European labour markets challenges in the context of the “Europe 2020” srategy

The article studies the crisis’ effects on the development of the labour markets in Europe and in Bulgaria, in particular. It outlines the strong decrease in labour demand and high unemployment in a considerable part of the member-countries as well as the decrease in households’ income and the standard of living dynamics. The increasing pressure on public finances under crisis conditions encounters their restricted opportunities, additionally limited by the strict fiscal consideration carried out. The active labour market policies, carried out manage partially and temporary to compensate for the negative effects of the crisis. All this gives rise to challenges facing the European Strategy 2020 goals and calls for reviewing the managerial and financial mechanisms, triggering for its achievement.Europe 2020 strategy, European labour market, unemployment, active labour market policy, public expenditures

The modulation features of the long-period cosmic ray variations in connection with the sign change of the general magnetic field of the Sun

On the basis of the model and experimental investigations, the spatial distribution of cosmic ray anisotropy for the different epochs of solar activity is studied. A solution is offered to the anisotropic diffusion equation with regard to the electromagnetic conditions for the periods of minimum and maximum solar activity and cosmic ray particle drift in a regular interplanetary magnetic field. It is shown that the long period changes amplitude and phase of the diurnal variations of cosmic rays is limited not only by convection and diffusion of particles but also by the drift effect before and after the sing change of the general magnetic field of the Sun. The calculated model is compared with the results obtained on the basis of an analysis of the experimental data from the neutron super monitor station, and it is shown that for the periods when the lines of magnetic force of the Sun come from the Northern Hemisphere the phase of the first harmonic diurnal variation is shifted forwards to an earlier time

Decent work in Bulgaria

This study develops the issue of Decent work in Bulgaria focusing on employment conditions e.g. employment contracts, working time, wages, health and safety at work place, access to training, conciliation of work and family, as well as some specific issues like child labour, in particular. When studying the effects of structural and technological transformations in Bulgaria on decent work environment the authors have paid special attention on the analysis of the interrelations and linkages between the different elements of decent work. Important aspect of the analysis is that of the relevance between some economic and social policies and the achieved progress. The development of socio-economic and political environment in Bulgaria in the period 1995-2006 outlines stable upward trend of improvement in work conditions. In some segments the improvement had been more visible, while in others – not. Irrespective of this, the ongoing debates on the issues and the more attention, paid by policy-makers on it, should be considered as a first step of the progress. As a second step we have to consider the more consistent and relevant character of the applied policies that were introduced since 2000. The study includes two parts. In the first it analyses the trends in the development of the elements of decent work in Bulgaria, numbered above. This analysis is based on the available statistics and in some cases it covers the period 1995-2006, but in others – it does not because of lack of regular statistical observations. The second part of the study deals with some interactions between the elements of decent work. They are analysed taking into consideration their multi-dimensional character and available statistical information. Some of the linkages and trade-offs are metrically assessed (where it is possible), while the others are based on qualitative assumptions and evaluations. As a result the study identifies the main vulnerable groups.employment condition, employment contract, working time, wages, health and safety at work place, access to training, conciliation of work and family

¿Qué aporta el realismo crítico a la investigación en matemática educativa?

Este artículo analiza la posición filosófica del realismo crítico y su utilidad potencial en la investigación en educación matemática (IEM). Se divide en tres partes. La primera parte ofrece el marco teórico. Se presenta el realismo crítico en relación con la pluralidad de teorías en IEM. La segunda parte ofrece un análisis de cuatro categorías de teorías usadas en IEM: la psicología cultural, las etnomatemáticas, la perspectiva practico-interpretativa, y aspectos de semiótica y discurso. Se utiliza el método realista crítico denominado crítica del talón de Aquiles para señalar puntos de vulnerabilidad aunque fundamentales en cada categoría. Se argumenta que la identificación del talón de Aquiles puede revelar las ventajas de la no parcialidad. La tercera parte presenta la síntesis de los resultados. Se identifican los teóricos quienes previamente identificaron algunos posibles talones de Aquiles y se señalan once de estos para así evitar posiciones parciales en IEM

A Cosmic Quest for New Worlds. Characterising Exoplanet Signals via Radial Velocity and Transit Photometry.

