Conceptual delimitations regarding the terminology used in the methods of investigating the future paper title

The authors propose the conceptual delimitation regarding the terminology used in the methods of investigating the future on the basis of a set of 7 variables. To this end, the hierarchical clusters? method will be used. The outcome of the research will be presented under the form of some clusters of terms with homogeneous meanings, almost synonyms, that would constitute the conceptual delimitation of the termsconceptual delimitation, anticipated future, cluster method

Studii asupra valorii agrobiologice şi tehnologice a soiurilor de struguri pentru vinuri aromate cultivate în podgoria Iaşi

The purpose of this paper is to study the climatic conditions of 2017 and to correlate them with the quality of the grape varieties for aromatic wines (Busuioacă de Bohotin, Tămâioasa românească and Muscat Ottonel), from the Ampelographic Collection of the Faculty of Horticulture Iasi. The climatic conditions specific to 2017 and their influence on production (grape mass, sugars, acidity, mass of 100 berries, etc.) were analyzed. The line of production specific to Iasi vineyard, namely the production of aromatic wines, should be maintained also under the current climatic conditions

Institutional drivers of shadow economy. Empirical evidence from CEE countries

Crises, such as the current pandemic, and the measures meant to tackle with them tend to increase the presence of the informal sector in the official economy, affecting mostly the emerging and developing economies. This situation is characteristic for the eleven CEE countries. These also display certain weaknesses at the economic and institutional level, which increase their vulnerability in times of crisis, with a real danger for the informal economy to grow.This paper aims to investigate the role of the institutional framework in explaining shadow economy in the mentioned countries. The methodological approach consists in a panel analysis using data from the 1996-2017 period and a principal component analysis meant to identify the specificities of each country. Our results demonstrate the influence of both formal and informal institutions on the shadow economy while country-level particularities show that institutional factors act differently in different socio-economic and political environments; consequently, the measures aimed to limit shadow economy should be adapted to each country’s specific context

Religious 'Avatars' and Implicit Religion: Recycling Myths and Religious Patterns within Contemporary US Popular Culture

[eng] Contemporary cultural and media studies have been increasingly interested in redefining the relations between religion and culture (and particularly popular culture). The present study approaches a series of theories on the manner in which religious aspects emerge and are integrated in contemporary cultural manifestations, focusing on the persistence/resurrection of religious patterns into secularized cultural contents. Thus, the analysis departs from the concept of implicit religion, coined and developed by Bailey and the theories following it, as well as other associated concepts, influential for the evolution of debates in the recent period, such as invisible religion, as approached by Luckmann, civil religion, by Bellah, folk religion, residual religion, by Davies or 'wild' religion, by Borg. In order to discuss the relations between religion and popular culture in contemporary U.S. and particularly the presence of certain religious patterns in popular culture messages, symbolism and rituals, the study uses an interdisciplinary approach, based on approaches currently used in media studies, film studies, cultural studies, visual culture perspectives, religious studies, and sociology. The article discusses, through different theories (and in its second part, a case study on James Cameron's cliché masterpiece Avatar) the manner in which contemporary popular culture (and cinema in particular) recycles, integrates and reinterprets religious patterns, symbols and behaviours

Jehova's Witnesses in post-communist Romania: the relationship between the religious minority and the state (1989-2010)

[eng] This study aims at chronicling current aspects and transformations in the relationship between the Jehovah's Witnesses religious minority and the Romanian state (1989-2010), focusing on this religious group's changing official status. Considering both previous contributions and debates on the relations between state and religion, and the distinction between the concepts of denomination versus sect, the present work analyzes the key issues of the long-lasting conflict between the state and this particular religious minority, as well as the factors influencing these relations in Post-Communist Romania. It will be argued that the latest improvements concerning the recognition of religious freedom (Jehovah's Witnesses were officially recognized as a religious denomination in 2003) owes less to internal factors than to an external influence, namely the pressure exerted by the international community at the time of Romania's accession to both NATO and the EU. Furthermore, the study concludes that the evolution of the relation between the state and the Jehovah's Witnesses has influenced the background on whic

