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All over the globe, outdoor sports events are highly affected by weather conditions that frequently influence the comfort of the players and sports fans, the duration, or even the cancelation of the event. To verify the range of weather-induced impacts on selected Major League Baseball events, this interdisciplinary study investigated the causes of unexpected postponements of several Major League Baseball games in March and April 2018, according to official weather reports in the event host destinations. The impact was measured by a recurrent neural network with long short-term memory as an investigation model. Autocorrelation analysis was conducted between all input and target fields. The research focused on the explanation of the influence of weather risks on the event host destinations. Moreover, the study is based on projecting an effective instrument for managing weather risks and then evaluating the tourism services that the future climatic conditions will support. The long short-term memory analysis revealed that solar activity had the greatest influence on the temperature. On the other hand, humidity and air pressure depended very little on solar activity; this finding was confirmed by the zero values of the sensitivity. These values encourage further research on weather disturbances and their connections with outdoor sports and tourism activities.

The aim of the study was to identify which tour guide's competencies can be predictors of environmentally sustainable behavior of visitors of national parks. Authors gathered answers through questionnaires from 305 visitors of two national parks located in Serbia. The results showed that guide's knowledge and telling stories in an engaging and interesting way were predictors for almost all learning outcomes. Also, guides who are energetic and show that they enjoy doing their job, can arouse visitors' interest in the presented topic, create pleasant memories and serve as a role model for sustainable behavior after the tour ends.

PurposeNovi Sad, as the second largest city in Serbia, is nominated for the European Capital of Culture for 2021. In addition, the city has a rich traditional gastronomic resource base, belonging to over 16 nationalities living in the Vojvodina area (Autonomous Province of Serbia). This study aims to analyze the impact of Instagram, on the choice of catering facility and type of food, and to discover the extent to which it creates confidence to gastronomic consumers and the brand of the product or service.Design/methodology/approachThe study presents a survey, which involves sharing survey questionnaires and gathering information from research participants. The sample of the survey included only the local population during 2019 year, on a random sample of 155 participants.FindingsOf the total number of respondents, the highest percentage of them follow Instagram posts related to gastronomic objects, compared to other social networks. The results of this study undoubtedly show that consumers have great confidence in this social network and that it creates a certain brand and attitude on the basis of which consumers will choose a catering facility or food.Practical implicationsThe process of interviewing people in gastronomy, regarding the impact of social networks on brand, attitude and consumer confidence, can provide an excellent insight into the current situation as well as influence changes that would contribute to better business of restaurant facilities in Serbia.Social implicationsDoing survey research is much more significant in the field of tourism and gastronomy, as these are industries that are primarily the human sector. The personal attitude of the direct users of the services in the restaurant facilities can contribute to the overall picture of the state of gastronomy in this area.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the development of contemporary gastronomy, which is on the rise compared to many other branches of the economy in Serbia. Researching the impact of service providers, through social networks, on consumers is a way of reaching out to learn about the level of service quality and customer satisfaction achieved, as well as creating loyal consumers and better position in the market.

The article proposes a solution for the problem of high-resolution remote sensing data classification by applying deep learning methods and algorithms in conditions of labeled data scarcity. The problem can be solved within the geosystem approach, through the analysis of the genetic uniformity of spatially adjacent entities of different scale and hierarchical level. Advantages of the proposed GeoSystemNet model rest on a large number of freedom degrees, admitting flexible configuration of the model contingent upon the task at hand. Testing GeoSystemNet for classification of EuroSAT dataset, algorithmically augmented after the geosystem approach, demonstrated the possibility to improve the classification precision in conditions of labeled data accuracy by 9% and to obtain the classification precision with a larger volume of training data (by 2%) which is slightly inferior in comparison with other deep models. The article also shows that synthesis of the geosystem approach with deep learning capabilities allows us to optimize the diagnostics of exogeodynamic processes, owing to the calculation of landscape differentiation regularities. Application of the presented approach enabled us to improve the accuracy in detecting landslides at the testing site “Mordovia” by 5% in comparison with the classical approach of using deep models for remote sensing data analysis. The authors advocate that application of the geosystem approach to improve the efficiency of remote sensing data classification through methods, proposed in the article, requires an individual project-based approach to source data augmentation.

