FROM DYNAMITE to SKYPE – a Small Guide to Research Sweden

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

FROM DYNAMITE to SKYPE – a Small Guide to Research Sweden FROM DYNAMITE TO SKYPE – a small guide to research Sweden Vänd för en svensk version. ”Oh, Abba!” What is Sweden actually most known for abroad? What do people say when we're on holiday and tell people we're from Sweden? Is it a cheerful ”Oh, Abba!”? An extensive discussion of IKEA or Volvo? Or perhaps a dissertation on the beautiful women? Even in a post-Abba world, our musical exports have spread the Sweden brand beyond national boundaries. ”The Swedish fashion miracle” with H&M at the vanguard has achieved the same effect in recent years. Renowned director and producer Ingmar Bergman is at least as big a star in Hollywood as on Fårö, Björn Borg's characteristic headband is recognized in both London and Tokyo, and successes for the Swedish culinary team have elevated Swedish cuisine to international heights. Music, cars, furniture, fashion, sports, movies, gastronomy – not a bad list of credentials for a small country like Sweden. But that's not where it ends. What many people don't realize is that there is a completely different type of Swedish export that affected large portions of the world far more than Abba. In some cases this type of export has played a crucial role in how we live our lives today. The fact is that Sweden has produced more world-famous inventors in proportion to its population than any other country. One day a German traveller who had listened to the voices on our trains stopped me. He was struck by the fact that not a single one of them was a scientist or researcher and asked with amazement why this was the case. We didn't have a good answer, so we asked the same question. We decided then and there to take the opportunity to present some of the Swedish inventors whose innovations have made a difference all over the world. We can now proudly add four of them as new voices on our trains. Enjoy! Per Thorstenson CEO Arlanda Express Swedish Inventors Through the Ages Christopher Polhem ”T”he father of Swedish mechanics ”, 17th century In 1697 Polhem started Sweden's first school of engineering, where he developed Polhem's mechanical alphabet. In 1699 he founded the factory Stjärnsunds Manufakturverk in Dalarna. Polhem is responsible for both the ”Polhem knot” and the ”Polhem padlock”; he was one of the first people to be elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and in 1716 he was raised to the nobility. Every other year since 1878, the Swedish Association of Graduate Engineers has awarded the prestigious Polhem Prize. Anders Celsius Celsius Thermometer, 18th century During the eighteenth century the Celsius thermometer became a world-class instrument to measure temperature. The measurement scale was based on the freezing and boiling point of water (0-100 degrees) and Celsius was the first to succeed in precisely identifying these fixed points. Alfred Nobel Dynamite, 1865 In the middle of the nineteenth century, chemist Alfred Nobel combined nitroglycerine with an absorbent clay, thereby laying the foundation for a global empire – he had invented dynamite. Nobel's will clearly stated that part of his wealth should be used for prizes in science, literature, and peace. The Nobel Prize is now awarded every year on the date of Nobel's death, December 10. Ulrika Eleonora Lindström Västerbotten cheese, 1872 When dairymaid Ulrika Eleonora was forced to leave her workplace where she made cheese, the curds cooled and were heated several times. The result of this ”mistake” was a cheese with a completely different taste than was intended. The cheese quickly became a huge national success and Ulrika Eleonora was soon forgiven for her carelessness. Carl Boberg O Store Gud , 1885 One hot summer day – right after a heavy thunderstorm – Carl Boberg, just 26 years old, wrote the psalm O Store Gud (O Great God ). It was the source of the English language hymn How Great Thou Art and in the early 1950s the hymn was discovered by the US revival prea - cher Billy Graham. Today How Great Thou Art is one of the world's most widely spread songs. Johan Petter Johansson Adjustable wrench (spanner), 1891 One year after Johan Petter Johansson found the ideal design for the adjustable wrench (spanner) he succeeded in patenting his practical tool. The Swedish origin of the wrench is recognized in several countries, including in the United States. Sven Wingqvist Ball bearing, 1907 In 1907 Swedish engineer Sven Wingqvist took out a patent on a special ball bearing, which was more durable and reliable thanks to its spherical shape and design. The ball bearing became the origin of SKF (Svenska Kullagerfabriken), one of the largest companies in Sweden today. Alexander Samuelson The Coca-Cola bottle, 1916 Alexander Samuelson was a glass engineer who in 1915, inspired by the shape of the cocoa bean, designed famous glass Coca-Cola bottle. The