bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Has Creative Destruction become more Destructive?
Authors: Komlos John
Published: January 2017

Schumpeter’s concept of creative destruction as the engine of capitalist development is well-known. However, that the destructive part of creative destruction is a social and economic cost and therefore biases our estimate of the impact of the innovation on GDP is hardly acknowledged, with the notable exception of Witt (1996. “Innovations, Externalities and the Problem of Economic Progress.” Public Choice 89:113–30). Admittedly, during the First and Second Industrial Revolutions the magnitude of the destructive component of innovation was no doubt small compared to the net value added to GDP. However, we conjecture that recently the destructive component of innovations has increased relative to the size of the creative component as the new technologies are often creating products which are close substitutes for the ones they replace whose value depreciates substantially in the process of destruction. Consequently, the contribution of recent innovations to GDP is likely upwardly biased. This note calls for further research in innovation economics in order to measure and decompose the effects of innovations into their creative and destructive components in order to provide improved estimates of their contribution to GDP and to employment.
Persian sentences to phoneme sequences
conversion based on recurrent neural networks
Authors: Behbahani Yasser Mohseni , Babaali Bagher , Turdalyuly Mussa
Published: January 2017

Grapheme to phoneme conversion is one of the
main subsystems of Text-to-Speech (TTS) systems. Converting
sequence of written words to their corresponding
phoneme sequences for the Persian language is more challenging
than other languages; because in the standard orthography
of this language the short vowels are omitted
and the pronunciation ofwords depends on their positions
in a sentence. Common approaches used in the Persian
commercial TTS systems have several modules and complicated
models for natural language processing and homograph
disambiguation that make the implementation
harder as well as reducing the overall precision of system.
In this paper we define the grapheme-to-phoneme conversion
as a sequential labeling problem; and use the modified
Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN) to create a smart
and integrated model for this purpose. The recurrent networks
are modified to be bidirectional and equipped with
Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM) blocks to acquire most
of the past and future contextual information for decision
making. The experiments conducted in this paper show
that in addition to having a unified structure the bidirectional
RNN-LSTM has a good performance in recognizing
the pronunciation of the Persian sentences with the precision
more than 98 percent.
Indicators of sustainable development performance: Case study of European Union countries
Authors: Šoja Svjetlana Janković , Jelić Dana Bucalo
Published: January 2017

A sustainable development strategy is an essential long-term strategy that aims to bring about a balance of three key policy factors: sustainable economic growth and economic and technological development, sustainable development of society based on social equality, and environmental protection with a rational use of natural resources. The sustainable development strategy is very complex and contains a large number of indicators, so one of the statistical methods that can be used for this complex problem is the I-distance method. It was created as a need to rank countries according to the level of socio-economic development and the problem was how to take advantage of all the indicators in order to calculate a synthetic indicator which would represent the rank. The I-distance method in this paper is used for the ranking of 18 countries of the European Union based on ten indicators that have been selected in accordance with the EU Sustainable Development Strategy. The used headline indicators come from the following areas: socio-economic development, sustainable consumption and production, social inclusion, demographic changes, public health, climate change and energy, sustainable transport, and global partnership. By analysing the initial set of indicators and their correlation coefficients with the found I-distance values, the following most important indicators were found: official development assistance as a share of the gross national income, employment rate of older workers, healthy life years and life expectancy at birth (males), energy consumption of transport relative to GDP etc. Countries that occupied the top three places were Sweden, Luxembourg, and Finland while Croatia, Poland, and Slovenia occupied the last three places.
New and rare records of soldier flies (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) from the Czech Republic
Authors: Tkoč Michal , Vendl Tomáš
Published: January 2017

Two Oxycera species are reported from Czech Republic from the vicinity of Prague. Oxycera germanica (Szilády, 1932) is recorded from Czech Republic for the second time and Oxycera nigricornis Olivier, 1812 is reported from Bohemia for the first time. Their distribution, history of the records in Czech Republic and basic diagnostic characters are provided.
Hard and Soft Adjusting of a Parameter With Its Known Boundaries by the Value Based on the Experts’ Estimations Limited to the Parameter
Authors: Romanuke Vadim V.
Published: January 2017

Adjustment of an unknown parameter of the multistage expert procedure is considered. The lower and upper boundaries of the parameter are counted to be known. A key condition showing that experts’ estimations are satisfactory in the current procedure is an inequality, in which the value based on the estimations is not greater than the parameter. The algorithms of hard and soft adjusting are developed. If the inequality is true and its both terms are too close for a long sequence of expert procedures, the adjusting can be early stopped. The algorithms are reversible, implying inversion to the reverse inequality and sliding up off the lower boundary.
Multi-Stage Recognition of Speech Emotion Using Sequential Forward Feature Selection
Authors: Liogienė Tatjana , Tamulevičius Gintautas
Published: January 2017

