Nove rimske najdbe v okolici Vitanja

Die Gegend von Vitanje ist zwischen den Massiven von Pohorje und Kozjak eingeschlossen. Mehr als andernorts hat sich da das keltische Element erhalten. Das beweisen die Namen auf den Inschriften wie: Bardo, Bardonius, Messor, Catur, Boniatus, Mogla usw. Vor einigen Jahren fand man in Št. Vid ober Vitanje ein römerzeitliches Grab, gepflastert mit steinernen Platten. Daneben ist in der Kapelle eine Halbsäule ein[1]gemauert. In der Kirche zu Vitanje steht eine interessante kurze Säule mit figu[1]ralen Abbildungen. Da sie sehr verwittert ist, kann man die Figuren nicht deuten. Im Herbst 1938 fand Ivan Potočnik in Spodnji Dolič 56 eine Inschrift. Er las Bardo Primi Silesi. Nach seiner Aussage wurde der Stein nach Celje übergeführt. Im Lapidarium daselbst befindet sich wirklich, doch leider ohne Fundangaben, der Grabstein: Bardo Primi f(ilius) viv(u)s f(ecit) si bi] e

Design of vertical members in large-span steel structures - can relevance of seismic actions be exceeded on account of indirect fire actions?

Effect of lateral actions evolving from restrained thermal expansions of horizontal structural elements (beams, slabs) on stability of vertical elements (columns, walls) of fire-engulfed buildings remains unaddressed some-times in engineering practice. Discussion with engineers has revealed that two reasons may contribute most to such design inconsistency. The first is premature assumptions that the effects of these actions can not be suffi-cient to exceed the effects of other lateral design actions, especially if for the same building considerable seismic influences are also expected. The second reason is the fact that, according to the present version of Eurocodes, these actions need not be addressed specifically if the design is carried out under standard fire curve. This curve, however, is still applied often in practice. For certain vertical members, such as the ones positioned somewhere within the middle of fire compartments, indirect lateral fire actions may indeed be negligible, e.g., due to partial or complete balancation of these actions in fire evolving simultaneously at two opposite sides. However, more pronounced effect might be observed for vertical members at the boundary between a fire-engulfed and a neighbouring cold-side compartment, especially in steel or RC buildings with larger horizontal spans prone to striking lateral thermal elongations. While such structures represent a fair share of existing building stock (they are common, e.g., in prefabricated industrial and commercial buildings), this problem deserves a special attention. In this paper two real one-storey large-span halls are analysed for confirmation of the above hy-pothesis. Each of them comprises two structurally connected units, i.e. one RC- and the other steel-framed, where fire is assumed to engulf the steel-framed unit. Stability of the cold-side RC columns at the boundary between both sectors is discussed and for the latter indirect fire actions from the connecting fire-engulfed steel members are found to be of a comparable or a greater size to effect of moderate-size seismic actions. The greatest effects of the observed fire actions are found at average steel temperatures below 400 C. This is a rather low temperature expected to be achieved (sooner or later) in most fire-affected steel elements with or without fire protection. At the same time, as in this paper also proven by results of exact visco-plastic structural computations, this is also a temperature at which no pronounced creep strains yet evolve in steel within time frames relevant for common structural fire analyses. In addition, the paper also shows that these conclusions would not change for other variations of the discussed two buildings where other possible kinematic boundary conditions were applied at the ends of the steel members or other possible thermal boundary conditions were assumed along their longitudinal surfaces. At most, the observed indirect fire effects would only increase further in these cases. Thus, at least for structures of a similar type (i.e. one-storey frame structures of horizontal spans of similar size and materials), the authors propose that the discussed lateral indirect fire actions are not dismissed from any design procedure regardless of the expected fire scenario as long as steel is allowed to heat to moderate temperatures (around 400 C). In the last part of the paper the authors also discuss possible change of these findings for multi-storey frame structures and/or frame structures of other spans. However, for these (and other possible) structural types, a more detailed further investigation is proposed

Control of invasive alien species American pokeweed

V svetu invazivne tujerodne vrste rastlin (ITVR) povzročajo mnoge spremembe v okolju. Za zatiranje ITVR je znanih precej metod, primernost posamezne in posledično tudi uspešnost pa sta odvisni od vsakega primera posebej – predvsem od cilja, ki ga želimo doseči z zatiranjem. V študiji smo spremljali zatiranje navadne barvilnice v okviru nege mladja, tj. z rezjo pri tleh. Študija je potekala na objektu s površino 2,82 ha, dela so izvajali trije delavci. Cilji študije so bili ugotoviti porabo časa na površino in pridobiti manjkajoča znanja na področju izvajanja dodatnih ukrepov pri negi mladja. V povprečju so delavci za en hektar obžetve potrebovali 18,8 ure produktivnega časa. Po simulaciji študije na osemurni delavnik faktor neproduktivnega časa znaša 1,39 (σ = 0,053) in je nižji od priznanega državnega faktorja neproduktivnega časa (1,58) za sečnjo. Pri interpretaciji rezultatov je potrebna previdnost, ker so pri kratkotrajnih (manj obsežnih) študijah pogosto podcenjeni faktorji neproduktivnega časa. Teoretični izračun, ki temelji na linearni regresiji podatkov, kaže, da je za obžetev enega hektara v celoti potrebno okrog dvaindvajset ur. Kljub že tako nizkemu faktorju neproduktivnega časa je še rezerva za optimizacijo delovnega procesa, vendar so za to potrebne dolgotrajnejše in obsežnejše študije časa.Invasive alien plant species (IAPS) are causing many changes in biocenoses around the world. Many methods are known to control IAPS. The suitability of the method and its success depends on each individual case – the main goal that is to be achieved by suppression. In the study, we observed the suppression of American pokeweed plants as part of silvicultural interventions in young forests by cutting American pokeweed at ground level. The objectives of the study were to determine the time spent per area (hectare) and to gain knowledge about the combination of silvicultural weed control and IAPS suppression (eradication). On average, labourers spent 18.8 hours of productive time managing one hectare. The non-productive time factor was calculated using our collected data based on an eight-hour shift day with a 30-minute lunch break. The calculated factor for unproductive time is 1.39 (σ = 0.053), which is below the nationally recognised and approved value (1.58) for timber harvesting. Caution is required when interpreting these results, as the factors for unproductive time are often underestimated in short-term studies. The theoretical calculation, which is based on a linear regression of the data, shows that a total of around 22 hours of labour are needed to manage one hectare. Despite the already low non-productive time factor, there is still room for optimising the work process, but this requires long-term time studies

Using citizen science to monitor the spread of tree pests and diseases : outcomes of two projects in Slovenia and the UK

The trees and forests of Europe are increasingly under threat from new pests and diseases that have originated in other parts of the world. Early detection of alien species when they first appear in European countries allows rapid response and offers the best chance to mitigate against their establishment and spread. Citizen science initiatives such as LIFE ARTEMIS in Slovenia, and Observatree in the UK, provide members of the public with the necessary training and educational resource to identify these tree pests and diseases and report them to the appropriate authorities, thereby increasing the level of surveillance and the capacity of the early warning system. This paper summarises some of the outcomes of these two projects and how they have both become integral parts of the official forest and tree health monitoring systems within their respective countries of Slovenia and the United Kingdom