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Subject of this research is the environmental function of land ownership, materialised in two civil law institutes. These are sui generis easements of common law and propter rem obligations of french law. Those institutes are a sintesis of different, more or less sincere strivings to give contributions to the Environmental Law from all of the fields of law studies. At the same time, civil law institutes attest to the great evolutive potentials of Civil Law, despite it being so old branch of law.

Introduction/Objective. The objective of the study was to investigate whether there are differences in therapeutic effect between initial treatments of chronic periodontitis [scaling and root planning (SRP)] alone and SRP in conjunction with injectable platelet-rich fibrin (I-PRF) application, comparing clinical parameters after three months. Methods. Twenty-four patients with chronic periodontitis who had at least two sites with probing pocket depth (PPD) ≥ 5 mm on contralateral side participated in the study. Using a split-mouth design, the patients were treated with SRP + I-PRF (study group) or SRP only (control group). The clinical parameters, clinical attachment level (CAL), gingival margin level (GML), PPD, bleeding on probing, and plaque index, were recorded on both sides. Results. Compared to baseline, both treatment modalities demonstrated an improvement in investigated clinical parameters. The mean value of CAL was reduced from 1.97 ± 0.75 (0.25–3.31) to 1.07 ± 0.44 (0.12–1.78) in the study group, whereas it decreased from 1.81 ± 0.66 (0.42–2.96) to 1.48 ± 0.55 (0.22–2.30) in the control group. Similarly, the corresponding values for GML and PPD showed statistically significant difference between the groups (p = 0.040 and p = 0.006, respectively). Conclusion. Regardless the limited number of patients in the study, initial periodontal therapy in conjunction with injectable platelet-rich fibrin proved to display significant improvement in all clinical parameters compared to initial periodontal therapy alone.

The research presented in this paper has been inspired by the legal provision contained in Article 156 (Request to remove the risk of damage) of the Obligations Act of the Republic of Serbia. This provision envisages the limitation of the amount of damages that are awarded in situations where the nuisance (harmful emission) arises from the performance of an activity of general public interest, which has been duly authorized by the competent state authority that issued an administrative permit. That provision deprives the injured party harmed by the emission (the neighbour) of the preventive protection mechanism; second, it deprives him of the possibility of seeking natural restitution (injuctive relief), and compells him to sustain the emission in exchange for some compensation. For this reason, the author argues for the abrogation of that provision. However, if the provision is to be repealed and if the civil judge adjudicating cases in his area of tort liability is given full freedom to impose the property sanction he/she deems most appropriate and effective, such a solution implies a danger or inhibiting socially useful and necessary activities, which may consequently lead to suppressing any entrepreneurial initiative. Thus, the author proposes the introduction of a specific model of insurance against civil liability, which would specifically focus on the problem of property damage stemming from harmful emissions, as a way to prevent the detrimental effects on the economic activity of the emmitter (which is generally beneficial for the community).. This would allow for a fair balance to be struck in the exercise of civil subjective rights. The balance would be seriously compromised if the the Serbian legislator keeps the existing statutory provision or if it abolishes it but fails to institute the proposed type of insurance against civil liability for damage.

High grain yield potential and good baking properties are the two primary traits that plant producers consider when selecting new winter wheat cultivars (Triticum aestivum L.). NS Igra is a modern winter wheat cultivar developed at the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops, Novi Sad and released in 2016. Cultivar NS Igra was selected from a cross between the French cultivar Aquila and the line Sav/Ren 162 developed from the mapping population between Savannah (Great Britain) and Renesansa (Serbia). The objective of this cross was to develop a modern winter wheat cultivar with the adaptation to the adverse production conditions. NS Igra is an F6 - derived line with the experimental number NS 33-14-3. Commission for the registration of varieties of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management of the Republic of Serbia conducted trial at multiple locations in two years, and it was found that NS Igra is a distinct, uniform and stable cultivar, and has higher grain yield than average of three check cultivars, and good technological quality. NS Igra is a mid-late maturity, a stay-green cultivar that should improve the stability of grain yield production and overall end-use quality of the winter wheat crop in the southern Pannonian Plain.