The intensive research of speech emotion recognition introduced a huge collection of speech emotion features. Large feature sets complicate the speech emotion recognition task. Among various feature selection and transformation techniques for one-stage classification, multiple classifier systems were proposed. The main idea of multiple classifiers is to arrange the emotion classification process in stages. Besides parallel and serial cases, the hierarchical arrangement of multi-stage classification is most widely used for speech emotion recognition. In this paper, we present a sequential-forward-feature-selection-based multi-stage classification scheme. The Sequential Forward Selection (SFS) and Sequential Floating Forward Selection (SFFS) techniques were employed for every stage of the multi-stage classification scheme. Experimental testing of the proposed scheme was performed using the German and Lithuanian emotional speech datasets. Sequential-feature-selection-based multi-stage classification outperformed the single-stage scheme by 12–42 % for different emotion sets. The multi-stage scheme has shown higher robustness to the growth of emotion set. The decrease in recognition rate with the increase in emotion set for multi-stage scheme was lower by 10–20 % in comparison with the single-stage case. Differences in SFS and SFFS employment for feature selection were negligible.
Realistic Evaluation of the Ratio: Loan-To-value – The Key to Minimising the Credit Risk
Authors: Ranisavljević Duško , Hadžić Miroljub
Published: January 2017

As a rule, long-term bank loans entail solid security - a mortgage, regardless of their purpose. The mortgaged property has its specific market value during the loan approval period but during the repayment period, the value of the real estate varies. This is the reason why the initially specified indicator of the coverage of loans with the value of the mortgage - the LTV ratio changes, which in turn increases the risk of loan repayment. The aim of this paper is to draw attention to the necessity of establishing adequate initial LTV ratios (together with other important ratios). This would help nullify the risk of any variations in real estate prices, the loan currency risk, the interest rate risk, as well as the risk of an increase in bank's claims because of a long foreclosure process. The paper analyses effects of changes in LTV ratios caused by varying circumstances using the case study method. The comparative method analyses the changing trends of data on the LTV ratios for the already approved loans over a seven-year period by comparing the flow of the loan capital sum with the real value of the mortgage for three types of loans. The conclusion reached is that commercial banks should establish the initial LTV ratio for various long-term loan products and thus prevent its rise. Banks should do this by taking into account all the factors that cause the ratio’s increase, and thus give preference to the reduction of the credit risk and not the attractiveness and accessibility of loan products.
Development Trajectories of Small Towns in East Slovakia
Authors: Novotný Ladislav , Csachová Stela , Kulla Marián , Nestorová-Dická Janetta , Pregi Loránt
Published: January 2017

Small towns, compared to larger cities, are specific group of municipalities with weaker performance in many spheres of socio-economic development. The aim of the paper is to comprehensively evaluate development of twelve small towns in the region of East Slovakia over the centuries up to present. The paper deals with question how their demographic and economic developments have been reciprocally influenced under particular historical circumstances. Using various sources of statistical data and employing traditional historical, mathematical-statistical and cartographical methods, regularities and patterns were identified that enabled us to categorize small towns and evaluate their development trajectories and current roles in the settlement system. In the most cases, they are still valid nodes for their hinterlands even though their past situation has been unfavourable.
Economic optimization of the rotation age of stands
Authors: Płotkowski Lech , Zając Stanisław , Wysocka-Fijorek Emilia , Gruchała Arkadiusz , Piekutin Jarosław , Parzych Stanisław
Published: January 2017

The central task of this research was to choose the age at which stands of growing timber should be harvested. The choice governs how long each stand must continue to earn interest, and also governs the size of the total inventory that must be maintained to sustain the annual harvest. It is a problem that calls for analysis of biological as well as economic relationships over time, and has intrigued economists for more than two centuries. The paper presents the theoretical background and results of economic optimization of the rotation age of a single stand. It analyses the timber production function depending on rotation age, growth, cost and other characteristics of forest, as well as the costs of land. The prerequisite for achieving the economic optimum of the rotation age of a stand is to balance the current increase in the total timber production value (growth and yield) and the value of opportunity costs from delaying cutting till the next year. This paper demonstrates how this economically optimum rotation age can be calculated, and how it varies according to the biological growth and economic parameters of the forest.
Health condition of the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) in Kampinos National Park – preliminary studies
Authors: Tyburski Łukasz , Przybylski Paweł
Published: January 2017

In 2015 in Kampinos National Park (KNP), monitoring of tree crown condition was conducted in specimens of the Scots pine, which is the dominant tree species in the park (73.3%). The monitoring was aimed at providing information about the health of pine trees in the national park area. The monitoring was conducted on 26 plots throughout the park. The stands where the pine is not a dominant species were omitted. On each plot, 20 trees were subjected to assessment. In total, 520 pine trees were examined. The monitoring was conducted by the assessment of tree crowns based on the adapted forest monitoring methodology conducted as part of National Environmental Monitoring. On the basis of the monitoring, it was found that 75.4% of the trees are characterised by slight defoliation and 94.4% of the specimens were not found to have discoloration of the assimilation apparatus. No differences were found between areas situated closer and further from the administrative borders of Warsaw. On the basis of the monitoring, it was found that the pine trees in KNP are in a good health condition. Dendrometric measurements show that the average diameter at breast height (DBH) of the analysed trees is 26.6 cm. The average height of the trees is 20.4 m. The average age of the examined tree stands is 84. The monitoring will be continued in subsequent years in order to record the changes taking place in tree crowns.
Optimal PV Location Choice Considering Static and Dynamic Constraints
Authors: Mosbah M , Khattara A , Becherif M , Arif S.
Published: January 2017

