The Topic of this Issue

Treasures of the Earth

The featuring topic of this issue are the mines and mineral treasures of the Earth – from coal as the basic energy source over the past two centuries, through the major oil reserves, to the most abundant gas reserves, thermal water sources and other treasures. Special emphasis is put on mineral resources of Serbia. A special addition is the possibility of exploiting materials from the Moon and the mine potential of the Mars and other planets, potential reserves on asteroids and satellites orbiting other planets – to the degree that present knowledge permits and present technical capabilities of exploitation and transport between the Earth and other celestial bodies permit.

Young Scientists of Serbia

Envoy of Petnica

Love for science which she demonstrated since her early school days have taken 20-year old Iva Atanasković, student of microbiology at the University of Belgrade, to the European competition last year and to the world competition in synthetic biology IGEM this year. As the youngest member of the winning team of the University Descartes from Paris, justified her presence there through equal participation in the research undertaking aimed at suppressing tuberculosis. This research was ranked highest among 204 competing teams. The knowledge and experience which she acquired at the laboratory of the research station for young talents “Petnica” (near Valjevo, about 100 km southwest of Belgrade) Iva Atanasković has enriched through her three months team work in Lyon.

Mycology

Fungi from Ants' Menu

Technical literature on fungi contains data showing that ants grow certain variations of fungi and live in symbiosis with them. This has already been proven for termites. However, with respect to ants, there is an open issue: do they also grow certain fungi which they feed on or is this just chance phenomena not equal to “intentional farming” intended to grow and reap food? This text speaks of examples to be found on the border between Serbia and Montenegro.

Discoveries

Water without H 2 O?

Water is the best known and probably the most important chemical compound. Compared to other liquids, water is a very unusual substance. As many as 40 specific features of water have been identified which set water aside from other liquids. A great number of different scientific models for water have been proposed. All these models are to explain all the phenomena falling under the term “anomalous water behavior”.

Medicine

Fighting Seasonal Viruses

Inflammation of lower airways - bronchitis and bronchiolitis – most often occur in children during autumn and winter, very often among kinder-garden and school children. These infections also affect infants, who are especially endangered by virus bronchiolitis. The nature of this disease, measures of prevention, and methods of treatment – these are the topics discussed by pediatrician pulmologist Professor Orica Živković, consultant of the General hospital Bel Medic in Belgrade.

Medicine

Malignant Tumors as Chronic Diseases

If detected in early stages of disease, malignant diseases today are completely curable. Most carcinoma can be treated in the long term, and some can even be cured even in the metastatic stage. Even in patients whose cancer cannot be cured, there are modern treatment therapies enabling the disease to be controlled for a long period of time and thus change into a chronic form. This is a topic discussed by Professor Ivan Popov, oncologist of the Bel Medica hospital”.

Medicine

Breast Cancer is Curable

Mammography is a non-invasive diagnostic method used in the prevention, detection and early diagnosis of the disease. It is the only method which can detect breast cancer in the stage in which the disease is practically completely curable. This is a key fact, indicating the significance of mammography. This is the topic discussed by Dr Lana Ilić-Todorić, radiologist at the General hospital Bel Medic, who has been active in this field for more than two decades, and who recommends this examination for all women over 40 years of age.

Medicine

MEDICA 2013

Good internationaL business contacts are becoming increasingLy important for manufacturers of medicaL tech-noLogy and medicaL products. OnLy those that are weLL-positioned at the internationaL LeveL are abLe to baLan-ce weaknesses in individuaL markets and profit in the Long run from a mar-ket that is growing. That is the key message conveyed after four days of events (20-23 November) at MEDICA 2013, the worLds Largest medicaL tra-de fair and COMPAMED 2013 (20-22 November), the Leading trade fair for the suppLier market for medicaL tech-noLogy manufacturing.

Cosmology

What Preserves the Earth?

A scientific model dating back to 1990 demonstrated that the distance from the Earth to the Sun is so great that strong radiation could not be a cause of extinction of life on the Earth. In the near future, the Sun will be heating our planet by power far less than the power for Venus, and the estimates on energy balance are suggesting that Earth's atmosphere will be sending more energy into space than receiving from it. In order to take stock of the current state of things, scientists have developed a new model and determined that some minor corrections have changed the balance. It now seems that the Earth's atmosphere absorbs more heat that it issues so that the “greenhouse effect” could as well become reality. Basically, the model indicates that clouds reduce the temperature by “redistributing heat” and reflecting a major part of it back into space. If it was not for these clouds, we would have been finished a long time ago, state scientists.

Aeronautics

To Limits of Cosmos

At the end of World War Two new aircrafts were constructed using jet and rocket engines. This was the beginning of the armament race between the two superpowers, Russia and the USA. For this purpose, aircrafts have been designed flying at speeds exceeding 3 machs, along with armaments that these aircrafts could carry. The first breaking of the sound barrier happened in 1947 with the US aircraft X-1. Only twenty years later aircrafts were flying at speeds of almost 7000 km/h up to 100 km above Earth!

At present scream jet engines are used which already now exceed the speed of 6 machs, on the US aircraft SR-72. The final limit has not yet been determined, but experts estimate that this aircraft could reach the speed of 10 machs!

Hobby

History on Wheels .

For someone to collect old automobiles, apart for financial resources, much knowledge in this area is needed as well. There is a basic division of collections of classic, antique and pre-antique vehicles. In Serbia and in the region the term “old timers” has become a standard term used. Most collectors, individuals or clubs, originate from the US, Germany, Italy or Russia.