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The study consists of two parts: examining the accumulation of americium and plutonium to human ribs, and the accumulation to murine osteoblasts. In the cellular studies stable europium was used as an actinide analogue. After removing the organic material from the bones, americium and plutonium were separated from the dissolved bones by using extraction chromatographic methods. DOWEX, U/TEVA, and TRU resins were used to separate plutonium and americium from impurities. The sample activities were measured using alpha spectrometry. On average, 23.03 mBq/kg of plutonium-238, 12.58 mBq/kg of plutonium-239,240 and 9.81 mBq/kg of americium-241 were measured in the bone samples. The activity concentrations are calculated using the wet weight of the bone. Murine preosteobasts (MC3T3-E1) were mineralized for 12 days. The mineral was subsequently collected for SEM/EDS analysis. Non-mineralized cell fractions were collected for a fractioning study, where the cell internalized europium, membrane bound europium and extracellular europium fractions were collected and measured with MP-AES and ICP-MS. The used europium concentrations were below minimum detectable activity of the MP-AES, but measuring the samples on the ICP-MS showed that the percentage of the internalized europium increases at higher europium concentrations in cell culture media. At 0.2 μM europium concentration, on average, 28.6% of the europium was inside the cells and 71.4% in the media, while at 2.0 μM europium concentration, 30.8% of the europium was inside the cells and 68.5% in the media.

Piilotalous on kiistanalainen tutkimuskohde taloustieteen alalla. Tämä tutkielma esittelee aiheeseen liittyvää kirjallisuutta ja tutkii veromuutoksen mahdollisia vaikutuksia piilotalouteen rakennusalalla. Piilotalous voidaan määritellä transaktioiksi, jotka kontribuoivat bruttokansantuotteeseen, mutta niitä ei havaita tilastoissa. Piilotalouden osia ovat sekä harmaa- että laiton talous. Valtio voi menettää verotuloja niiden yritysten kohdalla, jotka myyvät laillisia tuotteita, mutta eivät raportoi toiminnastaan veroviranomaisille. Nämä menetykset on kuitenkin helppo yliarvioida. Ilmiöllä voi olla monia haitallisia vaikutuksia kansantalouteen. Kuitenkin osa piilotalouden koon arvioista on mahdollisesti harhaanjohtavia. Kirjallisuuskatsaus esittelee yleisesti käytettyjä metodeja piilotalouden koon arvioimiseen kansantalouden tasolla sekä miksi joitakin niistä ei tulisi käyttää. Esittelen tuoreita estimaatteja piilotalouden koosta Suomessa. Lisäksi esittelen tuoreita IMF:n arvioita Suomen arvonlisäverovajeesta. Empiirisessä osiossa tarkastelen käänteisen arvonlisäverovelvollisuuden vaikutuksia rakennusalan kausiveroilmoituksissa. Tutkin ovatko ilmoitetut liikevaihdot tai verovähennykset kasvaneet veromuutoksen jälkeen hyödyntäen autoregressiivistä mallia eksogeenisillä muuttujilla. Mahdollinen ero liikevaihtojen ja vähennysten kasvun välillä voi implikoida, että toimialan veropohja on laajentunut. Verohallinto on arvioinut vuonna 2012, että ilmoitetut liikevaihdot ovat mahdollisesti kasvaneet veromuutoksen jälkeen. Tutkin ilmiön vaikutusta tarkastelemalla dummy-muuttujan merkitsevyyttä. Dummy kuvaa käänteisen arvonlisäverovelvollisuuden käyttönottoa huhitkuusta 2011 alkaen. Lisäksi estimoin aikasarjamallilla ilmoitettuja liikevaihtoja ja vertaan ennustetta toteutuneisiin ilmoituksiin. Jos malli tuottaa systemaattisen posiitivisen ennustevirheen, voidaan ajatella, että liikevaihdot ovat mahdollisesti kasvaneet veromuutoksen jälkeen. Lisäksi tutkin kahden sovitteen eroa, joista toinen sisältää dummy-muuttujan. Vaikuttaa kuitenkin, että tämä metodi ei sovellu dummyn vaikutuksen tarkasteluun. Käytössä oleva data on kuukausittaisia havaintoja alkaen tammikuusta 1999 ja päättyen lokakuuhun 2015. Luvut ovat aggregoitu kuukausitasolle kausiveroilmoituksista. Muuttuja lv_Kotimaa sisältää veronalaisen myynnin eri arvonlisäverokannoilla sekä rakennuspalvelujen myynnin, joihin sovelletaan käännettyä arvonlisäverovelvollisuutta. Analyysi on rajoitettu koskemaan yksityistä sektoria S11. Evidenssiä sille että liikevaihdot tai vähennykset olisivat kasvaneet veromuutoksen jälkeen ei löydy. Dummy on merkitsevä selittäjä 90% merkitsevyystasolla toimiallla Maa- ja Vesirakentaminen. Chow testi on kuitenkin alkuvuodesta 2011 hyvin merkitsevä, joka indikoi, että aikasarjassa on tapahtunut jokin rakenteellinen muutos, joka tekee mallista epäluotettavan. Systemaattisia ennustevirheitä ei havaita tai ne ovat erittäin pieniä.

