The legitimacy of increasing marginal utility in social services: The case of university examinations

The concept of utility became rightfully recognized in economic theory with the introduction of decreasing marginal utility. However a question that arises is: does an increasing consumption of goods always and without exception lead to diminishing marginal utility? It is quite possible that in some cases marginal utility of goods and services actually increases. If this fact is true, it might additionally strengthen the utility theory and make it applicable in numerous cases of economic and social reality. This paper uses the example of the utility of studying at university (i.e. the utility of university examinations), and tries to add a few arguments in favour of the statement that the law of increasing utility exists

The Macroeconomics of Loss of Fulltime Student Status or the Fiscal Consequences of Passing or Not Passing an Exam

This article is the first systematic attempt at an overview of the extent of fiscal and non-fiscal support to students in Croatia, taking University of Split as an example. In detail, the author analyses, classifies and presents eleven fiscal and eight non-fiscal subsidies to students. Because of the very high level of subsidy per student (per user), the author goes on to explain in detail the effect of the loss of the status of fulltime student on the fiscal system as a whole, and then the consequences of loss of status of fulltime student at the level of the marginal exam. The paper refers to the problem of the allocative inefficiency of the state in the funding of the tertiary-level institutions in Croatia and provides an up-to-date contribution for the discussion of the fiscal effects of subsidies, the quality of higher education and the total costs of the courses of students in Croatian higher education institutions

Testiranje i izvedba jednostavnog mrežnog diska korištenjem Raspberry Pi platforme

Ovim je radom dat sažeti pregled općenito o mrežnim diskovima, njihovoj izvedbi i upotrebi, te je prikazana konfiguracija jedene postojeće univerzalne platforme Raspberry Pi u ulozi mrežnog diska. Prilikom izrade i konfiguracije mrežnog diska obratila se pozornost na funkcionalnost, na njegove performanse i energetsku učinkovitost. Probno mjerenje performansi ukazalo je na višestruko manje brzine od komercijalnog rješenja NAS-a, ali ipak su performanse dovoljne za kućnu upotrebu. Prednost takvog rješenja za mrežni disk je višestruko manja potrošnja električne energije nego kod dijeljenja diska osobnim računalom, višestruko manja cijena nego kod komercijalnog rješenja mrežnog diska. Prednost ove platforme je također prenamjena, ako mrežni disk više nije potreban, ova platforma se lako može iskoristit za nešto drugo

The estimate of regional balances of payments in Croatia

Neither the region, as part of the state, nor regional development has occupied the centre of attention in the theory of international trade. There are several reasons, both theoretical and methodological, as well as entirely practical, including the want of any adequate statistics, particularly those necessary for the construction of Croatian regional balances of payments. Accordingly, there are several objectives to this work. After the introduction in which reference is made to the limitations of the running of individual regional economic policies, comes a chapter in which the content of an ideal regional balance of payments is defined. On the way from the ideal to the objective content of regional balances of payments, that is, one reflecting the available data, many methodological problems had to be solved and suitable statistics set up. In the sequel, the analysis of the balances of payments reveals a whole scale of regions that are negative or positive in terms of foreign currency. Although the quantities of the individual balances and items are interesting in themselves, it is important to understand that the different regional exposures to monetary policy possibly require a selective approach from economic policy. At the end, making use of the regional balances of payments, the influence of the depreciation of the kuna on the gross domestic product of the regions is analysed. It is established that in some hypothetical depreciation, if foreign currency transactions were treated ceteris paribus in relation to other economic aggregates, there would be important gains and losses, which would lead to ever greater developmental inequality in Croatia

Isolation, cultivation, and in vitro susceptibility testing of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato: A review

Lyme borreliosis is the most common vector-borne disease in the northern hemisphere. The agents of Lyme borreliosis are borrelia, bacteria of the family Spirochaetaceae, which are grouped in Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato species complex. Borreliae are fastidious, slow-growing and biochemically inactive bacteria that need special attention and optimal conditions for cultivation. The isolation of Borrelia from clinical material and their cultivation is a time-consuming and demanding procedure. Cultivation lasts from 9 up to 12 weeks, which is much longer than is necessary to grow most other human bacterial pathogens. Although B. burgdorferi sensu lato is susceptible to a wide range of antimicrobial agents in vitro, up to now the susceptibility of individual Borrelia species to antibiotics is defined only partially. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 175011

