Skip to main content
Login | Suomeksi | På svenska | In English

Browsing by Title

Sort by: Order: Results:

  • Harjama, Noora (2020)
    The seismic reflection methods produce high-resolution images from the subsurface, which are useful in structural studies of geology. Northern Finland features a complex Precambrian geological history, including massive extension and compression stages, which has been extensively studied. The xSoDEx survey is the most recent seismic survey carried out in northern Finland by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK). The XSoDEx concluded four survey lines, which are located in Central Lapland Greenstone Belt (CLGB) in Sodankylä, Lapland. This thesis aims to find out whether the strong reflections shown in the xSoDEx Alaliesintie reflection profile, underneath the outcropping Archaean basement indicate a lithological contact or a fault zone. The Alaliesintie profile is characterized by Koitelainen intrusion, Archaean outcrops, and layers of younger Paleoproterozoic group rocks. The work was carried out in stages, with the use of the SKUA - GOCAD 3D modeling software. The four stages are: 1. Create a 3D geological model based on the Alaliesintie reflection section and geological bedrock observations. 2. Use gravity and magnetic geophysical data from the study area to improve model reliability. 3. Use the geological 3D model and petrophysical data to build a synthetic seismic forward mode. 4. Analyze and evaluate the modeling result for understanding the possible origins of the reflections. In the geological 3D model, I presented that the reflection would present lithological contacts and that the Archean bedrock would have folded and partly overthrust on top of the younger Proterozoic rocks. The seismic forward model is used as an experiment to test the geological 3D model’s lithological contact respondence to the synthetic seismic signal and to discover the possible reflector underneath the Archaean basement. The results present that the seismic forward model can be used to perform the reflections and that the geological 3D model presented similar reflections in the seismic forward model comparing to the original Alaliesintie reflection data.
  • Kovapohja, Fanni (2022)
    Time-dependent hierarchical data is a complex type of data that is difficult to visualize in a clear manner. It can be found in many real-life situations, for example in customer analysis, but the best practices for visualizing this type of data are not commonly known in business world. This thesis focuses on visualizing changes over time in hierarchical customer data using the Plotly Python Graphing Library and is written as an assignment for a Finnish company. The thesis consists of a literature survey and experimental part. The literature survey introduces the most common hierarchical visualization methods, and the different possible encoding techniques for adding time dimension on top of these hierarchical visualization methods. Moreover, the pros and cons of different visualization techniques and encodings are discussed about. In the experimental part of the thesis, visualization prototypes are designed using the Plotly Python Graphing Library. A company customer data set of the commissioning company is partitioned into hierarchical customer segments by a hierarchical industrial classification TOL 2008, and changes over time in a continuous variable are visualized by these segments. Two hierarchical visualization techniques: the sunburst chart and treemap, are used to create two prototype versions, and the combination of color, typography, and interaction is used to encode time dimension in these prototypes. The same prototypes are also exploited to visualize customer segments by an artificial hierarchy created by combining multiple categorical features into a hierarchical structure. The prototypes are validated in the commissioning company by arranging an end user study and expert review. Concerning the prototypes by the industrial classification: According to the end users and experts, both prototype versions are very useful and well-implemented. Among the end users, there was no significant difference in which one of these prototype versions is faster to use, but the clear majority of the respondents regarded the sunburst chart version as their favorite prototype. The two experts who participated in the expert review had different opinions on which one of the prototype versions they would select to be utilized in practice. Concerning the prototypes by the artificial hierarchy: These prototypes also received positive feedback, but the possibility to change the order of features in the hierarchy was considered as an extremely important development idea. ACM Computing Classification System (CCS): Human-Centered Computing → Visualization → Visualization Techniques Human-Centered Computing → Visualization → Empirical Studies in Visualization
  • Holappa, Hilma (2022)
    Electronic Health Records (ERH) data is one datatype that is continuously produced by hospitals all over the world. There is multiple different applications for this data; one of them is MIMIC dataset which applications are focused on machine learning, however, there is lack of visualisation of this dataset. Topic of this thesis is visualising ERH and more specifically the MIMIC dataset to help medical students gather insights into individual patient data. Considerations implementing this dataset to an individual patient visualisation are also examined. In thesis I first familiarized myself with interactive visualisation design principles with Munzners method. In the first stage I built a preliminary visualisation and gathered feedback with user inter- views. At the second stage I built a final visualisation and gathered final feedback and insights with user interviews. Visualisation consists of a dot graph for medication, line graph for patient response and table with diagnoses. The insights were analysed with Framework Method for qualitative data analysis. From the feedback for the visualisation and the insights gathered it is concluded that there are some issues that need to be taken in account when considering this dataset for individual patient visualisations. Insights from this visualisation were mostly factual and this type of visualisation seems to be slightly too challenging to medical students for more deep insights. Medication graph part of the final visualisation was seen as possible addition to current patient visualisations used in hospitals and the idea of using this visualisation as a teaching tool could only be considered with further additions and a different dataset.
