Fulltext search in archive

Kernel smoothers belong to the most popular nonparametric functional estimates. They provide a simple way of finding structure in data. The idea of the kernel smoothing can be applied to a simple fixed design regression model. This article is focused on kernel smoothing for fixed design regresion model with three types of estimators, the Gasser-Müller estimator, the Nadaraya-Watson estimator and the local linear estimator. At the end of this article figures for ilustration of desribed estimators on simulated and real data sets are shown.

The paper describes a new approach for determination of mechanical properties of hen's eggshell. The suitability and applicability of a Berkovich indentation is discussed. The eggshells were tested in the area surrounding equator line. The deformation modes active during indentation have been examinined from the shape of load-displacement curves. According to measured dependencies, the eggshel shown an viscous-elastic deformation.The values of Young's modulus E obtained from radial and tangential directions did not vary significantly. This fact shows on isotropic nature of eggshell structure. It was found that values of E do not significantly change neither around the circumference of the equator. The values obtained within this research correspond to values reported in literature and obtained on macroscopic samples. Nanoindentation was found to be a precise and powerful tool, suitable for determining local variations of mechanical properties of eggshells.

The ultraviolet radiation (UV), reaching the earth's surface, changes color of the paint films. By exposure to weathering, the biggest damage is caused by light, especially short-wavelength UV, high temperature and humidity. Any of these factors can lead to degradation. These natural elements can be reproduced and accelerated in laboratory conditions in test devices, such as the fluorescent UV or xenon-arc test chambers. Such equipment can provide fast and reproducible results. The artificial aging is a useful tool for product research and it is required by many international standards. A major problem in comparing the outdoor and laboratory tests is the fact, that the weathering-chamber enviroment is well controlled, whilst nature is not. The outdoor exposure tests are influenced by many factors, such as altitude, local conditions, seasonal variations, orientation of the sample and variable properties of test materials. Our work compares the influence of altitude of the tested position on light stability of surface finish treatment. The color changes are observed on different kinds of coating paint films with different contents of chemically binded UV stabilizator. Furthermore, the influence of bolstering material was observed. This material was mostly made of woods from temperate clima zone. One tropical wood was used for this purpose as well. The color changes of paint films (ΔE) on different bolstering materials were assessed by spectrophotometer.

Image segmentation is fundamental prerequisite for new satellite images interpretation methods. GIS GRASS provides segmentation tools enabling global image segmentation only. We designed procedure enabling local segmentation using existing GRASS tools and segmentation algorithm based on region growing that we developed with C++. This algorithm applies mathematical morphology operators to output segments, too. Principial aim of the project is creation of useful input for differentiation of base land cover classes in panchromatic high-resolution satellite image (or historical aerial photographs for example).

The aim of this article is to show the possibilities of spatial modelling and analysing of assumptions of tourism development in the Czech Republic with the objective to make decision-making processes in tourism easier and more efficient (for companies, clients as well as destination managements). The development and placement of tourism depend on the factors (conditions) that influence its application in specific areas. These factors are usually divided into three groups: selective, localization and realization. Tourism is inseparably connected with space - countryside. The countryside can be modelled and consecutively analysed by the means of geographical information technologies.
With the help of spatial modelling and following analyses the localization and realization conditions in the regions of the Czech Republic have been evaluated. The best localization conditions have been found in the Liberecký region. The capital city of Prague has negligible natural conditions; however, those social ones are on a high level. Next, the spatial analyses have shown that the best realization conditions are provided by the capital city of Prague. Then the Central-Bohemian, South-Moravian, Moravian-Silesian and Karlovarský regions follow. The development of tourism destination is depended not only on the localization and realization factors but it is basically affected by the level of local destination management. Spatial modelling can help destination managers in decision-making processes in order to optimal use of destination potential and efficient targeting their marketing activities.

