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In this article, we have examined the effectiveness of teaching economics through project-based learning. For this purpose, we carried out an experiment at secondary schools in the Slovak Republic. We divided 123 students into control and experimental groups. In both groups, teaching was carried out on the same topic by the same teacher in the same time frame. The control group completed the traditional verbal-visual teaching with the help of a blackboard. The experimental group completed project-based learning. Then, in both groups, the students' knowledge was ascertained in the same way. We compared the results with inductive statistics to see if the difference between the results of the two groups was significant. For comparison, we chose a parametric two-sample t-test, which is used to compare the mean values of two independent samples. We managed to prove higher efficiency of teaching using project-based learning compared to traditional verbal-visual teaching. We think that project-based learning has its place among teaching methods, as it can have also other advantages over traditional teaching. This is also indicated by the results of a questionnaire, which we used to find out the opinions of students after the end of the experiment. Almost all students expressed the belief that project-based learning is very interesting.

At current e-learning platforms, is often seen non-efficient usage of their possibilities when creating educational content. This article deals with the possibilities of using adaptive tools that are offered by learning management system (LMS) Moodle when creating a personalised e-course. The methodology created by the authors of the article for personalised e-course adjusts the study content based on characteristics of each student stated by his or her initial knowledge, learning style, and motivation. The article is aimed at the presentation of the created methodology and its impact on the level of student's output knowledge as well as overall learning efficiency. By using the methodology, there was an opportunity to compare the impact of two different approaches -- the personalised one and non-personalised. Statistical analysis revealed that the use of personalized e-course has a positive impact on students' activity, motivation, and their level of output knowledge. The results showed that the attended secondary school has no or only minimal impact on the output knowledge if the students studied through the personalized e-course. An interesting finding was that students in all surveys have a stronger tendency to prefer the same learning styles over the years.

The authors of the scientific study examine the impact of the relationship of theoretical knowledge on practical skills in technical subjects at the lower secondary level of education in the Slovak Republic. After determining the research problem and hypotheses, they bring the processed results in the form of tables and figures. Quantitative results within the pedagogical experiment are supplemented by qualitative analysis. In a scientific study, we characterize a research sample and research methods. We focus on a detailed description of problem tasks that pupils have solved in pedagogical research. Pedagogical research was carried out in four regions in the Slovak Republic. At the end of the scientific study, the authors compare the results ascertained from previously published information in the field of science. We are based on modern approaches in pedagogy, which integrate the issue of assessing pupils psychomotor skills into the field of general education. The current objectives and tasks in subjects developing cognitive knowledge and psychomotor skills of pupils and specifically on the subject of technology, represent a body of knowledge and skill to be learned. In the information society, knowledge is growing in a geometric way, especially in the field of technical sciences. The knowledge that the pupil acquires at school will no longer be sufficient after solving the internship in solving the technical problems he will encounter. Scientific studies address this issue. We examine the influence of theory on the acquisition of practical skills. Both aspects are important in the development of the pupils' personality not only in the technical but also in the modern information society.

Critical Thinking is a generally recognized educational ideal at all levels of the educational process. This study validated the critical thinking test on Slovak conditions. Data were collected from 50 respondents studying at university. Bachelor's and Master's students from all grades, aged 21 to 36 (x = 23.00; SD = 2.84) were represented. Model fits, normality, reliability and exploratory factor analysis were used. The results showed that the critical thinking test is valid and reliable. The implications of the test for next using is discussed.

Children's concept of biological phenomena differs from scientific thought in many aspects. The revelation of wrong concepts contributes to better education, especially when that information is described in a specific field of science. Not only children, but also adults often use anthropomorphic and theological explanations to express their ideas, which confirm their lack of understanding of biological phenomena. A great deal of research has proved retaining of children's misconceptions in the fields of zoology and botany. How accurate, however, are their ideas about organisms of a microscopic size? The aim of the research was to find out the influence of selected factors (perceived vulnerability, grade, gender and type of group) on concepts about diseases among lower secondary school students. The research sample consisted of 400 students of lower secondary education from Slovakia. Data were collected through Likert type questionnaires. The correlation was found between perceived vulnerability to diseases, age and concepts about diseases. The statistically significant difference in the results between boys and girls was not confirmed. The higher impact should be aimed at their importance for humans and nature for a better understanding of this concept.