A new photovoltaic (PV) farm is proposed to be integrated in GHARDAIA bus distribution network (Gh-17 bus), this paper studies the optimal location of this PV farm in the distribution network. The study is done in IEEE-14 bus then it is validated in Gh-17 bus network, the constraints considered for the choice of the optimal location are the stability margin, power loss and critical clearing time (CCT) in case of line fault. The simulation results are given using the PSAT.
A QGIS Plugin for Offshore Wave Hindcasting Based on Geographic Transposition of Wave Gauge Data
Authors: Pasanisi F. , Tebano C.
Published: January 2017

The paper presents a first experimental version of the original QGIS plugin QWaveTransposition that numerically implements the geographic transposition of wave gauge data method proposed by Contini and De Girolamo (1998) for offshore wave hindcasting. The method allows one to transfer wave data measured at a given gauging station to a virtual station located offshore the area of interest, by comparing the effective fetches at both stations. The QWaveTransposition plugin was implemented in Python programming language, including the NumPy package for numerical computations. A graphical user interface was developed to manage the input/output data and model parameters. The fetch geometry at real and virtual stations can be imported by selecting appropriate vector layers from the QGIS map. An application to a sample site in southern Italy is presented for example purposes.
Are Empires Striking Back? A Political and Cultural Comparison of the European Union and Russia
Authors: Dumetz Jérôme
Published: January 2017

The article is a position paper focusing on the current standoff between two regional powers, the European Union and Russia. Following a series of crises, in particular the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in 2014, the relationship between Russia and many of its neighbours has significantly deteriorated. This shift has led to various geopolitical opinions, often opposite and seemingly irreconcilable. A holistic and historical approach to this new reality leads some to question the validity of the current world order through the prism of the anachronistic concept of Empires. Subsequent to a review of definitions, the author analyses historical characteristics and political factors of the two territories on focus: the European Union and Russia. There are two outcomes of this study: On the one side, the European Union has become an organisation that shares many characteristics of an Empire, but several key elements exclude it from this political construction. On the other side, the geopolitical actions of Russia have shaped the position of the country into a structure that bears many of the artefacts of an Empire with key essential features. The conclusion of this argument states that the European Union is not an Empire by design, despite many resembling features; whilst Russia lives in an anachronistic paradigm of an Empire, without having the means of being one.
Problems Related to the Abolition of Divided Real Estate Ownership
Authors: Dinsberga Jolanta , Tiesniece Ilona
Published: January 2017

Legal relationship between apartment owners in residential buildings and the land owners, that is, divided real estate ownership, was created in the Republic of Latvia in 1990, within the framework of the Land Reform, restoring property rights of the former owners or their heirs or privatising apartments in multi-apartment residential buildings. The existence of such legal relationship created different lease problems and restrictions on the property rights to the owners of both the building and the land. To abolish the legal relationship related to divided real estate ownership, the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Latvia has developed a draft law Regarding the Abolition of Mandatory Divided Real Estate Ownership in Multi-Apartment Buildings (hereinafter referred to as Draft Law). Unfortunately, in the opinion of authors of this article, there are serious shortcomings to the Draft Law which must be corrected. The aim of the research is to identify the problematic issues by selecting and analysing the legislation on the abolition of the divided real estate ownership, which is related to the calculation of redemption price, payment method and consequences of non-payment, which are not regulated by the new Draft Law. The article reflects research on the determination and calculation of redemption price reglamented by the Draft Law and also analyses the Law of December 8, 1938, On the Abolition of Divided Real Estate Ownership and its practical implementation, which may significantly influence the redemption price and the method of its calculation; however, the mentioned law has been disregarded in developing the Draft Law. Thus the research has both theoretical and practical significance. For the research purposes general research methods, such as historical, analytical, inductive, deductive, logical-constructive and descriptive methods, are used. For the interpretation of legislation norms, grammatical, systemic, teleological and historical methods are used.
Using literature to explore interpersonal theory: Representation of rhetorical objectification and oppression
Authors: Thompson Carol , Kleine Michael
Published: January 2017

This essay explains pedagogical experiment at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock using a piece of literature as a case study to examine interpersonal-communication concepts and to emphasize a course theme of objectification of other human beings. The course, entitled Rhetoric and Communication, has two co-instructors. One instructor is from Rhetoric and Writing, the other is from Communication. This essay reviews the course they teach, along with the readings they require, and it selects The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, to illustrate how interpersonal themes play out in a literary text and how objectification thwarts deeply personal values. Initially, the essay summarizes key interpersonal concepts (schema theory, coordinated management of meaning, the work of Martin Buber, and Knapp’s work on relationship stages). It then considers students’ work as they produce a “filtered” summary, a summary that endeavors to apply the interpersonal concepts being studied to Kafka’s work. Finally, it explains how summaries work, the “passage hunt” exercise, and how text-based class discussions can lead to lively discussion, robust student writing and a richer understanding of interpersonal concepts as well as the part objectification plays in damaging relationships. Thus, the paper illustrates several pedagogical strategies as it explores how The Metamorphosis becomes a literary case study that answers the question: how did this fictional family create communication that resulted in such communicative tragedy?
Teacher’s conceptions of quality in dance education expressed through grade conferences
Authors: Andersson Ninnie
Published: January 2017

