Knowledge management and the increase of SME competitiveness: a case study

The need to enhance the competitiveness and innovation capacity of small and medium enterprises is one of the key objectives of emerging EU economies. In this regard, the authors define the role of knowledge in enhancing business competitiveness in a regional economy. The effect of knowledge management processes on the economic activity of businesses in the Latvian region of Latgale is considered. To assess the role of knowledge and knowledge management processes, the authors apply integrated metrics calculated with the help of correlation analysis based on a 2013 survey of managers and staff of SMEs in Latgale. An assessment of the role of knowledge and knowledge management processes in SMEs of Latgale region using the SPSS programme shows that the knowledge and experience of employees have is at an average level of development - from 2.9 to 3.6 on a 5 point scale. It suggests the possibility of that the processes of knowledge management are not used to their full capacity at the regional small and medium-sized businesses; therefore, there is untapped potential for enhancing the competitiveness of these enterprises. The study emphaisises the need for regional businesses to interpret new knowledge as a key value for developing the competitive and innovative potential

Processes of convergence and divergence in the regions of the European Union: features and qualimetry

A higher level of unity and cohesion across the European Union member states is an important aspect of European integration though it has a rather ambiguous nature. The Law on the Common Market, which aims to increase the economic efficiency of the EU, became a subject of extensive discussions among researchers suggesting that its viability at the political and socio-economic levels depends on a fair distribution of gains among the countries and regions of the Community. These discussions resulted in a considerable increase in funding allocated for the development of the EU regions from the EU Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund aiming to reduce regional disparities. The present analysis and the assessment of convergence processes (GDP per capita at purchasing power parity) in the EU regions of NUTS-1, -2, -3 levels in 1995 -2009/2010 help demonstrate the efficiency of these efforts

Education of Employees and Investment Climate of the Region: The View of the Heads of Enterprises

AbstractThe investment climate is influenced by different factors: political, economic, social, juridical, ecological, etc. In the modern fast-changing technological world the favourable character of region's investment climate to the great extent depends on the quality of labour resources and investment in human capital that is ensured by formal education and continuous rise of person's professional level. In last decades, information-educational factors, namely, scholarship and the ability to use knowledge as an economic advantage became the key component of the investment climate. Primarily these factors significantly form the potential of enterprises and the potential of the region in general.The aim of the present article is to define how the heads of enterprises evaluate the significance of employees’ education in circumstances of external environment factors’ influence (which in its turn characterizes the investment climate) on the example of enterprises in Eastern Latvia

Influence of existing social and economic interactions on sustainable territory development: the case of Iceland

International audienceIceland was identified as a typical country with relatively high achieved competitiveness level and at the same time negative growth capacity - so, with eroded sustainability of territory development. As a research hypothesis the authors suggest that Iceland's social and economic interactions with other "worlds-economies" are not diversified enough. The analysis of export/import and international migration flows of Iceland shows that a market-capitalist "world-economy" is an absolute leader (80-90 %) for Icelandic international trade and migration. Analysis of air logistical interconnections shows that a kind of sub-"world-economy" is formed which can be referred to as a Northern-Atlantic one. As results of regression analysis show social and economic interactions with the representatives of its own "world-economy" mainly draw Iceland’s sustainable territory development in their direction, and, as the trends of their development are negative or stagnate (USA and Spain), Iceland’s trend of sustainable territory development is also drawn after them. In its turn, rather infrequent social and economic interactions with other "worlds-economies" either do not influence significantly Iceland’s sustainable territory development (as interactions with Brazil do) or influence in the opposite way (as interactions with China do). Therefore, the practical efficiency of recommendation of Human Development Report 2013 to interact more actively with other "worlds-economies" is not so far proved in social and economic reality - at least, in the case with Iceland as a typical highly-developed capitalist country

