Opportunities and Weaknesses in Professional Development of Teachers at Secondary Schools of Agriculture in Serbia

Recent developments in market economies have showed that education and human resource creation are among the top priorities of national strategies and social, economic, and technological progress policies. The common denominator of educational reforms in many European countries is an attempt to set up a flexible system for professional education and development to respond to changes in labour market demands. In 2012, the Serbian Government adopted Serbia’s Education Strategy until 2020. This document provides for professional development of teachers and expert assistants at secondary specialist schools. Some of the projected actions involve working out various models of professional development, primarily teacher practice in their respective professions, carried out in companies or institutions. This document focuses on continuing professional development through various forms of formal and informal education. Success in finding acceptable solutions in food production technology largely depends on educated staff in agriculture and their engagement in transferring their knowledge and technologies to agricultural practice. Secondary school education is most important as it is the education level producing a qualified student who will do a specific job. The aim of this paper is to address to the need and weaknesses in continuing professional development of teachers at secondary schools of agriculture in Serbia. The weaknesses experienced in practice regarding their development are numerous and often hard to overcome. How to recognise these weaknesses and resolve them is the subject matter of this paper. The paper presents the organizational weaknesses of accredited seminars and their evaluation

UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL: EXPLORING THE IMPACT OF ETF INVESTMENTS ON THE GLOBAL FINTECH LANDSCAPE

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only transformed our daily lives but has also acted as a catalyst for the rapid evolution of the FinTech industry. This sector has gained substantial recognition from global investors who are eager to allocate their surplus funds to this domain. This paper aims to examine the FinTech industry from a financial market perspective, specifically focusing on investments in thematic FinTech exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Our analysis centres on two prominent ETFs, namely FINX and ARKF, and compares their performance against the Standard & Poor's 500 stock market index. Notably, the results demonstrate the outperformance of this industry niche, even in the face of strong overall market performance during the pandemic years. Employing a factor regression approach, we implement the Carhart 4-factor model for both ETFs over the period from March 2019 to December 2021. The findings suggest resemblances between the FinTech industry and the overall market in terms of factor-investing styles and momentum-driven behaviour of market participants. However, significant disparities in performance metrics are observed between the respective ETFs

Application of mathematical model for container transport flow of goods: from Far east to Serbia

Prijevoz kontejnera predstavlja ključnu komponentu intermodalnog prijevoza i značajan je doprinos brzo rastuće međunarodne trgovine. Kontejnerski tok treba biti optimalan kako bi se osiguralo pravilno korištenje resursa i profitabilnost ključnim subjektima, pružajući im jednostavan i relativno jeftin pristup međunarodnim tržištima. Brojni algoritmi su razvijeni kako bi učinkovito izvršili rješavanje problema optimizacije kontejnerskih tokova. U radu se analizira intermodalna mreža s primarnim fokusom na uvoz kontejnera s Dalekog istoka ka Srbiji preko odabranih mediteranskih luka (Koper, Rijeka, Bar, Solun i Konstanca). Razvijen je optimizacijski matematički model, koji smanjuje vrijeme i troškove kontejnerskih uvoza u Srbiju, pomoću različitih servisa na moru i kamionskih, željezničkih i riječnih kopnenih tokova. Koristeći dvo-objektivni model za kontejnerske tokove s Dalekog istoka preko mediteranskih luka utvrđena je optimalna ruta za kontejnerski uvoz u Srbiju. Neki klijenti zahtijevaju niže cijene prijevoza, dok drugi trebaju brže isporuke.Container transport represents a key component of intermodal transport and a substantial contribution to the rapidly growing international trade. The container trade should be optimal to provide a suitable resource utilisation and profitability to key operators, providing them an easy and relatively cheap access to international markets. Numerous algorithms have been generated to provide an efficient solution to optimisation problems in container trade. This paper analyses the supply-chain network focusing on container import from the Far East to Serbia through selected Mediterranean ports (Koper, Rijeka, Bar, Thessaloniki and Constanta). An optimisation mathematical model was developed, minimising the transit time and transportation costs of container imports to Serbia, by means of using various liner shipping services on the deep-short sea and truck-rail-barge inland transport networks from selected ports. By using the bi-objective model for container flows from the Far East through Mediterranean ports, the optimal path for container import to Serbia has been determined. Certain groups of customers require the lowest freight rates, while others give priority to a faster delivery

Size Distribution of Agglomerates of Milk Powder in Wet Granulation Process in a Vibro-Fluidized Bed

Results of experiments on the influence of technological parameters (intensity of vibration, granulation of the liquid feed, temperature of fluidization agent) on the change of size distribution, as well as mass mean diameter of the milk powder particles subjected to the wet granulation process (agglomeration) in a vibro-fluidized bed granulator are shown in this paper. Using water as a granulation liquid and air as a fluidization agent, it was found that mass mean diameter increases with increase of water feed, intensity of vibration, and decrease of air temperature. Increasing the intensity of vibration and decreasing the air temperature, primarily induces the increase of the dimensions of the initial nuclei. This can be explained on the basis of different influences that these changes (velocity of particle motion, intensity of particle collision, drying rate) have on the coalescence of particles with smaller and/or bigger dimensions