The aim of the study is to illuminate a teacher‘s conceptions of quality expressed through verbal and non-verbal actions in relation to summative assessments of dance knowledge. The following research questions are considered in the study: What conceptions of quality emerge during grade conferences? In what ways do teacher’s conceptions of quality reflect knowledge hierarchies? How do the teacher’s and student’s conceptions of quality relate to each other? To grasp the phenomenon, material was gathered during observations in a Swedish upper secondary school and from the teacher’s written reflections. Individual grading conversations were observed between the teacher and ten students attending a course called Dance technique 1. In the analytical process, the phenomenon was seen, broadened out, varied, and then condensed into two themes: conceptions of quality expressed through the teacher‘s focus on abilities and conceptions of quality expressed through views on the progression of dance knowledge.
Leaves and roots of Typha latifolia L. and Iris pseudacorus L. as bioindicators of contamination of bottom sediments by heavy metals
Authors: Parzych Agnieszka , Cymer Małgorzata , Macheta Kamila
Published: January 2017

The paper concerns the bioaccumulation of zinc, nickel, iron and manganese in leaves and roots of selected macrophytes from the Krzynia Reservoir (northern Poland). The research was conducted within the area of 10 stations situated in the littoral zone of the reservoir. Samples of surface waters, bottom sediments and plants were taken in summer. Heavy metal content was determined by the atomic absorption spectrometry method (ASA). The concentration of heavy metals in the waters of Krzynia Reservoir was low and noinfluence of anthropogenic factors was found. Concentration of heavy metals in the examined bottom sediments was low and remained within the limits of the geochemical background for Zn and Fe. In the case of Ni and Mn it sporadically exceeded the level of the geochemical background. The tested plants mainly accumulated heavy metals in roots, with the exception of nickel which appeared in larger quantities in leaves. The relationships among the content of the determined elements in the organs of macrophytes was identical for the tested species and could be arranged into the following sequences: Mn>Fe>Ni>Zn in leaves and Fe>Mn>Zn>Ni in roots. Statistically significant differences were found in the content of Mn in leaves and Zn and Fe in the roots of Typha latifolia L. and Iris pseudacorus L. By accumulating substantial quantities of heavy metals in their organs, macrophytes constitute an effective protective barrier for the waters and bottom sediments.
Some Japanese Shakespeare Productions in 2014-15
Authors: Kawai Shoichiro
Published: January 2017

This essay focuses on some Shakespeare productions in Japan during 2014 and 2015. One is a Bunraku version of Falstaff, for which the writer himself wrote the script. It is an amalgamation of scenes from The Merry Wives of Windsor and those from Henry IV. It was highly reputed and its stage design was awarded a 2014 Yomiuri Theatre Award. Another is a production of Much Ado about Nothing produced by the writer himself in a theatre-in-the-round in his new translation. Another is a production of Macbeth arranged and directed by Mansai Nomura the Kyogen performer. All the characters besides Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were performed by the three witches, suggesting that the whole illusion was produced by the witches. It was highly acclaimed worldwide. Another is a production of Hamlet directed by Yukio Ninagawa, with Tatsuya Fujiwara in the title role. It was brought to the Barbican theatre. There were also many other Shakespeare productions to commemorate the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth.
Hamlet and Japanese Men of Letters
Authors: Kawachi Yoshiko
Published: January 2017

Shakespeare has exerted a powerful influence on Japanese literature since he was accepted in the second half of the nineteenth century. Particularly Hamlet has had a strong impact on Japanese men of letters and provided them with the impetus to revive the play in contemporary literature. In this paper I discuss how they have utilized Hamlet for their creative activity and enriched Japanese literature.
Contamination of runoff waters with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the city of Siedlce
Authors: Kluska Mariusz , Łopuszyńska Beata , Jabłońska Joanna
Published: January 2017

The paper presents the results of the research on content of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in samples of runoff waters collected in Siedlce city. The samples were collected in March, July and October 2015. The highest mean total concentration of 16 PAHs amounting to 12.54 μmolּdm-3 was determined in water samples collected at Łukowska Street, whereas the lowest concentrations (1.90 μmolּdm-3) were found in samples collected at Warszawska Street. In some samples, small amounts of benzo(a)pyrene were present; the average content ranged from 0.02 μmol⋅dm-3 at Warszawska Street to 0.20 μmolּdm-3 at Garwolińska Street.
Changes of plant cover of the raised peat-bog Baligówka under the influence of human activity
Authors: Malec Magdalena , Klatka Sławomir , Ryczek Marek , Kruk Edyta
Published: January 2017

