Risks and perspectives of higher school transformation for the russian economy in conditions of gobalization and digitalization

The article examines the risks and possible prospects for the transformation of higher education from the standpoint of the Russian and world economy, identifies the main reasons for the current situation in terms of the influence of foreign capital on the level of competitiveness of the domestic economy's production capacities and its involvement in global value chains. An analysis of the risks of increasing the dependence of Russian higher education on the global market of educational services is carried out. This may negatively affect the preservation of the potential of human capital in the domestic market of the country. In this regard, the current trends in the field of educational activity, including the globalization of higher education in the context of digitalization, as well as the process of internationalization of scientific research, are considered. Additional trends in the transformation of higher education were identified that could contribute to the sustainable development of the Russian economy, primarily in the domestic market, taking into account the involvement of Russia in the system of international division of labor. Based on the results obtained, the key directions of the development of Russian higher education are identified, taking into account possible risks and prospects in order to achieve sustainable development of the Russian economy based on the long-term development of the domestic market, where special attention is paid to the human capital of the country, including not only material, but also moral aspects of society.

Neurohypofyzární peptidy v lékařství z pražských a švédských laboratoří. Část I: Historie výzkumu a počátky produkce lékových forem

From the fifties to the seventies of the last century, the neurohypophyseal peptides oxytocin and vasopressin constituted one of the main research areas at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry in Prague (IOCB). A significant contribution to this area is associated with the names of František Šorm, director of the said institute, and Josef Rudinger, head of the institute's peptide laboratory. At that time, newly developed research tools enabled to synthesize structural analogues of these hormones in numerous laboratories worldwide and hence to investigate the structure-activity relationships within this peptide group. Contributions of single peptide-chain positions to the respective biological activities were identified which opened a possibility to rationalize a design of peptides with a combination of changes in several positions. Several clinically interesting peptides were synthesized in the late 1960s at the IOCB and employed as therapeutics: [(Gly)3-Cys1,Lys8]-vasopressin (Glypressin Ferring®, Terli­pressin INN), 1-deamino-8-ᴅ-arginine vasopressin (Desmopressin INN, dDAVP), and later the uterotonics carbetocin (INN), widely used in obstetrics to prevent postpartum haemorrhage. Since the industrial production of peptide therapeutics was scarcely possible under the conditions of socialist economy in Czechoslovakia as well as in other countries under the Soviet influence, F. Šorm agreed to use the already established scientific contacts of IOCB with the Swedish pharmaceutical company Ferring AB and to transfer the production licences to Sweden. The license agreements were signed in 1969 and led to a quick spread of dDAVP in the substitution therapy of the central form of diabetes insipidus and, moreover, contributed to a fast upsurge of the Ferring company. Somewhat later, Glypressin was produced as a therapeutic with a prolonged action in cases of cardiovascular collapse. Contacts between Prague peptide chemists and the Ferring company lasted on a rather informal base until the end of the 1980s. After the fall of the totalitarian regime in Czechoslovakia in 1990, Ferring started a joint-venture collaboration with the newly organized Czech company Léčiva st.p. Praha in a newly established group Prague Polypeptide Institute spol. s. r.o. (later Ferring-Léčiva A.S.). A substantial part of the peptide-production capacities was then transferred to new buildings in Prague.

Impact of Thermal Stress on the Moroccan Argan Agroecosystem

The argan tree is exclusively endemic in the drylands of Southwest Morocco, an agroecosystem of great ecological, cultural, and economic importance. The argan agroecosystem is already damaged. It is particularly vulnerable to climate change as well as the harsh natural conditions aggravated by the current population growth and the exploitation in excess of the production capacities. Unfortunately, during the 20th century, its area has been reduced by half. Current projections indicate an increase in temperature under climate scenarios. Anticipated climate change could accelerate this trend resulting in the argan tree degradation. To assess the climate change impact, the authors used the SDSM model at the argan agroecosystem scale and the thermal stress model to assess its vulnerability and estimate its tolerance response in relation to temperature stress for a projected climate in the near term (2010-2025 years). In this chapter, the authors explored the impact of climate change on the argan tree regeneration.

Opening Doors to Open Digital Practice for Educators: The Open Page Project

This paper outlines the design and purpose of an open educational resource (OER) project focused on developing digital literacies and open educational practice (OEP) within a Canadian Faculty of Education. Called The Open Page, the project features a Tool Parade of videos and podcasts created with and by Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) students). Designed to enable students to build critical and participatory digital literacies with common classroom tools, and to encourage the development of OEP, the project assesses classroom uses of specific educational technology platforms. It also engaged student creators in analysis of various platforms' implications for student data and for differentiated learning. Featured on the University of Windsor Faculty of Education's website, The Open Page and its Tool Parade of OER offer professional development resources for faculty and practicing teachers and contributes to a common conversation about digital learning between educators at all levels. This paper will overview The Open Page and its creation, and the ways in which it represents an effort to focus pre-service teachers on the participatory and production capacities of the web for digital learning.