  • Malmberg, Anni (2020)
    A population is said to be genetically structured when it can be divided into subpopulations based on genetic differences between the individuals. As in case of Finland for example, the population has been shown to consist of genetic subpopulations that correspond strongly to geographical subgroups. Such information may be interesting when seeking answers to questions related to the settlement and migration history of some population. Information about genetic population structure is also required for example in studies looking for associations between genetic variants and some inheritable disease to ensure that the groups with and without diagnosis of the disease resemble each other genetically except for the genetic variants causing the disease. In my thesis, I have compared how two different mathematical models, principal component analysis (PCA) and generative topographic mapping (GTM), visualize ancestry and identify genetic structure in Finnish population. PCA was introduced already in 1901, and nowadays it is a standard tool in identifying genetic structure and visualizing ancestry. GTM instead was published relatively recently, in 1998, and has not yet been applied in population structure studies as widely than PCA. Both PCA and GTM transform high-dimensional data to a low-dimensional, interpretable representation where relationships between observations of the data are summarized. In case of data containing genetic heterogeneity between individuals, this representation gives a visual approximation of the genetic structure of the population. However, Hèlèna A. Gaspar and Gerome Breen found in 2018 that GTM is able to classify ancestry of populations from around the world more accurately than PCA: the differences recognized by PCA were mainly between geographically most distant populations, while GTM detected also more their subpopulations. My aims in the thesis were to examine whether applying the methods for Finnish data would give similar results, and to give thorough presentations of the mathematical background for both the methods. I also discuss how the results fit into what is currently known about the genetic population structure in Finland. The study results are based on data from the FINRISK Study Survey collected by the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) in 1992-2012 and include 35 499 samples. After performing quality control on the data, I analysed the data with SmartPCA program and ugtm Python package implementing PCA and GTM, respectively. The final results have been presented for such 2010 individuals that participated the FINRISK Study Survey in 1997 and whose both parents were born close to each other. I have assigned the individuals into distinct geographical subgroups according to the birthplaces of their mothers to find out whether PCA and GTM identify individuals having a similar geographical origin to be genetically close to each other. Based on the results, the genetic structure in Finland is clearly geographically clustered, which fits into what is known from earlier studies. The results were also similar to those observed by Gaspar and Breen: Both the methods identified the genetic substructure but GTM was able to recognize more subtle differences in ancestry between the geographically defined subgroups than PCA. For example, GTM discovered the group corresponding to the region of Northern Ostrobothnia to consist of four smaller separate subgroups, while PCA interpreted the individuals with a Northern Ostrobothnian origin to be genetically rather homogeneous. Locating these individuals on the map of Finland according to the birthplaces of their mothers reveals that they also make four geographical clusters corresponding to the genetic subpopulations detected by GTM. As a final conclusion I state that GTM is a noteworthy alternative to PCA for studying genetic population structure, especially when it comes to identifying substructures from a population that PCA may interpret to be genetically homogeneous. I also note that the reason why GTM generally seems to be capable of more fine-grained clustering than PCA, is probably that PCA as a linear model may cause more bias to the results than GTM which accounts for also non-linear relationships when transforming the data into a more interpretable form.
  • Paavilainen, Saara (2016)
    In light of increasing trend in migration from Africa to Europe, it is crucial to consider our perception towards different cultures, religions and nations. During the colonialism, Africans were targets of racial othering, in which the African continent and its people were represented as subaltern, compared to Europe. Previous studies show that the racial stereotypes of Africa are still visible today, and while colonialism is generally regarded as something that happened between the core and distant periphery in the past, colonized/colonizer experiences are inherently visible also today and even in the Nordic countries. Today, humanitarian aid agencies are in a central role in framing the continent for the Western audience. Many of the familiar Africa discourses are from the framework of aid. Non-governmental organizations remain in a key position creating the image of developing world through their communication. However, the emphasized aid agenda further compromises the image of the continent. The purpose of this thesis is to critically explore the different ways NGOs in Finland represent Sub-Saharan Africa and Africans in their visualization. The aim is to critically view the contemporary image of Africa in Finland produced by NGOs and connect the representations to the wider theoretical discussion on representations of Africa. Methodological basis of this study is set in constructionism, which views the world as a socially constructed process, in which the social reality and language reflect but also create the world we live in. NGOs' representations of Africa reflect our world view but they also actively create it through their materials. The thesis will draw from approaches of post-colonialism and the concepts of otherness and paternalism and uses methods of content and discourse analysis in order to deconstruct the discursive formations behind the representations of Sub-Saharan Africa. Results show that representations of NGOs concentrate on positive imagery, showing Africa as exotic and colorful and personalize the continent with showing mostly images of people who are active and contented. However, the continent and its people are still represented as 'other' compared to Europe, even if in more positive light. Representations fail to address the diversity of Africa and its political and economic position in the world. Moreover, the dominant development discourses of neoliberalism are visible in massive amount of photos showing active and efficient people, especially women. However, recently, NGOs have started providing more 'mixed messages', which show Sub-Saharan Africa in more truthful light without exaggerating its problems or glossing over the real issues. By implementing the post-colonial development discourse to humanitarian communication, NGOs would be able to bring out the real voices of non-Western people and embed the indigenous knowledge to their visualizations.
  • Sinisalo, Erkki (2022)
    This thesis investigates the problem of Visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (vSLAM) in changing environments. The vSLAM problem is to sequentially estimate the pose of a device with mounted cameras in a map generated based on images taken with those cameras. vSLAM algorithms face two main challenges in changing environments: moving objects and temporal appearance changes. Moving objects cause problems in pose estimation if they are mistaken for static objects. Moving objects also cause problems for loop closure detection (LCD), which is the problem of detecting whether a previously visited place has been revisited. A same moving object observed in two different places may cause false loop closures to be detected. Temporal appearance changes such as those brought about by time of day or weather changes cause long-term data association errors for LCD. These cause difficulties in recognizing previously visited places after they have undergone appearance changes. Focus is placed on LCD, which turns out to be the part of vSLAM that changing environment affects the most. In addition, several techniques and algorithms for Visual Place Recognition (VPR) in challenging conditions that could be used in the context of LCD are surveyed and the performance of two state-of-the-art modern VPR algorithms in changing environments is assessed in an experiment in order to measure their applicability for LCD. The most severe performance degrading appearance changes are found to be those caused by change in season and illumination. Several algorithms and techniques that perform well in loop closure related tasks in specific environmental conditions are identified as a result of the survey. Finally, a limited experiment on the Nordland dataset implies that the tested VPR algorithms are usable as is or can be modified for use in long-term LCD. As a part of the experiment, a new simple neighborhood consistency check was also developed, evaluated, and found to be effective at reducing false positives output by the tested VPR algorithms.
