First magnetic measurements on PM10 filters from two stations in Serbia and comparison of the results with those from nine Hungarian stations

We are presenting the results of magnetic susceptibility measurements carried out on PM10 filters collected at two stations in Serbia from July 1st to 31st October 2011 and compare them with those from 9 stations in Hungary, located at different settings and monitoring PM10 derived from different anthropogenic sources. As the vast majority of the magnetic grains in PM10 are derived from anthropogenic sources, it stands to reason to say that variations in magnetic susceptibility are more closely related to pollution than the mass of the dust. Comparison between susceptibilities measured on filters from Hungarian and Serbian stations (Novi Sad and Veliko Gradište) reveals that the latter are polluted similarly to Győr, a Hungarian town with fairly heavy traffic. The difference, however, is that in Győr, Sundays are less polluted than weekdays, while in the Serbian towns such trend is not observable (reason can be no camion stop). Miskolc, an industrial town with heavy traffic in NE Hungary shows twice as high susceptibilities as the previously mentioned locations, while the rest of the Hungarian stations investigated are just moderately polluted (values are only somewhat higher than those for a background station)

Cytochrome C Oxidase from Rhodobacter Sphaeroides: Oligomeric Structure in the Phospholipid Bilayer and the Structural and Functional Effects of a C-Terminal Truncation in Subunit III

Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) of the mitochondrial electron transport chain catalyzes the reduction of oxygen to water while concomitantly translocating protons across the inner mitochondrial membrane. This two part dissertation is a structural and functional investigation of COX using the bacterial model system from Rhodobacter sphaeroides (R.sph.). First, the oligomeric structure of R.sph. COX within the lipid bilayer was investigated using discontinuous sucrose gradient ultracentrifugation. Utilizing this technique, liposomes containing R.sph. COX (pCOV) were separated from liposomes lacking enzyme (COV). The net buffering capacity and degree of light scattering per COX molecule were reduced in pCOVs, making them well suited for low buffer spectroscopic studies. Also, pCOVs maintained high oxygen reduction and proton pumping activities relative to COVs, indicating minimal damage induced by the centrifugation process. Quantitative lipid and protein concentrations were used to estimate the number of COX molecules per vesicle in the pCOVs. There was only one R.sph. COX molecule per vesicle, indicating that within the lipid bilayer, R.sph. COX exists in the monomeric state in contrast to the bovine enzyme which is dimeric. As a monomer, therefore, R.sph. COX is capable of maximal electron transfer and proton pumping efficiency. Second, the structural and functional effects of a c-terminal subunit III truncation were characterized in R.sph. in order to gain insight into the critical role played by this subunit in proper COX functioning. The mutation was modeled after a human mitochondrial disease mutation which genetically truncates subunit III after the third of its seven helices (Delta114 COX). In R.sph. cells, Delta114 COX had lower expression levels and impeded rates of COX assembly. Altered levels of native in vivo processing of subunits II and IV were observed in Delta114 COX and in COX which had subunit III genetically removed (I-II COX). The truncated subunit III was incorporated into the COX complex with at least 70% stoichiometry and was subject to proteolytic processing at a specific cleavage site. Prior to enzymatic turnover induced inactivation, the proton pumping and oxygen reduction activities of Delta114 COX were half that of wildtype and equivalent to I-II COX at physiological pH. Delta114 and I-II COX had similar catalytic lifetimes in detergent micelle, but when supplemented with phospholipids from soybean, the catalytic lifetime of Delta114 COX was increased compared to I-II COX. Taken together, these results indicate that the c-terminal bundle of subunit III plays a role in the assembly of COX in R.sph. and in the native processing of subunits II and IV. They also highlight the role of the structural lipids within the v-shaped cleft of subunit III as being important for providing protection against turnover induced inactivation

Chromatic Fantasy Sonata by Davide Brubeck

Dave Brubeck (b. 1920) is best known as a jazz composer, pianist, and bandleader, but he has also composed dozens of works that reach beyond the realm of jazz. His Chromatic Fantasy Sonata represents a milestone in his compositional activity, artfully fusing elements from European art music and the American jazz idiom. The work\u27s subtitle ( inspired by J. S. Bach ) makes clear the influence of the Baroque master, but gives no hint of the thoroughgoing jazz influences Brubeck also included in the piece. The Chromatic Fantasy Sonata was originally commissioned in 1988 by the chamber group An die Musik (oboe, violin, viola, cello, and piano), but Brubeck has rewritten and rearranged portions of it for a variety of ensembles, including the Brodsky String Quartet, the Dave Brubeck Quartet, and the London Symphony Orchestra. The transcription of the work for solo piano, completed by John Salmon, was published in 2003. The analysis presented here is based on Salmon’s transcription. This composition was chosen as subject for because it best represents my scholarly interest in music that combines classical and jazz traditions. No extended analytical study of the sonata exists. The investigation of this unique work will shed considerable light on Brubeck’s eclectic style and clarify his assimilation of the often noted classical tendencies in his music. Following an account of the genesis of the work and a brief description of selected sketches from the Brubeck Archive at the University of the Pacific, this essay provides a detailed analysis of each of the Sonata\u27s four movements and a concluding summary. Included are considerations of the work\u27s form, harmonic language, thematic and motivic constructions, and allusions to the works and the name of Bach