The preferences in the use of ICT at school and at home are varied among young people due to development of ICT in the 21st century environment. Educators need to pay attention to differences among groups of ICT users and their influence on teaching and the learning process. The purpose of this research was to identify the levels of ICT competence of university students and to assess differences in their use of ICT with special focus on social networks and mobile phones. The questionnaire survey at four universities in three countries was conducted to identify how university students use ICT for learning and out-of-school activities. The participants were 1348 university students. The obtained results only partially confirmed the general assumption that young people (Millennials) in contemporary society are characterized by skilled use of ICT in their everyday life. The application of cluster analysis found four different user groups according to their use of ICT in their life. Educators should be aware of the user groups' differences among students and take them into account when planning, implementing and evaluating the teaching and learning process.

The main aim of our research was to determine whether the teacher is one of the factors influencing students' perception of biology as a school subject. The study also aimed to identify the influence of certain other factors in this regard, specifically: students' gender and place of residence, the number of biology teachers who have taught the students, and the teachers' gender. The sample consisted of 261 lower secondary school students (ISCED 2) in Slovakia, aged 14 and 15 years. A questionnaire with Likert-type items was used as a research instrument. The findings confirm the impact of the biology teacher on students' perception of the subject. After removing the influence of the teacher, the students' gender and place of residence did not have any significant influence on their perception of the subject. Two additional significant variables were the number of biology teachers who had taught the students and the teachers' gender. The research confirmed that the teacher's personality is one of the significant factors that can influence students' perception of school subjects.

Plants are crucial parts of ecosystems but are traditionally considered boring and difficult by students. It is therefore not clear whether factual knowledge about plants contributes to building positive attitudes and interest in botany. We investigated whether factual knowledge about monocotyledonous plants is associated with secondary students' attitudes toward and interest in plants. Furthermore, we examined whether self-reported plant cultivation experiences and gender differences exist in attitudes toward plants. Factual knowledge about monocotyledonous plants significantly correlated with attitudes toward plants and these attitudes were greatly influenced by interest in botany, ecology, evolution, and zoology, but not with other, more distant biological disciplines (e.g. microbiology, or health and nutrition). Females received better scores in knowledge and attitudes toward plants, but interest in plants was similar between males and females. We suggest that (1) factual knowledge in botany is essential in building positive attitudes toward plants and that (2) inter-connections between botany with zoology, ecology and evolution may help with elimination of plant blindness and building positive attitudes toward plants.

In the paper, we point out several observations and remarks on time effectiveness of electronic testing, in particular of its new form (interactive tests). A test is often used as an effective didactic tool for evaluating the extent of gained cognitive capabilities. According to authors Rudman (1989) and Wang (2003) it is provable that the relationship towards e-testing depends on the degree of previous experiences with this form of examination. Conducted experiments (not only by these authors) show that students using the traditional testing form (putting answers down on a paper) are happy to have the opportunity to use a computer for testing. The reason is the fact that they are usually used to a complete explanation of the educational content, frontal examination during the lesson and also in the course of the school year and more limited possibilities to use the Internet for educational purposes. Most of them do not even know about the possibilities of e-learning and electronic evaluation. On the other hand, the group of students who are being tested using the traditional form and at the same time using computers usually prefer the traditional form, while using multimedia tools is more or less normal to them.