  • Lavikainen, Emmi-Lotta (2019)
    Rehevöityminen on yksi merkittävimmistä vesistöjen ekologista tilaa heikentävistä tekijöistä. Järvivesissä fosfori on useimmiten levien kasvua rajoittava tekijä, jolloin fosforin määrän kasvu vastaanottavassa vesistössä lisää kasvillisuuden perustuotantoa ja kiihdyttää näin ollen vesistön rehevöitymistä. Fosforia päätyy vesistöihin valumavesien mukana liuenneessa muodossa ja eroosion ansiosta hiukkasmaisessa muodossa sitoutuneena esimerkiksi erodoituneessa maa-aineksessa oleviin raudan oksideihin. Erodoitunut maa-aines laskeutuu vesistöjen pohjalle, päätyy osaksi pohjasedimenttiä ja lopulta kohtaa hapettomat olosuhteet. Pohjasedimentteihin varastoituneet ravinteet voivat hapettomissa olosuhteissa vapautua takaisin vesistön tuottavaan kerrokseen ja näin ollen kiihdyttää rehevöitymistä. Hiukkasmaisen fosforin vapautuminen liuenneeseen, leville käyttökelpoiseen muotoon tunnetaan huonosti, joten erodoituneen maa-aineksen mukana kulkeutuvan fosforin merkitys vesistöjen rehevöitymisessä ei ole täysin selvä. Tässä työssä tutkitaan maa-aineksen matkaa pelloilta järvien pohjasedimentteihin käyttäen raudan K-reunan röntgenabsorptiospektroskopiaa lähireuna-alueella. Keskipisteessä on raudan kemiallisen tilan muutos siirryttäessä hapellisista olosuhteista hapettomiin olosuhteisiin sekä mahdollisesti järvien sedimenteissä muodostuva raudan fosfaattimineraali vivianiitti, jolla voi olla merkittävä rooli fosforin pidättämisessä sedimenttiin. Lisäksi tutustutaan röntgenabsorptiospektroskopian teoriaan sekä tutkimuksessa käytettävän spektrometrin toimintaan. Erilaisten maa-ainesten päätymistä järvien sedimentteihin simuloitiin valmistamalla järviveden ja maa-ainesten seoksia, joista osaan lisättiin myös orgaanista hiiltä. Seoksista valmistettiin näytteet röntgenabsorptiomittauksia varten vuorokauden aerobisen sekä neljän kuukauden anaerobisen inkuboinnin jälkeen. Mittaustuloksista havaitaan selvästi raudan pelkistyminen anaerobisissa olosuhteissa, ja että pelkistymistä edesauttaa orgaanisen hiilen läsnäolo. Vertailemalla järvivesi-maanäytteiden spektrejä mitattuun vivianiittimineraalista valmistetun näytteen spektriin, havaitaan että raudan pelkistyminen anaerobisessa ympäristössä suosii Fe(II)-mineraalien muodostumista. Mitattuja spektrejä verrattiin vivianiitin spektriin ja vertailun perusteella vivianiittia muodostui neljän kuukauden anaerobisen inkuboinnin aikana hiilettömissä näytteissä 12 - 22 % ja hiilellisissä näytteissä 31 - 50 % verrattuna hapelliseen alkutilanteeseen. Prosenttiluvut ovat todennäköisesti yliarvioita vivianiitin muodostumiselle, mutta tuloksista voidaan kuitenkin päätellä, että raudan voimakkaampi pelkistyminen edesauttaa vivianiitin tai muiden Fe(II)-mineraalien muodostumista ja että vivianiitin muodostumisella saattaa olla vaikutus fosforin pidättämisessä sedimenttiin.
  • Hyödynmaa, Mia (2020)
    The topic of the thesis is shared housing, in which the apartment is shared voluntarily by people that are not all family members. Shared housing is often associated with young people and students and is thus seen as a temporary form of housing. Indicative statistics, social and traditional media, and corporate behavior provide indications of an increase in the popularity or attractiveness of shared housing. This thesis sheds light on shared housing as a phenomenon and brings it into the discussion around community housing and housing diversity. In the thesis, I focus on shared housing (1) as a personal experience of home and (2) as a form of housing outside the normative ideal home. Earlier research on shared housing has suggested it is related to economic realities, as housing is becoming more expensive in big cities, but at the same time social norms related to housing are changing (Heath et al. 2018; Maalsen 2019). In addition to economic reasons, living with other people is a major reason for choosing shared housing and the success of it depends to a large extent on the social relations inside the home (Heath et al. 2018). The thesis is based on critical geography of home. In humanistic geography home has been understood as an ideal and fundamental place connected to feelings of security and belonging. However, home can also be a place of negative emotions, and critical geography of home (Blunt & Dowling 2006) understands home as a broader concept and as an originator and maintainer of normative structures. A home is not only a material place, but also an imaginary. It is also political and multi-scalar. The research was carried out following the ethnographic research tradition. It took place in three research homes in the Helsinki metropolitan area. The methods used were thematic interviews, some of which were group interviews, and participatory observation. In the analysis of the data, I aim for consistency and transparency. The analysis focuses on four themes: 1. The role of the physical characteristics of the dwelling, 2. The role of social relationships, 3. Economic reasons and sharing of goods, 4. Normative assumptions and prejudices. Based on this research, a shared house or flat can feel like home. The physical characteristics of the dwelling as well as the presence of other people create the feeling of home. The reasons for choosing shared housing are complex, but affordability and the desire to live with others are both recognized as driving forces. The prejudices associated with shared housing have partly diminished, but it is still connected to young people. Normative perceptions of home and housing became visible during the study and the family was connected to home. The presence of flat mates can bring family-like feelings of security and caring, as well as everyday social interactions to home. Shared housing can enable higher quality housing at a lower cost, but the functioning of interpersonal relationships is essential for the success of shared housing.