bottle was introduced in 1916 and Coca- Cola soon became the world's most well-known brand. Victor Hasselblad System camera, 1948 In 1947 Victor Hasselblad presented the first model of the Hasselblad camera, a system camera that later became one of the most respected cameras in the world. NASA chose it as the official camera in space, after it was the first camera used on the moon. Ruben Rausing Tetra Pak, 1950 Tetra Pak was founded in Lund in 1950 by Dr. Ruben Rausing. The name comes from a tetrahedral package shaped milk carton invented by Erik Wallenberg. The company conquered the international market and its products still dominate the industry today. Rune Elmqvist Pacemaker, 1958 In 1958, six years after the first stationary pacemaker was designed, engineer and inventor Rune Elmqvist developed the first implantable pacemaker. It was unique because it was small enough to be surgically implanted in the body. A doctor from Karolinska Institutet commissioned the invention. Nils Alwall Artificial kidney, 1967 In 1946 Swedish doctor and inventor Nils Alwall developed an artificial kidney for dialysis. The invention was tested on a patient and it became the first cornerstone for the global medical device company Gambro. In 1967 Gambro launched its first artificial kidney and then began to produce them on a large-scale. Niklas Zennström Skype, 2003 In 2003 IT entrepreneur Niklas Zennström founded telephony company Skype (free calls, video calls, and instant messaging over the Internet) together with Janus Friis from Denmark. In September 2005 Skype was purchased by US company eBay for more than SEK 19 billion. The deal made Niklas Zennström one of the wealthiest men in Sweden. Our voices Laila Ohlgren Engineer Laila Ohlgren was born in 1937 in Stockholm and began her career with the Swedish Telecommunications Administration in 1956. In the 1970s she worked on the development of Nordic mobile telephony (Nordisk Mobiltelefoni, NMT). In May 2009 she was the first woman ever to be awarded the prestigious Polhem Prize, for the concept of increasing security in the phone call connection by entering and storing digits in the mobile phone and then releasing the entire number to the network by pushing the green ”ring” button. This concept is now the global standard in mobile phones and has also spread to other telephones with a memory function, such as portable telephones in the home. Håkan Lans Håkan Lans, born in 1947, is an internationally recog - nized inventor and researcher. Early in his career, Lans was acclaimed for developing a system for a computer color graphics display and a few years later for a means of communication that increases security for navigation by planes and ships. This method is now the global standard for both maritime shipping and aviation. Lans is also behind the development of a digitizing tablet that is a precursor to today's computer mouse. In 1995 Lans was awarded the Polhem Prize for his color graphics display and his positioning system transponder. Other prizes include a gold medal from the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (1993) and a prize from the Royal Institute of Technology (1996). He was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) and holds an honorary doctor's degree from Uppsala University. Håkan Lans is currently still in - volved in litigation against several American computer companies over his color graphics system for computer displays, and has an unresolved dispute with Saab over his satellite navigation patent. Mats Leijon After completing the five-year engineering curriculum in just three years, Mats Leijon was awarded the John Ericsson medal in 1984 for his outstanding accomplishment. He then earned his PhD in high-voltage engineering and began working at ABB, where he became the brain behind several significant innovations. In 2000 he became a professor in electricity at Uppsala University. His work there resulted in several new solutions for extracting energy from renewable sources. Leijon has also started several companies in this field, including Seabased, Vertical Wind, Current Power and Electric Line AB. Bengt Samuelsson Bengt Samuelsson is one of Sweden's leading researchers in medical biochemistry. His dis - coveries have led to several new medications. Samuelsson's research has won international recognition and in 1982 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. His list of credentials is long and includes titles such as professor and dean at Karolinska Institutet, chairman of the Nobel Foundation, an honorary doctor's degree at Uppsala University in honor of Linnaeus, and an honorary doctor's degree at universities in Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, China, Buenos Aires, Madrid, Milan, and New Orleans. He is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the American and French Academies of Science and the Royal Society in London.
Recommended publications
  • What Is the Nature of Good Government?
