The role of IT/IS in combating fraud in the payment card industry

The vast growth of the payment card industry (PCI) in the last 50 years has placed the industry in the centre of attention, not only because of this growth, but also because of the increase of fraudulent transactions. The conducted research in this domain has produced statistical reports on detection of fraud, and ways of protection. On the other hand, the relevant body of research is quite partial and covers only specific topics. For instance, the provided reports related to losses due to fraudulent usage of cards usually do not present the measures taken to combat fraud nor do they explain the way fraud happens. This can turn out to be confusing and makes one believe that card usage can be more negative than positive. This paper is intended to provide accumulative and organized information of the efforts made to protect businesses from fraud. We try to reveal the effectiveness and efficiency of the current fraud combating techniques and show that organized worldwide efforts are needed to take care of the larger part of the problem. The research questions that will be addressed in the paper are: 1) how can IT/IS help in combating fraud in the PCI?, and 2) is the implemented IT/IS effective and efficient enough to bring progress in combating fraud? Our research methodology is based on a case study conducted in a Macedonian bank. The research is explorative and will be mostly qualitative in nature; however some quantitative aspects will be included. The findings indicate that fraud can take up many forms. A classification of the different forms of data theft into different fraudulent appearances was made. We showed that the benefits from implementing the fraud reduction efforts are multiple. Results show that a bank has to be very small to experience losses from fixed expenditures coming from the implementation of the fraud reduction IT/IS. Medium-sized and large banks should not even see any problems arising from those expenditures. Based on the empirical data and the presented facts we can conclude that the fraud reduction IT/IS do have a positive effect on all sides of the payment process and fulfills the expectations of all stakeholders

Ecological and Microgeographical Study of an Epikarstic Fauna in West Virgina (USA)

Za raziskavo epikraške favne so bili v Zahodni Virginiji v 17 jamah pobrani vzorci iz curkov ter luž napolnjenih s preniklo vodo. V lužah je bilo ugotovljenih 20 rodov ceponožcev, med njimi 11 harpaktikoidov in 9 ciklopoidov. Za razumevanje strukturnih ter fizikalnih in kemijskih lastnosti epikrasa je bil poudarek na raziskavi epikraške favne v curkih prenikajoče vode. Izbrana so bila tri vzorčna mesta v Organ jamskem sistemu: Lipps, Sively 2 in Sively 3. V curkih je bilo najdenih 13 rodov ceponožcev, med njimi 8 harpaktikoidov in 5 ciklopoidov. Epikraška favna si je med bližnji curki bolj podobna, kot favna med oddaljenimi curki. Epikraška favna bo pomemben prispevk k pestrosti podzemeljske favne v jamah Apalačev, kot tudi k biodiverziteti ameriške favne.Drip pools and trickles of percolation water in 17 caves in West Virginia were sampled for epikarstic species. A total of 20 genera of copepods were found. 11 different genera of harpacticoids and 9 of cyclopoids were recognized in the samples collected from pools. For understanding of the structure and physico-chemistry of epikarst, the focus was specially on trickles rather than pools. Three sampling sites of the Organ cave system were chosen: the Lipps, Sively 2 and Sively 3 streams. All together in drips 13 genera of copepods, from which 8 of harpacticoids and 5 of cyclopoids have been found. Nearby drips have more similar fauna composition than distant drips. The epikarstic fauna will add significantly to the overall species richness found in Appalachian caves, and likely elsewhere in the U.S. as well

Epikarst – A Promising habitat

The book represents a detailed study of the fauna of drips and drip pools in six caves in Slovenia. Drips and drip pools are important because they are just about the only way of assessing the epikarst community. Using a special sampling device, it was possible to sample individual drips for extended periods of time. A total of 37 species of copepods were found in drips and drip pools. Significant differences in the fauna between drips and pools, presumably because of differential survival and reproduction in pools were found. Somewhat surprisingly it was found that the kind of pool, e.g., mud-bottomed compared to calcite bottomed, made little difference.Monografija Epikarst - a promising habitat (Epikras - obetajoči habitat) je rezultat večletnega sistematičnega proučevanja podzemeljske favne Dinarskega krasa. Predstavlja pregled vzorčenja epikraške favne ter do nedavnega skoraj popolnoma neznan segment življenja v kraškem podzemlju, favno epikrasa