The manuscript is devoted to analysis of the problem of designing graphical geoportal interfaces. The support points for the problem solutions are formulated and rationale of each of them is given. The emphasis was placed on the following orientations: to a flexible process of interface development, the need to introduce adaptability, progressive development, the motivated abandonment of geospatial content management systems and the use of third-party libraries where necessary, problem-solving and achieving goals. The lists of basic functional and qualitative requirements for graphical geoportal interfaces are given. In the last segment, the authors share their experience in the development of geoportal solutions.

Local marketplaces and street vendors represent an important segment of trade in a community and one of the initiators of the rural and peri-urban development. Agricultural and other products available at marketplaces and street vendors very often originate from a wider urban surrounding or nearby villages, so both are also an important factor of the daily migrations, exchange of goods, services, and money on the relation suburb-downtown and village-town/city. This study aims to analyze the social segments of the organization and operation of marketplaces, to provide an insight into the contemporary market processes and decision-making, and also to illustrate the future tendencies of the market outcomes of this aspect of the business. Using qualitative data processing, the results of one of the first empirical research on this topic in Serbia and this part of Europe will be analyzed. The results will show the economic, social, and cultural impact that marketplaces have on people’s everyday life and the economy of Serbia, along with defining future development guidelines. Besides, the findings of this research may be used by local authorities, the economy, and communities for future strategic development planning of this market segment. The outcomes may have an impact on future research of other aspects of marketplaces depending on the difference of regions, on one side, and also alternative opportunities for local development in less-advantaged communities, on the other side. Moreover, this contributes to the identification of the differences in the marketplace business management and sheds light on future initiatives for the encouragement of this local/global process.

The article presents the key aspects of designing and developing a repository of deep neural network models for analyzing and predicting the development of spatial processes based on spatial data. The framework of the system operates on the basis of the MVC pattern, in which the framework is decomposed into modules for working with the system's business logic, its data and graphical interfaces. The characteristics of the developed web interfaces, a module for visual programming for editing of models, an application programming interface for unified interaction with the repository are given. The stated aim of the study determined the structure of the scientific article and the results obtained. The paper describes the functional requirements for the repository as a signific part of software design, presents the developed formalized storage scheme for neural network models, describes the aspects of development of a repository of neural network models and an API of the repository. The developed system allows us to approach the solution of the scientific problem of integrating neural networks with the possibility of their subsequent use to solve design problems of the digital economy.

This study is based on the general notion that restaurants should find more responsible solutions to dispose of the large amount of food that is not consumed. Moreover, the food wasted has great environmental, social and financial impacts, and yet this issue is still insufficiently presented in contemporary studies on food waste management. This paper applied the extended theory of planned behavior as a theoretical framework to elicit consumers’ behavior concerning food waste. A standard paper and pen survey recorded quantitative data provided by 221 respondents. The findings reported the following: (1) personal attitudes toward food waste positively affect an individual’s intention not to waste food, (2) perceived behavioral control positively affects an individual’s intention not to waste food, (3) the intention not to waste food negatively affects self-reported food waste behavior, (4) negative environmental attitudes negatively affect intention not to waste food, (5) hygiene-based food waste negatively affects perceived behavioral control. This study contributes to understanding consumers’ food waste behavior in restaurants and might have practical implications in the hospitality sector.

A crisis caused by COVID-19 pandemic affected the whole world leaving long-lasting effects on almost every aspect of human lives. The aim of this study was to test how different effects of COVID-19, expressed through job insecurity, employees' health complaints occurred during isolation, risk-taking behavior at workplace and changes in the organization, may impact work-related attitudes (job motivation and job satisfaction) and turnover intentions of the employees in hospitality industry. Based on the data collected from 624 hospitality workers from Serbia, the results indicated that job insecurity and changes in the organization were predictors of all outcomes, in a negative direction, while risk-taking behavior acted as a predictor of job satisfaction only, also in a negative direction. The significance of demographic characteristics, as control variables, showed that age and marital status had significant impact on job motivation and turnover intentions. The theoretical and practical implications were discussed.