Innovation conduce to getting competitive advantage and they increase efficiency and total company performance. They are generally deemed as a key development factor. They represent group of activities leading to successful production, absorption and using economical and social innovation. Well managed and successfully introduced innovation into the market represents the tool for the companies, by means of which they can reach competitive advantages, enabling their prosperity in the slump. The urgency of synergic entrepreneurship as a key support of innovation is point out on a base of primary research in South Moravian manufacturing companies. As it is mentioned in this paper, most of respondents are open to external cooperation in innovation activities. Furthermore, they admit that without this collaboration they will not be able to produce any innovative products. Suitable forms, which can be utilized in our companies, are carried out with the help of secondary research in the article as well. Their accomplishments and disabilities are compared in accordance with local and foreign experts' theories. What follows is a discussion about requirements of strategic partnership success and advantages in the area of innovation.

The domain of value-added tax has been already fully harmonized. Its regulation dwells on the Council Directive 2006/112/EC on the common system of value-added tax, and all member countries of the European Union are obliged to provide for the implementation of this Directive into their national legislations similarly as the Czech Republic, which entered the European Union on 1 May 2004. The Act no. 235/2004 Coll. on the value-added tax as amended (hereinafter "value-added tax law") should be therefore in line with the Directive. In reality however, some issues in the VAT law have not been fully harmonized yet. One of these issues is for example the application of a special routine for travel services according to §89 of the VAT law, which is in essential contradiction with the Directive in question, the controversial point being definition of the person of customer whom the Directive understands in a different way than the VAT law. Thus, the characterization of the problem based on the Czech and EU legislations with respect to jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Community forms a framework of the paper. Based on a comparative analysis of the application of special and ordinary routines in providing travel services to the customer by the taxpayer, tax incidence in his assessment base is determined. At the same time, the paper also includes a proposal for the change of the definition of customer in the VAT law so that the application of the given routine is fully in line with the EU Directive.

The experimental plots are located on a farm in a mountainous area at an altitude of 845 m above the sea level with the soil type cambisol. After leaving pasture grassland in about 50 years created a forest community with 45.06 per cent share of woody plants. After it has been deforested was doing research on a variant grazing with Charolais cattle and compared with deforested grassland without management leaving the development without human intervention. On the variant without management for three years we recorded 58 plant species with woody plants. Cover of grasses was reduced, for example Agrostis capillaris L. from 15 to 0.78% and Festuca rubra from 5,33 to the tracks, like the presence of herbs, on the contrary increased the percentage of woody plants as Betula pendula from 4.08 to 13.52%, Cerasus avium from 3.07 to 16 28% and Populus tremula from 16.22 to 47.88%. Proportion of woody plants in the third year of research accounted for up to 77.68 per cent stake. Dominant Populus tremula amounted to 2.50 m high and mean diameter 30 mm. Grazing control variant for three years consisted of community - Agrostis Festucetum rubrae with 66 plant species and dominance of other herbs (53.66%). Significantly increased the proportion of grasses, for example Agrostis capillaris from 5.67 to 15.61%, Festuca rubra from 5.02 to 8.42%, Festuca pratensis from 3.84 to 4.40% and Dactylis glomerata from 2.46 to 4.46%. The variant without management significantly increased levels of C : N at depths of 0-200 mm from 10.88-12.65 to 14-16.53, compared with a variant of grazing (from 9.36-12.41 to 6.93-10.46). The evaluation of phosphorus and potassium in two depths, in the C : N ratio, but also in botanical composition from 2006 to 2008, we found statistically highly significant differences in the variant with self-reforestation without management (BM) compared with grazing control variant after deforestation.

