Scientific Output of Croatian Universities: Comparison with Neighbouring Countries

We compared the Croatian research output with the neighboring countries and the Croatian universities with the largest Slovenian, Hungarian, and Serbian universities. As far as papers listed by Social Science Citation Index are concerned, since 2000 the University of Zagreb exhibits best results in social sciences compared to the competing universities, that is not the case in “hard” sciences. For the last 12 years, only the University of Ljubljana has shown better results in total research output than the University of Zagreb. The difference in research output between the University of Zagreb and the rest of the Croatian universities has been constantly decreasing. As a case study we compare research output at Faculty of Civil Engeenering on different Croatian universities. By analyzing European countries, we show a functional dependence between the gross domestic product (GDP) and the research output. From this fit we conclude that the Croatian science exhibits research output as expected for the given level of GDP

Raspodjela dohotka u Hrvatskoj u svjetlu zakona statističke fizike

Analiza dohotka po članu kućanstva u Hrvatskoj 1998. godine pokazuje postojanje dvaju re_ima u njihovoj raspodjeli. Kumulativna raspodjela dohodaka uglavnom se provodi prema eksponencijalnom zakonu, osim za najveće dohotke, čija raspodjela slijedi zakon potencije, odnosno Paretov zakon. Koristeći se nedavno uspostavljenom analogijom između raspodjele dohotka i statističke mehanike, procijenili smo godišnju “temperaturu hrvatske ekonomije”. Pokazuje se da je ona deseterostruko manja od temperatura razvijenih ekonomija. Vrijednost Paretova eksponenta pokazuje da su u Hrvatskoj dohoci bogatijeg sloja ravnomjernije raspodijeljeni nego u SAD-u i Velikoj Britaniji. Izračun graničnog prihoda s kojim se prelazi u “višu srednju klasu”, za koju vrijedi Paretov zakon raspodjele, upućuje na relativnu dimenziju blagostanja. Za razliku od SAD-a, gdje se u Paretov re_im većih prihoda prelazi s mjesečnim dohotkom od 5150 USD, u Hrvatskoj se takav prijelaz događa pri mjesečnom dohotku od oko 520 USD po članu kućanstva

Fractionally integrated process with power-law correlations in variables and magnitudes

We propose a new stochastic process, de ned by only two parameters, 1 and 2 , which generates power-law correlations or anticorrelations in the variable increments, and power-law correlations in their magnitudes to account for empirical observations in a range of physical systems. To demonstrate the utility of our process, we consider the case with power-law anticorrelations in the variable increments and power-law correlations in their magnitudes to model scaling properties in heartbeat data. The parameters 1 and 2 control separately the correlations in the increments and their magnitudes, and we nd linear relations between each parameter and the corresponding correlation exponent

Electronic structure and properties of (TiZrNbCu)_1-xNi_x high entropy amorphous alloys

A comprehensive study of selected properties of four (TiZrNbCu)_1-xNi_x (x \le 0.25) amorphous high entropy alloys (a-HEA) has been performed. The samples were ribbons about 20 \mum thick and their fully amorphous state was verified by X-ray diffraction and thermal analysis. The surface morphology, precise composition and the distribution of components were studied with a Scanning electron microscope (SEM) with an energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) attachment. The properties selected were the melting temperature (T_m), the low temperature specific heat (LTSH), the magnetic susceptibility \chi_exp and the Young^,s modulus (E). Whereas LTSH and \chi_exp were measured for the as-cast samples, E was measured both for as-cast samples and relaxed samples (after a short anneal close to the glass transition temperature). The LTSH showed that the electronic density of states at the Fermi level, N_0(E_F), decreases with increasing x, whereas the Debye temperature (\theta_D) increases with x. This is similar to what is observed in binary and ternary amorphous alloys of early transition metals (TE) with late transition metals (TL) and indicates that N_0(E_F) is dominated by the d-electrons of the TE. The LTSH also showed the absence of superconductivity down to 1.8K and indicated the emergence of the Boson peak above 4K in all alloys.The free-electron like paramagnetic contribution to \chi_exp also decreases with x, whereas E, like \theta_D, increases with x, indicating enhanced interatomic bonding on addition of Ni. The applicability of the rule of mixtures to these and other similar HEAs is briefly discussed