Introduction: The rising trend of population aging and dementia, on the one hand, and the lack of recommendation on the application of non-selective dementia screening in the general population of elderly patients, on the other hand, led us to our research. Objective: Examine the possibilities and significance of assessing and mon­itoring the cognitive status of patients older than 50 years of age in the practice of general practitioners. Method: A Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) was used to assess the cognitive status of patients. Initial testing was performed in 120 patients older than 50 years of age. Patients with borderline and lower scores on MMSE were included in further testing (laboratory, ultrasound, radiological) and were referred to a psychiatrist and/or neurologist, with the follow-up of MMSE over the next two years. The values of the MMSE initial inspection, and testing scores were compared after one year. Results: Borderline and lower values at the MMSE were present in 34.2% of all respondents. At the end of the study, depression, dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) were diagnosed in 24.4% of patients. In 14.6% of patients, a second subclinical disorder was found, whose treatment led to the normalization of MMSE. The Mann-Whitney U-test showed a statistically significant difference (Z = -1.986; p = 0.048) in the MMSE scores a year after initiating therapy between two groups of patients suffering from somatic illness or depression and those with MCI or dementia. Conclusion: Our research proves the multiple importance of assessing the cognitive status of elderly patients. It is possible to apply MMSE in the practice of general practitioners for initial assessment and monitoring of the cognitive status of patients with various medical disorders, as well as monitoring of the effects of somatic illness and depression treatment.

Planets and brown dwarfs in close orbits will interact with their host stars, as soon as the stars evolve to become red giants. However, the outcome of those interactions is still unclear. Recently, several brown dwarfs have been discovered orbiting hot subdwarf stars at very short orbital periods of 0.065 - 0.096 d. More than 8% of the close hot subdwarf binaries might have sub-stellar companions. This shows that such companions can significantly affect late stellar evolution and that sdB binaries are ideal objects to study this influence. Thirty-eight new eclipsing sdB binary systems with cool low-mass companions and periods from 0.05 to 0.5 d were discovered based on their light curves by the OGLE project. In the recently published catalog of eclipsing binaries in the Galactic bulge, we discovered 75 more systems. We want to use this unique and homogeneously selected sample to derive the mass distribution of the companions, constrain the fraction of sub-stellar companions and determine the minimum mass needed to strip off the red-giant envelope. We are especially interested in testing models that predict hot Jupiter planets as possible companions. Therefore, we started the EREBOS (Eclipsing Reflection Effect Binaries from the OGLE Survey) project, which aims at analyzing those new HW Vir systems based on a spectroscopic and photometric follow up. For this we were granted an ESO Large Program for ESO-VLT/FORS2. Here we give an update on the the current status of the project and present some preliminary results.

One of the important issues regarding the final evolution of stars is the impact of binarity. A rich zoo of peculiar, evolved objects are born from the interaction between the loosely bound envelope of a giant, and the gravitational pull of a companion. However, binary interactions are not understood from first principles, and the theoretical models are subject to many assumptions. It is currently agreed upon that hot subdwarf stars can only be formed through binary interaction, either through common envelope ejection or stable Roche-lobe overflow (RLOF) near the tip of the red giant branch (RGB). These systems are therefore an ideal testing ground for binary interaction models. With our long term study of wide hot subdwarf (sdB) binaries we aim to improve our current understanding of stable RLOF on the RGB by comparing the results of binary population synthesis studies with the observed population. In this article we describe the current model and possible improvements, and which observables can be used to test different parts of the interaction model.

