Further EU integration will help to stabilise the disruptive forces of nationalism now present in Macedonia

Negotiations towards Macedonia’s accession to the EU have been prolonged and often postponed in recent years, mostly due to an on-going dispute with Greece over the country’s name. Goran Janev argues that these delays, combined with an ‘ethnocratic’ government, have allowed nationalist sentiments to develop and grow in Macedonia. If these nationalist trends are to be reversed it is vital that progress is made towards further European integration

The Influence of Chemi-ionization and Recombination Processes on Spectral Line Shapes in Stellar Atmospheres

In this work, the chemi-ionization processes in atom- Rydberg atom collisions, as well as the corresponding chemi-recombination processes are considered as factors of influence on the atom exited-state populations in weakly ionized layers of stellar atmospheres. The presented results are related to the photospheres of the Sun and some M red dwarfs as well as weakly ionized layers of DB white dwarfs atmospheres. It has been found that the mentioned chemi ionization/recombination processes dominate over the relevant concurrent electron-atom and electron-ion ionization and recombination process in all parts of considered stellar atmospheres. The obtained results demonstrate the fact that the considered chemi ionization/recombination processes must have a very significant influence on the optical properties of the stellar atmospheres. Thus, it is shown that these processes and their importance for non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) modeling of the solar atmospheres should be investigated further.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1105.213

Assessment of hydrocarbon electron-impact ionization cross section measurements for magnetic fusion

Partial ionization cross section experiments have been carried out recently at the University of Innsbruck for three types of hydrocarbons, i.e. acetylene, ethylene and propene. Cross section data fits are generated and compared to the compilation of earlier experimental data summarized in the online database HYDKIN [www.hydkin.de]. New data fits are brought into a suitable form to be incorporated into the database. In order to illuminate underlying dissociation mechanisms the energy dependence of branching ratios above energies of 20 - 30eV is reviewed in light of the present results. This is a pre-peer reviewed version which has been submitted to Contributions to Plasma Physics.Comment: 23 pages, 3 figures, 6 tables, to be published in "Contributions to Plasma Physics

Following disputed elections, Macedonia requires clear guidance from the EU if it is to alleviate its growing political crisis

In the aftermath of elections in April, several political parties in Macedonia, including the main opposition party, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), have refused to take up their parliamentary seats amid accusations of electoral fraud. Goran Janev writes that while the record of the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party in government has raised legitimate democratic questions, the strategy being pursued by the opposition is unlikely to be successful. He argues that what the country really needs is clearer guidance from external actors, most notably those within the EU

Contesting ethnocratic spatial order: narrative spaces in Skopje

This paper employs the concept of narrative spaces to identify the dynamic processes of social production and social construction of space in the city of Skopje, the capital of Macedonia. While power-holders at local and central level persistently seek to divide the territory through symbolic buildings and monuments and other visual displays, many of the citizens of Skopje have found their own ways to protest such divisions. The inspiration for such resistance arises both from the global connections and urban aspirations of a younger generation and from the positive example of conviviality as embodied in the traditions of Skopje’s Old Bazaar. In this paper I hope to show how comprehensive engagement with locality and spatiality has great potential to help understand interethnic relations. (author's abstract

Tegobna prošlost: propitujući socijalističko naslijeđe u Makedoniji

Analysis of the project “Skopje 2014”, a major symbolic reconstruction of Macedonia capital, points towards establishment of ethnocratic regime in the country. Juxtaposed to the treatment of the socialist monuments it reveals the major shift in the historical narrative. This symbolic appropriation accompanies the neoliberal capitalist appropriation of space and is in its service by shifting the debate away from the capitalist accumulation by means of dispossession. The neglect of socialist monuments is indicative of grey-zoning, a governmentality technique easily abused in ethnocratic regimes that allows neoliberal practices to flourish unhindered by any productive public debate. Article concludes with a discussion of the possibilities for articulated resistance.Analiza projekta Skopje 2014, velike simboličke rekonstrukcije glavnoga grada Makedonije, upućuje na stvaranje etnokratskog režima u zemlji. U suprotnosti s načinom na koji se tretiraju socijalistički spomenici, otkriva se velik pomak u povijesnoj naraciji. Ovo simboličko prisvajanje popraćeno je neoliberalističkim, kapitalističkim prisvajanjem prostora i služi za okretanje rasprave od kapitalističkog gomilanja putem obespravljenosti. Zapuštenost socijalističkih spomenika pokazatelj je uvođenja sivih zona, tehnike guvernmentalnosti koja se lako može zlorabiti u etnokratskim režimima koji neoliberalističkim praksama dopuštaju da uzmu maha, neometane bilo kakvom produktivnom javnom raspravom. Rad završava diskusijom o mogućnostima pružanja artikuliranog otpora

Nodes, paranodes and neuropathies

This review summarises recent evidence supporting the involvement of the specialised nodal and perinodal domains (the paranode and juxtaparanode) of myelinated axons in the pathology of acquired, inflammatory, peripheral neuropathies.The identification of new target antigens in the inflammatory neuropathies heralds a revolution in diagnosis, and has already begun to inform increasingly targeted and individualised therapies. Rapid progress in our basic understanding of the highly specialised nodal regions of peripheral nerves serves to strengthen the links between their unique microstructural identities, functions and pathologies. In this context, the detection of autoantibodies directed against nodal and perinodal targets is likely to be of increasing clinical importance. Antiganglioside antibodies have long been used in clinical practice as diagnostic serum biomarkers, and associate with specific clinical variants but not to the common forms of either acute or chronic demyelinating autoimmune neuropathy. It is now apparent that antibodies directed against several region-specific cell adhesion molecules, including neurofascin, contactin and contactin-associated protein, can be linked to phenotypically distinct peripheral neuropathies. Importantly, the immunological characteristics of these antibodies facilitate the prediction of treatment responsiveness