    What is the Nature of Good Government? from Heaven and Hell by Emanuel Swedenborg A Unique Vision of the Afterlife The following pages contain a brief taste of heaven based on the visions of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772), a Swedish sci- entist and mystic. They are taken from his best-known work, Heaven and Hell, orig- inally written and published in 1758 in Latin as De Coelo et Ejus Mirabilibus, et de Inferno, ex Auditis et Visis (Heaven and Its Wonders and Hell, Drawn from Things Heard and Seen). Heaven and Hell is a detailed descrip- tion of the afterlife based on Swedenborg’s personal experiences. The work includes discussions of what happens to us after we die, what it’s like to live in heaven (or in hell), and the nature of God and angels. Now celebrating its 250th anniversary, Heaven and Hell has been in print con- tinuously since its first publication, and it has been translated into twenty-three lan- guages. This translation was produced by George F. Dole for the New Century Edition of the Works of Emanuel Swe- denborg, published by the Swedenborg Foundation. The full translation includes an introduction by noted scholar Bern- hard Lang, extensive notes on the text, and other helpful references. This deluxe edition is available in hardcover and full- sized paperback; there is also a smaller Swedenborg Foundation portable edition without the introduction West Chester, Pennsylvania and endnotes. • www.swedenborg.com Forms of Government in Heaven Since heaven is differentiated into communities, and the larger communities consist of some hundreds of thousands of angels, and since all the people in a given community are involved in similar good but not in similar wisdom, it follows of necessity that there are forms of govern- ment.
    [Show full text]
  • Reposs #19: Newtonianism in the Scandinavian Countries, 1690–1790
    RePoSS: Research Publications on Science Studies RePoSS #19: Newtonianism in the Scandinavian Countries, 1690–1790 Helge Kragh August 2012 Centre for Science Studies, University of Aarhus, Denmark Research group: History and philosophy of science Please cite this work as: Helge Kragh (Aug. 2012). Newtonianism in the Scandinavian Countries, 1690–1790. RePoSS: Research Publications on Sci- ence Studies 19. Aarhus: Centre for Science Studies, University of Aarhus. url: http://www.css.au.dk/reposs. Copyright c Helge Kragh, 2012 1 Newtonianism in the Scandinavian Countries, 1690-1790 HELGE KRAGH 1 Introduction In the present context, the Scandinavian countries refer to two national or administrative units, the one being Denmark and the other Sweden. In the period here considered, largely the century from 1690 to 1790, ‘Denmark’ means really Denmark-Norway, for until 1814 Norway was part of the double monarchy ruled by the king and his government in Copenhagen. It should also be kept in mind that parts of what is today Germany, namely Schleswig-Holstein, belonged to the kingdom. However, as far as language and culture were concerned, these parts of southern Denmark were more German than Danish, and they played no important role in the scientific life of the kingdom. Sweden covered a much larger geographical area than it does today. The country had expanded greatly during the seventeenth century, when not only Finland but also parts of the Baltic area and northern Germany came under Swedish rule. About 1720, after the Great Northern War, Sweden lost most of its possessions, but the major part of Finland remained as part of the country until Centre for Science Studies, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University, Denmark.
    [Show full text]
  • Early Swedish Contributions to Geotechnical Engineering
    Early Swedish Contributions to Geotechnical Engineering Massarsch, K.R. and Fellenius, B.H., 2012. Early Swedish Contributions to Geotechnical Engineering. ASCE GeoInstitute Geo-Congress, Oakland March 25-29, 2012, Full-scale Testing in Foundation Design, State of the Art and Practice in Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE, Reston, VA, M.H. Hussein, K.R. Massarsch, G.E. Likins, and R.D. Holtz, eds., Geotechnical Special Publication 227, pp. 239-256. 239 Early Swedish Contributions to Geotechnical Engineering K. Rainer Massarsch1) Dr.Sc. Bengt H. Fellenius2) P.Eng., Dr.Tech., M.ASCE 1) Geo Risk & Vibration Scandinavia AB, Ferievägen 25, SE 168 41 Bromma, Sweden. <[email protected]> 2) Consulting Engineer, 2475 Rothesay Avenue, Sidney, B.C., Canada, V8L 2B9. <[email protected]> ABSTRACT Geotechnical engineering in Sweden has a long tradition due to the presence of soft and sensitive clay deposits along lake and sea shores, where most settlements were established. As the country increasingly took on the difficult tasks of constructing harbors, canals, and foundations for roads and railways, novel foundation concepts had to be developed. The establishing of an interdisciplinary “Geotechnical Commission” in 1914 consisting of geologists and civil engineers with the task to study landslides and slope failures laid the foundation for modern geotechnical field and laboratory testing methods and began the key role of geotechnical engineering in Swedish civil engineering. A very important aspect is the spirit of close cooperation between practitioners, engineers, and scientists, manifested in the Swedish Geotechnical Institute and the Swedish Pile Commission. The Swedish geotechnical practice has a long history of important accomplishments by individual engineers.
