Systematic Comparative Illustration of Primary School Building Regulations in Serbia and Slovenia

PISA tests provide international comparison of achieved educational standards through testing capabilities of 15-year old pupils. Serbia participates in PISA tests since 2003 and test reports show that the results of Serbian pupils are statistically significantly below the average of pupils in OECD countries. An additional concern, however, is the fact that the results of Serbian pupils are also statistically significantly below the results of Slovenian pupils. Slovenia participates in PISA tests since 2006 and the results of its pupils do not differ significantly from the OECD average. In order to discover directions for future reforms of educational system in Serbia in order to reach the OECD average, and therefore Slovenia, it is necessary to compare individual factors of educational systems in Serbia and Slovenia. Since pedagogical vision is of fundamental importance in design of schools, differences in primary school design regulations may serve to illustrate the most important differences in educational systems as well. A systematic comparative illustration of primary school design regulations in Serbia and Slovenia in this paper reveal that schools in Slovenia dedicate much more space, both quantitatively and qualitatively, to youngest pupils in preschool and the first two grades, school library and gym than their counterparts in Serbia

Characterization of carbon fibrous material from platanus achenes as platinum catalysts support

Carbon materials with developed porosity are usually used as supports for platinum catalysts. Physico-chemical characteristics of the support influence the properties of platinum deposited and its catalytic activity. In our studies, we deposited platinum on carbon fibrous like materials obtained from platanus seeds - achenes. The precursor was chemically activated with different reagents: NaOH, pyrogallol, and H2O2, before the carbonization process. Platinum was deposited on all substrates to study the influence of the substrate properties on the activity of the catalyst. Carbon materials were characterized by nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherms measurements, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. It was noticed that the adsorption characteristics of carbon support affected the structure of platinum deposits and thus their activity

Photoelectrochemical properties of sol–gel obtained titanium oxide

The photoelectrochemical properties of a sol–gel prepared titanium oxide coating applied onto a Ti substrate were investigated. The oxide coating was formed from an inorganic sol thermally treated in air at 350 °C. The coating consisted of agglomerates of narrow size distribution around 100 nm. The photoelectrochemical characteristics were evaluated by investigating the changes in the open circuit potential, current transients and impedance characteristics of a Ti/TiO2 electrode upon illumination by UV light in H2SO4 solution and in the oxidation of benzyl alcohol. The electrode was found to be active for photoelectrochemical reactions in the investigated solutions

Boiling and Condensation in Two-Phase System Transients with Water Hammer

Water hammer in two-phase systems, induced by direct steam condensation on subcooled water or by separation of subcooled water column, results in the most intensive pipeline pressure surges. Amplitudes of pressure spikes along the course of these dangerous transients strongly depend on the condensation and evaporation rates. The present paper provides a literature overview of thermal-hydraulic models for the prediction of water hammer phenomenon in two-phase systems, together with an original mechanistic approach for the prediction of phase transition rates, based on the shape and size of vapor-liquid interfacial area and the phase transition potential expressed through vapor and liquid phase temperature difference. Available water hammer experimental conditions were numerically simulated with the new modeling approach. Driving parameters of boiling and condensation rates at the steam-water interfaces are evaluated, and a good agreement is shown between numerical results and experimental data of bulk two-phase flow parameters during water hammer transients

Predictors of health-related quality of life in Serbian patients with head and neck cancer

The aim of this study was to identify predictors of the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in patients with head and neck cancers (HNCs). In total, 345 patients with HNCs were interviewed. A self-report questionnaire was administered to collect data about demographic characteristics, health status, smoking, alcohol consumption habits, and HRQoL. It were used the EORTC Instruments - Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core 30-questions (QLQ-C30), Quality of Life Questionnaire - Head and Neck Module 35-questions (QLQ-H&N 35) and OHIP-14 instrument for HRQoL assessments. Clinical information and treatment data were collected from medical records. Five groups of HRQoL predictors were identified: demographic, socioeconomic, behavioral, psychophysical, and clinical/treatment. These HRQoL predictors had a strong (i.e., age, level of social support and social contact, level of education, depression, fatigue, presence of gastrostomy, comorbidities, and use of pain medications and supplements), a moderate (i.e., marital status, smoking, sexuality problems, time since diagnosis, presence of tracheostomy, and side effects outcomes of radio and chemotherapy) and a small impact (i.e., employment/financial difficulties, tumor site and stage, and surgical procedure). Study identified nineteen predictors that had significant, moderate and small impact on the HRQoL of patients with HNCs. Some of the predictors, like levels of social support and social contact, depression, and comorbidities could be targets for innervations to improve HRQoL