  • Hamberg, Sanna (2023)
    Tutkielmassani tutkin Suomessa esiintyneiden voimakkaiden keski- ja puuskatuulien suunta- ja vuodenaikajakaumia vuosilta 2010-2019. Työssä käyttämäni tuulihavainnot keräsin 19 sääasemalta Suomesta, joista yhdeksän oli sisämaa-asemia, kahdeksan oli meri- tai rannikkoasemia ja kaksi oli tunturiasemia. Työni tavoitteena oli selvittää, mistä suunnasta ja milloin voimakkaimmat tuulet esiintyvät sekä onko voimakkailla tuulilla alueellisia yhtäläisyyksiä suunta- ja vuodenaikajakaumissa. Työssä tutkin aluksi jokaisen aseman tuulihavaintojen voimakkainta kahta prosenttia eli noin 1500-1750 havaintoa. Vuodenaikoja esitellessä käytin myös 100 ja 30 voimakastuulisinta päivää 10 vuoden havaintojaksolta, jotta pystyin vertailemaan vuodenaikajakaumia kaikista voimakkaimmissa tuulissa. Kuukausijakaumissa käytin 100 voimakastuulisinta päivää. Lopuksi vertailin suuntia eri vuodenaikoina, jolloin rajasin jokaisen aseman kunkin vuodenajan tuulihavainnot voimakkaimpaan prosenttin. Meri- ja rannikkoasemilla havaitsin eniten voimakkaita keskituulia syksyllä ja talvella, sisämaassa loppusyksystä ja alkukeväällä sekä Pohjois-Suomessa puolestaan talvella ja alkukeväällä. Nämä voimakkaat keskituulet aiheutuvat talven voimakkaista matalapaineista sekä keväällä voimistuvasta turbulenssista. Sisämaa-asemilla havaitsin myös kesäkuussa voimakkaita keskituulia, joiden aiheuttajana on saattanut olla edellä mainittujen sijasta mesoskaalan konvektiivinen ilmiö. Voimakkaiden tuulten suuntajakaumissa eniten tuulia puhalsi etelän ja lännen väliltä. Sisämaassa kaikkein voimakkaimmat tuulet puhalsivat siitä suunnasta, mistä puhalsi suurin osa kaikista voimakkaista tuulista. Meri- ja rannikkoasemilla kaikkein voimakkaimmat keski- ja puuskatuulet tulivat luoteesta ja idästä.
  • Lahti, Juho (2020)
    Volatiliteetin käsite on keskeisessä roolissa optioiden hinnoittelun teoriassa, ja reaalimaailman op- tiopositioilla realisoituva volatiliteetti on merkittävä tuloksen ajuri. Yksinkertaisilla optiopositioilla on kuitenkin vaikeaa saada aikaiseksi sellainen sijoitussalkku, joka ainoastaan riippuisi toteutuvasta volatiliteetista. Toteutuvaan volatiliteettiin liittyen voidaan kuitenkin sopia varianssin vaihtosopi- muksesta, jossa osapuolet vaihtavat keskenään kiinteän varianssin hinnan ja toteutuvan varianssin erotuksesta johdettua kassavirtaa. Tässä tutkielmassa varianssin vaihtosopimuksille johdetaan markkinaehtoinen hintakaava staat- tisen toistamisen ja synteettisen logaritmisopimuksen avulla. Tämä varianssin vaihtosopimuksen markkinahinta osoittautuu riippuvan kaikista markkinoilla kaupankäynnin kohteena olevista optioista ja erityisesti näiden volatiliteettihymystä. Erilaisten osakepolun neliövariaatiosta riippuvien kaupankäyntistrategioiden analysointia varten sovelletaan erästä stokastisen volatiliteetin mallia toteutuvan tuloksen simuloimiseen. Osoittautuu, että varianssin vaihtosopimus tarjoaa merkittävästi erilaisen sijoitusinstrumentin, jonka varallisuus kehittyy usein hyvin eri tavalla kuin osake, jonka toteutuvalla varianssilla on käyty kauppaa.