The main purpose of the work was to determine the scope and degree of the influence of exploitation on changes of plant cover of the raised peat-bog Baligówka, located in the Orawsko- Nowotarska Valley. The analysis was carried out based on 47 phytosociological surveys using the Braun-Blanquet method. Results of investigations allow to state that excessive drying and fires that took place on the examined object caused wastage of many precious species of plants, especially from the Oxycocco- Sphagnetea class. Their place occupied species belonging to other classes, such as Nardo-Callunetea and Molinio-Arrhenatheretea. The basic cause of drying of the peat-bog and, in consequence, dying of peat formation species is intensified exploitation and connected with this drainage, carried out in the half of the 20th century. Unfortunately, local people up to now illegally have harvested the peat on the investigated object. Decrease in groundwater level leads to accelerated decay of peat, changes in physical and chemical properties of a substratum and, in consequence, changes in trophic values of habitat, what causes great changes in species composition of plant communities.
A supine cranio-spinal irradiation technique using moving field junctions
Authors: Mani Karthick Raj , Sapru Shantanu , Maria Das K. J. , Basu Ayan
Published: January 2017

Aim: To demonstrate a simple technique of cranio-spinal irradiation (CSI) in supine position using inter fraction moving field junctions to feather out any potential hot and cold spots.

Materials and Methods: Fifteen patients diagnosed with medulloblastoma were treated during the period February 2011 to June 2015 were included in this study. Out of fifteen patients in the study nine were male and 6 were female with a median age of 13.4 years (range 5-27 years). All the patients were positioned supine on CT simulation, immobilized using thermoplastic mask and aligned using room based laser system. Two parallel opposed lateral fields for the whole brain using an asymmetrical jaw with isocenter at C2 vertebral body. A posterior field also placed to cover the cervical and dorsal field using the same isocenter at C2. The second isocenter was placed at lumbar vertebral region to cover the remaining dorsal, lumbar and sacral region using an inter-fraction moving junction. Field-in-field and enhanced dynamic wedge used to homogeneous dose distribution when required.

Results and Discussion: In this study, we found that only two patients failed in the primary site, no radiation myelitis or recurrences in the filed junctions were reported in these fifteen patients with a median follow-up of 36.4 months. The automated sequence of treatment plans with moving junctions in the comfortable supine position negating the need for manual junction matching or junction shifts avoiding potential treatment errors and also facilitating delivery of anesthesia where necessary.
Predictive Value of Updating te Score Cardiovascular Risk Assessment Engine with Novel Biomarkers in a Type 2 Diabetes Population
Authors: Popa Loredana Mӑdӑlina , Timar Bogdan , Popa Amorin Remus , Popescu Mircea Ioachim
Published: January 2017

Background and Aims: The aim of the study was to estimate the predictive value of some new biomarkers in the assessment of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in a type 2 diabetes (T2DM) population and to perform a correlation between the SCORE risk results and the risk profile estimated by the use of these biomarkers. Finally, we aimed to establish if the CVD risk assessment can be improved by adding the biomarkers into the SCORE risk equation. Material and Methods: In the study population the CVD risk assessment was performed using the SCORE High Risk Chart. The new individual biomarkers were: estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), urinary albumin excretion (UAE) rate, albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR), cystatin C, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) and apolipoprotein B (apo-B). Results: The SCORE risk prediction model results were significantly altered by adding in the equation apo-B and HDLc values. An increase of one standard deviation of the apo-B values caused the increase of the SCORE results with 0.19 standard deviations while an increase of one standard deviation of the HDLc values decreased the SCORE results with 0.26 standard deviations. Conclusions: Advanced lipid testing, including the measurement of apo-B, provides a more comprehensive cardiac risk assessment and should be used in the development of specifically designed risk-scores for T2DM individuals.
Attitude measuring in media coverage
Authors: Gryczan Konrad
Published: January 2017

This article present an approach to elaboration of tools for measuring of attitude in media messages. Emotions hidden in single words can have significant influence on recipient of message. Therefore effort of compiling method and indices have been taken. Osgood’s semantic differential and Likert’s scale was main techniques considered in this issue and final thoughts were basing on them. Many different obstacles are indicated for future improvements of techniques and further elaborations.
Implementation of ecological network in existing conditions of municipal spatial management
Authors: Pawłat-Zawrzykraj Agata , Podawca Konrad
Published: January 2017

Contemporary socio-economic development requires a rational and sustainable land management. The pressure for urbanization and building development, existing infrastructural barriers and creation of the new ones, contribute to fragmentation of landscape and thus increase isolation of biologically active areas. Idea of ecological network as a tool for maintaining ecological connectivity is not new and has broad theoretical bases, but implementation of this concept in real-life scenarios is very challenging. The article presents existing formal and legal possibilities of implementing ecological networks, enacted as a part of municipal spatial policy. Differentiated approach to implementation of the idea of ecological connectivity is presented on the example of two suburban municipalities Piaseczno and Góra Kalwaria. Ecological network and especially ecological corridors in these areas have varied status of nature conservation and development of investments is implemented either in accordance with local spatial development plans or, in case of lack of the plans, in accordance with development conditions decision. Analysis of changes in spatial development of the municipalities was used to identify risk areas of losing the ecological connectivity.
Application of Digital Elevation Model (DEM) for description of soil microtopography changes in laboratory experiments
Authors: Stańczyk Tomasz , Baryła Anna
Published: January 2017