This paper seeks to present an overview of the development of the urban heritage management (UHM) concept by analysing documents from key international organisations in this field. The period 1964-2011 is deemed to have been marked by a paradigm shift in the discipline of conservation. Over the course of the last decade, the discussion has been focused on the development of the historic urban landscape (HUL), a concept that incorporates principles of conservation into the integral urban planning framework. However, it seems that the gap between conservation and development is yet to be bridged in practice. The first part of the paper briefly outlines the most important theoretical thought in the fields of conservation and urban planning that contributed to the development of the urban heritage (UH) concept in the 20th century. The second section reviews the UHM policies presented in documents, with an emphasis placed on the roles of particular stakeholders in the process. This paper contributes to overviewing the key aspects of contemporary UHM policies and highlighting perspectives for its future development.

The paper deals with the idiom ne gine mi (ti etc.) and its variant ne gibi mi (ti etc.). The research is based on the historical and contemporary corpus that also comprises the dialectological material. After pointing out chronological and areal characteristics of the two idiom variants, their syntactic structure as well as semantics are discussed. In the domain of semantics the special attention is paid to the change of the axiological component of the idiomatic meaning. It is argued that there might be the interrelation between this change and the syntactic structure of the idiom. The final segment of the paper is concerned with the status of the analysed idiomatic phrases in the most important monolingual general and phraseological dictionaries. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 178007: Etimološka istraživanja srpskog jezika i izrada Etimološkog rečnika srpskog jezika]

This paper presents the first regional research of the chronologies of sessile oak trees and definition of the local (master) chronology of sessile oak in the area of Fruška Gora. In addition, the aim of this study is to determine the strength of the common signal in the growth of sessile oak and its dendroclimatological potential under the given conditions. The quality of the local series of radial increment (chronology) and the strength of the common and climatic signals were evaluated using the following parameters: average mean sensitivity, expressed population signal, signal-to-noise ratio and the variance explained by eigenvectors in the procedure of analysis of the principal components. The results have shown that the obtained master chronologies are of satisfactory quality and reliability, and that they contain a sufficient general common ”signal”, which is a characteristic of all analyzed trees that can be processed in all dendroclimatological analyses. It was concluded that, under the investigated site conditions, sessile oak showed low to medium sensitivity of reaction to the modifications of environmental conditions in the past 90 years. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije: Šumski zasadi u funkciji povećanja pošumljenosti Srbije]

Under the Serbian Inheritance Act (1995), the surviving spouse is an heir of the first and the second line of succession. The specific hereditary position of a surviving spouse in the first line of succession may be influenced by a fact that he/she is not the biological parent to the children of the deceased (either all the children or some of them). Under certain conditions, the hereditary share of the surviving spouse may be reduced in favour of the decedent's children. The surviving spouse without necessary existential means may file a claim seeking usufruct for life (life interest) on the entire succession estate or on the part of hereditary property inherited by the other heirs of the second line of succession. This legal provision is a qualitative development in comparison to the provision contained in the 1974 Inheritance Act of the Socialist Republic of Serbia, which envisaged that the enlarged hereditary share passed into the ownership of the surviving spouse. The provision in the 1995 Inheritance Act takes into account the need for balancing the property interests of all heirs. This Act also allows the conversion of usufruct into life annuity but it does not envisage the possibility of conversion by a court decision. Moreover, the debtor of life annuity is not obliged to provide appropriate security for the payment of annuity. There is also a possibility of reducing the hereditary share of the surviving spouse upon a request of other heirs of the second line of succession. Instead of acquiring ownership, the surviving spouse may also opt for acquiring a usufruct for life on half of the hereditary estate. The surviving spouse may enjoy this right until the court decides on the other heirs' request on reducing his/her hereditary share. The hereditary share of the surviving spouse falling into the second line of succession may also be limited upon the request of the deceased's parents who do not have the necessary existential means of livelihood.

Carbonate rocks in sedimentary basins are reactive and can record complex histories of events associated with fluid flow in these basins. These include processes of dolomitization and dedolomitization. In this work we provide some preliminary data where distinct calcite and dolomite generations in the Jurassic Lusitanian Basin were analysed by LA-ICP-MS for trace elements in order to characterize chemical signatures of fluid-mineral interaction. It was observed that different carbonate generations can preserve the range of certain trace metal concentrations, but later calcites have distinctly higher contents in REE, Th and U, and Ba. Dolomites also show distinct chemical signatures but lack of analytical and spatial resolution does not allow quantification of the precursor calcite relicts. However, these processes point to the action of basinal fluids triggered by distinct tectonic episodes and associated volcanic activity.

