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This case study explores how 12-13-year-old students encounter proportional reasoning while working with geometric patterning tasks using concrete materials. The focus is on the students' use of spontaneous concepts when first dealing with such patterns in the context of collaborative work. Based on video recordings of a single lesson, a microgenetic analysis was performed to identify students' learning trajectories, starting with students familiarizing themselves with pattern structure, followed by engagement in proportional reasoning, and ending with students perceiving a new technique to handle a situation where proportional reasoning did not suffice. While some student groups were able to move along the whole trajectory, most groups, when facing challenges, regressed to simpler techniques. The results provide new insights into students' learning trajectories, which can be used to support students' progress in the context of student-teacher interaction.

The first keyword, Welfare State, sets out to problematise the term itself. The welfare state is a national construct, a 'national social state' as Etienne Balibar calls it. Thus, transnational or global migration is often construed as a disruptive force, potentially destabilising the welfare state and the nation. This keyword entry critically examines common conceptions of what the welfare state should provide. It delineates some of the ways that migrants (and, more broadly foreign nationals who are not themselves necessarily migrants) are excluded or partially included, with a focus on contemporary EU social policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Banishment concludes the keyword discussion by arguing that we can understand the exclusionary practices of welfare states as a politics of destitution, which ultimately leads to the banishment of unwanted individuals. It argues that banishment can be helpful as a conceptual lens through which to understand the purposeful strategies that render individuals deportable, whether citizens or non-citizens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims Understanding the mechanisms underlying ascending aortic dilation is imperative for refined risk stratification of these patients, particularly among incidentally identified patients, most commonly presenting with tricuspid valves. The aim of this study was to explore associations between ascending aortic haemodynamics, assessed using four-dimensional flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (4D flow CMR), and circulating biomarkers in aortic dilation. Methods and results Forty-seven cases with aortic dilation (diameter ≥ 40 mm) and 50 sex-and age-matched controls (diameter < 40 mm), all with tricuspid aortic valves, underwent 4D flow CMR and venous blood sampling. Associations between flow displacement, wall shear stress (WSS), and oscillatory shear index in the ascending aorta derived from 4D flow CMR, and biomarkers including interleukin-6, collagen type I α1 chain, metalloproteinases (MMPs), and inhibitors of MMPs derived from blood plasma, were investigated. Cases with dilation exhibited lower peak systolic WSS, higher flow displacement, and higher mean oscillatory shear index compared with controls without dilation. No significant differences in biomarkers were observed between the groups. Correlations between haemodynamics and biomarkers were observed, particularly between maximum time-averaged WSS and interleukin-6 (r = 0.539, P < 0.001), and maximum oscillatory shear index and collagen type I α1 chain (r = −0.575, P < 0.001 in cases). Conclusion Significant associations were discovered between 4D flow CMR derived whole-cardiac cycle WSS and circulating biomarkers representing inflammation and collagen synthesis, suggesting an intricate interplay between haemodynamics and the processes of inflammation and collagen synthesis in patients with early aortic dilation and tricuspid aortic valves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present article investigates key dilemmas in collective legal mobilization initiatives in the field of asylum and migrants' rights. Focusing on my own experiences from working in the Asylum Commission -- a trans-sectional mobilization initiative that ran in Sweden from 2019 to 2022, involving researchers, civil society representatives, and professionals -- I analyze two central dilemmas that characterized our work. First, I consider how we collectively struggled for the legal right to asylum and through this struggle also reproduced injustices and potential border control harms which are embedded in asylum regulations. Second, I analyze how the Commission strived to provide a knowledge-based account of the consequences of legislative changes post the long summer of migration in 2015 that would have an impact on future legislation, while simultaneously taking an open stand in solidarity with people who were excluded from the legislative process; i.e., asylum seekers. The article underlines the need for sociolegal research that highlights ways to address dilemmas in legal mobilization work and offers empirical insights from collective mobilization for migrants' rights in a Northern European country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on an analysis of the process in which "knowledge to be taught" was transposed into "knowledge actually taught," concerning a task including proportional relationships in an algebra setting in a grade 6 classroom. We identified affordances and constraints of the task by describing the mathematical praxeology of the two different types of knowledge exposed, in the task as such and in the activity of the classroom. Through the teacher's explicit process of reasoning, modeling, revising, solving, and repeatedly explaining the task, we found that the transposition of knowledge was seriously affected by the contextualization of the task. Modeling word problems about everyday situations has its limitations and can, as in this case, make the problem unsolvable unless it is accepted as a "textbook task" disguised as real but adjusted to the norms of school mathematics. Such constraints may obscure mathematical ideas afforded by the task. We conclude that learning opportunities embedded in a task do not necessarily surface when a task is treated in a classroom setting.