In the study we evaluated spatial and quantitative changes in soil surface microtopography to describe water erosion process under simulated rain with use of a non-contact optical 3D scanner. The experiment was conducted in two variants: with and without drainage layer. Two clay soils collected from farmlands from the catchment of lake Zgorzała (Warsaw) were investigated. Six tests of simulated rain were applied, with 55 mm·h−1. The surface roughness and microrelief were determined immediately after every 10 min of rainfall simulation by 3D scanner. The volume of surface and underground runoff as well as soil moisture were measured. The surface points coordinates obtained while scanning were interpolated using natural neighbour method and GIS software to generate Digital Elevation Models (DEM) with a 0.5 mm resolution. Two DEM-derived surface roughness indices: Random Roughness (RR) and Terrain Ruggedness Index (TRI) were used for microrelief description. Calculated values of both roughness factors have decreased with time under the influence of rainfall in all analyzed variants. During the sprinkling the moisture of all samples had been growing rapidly from air-dry state reaching values close to the maximum water capacity (37–48% vol.) in 20–30 min. Simultaneously the intensity of surface runoff was increasing and cumulative runoff value was: 17–35% for variants with drainage and 72–83% for the variants without drainage, relative to cumulative rainfall. The observed soil surface elevation changes were associated with aggregates decomposition, erosion and sedimentation, and above all, with a compaction of the soil, which was considered to be a dominant factor hindering the assessment of the erosion intensity of the of the scanned surface.
Serbian Sokol in Gary (Indiana)
Authors: Pavlović Petar , Živanović Nenad , Pantelić-Babić Kristina , Pavlović Danilo
Published: January 2017

Serbs in America (SAD) started to accept the idea of Slavic and Serbian Sokolism at the beginning of 1909, when also started first ideas for formation of Serbian Sokol societies. During the second half of the same year two societies were formed, and during years to follow societies were formed in all other places of America (USA) inhabited with Serbs. During 1910 five societies were formed, among them also Serbian Sokol society in Gary (Indiana). Goal of this paper is to research the work of Society and all his activities from its formation until end of June 1914. During writing authors used historical method.
New physical education paradigm: Following in professor Matic's footsteps
Authors: Petrović Goran
Published: January 2017

This paper analyses the current position of physical culture in the society. It points out the social changes that have substantially suppressed the term physical education and replaced it with the phrase, physical education and sport. In the light of need to reinstate this term into the professional discourse, there was a reminder of the importance and the social scientific contribution to creation of the Theory of physical culture by MilivojeMatic. The critical analysis of the current state of physical education was also conducted. In order to improve physical education classes, a new paradigm of physical education, that will be based on installation of the functional system of physical education and curriculum reform, has to be created. New physical education paradigm signalizes the return to the physical culture - following in professor Matic's footsteps.
Trapping Aliens: Understanding the Complexities of Controlling Introduced Freshwater Crayfish in the United Kingdom
Authors: Adams Emily
Published: January 2017

Invasive non-native species pose practical and ethical problems for the people tasked with their management. Invasive freshwater crayfish species in the UK threaten rare native crayfish and freshwater habitats, yet their control is beset with social, practical and environmental barriers to success. This paper draws on an interdisciplinary study of stakeholders involved in crayfish management in East Anglia to explore the management of non-native freshwater crayfish in the UK. It concludes that when standard methods of control fail, stakeholders are willing to consider unusual management suggestions such as commercial trapping, whilst recognising that these may bring their own problems.
Uniform Distribution of the Sequence of Balancing Numbers Modulo m
Authors: Ray Prasanta Kumar , Patel Bijan Kumar
Published: January 2017

The balancing numbers and the balancers were introduced by Behera et al. in the year 1999, which were obtained from a simple diophantine equation. The goal of this paper is to investigate the moduli for which all the residues appear with equal frequency with a single period in the sequence of balancing numbers. Also, it is claimed that, the balancing numbers are uniformly distributed modulo 2, and this holds for all other powers of 2 as well. Further, it is shown that the balancing numbers are not uniformly distributed over odd primes.
On the Conjecture of Lehmer, Limit Mahler Measure of Trinomials and Asymptotic Expansions
Authors: Verger-Gaugry Jean-Louis
Published: January 2017