The study was conducted in two plantations of white willow (Salix alba L.) in Donji Srem on the humogley soil type (hydromorphic black soil), which belongs to a narrow-leaved ash forest with remote sedge (Carici remotae - Fraxinetum angustifoliae Jov. et Tom., 1979). The plantations are located in the same depression. The SP (sample plot)-1 plantation is 21 years old with a 6×6 m planting spacing, and the SP-2 plantation is 27 years old with a 3×3m planting spacing. Elements of stem growth in the SP-1 plantation showed that with the white willow planting spacing of 6×6 m and a planned 25-year production cycle it is possible to obtain about 250 m3•ha-1 of timber volume, with an 80% net share of technical wood and a 20 % share of pulp wood. The plantation in SP-2 is at the age, which is well above the optimum age in terms of rational management, and the total volume at the age of 27 years is about 300 m3•ha-1, with a 53.7% net share of technical wood and a 46.3% share of pulpwood. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 43007: Istraživanje klimatskih promena na životnu sredinu: praćenje uticaja, adaptacija i ublažavanje]

In our forest science and forest operations, the tree species richness and diversity of woody species in forest stands are most often evaluated based on the total number of tree species, which is a methodologically partly inadequate approach. For this reason, the quantification and the evaluation of diversity of woody species in mixed forests of beech with valuable broadleaves in the area of the National Park „Đerdap” were analyzed by five different indices of tree species richness: number of species (S index), two indices of the species richness (R1 and R2), expected number of species in the sample with equal numbers of trees (E(S84)), and expected number of species in the sample with equal areas (E(S0,25ha)). The results showed that the level of woody species diversity in forest stands depended on the applied index characterizing the tree species richness. It was concluded that the tree species richness and diversity were the highest in the stands of ecological unit B (E(S84)=8.6 species) and in the stands of ecological unit G (E(S0,25ha)=9.4 species), and they were the lowest in the stands of ecological unit V (E(S84)=5.8 species, E(S0,25ha)=5.5 species).

Introduction. Intramural haematoma (IMH) and penetrating aortic ulcers (PAU) are the frequent cause of acute aortic syndrome that is disclosed with a rising frequency due to the development of new diagnostic methods. Different symptoms contribute to clinical misdiagnosis, while changeable locations and unpersuasive diameter can lead the radiologists to underestimate such changes. The outcome of PAU and IMH differs, and for the time being there are no data on prognostic factors. The diversity of symptoms and disease course is presented in four cases with different manifestations, treatment and outcome. Outline of Cases. Two patients with IMH were treated conservatively due to the process extensiveness and its morphology. One patient had a complete restitution, while the other had progression of the disease. Other two patients with PAU were treated by surgery (stent graft implantation) according to the morphology and diameter of the aorta. Conclusion. IMH and PAU should be suspected in patients with unclear clinical presentation (back and abdominal pains). Although outcome and complications of these diseases are well known, their incidence has not been fully studied. Endovascular treatment is less invasive and followed by a potentially lower rate of complications. However, usage of this method is justifiable only in patients with associated complications.

Considering the problem of the minimal triangulation for a given polyhedra (dividing polyhedra into tetrahedra) it is known that the cone triangulation provides the number of tetrahedra which is the smallest, or the closest to it. It is also shown that when we want to know whether the cone triangulation is the minimal one, it is necessary to find the order of all vertices, as well as the order of “separating circles”. Here, we will give algorithms for testing the necessary condition for the cone triangulation if it is the minimal one. The algorithm for forming the cone triangulation will also be given.