Comparative analysis of chemically and electrochemically produced silver powders of nanostructural characteristics

Silver powder particles of nanostructured characteristics were produced by the galvanostatic regime of electrolysis and compared with those obtained by chemical reduction with hydrazine. Morphology of all types of powder particles was examined by the technique of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while crystallographic characteristics were examined by the X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the obtained particles. Morphology of the electrochemically produced powder particles strongly depended on the type of used electrolyte. The irregular crystals and the needlelike dendrites were predominately formed from the nitrate (acid) electrolyte. On the other hand, the 3D pine-like dendrites very similar to Cu dendrites [1] were formed by the electrodeposition from the ammonium (alcali) electrolyte. Simultaneously, the particles of spherical shape were formed by chemical reduction with hydrazine. The difference in morphology of electrochemically produced Ag powders can be explained by different rate of the electrochemical process by which they are formed. Namely, the ammonium electrolyte belongs to the group of the complex electrolyte and formation of this complex lowers the exchange current density for Ag causing a transfer of Ag from the group of the normal metals (metals with the high values of the exchange current density) to the group of the intermediate metals (metals with the medium values of the exchange current density). Irrespective of the way of preparation of Ag powder, Ag crystallites in all types of powder particles were predominantly oriented in the (111) plane. Formation of powder particles of the different shape with the strong (111) preferred orientation was discussed and explained by the consideration of the general characteristics of the growth of a crystal in the crystallization and electrocrystallization processes. Analogy between these two types of processes was made and discussed

Dominance of Nosema ceranae in honey bees in the Balkan countries in the absence of symptoms of colony collapse disorder

International audienceNosema species were determined in honey bees from Balkan countries. A total of 273 Nosema-positive samples were analysed. Duplex PCR and PCR-RFLP with newly designed primers, nos-16S-fw/rv, were used to differentiate between N. apis and N. ceranae. N. apis was detected in only one sample (collected in 2008 in Serbia) and N. ceranae in all the others (N = 272) including 35 older samples from Serbia collected between 2000 and 2005. No co-infection was detected. The results suggest (1) the dominance of N. ceranae infection in all Balkan countries monitored throughout the last three years; (2) the presence of N. ceranae in Serbia at least since 2000, which means that N. ceranae has not recently displaced N. apis; (3) the higher efficacy of PCR-RFLP with newly designed primers, nos-16S-fw/rv, in comparison with duplex PCR (100%:82%, respectively). The prevalence of N. ceranae in Balkan countries was not associated with an increase in nosemosis or colony losses resembling Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD)

Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks

Heterogeneous contributions of change in population distribution of body mass index to change in obesity and underweight NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC)

From 1985 to 2016, the prevalence of underweight decreased, and that of obesity and severe obesity increased, in most regions, with significant variation in the magnitude of these changes across regions. We investigated how much change in mean body mass index (BMI) explains changes in the prevalence of underweight, obesity, and severe obesity in different regions using data from 2896 population-based studies with 187 million participants. Changes in the prevalence of underweight and total obesity, and to a lesser extent severe obesity, are largely driven by shifts in the distribution of BMI, with smaller contributions from changes in the shape of the distribution. In East and Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the underweight tail of the BMI distribution was left behind as the distribution shifted. There is a need for policies that address all forms of malnutrition by making healthy foods accessible and affordable, while restricting unhealthy foods through fiscal and regulatory restrictions