The Burden of the Past, the Dialectics of the Present: Notes on Virginia Woolf's and Walter Benjamin's Philosophies of History

Writing in a Paris rife with war-anxieties, refugees and political plots, a stateless individual by the name of Walter Benjamin recorded on 11 January 1940: “Every line that we succeed in publishing today - given the uncertainty of the future to which we consign it - is a victory wrested from the power of darkness.” The fusion of desperation and mystical activism in the face of historical horror, expressed in Benjamin's last letter to Gershom Scholem, was echoed across the Channel. Only ten days later, Virginia Woolf - assailed by a mixture of historical, financial, creative and publishing worries - responded to a commission to write about peace by stating that the “views on peace […] spring from views on war.” </jats:p

The Economic Value of Industrial Minerals and Rocks for Developing Countries: A Discussion of Key Issues

This paper provides a few general comments on the nature and economic value of industrial minerals and rocks and the need for an increased exploitation and use of these materials in developing countries. These materials are of great economic value as main raw materials for the construction, glass, abrasive, paper, chemical, ceramics, metallurgical and agricultural industries. Developing countries dispose of many of these materials, and could derive greater economic benefits from them. Per capita consumption of industrial mineral products continues to grow in developed countries and part of this demand could be met by exports from developing countries. The paper describes some of the issues to be addressed and steps to be taken if developing countries are to gain from industrial minerals and rocksEconomic value industrial minerals and rocks; consumption industrial minerals and rocks; production industrial minerals and rocks; developing countries benefit minerals and roc

The Pleasures of Daldaldal: Freud, Jokes, and the Development of Intersubjective Aesthetics

This article focuses on Freud's account of joking in Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscious (Der Witz und seine Beziehung zum Unbewußten, 1905) in its historical and cultural context. Freud's treatise, the author argues, must be reclaimed for modernist studies for at least two reasons. First, Freud's contribution to theories of laughter presents an important threshold in intellectual history – one that sees the emergence of contemporary notions of intersubjectivity, language, and art-production. Second and consequential to the first, Freud's 1905 assessment of joke-work deserves to be recontextualized as a modernist text in its own right. These motives provide the argumentative line and shape to the present article. It first investigates the Freudian intersubjective theory of jokes and its diverse contexts and then suggests some avenues for assessing Freud's book on jokes as a meaningful participant in a discourse and practice of modernist artistic engagement with the comic. Freud's reflections on joke-work, it is argued, amount to a seminal modernist theory not only because they purposefully depart from and rework traditional and contemporary assessments of humour but also because of their particular position in relation to modernist artistic discourse-practice as such

Gaps, Or the Dialectics of Inter-imperial Art: The Case of the Belgrade Surrealist Circle

This article reflects on the challenges posed to literary studies by cases of inter-imperial positionality: their repercussions on our understanding of lived temporalities, the strategies we use to translate this understanding into art and fiction, and the critical tools we deploy to evaluate thus produced artworks. To assist in these ruminations I make operational the category of inter-imperiality and tackle the phenomena of placedness, translatability, and the futurity of artwork. My guides are the multi-ethnic history of the Belgrade district called Dorćol and four modernist artworks from the region: the Yugoslav surrealists’ piece of engagement art "Facing a Wall: A Simulation of the Paranoiac Delirium of Interpretation. Survey" ("Pred jednim zidom: Simulacija paranojačkog delirijuma interpretacije. Anketa, 1932"); two 1935 photographs by Vane Bor; and Marko Ristić’s 1928 anti-novel Without a Measure (Bez mere, 1928)

Transitional justice and the arts: Reflections on the field

The arts present both a catalyst mechanism and an important information and reparation tool to support societies in transition. Artworks speak of the challenges of transition, foster, and, on occasion, hinder transitional processes. The artistic expressions can provide informal counterparts for the most significant mechanisms of transitional justice: truth and reconciliation process, public lustration, public apology, psychological reparation, demand for public access to governmental records, and others. They can also stimulate awareness of the need to implement transitional justice mechanisms in societies that do not otherwise perceive themselves as being “transitional”. In any of these cases, such unofficial probing of transition exposes the commensurabilities and disparities between the general reading of the rule of law and its local perception, and the external and the internal practices in place to promote legality in a given community