Forest Fires and Physical Models

Hrvatska je zemlja relativno bogata šumama; 36 % od ukupne površine države pokrivaju šumske površine. Međutim, poseban problem na jadranskom području Hrvatske predstavljaju šumski požari, koji uništavaju prirodna bogatstva smanjujući biološku raznolikost, a negativan utjecaj imaju i na krajobraznu raznolikost. Sam problem je višeslojan, kompleksan i zahtijeva uključivanje brojnih grana znanosti, kao što su šumarstvo, geologija, biologija, meteorologija, a u zadnje vrijeme i fizika. Poznato je da fizika uspješno prepoznaje osnovna načela pojavnosti i djelovanja u materijalnom svijetu, a to ima vrlo široku primjenu i izvan njenih vlastitih okvira. Načini manifestacije komplesnosti i posebno zakonitosti koje fizičari sve više u suradnji s drugim disciplinama nalaze i proučavaju otvaraju vrlo široke horizonte mogućih primjena. “Korelacije u kompleksnim sustavima: od fizike do biotehnologije” je naziv interdisciplinarnog programa kojega financira Ministarstvo znanosti, obrazovanja i športa, koji je među inim povezao znanstvene pristupe fizike i šumarstva na proučavanju šumskih požara. Ovaj rad daje neke osnove o šumskim požarima specifične za svaku znanstvenu disciplinu i pokazuje mogućnosti njihove interakcije kao i važnost takvog interdisciplinarnog pristupa u rješavanju gorućih problema vezanih uz šumske požare i njihovu prevenciju.Croatia is relatively rich in forests; forested areas account for 36 % of the total territory of the country. However, forest fires occurring in the Adriatic region of Croatia are a serious threat to natural resources, since they decrease biological diversity and exert a negative impact on landscape variety. The complexity of the problem requires the involvement of a number of scientific fields, such as forestry, geology, biology, meteorology and physics. Physics is known to successfully detect some basic principles of occurrence and activity in the material world, which has a broad scope of uses beyond the boundaries of physics alone. Physics, in cooperation with other scientific disciplines, discovers and investigates ways and patterns in which complexities are manifested, thus opening the door to an array of applications. “Correlations in Complex Systems: from Physics to Biotechnology” is the title of an interdisciplinary program financed by the Ministry of Science, Education and Sport, which, among others, integrates scientific approaches of physics and forestry to the study of forest fires. This paper provides some concepts of forest fires that are specific for each scientific discipline. It also explores the possibilities of their interaction and the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to the solution of vital issues concerning forest fires and their prevention

Raspodjela dohotka u Hrvatskoj u svjetlu zakona statističke fizike

Analiza dohotka po članu kućanstva u Hrvatskoj 1998. godine pokazuje postojanje dvaju re_ima u njihovoj raspodjeli. Kumulativna raspodjela dohodaka uglavnom se provodi prema eksponencijalnom zakonu, osim za najveće dohotke, čija raspodjela slijedi zakon potencije, odnosno Paretov zakon. Koristeći se nedavno uspostavljenom analogijom između raspodjele dohotka i statističke mehanike, procijenili smo godišnju “temperaturu hrvatske ekonomije”. Pokazuje se da je ona deseterostruko manja od temperatura razvijenih ekonomija. Vrijednost Paretova eksponenta pokazuje da su u Hrvatskoj dohoci bogatijeg sloja ravnomjernije raspodijeljeni nego u SAD-u i Velikoj Britaniji. Izračun graničnog prihoda s kojim se prelazi u “višu srednju klasu”, za koju vrijedi Paretov zakon raspodjele, upućuje na relativnu dimenziju blagostanja. Za razliku od SAD-a, gdje se u Paretov re_im većih prihoda prelazi s mjesečnim dohotkom od 5150 USD, u Hrvatskoj se takav prijelaz događa pri mjesečnom dohotku od oko 520 USD po članu kućanstva