Extensive evidence in economics shows that facing a recession upon entry to the labor market can have sizable and persistent effects on the earnings and careers of labor market entrants. Long-term negative effects have been found among young and low- educated workers, but also among highly educated labor market participants such as university graduates. Theory and empirical evidence suggest that the negative effects arise because of a prolonged period of job search and fewer opportunities early on in the career for finding employment that fits the worker’s skills, for example. Identifying those most susceptible to persistent effects and understanding the mechanisms and channels underlying them are important for improving the effectiveness of active labor market policies and other public policy instruments as well as the school-to-work transition. This thesis studies the short-term and long-term effects of facing adverse economic conditions upon graduation on real annual earnings, unemployment and other labor market outcomes among Finnish university graduates who obtained a Master’s degree between 1988 and 2004. The empirical strategy uses idiosyncratic variation in regional unemployment rates as a proxy for regional business cycle fluctuation, controlling for common national business cycle fluctuation and regional fixed effects. The thesis contributes to the existing literature in three ways. First, it provides the first evidence on the effects of graduating from university upon adverse economic conditions in Finland. The results with Finnish data are compared to other countries with different labor market institutions. Second, the time period investigated in this thesis (1988-2014) includes a period unlike any other studied in the existing literature: the exceptionally deep 1990s Finnish depression. Third, it contributes to the relatively scarce evidence on gender differences in the effects of graduating into a recession. The data used in this thesis contain matched employer-employee panel data on the first ten post-graduation years of around 140,000 graduates. The results show that facing a six percentage points (roughly a standard deviation) above average regional unemployment rate in the region of residence in the year of graduation on average reduces annual earnings by 12.6% in the following year after graduation. Remarkably, this initial effect is only halved after 9–10 years. These effects on earnings are larger than what have generally been found in the literature and are similar to those reported with U.S. and Canadian data, for example. Furthermore, there is a persistently higher probability of being unemployed that lasts for roughly seven years. Smaller and more short-lived effects are found when only considering cohorts who graduated after the 1990s depression: the effects on earnings last only for the first five years and there are no effects on unemployment. These findings suggest that under more normal business cycle fluctuation, mechanisms other than unemployment are responsible for the earnings losses. Given the relatively high levels of wage rigidity in Finland, the existing literature suggests that the earnings losses can result from task downgrading and skill mismatch, for example. Finally, the results show that the effects on earnings are smaller for female graduates, perhaps reflecting gender differences in fields of study, employing sector and labor market attachment. Robustness checks indicate that the empirical results are not likely to be affected by selective timing or place of graduation.