    [Show full text]
  • This Is the Published Version of a Chapter Published in Der Modelle Tugend 2.0: Digitale 3D- Rekonstr
    http://www.diva-portal.org This is the published version of a chapter published in Der Modelle Tugend 2.0: Digitale 3D- Rekonstruktion als virtueller Raum der architekturhistorischen Forschung. Citation for the original published chapter: Snickars, P. (2019) Metamodeling: 3D-(re)designing Polhem’s Laboratorium mechanicumn In: Piotr Kuroczyński, Mieke Pfarr-Harfst und Sander Münster (ed.), Der Modelle Tugend 2.0: Digitale 3D-Rekonstruktion als virtueller Raum der architekturhistorischen Forschung (pp. 509-528). Heidelberg: arthistoricum.net Computing in art and architecture https://doi.org/10.11588/arthistoricum.515 N.B. When citing this work, cite the original published chapter. Permanent link to this version: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-164711 Metamodeling — 3D - (re )designing Polhem’s Laboratorium mechanicumn 509 Der Modelle Tugend 2.0 → Kapitel 5 → Projekt-Portfolio Pelle Snickars V. Metamodeling — 3D-( re )designing Polhem’s Laboratorium mechanicumn → 3D visualisations, digital methods, Christopher Polhem, media modalities Based on selected parts of the collections at the Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology, the aim of the research project, Digital Models, is to explore the potential of digital technologies to reframe Swedish industrialisation and its stories about society, people and environments. This book chapter presents the work done with one model, the Swedish 18th century inventor Christopher Polhem’s so called mechanical alphabet. His small wooden models were once built to pedogogically illustrate different mechanical principles. At a time when heritage institutions are exploring how new digital technologies can broaden access to their collections, the chapter recounts the ways in which our project has tried to metamodel Polhem’s alphabet in different digital formats, especially in 3D.
    [Show full text]
  • Polhems Huvudvärk David Dunér
    Polhems huvudvärk David Dunér CHRISTOPHER POLHEM HAR BLIVIT MEST KÄND som tekniker och industripionjär, omtalad som ett tekniskt geni, en uppfinnarjocke, den svenska mekanikens fader, Nordens Arkimedes, den hyperboreiske Daidalos. Utmaningen är här att försöka visa att hans verkliga originalitet inte ligger främst i hans tekniska uppfinnarförmåga. En stor del av sin tid använde han nämligen till studier och spekulationer kring geologi, materiateori, nationalekonomi, näringslära, språkvetenskap, filosofi och pedagogik. Hans uppfinningar visar sig i många fall inte vara hans egna. Det är i ännu högre grad som tänkare man finner särlingen. Man skulle kunna kalla honom för en hemmatänka- re som kokade ihop sina egna tankar oberoende av vad andra tyckte och tänkte. Det finns en smittande fräckhet och humor som går utanför alla konventioner. Att tänka, sade han, kunde dock vara lika ansträngande som kroppsrörelser: »när man för myket tenker, blir hiernan öhm och wärkande, så och när man myket tenker på sådhana ting som man aldrig hafft före tillförende, blir hela kroppen matt och machtlöss». Om denna essä inte kan ge övertygande argument för Polhems originalitet, så kan den i vart fall göra läsaren en aning matt och maktlös av alla nya tankar om Polhem som denne inte tidigare har haft. Ett skäl till Polhems okonventionella tänkande kan vara hans oroliga bildnings- gång. Han var i stort sett autodidakt, saknade en grundlig bildning och kunde aldrig lära sig latin ordentligt. Kanske hade han till och med en släng av ordblindhet. Men på sätt och vis kan man se hans liv som lite av en klassisk framgångshistoria. För- utsättningarna var nämligen inte de bästa för en framgångsrik teknisk karriär.