The relationship and interaction between quantitative (number and dimensions of trees) and value indicators in Austrian pine plantations were researched in Forest Management Unit „Subotičke Šume” (Forest Estate „Sombor” - FA „Subotica”). As the measurement of quantitative elements is more simple, their effect on wood value can be used as a rather reliable support in the value estimation of standing trees. The analysis of the research results shows that there is a strong inter-relationship of the study elements, so they can be a good foundation for the estimation of standing timber value in artificial Austrian pine plantations at the given site.

Two experimental plantations of Euramerican poplar (Populus×euramericana (Dode) Guinier) - clone I-214 were researched on the river Sava alluvium in Srem. Three sample plots were established in each of the plantations, aged 31 years. The soil type was humofluvisol (alluvial semigley), planting space 6×6 m. The plantations were established with 278 rooted cuttings per hectare, and the number of trees at the age of 31 accounted for 46.5-60.6%. The constructed height curves, mean stand height (hg) and upper (hg20%) heights show that the study plantations were established on different site classes, which was significantly reflected on other plantation growth elements and productivity. However, there was no significant effect of site class on the variability (sd and cv) and shape of diameter structure (α3 and α4). The constructed models of diameter structure for each site class (by Weibull function) differ by location parameter (a), and do not differ by parameter of scale (b) and shape (c). The tree and plantation growth elements show a high production potential of the clone I-214 which indicates that, on optimal soils and with the provided technological measures in the stage of nursery production and in the stage of plantation establishment, clone I-214 presents the good base for high production effects.

A large number of macrophytes, often in dense populations, have developed on the Grlište Reservoir, Serbia over a period of 15 years. Fast development of vegetation is a consequence of anthropogenic impact in lake management. The methodology used in this research covered 100% of the water body, including all areas with or without aquatic plants. The results indicate that plant communities are still in the early phase of development. This leaves space for future development of competitor macrophyte species (Najas marina, Eleocharis palustris, Typha latifolia, Typha angustifolia, Phragmites australis, etc.) capable of endangering stability of the lake, which will tend toward eutrophication.

Examined in this paper is the attitude of current Serbian dialectology towards phenomena that are the subject matter of contact linguistics. The aim of the study is to show which types of contact situations and their outcomes are investigated by dialectologists and which are, by applying certain methodological procedures, excluded or at least minimised. The survey of the scholarly production in the field reveals that the attention has been given to the dialectal lexical and structural borrowings from the neigh bouring languages, as well as the interdialectal interference, the contact-induced Balkan innovations and analytic tendency in dialects (which are of particular significance for the study of the Balkan Sprachbund), the mutual influences of standard language and dialects, the sociolinguistic factors determining the dialectal variations that result from language contact, urban dialects and even bilingualism. It should be noted that not all issues have been equally addressed: some of them are well established in the field, while the others only give hints of possible future trends within the discipline. The observed changes in the focus as well as in methodology of its investigations make dialectology more open to the issues contact linguistics is interested in.

The methodology and applicability of the study of spatial distribution of trees in Serbian forestry have been insufficiently reported and presented. This paper, based on mathematical­statistical principles, analyses the method of spatial distribution of spruce trees in the Nature Reserve 'Jankove Bare' in the National Park 'Kopaonik'. The following methods in the group of distance methods were applied: Kotar's method (1993), T2­method, and the index of distance dispersion (Johnson, Zimmer, 1985). The study results in a pure uneven-aged spruce stand based on all three methods showed that spruce trees are randomly distributed over the stand area. Therefore, environmental conditions in the study stand can be regarded as homogeneous and equally suitable for tree growth, and there are no significant interactions between the trees, which could cause a higher competition between the trees for nutrients, water, etc.