  • Nikula, Noora (2013)
    Tutkielmassa tarkastellaan VR:n lähiliikenteen matkustajamäärien tilastollista estimointia sekä yksittäisen matkustajan matkan pituuden mallintamista automaattisten matkustajalaskentalaitteiden keräämän aineiston perusteella. Tutkielma on osa HSL:n ja VR:n yhteistä lähijunaliikenteen matkustajamäärätutkimuksen uudistamishanketta. Keväällä 2013 lähijunaliikenteen junista noin 25 % sisälsivät matkustajalaskentalaitteet. Tutkielmassa käsitellään laskentalaitteiden keräämän aineiston matkustajamäärien estimointiin asettamia haasteita, kuten aineiston vinoumaa, erävastauskatoa sekä kehikkovirheitä. Lisäksi pohditaan painotusmenetelmien sekä imputoinnin sopivuutta vastauskadon oikaisumenetelmänä. Tutkielman tavoitteena on kehittää täysin uusi tiedonjalostusprosessi, jonka pohjalta lähijunaliikenteen matkustajamäärätilastot toteutetaan kuukausittain. Lähijunaliikenteen lähtöpopulaatio on jakautunut aikataulujen määräämiin homogeenisiin ryhmiin. Lyhyellä aikavälillä ei matkustajien käyttäytyminen muutu merkittävästi, jolloin aikataulunmukaisten lähtöjen realisointeja voidaan pitää melko samoinjakautuneina. Riippuen linjasta joka kuukausi esiintyy enemmän tai vähemmän aikataulunmukaisia lähtöjä, joista ei saada yhtään mittausta. Imputoinnin uskottiin olevan painotusmenetelmää joustavampi vaihtoehto reagoida vastauskatoon, koska siinä imputoitavien arvojen luovuttajaa voidaan etsiä kuukaudelta, jota voidaan pitää matkustajien käyttäytymisen kannalta samankaltaisena. Laskentalaitteet eivät merkitse matkustajia, mistä syystä yksittäisen matkustajan kulkeman matkan pituus ei ole aineistosta suoraan havaittavissa. Jokaiselle lähdölle voidaan muodostaa yksittäisten matkojen jakauman toteuttama lineaarinen systeemi, jolle ei kuitenkaan usein löydy yksikäsitteistä ratkaisua. Kuitenkin riippumattomien ja samoinjakautuneiden näytteiden perusteella voidaan löytää matkan pituuden todennäköisyysjakauma ehdolla matkustajan lähtöasema. Tutkielmassa käytetään Bayesilaista malliestimointia, jossa mallin piilomuuttuja on yksittäisten matkojen jakauma. Posteriorijakaumaa tutkitaan Markovin ketjun Monte Carlo-menetelmillä. Idea on lähteä konstruoimaan Markovin ketjua, jonka tasapainojakauma on haluttu posteriorijakauma. Tarkastelua syvennetään todistamalla suurten lukujen laki sekä keskeisen raja-arvolauseen erikoistapaus Markovin ketjulle seuraamalla Esa Nummelinin artikkelia MC's for MCMC'ists. Malliestimoinnin lähteenä käytetään myöhemmin ilmestyvää A local train problem-artikkelia (Gasbarra D. et al.), jossa malliestimointia tarkastellaan perusteellisemmin.
  • Palosaari, Maiju (2019)
    Climate change is increasingly bringing new environmental and climate-related challenges, which all will notably affect the agriculture sector. Geographers have addressed the topic traditionally from the environmental perspective, but more recently, the focus has also been on the social outcomes of climate change. One of the central topics in the climate change research continues to be the analysis of the level of vulnerability to climate change. Despite its central position, the concept of vulnerability has remained vague and undefined. Most often it includes the elements of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity, and they form the core of the vulnerability analysis both for Geography and for other fields of research. Common outcome of the vulnerability analysis is an index, which can be used for measuring vulnerability level in a certain context, e.g. in the agriculture sector, as in this research context. The main focus is often on two former elements, exposure and sensitivity, which means that the socio-economic context is left for a lesser examination, even though it holds aspects that can determine individual’s possibility to cope and adapt with the changing environmental condition and therefore form the base for their level of vulnerability. Rather than examining the elements of exposure and sensitivity, this research focuses on adaptive capacity through the concept of contextual vulnerability. The analysis concentrates mainly on the elements of social and human capital arguing that these elements should have a stronger position when performing the vulnerability analysis that aims to strengthen adaptation. This research examines the concept of vulnerability to climate change on two different levels: first on the concrete level, which builds on the experiences of smallholder farmers’ perceived vulnerability, and secondly, on the discursive level, which focuses on the gendered narratives and power structures within the concept. Despite the distinction, these levels are highly linked through climate change and agriculture policies and decision-making. This research criticises the prevailing ‘vulnerable women’ narrative of the vulnerability discourse by examining smallholder farmers’ adaptation strategies in order to see whether there are in fact some gendered differences, as it is often underlined in the global discourses. This research builds on the post-structural methodology and examines the topic through a case-study in Taita Hills, Kenya. The key methods of the research are a semi-structured interview and a critical discourse analysis. The collected data consists of the two-headed household interviews with both female and male farmers, the single-headed household interviews with female farmers, and the key informant interviews with different stakeholders from the agriculture sector. The inclusion of both female and male farmers’ perspectives from each household was noted central for performing the gender analysis of the results. The empirical part of this research forms the base for understanding what adaptation and coping strategies farmers are applying, whether the reason for applying these strategies can be explained with the contextual vulnerability concept and how well the results reflect the wider vulnerability discourse. According to this study it is possible to argue that the elements of contextual vulnerability combined with the information regarding individuals’ access to resources can form the baseline for understanding individuals’ possibilities to adapt to changing environmental and climatic conditions. Outcome vulnerability analysis offers highly relevant information, but it is not alone enough for understanding the challenges and possibilities of climate change adaptation. Female and male farmers’ coping and adaptation response strategies did not differ notable, which supports the criticism of the gendered nature of vulnerability discourse. The vulnerable women narrative does not reflect female farmers’ agency and centrality in the agriculture sector. The discourse should be corrected towards addressing structural challenges that can place people to vulnerable position rather than enforcing the gendered narrative of the vulnerable women, whose adaptation and coping strategies are left for lesser attention.