Aim: The aim of this study was to illuminate the meaning of being a nurse in the archipelago. Methodological Design and Justification: A phenomenological hermeneutical design was applied, as there is a need to understand the lifeworld and the meaning of being a nurse in the archipelago. Ethical Issues and Approval: Approval was granted by the Regional Ethical Committee and local management team. All participants provided consent to participate. Research Method: Individual interviews were conducted with 11 nurses (Registered Nurses or primary health nurses). The interviews were transcribed, and the text was analysed by means of phenomenological hermeneutical method. Results: The analyses ended in one main theme: Standing alone on the frontline, and three themes: 1. Combating sea, weather and the clock with the sub‐themes: Fighting to give care to patients despite harsh conditions and Fighting against time; 2. Standing firm but wavering with the sub‐themes: Embracing the unexpected and Calling out for support; and 3. Being a lifeline throughout the entire lifespan with the sub‐themes: Having responsibility for the islanders and Having an intertwined private and work life. Study Limitations: The interviews may be considered few, but the textual data were rich and assessed suitable for the analysis. The text may be interpreted differently, but we deemed our interpretation as more probable than others. Conclusion: Being a nurse in the archipelago means standing alone on the frontline. Nurses, other health professionals and managers need knowledge and insight about working alone and the moral responsibilities thereof. There is a need to support the nurses in their lonely work. Traditional means of consultations and support could preferably be supplemented by modern digital technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Fatty degeneration of thymus (or thymus involution) has long been considered a normal ageing process. However, there is emerging evidence that thymic involution is linked to T cell aging, chronic inflammation and increased morbidity. Other factors, aside from chronological age, have been proposed to affect the involution rate. In the present study, we investigated the imaging characteristics of thymus on computed tomography (CT) in a Swedish middle-aged population. The major aims were to establish the prevalence of fatty degeneration of thymus and to determine its associations with demographic, lifestyle and clinical factors, as well as inflammation, T cell differentiation and thymic output. Results: In total, 1 048 randomly invited individuals (aged 50–64 years, 49% females) were included and thoroughly characterized. CT evaluation of thymus included measurements of attenuation, size and a 4-point scoring system, with scale 0–3 based on the ratio of fat and soft tissue. A majority, 615 (59%) showed complete fatty degeneration, 259 (25%) predominantly fatty attenuation, 105 (10%) half fatty and half soft-tissue attenuation, while 69 (6.6%) presented with a solid thymic gland with predominantly soft-tissue attenuation. Age, male sex, high BMI, abdominal obesity and low dietary intake of fiber were independently associated with complete fatty degeneration of thymus. Also, fatty degeneration of thymus as well as low CT attenuation values were independently related to lower proportion of naïve CD8+ T cells, which in turn was related to lower thymic output, assessed by T-cell receptor excision circle (TREC) levels. Conclusion: Among Swedish middle-aged subjects, nearly two-thirds showed complete fatty degeneration of thymus on CT. This was linked to depletion of naïve CD8+ T cells indicating that CT scans of thymus might be used to estimate immunological aging. Furthermore, our findings support the intriguing concept that obesity as well as low fiber intake contribute to immunological aging, thereby raising the possibility of preventive strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contributes to scholarly discussions about sanctuary enactments. We analyse transversal sanctuary enactments, i.e. when migrants in search of protection are provided with basic welfare and an opportunity to remain, in contestation of the state's migration politics. The study draws on empirical data collected through a transdisciplinary research initiative in Sweden, the Asylum Commission. The analysis is based on interviews with 90 people, asylum seekers and people voluntarily or professionally involved in support