Thermoplastic poly(ester-siloxane)s (TPES) and poly(ester-ether-siloxane) s, (TPEES), based on poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT) as the hard segment and different siloxane-prepolymers as the soft segments, were prepared. The TPES and TPEES were synthesized by catalyzed two-step transesterification from dimethyl terephthalate, (DMT), 1,4-butanediol, (BD) and a siloxane-prepolymer. Incorporation of dicarboxypropyl- or disilanol-terminated poly(dimethylsiloxane)s (PDMS) into the polar poly(butylene terephthalate) chains resulted in rather inhomogeneous TPES copolymers, which was a consequence of a prononuced phase separation of the polar and non-polar reactants during synthesis. Two concepts were employed to avoid or reduce phase separation: 1) the use of siloxane-containing triblock prepolymers with hydrophilic terminal blocks, such as ethylene oxide (EO), poly(propylene oxide) (PPO) or poly(caprolactone) (PLC) when the terminal blocks serve as a compatibilizer between the extremely non-polar PDMS and the polar DMT and BD, and 2) the use of a high-boiling solvent (1,2,4-trichlorobenzene) during the first phase of the reaction. Homogeneity was significantly improved in the case of copolymers based on PCL-PDMS-PCL. .

Dimethyldichlorosilane hydrolysate, DDSH, the linear part of which contains SiOH end groups, can be used in the preparation of difunctionally terminated (any end groups other than SiOH) polysiloxanes via equilibration polymerisations. In such a case, the problem arises: as to whether the obtained functionalised polymers also contain silanol end groups. To the best of our knowledge, the only direct and the most precise analytical procedure to clarify this question is the Karl Fischer titration/determination of SiOH groups. This determination was performed on a model system consisting of trimethylsilyl terminated polysiloxanes, and it was shown that the obtained polymers contained no SiOH groups.

The analyses of the horizontal distribution of trees have not been used in the research of stand structure in Serbia’s forestry to date. Taking into account the high economic and ecological applicability of such information, this paper deals with the numerical description of the form of spatial distribution of trees. The applied methods are the so-called methods of statistical distributions and dispersion index. The study results in the all-aged mixed stand of fir and beech and in the mature pure stand of fir on the mountain Goč show that all trees together, but also the trees per species, are predominantly randomly distributed in space, with the tendencies towards a weaker or stronger aggregation or uniformity. Based on the identified spatial distribution of trees, it can be concluded that in the greater part of the study stands the environment is homogeneous and the basic conditions of tree growth are uniform. This points to the fact that real assessment of growth development and the competition of fir and beech, due to the identified absence of a marked competition for the basic growth factors, emphasizes, primarily, the quantification of the competition for growth space. .

Different courses of tree growth in height and diameter in nursery and plantation, immediately after transplanting, cause the difficulties in adaptation of tree growth models. Tree growth models, which do not include the sudden transitions and specificities of nursery growth and in the first years after planting can show errors in the assessment of the values of current and average increment at the moment of culmination and at the age of maximum increment. This paper proposes the introduction of additional parameters in the models of diameter and height growth, e.g. the values of mean diameter at breast height and mean height immediately after planting. Compared to the models without additional parameters, the precision of diameter and height model is reflected in the lower standard error of regression (se) and in the more accurate assessment of current and average increment at the moment of culmination and at the age of culmination.

The results of stand homogeneity definition are analyzed based on the percentage ratio of the distribution of tree number and the distribution of volume per diameter degrees. Homogeneity is defined based on homogeneity index (H) and Lorenz’s curve. Homogeneous stand is the hypothetical stand whose trees have equal volumes. Real stands, depending on their silvicultural form and treatment, as well as the development stage, are more or less distant from the absolutely homogenous state. The effect of the diameter degree width on the accuracy of homogeneity index calculation was determined and the possibility of applying the homogeneity index as an additional parameter for the assessment of site quality of selection stands was analyzed.