Since the first unambiguous detection of a planet around a Sun-like star, theinterest in the new and exciting field of exoplanets has grown immensely. Newand exciting developments are seen at a pace unparalleled for most subfieldsof astronomy. In this thesis, I describe the two most successful techniques forexoplanet detection and characterisation – transits and radial velocities – andthe challenges commonly encountered in extracting the planets from the data.Transit photometry allows us to measure the planet radius, while radialvelocity measurements give us the planet’s minimum mass. These methods’true strength, however, manifests in their combination as it allows us to estimatethe true mass, which, together with the radius, gives us the planet’s bulkdensity. This is a powerful quantity, which allows us to construct models andmake predictions about the structure and composition of a planet’s interior,as well as its atmosphere. Zeroing in on the latter two is currently one of thebiggest challenges for exoplanet characterisation.I describe the process of detecting a planet in a stellar light curve, andhow transits and radial velocities are modelled together in order to determinethe planet parameters. This is then followed by the ideal theoreticalapproach, which can be used to study a system in practice. However, the currentchallenges in exoplanet characterisation surpass the ideal case, leading usto explore more complex models. I then discuss the biggest nemesis to planetdiscovery, particularly in radial velocity timeseries – stellar activity, and theproblem of its often stochastic manifestation. A special focus is given to onemethod for its mitigation – modelling the radial velocities alongside activityindicators. This is the core concept of multi-dimensional Gaussian processregression, particularly with the quasi-periodic covariance function, which isused in a large part of this work.Finally, the last part if the thesis shows that while the ideal planet case cansometimes be applicable for quiet stars, as is the case of the TOI-2196 system,extending to non-parametric models, such as Gaussian processes, can help usto detect planets in complicated datasets, as demonstrated by the cases of theTOI-1260, TOI-733, TOI-776 and TOI-1416 systems

Genetic and epigenetic foundation of autism

Autizam je definiran kao poremećaj u razvitku mozga i živčanog sustava u kritičnom periodu. Autizam, uz Rettov sindrom, Aspergerov sindrom i druge pripada u poremećaje autističnog spektra. Temeljni simptomi autizma su teškoće u socijalnim ponašanjima, komunikaciji i repetativna ponašanja, interesi i aktivnosti. Fenotip autizma je varijabilan i individualan što čini proučavanje i otkrivanje patofiziologije kompliciranim. Kroz godine istraživanja pokazalo se da je genetička komponenta vrlo jaka u autizmu. Identificirani su mnogi geni koji su bitni za pravilan razvoj mozga, a u slučaju disfunkcije sudjeluju u razvoju autizma. Nadalje, aktualna istraživanja pokazala su da i epigenski mehanizmi imaju značajnu ulogu u nastanku autističnog poremećaja. Mehanizmi poput DNA metilacije ili histonske acetilacije mogu utjecati na ekspresiju gena koji se smatraju rizičnim faktorima za autizam. Genski i epigenski fiziološki putevi su isprepleteni i dvosmjerni, mogu utjecati zasebno na razvoj autizma, ali i mogu utjecati jedan na drugoga i tako sudjelovati u razvoju autizma. Važno je razumjeti da identificirani geni, epigenske promjene, kemijske neravnoteže i okolišni faktori svi djeluju zajedno ili jedni na druge ili na razvoj živčanog sustava pridonoseći razvoju autizma. Zbog opsežne količine dostupne literature, pisanje radova koji sažimaju informacije o autizmu pridonijeti će istraživanjima i staviti u perspektivu trenutna znanjAutism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that falls under the Autistic spectre which encompasess other disorders like Rett syndrome, Aspergers syndrome, etc... The core symptoms of autistic disorder are: reduced social and communication abilities and repetative behaviour, interests and actions. The phenotype for autism is extremely variable and individual which makes understanding the patophysiology of the disorder difficult and complex. Throughout yeras of reasearch it has been established that many autism cases have a genetic cause. Specific genes have been identified which have an important role in neurodevelopment and in autism cases were shown to be dysfunctional. Furthermore, recent studies have shown the significance of epigenetics in autism reasearch. Epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation or histone acetylation have been proven to influence gene expression of risk-factor genes for autism and expedite its development. Both genome and epigenome physiological pathways are intertwined and can influence the progress of autism development, but they can also influence each other in negative or positive ways. It is important to understand, all the identified genes, epigenetic changes, chemical imbalances and environmental factors work together and influence each other and neurodevelopment. As there is a significant amount of literature available on the topic, writing reviews summarizing all current data will be beneficial and will offer new perspective