Orientation to learning and innovation are the basis of organisational success. Innovation in the organisation implies a continuous transformation of knowledge and ideas into new products, services, processes and systems in order to provide benefits for the stakeholders. A theoretical foundation and surveys are used in the paper to examine the impact of dimensions of organisational learning on innovation. In addition, the paper investigates educational and organizational hierarchical level differences among employees in hotels, as well as hotel category differences in relation to innovation and organizational learning. The sample consisted of 512 employees in 57 hotels in Serbia. The results showed a statistically significant contribution of the dimensions of organisational learning to different types of innovation. It was determined that the dimension Shared Vision is the predictor of all types of innovation. The results provide important scientific and practical information in terms of further research in the hotel industry, particularly with regard to improving the business activities and further development of the hotel product.

The concept of media influence involves use of certain types of communication in order to change the habits, behavior or beliefs of the people we are addressing. The development of new technologies and the mass media is much faster than the development of our ability to process the immense amount of information we encounter. Due to our cognitive constraints, the consequence of such accelerated development of the media is that we are less engaged in analyzing the given situation as a whole. The world we live in has become much more complex while our reactions are considerably simpler. The media are the ideal means to achieve the desired impact in such circumstances, and the basic tactic is very simple - it suffices to offer a carefully selected and limited quantity of information. In the modern age, for most people, only that which was published in the media happened (or that which is mediated by the language of the media). The semantic function of the media space has enabled a simple and effective implementation of many media influence techniques. The basic principles of influence help us make a quick decision in given circumstances, without much effort and with the expectation that such a decision will be right for us. Therefore, media influence is a necessary condition for social communication between social elites and citizens, in order to preserve social order and its stability. On the other hand, media influence is constantly misused in order to preserve social power and gain of the privileged minority which has access to the media. Therefore, understanding of the principles of media influence and the way in which they operate is a very important aspect of media literacy and life in contemporary society.

Wildfire has been one of the most dangerous environmental stressors nowadays. It is an important disturbance where ecosystem biomass is burned and where organisms are damaged or killed by fire. Therefore, the detecting and monitoring of this stressor are of great importance. During last decades, extensive forest fires have spread in Southern Europe, and they are registered in Serbia as well. During year 2007, several significant fires were registered in Stara Planina and Svrljiske Planine Mountains. The aims of this study were to detect land cover changes for the studied site from 2007–2017, to focus on monitoring the area affected by the wildfire, and to analyse the environment response to stressor. The study area is situated in East Serbia, partially covering the Mountains Stara Planina (western part) and Svrljiske planine (eastern part). The remote sensing techniques were used in the analysis and main satellite data were obtained via USGS Earth Explorer application. Six different classes were selected: Water, Forest, Pastures, Artificial area, Agriculture, and Bare soil. Results showed significant changes in two classes, Forest, and Pastures — the forest spread for more than 20% at the expense of pasture, which decreased more than 23%.

This study investigates the relationship between the quality of hospitality services and sustainable equestrian tourism development in Slovenia. The focus will be on the relations between equestrian tourism motivations, hospitality services quality, overall service quality, equestrian tourists&rsquo, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. The target population was equestrian tourists who stayed in one of 30 tourism farms in Slovenia and used both accommodation and food and beverage services. Face-to-face surveys with convenience sampling were used for the data collection. The results show that equestrian tourism motivations are positively associated with both hospitality services quality and the overall service quality in equestrian tourism. Moreover, the overall service quality in equestrian tourism is positively related to equestrian tourists&rsquo, satisfaction, while equestrian tourists&rsquo, satisfaction is positively related to behavioral intentions. In addition, accommodation service quality and food and beverage service quality both mediate the association between equestrian tourism motivation and overall satisfaction. The study provides both theoretical and practical implications. For one thing, it fills the research gaps present in the literature. In addition, it gives practical guidelines to farmers and tourism practitioners regarding equestrian tourism development as one of the popular areas of sustainable tourism development in rural settings.