Different factors may be influencing the use of information and communication technology (ICT). One of the important factors is age. The society is divided into different groups according to age. A well-known age-based categorization, commonly used especially in the field of economics,, is based on whether people belong to the Millennial Generation which are born after 1980. The Millennial generation has some typical behaviors which are different from those of the older people regarding ICT. In this study Millennial Generation was compared to other older respondents while also taking into account factors like gender and residence. The sample was composed of 266 respondents from ages between 18 and 57. The questionnaire was administered on an e-form and contained 73 items regarding the use of Internet and ICT and attitudes toward these. The items regarding the attitudes were 5-point Likert type items and the items regarding the use of Internet and ICT had multiple-choice answers with 2 to 5 options to choose from. The first part of questionnaire included demographic variables like gender, age, the ownership of PC, etc. The analysis of the data focused on determining the differences in the use of Internet and ICT. The methods of inductive statistics like Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used. Reliability was tested by conducting a Cronbach's alpha coefficient analysis. The construct validity was determined by using an exploratory factor analysis.

Using the critical work of Andreas Kazamias on the history and methods of comparative education as conceptual framework, we investigate the education (over a 200-year period) of the Slovak Roma. We position our story as paradigmatic of the dual processes of enlightenment and obscurantism with which we are familiar in thinking about the history of racial violence. The article describes the encounter of a young British doctor, Richard Bright, with Roma and Slovaks in 1814, and explores the Enlightenment thinking about Roma in specific, and race in general, in Bright's travelogue. We juxtapose these historical investigations with qualitative findings from research conducted recently in the same region of Slovakia. Our goal is to show that Kazamias's calls for a return to the historical in educational research, and greater attention to the "paideia of the soul," have relevance in considering the discouraging past and present of Roma in Slovak schools and society.

Cross national study on opinions on science teaching was revealed on a sample of 1799 (596 males, 1203 females) pre-service elementary and science teachers' enrolled in various departments at selected universities in Croatia, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey. Three factors explaining 43.4% of variance were extracted from a pool of 22 items of affirmative statements. In combination with all three factors it was possible to construct a ghost teacher. Such teacher, constructed from the study, recognizes the importance of active student-centred teaching with respect to culture of the society, both in content and values, but will in practice teach with high achievements in mind and teacher centred practice as a vehicle towards success. Differences between teachers from different countries, between genders and between study tracks are statistically significant. The most influential factor determining opinions is the dominant teaching culture of the country.

Assignation tax plays an important role in the funding of non-profit organisations (NPOs) in Slovakia. The analysis is focused on the funding of Slovak sports clubs via the assignation tax. The hypotheses were defined as follows: H1: local interest in sports clubs has a positive effect on obtaining the funds from the assignation tax; H2: assignation tax donors (2%) are more inclined to support individual sports than team sports. The data analysis has proven the growth of the total sum obtained via the assignation tax over time. The growing income from the assignation tax for the whole non-profit sector was predicted by applying statistical methods. Based on the created model, the average annual decrease of sports clubs' incomes by 28.80% can be expected, from EUR1,750 in 2019 to EUR600 in 2022. This trend shows the development of the situation without the clubs taking any action. Thus, it can help them with setting promotional activities to gain more funds via the assignation tax in the future and optimising their financial mix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pervasive involvement of information and communication technologies and computers in our daily lives influences changes of attitude toward computers. We focused on finding these ecological effects in the differences in computer attitudes as a function of gender and age. A questionnaire with 34 Likert-type items was used in our research. The sample consisted of 659 students from 14 high schools, aged 15-19 years attending the first, the second, the third, and the fourth years of study. The results of the questionnaire were divided into the two dimensions of concrete computer enjoyment and computer anxiety. On the first dimension both younger students and girls have positive attitudes. On the second dimension both younger students and boys have more positive attitudes. Overall, girls have more positive attitudes than boys. This is interesting because in the existing literature there is evidence that boys have more positive attitudes toward computers than girls. Perhaps a change is taking place. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)

Research into children's ideas showed that children's interpretations of natural phenomena often differ from those of scientists. The aim of our study was to identify children's ideas of various age classes (7/8-14/15) about birds. A questionnaire with 31 multiple choice and open ended questions and eight photographs were administered to 495 children from 10 elementary schools in Slovakia. Children's ideas were examined in six dimensions (bird classification, food, senses, communication, migration and breeding including parental care). We found several misconceptions, some of them with both anthropomorphical and teleological reasoning of the children about birds within each dimension. In general, misconceptions were more frequently found in younger children, but several misconceptions were similarly distributed across all age classes. (Contains 3 figures and 1 table.)