Some Observations on the Vertical Migrations of the Dinoflagellate Prorocentrum micans Ehrenberg in the Lim Fjord (Northern Adriatic)

Tokom 48-satnog razdoblja praćena je vertikalna distribucija dinoflagelata Prorocentrum micans Ehrenberg u odnosu na dnevne promjene intenziteta svjetla, te vertikalnu raspodjelu važnijih hranjivih soli (nitrata i fosfata). Uzorci vode za biološke i fizikalno-kemijske analize uzimani su na postaji u Limskom kanalu u 4-satnim vremenskim intervalima, na dubinama od 0 do 13 metara. Rezultati indiciraju da P. micans migrira za najjače insolacije na dubinu od 5 metara (gdje se u periodu od 8 do 12 sati primjećuje izrazito povećanje gustoće stanica u odnosu na ostale istraživane dubine). Smanjivanjem intenziteta svjetla, primjećuju se migracije te vrste u dublje slojeve (10—13 m). Pretpostavlja se da su ta gibanja bila povezana sa nešto višim koncentracijama fosfata, hranjive soli, za koju se smatra da limitira primarnu proizvodnju u vodama sjevernog Jadrana. Nitrati su u toku istraživane periode bili nađeni u količinama višim od onih koje bi se mogle smatrati graničnima za primarnu proizvodnju, a za razliku od fosfata, najviše koncentracije nitrata bile su općenito nađene u površinskim slojevima.Diurnal vertical migration of the dinoflagellate Prorocentrum micans Ehrenberg was investigated under field conditions in relation to the underwater light field, and the vertical distribution of nutrients (phosphates and nitrates). Water samples were taken in the Lim Fjord at 4-hour intervals over a 48 hr period. Samples were collected from 0, 2, 5, 7, 10 and 13-m depths for microscopical analysis of the species present, and at 0, 5, 10 and 13 m for other physical and chemical measurements. The changes in the vertical distribution of P. micans cell densities during the investigation show a periodicity, indicating that the dinoflagellate is capable of undergoing diel vertical migrations. Results indicated that P. micans »avoids« surface layers and accumulates at 5-m depth during the daylight intensities (Figs. 2, 3, 4). During the night, with the lowering of light intensities, the algae migrated to the deeper portions of the water colum (10—13 m). It is hypothesized that this downward movement is related to the availability of phosphate, a nutrient considered limiting phytoplankton production in the Northern Adriatic. Nitrate occurred at concentrations considered non-limiting throughout the water column, and in contrast to phosphate, higher concentrations were found in the upper layers (Figs. 2 and 3)

Makroekonomija gubljenja statusa redovitog studenta ili fiskalne posljedice (ne)položenog ispita

Članak je prvi sustavni pokušaj sagledavanja razmjera fiskalnih i nefiskalnih potpora studentima u Hrvatskoj na primjeru Sveučilišta u Splitu. Autor detaljno analizira, klasificira i kvantitativno iskazuje jedanaest fiskalnih i osam nefiskalnih subvencija studentima. Zbog iznimno visokih subvencija po studentu (korisniku) autor detaljno obrazlaže posljedice gubitka statusa redovitog studenta na fiskalni sustav u cjelini, a zatim i posljedice gubitka statusa redovitog studenta na razini “marginalnog” ispita. U radu se upozorava na probleme alokacijske neučinkovitost države u financiranju visokih učilišta u Hrvatskoj te nudi aktualan prilog za otvaranje rasprave o fiskalnim učincima subvencija, kvaliteti visokog obrazovanja i ukupnim troškovima studija studenata na hrvatskim visokim učilištima

Some Observations on the Vertical Migrations of the Dinoflagellate Prorocentrum micans Ehrenberg in the Lim Fjord (Northern Adriatic)