From intelligence to wisdom

Importance of radiology as a profession is massive. Rarely will any hospitalised patient finish his journey without visiting the radiology department. So, if we develop a system that will help radiology to increase productivity and accuracy while keeping the patient safe, the effects of this technology will also be massive. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has shown a potential to be one possible technology to revolutionise the radiology service. Over the last ten years, publications on AI in radiology have increased from 100–150 per year to 700–800 per year (Pesapane et al., 2018) highlighting the importance of the topic. In 2016 was predicted that „machine learning will displace much of the work of radiologists and anatomical pathologists“ (Obermeyer and Emanuel, 2016), and that machines will replace doctors because „when professional work is broken down into component parts, many of the tasks involved turn out to be routine and process-based. They do not, in fact, call for judgment, creativity, or empathy“ (Susskind and Susskind, 2016). There is more evidence of scientists overestimated the potential of AI, and probably the most famous one was from one of the AI pioneers, winner of the Association for Computing Machinery Turing Award, who stated in 2016: „People should stop training radiologists now“ (Geoff Hinton: On Radiology – YouTube, 2016)

Essais sur les sources des dynamiques macroéconomiques

Cette thèse examine les sources des dynamiques macroéconomiques à l’aide des modèles d’équilibre général dynamique et stochastique (DSGE). Le sujet est motivé par l’impact négatif que peuvent avoir les fluctuations importantes de l’activité économique sur la croissance des économies à long terme et le bien-être des ménages. Dans un premier temps, nous revisitons l’impact de l’économie informelle sur les fluctuations économiques. La plupart des travaux dans ce domaine soutiennent qu’une mauvaise mesure de l’économie informelle dans les comptes nationaux surestime la volatilité des variables macroéconomiques. Nous estimons que ces résultats sont en partie liés au fait que dans ces études, le nombre de firmes qui produisent dans les secteurs formel et informel est fixe dans le temps. Pour tester notre hypothèse, nous construisons un modèle DSGE à deux secteurs où les firmes hétérogènes du point de vue de leur productivité ont le choix de se localiser dans le secteur formel ou informel au cours du cycle économique. Ceci conduit à une fluctuation de la marge extensive de chaque secteur. Nous calibrons le modèle sur l’économie brésilienne. Les résultats montrent qu’en présence des marges extensives flexibles, une mauvaise mesure de l’économie informelle dans les comptes nationaux ne surestime pas systématiquement la volatilité de la consommation. Plus particulièrement, lorsque l’entrée des firmes dans l’industrie ou le seuil de productivité du secteur informel peuvent fluctuer dans le temps, la volatilité de la consommation qui fait abstraction du secteur informel peut être plus faible que la véritable volatilité de la consommation qui inclut les biens formels et informels. Dans un deuxième temps, nous examinons l’impact de la création et de la destruction des produits sur les dynamiques macroéconomiques. Notre étude est basée sur de récentes découvertes empiriques par Argente et al. (2018) qui montrent que la réallocation des produits, c’est-à-dire la création et la destruction de produits, passe par deux marges principales : la création et la destruction des modules de production au sein des firmes, les « extensions », et les changements dans les caractéristiques des produits au sein des modules de production que les firmes ont déjà dans leurs portefeuilles, les « améliorations ». Nous proposons donc un modèle DSGE dans lequel la réallocation des produits repose sur ces deux marges et examinons l’impact sur les dynamiques macroéconomiques des États-Unis. Nous montrons que par rapport au modèle standard qui ne tient compte que des extensions, le modèle augmenté des améliorations de produits explique mieux la dynamique de la productivité totale des facteurs (PTF) des firmes. Le mécanisme derrière nos résultats est décrit comme suit : une récession facilite la production des produits de faible qualité/faible coût, ce qui permet la survie de modules à faible productivité au sein de la firme. Ces modules ne survivraient pas dans un environnement où ils n’auraient aucune possibilité de modifier la qualité de leurs biens. Ainsi, la PTF à l’échelle de la firme diminue. À mesure que le choc récessionniste se dissipe, la proportion de modules qui utilisent une technologie coûteuse et fabriquent des biens de haute qualité augmente, ce qui augmente par ricochet la PTF de la firme. Nos résultats illustrent l’importance de reconnaître la dynamique des caractéristiques des produits au sein des lignes de production des firmes en plus de la dynamique des lignes de production elles-mêmes pour comprendre les cycles économiques. Finalement, nous considérons une économie où un secteur est formel, l’autre est informel, et la dynamique des prix agrégés inclue les changements dans la variété et la qualité des produits au fil du temps. À la question de savoir si la prise en compte des changements dans la qualité et la variété des produits dans les prix agrégés conduit à une mesure plus élevée de la volatilité de la consommation, nous montrons que la réponse dépend de la proportion du secteur informel. Si la dynamique des prix dans le secteur informel n’est pas du tout mesurée, la réponse est oui, comme le montre la littérature jusqu’à présent. Cependant, si le secteur informel est entièrement mesuré, la réponse est non, comme démontré dans cette thèse

