Effects of Economic Pressure on Marital Conflict in Romania.

This study examined the interrelationships among economic pressure, maternal depression, social support, and marital conflict in a sample of 239 mothers in Romania. Data were collected through a school-based survey. Findings indicated that higher levels of economic pressure were associated with higher levels of marital conflict. Economic pressure was also associated with higher marital conflict indirectly through increased maternal depression and lowered social support. The present results were similar to those obtained in studies conducted among U.S. samples. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Super Cilia Skin: A Textural Interface

Abstract

The Tangible Media Group has done a series of investigations into new multi-modal computer interfaces that utilize gesture and the sense of touch to improve interpersonal communication, education, and access to digital information. “Interactive surfaces” are one of our most promising lines of research and this article will look in depth at the design, implementation, and possible applications of interactive surfaces through an example project, Super Cilia Skin, an Interactive Membrane.

Super Cilia Skin (SCS) is a computationally enhanced membrane that couples tactile/ kinesthetic input with tactile and visual output. Our prototype manipulates the orientation of an array of yarn-like actuators (cilia) to display dynamic images or physical gestures. Like cloth, SCS is designed to be applied to arbitrary objects to engage sight and touch. Unlike traditional textiles, SCS can sense touch and dynamically move its surface. This article will discuss the potential for scale shifts with actuated textiles in which the material can blur boundaries between foreground/environment and field/object. Our design studies will present applications in which actuated textiles can use their material properties to improve interpersonal communication, enhance creative expression, and assist education in young learners by engaging tactile/kinesthetic intelligences.     

Organochlorine pesticides in colostrums in case of normal and preterm labor (IASI, Romania)

Assessment of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in human body is important for human health because they have weak estrogenic or antiestrogenic effects and are considered endocrine disrupters. We used colostrum of women as indicator for levels of OCPs in human body for mothers with normal and preterm labor from eastern part of Romania. Sixty- three samples of colostrum were extracted by solid-phase extraction. Analyses were carried out using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). OCPs have been detected in all samples, with p,p’-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p’-DDE) and γ-hexachlorocyclohexane (γ-HCH) being at the highest concentrations. Of the organochlorines measured in clostrum samples from women in preterm labor, median levels of DDTs (470 ng/g) and HCHs (99 ng/g) were higher than for the same compounds from women in normal labor (median of DDTs = 268 ng/g and median of HCHs = 96 ng/g). Normal labor had higher median concentrations of HCB (19.5 ng/g) versus preterm labor (14 ng/g). Statistical data show high Spearman correlation coefficients between various OCPs. We found a good correlation between α-, γ-, β- and δ- HCH isomers (p < 0.001) for both normal and preterm labor. The most abundant target compound was p,p’-DDE (median value 96 ng/g, and 137 ng/g for mother with normal and preterm labor, respectively) in all colostrum samples. The estimated daily intakes of HCHs by infants exceeded corresponding Health Canada guidelines.     

Computing global and diffuse solar hourly irradiation on clear sky. Review and testing of 54 models

Fifty-four broad band models for computation of global and diffuse irradiance on horizontal surface are shortly presented and tested. The input data for these models consist of surface meteorological data, atmospheric column integrated data and data derived from satellite measurements. The testing procedure is performed for two meteorological stations in Romania (South-Eastern Europe). The testing procedure consists of forty-two stages intended to provide information about the sensitivity of the models to various sets of input data. There is no model to be ranked “the best” for all sets of input data. Very simple models as well as more complex models may belong to the category of “good models”. The best models for solar global radiation computation are, on equal-footing, ESRA3, Ineichen, METSTAT and REST2 (version 81). The second best models are, on equal-footing, Bird, CEM and Paulescu & Schlett. The best models for solar diffuse radiation computation are, on equal-footing, ASHRAE2005 and King. The second best model is MAC model. The best models for computation of both global and diffuse radiation are, on equal-footing, ASHRAE 1972, Biga, Ineichen and REST2 (version 81). The second best is Paulescu & Schlett model.     

Strategic environmental assessment in Romania: between benefits and constraints

This paper offers an overall picture of the importance of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in Romania and its opportunities and constraints. The role, scope and effectiveness of SEA in Romania are presented in two good practice examples and examined in order to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the procedure at national and local scale. In practice, the number of SEA procedures is very high due to the legislation in force, and it is increasingly effective in decision-making about programmes and plans. SEA can be viewed as a great opportunity for the implementation of sustainable development in practice. It also continues to be an important procedural and decisional instrument for management and monitoring of socioeconomic development, spatial planning and environmental protection in Romania.     

