Legal and political aspects of European secession movements - what are the lawful mechanisms for secession and creating a new state?

Since the fall of Communism in Europe in the 1990’s, no new state in Europe has emerged. While the 2008 Kosovo Declaration of Independence, would suggest otherwise, the statehood of Kosovo is a still debated topic, as the state of Kosovo lacks the full support of International recognition from the International community. International Law, among other things, has as its main goal, to protect the interests of states. Sovereignty and territorial integrity, are some of these examples. This thesis aims to examine how the world, where International Law seeks to protect the interests of the state, lacks legal mechanisms for pro-independence movements. This thesis examines International Law and the secession movements in the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula. With further analysis of the actions taken by the United Kingdom and Spain in regards to Scottish and Catalan independence movements, and the legal mechanisms for Scotland and Catalonia to seek their independence. While the legitimacy of the secession movement is important, due to the political nature of International recognition and International law protecting the interests of states, the state-building process is a difficult task, where even a legitimate secession with the consent of the parent state, can still be not enough to become a member of the International community

Urbanisation as a tool for economic growth – Novi Sad the developmental city

Current research and documents on urban development emphasise the links between economic growth and planning strategies, making urban space an asset of the contemporary market economy. The analysis of development trends in post-transitional cities shows numerous similarities to the Asian concept of developmental cities. This study examines current urban development strategies in the city of Novi Sad (Serbia), particularly focusing on trends in housing projects, which are the major contributors to the production of urban space. The housing policy in the city, spanning from urban reconstruction after WWII until the present, is comprehended through statistical data on construction activity, taken as an indicator of change in urban politics and the general concept of city development. The major change in this concept is the weakening of the connection between city population growth and apartment building production. As a result, human needs are no longer the primary motive for apartment construction. The comparison, analysis, and conclusions based on the interpretation of the indicators highlight the necessity for rethinking present urban practises in order to combat the continual process of degrading the quality of life in the city

Evaluation of Elements for Selection of Optimal Solution for Facility Passive Protection from the Fire Spread over Façade

Fire protection of facilities is basically based on passive and active form. Given that active forms have a limited role in the early stages of fire, the decisive role in preventing the spread of fire, until the arrival of emergency firefighting units, have elements of passive protection at the facility. The topic of this paper is facades in residential buildings and their role in spreading fires throughout the building. The aim of this paper is to design one of the possible models for choosing the optimal façade shape (or the facility), which would passively prevent the transmission of fire over the facade. For these purposes, an analysis of key aspects was performed, which, in addition to fire resistance, considered seismic resistance and energy efficiency, both dependent on the shape of the facility. The obtained results are valorized through a quality scale, based on which is determined whether the solution is bad, acceptable, satisfactory, or good. This model contributes to a quality and controlled design process, because the concept of a facility, that meets the requirements of modern construction, is obtained at an early stage. The practicality of this model is reflected in the fact that, on the one hand, in the design phase it allows to bring more variant solutions at the same qualitative level, and on the other hand it is applicable to already constructed facilities, which indicates shortcomings and possibilities of their reconstruction

Marketing Strategies of Art Trade with a Focus on Contemporary Czech Art Scene

Obchod se současným uměním v České republice býval vnímán jako oblast přístupná nemnoha zasvěceným. O tomto odvětví u nás dosud neexistovala adekvátní literatura, marketingové strategie užívané v rámci něj byly, nejen z vnějšího pohledu, dosti nejasné. Práce ukazuje, že se nejedná o tajnou sféru. Naopak jde o část trhu, která má ten efekt, že čím více se o ní veřejně hovoří, tím lepší je dopad na celou společnost. Autorka představuje stávající situaci v daném odvětví, její historické souvislosti, a otevřeně popisuje marketingové strategie galeristů dlouhodobě pracujících se současnými umělci. Zároveň na případových studiích ze zahraničí ukazuje možné další cesty, jak současné umění, skrze specifické nástroje marketingu, společnosti přiblížit.Contemporary art trade in the Czech Republic has been regarded as a private area accessible only to a few insiders. So far no adequate literature about this field has existed, the marketing strategies used within it were, not only from the outside perspective, quite unclear. This work shows that it is not a secret sphere. On the contrary, it is a part of the market, which has the effect that the more you talk about it openly, the better impact it has on the whole society. The author presents the current situation in this field, its historical context, and openly discusses the long-term marketing strategies of gallerists who work with contemporary artists. On the basis of case studies from abroad she also shows other possible ways how to bring society closer to contemporary art by means of some specific marketing tools.