work. The article explores bottom-up transversal processes paralleled and intertwined with a growing institutional disenchantment. By analysing practices and challenges in sanctuary enactments and their implications for individuals and institutions, we argue that such disenchantment may have broader societal implications in terms of fundamental changes in relationships between public institutions and civil society actors. Furthermore, our study points to the importance of seeing beyond the city as sites for sanctuary enactments and acknowledging sanctuary enactments initiated in Sweden's rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper works alongside other studies claiming the need for further elaboration of the theory of the demographic transition. A number of perspectives on the transition, some of them related to gender, democracy, education, and labour has, according to Tim Dyson, been insufficiently researched by social scientists. The most recently introduced material from the Demographic Database, forms from the Statistical Committee, have been used to chart the demographic transition in the northern-most counties in Sweden during the years between 1800-1850. The hypothesis being that even in these pre-urban and pre-industrialized societies, opportunities to connect with other parts of Sweden could be congruent to a faster progress through the demographic transition. This would lead to lower crude death rates and infant mortality in the coastal parishes. This was true to a certain extent, but this methodologically tentative study also affirms previous research on infant mortality and the need for smallpox vaccination and midwives.

Aims: Unmet needs exist in the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure (HF) in the elderly population. Our aim was to analyse and compare data of diagnostics and management of very elderly patients (aged ≥85 years) compared with younger patients (aged 18–84 years) with HF in Sweden. Methods: Incidence of ≥2 HF diagnosis (ICD‐10) was identified from primary/secondary care in Uppsala and Västerbotten during 2010–2015 via electronic medical records linked to data from national health registers. Analyses investigated the diagnosis, treatment patterns, hospitalizations and outpatient visits, and mortality. Results: Of 8702 patients, 27.7% were ≥85 years old, women (60.2%); most patients (80.7%) had unknown left ventricular ejection fraction; key co‐morbidities comprised anaemia, dementia, and cerebrovascular disease. More very elderly patients received cardiovascular disease (CVD)‐related management after diagnosis in primary care (13.6% vs. 6.5%; P < 0.0001), but fewer patients underwent echocardiography (19.3% vs. 42.9%; P < 0.0001). Within 1 year of diagnosis, very elderly patients were less likely to be hospitalized (all‐cause admissions per patient: 1.9 vs. 2.3; P < 0.0001; CVD‐related admissions per patient: 1.8 vs. 2.1; P = 0.0004) or prescribed an angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitor/angiotensin receptor blocker (ACEI/ARB) plus a β‐blocker (45.2% vs. 56.9%; P < 0.0001) or an ACEI/ARB plus a β‐blocker plus a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (15.4% vs. 31.7%; P < 0.0001). One‐year mortality was high in patients ≥85 years old, 30.5% (CI: 28.3‐32.7%) out of 1797 patients. Conclusions: Despite the large number of very elderly patients with newly diagnosed HF in Sweden, poor diagnostic work‐up and subsequent treatment highlight the inequality of care in this vulnerable population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease promoted by hyperlipidemia. Several studies support FOXP3-positive regulatory T cells (Tregs) as inhibitors of atherosclerosis; however, the mechanism underlying this protection remains elusive. To [...]

Firewalls are clear divisions between border policing and the provision of basic social rights. They have a dual character: to ensure that no information collected with the purpose of safeguarding basic social rights should be shared for immigration control purposes; and that migrants should not be subject to immigration control when being present at, or in the vicinity, of religious, private and public institutions upholding and providing social rights. This article suggests a normative argument for 'firewalls' in the context of social work and develops the concept theoretically as a principle practised and negotiated at different scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]