This study examined university students' knowledge of and attitudes (n = 378) toward biotechnology in Slovakia, a conservative country where the distribution of genetically engineered products are banned by law. We found a significant positive correlation between attitudes and the level of knowledge; however, although students enrolled in biology courses have better knowledge of biotechnology, their attitudes toward genetic engineering were similar than those of students who do not study biology. Females showed poorer knowledge and lower acceptance of genetically engineered products than did males. Overall, Slovakian students have poor knowledge and numerous misunderstandings about what genetic engineering means, which suggests that science curriculum with respect to this topic should be greatly re-evaluated and teaching strategies should be improved accordingly. (Contains 2 figures and 2 tables.)

This article explores issues relating to innovation in engineering education arising from the implementation of e-education. This can be correlated with innovation in general. We describe a systematic approach to innovative design and utilise this approach in engineering education. The main emphasis is on the presentation of attitudes, approaches and the outcomes resulting from the experiences at the University of Zilina, within the project "Using of ICT and new generation networks platform in education". This project was carried out over the past three years within the framework of the state research and development program. (Contains 2 figures.)

The closure of schools and urgent importance of distance education during the Covid 19 pandemic revealed a necessity to find suitable teaching methods that would help to maintain the continuity level of educational system in case of different possible critical periods of society's survival, such as viral and bacterial pandemics, war, climate, meteorological and other disasters. In this context, the need for possibilities of distance-oriented further education of teachers has also emerged. Moreover, it was very important to create a great amount of suitable teaching materials. All mentioned facts require serious didactic research. In fact, it would also help to identify the positives and negatives of previous teaching methods applied in each individual school subject before the Covid 19 pandemic in Slovakia. During the Covid 19 pandemic, the authors of this paper have implemented a natural science-technologically oriented university course for future teachers in the period of Covid 19 pandemic. The research was conducted by method of pedagogical experiment. Paper consists of 9 chapters altogether, also including introduction, conclusion, acknowledgement, and bibliography. The first chapters are theoretical. They directly present the process of creating FVCOVIDE = Distance forms of education (during Covid 19 pandemic, having the character of experimental forms of teaching). Chapter 3 is of pedagogical experiment nature, applying the above-mentioned models into school practice. It also includes research hypotheses, statistical data processing and results interpretation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Market competition in a globalized society requires increasing quality requirements in the production process, which is reflected in the final products. The main measure of the effects of introducing quality is the customer and the position of the product on the market. The requirements of industrial production in the time of Industry 4.0 era in competition require the introduction of innovation in the field of production as a means of increasing the competitiveness and performance of the company. In the 4.0 industrial era, competition between companies is fiercer, forcing many to produce to seek innovation to improve the competitiveness and performance of their company. The companies are implementing an integrated management system ISO 9001: 2015 Quality Management System and ISO 22000: 2018 Food Safety Management. In this paper we deal with a case study where we prove that the introduction of quality systems and quality standards leads to an increase in overall product quality, labour productivity and at the same time to a better position of the company in the market, i.e. in the pharmaceutical industry. The study examines food and pharmaceutical products containing glucan, specifically those found on the Slovak market. The results are applied using statistical methods and briefly summarized in tables. The study is based on similar findings from abroad and proves that a unique product was produced in Slovakia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analysis geographical representativeness of governments in the Czech Republic and in the Slovak Republic. It claims, that both countries differ in the position of the capital, as within the Czech Republic its dominant position is declining, while in Slovak republic it retains this position. This dominance is also underlined by the centralization of other districts around Bratislava. On the other hand a larger number of regions are more ideally represented or overrepresented in the Czech republic than in the Slovak republic. It can therefore be stated that the two countries differ in terms of geographical representativeness of individual governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hedgerows play important roles in agricultural landscapes and they increase biodiversity by providing habitat refugia for species sensitive to agricultural disturbance. We have studied the characteristics of the communities of harvestmen (Opiliones) inhabiting hedgerows. Harvestmen are terrestrial arachnids associated with soil surface and subsurface and sensitive to land-use and disturbance. We were specifically interested in quantifying how hedgerow characteristics (e.g., elevation, length, width, connectivity, and plant diversity) affect harvestman diversity and community composition. We expected harvestman diversity and community composition to be positively related to both hedgerow size (area, length, width) and biological attributes of hedgerows (e.g., connectivity, plant community diversity). We surveyed hedgerow characteristics and harvestman communities of 20 hedgerows in an upland agricultural landscape in the Western Carpathians. Hedgerow characteristics were measured in the field or derived from GIS layers and we used correlation and ordination methods to relate them to harvestman community metrics. We found surprisingly high taxonomic