罗马尼亚私立高等教育发展概况

与本国不容乐观的经济状况不同,罗马尼亚私立高等教育的蓬勃发展引起世界范围内研究者的广泛关注。本文以罗马尼亚公立高等教育作为参照,分析了其私立高等教育的机构数量和招生人数、地区结构、专业结构、学习形式、教师结构以及发展前景,以期尽可能充实对罗马尼亚私立高等教育的认识。     

Assessment of the availability of agricultural and forest residues for bioenergy production in Romania

This paper provides a resource-based assessment of availability of biomass resources for energy production in Romania, at NUTS-3 level. The estimation of available biomass includes the residues generated from crop production, pruning of vineyards and orchards, forestry operations and wood processing. The estimation of crop residue availability considers several site-specific factors such as crop yields, multi-annual yield variation, environmental constraints and competitive uses. The evaluation of agricultural residues was based on specific residue to product ratios, depending on crop type and crop yield. An estimate of pruning residues is proposed, based on current orchard and vineyard areas and specific ratios of residues. Woody biomass considers forest and forestry residues (including firewood) and wood processing by-products, taking into account the type and share of the unused part of the tree biomass and technical and economic aspects, including availability and competitive use. The amount of agricultural and forest residues available for bioenergy in Romania was estimated at 228.1 PJ on average, of which 137.1 PJ was from annual crop residues, 17.3 PJ residues from permanent crops and 73.7 PJ/year from forestry residues, firewood and wood processing by-products. The biomass availability shows large annual and spatial variations, between 135.6 and 320.0 PJ, due to the variation in crop production and forestry operations. This variation, which is even larger at the NUTS-3 level, if not properly considered may result in shortages in biomass supply in some years, when biomass is available in a lower amount than the average.     

Unequal spatial distribution of retrofits in Bucharest’s apartment buildings

This paper argues that the current spatial patterns of energy retrofits in post-socialist apartment buildings are unequally distributed across municipalities in Bucharest, Romania. In addition to the dominant techno-economic and social framing of this type of retrofit action, an institutional and political perspective can provide useful insights into why this occurs. By drawing on secondary analysis of statistical data, grey literature and 20 semi-structured interviews in Bucharest, three important findings emerge. First, the institutional complexity of energy retrofit of apartment buildings in Romania is underestimated and the interaction between various institutions is poor, explained by lack of trust and collective action. Second, the spatial distribution of the retrofit of apartment buildings is unequally distributed across Bucharest’s six municipalities. Third, current action for retrofit does not reach municipalities with the greatest need and potential. A more bottom-up and decentralized institutional landscape exists than is currently acknowledged in public policy and the research literature. Findings show an unequal and unfair spread of retrofit action within and between cities – raising wider implications for the potential shortcomings of European Union retrofit programmes in Central and Eastern Europe.     

The Appearance of Saints: Photographic Evidence and Religious Minorities in the Secret Police Archives in Eastern Europe

I present here examples of the photographic presence of a religious minority community in the secret police archives in ex-communist Eastern Europe. The use of secret police archives by researchers to trace the history of repression and collaboration and to understand the methods employed by totalitarian regimes to control their populations is well established. The significance of these archives for the study of material religion, however, has been largely overlooked by scholars. The secret police archives in Romania and the Republic of Moldova constitute a hidden repository of confiscated religious materials and photographs which often sit alongside photographic images created by the secret police in the course of their investigations into “criminal” religious activities. These archives, therefore, represent an important resource for understanding both how religious groups chose to represent themselves, and how the totalitarian system created images of religious “others” in order to incriminate them and to produce anti-religious propaganda. In this paper, through the presentation of example cases from state security files, I discuss the dual character of the photographic traces of communities in the archives as both religious justification and incrimination, and suggest ways of approaching these images through their materiality in the context of contemporary post-communist society.     

Biomonitoring of trace metals in the Black Sea (Romania) using mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis

In a preliminary biomonitoring study, accumulated trace metal concentrations (Cd, Cu, Zn, Hg, Fe, Mn) have been measured in the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis collected in the Black Sea, at 100 km from the Danube Delta in February 2001 and February 2002. Mussels were collected from four sites. In 2001 metal concentrations were determined in the whole soft body whereas, in 2002, the distribution of metals was evaluated in three different organs (gills, visceral mass and remaining tissues). The results obtained in 2002 confirmed those of 2001. For a given site, concentrations were always higher in the gills and visceral mass of mussels than in the remaining tissues. Principal component analysis allowed separating stations as a function of the metal concentrations in the organs. It is concluded that the mussels M. galloprovincialis are suitable biomonitors to assess changes in metal pollution in this coastal area of the Black Sea.