New data on Structural Relationships in the North Dalmatian Dinaride Area

Subsurface structural relationships are presented based on gravity data and seismic reflection profiles. Reflection marker horizons and the relative positions of different rock masses and structural units have been established, and are compared with surface observations. Active zones, marked by pronounced reflection boundaries in seismic profiles, have been established, the deepest of which are connected with the Dugi Otok fault zone. Below this interface, rock masses of the Adriatic platform underthrust the Dinarides. The active underthrusting plane reaches a depth of about 17 km. In the northern part of the area under consideration, contours of upthrown rock masses at depths of 5 to 11 km have been established. The area of numerous reverse faults is particularly active, and is defined on the surface by the Obrovac-Drnis-Klis fault. Reconstruction of tectonic movements indicates that rotation of structures and dextral strike slips have occurred, particularly along this fault zone

Mjerenje radne temperature IGBT-a u stvarnom vremenu

Temperature management and control are among the most critical functions in power electronic devices. Knowledge of power semiconductor’s operating temperature is important for circuit design, as well as for converter control. Virtual junction temperature measurement or estimation is not an easy task, therefore designing the appropriate circuitry for virtual junction temperature in the real operating conditions not affecting regular circuit operation is a demanding task for engineers. The proposed method enables virtual junction temperature estimation based on the real-time measurement of semiconductor’s quasi-threshold voltage using dedicated modified gate driver circuit.Upravljanje temperaturom je jedna od najkritičnijih funkcija kod učinskih poluvodičkih komponenata. Poznavanje radne temperature učinske poluvodičke sklopke vrlo je važno pri projektiranju sklopa, kao i za upravljanje učinskim pretvaračem. Mjerenje ili estimacija nadomjesne temperature silicija nije lagan zadatak, stoga je projektiranje odgovarajućeg sklopovlja za određivanje nadomjesne temperature silicija u stvarnim radnim uvjetima, koje ne utječe na normalan rad sklopa, vrlo zahtjevan inženjerski zadatak. Predložena metoda omogućava određivanje nadomjesne temperature silicija utemeljeno na mjerenju kvazi-napona praga u stvarnom vremenu pomoću posebno prilagođenog pobudnog stupnja IGBT-a

Rural Students Transition into Higher Education in Meghalaya: Challenges and Coping Strategies

The transition from school to college is a change every student has to make in their pursuit of higher education. The transition phase is a difficult time for many students, especially to the rural students, many of whom are from a disadvantaged background. However, little literature exists in our state and the country on the transition of rural students into higher education, especially on the challenges they face and the coping strategies they have adopted. This qualitative exploratory study, therefore, aims to explore the challenges rural students in Meghalaya faced when making the transition into higher education, along with the strategies they adopted to cope with the challenges. The participants of this study consist of 68 rural students selected by the use of purposive sampling technique and the data was collected by the use of a semi-structured interview schedule. The thematic analysis method was used to analyse the interview transcripts. The study revealed rural students faced two main challenges, which are academic challenges and socio-emotional challenges, and they had adopted task-oriented coping and emotion-oriented coping strategies in coping with these challenges. The study concludes by suggesting that rural students need additional support when making the transition into higher education