Letn ≥2 be an integer and denote byθnthe real root in (0, 1) of the trinomialGn(X) = −1 +X+Xn. The sequence of Perron numbers(θn−1)n≥2$(\theta _n^{ - 1} )_{n \ge 2} $tends to 1. We prove that the Conjecture of Lehmer is true for{θn−1|n≥2}$\{ \theta _n^{ - 1} |n \ge 2\} $by the direct method of Poincaré asymptotic expansions (divergent formal series of functions) of the rootsθn,zj,n, ofGn(X) lying in|z|< 1, as a function ofn, jonly. This method, not yet applied to Lehmer’s problem up to the knowledge of the author, is successfully introduced here. It first gives the asymptotic expansion of the Mahler measuresM(Gn)=M(θn)=M(θn−1)${\rm{M}}(G_n ) = {\rm{M}}(\theta _n ) = {\rm{M}}(\theta _n^{ - 1} )$of the trinomialsGnas a function ofnonly, without invoking Smyth’s Theorem, and their unique limit point above the smallest Pisot number. Comparison is made with Smyth’s, Boyd’s and Flammang’s previous results. By this method we obtain a direct proof that the conjecture of Schinzel-Zassenhaus is true for{θn−1|n≥2}$\{ \theta _n^{ - 1} |n \ge 2\} $, with a minoration of the house, and a minoration of the Mahler measure M(Gn) better than Dobrowolski’s one. The angular regularity of the roots ofGn, near the unit circle, and limit equidistribution of the conjugates, forntending to infinity (in the sense of Bilu, Petsche, Pritsker), towards the Haar measure on the unit circle, are described in the context of the Erdős-Turán-Amoroso-Mignotte theory, with uniformly bounded discrepancy functions.
On Hausdorff Dimensions Related to Sets with Given Asymptotic and Gap Densities
Authors: Mišík Ladislav , Šustek Jan , Volkmann Bodo
Published: January 2017

For a set A of positive integers a
1
< a
2
< · · ·, let
d
(A),

d
¯

(
A
)

$\overline d (A)$

denote its lower and upper asymptotic densities. The gap density is defined as

λ
(
A
)
=
lim
⁡
 

sup

n
→
∞

a

n
+
1

a
n

$\lambda (A) = \lim \;{\rm sup} _{n \to \infty } {{a_{n + 1} } \over {a_n }}$

. The paper investigates the class 𝒢(α, β, γ) of all sets A with
d
(A) = α,

d
¯

(
A
)
=
β

$\overline d (A) = \beta $

and λ(A) = γ for given α, β, γ with 0 ≤ α ≤ β ≤ 1 ≤ γ and αγ ≤ β. Using the classical dyadic mapping

ϱ
(
A
)
=

∑

n
=
1

∞

χ
A

(
n
)

2
n

$\varrho (A) = \sum\nolimits_{n = 1}^\infty {{{\chi _A (n)} \over {2^n }}} $

, where χA
is the characteristic function of A, the main result of the paper states that the ϱ-image set ϱ𝒢(α, β, γ) has the Hausdorff dimension

dim
ϱ
𝒢
(
α
,
β
,
γ
)
=
min
⁡

{

δ
(
α
)
,
δ
(
β
)
,

1
γ

max
⁡

σ
∈
[
α
γ
,
β
]

δ
(
σ
)

}

,

$$\dim \varrho \cal {G}(\alpha ,\beta ,\gamma ) = \min \left\{ {\delta (\alpha ),\delta (\beta ), { 1 \over \gamma }\mathop {\max }\limits_{\sigma \in [\alpha \gamma ,\beta ]} \delta (\sigma )} \right\},$$

where δ is the entropy function

δ
(
x
)
=
−
x
 

log
2

 
x
−
(
1
−
x
)
 

log
2

 
(
1
−
x
)
.

$$\delta (x) = - x\log _2 x - (1 - x)\;\log _2 (1 - x).$$
Convergence Results forr-Iterated Means of the Denominators of the Lüroth Series
Authors: Giuliano Rita
Published: January 2017

In the present paper we extend two classic asymptotic results concerning convergence in probability and convergence in distribution for the denominators of the Lüroth series and obtain new theorems concerning the same two kinds of convergence for ther-iterated arithmetic means of such denominators. These results are extended tor-iterated weighted means.
Impact of food, alcohol and pH on modified-release hydrocortisone developed to treat congenital adrenal hyperplasia
Authors: Karunasena Nayananjani , Margetson Daniel N , Neal Greg , Whitaker Martin J , Ross Richard JM
Published: January 2017

Background

We developed a modified-release hydrocortisone, Chronocort, to replace the cortisol rhythm in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Food, alcohol and pH affect drug absorption, and it is important to assess their impact when replicating a physiological rhythm.

Subjects and methods

In vitro dissolution to study impact of alcohol and pH on Chronocort. A phase 1, three-period, cross over study in 18 volunteers to assess the impact of food on Chronocort and to compare bioavailability to immediate-release hydrocortisone.

Results

In vitro dissolution of Chronocort was not affected by gastrointestinal pH up to 6.0 nor by an alcohol content up to 20% v/v. Food delayed and reduced the rate of absorption of Chronocort as reflected by a longer Tmax (fed vs fasted: 6.75 h vs 4.5 h, P = 0005) and lower Cmax (549.49 nmol/L vs 708.46 nmol/L, ratio 77% with CI 71–85). Cortisol exposure was similar in fed and fasted state: Geo LSmean ratio (CI) AUC0t for fed/fasted was 108.33% (102.30–114.72%). Cortisol exposure was higher for Chronocort compared to immediate-release hydrocortisone: Geo LSmean ratios (CI) 118.83% (111.58–126.54%); however, derived free cortisol showed cortisol exposure CIs were within 80.0–125.0%: Geo LSmean ratio (CI) for AUC0t 112.73% (105.33–120.65%).