The impact of the collaborative workplace on the production system capacity: Simulation modelling vs. real-world application approach

In recent years, there have been more and more collaborative workplaces in different types of manufacturing systems. Although the introduction of collaborative workplaces can be cost-effective, there is still much uncertainty about how such workplaces affect the capacity of the rest of production system. The article presents the importance of introducing collaborative workplaces in manual assembly operations where the production capacities are already limited. With the simulation modelling method, the evaluation of the introduction impact of collaborative workplaces on manual assembly operations that represent bottlenecks in the production process is presented. The research presents two approaches to workplace performance evaluation, both simulation modelling and a real-world collaborative workplace example, as a basis of a detailed time study. The main findings are comparisons of simulation modelling results and a study of a real-world collaborative workplace, with graphically and numerically presented parameters describing the utilization of production capacities, their efficiency and financial justification. The research confirms the expediency of the collaborative workplaces use and emphasise the importance of further research in the field of their technological and sociological impacts.

On implementation of Russia's obligations under the Paris agreement: Institutional, legal, international, and methodological aspects, problems and prospects for Russia's economy development

Subject. The article investigates the problems related to the implementation of Russia's obligations under the Paris Agreement. Objectives. The aim is to examine the possibilities of implementing Russia's obligations under the Paris Agreement, analyze institutional, legal, international, political and methodological aspects of fulfilling these obligations, identify problems and prospects for realizing the interests of Russian exporters in international markets, and opportunities for the development of economic and innovative potential, including the analysis of implementing the national climate doctrines in the field of greenhouse gas emissions reduction. Methods. The study employs methods of institutional, comparative, graphical, and statistical analysis, and methods of systematization and classification. Results. I established the degree of development of the institutional and legal framework for implementing climate agreements, characterized their international and political aspects, classified methodological problems of decision-making and performance of decarbonization programs, proved the need to renew production assets, and demonstrated the nature of implementation of national climate doctrines stimulating the development of innovations. Conclusions. The process of building the institutional and legal framework for regulating climate relations is not completed yet. A number of methodological problems hinder the achievement of fairness and objectivity of economic and political decision-making at the global and regional levels. The paper establishes a critical level of ageing the production capacities of Russian enterprises, and offers conditions and promising directions of the Russian economy development during energy transition.

The Economic Impact of Investment in Renewables in Croatia by 2030

At the beginning of 2020, the Strategy of the Republic of Croatia until 2030 with an outlook to 2050 was adopted. The Strategy analyzes two energy transition scenarios, the accelerated energy transition and the moderate energy transition. The Strategy is guided and defined by goals set out by the European Union (EU), which primarily states to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and increase the share of renewable energy sources. In order to reach these goals, it is necessary to substitute fossil fuel capacities with new capacities for the production of electricity from renewable sources. In order to do so, a new wave of investments is needed. The Strategy does not detail the macroeconomic effects of investments in renewable sources on the Croatian economy, generally quantified through GDP growth and employment. This paper analyzes the macroeconomic effects of announced investments in renewable energy sources for electricity production. The analysis encompasses the time period 2021–2030. The effects are quantified using the input–output tables for Croatia. The analysis exhibits relatively modest macroeconomic effects of investments into renewable energy on the Croatian economy. The paper concludes that it is necessary to change the structure and dynamics of investment in renewable energy. First, the investment should go into sources with the highest domestic component in investments and at the same time develop production capacities in technologies and equipment production for wind and solar capacities.

Discrepancy of particle passage in 101 mask batches during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic in Germany

During the first wave of Covid-19 infections in Germany in April 2020, clinics reported a shortage of filtering face masks with aerosol retention> 94% (FFP2 & 3, KN95, N95). Companies all over the world increased their production capacities, but quality control of once-certified materials and masks came up short. To help identify falsely labeled masks and ensure safe protection equipment, we tested 101 different batches of masks in 993 measurements with a self-made setup based on DIN standards. An aerosol generator provided a NaCl test aerosol which was applied to the mask. A laser aerosol spectrometer measured the aerosol concentration in a range from 90 to 500 nm to quantify the masks’ retention. Of 101 tested mask batches, only 31 batches kept what their label promised. Especially in the initial phase of the pandemic in Germany, we observed fluctuating mask qualities. Many batches show very high variability in aerosol retention. In addition, by measuring with a laser aerosol spectrometer, we were able to show that not all masks filter small and large particles equally well. In this study we demonstrate how important internal and independent quality controls are, especially in times of need and shortage of personal protection equipment.

Shortageflation 3.0: War economy – State socialism – Pandemic crisis

The crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic has prompted governments and central banks to take unorthodox measures aimed at protecting the standard of living of people and sustaining the production and service activities of companies. The policy of aggressively increasing the supply of money has entailed a significant rise in the budget deficit and public debt. It is important to consider the extent of its impact on the escalation of inflation processes and to formulate suggestions regarding the economic policy. Inflation is already higher than the official indicators show it, because it is partly suppressed. The increase in the general price level does not fully reflect the actual inflation rate. We are dealing with shortageflation – the simultaneous occurrence of price inflation and repressed inflation accompanied by shortages. It is methodologically interesting to compare this current phenomenon, 3.0, with the suppression of inflation in the war economy, 1.0, and in the economies of state socialism, 2.0. Such comparisons highlight not only the similarities of these processes but also the differences resulting from the specificity of responses of households and businesses. This paper discusses five channels of unloading excessive savings, indicating the most beneficial ones from the point of view of sustainable economic development in the post-pandemic future. It is particularly important to prompt the conversion of compulsory savings into voluntary savings, and at the same time, to stimulate the transformation of the inflationary monetary reserves into the effective demand expanding the use of existing production capacities and investments creating new capacities.