Disproportions of the green economy in the selected countries

One of the main objectives of the economic policy of the European Union is to reduce the differences in the development levels of its member states or a process of real convergence to ensure balanced and sustainable economic development and growth in the EU countries. Each country strives to contribute to its prosperity. The authors analyse and compare the dynamics of green economy development in the EU countries in the period 2015 - 2019 to clarify whether there is convergence or divergence, and this way, answering the question of whether disparities in the green economy development between the EU member states increase or decrease during this period. The study used logical analysis and synthesis, monographic and analytical research of economic, theoretical, and empirical sources (at the international level), statistical analysis methods, Barro regressions, and a cartographic method

Posljedice ulaska zemalja u EU na gospodarsku uspješnost njihovih internih regija (NUTS 3)

The research objective of the presented study is to find out the consequences of the EU accession on internal regions in terms of regional convergence or divergence. The conception of analysis is based on the convergence theory which states that all industrial systems would converge because of the determinant effects of technological development. The samples for empirical analysis include NUTS 3 regions within the “new” EU countries (the countries of the former socialist bloc that entered the EU in 2004 and 2007) and Croatia as a “control country”, the economic performance of which is measured by real GDP per capita for 2000- 2011, the applied method – basic panel data analysis. The main findings of the research allow to argue that positively perceived trend of actual declining of economic performance’s interregional variation within the “new” EU countries is not the consequence of joining the EU. The basic conclusion with regard to the results of the research is that the “new” EU countries are undergoing a natural inverted U-shaped trend of changes of their economic performance’s interregional variation that depends both on the country average GDP’s per capita growth and on the length of the period of self-development under the conditions of market economy rather than on the factor of unionization as such within the EU.Cilj istraživanja ovog rada je utvrditi posljedice ulaska zemalja u EU na interne regije u smislu regionalne konvergencije ili divergencije. Koncepcija analize temelji se na teoriji konvergencije u kojoj se tvrdi da industrijski sustavi konvergiraju zbog određenih učinaka tehnološkog razvoja. Uzorci za empirijsku analizu su NUTS 3 regije unutar „novih” zemalja EU-a (zemlje bivšeg socijalističkog bloka koje su ušle u EU 2004. i 2007.) i Hrvatska kao „kontrolna zemlja”, čiji se gospodarski učinak mjeri realnim BDP-om po stanovniku za period od 2000. do 2011., a primijenjena metoda je osnovna analiza panel podataka. Glavni rezultati istraživanja omogućuju da se pokaže da pozitivno percipirani trend stvarnog pada gospodarske uspješnosti u međuregionalnoj varijaciji unutar „novih” zemalja EU-a nije posljedica ulaska u Europsku uniju. S obzirom na rezultate istraživanja, osnovni zaključak jest da „nove” države EU-a prolaze kroz prirodni obrnuti U-trend promjena svojih gospodarskih razvojnih varijacija koje ovise o rastu prosječnog BDP-a po stanovniku i o dužini razdoblja samo-razvoja pod uvjetima tržišnog gospodarstva a ne o faktoru „unionizacije” unutar Europske unije. Ključne riječi

Тепловий вплив пожежі на сталеву балку з гофрованою стінкою із вогнезахисним мінераловатним облицюванням

