progressive is grammaticalised in contrast to the conventional imperfective. Also, a qualitative analysis of the Persian L2 English data identifies the temporal frame used in sequencing events, and compares this with L1 speakers of Persian and English. All three groups of speakers (N=30, in each) were asked to carry out the same task, i.e. retelling of a silent film lasting approximately ten minutes. Finally, the relative distances between the frames of temporal representation in the retellings of Persian advanced learners of L2 English and the two groups of L1 speakers shed light on the way the learners deal with aspectual distinctions in systems that differ typologically and the complexity for the learner. The study thus identifies the role of L1-influenced preferences in the expression of temporal relations in this advanced L2 English learner language with its implications for second language acquisition.

     This thesis aims to explore whether the Syrian government fulfils its obligations towards the CEDAW agreement. To investigate this arena, the thesis chooses new laws that were issued in Syria. The thesis examines the amendments introduced by the Syrian Arab Republic to the marriage and divorce provisions in the Personal Status Law in Law No. 4 of 2019. The data was analysed using the standard dogmatic legal method. The findings indicate that the Syrian government had entered reservations to Articles (02) and (16) of the CEDAW Convention. The two articles are considered essential in CEDAW. Article 28 of CEDAW forbids any reservations against the object and purpose of the convention. therefore, the Syrian's reservations are impermissible legally. Analysis of legal materials showed that the Syrian government did not honour its pledges to CEDAW. On the contrary, the new amendments strengthen the masculine superiority and support social hierarchy. The thesis recommends amending the Syrian Personal Status Law to comply with the provisions of the CEDAW Treaty fully.

This essay presents a portrayal of Heathcliff, Catherine and Isabella from a psychoanalytical perspective with regard to four defense mechanisms; namely, repression, denial, sublimation and projection in order to see how these defense mechanisms have affected the characters’ decisions and behaviour, and led them to their destinations in life. It will include three major sections: repression in characters, denial in characters, and sublimation and projection in characters. These terms will be more clearly defined and explained in the subsequent sections.

This essay is a personal exploration of my artistic practice in relation to my bachelors exhibition “Olivlunden”, where material memory, trauma and cultural erasure is embodied in a series of works made out of charcoal. The essay contemplates the significance of focusing on minor details as a method to narrate one's work, but more importantly as a coping mechanism amid a landscape of violence. In the essay, charcoal as a medium to narrate arson attacks on olive groves is discussed in the framework of de-linking, which at its core involves a deliberate disengagement from the structures and systems that perpetuate colonial legacies. The essay will discuss the intentionality behind choosing materials and the symbolic meanings that materials carry for my artistic practice. Furthermore, the essay explores how art can be a form of resistance and a means to challenge dominant narratives rooted in Western imperialism. The essay weaves together microhistory and materiality, arguing that the minor details hold the capacity to activate otherness and bring marginalized stories into the narrative. The body of work that was presented for the exhibition are discussed as pieces of landscape art that hold the possibility to offer a nuanced understanding of resilience, adaptation and symbiosis at both the smallest and grandest scales. 

Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka vad elever, klasslärare och modersmålslärare tycker om modersmålsundervisningen. Ett annat perspektiv i undersökningen är att ta del av lärarnas åsikter kring vilken betydelse modersmålsundervisningen har för andraspråksinlärningen. Litteraturen vi har tagit del av belyser endast en positiv inställning kring ämnet därför var målet att undersöka vilka tankar som finns ute i verksamheten. Metoden vi använde var kvalitativa intervjuer. Härigenom fick vi och informanterna möjlighet att utveckla både frågor och svar. Undersökningen omfattar 13 intervjuer, 8 var elever, 2 var klasslärare och 3 var modersmålslärare. Vi intervjuade elever och lärare i en svensk klass och i en tvåspråksklass. I resultatet framgår det att samtliga informanter har en positiv syn på modersmålsundervisningen. Lärarna ser även att modersmålsundervisningen är av stor betydelse för huruvida eleverna tillgodogör sig andraspråket eller ej. Eleverna lyfte att det är viktigt att kunna sitt modersmål för att kunna samtala med släkt, vänner samt att kunna besöka sitt hemland. Utifrån litteratur och undersökningen upplever vi att vi inte kan ta ställning till vilken modell som är att föredra, svensk klass eller tvåspråksklass. Många faktorer spelar roll så som enskilda elever, lärare och ledningen på skolan.