International trade development after the global financial crisis

The report focuses on an environment influenced by the global economic crisis of 2008-2010, the past global health crisis and Russia's subsequent military invasion of Ukraine. These three factors generate disastrous consequences in their wake, and a number of state models are unprepared for them. However, international trade managed to recover extremely quickly from the effect of the crises and generate growth already in 2021 on a number of its indicators. A point of view has been formed summarizing the importance of multiple participants in the economic system, especially the largest economies, but also the role of international cooperation in the field to achieve real results and provide aid to countries in need

Poboljšanje 1D geoelektričnog sondiranja sužavanjem raspona ekvivalencije i indentifikacija, kvantifikacija i redukcija lateralnih efekata korišćenjem tri-potencijalne metodologije

Apparent resistivity data from the Offset-Wenner array (Zemun, Serbia), the square array (Bogatić and Golubac, Serbia) and the Wenner tri-potential technique (Vrdnik, Serbia), were used to detect, measure, and reduce lateral effects in 1D inversion. Forward and inverse modelling with the Wenner α, β and γ arrays determined that the Wenner β array provided the most accurate estimate of the first-and second-layer resistivity, while the Wenner γ array provided the most accurate estimate of the high resistivity substratum. The survey on the Zemun loess plateau revealed that if the lateral index of inhomogeneity (LII) is low, the 1D interpretation of both Wenner arrays is justifiable. In addition, the averaging of resistances will result in an apparent resistivity curve that is devoid of lateral effects resulting from near-surface inhomogeneities. As demonstrated by the Vrdnik example, 1D inversion is inadequate when the values of LII and processing covariance (PC) are high. The survey in Golubac was conducted using the square array, which produced lower PC values than collinear arrays. Therefore, the quality of the averaged sounding curve was higher. Also, the interpolated values of the Offset Wenner array displayed reasonable accuracy, while the extrapolated values were inadequate when a low resistivity substratum was present.Podaci o prividnoj specifičnoj električnoj otpornosti prikupljeni Offset-Wenner dis-pozitivom (Zemun, Srbija), kvadratnim dispozitivom (Bogatić i Golubac, Srbija) i Wenner tri-potencijalnom metodologijom (Vrdnik, Srbija) korišteni su za detekciju, mjerenje i smanjenje bočnih nuspojava tijekom 1D inverzije. Direktno i inverzno modeliranjem s Wenner α, β i γ dispozitivima pokazalo je da Wenner β dispozitiv daje najbolju procjenu specifične električne otpornosti prvog i drugog sloja, dok je Wenner γ dispozitiv dao najbolju procjenu trećeg sloja, visokootpornog substratuma. Istraživanja na Zemunskom lesnom platou pokazala su da kada je indeks bočne nehomogenosti (LII) nizak, opravdana je 1D interpretacija oba Wenner dispozitiva. Također, usrednjavanje otpora će proizvesti krivulju otpora koja je oslobođena bočnih učinaka od blisko površinskih nehomogenosti. Da je 1D inverzija neadekvatna kada su LII i vrijednosti kovarijance procesinga (PC) velike prikazano je na primjeru Vrdnika. Primjenom kvadratnog dispozitiva na lokalitetu Golubac dobijene su niže vrednosti PC od kolinearnih dispozitiva. Stoga je kvaliteta osrednjene krivulje sondiranja bila veća. Interpolirane vrijednosti Offset-Wenner dispozitiva imale su dovoljnu preciznost, dok su ekstrapolirane vrijednosti bile neadekvatne u prisutnosti niskootpornog substratum

Making a robot explain its decisions

This master thesis is concerned with making robots more understandable to the user and broader audience. More exactly, the problem that this thesis tackles is to develop a way for robots to explain their actions in order to make it easier for engineers, users and for the audience to understand what the robot is actually trying to achieve. Another problem that this thesis tackles is that the tasks of the robots may not be precisely defined upfront. In such cases, tasks cannot be solved by a fixed, predefined task plan. Thus, I also show how to enable the user to create custom scenarios that the robot successfully resolves. These two problems are resolved by using planning. More specifically, the initial state of the robot and the goals that need to be achieved are defined by the user. After that, the robot, using the goal regression algorithm, creates a plan in order to achieve the goals. Each action of the plan is explained using an explanation algorithm. The algorithm takes into account the immediate and indirect goals the actions achieve. As a result of this master thesis, I developed a program that simulates and can control a robot with six degrees of freedom. The program creates dynamic plans for user defined goals. Also, the program enables the robot to explain each action it makes to the user, using the speakers

