Tag: karlstad university

51 – Fixing WiFi

Do you have high speed internet to your home but still experience  buffering or lag when watching a movie or playing an online game? These problems may be related to your WiFi network. Good thing then that researchers are working on to fixing WiFi! In Toke Høiland Jørgensen’s research he not only produces more knowledge on WiFi performance barriers, he also develops mathematical and technical solutions to them. In our conversation Toke explains how the open source solutions developed by him and his colleagues can benefit all us speed-craving internet users.

Toke Høiland-Jørgensen’s doctoral thesis can be downloaded from DiVA: Bufferbloat and Beyond : Removing Performance Barriers in Real-World Networks

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49 – Gamification in digital journalism

Whether you are aware of it or not, you have probably been subjected to gamification. Gamification refers to the practice of businesses using game-elements in non-game contexts. Raul Ferrer Conill has investigated the role of gamification in digital journalism. Today, many digital newspapers use bonuses, badges or other rewards to make users consume more articles, and to make journalists more productive. In our conversation, Raul describes why newspapers use this approach, and how it affects the commercial and professional aspects of journalism. Raul Ferrer Conill’s doctoral thesis can be downloaded from DiVA: Gamifying the news : Exploring the introduction of game elements into digital journalism

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48 – Human aspects of data privacy

Securing data privacy on the internet is a wicked problem. It is wicked in that technological, legal, and human aspects of privacy are entangled. In her licentiate thesis Ala Sarah Alaqra has focused on the human aspects of data privacy. By letting users test a privacy enhancing scheme – redactable signatures – designed by Ala and her colleagues, her research investigates user perceptions and opinions of data privacy in eHealth. In our conversation Ala let us know more of redactable signatures, and how it can help increase data privacy in eHealth and possibly in other sectors as well. Ala Sarah Alaqra’s licentiate thesis can be downloaded from DiVA: The Wicked Problem of Privacy : Design Challenge for Crypto-based Solutions

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44 – Mathematical analysis of multiscale systems

If you pour a liter of water in an already half filled two liter bottle, you’ll usually fill it up completely. But what if the bottle wasn’t filled with liquids, but with sand and air? The mathematics you need to calculate such processes is complex and requires a so-called multiscale approach: calculating the interactions between objects with vastly different sizes. In his research, Ph.D. candidate Omar Richardson is developing a mathematical framework to analyze these and other multiscale systems. In our conversation, Omar explains how and why we do mathematical research, and describes some practical implications of his work. Omar Richardson’s licentiate thesis can be downloaded from DiVA: Mathematical analysis and approximation of a multiscale elliptic-parabolic system

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43 Privacy friendly mobile apps

Mobile phone applications can be great for a range of different everyday purposes. However, most users are unaware of what the apps are doing while they are unattended. In his research, Ph.D. candidate Nurul Momen has investigated how apps behave, and how they use the personal data users authorise them to access. In our conversation, Nurul describes the dangers of personal data craving apps, and he explains how his research can help increasing transparency and protect user privacy. Nurul Momen’s licentiate thesis can be retrieved from DiVA: Towards Measuring Apps’ Privacy-Friendliness

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41 – Improving transparency in personal data processing

The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation has been implemented to protect citizens’ data privacy by, for example, increasing control over their personal data. However, computerized systems and web services are not always effectively designed to give users the control they are legally entitled to in a usable way. In her thesis, Farzaneh Karegar, Ph. D. student in computer science, develops new solutions that enhance transparency and make it easier for users to give better-informed consent to service providers handling personal data. In our conversation Farzaneh lets us know more about the solutions, and why it is important to continue to work to improve the gap between legally-compliant and usable services. Farzaneh Karegar’s licentiate thesis can be retrieved from DiVA: Towards Improving Transparency, Intervenability, and Consent in HCI 

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40 -Twitter and language transformation

Speech and writing are traditionally regarded as contrasting pairs with specific forms, structures, and normative values attached to them. In the time of social media, these differences are increasingly challenged. We tweet more like we talk or at least, that is how it feels. To find out whether our intuition is right we meet  Peter Wikström who has studied Twitter language in his PhD thesis “I tweet like I talk: Aspects of speech and writing on Twitter”. He has investigated features such as hashtags and emojis to see what it might mean to tweet in a “talk-like” manner. Listen to learn more about shifting norms, questions of identity and authenticity, and a communication hybrid that evolved together with the advent of social media.

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38 – Evolution of markets from a service ecosystems perspective

How do markets evolve? And how can this evolutionary process be understood from a service ecosystems perspective? These are the main questions guiding Kaisa Koskela Huotari’s doctoral research in Business Administration. In our conversation Kaisa explains that markets are made up of rules and norms guiding people when exchanging innovative knowledge and skills. Markets can be disrupted, as new ideas can work as ‘game-changers’. Likewise new ideas – innovations – can after a while themselves become mainstream and turned into well-established norms. Based on her research Kaisa presents a four-phase model on market evolution, helping us understand this process of market continuity and change.

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37 -What are phthalates and why can they be troublesome for us?

Hard to pronounce, invisible to the human eye and regarded as a miracle compound for centuries: phthalates. They are in a huge variety of things such as toys, cars and make up and it is likely that you bump into them on a daily basis. In this podcast, we talk to Ph.D. Huan Shu about the downsides of phthalates. In her research, she has focused on phthalates in PVC flooring and their effects on human and especially children’s health. Listen to this podcast to learn more about what phthalates are, how they might trouble yours and your children’s respiratory system, and what could be done to prevent it.  You can also read more about Huan Shu’s research in her thesis “Phthalates, on the issue of sources for human uptake, time trends and health effects“.

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33 – Klassrumsbaserad bedömning

I det här avsnittet berättar Anna Öhman, doktor i pedagogiskt arbete, om hur återkoppling sker mellan lärare och elever i frisörutbildningen. Med hjälp av bland annat videoanalyser synliggör avhandlingen hur både kroppar, språk och material får betydelse för återkopplingen. Den klassrumsbaserade bedömningen är beroende av ett fungerande samspel mellan elever och lärare, berättar Anna Öhman i vårt samtal. För att läsa avhandlingen i sin helhet, följ följande länk: Återkoppling i interaktion: En studie av klassrumsbaserad bedömning i frisörutbildningen

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