  • Hynynen, Laura (2024)
    Kaupunkien virtavedet ovat tärkeä osa kaupunkiympäristöä. Ihmistoiminta ja vettä läpäisemätön maanpinta vaikuttavat kuitenkin veden laatuun, ja ilmastomuuttujat säätelevät kuormituksen mekanismia ja määrää. Kylmätalvisilla alueilla muutokset ilmasto-olosuhteissa luovat vesiin vuodenaikaisvaihtelua. Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan tätä vaihtelua kaupunkiympäristössä. Näytteitä kerättiin seitsemästä pääkaupunkiseudun virtavedestä talven, kevään ja alkukesän 2023 aikana. Kentällä vesistä mitattiin sähkönjohtokyky, lämpötila ja pH, ja laboratoriossa määritettiin kiintoaineen ja liuenneen aineen määrä, veden väri sekä ravinnepitoisuudet. Piilevänäytteistä valmistetuista kestopreparaateista tunnistettiin jokaisesta 500 piileväyksilöä. Aineistoon lisättiin myös ilmastotiedot. Ajallisia muutoksia tarkasteltiin kuvaajien avulla, ja muuttujien välisiä yhteyksiä R studiossa Spearmanin korrelaatiokertoimen, yleistetyn lineaarisen sekamallin, pääkomponenttianalyysin sekä redundanssianalyysin avulla. Tutkimusjakso voitiin jakaa kylmään ja lämpimään kauteen. Kylmällä kaudella vaihteleva sademäärä ja lumiolosuhteet olivat yhteydessä veden korkeaan sähkönjohtokykyyn ja nitraattipitoisuuteen, minkä lisäksi veden fysikaalis kemiallinen laatu vaihteli runsaasti. Talvi- ja kevättulvat vaikuttivat tähän merkittävästi. Lämpimän kauden aikana muutokset olivat vähäisiä, ja ne olivat yhteydessä erityisesti ajoittaisiin vesisateisiin. Piileväyhteisössä lajirunsaus oli suurimmillaan kylmällä kaudella, mutta lajiston similariteetti vaihteli alueellisesti merkittävästi. Lämpimällä kaudella muutokset olivat yhtenäisempiä. Piilevälajiston muutokset olivat yhteydessä veden fysikaalis-kemialliseen vaihteluun, erityisesti veden nitraattipitoisuuteen, joka oli suurimmillaan kylmän kauden aikaan. Pääkaupunkiseudun kaupunkien virtavesien vuodenaikaisseurantaa on tehty hyvin vähän, ja tulokset luovat tärkeän vertailukohdan tulevaisuuden tutkimuksille. Jatkossa tutkimusta tulisi suorittaa kaikkina vuodenaikoina ja useamman vuoden ajan. Piilevien osalta tutkimus avaa keskustelun uudelle tutkimussuunnalle, jossa piilevien avulla voitaisiin tarkastella virtavesiä myös kylminä aikoina. Jatkuvalla ja monipuolisella seurannalla voidaan edistää kaupunkien virtavesien hyvinvointia.
  • Lehikoinen, Ilona (2020)
    Opetushallitus on laatinut uudet opetussuunnitelman perusteet lukiokoulutukseen vuonna 2019, ja ne otetaan käyttöön elokuussa 2021. Tämän pro gradu -työn tarkoituksena on tutkia uudistuksia matematiikan oppiaineessa vuonna 2019 julkaistuissa opetussuunnitelman perusteissa verrattuina vuoden 2015 opetussuunnitelman perusteisiin. Tämän lisäksi työssä selvitetään, miten vuoden 2015 opetussuunnitelman perusteiden mukaiset oppimateriaalit soveltuvat vuoden 2019 perusteissa olevien uudistusten opetukseen. Tarkasteltava oppimateriaali rajataan tässä työssä kolmen kustantamon lukion matematiikan oppikirjoihin. Oppikirjasarjat, joista tässä työssä etsitään materiaalia, ovat Sanoma Prolta Tekijä, Editalta Summa ja Otavalta Huippu sekä Juuri. Lisäksi yhteisen MAY1-kurssin oppikirjat ovat tarkastelussa kaikilta kolmelta kustantamolta. Tutkimuskysymykset ovat: mitä uudistuksia vuoden 2019 opetussuunnitelman perusteissa on matematiikan sisältöjen osalta verrattuna vuoden 2015 opetussuunnitelman perusteisiin, sekä miten vuoden 2015 opetussuunnitelman perusteiden mukaisiksi laaditut materiaalit soveltuvat uusien sisältöjen opettamiseen. Tutkielman ensimmäisen luvun johdannon jälkeen toisessa luvussa taustoitetaan tutkielman aihepiiriä tutustumalla opetussuunnitelman perusteisiin sekä esittelemällä työssä tarkasteltavat oppimateriaalit. Kolmas luku esittelee tutkielman tutkimuskysymykset, ja tutkimuksen toteutus käydään läpi neljännessä luvussa. Viidennessä luvussa analysoidaan työn tulokset. Tutkielman viimeinen luku on yhteenveto pro gradu -työn keskeisimmistä sisällöistä. MAY1-kurssin ja matematiikan pitkän oppimäärän uusia sisältöjä ovat potenssifunktiot, joissa eksponenttina on positiivinen kokonaisluku, ensimmäisen asteen yhtälön ratkaisu, suorien yhdensuuntaisuus ja kohtisuoruus, käyrän yhtälö, matemaattisten mallien rajoitukset, ristitulo, vuokaavio, yksinkertaisten algoritmien ohjelmointi, paloittain määritelty funktio, koronkorko, nykyarvo, diskonttaus, talletukset, resurssien riittävyys ja kannattavuuslaskenta. Lyhyen oppimäärän uudet sisällöt ovat lineaarisen ja eksponentiaalisen kasvun mallit taulukkolaskentaohjelmaa käyttäen, virhemarginaali ja sen määrittäminen ohjelmistolla, valuutat, korkokäsite ja yksinkertainen korko, koronkorko, diskonttaus ja talletukset. Vuokaaviosta ja ristitulosta ei löytynyt lainkaan materiaalia tarkastelluista oppikirjoista. Kaikkiin muihin uusiin sisältöihin on oppimateriaalia ainakin osassa tarkastelluista kirjasarjoista.