Tokom 48-satnog razdoblja praćena je vertikalna distribucija dinoflagelata Prorocentrum micans Ehrenberg u odnosu na dnevne promjene intenziteta svjetla, te vertikalnu raspodjelu važnijih hranjivih soli (nitrata i fosfata). Uzorci vode za biološke i fizikalno-kemijske analize uzimani su na postaji u Limskom kanalu u 4-satnim vremenskim intervalima, na dubinama od 0 do 13 metara. Rezultati indiciraju da P. micans migrira za najjače insolacije na dubinu od 5 metara (gdje se u periodu od 8 do 12 sati primjećuje izrazito povećanje gustoće stanica u odnosu na ostale istraživane dubine). Smanjivanjem intenziteta svjetla, primjećuju se migracije te vrste u dublje slojeve (10—13 m). Pretpostavlja se da su ta gibanja bila povezana sa nešto višim koncentracijama fosfata, hranjive soli, za koju se smatra da limitira primarnu proizvodnju u vodama sjevernog Jadrana. Nitrati su u toku istraživane periode bili nađeni u količinama višim od onih koje bi se mogle smatrati graničnima za primarnu proizvodnju, a za razliku od fosfata, najviše koncentracije nitrata bile su općenito nađene u površinskim slojevima.Diurnal vertical migration of the dinoflagellate Prorocentrum micans Ehrenberg was investigated under field conditions in relation to the underwater light field, and the vertical distribution of nutrients (phosphates and nitrates). Water samples were taken in the Lim Fjord at 4-hour intervals over a 48 hr period. Samples were collected from 0, 2, 5, 7, 10 and 13-m depths for microscopical analysis of the species present, and at 0, 5, 10 and 13 m for other physical and chemical measurements. The changes in the vertical distribution of P. micans cell densities during the investigation show a periodicity, indicating that the dinoflagellate is capable of undergoing diel vertical migrations. Results indicated that P. micans »avoids« surface layers and accumulates at 5-m depth during the daylight intensities (Figs. 2, 3, 4). During the night, with the lowering of light intensities, the algae migrated to the deeper portions of the water colum (10—13 m). It is hypothesized that this downward movement is related to the availability of phosphate, a nutrient considered limiting phytoplankton production in the Northern Adriatic. Nitrate occurred at concentrations considered non-limiting throughout the water column, and in contrast to phosphate, higher concentrations were found in the upper layers (Figs. 2 and 3)

Koronavirusi i 21. vek

Koronavirusi pripadaju RNK virusima, a naziv potiče od latinske reči “corona” usled slič- nosti sa vencem (koronom) sunčevih zraka. Sve do početka 21. veka, koronavirusi su povezi- vani sa sezonskim prehladama i nisu bili prepoznati kao značajni humani patogeni. Međutim, 2002. godine u Kini je identifikovan uzročnik teškog akutnog respiratornog sin- droma – SARS (engl. Severe acute respiratory syndrome), pri čemu su zabeleženi smrtni isho- di, a virus je označen kao SARS-CoV. Deset godina kasnije, 2012. godine, u Saudijskoj Arabiji identifikovan je MERS-CoV (engl. Middle East respiratory syndrome Coronavirus), a krajem 2019. godine i novi koronavirus koji je kasnije označen kao SARS-CoV-2 usled sličnosti sa SARS-CoV. Broj umrlih usled infekcije SARS-CoV-2 i razvoja bolesti COVID-19 (engl. coronavi- rus disease 2019) procenjuje se do sada na oko 6 miliona ljudi globalno. Usled brzog širenja SARS-CoV-2, Svetska Zdravstvena Organizacija objavila je 11. marta 2020. pandemiju, koja je još uvek na snazi. Pandemija je dovela do brzog odgovora na COVID-19 što je za posledicu imalo velika finansijska ulaganja u razvoj bolničkih kapaciteta, novih tera- pijskih opcija, a posebno na razvoj vakcina protiv COVID-19. Međutim, paralelno sa razvojem i primenom vakcina došlo je do mutacija u genomu SARS-CoV-2 i pojave novih varijanti virusa što je posledično dovelo do manje efikasnosti vakcina i dostupnih terapijskih opcija. U okviru izlaganja dat je uporedni pregled karakteristika virusa SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV i SARS-CoV-2. Pažnja koju su privukli koronavirusi 21. veka i iskustva i znanja stečena njiho- vom pojavom, omogući će bolji odgovor na potencijalno nove koronaviruse, kao i bolji odgo- vor na epidemije ili pandemije uzrokovane drugim patogenima