Wind erosion in the Czech Republic conditions poses relatively a lot of danger, especially for the most fertile areas, where agricultural land is more vulnerable due to the large pieces of land and inappropriate crop rotation. This process causes damage to agriculture by loss of topsoil, fertilizers, seeds and crop damage as well as sedimentation in water recipients and on roads. It also has negative impacts on human health (airborne dust). Wind erosion is especially affected by climatic elements (wind, temperature, precipitation and evaporation etc.) and soil characteristics (soil type, content of erodible particles, soil moisture). Wind erosion affects mainly light and medium heavy soil. South Moravia is an example of the territories to which this rule does not apply. Although soils in the Carpathian flysch subsoil are mainly heavy, erosion has been causing damage here for many decades. Quite strong dust storms are not rare, especially at the end of winter and in early spring when the soil is not covered by vegetation.
Notable cases of dust storms in the area were recorded in local chronicles, and then written in the summary publication by dr. Švehlík. Interest of this publication was focused on the most destructive cases of dust storms in Bílé Karpaty foothills. The aim was to study meteorological conditions during the period before and during the occurrence of dust storms in the area in detail and to find the relationship between weather and the intensity of wind erosion. The data of wind speed and direction, temperature, precipitation and snow were evaluated. In all cases the average daily air temperature and ground air temperature was over the freezing point or closely under it. The temperature generally increased before the dust storm occurrence and it often happened from negative to positive temperature and the soil probably defrosted. Snow cover was very small or there was no snow cover at all. In the course of April wind erosion occurrence there was no snow and the precipitation was inconsiderable. Soil at the station was mostly bare, dry and defrosted.

The present work gives the results of the hydrobiological research of the middle course of the Bečva River in the river section between Valašské Meziříčí and Přerov, carried out in the years 2004 to 2007. Altogether, 65 taxa of macrozoobenthos were determined in the period 2000-2007 in the middle course of the Bečva River : Coelenterata (1 taxon), Oligochaeta (5 taxa), Hirudinea (3 taxa), Gastropoda (4 taxa), Isopoda (1 taxon), Amphipoda (2 taxa), Hydracarina (1? taxon), Ephemeroptera (7 taxa), Plecoptera (1 taxon), Odonata (3 taxa), Heteroptera (1 taxon), Megaloptera (1 taxon), Trichoptera (9 taxa), Coleoptera (3 taxa), Diptera (23 taxa). The number of zoobenthos taxa fell in the period 2004-2007 in comparison to period 2000-2002 from 51 taxa to 40 taxa. The decline of zoobenthos taxa was registered on study localities, as follows : Choryně (from 28 to 23 taxa), Hustopeče (from 27 to 25 taxa), Rybáře (from 35 to 28 taxa), Grymov (from 31 to 25 taxa). Average saprobity index of benthic community of the middle course of the Bečva River was 2.35. Average saprobity indices of monitored localities towards downstream were as follows: Choryně 2.41; Hustopeče 2.25; Rybáře 2.40; Grymov 2.34.

The first part of the paper is devoted to the theoretical problems of consumer behavior and decision masking. In the second part is used so called "beer local patriotism" as an concrete example of the mentioned problems. The third part presents own empirical results from marketing research in the Czech Republic in October-November 2004. The fourth part contents description of the contemporary life style changes and its influences for consumer behavior. In the fifth part is the purchase seen as a part of the contemporary life style and entretaiment. The last part deals with the changes of consumer behavior in the shopping centres.

The paper deals with the analysis of labour market in the Czech Republic with respect to unemployment considering other countries of EU and existing economic development. Evaluation has been carried out of the specific development of labour market, employment and unemployment in the Czech Republic in the period 1993-2008, incl. possible causes and trends of the development and international comparison of selected characteristics of labour market using adequate quantitative methods. Analysis of the Czech labour market during the period of its existence includes the evaluation of supply and demand in the labour market. The most important causes were monitored of changes in the supply in the labour market affected by the demographic development and social environment and substantial causes of changes in the demand in the labour market, which were affected by the performance of the given economics, by the growth of labour productivity and the number of available jobs. This is followed by assessing the development of unemployment in the Czech Republic and European Union. Substantial aspects were identified of the development of labour market and unemployment in the Czech Republic and EU as a whole and trends of the future development were indicated in the studied area. The international comparison of selected characteristics of labour market in the member countries of EU carried out by means of quantitative methods allowed to assess high differences among unemployment rates in this community and created another information source regarding the position of the Czech Republic in the European Union during the selected reference period. Significant differences in unemployment between all member countries point out to marked structural or institutional differences in labour markets in particular countries. Only a negligible percentage out of the total economically active population in the European Union migrates over the border of its member countries. This situation only augments a durable long-term unemployment growth in particular countries. Beside the insufficient labour force movement throughout Europe a next important problem in structural unemployment presents e.g., the incongruity in qualifications between supply and demand on the labour market. The current financial and economic crisis has cut at all previous positive unemployment development during a few months.