  • Mäkelä, Miika (2014)
    Tässä kirjallisuuskatsaus-tyyppisessä tutkielmassa kerrotaan vuoristojäätiköissä tapahtuvien muutosten syistä, luodaan katsaukset viimeaikaisiin ja odotettavissa oleviin jäätikkömuutoksiin sekä esitellään jäätikkömuutosten seurauksia ja hyödyntämistä ilmastotutkimuksessa. Aiheen tärkeys liittyy muun muassa jäätiköiden toimimiseen makean veden varastoina, jotka sitovat ja vapauttavat vettä moninaisissa aikaskaaloissa, vaikuttaen näin ollen niitä sisältävien alueiden valuntaan sekä merenpinnan korkeuteen. Jäätiköt toimivat myös eräänlaisina ilmastonmuutosten ilmaisimina, sillä jäätikkömuutokset ovat yleensä voimakkaasti kytköksissä ilmakehän olosuhteissa tapahtuvaan vaihteluun. Viimeisten reilun sadan vuoden aikana vuoristojäätiköt näyttäisivät yleisesti pienentyneen, ja useat tutkimukset vihjaavat vuoristojäätiköiden keskimäärin menettävän massaansa myös kuluvalla vuosisadalla, vaikkakin ennustetut muutokset riippuvat paljon muun muassa oletuksista, joita tuleviin ilmasto-oloihin liittyen joudutaan tällaisissa tarkasteluissa tekemään.
  • Rautio, Sanna (2022)
    Social and urban scholars have long been concerned with questions of how unknown others encounter and relate to one another in the city. Stranger encounters can happen spontaneously and serendipitously, for example, at bus stops, in trains or on park benches, often viewed as “chance” encounters. Other stranger encounters are carefully planned, for example, by using digital technology including online social networks, websites, and digital platforms. Today, digital platforms are reshaping the way we relate with strangers, yet there is little research on how stranger encounters are reconfigured by practices mediated through digital platforms. Against this background, the thesis attempts to address this research gap: stranger encounters mediated by two location-based digital platforms for social networking in Helsinki. The thesis focuses on two Finnish digital platforms for social networking, Nappi Naapuri and Commu, which are based around neighbourhood and community interactions. Both platforms lower the threshold of communication between strangers which have the potential to help eliminate loneliness, stress, and promote a sense of community. The thesis analyses planned encounters when meeting with other platform users to better understand what types of stranger encounters are emerging from digital platforms. Rather than focusing on the figure of the stranger as ‘other,’ the thesis examines digitally mediated practices whereby stranger encounters are valued and actively pursued by platform users. Through fieldwork encounters with strangers in Helsinki, the thesis analyses six stranger encounter vignettes to argue that by practicing an open and generous attitude towards unknown others can allow for moments of sociable curiosity, escapism, and intimacy to emerge between strangers. Using multiple methodologies including, autoethnography, walking with participants, participant observation and interviews, the thesis aims to better understand the role digital platforms can play in increasing stranger encounters in the city and how they have the potential to bring different people together to learn from one another and work on manners of cohabitation.
  • Suomalainen, Janne (2016)
    Waring's problem is one of the two classical problems in additive number theory, the other being Goldbach's conjecture. The aims of this thesis are to provide an elementary, purely arithmetic solution of the Waring problem, to survey its vast history and to outline a few variations to it. Additive number theory studies the patterns and properties, which arise when integers or sets of integers are added. The theory saw a new surge after 1770, just before Lagrange's celebrated proof of the four-square theorem, when a British mathematician, Lucasian professor Edward Waring made the profound statement nowadays dubbed as Waring's problem: for all integers n greater than one, there exists a finite integer s such that every positive integer is the sum of s nth powers of non-negative integers. Ever since, the problem has been taken up by many mathematicians and state of the art techniques have been developed - to the point that Waring's problem, in a general sense, can be considered almost completely solved. The first section of the thesis works as an introduction to the problem. We give a profile of Edward Waring, state the problem both in its original form and using present-day language, and take a broad look over the history of the problem. The main emphasis is on the classical version of the problem, whereas the modern version is described in Section 5 with numerous other variations. In addition, generalizations to integer-valued polynomials and to general algebraic fields are described. Goldbach's conjecture is also briefly illustrated. The elementary solution of Waring's problem is presented in Sections 2 to 4. Historical perspective is carried through the thesis with the profiles of the key mathematicians to the solution. The proof presented is an improved and simplified version of Yuri Linnik's solution of Waring's problem. The second section provides the groundwork, an ingenious density argument by Lev Shnirelman, which is applied to the problem in the so called Fundamental lemma presented in Section 3. The proofs of the intermediate results needed to prove the lemma are presented in the following sections. The third section reduces the proof to an estimation of the number of solutions of a certain system of Diophantine equations. The final argument, longish induction is given at the end of the fourth section. Even though Waring's problem is solved, the progress made in the field is far from being idle. The plethora of variations and generalizations, especially Ideal Waring's problem, Modern Waring's problem and Waring–Goldbach problem are actively studied today. It is surprising how deep a problem with such a seemingly simple assertion can be. Conclusively, the challenge in this branch of mathematics is to develop new mathematical methods to prove and explain what seems so obvious.
