Urban citizenship : concept and practice

Tema rada je sociološko određenje pojma urbanog građanstva. U tu svrhu, urbano građanstvo se prevashodno utemeljuje u dve ideje: pravo na grad i urbanitet, ali se analitički razmatra i kao jedan od novih koncepata građanstva. Osnovna tvrdnja na kojoj urbano građanstvo počiva jeste da je nacionalni koncept građanstva-državljanstva nedovoljno obuhvatan, jer univerzalizacijom i formalizacijom principa (po osnovu nacionalnosti) zapostavlja moralno-vrednosnu dimenziju građanstva i time nema odgovora na nejednakosti koje se prelivaju na ravan svakodnevnih praksi života u gradu. Stoga se urbano građanstvo pojavljuje kao vrsta dopune i etičkog korektiva postojećeg građanskog modela, zagovarajući ideju da prava i odgovornosti najpre treba realizovati na nivou grada, kao primarne čovekove društveno-političke zajednice. Urbano građanstvo posebne kritike upućuje neoliberalnoj ideologiji za koju se smatra da takmičarskom atmosferom i afirmacijom prava kapitala narušava prava građana da samostalno odlučuju o korišćenju prostora, čime se potiskuje njegova upotrebna vrednost. Time se grad pretvara u prostor ispunjen komercijalnim sadržajima, a građani svode na konzumeristički orijentisane klijente, dok se aktivistička i kritička komponenta figure građanina pasivizuju. Stoga urbano građanstvo predstavlja i poziv na politizaciju građanina, i to primarno kroz aktivizam za ostvarivanje prava na grad. Akteri urbanog građanstva su različite društvene grupe koje se na osoben način suočavaju sa barijerama i osećaju izopštenim iz prava na grad, ali takođe i uspevaju da se organizuju i kroz zajedničke napore probiju neke barijere zvanične politike. U radu se obrađuju rodna, homoseksualna, ekološka, imigrantska perspektiva prava na grad, kao i pravo na grad siromašnih, kao neke od najistaknutijih vrsta nejednakosti u prostoru. Iako se zahtevi datih grupa u osnovi svode na isti cilj – jačanje upotrebne vrednosti grada nasuprot komercijalnoj, pokazuje se da su akteri urbanog građanstva unutar sebe heterogeni i fragmentisani, što njihove zahteve smešta u sferu depolitizovanog građanskog društva i otežava postizanje većih sistemskih promena.The topic of the dissertation is the sociological determination of the concept of urban citizenship. For that purpose, urban citizenship is primarily grounded in two ideas: the right to the city and urbanity, yet it is also analytically observed as one of the new concepts of citizenship. The basic premise upon which urban citizenship rests is that the national concept of citizenship is not sufficiently encompassing, since it neglects, through universalization and formalization of principles (on the nationality basis), the morality and values of citizenship, thus failing to provide an answer to inequalities that invade the sphere of everyday practices of city life. Therefore, urban citizenship appears as a form of supplement and ethical correction to the existing citizenship model, advocating the idea that rights and responsibilities should first be realized at the level of the city, as the primary human socio-political community. Urban citizenship particularly criticizes the neoliberal ideology, which employs a competitive atmosphere and affirmation of the capital rights to undermine the right of the citizens to make independent decisions on the use of space, which further diminishes the usable value of the city. Thus, the city is transformed into a space filled with commercial contents, and the citizens are reduced to consumerism-oriented clients, while the activistic and critical components of the citizen figure are rendered passive. Thus, urban citizenship also represents an invitation to the politicization of the citizen, primarily through the activism intended to assert one’s rights to the city. Urban citizenship actors are various social groups that face the specific barriers and feel excluded from the rights to the city in their own way, but that also manage to organize and put in joint effort to break down certain official policy barriers. The dissertation examines the gender, homosexual, environmental, immigrant perspective of the right to the city, as well as the right to the city of the poor, as some of the most conspicuous forms of inequality in space. Even though the demands of these groups basically boil down to the same goal – the strengthening of the use value of the city as opposed to the commercial value, it is shown that these urban citizenship actors are heterogeneous and fragmented from within, which positions their demands in the sphere of a depoliticized civil society and hinders the introduction of greater systemic changes

Demokratija: od teorije do prakse

Koje se navike i kompetencije traže od građana u demokratskim društvima? Da li se demokratsko građanstvo znatno razlikuje od drugih oblika građanstva? Ako ljudi nisu prirodno naklonjeni demokratskim principima, kako oni mogu dovoljno da se razviju da bi demokratska društva preživela? Ovo su neka od pitanja koja su usmeravala rad na ovom tekstu. Cilj ovog teksta i kursa, Demokratija: od teorije do prakse, jeste da pomogne studentima na univerzitetu da unapređuju demokratske principe i prakse u našem društvu i da iskoriste prednosti koje ovaj sistem donosi zajednici i pojedincima