This paper reports a study into the possibility of applying a simplified approach, recommended by standards for conventional steel beams, to determine the heating temperature under the conditions of a fire in relation to steel I-beams with a corrugated wall. The research is predetermined by the limitation of methods that make it possible to determine the heating temperature of this type of beam in a fire using engineering methods with a small amount of calculations. Technical data on steel beams with cladding have been considered for calculation, the features of heat impact of fire on them have been analyzed, a calculation procedure has been devised, the estimation schemes have been built, and the calculations have been performed. Data on the temperature distribution in the cross-sections of beams with and without cladding were obtained by using a simplified method recommended by standards and the refined method based on a finite-element method. Mathematical models have been constructed for calculations that describe the effect of a standard temperature regime of fire on the distribution of temperature in each minute in the cross-sections of steel beams with and without cladding. The models have been described on the basis of the differential equation of thermal conductivity, boundary conditions of the third kind, which take into consideration convective and radiant heat transfer. It was established that the mineral wool cladding of the beam with a corrugated wall is a reliable fire protection agent. The heating temperature of the beam does not reach a critical value of 500 °C in 60 minutes, which provides the class of this beam with the most stringent requirements for its fire resistance in accordance with the classification in line with the acting norms in Ukraine. The simplified method, recommended by the current standards of the European Union and Ukraine, could be effectively used to analyze the fire resistance of these beams and is the basis of the procedure for the estimated assessment of the fire resistance of these structuresПроанализированы методы определения температурных распределений в сечениях стальных балок с гофрированной стенкой с минераловатной огнезащитной облицовкой под тепловым воздействием пожара. Целью было определение температуры в сечении стальной балки с гофрированной стенкой с огнезащитной облицовкой в условиях теплового воздействия пожара различными методами. Далее осуществлялось сравнение полученных результатов как основы для определения приемлемости применения для данного типа балок. Для расчета рассмотрены технические данные стальных балок с облицовкой, проанализированы особенности теплового воздействия пожара на них, разработана методика расчета, построены расчетные схемы, проведены вычисления. Получены данные о распределении температуры в сечениях балок с облицовкой и без нее с помощью упрощенного метода, рекомендованного стандартам, и уточненного метода на основе метода конечных элементов. Для расчетов созданы математические модели, описывающие влияние стандартного температурного режима пожара на распределение температуры в каждую минуту в сечениях стальных балок с облицовкой и без нее. Модели описаны на основе дифференциального уравнения теплопроводности, граничных условий третьего рода, учитывающие конвективный и лучистый теплообмен. Установлено, что минераловатная облицовка балки с гофрированной стенкой является надежным огнезащитным средством. Температура нагрева балки не достигает критического значения 500 ºС за 60 мин, что обеспечивает класс данной балки для самых жестких требований по ее огнестойкости в соответствии с классификацией по действующим нормам в Украине. Упрощенный метод, рекомендованный действующим стандартам Евросоюза и Украины, может эффективно использоваться для анализа огнестойкости данных балок и является основой методики проведения расчетной оценки огнестойкости данных конструкцийУ представленій роботі проведено дослідження можливості застосовування спрощеного підходу, рекомендованого стандартами для звичайних сталевих балок, для визначення температури нагрівання в умовах пожежі у прикладенні до сталевих балок двотаврового перерізу із гофрованою стінкою. Проведення таких досліджень зумовлене обмеженістю методів, що дозволяють визначати температуру нагріву даного типу балок в умовах пожежі з використанням інженерних методів із невеликим обсягом розрахунків.. Для розрахунку розглянуто технічні дані сталевих балок з облицюванням, проаналізовано особливості теплового впливу пожежі на них, розроблено методику розрахунку, побудовані розрахункові схеми, проведені обчислення. Отримано дані про розподіл температури у перерізах балок з облицюванням та без нього за допомогою спрощеного методу, рекомендованого стандартами, і уточненого методу на основі методу скінчених елементів. Для розрахунків створені математичні моделі, що описують вплив стандартного температурного режиму пожежі на розподіл температури у кожну хвилину у перерізах сталевих балок з облицюванням і без нього. Моделі описані на основі диференціального рівняння теплопровідності, граничних умов третього роду, що враховують конвективний і променистий теплообмін. Встановлено, що мінераловатне облицювання балки з гофрованою стінкою є надійним вогнезахисним засобом. Температура нагріву балки не досягає критичного значення 500 °С за 60 хв, що забезпечує клас даної балки для самих жорстких вимог щодо її вогнестійкості відповідно до класифікації за чинними нормами в Україні. Спрощений метод, рекомендований чинними стандартами Євросоюзу та України, може ефективно використовуватись для аналізу вогнестійкості даних балок і є основою методики проведення розрахункової оцінки вогнестійкості даних конструкці

Russian Arctic Vegetation Archive—A new database of plant community composition and environmental conditions