Tämä tutkimus on laadullinen sisällönanalyysi Indonesian uskonnonvapaustilanteesta. Sen tavoitteena on avata maan monimutkaista uskonnonvapaustilannetta, jossa vähemmistöjen ihmisoikeudet ovat uhattuina, vaikka maan perustuslaki on rakennettu kunnioittamaan uskonnonvapautta. Kiinnostukseni teemaan heräsi, kun olin Indonesiassa Kirkkojen maailmanneuvoston kansainvälisten asiain komission jäsenenä ja kuulin radikalisaation jyrkästä kasvusta. Indonesia on tuhansien saarien valtio, jossa eri uskontoryhmät ja kulttuurit ovat eläneet rinnakkain. Itsenäistymisen jälkeen 1949 Indonesiassa alkoi kausi, jolloin haluttiin yhdistää kansa ja syntyi perustuslakiin kirjattu ideologia, pancasila, jonka periaatteiden mukaan indonesialaiset elävät tänäkin päivänä. Viidestä periaatteesta ensimmäinen on usko Jumalaan. Indonesia on kuitenkin sekulaari valtio, jossa kuudella uskonnolla on laissa erityinen asema. Islam on uskonnoista suurin, ja maassa on maailman suurin islaminuskoinen väestö. Periaatteessa uskonto- ja väestöryhmät elävät harmoniassa, mutta on käynyt yhä selvemmäksi, että uskonnonvapaudella on rajansa. Vähemmistöjen tilanne on heikentynyt. Radikalisaatiolle on annettu enemmän tilaa, ja suvaitsemattomuus erilaisuutta kohtaan on lisääntynyt. Tilanne on monin puolin johtanut konflikteihin, joissa useimmiten uhreina ovat vähemmistön edustajat, kirkot ja enemmistöstä eroavat islamilaiset liikkeet. Indonesiassa on kaksi 2000-luvulla päivitettyä lakia, jumalanpilkka- ja uskonnollisen harmonian laki, jotka omalta osaltaan antavat tilaa tällaiselle käytökselle. Molemmat lait tukevat sunnimuslimienemmistöä. Tutkielman vertailu- sekä lähtökohtana on ihmisoikeuksien yleismaailmallinen julistus. Tutkielma on koottu ensisijaisesti kansainvälisistä raporteista, mm. Yhdysvaltain kansainvälisen uskonnonvapauskomission raporteista. Toissijaisena aineistona on käytetty aiempaa akateemista kirjallisuutta poikkitieteellisesti eri akateemisilta aloilta. Tutkimus alkaa perehtymällä Indonesian historialliseen ja hallinnolliseen tilanteeseen ja uskonnon osaan siinä. Itse Analyysissä käsitellään erityisesti jumalanpilkkalakia ja sen käyttöä sekä uskonnollisen harmonian lakia ja sen vaikutuksia vähemmistöihin. Tutkimus vastaa siten kysymyksiin uskonnonvapauden tilasta Indonesiassa, siihen millainen rooli valtiolla sekä islamilla on suhteessa uskonnonvapauskysymyksiin sekä siihen, miten uskonnonvapauslait ja -tilanne vaikuttavat vähemmistöihin Indonesiassa. Tulokset osoittavat, että enemmistöllä on huomattavasti enemmän valtaa verrattuna vähemmistöihin ja että se myös käyttää valtaa oman uskonnollisen edun tavoittelemiseen. Tämä on johtanut siihen, että vähemmistöt ovat ajautuneet kapeammalle alueelle sekä suoranaisten hyökkäysten kohteeksi. Vähemmistöuskontojen edustajat ovat joutuneet maalittamisten kohteiksi, ja lakeja on käytetty heitä vastaan myös poliittisen pelin pelaamiseen. Vähemmistöuskontojen hengelliset tilat ovat olleet hyökkäysten kohteina eikä uusille tiloille ei ole annettu rakennuslupia. Uskonnonvapauden tila on kaventunut huomattavasti verrattuna itsenäistymisen jälkeiseen aikaan. Uskonnon kontrollointi lain voimin sekä käyttö poliittisena elementtinä on Indonesian tapauksessa epäonnistunut turvaamaan uskonnonvapauden kaikille.