    [Show full text]
  • Der Modelle Tugend 2.0 → Kapitel 5 → Projekt-Portfolio Pelle Snickars V
    Metamodeling — 3D - (re )designing Polhem’s Laboratorium mechanicumn 509 Der Modelle Tugend 2.0 → Kapitel 5 → Projekt-Portfolio Pelle Snickars V. Metamodeling — 3D-( re )designing Polhem’s Laboratorium mechanicumn → 3D visualisations, digital methods, Christopher Polhem, media modalities Based on selected parts of the collections at the Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology, the aim of the research project, Digital Models, is to explore the potential of digital technologies to reframe Swedish industrialisation and its stories about society, people and environments. This book chapter presents the work done with one model, the Swedish 18th century inventor Christopher Polhem’s so called mechanical alphabet. His small wooden models were once built to pedogogically illustrate different mechanical principles. At a time when heritage institutions are exploring how new digital technologies can broaden access to their collections, the chapter recounts the ways in which our project has tried to metamodel Polhem’s alphabet in different digital formats, especially in 3D. Which attributes of the models that are transferred and displayed is not an imperative trait of digitisation per se — only of one particular process. The chapter discusses three forms of 3D visualisations of Polhem’s alphabet executed in altered media modalities — provoking a confrontation between stupid scanning versus intelli- gent simulation. Situated at the intersection between digitising archives and visualising history, the chapter interrogates the specificity of digitisation, with the ultimate goal of developing a 3D methodology of relevance for the cultural heritage domain. Authority and material authenticity are its trade- marks. Yet, as this chapter will show, 3D visualisations will always cater ( in one way or the other ) to interpretation of museological objects selected for ( re ) presentation — even if institutions are totally explicit and open about their digital practises.
    [Show full text]
  • The Naval City of Karlskrona - an Active and Vibrant World Heritage Site –
    The Naval City of Karlskrona - an active and vibrant World Heritage Site – “Karlskrona is an exceptionally well preserved example of a European naval base, and although its design has been influenced by similar undertakings it has in turn acted as a model for comparable installations. Naval bases played an important part during the centuries when the strength of a nation’s navy was a decisive factor in European power politics, and of those that remain from this period Karlskrona is the most complete and well preserved”. The World Heritage Sites Committee, 1998 Foreword Contents In 1972 UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, ratified 6-7 THIS IS A W ORLD HERITAGE SITE - the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and National Heritage with the HE AVAL ITY OF ARLSKRONA aim of protecting and preserving natural or cultural sites deemed to be of irreplaceable and T N C K universal value. The list of World Heritage Sites established under the terms of the Convention 8-13 THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND has been received with considerable interest by the international community and has greatly Why Karlskrona was established contributed to the strengthening of national cultural identity. Growth and expansion Models and ideals The Naval Town of Karlskrona was designated as a World Heritage Site in December 1998 and The af Chapman era is one of 12 such Sites that to date have been listed in Sweden. Karlskrona was considered of particular interest as the original layout of the town with its roots in the architectural ideals of 14–27 THE NAVAL BASE the baroque has been extremely well-preserved and for its remarkable dockyard and systems The naval dockyard and harbour of fortifications.
