High Inflation, Hyperinflation and Explosive Roots: The Case of Yugoslavia

The focus is on ’explosive root VAR’ modelling of money, prices, wages, and exchange rates applied to the Jugoslav high inflation/hyperinflation transition period from a centrally planned economy to a more market oriented economy. The I(2) model, which has previously been used to estimate the Cagan model for hyperinflation, is shown to yield incorrect inference when there are explosive roots in the data. The paper develops an econometric framework for the empirical analysis of hyperinflationary episodes and illustrates the importance of exploiting the system dynamics of all the variables in the system for a full understanding of the hyperinflationary mechanisms. The empirical results suggest that excessive nominal wage claims, inflationary expectations and the rate of currency depreciation were the main causes to the Yugoslav hyperinflation rather than the financing of government debt by money printing.Explosive roots; Hyperinflation; Polynomial Cointegration; Transition Economies

The role of income in money demand during hyper-inflation: the case of Yugoslavia

During extreme hyper-inflations productivity tends to fall dramatically. Yet, in models of money demand in hyper-inflation variables such as real income has been given a somewhat passive role, either assuming it exogenous or to have a negligible role. In this paper we use an empirical methodology based on cointegrated vector autoregressions to analyse data from the extreme Yugoslavian episode to investigate the role of income. The analysis suggests that even in extreme hyper-inflation the monetary variables and real income are simultaneously determined. The methodology enables a description of the short term adjustment of the variables considered.Cointegration, hyper-inflation, income, money-demand

Mathematical models for determining the protected spaces of the vertical lightning rod

Two mathematical models are presented for determining the protected spaces of the vertical lightning-rod. In the first model there was applied the circular approximation. Through the introduction of the modified striking distance in the second improved approximation there was obtained a new model for the protected space of the lightning-rod. The models are of general type, foreseen for the three-dimensional space and they are simply applied on solving the practical problems

Di\v{s}imo: Anchoring Our Breath

We present a system that raises awareness about users' inner state. Di\v{s}imo is a multimodal ambient display that provides feedback about one's stress level, which is assessed through heart rate monitoring. Upon detecting a low heart rate variability for a prolonged period of time, Di\v{s}imo plays an audio track, setting the pace of a regular and deep breathing. Users can then choose to take a moment to focus on their breath. By doing so, they will activate the Di\v{s}imo devices belonging to their close ones, who can then join for a shared relaxation session

A new approach to the determination of the striking distance from the lightning channel photos

The possible influence the stepped leader movement has on the value of the striking distance is studied. The numerical values of the striking distances are most frequently verified from the lightning channel photos. There is some explanations for dispersion of the striking distance which usually appear on tall structures. Unusually long striking distance may be influenced by the positive space charge or prior upward flashes. One more parameter which may have influence in estimation of the striking distance is a complex charge motion in the leader channel. Through introduction of two types of charge motions, possible shortening is shown of the striking distance seen on the lightning channel photos

Adventure tourism: understanding the millennial traveler

The aim of this paper is to review the current trends in tourism industry and travel behavior and preferences of Millennials or Generation Y in relation to traveling, and more specifically, adventure travel segment. Furthermore, the obtained data is compared to a recent research on adventure travel tour operators’ perception of Millennials and their travel habits and preferences, in order to determine whether or not these companies understand their customer. The results indicate that the adventure travel tour operators generally understand Millennials, however, they need to stay up to date with the latest technological and social media trends

Management of anal fistula

Anal fistula is a chronic condition that may present de novo or after an acute anorectal abscess. Manage­ment goal is to eradicate the fistula and prevent recurrence while maintaining continence.Simple or low anal fistulas are best treated with a primary fistulotomy with excellent healing rates and func­tional outcomes. The management of complex anal fistulas is more difficult and controversial. No proved surgical procedure has gained acceptable as the gold standard yet. Over the last two decades, many sphinc­ter-preserving procedures were introduced with the common goal of minimizing the injury to the anal sphincter and preserving the optimal function. Recently, a number of new techniques were developed and proposed such as ligation of intersphincteric fistula tract (LIFT); endorectal advancement flap (EAF); vid­eo-assisted anal fistula treatment (VAAFT); fistula tract laser closure (FiLAC); fibrin sealants and anal fis­tula plug (AFP), and adipose-derived stem cells (ASC). There are multiple techniques available for complex anal fistula repair. The best technique is not known yet, and the evidence available suffers from a lack of high-quality data and presents with very few large randomized studies. This review summarizes the man­agement of anal fistulas and the current techniques available. It describes some new technologies, too. Scr Sci Med 2017;49(3):15-1