The thick fraction of egg white saturated with either N2O or Ar was irradiated in the dose range 1.5-45 kGy at 60Co gamma source. The gel structure decomposition and other processes accompanied with changes in protein molecular mass were followed by Sephadex G-200 exclusion chromatography, denaturing SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, viscosity and turbidity measurements. The complex behavior of viscosity was observed in the N2O saturated sample (where the hydrated electron was converted into the OH radical); the initial abrupt decrease that gradually slows down reaching the minimum at 12 kGy (ηmin = 2.7 mPa s) followed by the slow rise was measured. The Ar saturated sample ([eaq-]≈[OH]) showed both the significantly faster initial decrease and lower viscosity minimum (ηmin = 2.2 mPa s). The combined Sephadex G-200 exclusion chromatography and denaturing SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis data revealed that the three-dimensional egg white (hydrated) gel structure was (efficiently) decomposed even in the N2O saturated sample. The protein scission was detected in the entire dose range studied, while the protein agglomeration is not noticed at low doses (around 1.5 kGy); however, it dominates at higher doses. In the highest dose region studied, the loss of structure in SDS-PAGE chromatograms indicates that the agglomerates are formed from protein fragments rather than from intact proteins. The continuous linear increase in turbidity was measured. The results obtained indicate that ionizing radiation causes the breakdown of the protein network of the thick fraction of egg white via the reduction of S-S bridges by the hydrated electron and the protein fragmentation due to the direct action of ionizing radiation. The protein agglomeration is initiated by the reaction of the OH radical; its inefficiency at low doses is attributed to the glucose antioxidant properties and radical immobility. .

Two series of thermoplastic elastomers, based on poly(dimethylsiloxane) PDMS, as the soft segment and poly(butylene terephthalate), PBT, as the hard segment, were synthesized by catalyzed transesterification, from dimethyl terephthalate, DMT, silanol-terminated poly(dimethylsiloxane), PDMS-OH Mn=1750g/mol, and 1,4-butanediol, BD. The mole ratio of the starting comonomers was selected to result in a constant hard to soft weight ratio of 55:45. The first series was synthesized in order to determine the optimal mole ratio of BD and DMT for the synthesis of high molecular weight thermoplastic poly(ester-siloxane)s, TPESs. The second series was performed in the presence of the high-boiling solvent, 1,2,4-trichlorbenzene in order to increase the mixing between the extremely non-polar siloxane prepolymer and the polar reactants, DMT and BD, and, therefore, avoid phase separation during synthesis. The structure and composition of the synthesized poly(ester-siloxane)s were verified by 1H-NMR spectroscopy, while the melting temperatures and degree of crystallinity were determined by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The effectiveness of the incorporation of the silanol-terminated poly( dimethylsiloxane) into the polyester chains was verified by chloroform extraction. The rheological properties of the poly(ester-siloxane)s were investigated by dynamic mechanical spectroscopy (DMA).

The effect of plantation density on the stem volume development phases of mean trees of Populus x euramericana (Dode) Guinier, cl. I-214 were studied in the test plantation aged 25 years with two different planting densities 4.25x4.25 m (treatment A) and 6.00x6.00 m (treatment B). The modeling of stem volume growth of mean trees enabled the identification of development phases based on biological laws. Different growth dynamics of mean trees of the clone I-214, depending on plantation density, had a clear effect on the beginning and the end of individual phases, i.e. subphases of development, as well as on the diameters, heights and volumes of mean trees at the end of each phase of volume development.

It was shown that the two-stage transesterification/polycondensation reaction in the melt, can successfully be applied for the preparation of poly(butylene terephtalate-dimethylsiloxane) multiblock copolymers. Three series of co-polymers were synthesized, using poly(dimethylsiloxanes) bearing ester (two series) and hydroxy -end groups as reactants. The structure and composition of the obtained copolymers were determined by 1H NMR spectroscopy A mechanism, i.e. an order of reaction steps, involved in the preparation of the copolymers, was suggested.

A method of diameter structure modeling was applied in the calculation of plantation (stand) volume of two black poplar clones in the section Aigeiros (Duby): 618 (Lux) and S1-8. Diameter structure modeling by Weibull function makes it possible to calculate the plantation volume by volume line. Based on the comparison of the proposed method with the existing methods, the obtained error of plantation volume was less than 2%. Diameter structure modeling and the calculation of plantation volume by diameter structure model, by the regularity of diameter distribution, enables a better analysis of the production level and assortment structure and it can be used in the construction of yield and increment tables.