Application of the Monte-Carlo Tree Search to Multi-Action Turn-Based Games with Hidden Information

Traditional search algorithms struggle when applied to complex multi-action turn-based games. The introduction of hidden information further increases domain complexity. The Monte-Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) algorithm has previously been applied to multi-action turn-based games, but not multi-action turn-based games with hidden information. This thesis compares several Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) extensions (Determinized/Perfect Information Monte Carlo, Multi-Observer Information Set MCTS, and Belief State MCTS) in TUBSTAP, an open-source multi-action turn-based game, modified to include hidden information via fog-of-war

Utjecaj mikroba na mikrobiota štenadi i mačića: pregledni rad

Recently it was discovered that canine and feline neonates are not born in a sterile environment as was stated previously. The acquisition, colonization, and maintenance of early life microbiota is a rapidly developing area of research. In humans it has been seen that the infant microbiome plays an essential role in human health and its composition is determined by maternal–offspring exchanges of microbiota. Even though this topic is becoming more and more important in dogs and cats, the exact role of the neonatal microbiome is not yet known. In this review, the current knowledge about the neonatal microbiome in puppies and kittens is summarized.Nedavno je ustanovljeno da se štenad i mačići ne kote u sterilnom okruženju. Stjecanje, kolonizacija i održavanje mikrobiota u ranom životu područje je istraživanja koje se brzo razvija. U ljudi je ustanovljeno da je mikrobiota novorođenčeta ključan za ljudsko zdravlje, a njegov sastav određuje razmjena mikrobiota između majke i potomstva. Iako je i u pasa i mačaka to područje sve važnije, točna uloga neonatalnog mikrobiota još nije poznata. U ovom su radu prikazane dosadašnje spoznaje o neonatalnom mikrobiotu štenadi i mačića

Ecological studies of an epikarst community in Snežna jama na planini Arto – an ice cave in north central Slovenia

Epikarst biodiversity in relation to environmental conditions was studied for the first time in an ice cave, Snežna jama na planini Arto on Mt. Raduha in north central Slovenia. In this alpine cave five sampling sites were monitored for fauna in percolation water in the period of one year. Temperature, conductivity, discharge, pH, total hardness and concentrations of various ions (calcium, chloride, nitrite, sulphate and phosphate) of water were measured. At the entrance of the cave ice is present all year round and the temperature inside the cave rises to a maximum of 4°C. These circumstances are reflected in the fauna found in percolating water. The first sampling site in the permanent ice was without fauna, as did the sampling site in an area with moonmilk. In the other three sampling sites, individuals of ten invertebrate taxa were found, Copepoda being the most abundant. Their abundance was positively correlated with discharge, pH and temperature of percolation water and additionally in the most abundant drip also with conductivity and total hardness. High proportion of immature copepods in drips shows that epikarst is their primary (i.e. source) habitat. Investigations of the alpine epikarst fauna can help to understand better the ecology of the epikarst fauna and its roles within the large range of different shallow subterranean habitats

Transformation of the Jeruzalem Hills cultural landscape with modern vineyard terraces

The terraced landscape in the Jeruzalem Hills is the result of specific socioeconomic conditions under communism, and now its appearance is drastically changing for the second time in the last fifty years. This article examines the creation of the new landscape layer of modern cultivated terraces and studies their disappearance and the return to a condition similar to the original state. The analysis is based on interviews and visual interpretation of aerial laser scanning (lidar) data. It focuses on the state of the landscape before terracing, the creation of terraces and formation of a terraced landscape, and its most recent transformation into slopes without terraces. It is determined that, despite the recognized aesthetic value of terraces, legal protection in the form of a nature park has not impacted their preservation because 56% of them have already been leveled. With the conversion of vineyards to vertical plantations, a new challenge is arising: increased erosion