Urban development of Rovinj

Urbani razvoj potrebno je promatrati kao skup djelovanja različitih odrednica koje mogu unaprijediti kvalitetu života u gradovima, što postavlja izazove u procesu upravljanja razvojem. Cilj rada je analizirati odabrane odrednice urbanog razvoja Rovinja, prikazati primjere dobre prakse implementacije projekata urbanog razvoja te detaljnije analizirati učinke ubrzanog rasta i razvoja turizma u Rovinju. U radu se stoga obrađuju temeljna obilježja urbanog razvoja, definiranje i mjerenje, značaj razvoja gradova, pri čemu se objašnjava važnost provođenja procesa decentralizacije, snažnijeg uključivanja jedinica lokalne samouprave u razvojne aktivnosti, a nakon toga se prikazuje važnost i obuhvat strategija upravljanja urbanim razvojem. Na primjeru Rovinja analiziraju se osnovna obilježja grada, razvijenost odabranih odrednica koje su bitne u poticanju rasta i razvoja, kao što su društvena i komunalna infrastruktura, prikazuje se strategija urbanog razvoja Rovinja, uključujući ciljeve i prioritete temeljem kojih se usmjeravaju razvojne aktivnosti, ali i komentira ostvareni učinak pojedinih strateških aktivnosti. Uspješno realizirani i planirani projekti urbanog razvoja Rovinja, različitih područja promatranja, prikazuju se u zasebnom poglavlju, s komentarom doprinosa razvoju. Tu se također ističu mogućnosti uključivanja stanovništva u razvoj grada, što potvrđuje nužnost uključivanja različitih dionika. U završnom dijelu rada detaljnije se analizira utjecaj turizma na razvoj Rovinja, pri čemu se objašnjava značaj turizma i prikazuju konkretni učinci, ali i kompariraju pozitivni i negativni aspekti razvoja turizma, s posebnim naglaskom na problematiku povećanja broja posjetitelja i prilagodbu razvoja urbanog područja. U radu je prikazana prilika za provođenje samostalnih razvojnih aktivnosti od stane gradova, dokazane su pozitivne razvojne aktivnosti na primjeru odabranog grada, ali je ujedno i potvrđeno da se Rovinj, kao mali grad, nalazi pred snažnim izazovima usklađivanja turističkog razvoja i ostalih razvojnih aspekata. Također je istaknuto da je u poticanju urbanog razvoja bitna suradnja različitih razina upravljanja i odgovarajuće strateško planiranje održivog razvoja.Urban development must be observed as the result of the effects of different determinants which can have an influence on the urban quality of life. This implies different challenges in managing urban development. The aim of this thesis is to conduct the analysis on the chosen determinants of the urban development of Rovinj, to present the examples of good practices about the implementation of different projects of urban development and to analyse in more detail the effects of strong growth and development of tourism. Main characteristics of urban development, defining and measuring, as well as the role of urban development are shown. The importance of the process of decentralisation, stronger including of the local units in development activities are explained, together with the aim and the characteristics of the strategies of urban development. On the example of Rovinj analysis is focused on the main characteristics, development of chosen determinants which are important in growth and development, such as social and communal infrastructure. Strategy of urban development of Rovinj is also presented, including its aims and priorities, as the basis for development activities. The impact of some of the strategic activities is commented. Successful and planned examples of urban development projects in Rovinj are shown, regarding different development areas, with its contribution to urban development. In this part of the paper, the opportunities to include local population in development activities are explained. This confirms the need to include different actors in urban planning. In the final part of the thesis, more detailed analysis is performed and presented about the impacts of tourism on the development of Rovinj, where the importance of tourism is described and concrete effects are presented with a comparison on positive and negative influences of tourism development. Special sections are given to problems which are the result of the increasing number of visitors and adjustment of the development of the urban area. In this thesis the opportunities for cities to perform independent development activities is confirmed, positive development activities on the example of chosen city are presented, but also it is concluded that Rovinj is faced with challenges of combining tourism needs and other development aspects. It is highlighted that in managing urban development, cooperation between different levels of government is necessary, as well as adequate strategic planning of the sustainable urban development