    [Show full text]
  • Bibliography
    Bibliography Unpublished Sources The Military Archives, Stockholm (Krigsarkivet, KrA) Artilleribok, Artilleriet. Laro-¨ och handbocker.¨ XVI:47. Benzelstierna, Jesper Albrecht, En dehl Hrr volontairers af Fortificationen examen pro anno 1737, Fortifikationen, Chefsexpeditionen, Examenshandlingar 1737, F2:1. Fyra stycken projecterofwer ¨ sluyser af tr¨a¨a wedh Trollh¨attan. Kungsboken 16:1. Journalerofwer ¨ arbetet p˚a dockan. ifr˚an den 2: ianuary 1717. till den 1: october 1720. d˚a entreprenaden begynttes, Militierakningar¨ 1717:1. Rappe, Niklas, Atta˚ b¨ocker om artilleriet, uti den moskovitiska f˚angenskapen sammandragna och till slut bragta, av generalmajor Niklas Rappe (1714), Artilleriet. Laro-¨ och handbocker,¨ XVI:18a–b. The Royal Library, Stockholm (Kungliga Biblioteket, KB) Bromell, Magnus von, Doctoris Magni Bromelii prælectiones privatæ in regnum minerale Upsaliæ habito in martio etc anno 1713, copy by J. Troilius, X 601. Buschenfelt, Samuel, Denaldre ¨ fadren Buschenfelts marchscheider Relation 1694. tilh¨orige Ritningar, L 70:54:2. Nordberg, Joran,¨ Anecdotes, eller Noter till kyrckoherdens doctor J¨oran Norbergs Historia, om konung Carl den XIIte, glorwyrdigst iaminnelse, ˚ wid censureringen uteslutne, D 809. Nordberg, Joran,¨ Anecdotes, eller Noter till kyrkioherdens doctor J¨oran Nordbergs Historia om konung Carl den XIIte, hwilka wid censureringen blifwit uteslutne, part one, D 812. Nordberg, Joran,¨ Kyrckoherden doctor J¨oran Nordbergs Anedoter til des Historia om konung Carl den XII. glorwordigst iaminnelse, ˚ hwilcka blifwit uteslutne wid censurerandet, D 814. Polhem, Christopher, Anteckningar och utkast r¨orande ett af honom uppfunnet ‘Universalspr˚ak’, :::, N 60. Polhem, Christopher, Filosofiska uppsatser, P 20:1–2. Polhem, Christopher, Mindre uppsatser och fragment i praktisk mekanik, X 267:1. Polhem, Christopher, Uppsatser i allm¨ant naturvetenskapligaamnen ¨ , X 517:1.
    [Show full text]
  • Multiple Independent Inventions of a Non‐Functional Technology Combinatorial Descriptive Names in Botany, 1640‐1830
    PEER‐REVIEWED Multiple Independent Inventions of a Non‐functional Technology Combinatorial Descriptive Names in Botany, 1640‐1830 Sara Scharf* Abstract Historians and sociologists of science usually discuss multiple independent inventions or discoveries in terms of priority disputes over successful inventions or discoveries. But what should we make of the multiple invention of a technology that not only gave rise to very few priority disputes, but never worked and was rejected by each inventor’s contemporaries as soon as it was made public? This paper examines seven such situations in the history of botany. I devote particular attention to the inventors’ cultural and educational backgrounds, focussing in particular on the scholastic education most of them shared, through which they would have become familiar with Llullian combinatorics and the mnemonic names used to distinguish syllogistic moods. I also examine their conceptions of the roles of nomenclature in botany, their assumptions about how memory works, their awareness of other similar efforts, and their contemporaries’ reactions to their proposals. I suggest that an evolutionary epistemology of invention may be the middle ground between the chaos of multiple paths suggested by many microhistories and the overly deterministic view that macrohistorical studies often present. Finally, I reflect on the impacts that a consideration of multiple independent inventions of failed technologies may have on current approaches to the history and sociology of science. Multiple discoveries of
    [Show full text]
  • Timeline / 1000 to 2000 / SWEDEN
    Timeline / 1000 to 2000 / SWEDEN Date Country | Description 1026 A.D. Sweden At the Battle of Helge å the Danish King Canute, who has already conquered England, wins a victory and gains control also of Sweden. It does not last, but it is one of the first major battles in what will become seven centuries of war and peace between Denmark and Sweden. 1164 A.D. Sweden The monk Stefan becomes the first Swedish Archbishop. The ceremony was in Lund, which was then Danish but is now a town in southern Sweden. Stefan was ordained by the Danish archbishop Eskil on 5 August and Pope Alexander III was among the participants. Stefan’s see was in Uppsala. He went to work immediately and one of his letters from 1165 still exists. This is the oldest preserved letter in Sweden. It is written in Latin. 1250 A.D. Sweden Stockholm, Sweden’s capital today is founded by Birger Jarl. 1279 A.D. Sweden In this, or the following, year, King Magnus grants freedom of taxes for those who serve him in his wars as equestrians. This was important step in the development of privileged nobility. 1303 A.D. Sweden The most well-known Swedish saint, Saint Birgitta, is born. Her Order, Ordo Sanctissimi Salvatoris (the Order of the Most Holy Saviour), is approved by a Papal Bull in 1370. 1397 A.D. Sweden On 17 June in this year, in the Swedish town of Kalmar, the three Nordic countries Denmark, Norway and Sweden are united under the Danish Monarch, Queen Margarethe.