Shifting Paradigms of the Evolution of Cave Life

The unique morphology of cave animals has interested biologists at least since the time of Lamarck. After a number of non-adaptive explanations for the morphology of cave animals, especially with respect to eye and pigment loss, a neo-Darwinian explanation, emphasizing constructive morphological changes rather than losses, was put forward by Barr, Christiansen, and Poulson in the 1960’s. Emphasizing convergent evolution (troglomorphy), this paradigm has recently been challenged, with evidence of divergent selection and the widespread occurrence of morphologically similar species in other subterranean habitats, including ones with abundant food and relatively strong environmental fluctuations. An emerging paradigm emphasizes the central role of darkness in convergent evolution, and the role of habitat size and interspecific competition in divergent evolution of subterranean species.Sprememba paradigme o evoluciji jamskega življenjaEdinstvena morfologija jamskih živali, predvsem v povezavi z izgubo oči in pigmenta, je zanimala biologe že od časa Lamarcka. Kasneje so bile predstavljene tudi druge, t.im. neodarvinistične razlage, s poudarkom na konstruktivnih morfoloških spremembah namesto izgubah, povzete s strani Barra, Christiansena in Poulsona v 60. letih 20. stoletja. Z novejšimi raziskavami o divergentni selekciji in razširjeni prisotnosti morfološko podobnih vrst v drugih podzemeljskih habitatih, vključno s tistimi, kjer je veliko hrane in z relativno velikimi okoljskimi nihanji, se je zamajala paradigma, temelječa na konvergentni evoluciji (troglomorfija). Novo nastajajoča paradigma poudarja osrednjo vlogo teme v konvergentni evoluciji, ter vlogo velikosti habitata in medvrstne kompeticije v divergentni evoluciji podzemeljskih vrst

Spatial and Temporal Assessment of Brassica napus L. Maintaining Genetic Diversity and Gene Flow Potential: An Empirical Evaluation

Unpredicted persistence of all forms of B. napus present in the agro-ecosystem is the most common consequence of preservation and self-recruitment of seeds originating from soil seed bank. In nature, spontaneous intra- and inter-specific hybridization of B. napus is possible with sexually compatible species from the Brassicaceae family. The aim of this chapter is (a) to identify the distribution pattern and population dynamics of volunteers and feral populations along statistical regions in Slovenia; (b) to assess the global diversity of naturally appearing B. napus plants; (c) to evaluate the genetic differentiation between volunteers and feral populations; (d) to obtain the spatial and temporal distribution of spontaneous pollination potential and estimation of gene flow conservation; (e) to find the empirically assigned out-crossing rate of B. napus under a fragmented landscape structure, during 4-year monitoring; and (f) to observe that ecologically, evolutionary, and agronomically oriented studies could be conducted at the DNA level using short sequence repeat (SSR) markers. In total, we collected 261 samples of volunteer and feral populations. Our results showed that alleles from both volunteer and feral populations were distributed in three genetic clusters with relatively similar levels of diversity. Naturally occurring out-crossing rate is 13.71%. The global Mantel correlation coefficient of genetic and spatial relatedness between genotypes is 0.044

Bay of Piran or Bay of Savudrija? An example of problematic treatment of geographical names

The established geographical name Bay of Piran refers to the largest bay in the Gulf of Trieste at the extreme north end of the Adriatic Sea. After the collapse of Yugoslavia and the emergence of independent countries demarcated along the borders of the former Yugoslav republics, the previously undemarcated body of water between Slovenia and Croatia became the focus of a border dispute between the two countries.One of the basic principles of proper treatment of geographical names is not to change established and widely used names. The name ‘Bay of Piran’ (Sln. Piranski zaliv, Cro. Piranski zaljev) is derived from the Italian name Vallone di Pirano ‘Bay of Piran’, which replaced the Italian name Valle di Sicciole ‘Bay of Sečovlje’ (as well as Ital. Valle di Siciole, Sln. Sečoveljski zaliv) a century and half ago. This in turn was established towards the end of the 18th century, replacing the Italian name Largon ‘Broad’ or Golfo Largone ‘Broad Bay’. Since 2000 there have been Croatian attempts to establish the completely new name ‘Bay of Savudrija’ (Cro. Savudrijska vala, Sln. Savudrijski zaliv)