The Multi-site spectroscopic telescope is a virtual instrument and the name of a collaboration that opens up a new observational window by combining continuous observations of spectroscopic variations and simultaneous photometric monitoring. This constitutes an enormous observational effort, but in return promises to finally provide access to a mode identification for and an asteroseismological analysis of the pulsating sdB star PG 1605+072. Multi-Site Spectroscopic Telescope observations for this object have been secured during a large coordinated campaign in May and June of the year 2002. The frequency resolution and coverage of the photometric time series has been noticeably enhanced by a significant contribution from the Whole Earth Telescope, which was used to observe PG 1605+072 as an alternate target during the WET XCov22 campaign, also conducted in May 2002. This paper briefly outlines the motivation for the MSST project and tries to give a first assessment of the overall quality of the data obtained, with a focus on the Whole Earth Telescope observations.

The aim of this investigation was to establish the presence or absence of chemical contamination of water and the littoral zone (banks) of Danube-Tisza-Danube (DTD) canal system. The investigation covered the canal section from Bezdan to Prigrevica. By analyzing the chemical composition of dominant aquatic species in four locations of the section, we defined the species with the highest capacity to accumulate nutrients and heavy metals. Concentrations of P and K as well as of a beneficial element Na in the tissues of the analyzed macrophytes were both species- and site-dependent. The highest accumulation was registered for Ceratophyllum demersum while the species Elodea canadensis showed increased P and K accumulation values in the location Sombor. The lowest concentrations of almost all heavy metals were recorded near Sombor, indicating that this section suffered the lowest chemical pollution. Highest concentrations of all of the analyzed heavy metals were recorded in the tissue of Ceratophyllum demersum from the location Prigrevica, possibly due to the influx of polluted drainage waters from surrounding agricultural areas as well as industrial wastewaters. The obtained results showed that the enforcement of biomonitoring and analyses of other parameters indicative of ecosystem conditions might be useful for improved protection of areas experiencing a strong human impact.

The state of a beech stand is analyzed from the aspect of stability and production level. The arguments are presented for the need of the objective definition of the stand condition by the criteria based on the characteristics of stand growth elements. This contributes to integral management procedures and their verification in the aim of optimal and stabile production. The study results show that there can be significant deviations from the optimal stand condition regarding the number of trees crown development, taper and diameter increment, which are not perceptible to the eye until the visible signs of tree revitalization when the damage cannot be repaired.

The effects of heavy thinning on tree and stand increment were studied on sample plots in the artificially established Turkey oak stand, aged 51 years. Before thinning, extremely low height and diameter increments were recorded and also the process of revitalization and tree decline. Heavy thinning at the stand age of 46 years removed 38.0% of trees and 31. 4% of wood volume. Five years later, on the heavily thinned plot, a lower current increment of basal area and volume per ha for 10-13% was measured, while the percentage of volume increment increased for 13%, and the diameter increment of the remaining trees for 17%. In the period after thinning, annual ring diameter increased in model trees for 1. 76- 2. 59 times compared to the previous five-year period.

The analysis of the SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) data, combined with the comparison of viscosity data corresponding to the thin fraction of hen egg white and 2 mM purefied ovalbumin solution, showed that the thin fraction is a protein solution. Dissolution of the thick fraction of hen egg white in SD Sandurea solutions followed by SDS-PAGE, in the presence or absence of b-mercaptoethanol, revealed that it is a protein gel. It was also found that the gel structure consists of the three-dimensional ovomucine- ovomucoid network (matrix) held together by S.S bridges which captures the rest of the proteins (ovalbumin, conalbumin, etc). The captured proteins can also be interconnected by S.S bridges thus forming agglomerates or conglomerates, but they are predominantly held by weak electrostatic interactions, as demonstrated by the washing out and dissolving experiments. The matrix structure does not prevent denaturation of the captured proteins as indecated by the 50% decrease in turbidity following gel swelling by the addition of 1 part of an8Murea solution to 9 parts of the gel.