    [Show full text]
  • Mechanics of Patronage: Christopher Polhem and the Changing Regimes of the Swedish State \(1680-1750\)
    Artefact Techniques, histoire et sciences humaines 4 | 2016 L’Europe technicienne, XVe-XVIIIe siècle Mechanics of patronage: Christopher Polhem and the changing regimes of the Swedish state (1680-1750) Jacob Orrje Electronic version URL: http://journals.openedition.org/artefact/383 DOI: 10.4000/artefact.383 ISSN: 2606-9245 Publisher: Association Artefact. Techniques histoire et sciences humaines, Presses universitaires du Midi Printed version Date of publication: 1 October 2016 Number of pages: 135-146 ISBN: 978-2-7535-5174-9 ISSN: 2273-0753 Electronic reference Jacob Orrje, « Mechanics of patronage: Christopher Polhem and the changing regimes of the Swedish state (1680-1750) », Artefact [Online], 4 | 2016, Online since 07 July 2017, connection on 19 April 2019. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/artefact/383 ; DOI : 10.4000/artefact.383 Artefact. Techniques, histoire et sciences humaines Mechanics of patronage : Christopher Polhem and the changing regimes of the Swedish state (1680-1750) Jacob ORRJE * « Similar to how a crowd of soldiers can accomplish little with their manliness without a sensible captain, the whole lot of craftsmen cannot make anything extraor- dinary without a good mechanicus. » Christopher Polhem, « Thoughts about mechanics » (1740) **. 135 Résumé Cet essai traite des politiques liées à la technologie pendant la période moderne à partir du mécanicien suédois Christophe Polhem. Durant la monarchie absolue du début du xviiie siècle, Polhem obtient avec succès un patronage royal. Mais sous la monarchie constitutionnelle des années 1720, ses relations royales deviennent pro- blématiques. À partir de Polhem, cet article vise à montrer l’ironie de la manière dont certains mécaniciens, présentés comme de fidèles sujets de l’ordre de la première modernité, ont été considérés comme des agents de changements.
    [Show full text]
  • Tetra Laval's European Road Freight – Suggestions for Improving The
    ISRN LUTMDN/TMTP-- 5570--SE Tetra Laval’s European Road Freight – Suggestions for Improving the Distribution Structure and Transport Supplier Base Master thesis: 5570/2006 Authors: Marie Berglund Malin Leander Tutors: Robert Lindroth Department of Industrial Management and Logistics Björn Lindahl Team Road Tetra Laval Group Transport and Travel Preface This thesis, written during the autumn 2005, marks the end of our eventful lives as students of Master of Science in Industrial Management and Engineering at Lund Institute of Technology. The thesis has been conducted at Tetra Laval Group Transport & Travel (TLGT&T) in cooperation with the Department of Engineering Logistics at Lund University. It has been 20 fascinating weeks, where we have gained deeper insight into the area of logistics as well as the transport industry. We have also realised how complex multinational companies can be and how surprisingly low focus on logistics they have. Furthermore, we have learned to appreciate each other’s company, during both happy and frustrated times, in a small room of four square meters. We would like to take this opportunity to thank those persons that have been extra valuable and important for the completion of this thesis: Björn Lindahl, our tutor at Tetra Laval, thank you for your guidance and patience with our sometimes too many and annoying questions. Your knowledge and experiences have been of crucial importance for our research. Robert Lindroth, our tutor at Lund University, thank you for your enthusiasm and support. Without you this thesis would not have been what it is today. You have, with your valuable feedback and tricky questions, continuously given us inspiration to keep up the good work, and helped us to stay motivated.
    [Show full text]