Sex and age differences and outcomes in acute coronary syndromes

Background: There is conflicting information about sex differences in presentation, treatment, and outcome after acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in the era of reperfusion therapy and percutaneous coronary intervention. The aim of this study was to examine presentation, acute therapy, and outcomes of men and women with ACS with special emphasis on their relationship with younger age ( lt = 65 years). Methods: From January 2010 to June 2015, we enrolled 5140 patients from 3 primary PCI capable hospitals. Patients were registered according to the International Survey of Acute Coronary Syndrome in Transitional Countries (ISACS-TC) registry protocol (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01218776). The primary outcome was the incidence of in-hospital mortality. Results: The study population was constituted by 2876 patients younger than 65 years and 2294 patients older. Women were older than men in both the young (56.2 +/- 6.6 vs. 54.1 +/- 7.4) and old (74.9 +/- 6.4 vs. 73.6 +/- 6.0) age groups. There were 3421 (66.2%) patients with ST elevation ACS (STE-ACS) and 1719 (33.8%) patients without ST elevation ACS (NSTE-ACS). In STE-ACS, the percentage of patients who failed to receive reperfusion was higher in women than in men either in the young (21.7% vs. 15.8%) than in the elderly (35.2% vs. 29.6%). There was a significant higher mortality in women in the younger age group (age-adjusted OR 1.52, 95% CI: 1.01-2.29), but there was no sex difference in the older group (age-adjusted OR 1.10, 95% CI: 0.87-1.41). Significantly sex differences in mortality were not seen in NSTE-ACS patients. Conclusions: In-hospital mortality from ACS is not different between older men and women. A higher short-term mortality can be seen only in women with STEMI and age of 65 or less

The Source of Spontaneous Activity in the Main Olfactory Bulb of the Rat

In vivo, most neurons in the main olfactory bulb exhibit robust spontaneous activity. This paper tests the hypothesis that spontaneous activity in olfactory receptor neurons drives much of the spontaneous activity in mitral and tufted cells via excitatory synapses.Single units were recorded in vivo from the main olfactory bulb of a rat before, during, and after application of lidocaine to the olfactory nerve. The effect of lidocaine on the conduction of action potentials from the olfactory epithelium to the olfactory bulb was assessed by electrically stimulating the olfactory nerve rostral to the application site and monitoring the field potential evoked in the bulb.Lidocaine caused a significant decrease in the amplitude of the olfactory nerve evoked field potential that was recorded in the olfactory bulb. By contrast, the lidocaine block did not significantly alter the spontaneous activity of single units in the bulb, nor did it alter the field potential evoked by electrical stimulation of the lateral olfactory tract. Lidocaine block also did not change the temporal patters of action potential or their synchronization with respiration.Spontaneous activity in neurons of the main olfactory bulb is not driven mainly by activity in olfactory receptor neurons despite the extensive convergence onto mitral and tufted cells. These results suggest that spontaneous activity of mitral and tufted is either an inherent property of these cells or is driven by centrifugal inputs to the bulb

Homophobia and hate speech in Serbian public discourse : how nationalist myths and stereotypes influence prejudices against the LGBT minority

Human rights abuses targeted towards LGBT persons constitute a global pattern of serious concern. Despite the fact that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity is prohibited by various international, regional and national legal provisions, prejudices and stereotypes related to LGBT people significantly impede the implementation of non-discrimination laws. This study focuses on contemporary Serbia, and attempts to understand the role of public discourse in inciting and perpetuating homophobia. The aim of the study is to analyse whether and how Serbian nationalist myths influence homophobia, as well as to determine which elements of the Serbian public discourse represent hate speech targeted towards sexual minorities. This study uses discourse analysis as the main methodological and analytical tool, and focuses primarily on the discourses that emerged around three main events: the adoption of the first comprehensive anti-discrimination law in March 2009, the cancellation of the Belgrade Pride in September 2009, and the Pride parade held in Belgrade in October 2010. The study concludes that the Serbian public discourse – namely, the discourse of the Serbian politicians, the Serbian Orthodox Church and the mainstream media – is still deeply imbued with nationalist myths and stereotypes from the past, which contribute greatly to the perception of sexual minorities as the enemies of the nation and the society. The study also assesses that hate messages against LGBT people are frequent and widespread in Serbian society, and that the hate speech laws are not adequately implemented

Securitization of LGBTIQ Minority in Serbian Far-right Discourses: A Post-structuralist Perspective

This article analyses the securitization of LGBTIQ population in the narratives of Serbian far-right organizations, i.e. the discursive construction of the LGBTIQ minorities as a threat. The analysis relies on securitization theory in order to demonstrate how the issue of gay rights is taken beyond ‘normal politics’ and constructed as a security issue. By drawing upon post-structuralist reading of securitization theory, this article argues that the narratives of Serbian far-right groups acquire legitimacy due to their coherence with the mainstream discourses on homosexuality and LGBTIQ rights. Moreover, it argues that through the securitization of sexual minorities in the far-right discourses, the Serbian national identity is being re-defined and strengthened. This article uses discourse analysis as main method. The sources of data include press statements and other media pieces, reports by civil society organizations and government institutions, public opinion surveys and websites of the far-right groups. The analysis is focused on the period from the adoption of the Anti-discrimination Law in 2009 onwards, as the period in which the issue of LGBTIQ rights has become increasingly topical in the Serbian public sphere