Matej Bel University

About: Matej Bel University is a education organization based out in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Tourism & Fuzzy set. The organization has 721 authors who have published 1497 publications receiving 11573 citations. The organization is also known as: Matej Bel & Univerzita Mateja Bela.

Syntaxonomy and Ecology of Black Alder Vegetation in the Southern Part of Central Slovakia

Abstract: The study presents phytosociological and ecological data from azonal black alder forest sites in the southern part of central Slovakia. A data set of 29 releves was collected by authors in vegetation season 2010 following the standard Braun-Blanquet approach. Numerical classification was performed to delimit the main vegetation types, while statistical analyses were applied to explain the vegetation-environmental relationships. Three associations within two classes were distinguished using a TWINSPAN algorithm. Carici elongatae-Alnetum glutinosae Schwickerath 1933 is an alder carr forest occurring on waterlogged soils in spring fed areas and alluvial zones along rivers. Carici acutiformis-Alnetum glutinosae Scamoni 1933 represents an alder carr forest on habitats with stagnant or slowly flowing water along water courses and artificial water reservoirs. Mesic to humid stands along small brooks are typical for the riparian alder vegetation of Stellario-Alnetum glutinosae Lohmeyer 1957. A detailed description of the floristic and ecological features of these associations is presented. The major environmental gradients affecting variation in species composition of these communities were interpreted as a response of vegetation to soil moisture and nutrient availability regarding the Ellenberg indicator values (moisture and nutrients) and measured variables (total N and C).

Environmental Modelling of Forest Vegetation Zones as A Support Tool for Sustainable Management of Central European Spruce Forests

Abstract: Abstract The impact of climate change on forest ecosystems may manifest itself by a shift in forest vegetation zones in the landscape northward and into higher elevations. Studies of climate change-induced vegetation zone shifts in forest ecosystems have been relatively rare in the context of European temperate zone (apart from Alpine regions). The presented paper outlines the results of a biogeographic model of climatic conditions in forest vegetation zones applied in the Central European landscape. The objective of the study is a prediction of future silvicultural conditions for the Norway spruce (Picea abies L. Karst.), which is one of the principal tree species within European forests. The model is based on a general environmental dependence of forest vegetation zones on the long-term effect of altitudinal and exposure climates defined by the mean and extreme air temperatures and the amount and distribution of atmospheric precipitation. The climatological data for the model were provided by a validated regional climate database for 2010 – 2090 according to the SRES A1B scenario, bound to specific geo-referenced points in the landscape. The geobiocoenological data in the model were provided by the Biogeography Register database which contains ecological data on the landscape bound to individual cadastres of the entire Czech Republic. The biogeographic model applies special programs (the FORTRAN programming language) in the environment of geographic information systems. The model outputs can be clearly graphically visualized as scenarios of predicted future climatic conditions of landscape vegetation zones. Modelling of the regional scenario of changes in the climatic conditions of forest vegetation zones reveals that in the prediction period of 2070 and beyond, good and very good climatic conditions for the cultivation of forests with dominant Norway spruce will be found only in some parts of its today’s native range in forest vegetation zones 5 – 8. Based on the results provided by the regional scenario, the authors of this paper recommend fundamental reassessment of the national strategy of sustainable forest management in the Czech Republic, stipulating that the current practice of spruce cultivation be reduced only to areas specifically defined by the biogeographic model. The paper shows that biogeographic models based on the concept of vegetation zoning can be applied not only in regional scenarios of climate change in the landscape but also as support tools for the creation of strategies of sustainable forest management.

Building Košice European Capital of Culture: Towards a Creative City?

Abstract: This chapter aims to identify the most important success factors leading to the reinvention and development of Kosice as a creative city. The catalyst shifting Kosice from an industrial city to a modern creative twenty-first century city was the award of the title European Capital of Culture in 2013. Changes in its cultural infrastructure produced various events that created a new development impulse in the city’s cultural life. Implementation of project Interface, realisation of investment projects, organisation of hundreds of events and revitalisation of urban spaces and places began the overall transformation of the city, increasing its attractiveness for citizens, tourists, entrepreneurs and investors.

Utilization of Corporate Sustainability Concept at Selected Enterprises in Slovakia

Abstract: The paper is oriented on corporate sustainability concept which is possible alternative of the future corporate development. Sustainability could be called as business philosophy, which depends on the economic conditions of enterprise, the complex business conditions and the will of the representatives of the enterprise to act according to its principles. Decision of the company to behaving in terms of this concept requires its transformation into the overall corporate strategy and all its components. Relatively few companies apply this concept as a balanced set of activities which are also incorporated into the corporate strategy. This represents the basis for the application of the concept in practice. The aim of this paper is to evaluate how companies from selected industries apply the concept of corporate sustainability with an emphasis on vision, strategy, objectives, as well as aspects of investing in activities leading to the improvement and moving towards the fulfillment of corporate sustainability.

Removal of Nickel from Aqueous Solutions by Natural Bentonites from Slovakia

Abstract: In this study, the removal of nickel (Ni(II)) by adsorption from synthetically prepared solutions using natural bentonites (Lieskovec (L), Hlinik nad Hronom (S), Jelsový Potok (JP), and Stara Kremnicka (SK)) was investigated. All experiments were carried out under batch processing conditions, with the concentration of Ni(II), temperature, and time as the variables. The adsorption process was fast, approaching equilibrium within 30 min. The Langmuir maximum adsorption capacities of the four bentonite samples used were found to be 8.41, 12.24, 21.79, and 21.93 mg g-1, respectively. The results best fitted the pseudo-second-order kinetic model, with constant rates in a range of 0.0948-0.3153 g mg-1 min. The effect of temperature was investigated at temperatures of 20, 30, and 40 °C. Thermodynamic parameters, including standard enthalpy (ΔH0), Gibbs energy (ΔG0), and standard entropy (ΔS0), were calculated. The adsorption of Ni(II) by bentonite samples was an endothermic and spontaneous process. These results indicated that, of the bentonite samples used, the natural bentonites from JP and SK were most suitable for the removal of nickel from synthetically prepared solutions.