richness of harvestmen within the studied hedgerows (15 species). Importantly, the Shannon index of harvestman communities was positively related to hedgerow length and hedgerow tree layer species richness and diversity. Harvestman community composition varied with hedgerow area and width. Despite their small total area, hedgerows represented an important habitat for diverse harvestman communities and hedgerow attributes such as size and tree diversity significantly affected the composition and the Shannon index of harvestman communities. Thus, greater lengths and widths of hedgerows can provide habitats for a higher Shannon index of harvestman communities, within surrounding agricultural landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving the quality of life from the point of view of health and safety of the population is currently also subject to improving the environmental profile of the area. All development goals and strategies are today, whether viewed from a global or regional or local point of view, in a coordinated way in relation to environmental damage and fulfillment of socio-economic parameters (EIA/SEA/HIA process) of development. However, the old environmental burdens caused by environmentally inappropriate consumption and production in the past that are transferred to the present and the sustainable development of society as environmental debt remain a problem in the EU and in the regions of Slovakia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the theoretical level, the contribution includes the essence of mobbing and bossing. The causes of bossing, its characteristics, methods, consequences for the individual and the organization and protection against bossing. On the practical level, the incidence of bossing was evaluated in the environment of secondary education teachers in the Slovak Republic. The aim of the paper was to elaborate logically comprehensive theoretical knowledge from the subject and to find out the real status of bossing in the secondary school environment in the Slovak Republic. Bossing was detected in communication; social relations; fairness, respect and seriousness; working life and health. The following methods were used to achieve the goal: literature study, mathematical and statistical methods, analytical and synthetic method, empirical method (questionnaire technique) and inductive method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article deals with a part of structural health monitoring (SHM) of in scale model. Investigated experimental model is similar to the bridge situated in the western part of Slovakia. After laboratory tests, the work continued with in-situ monitoring of original bridge. During the first stage of testing only the basic dynamic characteristics - mass and stiffness have been verified. Therefore, the different boundary conditions were assumed and namely boundary conditions for cantilever beam instead of those for simply supported beam. This set up allowed for easier construction of boundary conditions. Many difficulties have occurred during the preparation and validation, e.g. different thickness of individual cross-sections, modelling of hinge joints according to the experimental model, modelling of real supports, appropriate parameters of bolts, etc. It was necessary to measure every single cross-section because of the big variation between them. The emphasis was done to modelling of the selected joints especially of the set of 6 bolts on two diagonals of the bridge. The changes in dynamic characteristics according to the different numbers of bolts in a joint have been measured. At the beginning, the natural frequencies were calculated and compared with the test for both cases of model boundary conditions. Modal analysis of the structure was performed in FEM software ANSYS. After a few steps of tuning, the result was sufficiently precise and the difference between measured and analyzed results was small. Finally, the test set up and numerical model similarity was quite acceptable. The next step which is currently being started is the investigation of the damage in joints of two diagonals. The methodology of dynamic testing appropriate for the identification is now being verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integrated use of multiple Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) platforms for the deformation monitoring via satellite radar interferometry offers several perspectives for investigation of the behaviour of new and ageing structures, such as buildings and infrastructures, under varying or hazardous environment. Spanning almost 24 years of space-borne radar observations, this study aims to perform classical PSInSAR (Persistent Scatterer Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) analysis incorporating measurements of ERS, Envisat, TerraSAR-X, Sentinel-1A and Radarsat-2 satellites. The results from the processing of different sensing geometries over Bratislava (Slovakia) urban area are presented, focusing on the description of characteristics associated with the specifics of every satellite platform in use. The discussion over technical feasibility of infrastructure monitoring is accompanied by the outline of possible future needs for the utilisation of the wealth source of information provided by the satellite radar imagery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Collegium Antropologicum is the property of Croatian Anthropological Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: The paper describes the procedure for constructing a habitat suitability model from the distribution maps of a modelled species. If exact locations are not available, old and present thematic maps indicating species distribution can be used instead. We developed this procedure to create the brown bear (Ursus arctos) habitat suitability model in Slovakia. We took the source data from hunting statistics compiled annually for the whole country and linked bear numbers to the maps of hunting grounds. To be able to create a thematic layer of distribution, we merged the forested areas within hunting grounds occupied by bears and surrounded them with a spatial buffer. The absence layer was a complement to the presence one. For each layer, we randomly generated points for which the density of absence and presence points was the same. We prepared ten different datasets with an increasing number of points and characterised environmental conditions with 15 raster layers. We set up input parameters for five different GARP models and ran each of them on every data set of points and selected the variant with the best accuracy. The model matches well to present bear habitat in continuously forested areas. However, it also predicts a high probability of occurrence outside the current bear range. The absence of bears in predicted suitable habitats can be explained by liabilities in the model setup and insufficient description of environmental features such as forest fragmentation, human disturbance, and poaching. The results indicate that adjusting the model parameters is more significant than the density of input points. A priori probabilities of bear presence in land use categories can be integrated to modify the density of generated points. Average probabilities of the habitat suitability model for selected land categories matched reasonably well with the bear locations acquired by GPS telemetry. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Copyright of Listy Cukrovarnicke a Reparske is the property of VUC Praha a.s. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Slovak Foreign Policy towards the Western Balkans: Potemkin Villages is a short analysis of Slovak foreign policy towards the Western Balkans in 2006 and 2007. The text stresses that not much has changed in terms of Slovakia modus operandi in and with the region. The main issue within this period is Kosovo which profoundly contested the nature of Slovak foreign policy, and its coherence with the European one. The biggest change after 2006 is visible with regard to the values which are promoted in the execution of Slovakian foreign policy. After 2006, the pursuit of Slovak economic interests prevailed also in regards to the Western Balkan, but with limited outcomes. The region, moreover, is one of many foreign policy priorities after 2006 and not the most important. After 2006 we can also observe increased influence of the domestic politics on the foreign policy towards the Western Balkans which remains predominantly focused on Serbia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The aim of the study was to evaluate pattern of the aquatic macrophyte species distribution along the Danube fluvial corridor in Slovakia, and to identify the impact of environmental abiotic parameters on macrophyte species diversity. Field sampling was performed in the period 1999–2005 from the boat. Aquatic habitats were divided into 365 survey unit (SU). The survey of aquatic macrophytes and abiotic parameters followed the European standard approach EN 144184 2003. The plant mass estimate (PME – a semi-quantitative estimation of the amount of individual species in a SU, which takes into account three-dimensional development of plant stands) was estimated according to a five-point-scale in each SU; environmental pattern, were assessed over six abiotic parameters (river km, bank type, sediment type, flow velocity class, land-use type, and heavily man-modified water bodies). Altogether, four hydrologic connectivity types of aquatic habitats were distinguished: the Danube River, Open Arms, Separated Arms, and Seepage Water-bodies. In total, 54 aquatic macrophytes were recorded for the whole data set of the Danube fluvial corridor. The PME data of true aquatic macrophytes and the length of SUs created a basis for numerical derivates, relative plant mass (RPM), mean mass indices (MMT, MMO) and the distribution ratio (d). The results correspond with comparable studies on this topic: the highest macrophytes species diversity occurred in Separated Arms. On the contrary, macrophytes had the lowest richness in the Danube River main channel, although their diversity was slightly higher in heavily man-modified water bodies (such as the hydropower plant''s reservoir and the abandoned main channel of the so-called Old Danube). Our results suggest that the lateral connectivity types of the river water bodies, primarily characterised by different hydrologic dynamics and human impact expressed as land-use types are responsible for the variability of aquatic macrophyte assemblages along the Danube corridor in Slovakia. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) virus as a typical arbovirus relies on two types of hosts for its survival: ticks act both as virus vectors and reservoir hosts, and vertebrates amplify the virus infection by acting as a source of infection for feeding ticks. Longitudinal monitoring of TBE virus in ticks and vertebrate hosts including humans over a period of 40 years resulted in the identification of the areas of Slovakia where TBE virus is endemic. These are concentrated to the western, southern, and eastern parts of the country. Even with recently identified foci there is no evidence that the size and location of the natural TBE foci have changed significantly during the last decades. Numbers of diagnosed hospitalised cases of TBE in Slovakia vary from less than 20 to almost 100 cases annually with 54–89 cases in recent years. A part of these cases (33 cases during the last 5 years) are alimentary infections after drinking of raw goat and sheep milk. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article informs that the attitudes of Czech and Slovak population towards the post-communist transformation reflect the contemporary economic and political situation on the one hand, and the situation in which the Czech and Slovak society was at the end of the 1980's on the other hand. The survey revealed several different as well as common opinions and attitudes towards general characteristics of transformation of the society, the process of privatization of national property and modernization. The respondents from both republics agree that the development after 1989 has brought more freedom and opportunities for self-realization, it deepened the inequalities between people and decreased the total social justice. There is a less agreement in Slovaks and Czechs' opinions on privatization and modernization, however the respondents in both republics express rather positive attitudes in the total. Among the respondents in both republics there is about a half of the respondents without definitely formed global opinions on the transformation of the society. The other half of respondents is divided in a ratio of 3 to 1, or I to 3. In the Czech Republic there is more of those who view the development in the country more or less objectively and also are more in favor of the reforms. In Slovakia there is more of those who also see the development in the country realistically but are more against the reforms.