The article discusses the key aspects of the development of spatial data infrastructures and models of spatio-temporal data based on the study of geosystems, as well as ensuring the updating of the geospatial storage of information based on Earth remote sensing data. The authors have shown that for the formation of the software and hardware infrastructure of a digital storage of spatial data, it is advisable to follow an organized technological process. At the same time, spatial data warehouses should provide system integration of data with spatial and temporal reference. The solution to the problems of visualization and dissemination of spatial data should be based on the effective use of geoportal systems. It is concluded that the development of databases of digital SDIs and geoportal systems is associated with the development of methods and algorithms for the conjugate analysis of the peculiarities of the interaction of natural, social and production systems, complex interpretation of large arrays of spatial data and forecasting the development of natural and natural-man-made processes.

This research presents improved results on modelling relationship between the flow of charged particles that are coming from the Sun and hurricanes. For establishing eventual link, the methods of Big Data, such as Adaptive Neuro Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS), Parallel Calculations, Fractal analysis etc., are applied. The parameters of solar activity were used as model input data, while data on hurricane phenomenon were used as model output, and both of these on daily level for May–October in period 1999–2013. The nonlinear R/S analysis was conducted to determine the degree of randomness for time series of input and output parameters. The time lag of 0–10 days was taken into account in the research. It led to growing input parameters up to 99. The problem of finding hidden dependencies in large databases refers to the problems of Data Mining. The ANFIS with Sugeno function of zero order was selected as a method of output fuzzy system. The “brute-force attack” method was used to find the most significant factors from all data. To do this, more than 3 million ANFIS models were tested on Computer Cluster using Parallel Calculation. Within the experiments, eight input factors were calculated as a base for building the final ANFIS models. These models can predict up to 39% of the hurricanes. This means, if causal link exists, approximately every third penetration of charged particles from coronary hole(s) or/and from the energetic region(s) toward the Earth precede the hurricanes.

This study is devoted to the research of spatial-temporal variation of electricity generation from the kilowatt-peak photovoltaic system made of crystalline silicon solar cells. The research was conducted in the territory of Serbia using the model for estimation photovoltaic performances as a function of incident irradiance and module temperature. Preparation of input data and calculation of the final results was done within the geographical information system. Some of the required raster data, like solar irradiance and wind speed, were already available, while air temperature raster was created from discrete set of observed data using the regression-kriging model. Obtained results were presented in the form of raster maps that enabled further analysis and discussion about new findings. The analysis of seasonal variations reveals that during spring and summer months photovoltaic systems are producing up to 70% of total annual electricity yield. In terms of the spatial distribution, the most promising areas for electricity generation are located in the south part of Serbia and along main river valleys. In addition, discussion part addresses the issue of data imperfection caused by the accuracy of the selected model, as well as quality and availability of data series. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. III47007]

This paper presents the effect of land-use changes on land degradation by utilization of remote sensing methods and the Gavrilović erosion potential method, due to surface mining activities in the period 2001–2011. Studied area includes the zone of influence of the Rudarski basen Kolubara, which covers the exploitation area of the Kolubara coal basin in the Republic of Serbia. The analysis is based on the processing of Landsat 5 satellite images from 2001 and 2011. In the analysis of satellite images, the supervised classification method was used. The results suggest that the observed spatial–temporal area is exposed to erosion as a result of land-use changes. Preliminary conclusion is that the dominant anthropogenic factor, responsible for changes in land use, is pronounced through the mining activity, industrialization, construction as well as agricultural activities. Very small changes in land use that occurred in the period 2001–2010 have led to relatively small amount of change from the aspect of land degradation. Also, due to the planned exploitation of the mine which included into account the sustainability of ecosystems, primarily through appropriate conservation measures, RB Kolubara is not in danger of a possible erosion processes that could undermine the stability of the basin. Environmental Earth Sciences (2017), 76(16): 580.