Finding Best Compiler Options for Critical Software Using Parallel Algorithms

The efficiency of a software piece is a key factor for many systems. Real-time programs, critical software, device drivers, kernel OS functions and many other software pieces which are executed thousands or even millions of times per day require a very efficient execution. How this software is built can significantly affect the run time for these programs, since the context is that of compile-once/run-many. In this sense, the optimization flags used during the compilation time are a crucial element for this goal and they could make a big difference in the final execution time. In this paper, we use parallel metaheuristic techniques to automatically decide which optimization flags should be activated during the compilation on a set of benchmarking programs. The using the appropriate flag configuration is a complex combinatorial problem, but our approach is able to adapt the flag tuning to the characteristics of the software, improving the final run times with respect to other spread practicesThis research has been partially funded by the Spanish MINECO and FEDER projects (TIN2014-57341-R (http://moveon.lcc.uma.es), TIN2016-81766-REDT (http://cirti.es), and TIN2017-88213-R (http://6city.lcc.uma.es). It is also funded by Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Patient’s experiences of health personnel’s’ body art and working attire. - A general literature review

Background: The tradition of decorating the body has a long history. Reasons to perform body art, such as tattoos or body piercings, may be different and are found in all sorts of professions, including health care. In many professions there are rules of how one must look, which changes over time. Nowadays even working attire could be experienced differently based on patient's perspective. Patient’s encounters with health personnel’s with body art or non-traditional uniform has increased, which affect patient’s experiences. Aim: To describe patients’ perceptions and experiences of health personnel’s body art and uniform in health care. Method: A general literature study based on previous qualitative- and quantitative research, where two studies used a qualitative approach and eight studies used a quantitative approach. Result: Health personnel’s body art and uniform are perceived differently by different groups of patients, that is, children, adults and the elderly, as well as men and women. Four categories describe how health personnel’s body art and uniform affect patient perceptions and experiences of: relationship in care, knowledge and skills, good health care and professionalism. Conclusion: It has been shown that body art and uniform can influence patients' experiences of care.Bakgrund: Traditionen om att smycka ut kroppen har en lång historia. Anledningar till att utföra kroppsutsmyckningar, såsom tatueringar eller piercings, kan vara olika och återfinns i alla möjliga yrken och professioner, inklusive sjukvård. Det finns inom många professioner regler om hur man måste se ut, vilka med tiden ändras. Nuförtiden finns det även arbetsklädsel som upplevs olika utifrån patientperspektiv. Allt oftare möter patienter vårdpersonal med kroppsutsmyckningar eller icke traditionell uniform som påverkar patienternas upplevelser och erfarenheter av vården. Syfte: Att beskriva patienters upplevelser och erfarenheter av vårdpersonalens kroppsutsmyckningar och arbetsklädsel inom sjukvården. Metod: Allmän litteraturstudie baserad på tidigare kvalitativ- och kvantitativ forskning, där två studier var med kvalitativ ansats och åtta studier med kvantitativ ansats. Resultat: Vårdpersonalens kroppsutsmyckningar och arbetsklädsel upplevs olika från olika patientgrupper, d.v.s. barn, vuxna och äldre, samt män och kvinnor. De fyra kategorierna beskriver hur vårdpersonalens kroppsutsmyckningar och arbetsklädsel påverkar patientupplevelser och erfarenheter av: vårdrelation, kunskap och kompetens, god omvårdnad, samt professionalism. Slutsats: Det har visat sig att kroppsutsmyckningar och arbetsklädsel kan påverka patienternas upplevelse och erfarenhet av vården