The paper deals with spatial analysis of the shopping centers according to individual regions in Czech Republic. The centers over 10 000 m² were identified with their total retail space and gravitational model was utilized to determine the break point between two competing regions - the point at which a person residing in an intermediate community would be likely to travel to one region rather than the other. Next part is aimed to calculation of saturation indicators. First one is coefficient of shopping centers saturation - measured like portion of retail space in all shopping centers per capita in each region (the average in Czech Republic is 0,115 m².cap^-1.; the lowest ratio was determined in South-Bohemian region - 0,033 and next is Karlovy Vary - 0,035; Hradec Králové - 0,049 and Vysočina - 0,048 regions; the highest ratio was determined in Liberec region - 0,275 and next is Central-Bohemian including Prague - 0,253; South-Moravian - 0,182 and Plzen - 0,157 regions). The second one is index of retail saturation - the population of the region is multiplied by the monthly expenditure on the goods and services the retailer wants to sell in shopping centers and this is divided by the total retail space in all shopping centers in the given region (the average in Czech Republic is 77 094,77 CZK.(m²)^-1; the same rank was determined - the highest index in South-Bohemian region - 175 909 and the lowest index in Liberec region - 20 224). The main result is comparison of regions according to their shopping centers saturation and recommendation to possible investors, developers and retailers where is the best site to invest and build a new complex of retail stores according to given indicators of spatial analysis.

The paper deals with the quality of tourism services. It mentions various ways of approaching quality management, such as the standards of quality, systems based on ISO standards and systems of complex quality management. It describes approaches applied in the Czech Republic and points out the difficulty keeping the quality in tourism. Tourism services are not offered individually, which is why it is necessary to assess the quality of a whole complex of services within the frame of a tourism product or a tourist destination. The level of tourists' satisfaction is not based on the quality of individual tourism services or a destination product but it arises from their overall impression which is formed from the hospitality of local inhabitants, the willingness of employees, the cleanness of the environment, security and so on. The presumption of maintaining the quality of a destination is a unified approach of all participants in tourism development that can be reached by various forms of cooperation. Creating a strategic alliance is one of such possibilities. The main objective of the article is to introduce the European system of Integrated Quality Management (IQM) and the tool for assessing the quality in a destination "Qualitest". The Integrated Quality Management is an approach based on the cooperation of all areas taking part in tourism development in a destination. The quality is assessed in a complex way with respect to tourism development impacts on local inhabitants and the environment. "Qualitest" is made of 16 indexes that are focused on the quality of a destination and the quality of a product. Each index is evaluated by three indicators that asses the quality of conditions (QPCI), the quality of management (QMI) and the quality of a destination performance (QPI). These indicators combine qualitative as well as quantitative values. The precondition for using "Qualitest" in our destinations is the existence of a functional tourism organization fulfilling the task of destination management, the results of the survey concerning the satisfaction of visitors and service suppliers in a destination and the cooperation with public sector for the purpose of obtaining data for QPI (police, municipal authorities, trade supervisory office). Such materials provide a methodical base for accomplishing "Qualitest" in a suitable destination.