The paper is devoted to the mapping and comparing of socio-professional mobility in the Czech and Slovak Republics. The data from complete state statistics are exploited that impart ownership and structural changes connected with the social transformation after 1989. These macro-level statistical data are confronted with the individual mobility trajectories that were identified in sample surveys. In addition, contemporary mobility is also compared with the situation as it was in the middle of the eighties. An analysis of the subjective perception of individual and group mobility is carried out in the conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: To investigate a case of mass mortality of Garra rufa (G. rufa) from a fish hatchery farm in Slovakia. Methods: Causative bacterial agent was swabbing out of affected fish skin area and subsequently identified using commercial test system. Antibiotic susceptibility was determined by the disk diffusion method. Results: Infected G. rufa was characterized by abnormal swimming behaviour, bleeding of skin lesions and local haemorrhages. Despite of using recommended aquatic antibiotic treatment no improvement was achieved and Aeromonas sobria (A. sobria) was identified as a causative agent of fish mortality. Due to massive fish mortality, antibiotic susceptibility of pure isolated culture of A. sobria was evaluated employing eight antibiotics against human infections. A. sobria was resistant only against one antibiotic, namely ampicilin. Conclusions: These results indicate that A. sobria can act as a primary pathogen of G. rufa and may be a potential risk factor for immunodeficient or immunoincompetent patients during the ichthyotherapy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]