Conclusions

Gastric pH ≤6.0 and alcohol do not affect hydrocortisone release from Chronocort. Food delays Chronocort absorption, but cortisol exposure is similar in the fasted and fed state and exposure as assessed by free cortisol is similar between Chronocort and immediate-release hydrocortisone.
Effect of bovine oviductal extracellular vesicles on embryo development and quality in vitro
Authors: Lopera-Vasquez Ricaurte , Hamdi Meriem , Maillo Veronica , Gutierrez-Adan Alfonso , Bermejo-Alvarez Pablo , Ramírez Miguel Ángel , Yáñez-Mó María , Rizos Dimitrios
Published: January 2017

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of extracellular vesicles (EV) from oviductal fluid (OF), either from the ampulla or isthmus, on the development and quality of in vitro-cultured bovine embryos. Zygotes were cultured in synthetic oviduct fluid (SOF + 3 mg/mL BSA) without calf serum (C− group), in the presence of 3 × 105 EV/mL from ampullary or isthmic OF at either 1 × 104 g (10 K) or 1 × 105 g (100 K), and compared with SOF + 5% FCS (C+ group). OF-EV size and concentration were assessed by electron microscopy and nanotracking analysis system. Embryo development was recorded on Days 7–9, and blastocyst quality was assessed through cryotolerance and gene expression analysis. Lower blastocyst yield was observed on Day 7 in the C− and OF-EV groups (12.0–14.3%) compared with C+ (20.6%); however, these differences were compensated at Days 8 and 9 (Day 9: 28.5–30.8%). Importantly, the survival rate of blastocysts produced with isthmic 100 K OF-EV was higher than that of C+ and C− group at 72 h after vitrification and warming (80.1 vs 34.5 and 50.5% respectively, P < 0.05). In terms of gene expression, blastocysts produced in the presence of 100 K isthmic OF-EV upregulated the water channel AQP3 and DNMT3A and SNRPN transcripts compared with the C+, with the expression in C− being intermediate. The lipid receptor LDLR was downregulated in C+ compared with all other groups. In conclusion, the addition of oviductal fluid extracellular vesicles from isthmus, to in vitro culture of bovine embryos in the absence of serum improves the development and quality of the embryos produced.
Meiotic Consequences of Genetic Divergence Across the Murine Pseudoautosomal Region
Authors: Dumont Beth L
Published: January 2017

The production of haploid gametes during meiosis is dependent on the homology-driven processes of pairing, synapsis, and recombination. On the mammalian heterogametic sex chromosomes, these key meiotic activities are confined to the pseudoautosomal region (PAR), a short region of near-perfect sequence homology between the X and Y chromosomes. Despite its established importance for meiosis, the PAR is rapidly evolving, raising the question of how proper X/Y segregation is buffered against the accumulation of homology-disrupting mutations. Here, I investigate the interplay of PAR evolution and function in two interfertile house mouse subspecies characterized by structurally divergent PARs, Mus musculus domesticus and M. m. castaneus. Using cytogenetic methods to visualize the sex chromosomes at meiosis, I show that intersubspecific F1 hybrids harbor an increased frequency of pachytene spermatocytes with unsynapsed sex chromosomes. This high rate of asynapsis is due, in part, to the premature release of synaptic associations prior to completion of prophase I. Further, I show that when sex chromosomes do synapse in intersubspecific hybrids, recombination is reduced across the paired region. Together, these meiotic defects afflict ∼50% of spermatocytes from F1 hybrids and lead to increased apoptosis in meiotically dividing cells. Despite flagrant disruption of the meiotic program, a subset of spermatocytes complete meiosis and intersubspecific F1 males remain fertile. These findings cast light on the meiotic constraints that shape sex chromosome evolution and offer initial clues to resolve the paradox raised by the rapid evolution of this functionally significant locus.
Detecting High-Order Epistasis in Nonlinear Genotype-Phenotype Maps
Authors: Sailer Zachary R , Harms Michael J
Published: January 2017

High-order epistasis has been observed in many genotype-phenotype maps. These multi-way interactions between mutations may be useful for dissecting complex traits and could have profound implications for evolution. Alternatively, they could be a statistical artifact. High-order epistasis models assume the effects of mutations should add, when they could in fact multiply or combine in some other nonlinear way. A mismatch in the “scale” of the epistasis model and the scale of the underlying map would lead to spurious epistasis. In this article, we develop an approach to estimate the nonlinear scales of arbitrary genotype-phenotype maps. We can then linearize these maps and extract high-order epistasis. We investigated seven experimental genotype-phenotype maps for which high-order epistasis had been reported previously. We find that five of the seven maps exhibited nonlinear scales. Interestingly, even after accounting for nonlinearity, we found statistically significant high-order epistasis in all seven maps. The contributions of high-order epistasis to the total variation ranged from 2.2 to 31.0%, with an average across maps of 12.7%. Our results provide strong evidence for extensive high-order epistasis, even after nonlinear scale is taken into account. Further, we describe a simple method to estimate and account for nonlinearity in genotype-phenotype maps.