Since the fall of the communist regime, the discussion on Hungarian autonomy in Transylvania has frequently been a bone of contention between the political representatives of this minority and those of the majority Romanians. At the same time, the debate inside the Hungarian elite of Romania as to how best to pursue this idea has created divisions even among the Hungarians of Transylvania themselves. This thesis uses Critical Discourse Analysis to observe how the two significant competing parties, the Democratic Union of Hungarian in Romania (UDMR) and the People’s Party for Magyars in Transylvania (PPMT), define autonomy and also formulate the arguments for its implementation in Transylvania. The starting point of the analysis is 2011, the date PPMT was created, moving the internal competition between UDMR’s different platforms to a party-to- party contest. The analysis combines literature on ethnic identity and autonomy, explaining how the two merge, inside the political discourse of the Hungarian elite, to create the main arguments for Hungarian autonomy. The results show that besides the concern for administrative efficiency, the plea for autonomy stems from the belief that such a form of organisation represents the institutional guarantee for the preservation of a certain Hungarian identity (Transylvanian, Szeklar etc.). As consequence, both Hungarian parties in Romania militate for decentralisation, juxtaposing the national government to the local and regional authorities in a discussion which disputes the legitimacy of the Romanian centralised state. To support their cause, the Hungarian elite references on many occasions other examples of autonomy in Europe, focusing on the Italian South Tyrol, Finland Åland region, Spanish Catalonia as well as the Serb region of Vojvodina, all of which obtained their status following agreements with the representatives of the majority population. Despite converging in their belief in the benefits of autonomy, the two Hungarian parties differ substantially in rhetoric and style of argumentation. While UDMR opts for a more nuanced discussion within the possibilities of the Romanian constitution, the People’s Party advocates a radical change which entails federalism and autonomous regions. In what can be regarded as a continuation of the inter-war ideology of Transylvanism, the People’s Party discusses autonomy in light of a perceived distinct Transylvanian identity while favouring and indicating strong relations with the kin-state Hungary and its current government. In order to bypass or speed up the negotiations with the Romanians counterparts, the Hungarian elite of Romania has turned its attention to the EU. Starting from the hypothesis that Romania’s accession in January 2007 to the status of EU’s member state has provided the Hungarian elite with new mechanisms of promoting their claims, the analysis follows the discourse referring to the possibilities as well as the limitations of the new context. The results shows that the Hungarian elite in Romania is generally dissatisfied with the tackling of ethnic minorities on European Union level and is determined to push forward for local, national, regional and European initiatives that would favour their cause.

The Siivikko-Kellojärvi area forms the southern part of the Kuhmo greenstone belt. The rocks in the area are mainly tholeiitic and komatiitic lavas. In some occasions primary textures can still be observed in the rocks, including spinifex and pillow lavas in mafic and ultramafic volcanic rocks, evident of marine environment. The purpose of this M.Sc. thesis is to investigate the possible hydrothermal alteration processes involved in the formation of the Siivikkovaara Ni-Cu-Zn-Pb mineralized sulfide body. The goal of the M.Sc. thesis is to examine the Siivikkovaara Ni-Cu-Zn-Pb mineralized body using mineralogy, whole-rock geochemistry, mineral chemistry and sulfur isotope geochemistry (δ34S values). Komatiites in the present study have a Cr content of 0.28-0.62 wt.% and show a positive correlation between MgO and Cr, following a cotectic olivine-chromite cumulate trend. Analyses of the studied samples show an average Pd + Pt value of 300 ppb. Given the results, the mineralization represents an enriched body in Pd + Pt, relative to the majority of deposits in Finland. Samples presented in the current study are mildly depleted in (La/Sm)N and generally LREE, relative to chondrite values. The analysed minerals show an average δ34S value of 0.45‰. The source of sulfur is magmatic and cannot be related with any other geological setting. Enrichment in some elements may be attributed to later post-magmatic modification of the mineralization and remobilization of the elements. Komatiitic rocks of the studied samples were derived from Cr-saturated magmas. Cr depletion in tremolite rock may be related with alteration processes or post-magmatic modification. REE data suggest a rather primitive and uncontaminated magma for the studied samples. The studied komatiites are principally of Aluminum-Undepleted komatiite-type. Owing to the poor exposure and extensive post-magmatic modification, any solid conclusions on the origin of the mineralized body are rather difficult. Therefore, more work can be done in the studied samples to further examine the assumption of a possible black-smoker setting.