Motivation: The goal of the Russian Arctic Vegetation Archive (AVA-RU) is to unite and harmonize data of plot-based plant species and their abundance, vegetation structure and environmental variables from the Russian Arctic. This database can be used to assess the status of the Russian Arctic vegetation and as a baseline to document biodiversity changes in the future. The archive can be used for scientific studies as well as to inform nature protection and restoration efforts. Main types of variables contained: The archive contains 2873 open-access geobotanical plots. The data include the full species. Most plots include information on the horizontal (cover per species and morphological group) and vertical (average height per morphological group) structure of vegetation, site and soil descriptions and data quality estimations. In addition to the open-access data, the AVA-RU website contains 1912 restricted-access plots. Spatial location and grain: The plots of 1–100 m2 size were sampled in Arctic Russia and Scandinavia. Plots in Russia covered areas from the West to the East, including the European Russian Arctic (Kola Peninsula, Nenets Autonomous district), Western Siberia (Northern Urals, Yamal, Taza and Gydan peninsulas), Central Siberia (Taymyr peninsula, Bolshevik island), Eastern Siberia (Indigirka basin) and the Far East (Wrangel island). About 72% of the samples are georeferenced. Time period and grain: The data were collected once at each location between 1927 and 2022. Major taxa and level of measurement: Plots include observations of >1770 vascular plant and cryptogam species and subspecies. Software format: CSV files (1 file with species list and abundance, 1 file with environmental variables and vegetation structure) are stored at the AVA-RU website (https://avarus.space/), and are continuously updated with new datasets. The open-access data are available on Dryad and all the datasets have a backup on the server of the University of Zurich. The data processing R script is available on Dryad

Giant photoinduced reflectivity modulation of nonlocal resonances in silicon metasurfaces

Metasurfaces offer a unique playground to tailor the electromagnetic field at subwavelength scale to control polarization, wavefront, and nonlinear processes. Tunability of the optical response of these structures is challenging due to the nanoscale size of their constitutive elements. A long-sought solution to achieve tunability at the nanoscale is all-optical modulation by exploiting the ultrafast nonlinear response of materials. However, the nonlinear response of materials is inherently very weak, and, therefore, requires optical excitations with large values of fluence. We show that by properly tuning the equilibrium optical response of a nonlocal metasurface, it is possible to achieve sizable variation of the photoinduced out-of-equilibrium optical response on the picosecond timescale employing fluences smaller than 250 μJ / cm2, which is 1 order of magnitude lower than previous studies with comparable reflectivity variations in silicon platforms. Our results pave the way to fast devices with large modulation amplitude.<br/

Евгений Владимирович Оппоков - основатель практической и научной гидрологии в Украине (к 145-летию со дня рождения)

Відомий вчений-гідролог – академік Всеукраїнської академії наук (1929), академік Всесоюзної академії сільськогосподарських наук (1935) Євген Володимирович Оппоков є засновником практичної та наукової гідрології в Україні. Авторами розкрито його шлях у науці та роль у розвитку та становленні української школи наукової гідрології у 30-х роках ХХ століття. Його життєвий шлях закінчився передчасно через необґрунтований політичний наклеп, за яким його було страчено.Famous scientist-hydrologist-academician of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, academician of the all-Union Academy of agricultural sciences Evgeny Oppokov is the beginner of practical and scientific hydrology in Ukraine. The authors revealed his way in science and in the development and establishment of the Ukrainian school of scientific hydrology in 30-ies of the 20th century. His life ended because of unfounded political slander, his execution was due to it.Известный ученый-гидролог – академик Всеукраинской академии наук (1929), академик Всесоюзной академии сельскохозяйственных наук (1935) Евгений Владимирович Оппоков является основателем практической и научной гидрологии в Украине. Авторами раскрыты его путь в науке и роль в развитии и становлении украинской школы научной гидрологии в 30-х годах ХХ века. Его жизненный путь закончился преждевременно – он был казнен из-за необоснованной политической клеветы