'The Return of the Sacred': Implicit Religion and Initiation Symbolism in Zvyagintsev's Vozvrashchenie (2003)

[eng] Recent studies have been increasingly interested in the connections between popular culture - cinema in particular - and religion, and most particularly in how traditional mythologies and religious frameworks and practices are recycled and reinterpreted within modern media. These interactions can be ranged from opposition to dialogue and move towards appropriation and even replacement, in terms of functions and impact. Departing from a series of theories - mainly that of "implicit religion", coined by Bailey but also developed by theorists like Lyden - the article examines the issue of recycled myth and religious pattern in contemporary cinema, focusing on the Russian "New Wave" and more specifically on discussing Zvyagintsev's Vozvrashchenie [The Return] (2003). The article aims to decode the religious layers and symbolism of the film, which can find a coherent explanation in Eliade's theories on the pattern of initiation, but also in those on the sacred camouflaged into the profane and most particularly on the hierophanies and initiation religious patterns. The paper also focuses on the function of religious archetypes and rituals as employed by contemporary storytellers like cinema (with all its audio-visual paraphernalia), especially when such religious scripts are as articulated, although implicit, as in Zvyagintsev's narrative. The article concludes that this return to religion and the sacred as worldviews and manners of understanding of the world can be explained as employed for their persistent function of myth structures as meaning and coherence providers

Incentivos institucionales para la economía informal. Evidencia empírica de países CEE

Crises, such as the current pandemic, and the measures meant to tackle with them tend to increase the presence of the informal sector in the official economy, affecting mostly the emerging and developing economies. This situation is characteristic for the eleven CEE countries. These also display certain weaknesses at the economic and institutional level, which increase their vulnerability in times of crisis, with a real danger for the informal economy to grow. This paper aims to investigate the role of the institutional framework in explaining shadow economy in the mentioned countries. The methodological approach consists in a panel analysis using data from the 1996-2017 period and a principal component analysis meant to identify the specificities of each country. Our results demonstrate the influence of both formal and informal institutions on the shadow economy while country-level particularities show that institutional factors act differently in different socio-economic and political environments; consequently, the measures aimed to limit shadow economy should be adapted to each country’s specific contextLas crisis, como la pandemia actual, y las medidas para combatir estas tienden a incrementar el peso del sector informal en la economía oficial, afectando especialmente a las economías emergentes y en desarrollo. Una situación característica para los países del Centro y Este de Europa. Estos países presentan ciertas debilidades a nivel económico e institucional que hacen más vulnerables en tiempos de crisis, incrementando el riesgo para el crecimiento de la economía informal. Este trabajo se propone investigar el papel del marco institucional para explicar fenómeno de la economía informal los países mencionados. Empleando análisis de datos de panel con datos anuales para el período 1996-2017; y análisis de componentes principales para identificar los rasgos específicos de cada país. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran la influencia del marco institucional formal e informal sobre la economía informal; y las particularidades identificadas a nivel de país muestran que los factores institucionales se comportan de manera diferente en ámbitos socio-económicos y políticos diferentes; por lo tanto, las medidas que se centran en la lucha contra la economía informal tienen que ser adaptadas a cada contexto naciona

From Literary Culture to Post-Communist Media: Romanian Conspiracism

Conspiracy thinking has a long history in Romanian literary culture. In the early 21st century, what counts as a conspiracy theory in the mainstream of Romanian life is nevertheless elusive enough to keep the public engaged more than ever before. The growing number of attempts to address the gap in knowledge with regard to local conspiracy theories is proof that concern with their possibly harmful consequences is on the rise as well. For most of the conspiracy-minded, the topics of the day are specific threats posed to post-communist Romania and its people. In the main, conspiratorial beliefs fall into three main fields. Namely, they come across as 1) conspiracy theories against the body politic of the nation, 2) health-related conspiracy theories and 3) conspiracy theories on use and conservation of natural resources. While the first two overlap and build on the tradition of home-grown populism, the third is mostly a borrowing from Western media sources. However, the most influential instances of Romanian conspiracism posit that the well-being of the nation’s body politic and that of individuals’ own bodies are one and the same