Degree of awareness of dentists and dental technicians about the novelties in the dental practice

Разнообразието от технологии и оборудване е голямо, което налага потребителите на дентални услуги да са информирани за новостите, което е в тяхна полза. Поради бързо навлизащите технологии годишно се организират международни изложения по дентална медицина, където се обменя информация и опит от цял свят. Това дава възможност на лекари, мениджъри и специалисти от клиники и зъботехнически лаборатории да се запознаят с навлизащите технологии в света на денталната медицина. Докладът представлява анализ на информираността на дентални лекари и зъботехници за новостите в зъботехническата практика. Изследването е проведено в Североизточна България сред 668 респонденти. Данните показват висока степен на информираност сред респондентите, което корелира с високото качество на денталните услуги.There is a great diversity of technologies and equipment which requires that the consumers of dental services be aware about the novelties which are beneficial for them. Annually, international exhibitions of dental medicine are arranged due to the rapidly deploying technologies and there information and experience from all over the world is exchanged. Thus, doctors, managers and specialists from clinics and dental laboratories have the opportunity to be acquainted with the developed technologies in the world of dental medicine. This report is an analysis of the awareness of dentists and dental technicians about the novelties in the dental practice. The survey has been conducted in Northeastern Bulgaria among 668 respondents. The data showed high degree of awareness among the respondents which correlates with the high quality of dental services

Paleomagnetic and magnetic anisotropy results from Miocene Sediments of Central and Western Serbia

In this paper we are presenting a combined paleomagnetic and magnetic susceptibility anisotropy study carried out on 133 independently oriented samples collected from 11 geographically distributed localities (Fig. 1). The samples were drilled and oriented in situ from clay rich lake sediments of pre-Late Badenian and Pannonian-Pontian age and from Early-Mid Badenian marine clay. The principal aims were to find out if the area studied was involved in large scale displacement during or after the time covered by the samples and if the sediments were affected by ductile deformation during young tectonic movements

Short-term forecasting of PM10and PM2.5 concentrations with Facebook's Prophet Model at the Belgrade-Zeleno brdo

We demonstrate the use of Facebook's Prophet (usually just called Prophet) model for short-term air quality forecasting at Belgrade-Zeleno brdo monitoring station. To address missing data, we applied minimally-altering data distribution imputation techniques. Linear interpolation proved effective for short-term gaps (1–3 hours), hourly mean method for mid-term gaps (24–26 hours), and Hermite interpolation polynomial for long-term gaps (132–148 hours). The most significant data change was a 3.4% shift in skewness. Partitioning the time series enabled a detailed quality assessment of the Prophet model, with PM2.5predictions being more precise than PM10. Using the longest time series for forecasting yielded absolute errors of 6.5μg/m3forPM10and 2.7μg/m3for PM2.5. Based on 173 forecasts, we anticipate Prophet model root-mean-square values under 6.26μg/m3and 9.99μg/m3for PM2.5 and PM10in 50% of cases. The Prophet model demonstrates several advantages and yields satisfactory results. In future research, the results obtained from the Prophet model will serve as benchmark values for other models. Additionally, the Prophet model is capable of providing satisfactory air quality forecasting results and will be utilized in future resear

New data concerning the early middle miocene on the southern slopes of Fruška Gora (Northern Serbia): A case study from the Mutalj quarry

During the last few years, geological research at the southern slopes of Fruška Gora Mt. enabled the discovery of different Miocene units (undivided the Lower Miocene and Middle Miocene Badenian, predominantly). This is primarily thinking of the so-called Leitha limestone (Middle Miocene, Badenian), which is an important component in cement production (La Farge Co., Beočin). The high carbonate content (more than 98 %) allows it to be a very important raw material that is mixed with Pannonian marl in the process of cement manufacture. Continuous exploitation of this rock at the Mutalj Quarry enabled an insight into its structural, stratigraphic, sedimentological and hydrogeological features, as well as its relation to the other underlying/overlying units. Numerous fossils (i.e., red algae, mollusks, corals, bryozoans, and foraminifers) and their biostratigraphic range indicate to Middle Miocene Badenian age. Based on data from different boreholes, structural and sedimentological characteristics, spatial distribution, etc., a relatively large rock body was discovered (approx. 0.3 km2). Within these Leitha limestones, there are frequent cracks and caverns infilled with fine lateritic clays and alevrites. These clays were sampled for a paleomagnetic study. The carrier of the primary remanent magnetization (RM) is magnetite that has a primary origin. Lateritic clays are characterized by significant value of magnetic susceptibility. The degree of anisotropy of the magnetic susceptibility (AMS) is low with the dominant magnetic foliation