The study is a postcolonial analysis of the development and history of two Chinese literary stereotypes: John Chinaman and Fu-Manchu. The study argues that the Yellow Peril and the Boxer Rebellion in China affected the change from a passive and foolish stereotype to an actively violent and threatening one. The primary method used in the stdy is a series of close readings of the primary literary sources. The theoretical background of the study comes from Postcolonialism, more specifically Edward Said's Orientalism. The primary sources consist of popular literature, songs and poems that feature the two versions of the Chinese stereotype. The sources dealing with John chinaman come from various authros, hwereas the sources dealing with Fu-Manchu are the three first novels by British author Sax Rohmer. In addition to these additional secondary sourcs consist of historical material dealing with events like the Boxer Rebellion, history of Chinese immigration into the United states and history of Chinese imigrants in Great Britain.

This thesis studies the issue of children affiliated with ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), referring to children who can be linked to the radical Sunni Muslim organization by living under its rule or based upon their parent’s association with it. The organization occupied a considerable territory in Iraq and Syria in 2014 using extremely violent practices. Tens of thousands of people from all over the world travelled to join the organization, which has been known to train boys as young as nine to fight, whereas girls of same age have been perceived as fit for marriage. Finnish people also travelled to the area and once the last territories that ISIS had controlled were conquered back in the year of 2019, Finnish women and children were taken to al-Hol camp in Syria. This sparked an intense public discussion concerning their possible return to Finland, followed by the Finnish government stating in late 2019 that it aims to repatriate the children as soon as possible. In October 2020, some children and families have returned to Finland, and less than ten Finnish adults and about twenty children are still at the camp. This thesis studies the subject of children affiliated with ISIS, because it is not merely a political issue but also a social work issue. In Finland, for example child welfare social workers can encounter the returning children, as they can be assumed to need support upon arrival. The aim of this thesis is to form a comprehensive picture of children affiliated with ISIS, providing social workers with useful knowledge of an underresearched subject. A mixed method approach of using scoping study as the research method is used to map and present relevant literature on the topic. The following five step methodological framework for scoping studies is used: 1) identifying the research question, 2) identifying relevant studies, 3) study selection, 4) charting the data, and 5) collating, summarizing and reporting the results. The fifth step of the framework includes a twofold analysis with both quantitative and qualitative analysis methods. Firstly, numerical information is analyzed to describe the characteristics of the data. Secondly, a thematic analysis is conducted, and social ecology theory is used as a tool in applying meaning to the findings of it. Literature on child soldier reintegration also informs the process of reflecting upon the results and fully answering the following research questions: “In the existing literature, what has been researched about the children affiliated with ISIS?” and “In the identified literature, how are these children framed and which factors are linked to their experiences?”. The dataset is composed of 16 texts that have been published in 2016–2019, including peer-reviewed articles, reports, research papers and policy briefs. The results of studying the characteristics of the data show that literature on children affiliated with ISIS is diverse in its nature and includes gaps. Only two texts in the data use empirical data and only four of the texts have clear links to Iraq or Syria in the form of author, publisher or data collection. Thus, a need for more local research and analysis on the issue, as well as a need to use more firsthand empirical data, is apparent. As a result of the thematic analysis, two main themes with two subthemes each are identified: “The time in ISIS” with the subthemes “Children as an unprecedented problem” and “A life immersed in violence”, as well as the theme “Challenges in reintegration” with the subthemes “An urgent and complex matter” and “Recommendations”. The themes paint a picture of ISIS’ comprehensive and all-encompassing influence on the lives of children living in its territory. Using social ecology theory, factors that shape their lives are identified on each level of the children’s social ecology systems. The interconnected nature of these factors and the complexity of the issue at hand is clear. Social work with children affiliated with ISIS must take this into account and address the following matters: the children can hold dual identities as both victims and perpetrators of violence, and it is possible that they have been desensitized to violence and exposed to a comprehensive cycle of propaganda and systemic radicalization. Reintegration practices need to address the children’s complex and multifaceted needs in a tight time frame as the issue is urgent and has its risks. Individual assessments should be the basis for addressing the diverse needs, while support should also engage the existing social ties and make use of the community’s resources. Future social work research on the issue should address the gaps identified in the data and provide more detailed recommendations for suitable practices to be used in social work.

The Italian white truffle Tuber magnatum is globally one of the most sought after culinary delicacies with retail prices ranging up to 4000€/kg. The White truffles sold on the market are harvested from natural truffle forests as the successful cultivation of the species has to date not been reached. Great economical interest lies in better understanding the growth, life cycle and ascocarp production of T. magnatum, which is why researchers have focused on studying the interactions between the truffle and soil microorganisms. In this study, the bacterial genus Methylosinus and the phylum Firmicutes were found to be present at T. magnatum productive sites. It was also found that the diversity of soil bacteria changes when a) moving from one succession stage to another according to a truffle producing site’s life cycle and b) when the canopy cover of an area changes. These findings can help with better characterising and forecasting T. magnatum productive sites, yet further research is needed to confirm whether the bacteria found present in this study are a cause or effect of white truffle productivity.

This thesis studies the visual representation of girls in aid campaigns. I have chosen to analyse an aid campaign by Plan International Finland titled Maternity wear for a 12-year-old. The campaign focuses on child pregnancies in the majority world, portraying a pregnant, 13-year-old Zambian girl Fridah as a main character. The campaign aired originally in 2017, reaching more than 70 million people and ending up being a financial success. By choosing a notable campaign, I want to highlight how much impact and responsibility aid campaigns have on producing a certain type of image of the majority world. Through my analysis, I want to take part in the discussion that problematises the way in which the aid industry operates at large. Drawing on the theoretical traditions of post- and decolonial feminism and black studies, I have paid explicit attention to how Fridah’s body has been portrayed. I find it important to focus on the corporeal aspects of the campaign, since the black body, especially the black female body, carries a long history of control and objectification in the eyes of western spectators. Using the methodology of semiotic analysis and applying the theoretical tools of a western gaze and a white gaze I have been able to discover racialised and colonised representations of Fridah. The campaign has visualised Fridah in a manner that draws on colonial binaries between a civilised, modern, and safe minority world and a traditional, backward, and dangerous majority world. The campaign fixes Fridah in her pregnancy, presenting her as a universal representative of any pregnant child in an ahistorical, rural, and black “developing world”. Through the image of a pregnant Fridah, the campaign draws a boundary between an idealised western child living in freedom and safety and a “third world girl” doomed by her rural, uncivilised destiny. The campaign sexualises, objectifies, and animalises Fridah’s body in a way that connects her to the negative stereotypes of hyper-reproductive and hypersexualised black women and girls. Fridah’s fetishised pregnant body joins the historical continuum of the regulation and exploitation of black women’s bodies for the consumption of the western spectatorship.