  • Juurinen, Iina (Helsingin yliopistoHelsingfors universitetUniversity of Helsinki, 2009)
    Water-ethanol mixtures are commonly used in industry and house holds. However, quite surprisingly their molecular-level structure is still not completely understood. In particular, there is evidence that the local intermolecular geometries depend significantly on the concentration. The aim of this study was to gain information on the molecular-level structures of water-ethanol mixtures by two computational methods. The methods are classical molecular dynamics (MD), where the movement of molecules can be studied, and x-ray Compton scattering, in which the scattering cross section is sensitive to the electron momentum density. Firstly, the water-ethanol mixtures were studied with MD simulations, with the mixture concentration ranging from 0 to 100%. For the simulations well-established force fields were used for the water and ethanol molecules (TIP4P and OPLS-AA, respectively). Moreover, two models were used for ethanol, rigid and non-rigid. In the rigid model the intramolecular bond lengths are fixed, whereas in the non-rigid model the lengths are determined by harmonic potentials. Secondly, mixtures with three different concentrations employing both ethanol models were studied by calculating the experimentally observable x-ray quantity, the Compton profile. In the MD simulations a slight underestimation in the density was observed as compared to experiment. Furthermore, a positive excess of hydrogen bonding with water molecules and a negative one with ethanol was quantified. Also, the mixture was found more structured when the ethanol concentration was higher. Negligible differences in the results were found between the two ethanol models. In contrast, in the Compton scattering results a notable difference between the ethanol models was observed. For the rigid model the Compton profiles were similar for all the concentrations, but for the non-rigid model they were distinct. This leads to two possibilities of how the mixing occurs. Either the mixing is similar in all concentrations (as suggested by the rigid model) or the mixing changes for different concentrations (as suggested by the non-rigid model). Either way, this study shows that the choice of the force field is essential in the microscopic structure formation in the MD simulations. When the sources of uncertainty in the calculated Compton profiles were analyzed, it was found that more statistics needs to be collected to reduce the statistical uncertainty in the final results. The obtained Compton scattering results can be considered somewhat preliminary, but clearly indicative of the behaviour of the water-ethanol mixtures when the force field is modified. The next step is to collect more statistics and compare the results with experimental data to decide which ethanol model describes the mixture better. This way, valuable information on the microscopic structure of water-ethanol mixtures can be found. In addition, information on the force fields in the MD simulations and on the ability of the MD simulations to reproduce the microscopic structure of binary liquids is obtained.
  • Muukkonen, Satu (Helsingin yliopistoHelsingfors universitetUniversity of Helsinki, 2007)
    In Cambodia, water has a special purpose as a source of life and livelihoods. Along with agriculture, fishing and forest use, industry, hydropower, navigation and tourism compete for the water resources. When rights and responsibilities related to essential and movable water are unclear, conflicts emerge easily. Therefore, water management is needed in order to plan and control the use of water resources. The international context is characterized by the Mekong River that flows through six countries. All of the countries by the river have very different roles and interests already depending on their geographical location. At the same time, water is also a tool for cooperation and peace. Locally, the water resources and related livelihoods create base for well-being, for economical and human resources in particular. They in turn are essential for the local people to participate and defend their rights to water use. They also help to construct the resource base of the state administration. Cambodia is highly dependent on the Mekong River. However, Cambodia has a volatile history whose effects can be seen for example in population structure, once suspended public institutions and weakened trust in the society. Relatively stable conditions came to the country as late as in the 1990s, therefore Cambodia for example has a weak status within the Mekong countries. This Master s thesis forms international, national and local interest groups of water use and analyzes their power relations and resources to affect water management. The state is seen as the salient actor as it has the formal responsibility of the water resources and of the coordination between the actions of different levels. In terms of water use this study focuses on production, in management on planning and in power relations on the resources. Water resources of Cambodia are seen consisting of the Mekong River and Tonle Sap Lake and the time span of the study is between the years 1991 and 2006. The material consists of semi-structured interviews collected during summer 2006 in Finland and in Cambodia as well as of literature and earlier studies. The results of the study show that the central state has difficulties to coordinate the actions of different actors because of its resource deficit and internal conflicts. The lessons of history and the vested interests of the actors of the state make it difficult to plan and to strengthen legislation. It seems that the most needed resources at the central state level are intangible as at the village level instead, the tangible resources (fulfilling the basic needs) are primarily important. The local decision-making bodies, NGOs and private sector mainly require legislation and legitimacy to support their role. However, the civil society and the international supporters are active and there are possibilities for new cooperation networks.
  • Murakami, Margaret (2023)
    Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), a water mass that sinks to form the deepest limb of the meridional overturning circulation (MOC), is a key control on the ventilation of the Southern Ocean as well as global exchanges of heat, freshwater, and carbon. Sources of this water mass include latent heat polynyas found in Prydz Bay, East Antarctica, which expose the Southern Ocean to the colder atmosphere and are important sources of high salinity shelf water (HSSW). This water mass is the precursor to Dense Shelf Water (DSW) which can be exported from the continental shelf to form Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW). In this study, Lagrangian particle tracking of water masses within Prydz Bay was used to investigate the roles of seasonality, bathymetry, and the presence of other water masses on the mechanisms of water mass transformation (WMT), a series of key processes in the MOC. Online particles were released weekly within the Prydz Bay polynya region in a 10 km resolution simulation of the Whole Antarctic Ocean Model (WAOM10) and their forward trajectories were tracked for one year. Results highlight the export of Prydz Bay water along the westward Antarctic Slope Current (ASC). Cluster analysis of the results shows a winter signal for bottom water forming particles. When advected beneath the ice shelf, polynya water can mix with fresh meltwater, becoming less dense and forming ice shelf water (ISW). After this polynya-originating water departs the ice shelf again, its increased buoyancy can make future AABW formation less likely. This study confirms that the presence of modified circumpolar deep water (mCDW) can play a controlling factor in rates of DSW export as bottom water. Results show export of DSW from the Prydz Channel and Cape Darnley, mixing either along or across isopycnals depending on the influence of other water masses and cross-slope flow. Interactions with the ASC and major topographic features including the Enderby Land projection and several underwater canyons appear to influence the export of water to the deep ocean. WAOM10 finds realistic ratios of AABW formation as compared with observational data and shows greater low-density water formation than other models.