Influence of 24-Epibrassinolide on the Energetic Parameters and Early Stages of Growth and Development in Seedlings of Two Maize (Zea mays L.) Genotypes

Brassinosteroids (BRs) are a class of plant hormones that play important roles in regulating various physiological and developmental processes in plants. One of the most effective BRs involved in modulating crop growth is 24-epibrassinolide (24-EBL). The effects of different concentrations of 24-EBL on various biochemical and biophysical parameters critical to early growth stages and seedling development were investigated using two maize hybrids, ‘ZP 434’ (a new-generation hybrid) and ‘ZP 704’ (an older-generation hybrid). The evaluation of results is based on measurements of germination percentage, morphometric parameters, redox status, comparative analysis of thermodynamic parameters (such as Gibbs free energy, enthalpy, entropy), and the concentration of specific sugars in different parts of maize seedlings. The results indicate that the germination and initial growth of maize seedlings are influenced by the flow of crucial sugars from the remaining seed (as a source of nutrients) towards the plumule and radicle (as sink organs). Furthermore, alterations in Gibbs free energy play a significant role in these sugar transfers within the maize seedlings. The seed germination was most affected by the highest concentrations of 24-EBL, showing inhibitory effects, whereas lower and moderate concentrations of exogenously added 24-EBL exhibited a beneficial influence on the initial phases of seedling growth. The mentioned approach gives new insights into source–sink relationships and can be used as a quantitative measure of the germination energy, which until now has been a qualitative criterion in seed science

Influence of 24-Epibrassinolide on the Energetic Parameters and Early Stages of Growth and Development in Seedlings of Two Maize (Zea mays L.) Genotypes

Brassinosteroids (BRs) are a class of plant hormones that play important roles in regulating various physiological and developmental processes in plants. One of the most effective BRs involved in modulating crop growth is 24-epibrassinolide (24-EBL). The effects of different concentrations of 24-EBL on various biochemical and biophysical parameters critical to early growth stages and seedling development were investigated using two maize hybrids, ‘ZP 434’ (a new-generation hybrid) and ‘ZP 704’ (an older-generation hybrid). The evaluation of results is based on measurements of germination percentage, morphometric parameters, redox status, comparative analysis of thermodynamic parameters (such as Gibbs free energy, enthalpy, entropy), and the concentration of specific sugars in different parts of maize seedlings. The results indicate that the germination and initial growth of maize seedlings are influenced by the flow of crucial sugars from the remaining seed (as a source of nutrients) towards the plumule and radicle (as sink organs). Furthermore, alterations in Gibbs free energy play a significant role in these sugar transfers within the maize seedlings. The seed germination was most affected by the highest concentrations of 24-EBL, showing inhibitory effects, whereas lower and moderate concentrations of exogenously added 24-EBL exhibited a beneficial influence on the initial phases of seedling growth. The mentioned approach gives new insights into source–sink relationships and can be used as a quantitative measure of the germination energy, which until now has been a qualitative criterion in seed science

Aromatic N versus aromatic F: bioisosterism discovered in RNA base pairing interactions leads to a novel class of universal base analogs

The thermodynamics of base pairing is of fundamental importance. Fluorinated base analogs are valuable tools for investigating pairing interactions. To understand the influence of direct base–base interactions in relation to the role of water, pairing free energies between natural nucleobases and fluorinated analogs are estimated by potential of mean force calculations. Compared to pairing of AU and GC, pairing involving fluorinated analogs is unfavorable by 0.5–1.0 kcal mol−1. Decomposing the pairing free energies into enthalpic and entropic contributions reveals fundamental differences for Watson–Crick pairs compared to pairs involving fluorinated analogs. These differences originate from direct base–base interactions and contributions of water. Pairing free energies of fluorinated base analogs with natural bases are less unfavorable by 0.5–1.0 kcal mol−1 compared to non-fluorinated analogs. This is attributed to stabilizing C–F…H–N dipolar interactions and stronger N…H–C hydrogen bonds, demonstrating direct and indirect influences of fluorine. 7-methyl-7H-purine and its 9-deaza analog (Z) have been suggested as members of a new class of non-fluorinated base analogs. Z is found to be the least destabilizing universal base in the context of RNA known to date. This is the first experimental evidence for nitrogen-containing heterocylces as bioisosteres of aromatic rings bearing fluorine atoms