The Influence of Temperature Changes on Concrete Pavement

The paper deals with the influence of temperature changes on concrete pavement. Due to differences in temperature on the upper and the lower surface of a concrete slab, the bending stress is created, resulting in concrete slab deformation. During the process of heating, the difference in temperature between the upper and the lower surface of pavement is created as a result of heat conduction. The upper surface has a tendency to expand (tense), whereas the lower one does not alter its dimensions, which results in generating the bending stress. Concrete pavement is most commonly placed in zones with extremely heavy traffic load as well as at bus stops. The analysis was carried out at bus stops in the city of Novi Sad for three different types of slab thickness. The thickness of slabs was 20, 22 and 24 cm. The testing was conducted in the longitudinal and transverse direction of the concrete pavement, both in the middle and on the edge of a slab. During the analysis of results, a conclusion was drawn that the concrete slabs were of different dimensions and thickness, and that they were placed on different subgrade reactions. The maximum values of stress were recorded in the middle of a concrete slab, in slabs whose thickness amounted to 24 cm, while the minimum stresses were identified in slabs which were 20 cm thick. The paper presents the stresses of concrete slabs, caused by changes in temperature, which depend on the subgrade reaction and dimensions of concrete slabs

Risk Assessment Model for Planning and Design Processes of Wastewater Treatment Plants

Before joining the European Union, Serbia faces a big task related to the treatment and purification of wastewater. The capital of Serbia, Belgrade, and some larger cities do not have wastewater treatment plants. Although there are no plants in larger cities in Serbia, they still exist on the territory of the state itself. However, either they are not in good condition, or they do not work with the projected capacity or they do not work at all. This paper presents the model for risks quantification for the planning and design processes of wastewater treatment plants in which the risks are divided into 6 categories: legal, financial and economic, logistics, environmental protection, management and design risks. 37 risks have been defined, analyzed and evaluated by the experts participating in the Delphi method. Experts in various fields dealing with the planning, design or construction of wastewater treatment plants were selected to assess the risks through 2 rounds of Delphi methods and reach the consensus on major risks. By using statistical methods, it is determined that the experts reached the consensus after which each risk received its own relative weighting coefficient. Risk model has been initially verified by experts from Delphi team on two projects during construction phase. This model is important in the initial phases of the project, when the investor starts the project, as well as in the design phases

Expert project analyses in the process of road maintenance management

Za potrebe učinkovitog gospodarenja održavanjem cestovne mreže neophodno je raspolagati s ažurnom informacijskom osnovom i odgovarajućim modelom za odlučivanje. U radu se daje prikaz metodološkog postupka za ekspertne projektne analize za radove na održavanju i poboljšanju cesta uz korišćenje Baze Cestovnih Podataka (BCP) i primjenu HDM-4 modela. Postupak je uspješno primjenjen i prihvaćen u apliciranju zahtjeva za financiranje radova na održavanju i poboljšanju cestovne mreže od strane međunarodnih financijskih institucija (Svjetska Banka, EIB i EBRD) tijekom 2012-e godine.An updated information system, and an appropriate decision making model, must be put in place for an efficient road maintenance management. A methodological procedure for expert project-level analyses of road maintenance and improvement activities, based on the Road Data Base (RDB) and the HDM-4 model, is presented in the paper. The procedure was successfully applied and accepted in 2012, in the scope of application for funding of road network maintenance and improvement by international financing institutions (World, Bank, EIB and EBRD)

Expression of p53 protein in Barrett’s adenocarcinoma and adenocarcinoma of the gastric cardia and antrum

Background/Aim. Most studies of esophageal and gastric adenocarcinomas have shown a very high rate of p53 gene mutation and/or protein overexpression, but the influence of the tumor site upon the frequency of p53 protein expression has not been evaluated (gastroesophageal junction, Barret's esophagus, and antrum). The aim of our study was to analyze the correlation between the selected clinico-pthological parameters, and p53 protein overexpression in regards to the particular tumor location. Methods. The material comprised 66 surgical specimens; 10 were Barrett’s carcinomas, 25 adenocarcinomas of the gastric cardia (type II adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction - EGJ), and 31 adenocarcinomas of the antrum. Immunostaining for p53 protein was performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections, using the alkaline phosphatase - antialkaline phosphatase (APAAP) method. The cases were considered positive for p53 if at least 5% of the tumor cells expressed this protein by immunostaining. Results. There was no significant difference observed between the studied groups in regards to age, sex, Lauren’s classification and tumor differentiation. There was, however, a significant difference observed in the depth of tumor invasion between Barrrett’s adenocarcinoma and adenocarcinoma of the cardia compared with the adenocarcinoma of the antrum. Namely, at the time of surgery, both Barrett’s adenocarcinomas and adenocarcinomas of the cardia, were significantly more advanced comparing with the adenocarcinomas of the antrum. Overexpression of p53 was found in 40% (4/10) of Barrett’s adenocarcinomas, 72% (18/25) of adenocarcinoma of the cardia and 65% (20/31) of adenocarcinoma of the antrum. No significant differences in p53 expression in relation to sex, type (Lauren) of tumor, depth of invasion, lymph node involvement, or tumor differentiation were observed in any of the analyzed groups of tumors. Patients with more advanced Barrett’s adenocarcinoma and in the cases of lymph node invasion revealed tendency for the greater p53 positivity compared with the early forms and lymph node-negative cases; however, this difference was not significant according to the statistical analysis. With regard to adenocarcinoma of the cardia, higher rates of p53 positivity were recorded in poorly differentiated, more advanced cases with lymph node invasion. Nevertheless, none of these differences was statistically significant. On the contrary, in the patients with adenocarcinoma of the antrum, greater p53 positivity was revealed in early forms without lymph node involvement, but the observed difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion. No significant differences in p53 protein expression in terms of sex, type (Lauren) of tumor, depth of invasion, lymph node involvement, or tumor differentiation were observed in any of the analyzed groups of tumors (Barrett’s adenocarcinoma, adenocarcinoma of the cardia and adenocarcinoma of the antrum)