The solar energy is widely used around the world for electricity generation and heating systems in municipal services. But its use is complicated in the number of territories with uneven receipts of solar radiation on the earth’s surface and large number of cloudy days during a year. A hypothesis on the possibility of application of individual solar collectors for heating of houses in the number of cities of Russia has been tested. The existing designs of solar collectors and checking the possibility of their application in northern territories of Russia are investigated. The analysis was carried out taking into account features of relief and other climatic conditions of the Perm and Sverdlovsk regions. As the result of research, the basic recommended conditions for application of solar batteries in houses of the northern Russian cities have been resumed. © 2017 IJCRSEE. All Right Reserved.

this paper aims to demonstrate how geography as a school subject advances education for sustainable development by integrating knowledge about the natural and social environment, and looking into cause-and-effect relationships between its elements, analysing the current geo-ecological situation and pointing towards potential courses of further development. tasks which lead to achieving the set goal include: defining main notions related to education for sustainable development; giving an account of the history of the idea of sustainable development and an explanation of its meaning and implementation in education; analysis of Strategy for development of Education System in Serbia until 2020; presenting elements relevant to education for sustainable development and giving arguments which uphold its feasibility and potential subjects in achieving it; defining which competences develop in students while studying for sustainable development and presenting how teaching geography can contribute to that process from pre-university to higher education levels. Methods will be presented through practical examples not only from our country, but from some other European countries as well; these methods are: field research, making films about geography themes, geography social evenings, discussion meetings, excursions. Both high school and university students need to be instructed about sustainable development as well as about the fact that geography classes should set an example when it comes to raising the awareness of environmental issues and willingness to have a responsible relationship with it, as well to behave in a conscientious manner when they leave school.Keywords: geography classes; sustainable development; Serbia; competences; education; human recourses; environment.

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in patients on hemodialysis. Cardiovascular mortality rate in these patients is approximately 9% per year, with the highest prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy, ischemic heart disease and congestive heart failure among cardiovascular complications. The aim of this study was to assess cardiovascular risk factors, pathogenetic mechanisms for the development of diastolic dysfunction of heart, and point to clinical importance of early detection and timely application of adequate therapy in patients with diastolic dysfunction. Expert works and clinical studies dealing with diagnostics and therapy for diastolic dysfunction in population of patients on hemodialysis were analyzed. Left ventricular hypertrophy was present in 75% of patients on hemodialysis. Risk factors for development of hypertrophy of the left ventricle in patients on hemodialysis include: increased shunt blood flow, anaemia, sodium and water retention, hypertension, oxidative stress, microinflammation, hyperhomocysteinemia and secondary hyperparathyroidism. Left ventricular hypertrophy is an important cause of diastolic dysfunction of left ventricle in this population. Diagnostic strategy for early detection of high-risk patients for the development of asymptomatic diastolic dysfunction include: echocardiography examination, tests for proving coronary artery disease, as well as tests for myocardial function examination. Early detection of patients with high risk for the development of diastolic dysfunction enables timely application of adequate therapy strategy which provides a high degree of survival in patients on hemodialysis.

The atmosphere is a very sensitive medium to extraterrestrial forces, most importantly, solar electromagnetic radiation and energetic particle intrusion. This released intense solar activity can cause sudden disturbances in the Earth’s atmosphere and further create ground telecommunication interferences, blackouts, transportation problems, water supply problems, potential health effects, as well as natural disasters, such as forest fires. These extreme events can cause billions of dollars of damage and impact individuals, families, communities, and societies. For this reason, it is of crucial importance to investigate the connections between this extreme activity and natural disasters, and further develop ways to prevent, prepare against, and respond to them. The aim of this special issue is to engage a wide community of scientists to de-fragment broaden and improve our knowledge in this field. We invite researchers from all relevant fields to publish their recent investigations in this special issue.

Based on investigations of ash deposit formation, semi-empirical indicators for slagging and fouling, based on ash chemical composition and its fusion temperature, have been determined. These criteria-indicators, in suggested limits, describe the coals on which they are based (North-American and British) well. However, the experience in the thermal power production sector of Serbia shows that their literal application to domestic coals does not produce satisfactory results. This contribution provides an analysis of applicability and the choice of criteria that are suitable for Serbian coals. The focus of the contribution is on coal slagging indicators, since slagging has much heavier consequences on heat transfer inside the steam boiler, and on boiler operation as a whole. The basis for the analysis of chosen criteria comprises of the results of investigations of four coal fields - Kostolac, Kolubara, Kosovo (Serbia), and Ugljevik (Bosnia and Herzegovina).

Considering the significance of discovering the causes of forest fires, the hypothesis on the solar activity is presented (i.e. physical-chemical characteristics of the solar wind) as the possible cause of these natural disasters. The empirical confirmation of the mentioned hypothesis was disabled by the non existence of an adequate data base on the (regional) distribution of the number of fires and burned areas on the level of Serbia. Therefore an emphasis is put on theoretical explanations, but also on the characteristic situations in which there is an agreement between the processes occurring on the Sun and fire phenomena in the area of Serbia and the Balkans. The formations of the corresponding data base would enable the systematic explanation of endangerment of undeveloped areas of Serbia, but also the confirmation of the solar wind-forest fires hypothesis. The directions of the future multidisciplinary research should be directed towards the models for better prevention.

Fires of large dimension destroy forests, harvests and housing objects. Apart from that combustion products and burned surfaces become large ecological problems. Very often fires emerge simultaneously on different locations of a region so a question could be asked if they always have been a consequence of negligence, pyromania, high temperatures or maybe there has been some other cause. This paper is an attempt of establishing the possible connection between forest fires that numerous satellites registered and activities happening on the Sun immediately before fires ignite. Fires emerged on relatively large areas from Portugal and Spain on August 2005, as well as on other regions of Europe. The cases that have been analyzed show that, in every concrete situation, an emission of strong electromagnetic and thermal corpuscular energy from highly energetic regions that were in geo-effective position had preceded the fires. Such emissions have, usually, very high energy and high speeds of particles and come from coronary holes that also have been either in the very structure or in the immediate closeness of the geo-effective position. It should also be noted that the solar wind directed towards the Earth becomes weaker with deeper penetration towards the topographic surface. However, the results presented in this paper suggest that, there is a strong causality relationship between solar activity and the ignition of these forest fires taking place in South-western Europe.

Purpose - The aim of the paper was to investigate the major forest fires in Deliblatska peščara, as well as to analyze the efficiency of fire protection measures. Design / methodology / approach - The analysis included interviews with participants in extinguishing the major fires. The questions referred to the course of fires, as well as to the main fire protection disadvantages. The documentation of the “Banat” Forest Management - Pančevo (Public Enterprise “Vojvodinašume”) was also used in the paper for the period 1948-2012. Findings - The major forest fires in Deliblatska peščara in the studied period were recorded in 1973, 1990, 1996 and 2007. Although they account for only about 1.5 % of the total number of fires, they collectively have invaded more than half of the total burnt area and more than two-thirds of the forest area. According to the surveys, the main characteristics of these fires were: frequent appearance of new fire hot spots, strong wind variable in direction which crucially affects the spread of fire and the impossibility of direct action on fire. The main disadvantages of fire protection were: inefficiency of fire breaks, blockage of forest roads for the passage of vehicles and the lack of the modern means of fire protection equipment. Research limitations / implications - Given the specificities of the studied area (the absence of surface water, sandy soils, microclimate conditions and vegetation composition), the research results cannot be fully generalized for Serbia. Practical implications - The research results indicate the need for making changes in the fire prevention system, as well as the possibility of fire danger forecast based on the heliocentric hypothesis. Originality / value - What has been the importance of the paper is that it provides the basis for a new approach to the planning of fire prevention measures. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III47007]

Contemporary science is burdened with contradictory, that is, severely opposed attitudes relating to climate changes issues such as global warming. What is undisputable is that if climate changes are more intensive, changes relating to stands of plants are also more intensive. Forest fires are one of the most drastic factors that influence changes of stands of plants in mountain terrains. The damage caused by forest fires destroying forests varies from case to case, but a significant problem occurs in irretrievable losses of soil because of increased erosion, as well as disturbances in underground water circulation. In contrast to plain terrains, mountains are far more sensitive to such disasters, especially when we consider losses in agricultural soil as well as of wildlife. The fact that a direct connection between any of the climate elements and the initial phase of a fire has not been established so far represents a special challenge to science. A new hypothesis is presented in this chapter, which attempts to link the processes on the sun, that is, charged particles (protons and electrons) as potential causes of forest fires of unknown origin.