The contribution deals with the principles as well as the economic implications of changes in the agriculture entrepreneurial environment. It denotes, that the vision of the European model of multifunctional agriculture is ever more frequently confronted with new challenges invoked by acceleration of globalization processes. Those qualitatively new requirements to agricultural enterprises behaviour as well as to the state intervention, strictly speaking the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), in the branch in a framework of the global markets development is notified there. On the basis of analyses of individual development stages and the manner, in which this sector has been legislatively and economically regulated, it is possible to document in the history of CAP EU the radical development of the European agrarian sector in general and how the CAP reacted to this development. The development concerned both the very agriculture and the agrarian sector and its economic position and changes of the social environment itself and the selection of adequate regulation tools corresponding to the environmental development and changes of situation. We can see that significant regional and structural differences are still hidden behind aggregated data about average economic performance of the agrarian sector of the EU and that different approach and priorities for solutions to individual issues can be chosen, provided that the issues have been identified and assessed in an objective manner. At the sometime these findings can be an opportunity to consider to what extent the individual member states are able to take over the existing rules and use conditions imposed by directives of the Community and to what extent we are able to actively assess the situation of the world agrarian markets and adequately respond to the development of the economic environment in broader international contexts. Amendments of the above mentioned conditions become new impulses determining the direction and dynamics of development of the economic environment; if we intend to preserve or improve our competitive strength, it is necessary to adequately respond to them.

A restoration ecology is a branch and also possible approach to the protections of both nature and landscape which completes the conservative trends (conservation biology). An ecological restoration is a practical application of this branch which can be used in the restoration of ecosystems, coenoses, populations or sites disturbed or damaged by human impact.
An ecological restoration offers the interesting alternatives to technical reclamations of the localities disturbed by mining. It exploits the natural processes (mainly controlled and spontaneous successions) respecting the development of coenoses adequate to the locality. The degree of man assistance in restoration process can be different in accordance to many factors, such as origin of disturbance, time factor of restoration, costs, surroundings of the locality (ecological stability, species pool), estimated resulting dependability, sustainability of final coenoses, future function of the area, etc.
The local biocentre Hráza near Kroměříž was established based on the restoration project c. 12 years ago in exhausted gravel-sand pit. Some processes of ecological restoration were used there, predominantly a controlled succession - sowing of meadow plant species and plant transfer. Also regular management and monitoring were initiated. The results of monitoring of meadow phytocoenoses are presented in this paper. The inventory of plant species, abundance (according to Braun-Blanquet's scale) have been observed on the sample plots (established within the frame of controlled succession) during the years 2002 - 2009 (here the years 2002 and 2007 are compared). The abundance data of plant species in wetlands phytocoenoses from the same years are also compared. The inventory of forest phytocoenoses has been undertaken in the years 2006 and 2009. The monitoring enables us to rate the general success of the project, the realized achievements of (mainly) controlled succession and the regular management. The paper evaluates the complex development of the locality, warns the negative aspects and brings the recommendations for subsequent management.

The production planning is one of the key managerial decisions in agricultural business, which must be done periodically every year. Correct decision must cover the agriculture demands of planting the crops such as crop rotation restrictions or water resource scarcity, while the decision maker aims to plan the crop design in most profitable way in sense of maximizing the total profit from the crop yield. This decision problem represents the optimization of crop design and can be treated by the methods of linear programming which begun to be extensively used in agriculture production planning in USA during 50's. There is ongoing research of mathematical programming applications in agriculture worldwide, but the results are not easily transferable to other localities due to the specific local restrictions in each country. In Czech Republic the farmers use for production planning mainly their expert knowledge and past experience. However, the mathematical programming approach enables find the true optimal solution of the problem, which especially in the problems with a great number of constraints is not easy to find intuitively. One of the possible barriers for using the general decision support systems (which are based on mathematical programming methods) for agriculture production planning in Czech Republic is its expensiveness. The small farmer can not afford to buy the expensive software or to employ a mathematical programming specialist. The aim of this paper is to present a user friendly linear programming model of the typical agricultural production planning problem in Czech Republic which can be solved via software tools commonly available in any farm (e.g. EXCEL). The linear programming model covering the restrictions on total costs, crop rotation, thresholds for the total area sowed by particular crops, total amount of manure and the need of feed crops is developed. The model is applied in real-world problem of Czech agriculture cooperative and the results of its solution are compared to the real decision made. The applicability of the model in every day agriculture managerial practice in Czech Republic is discussed and its possible enlargement is mentioned.

Melting of snow in winter and early spring often causes soil erosion. The results of erosion studies show that the runoff generated in the cold period can cause more intensive erosion than in the warm half year. By analysis of the monthly catchment of suspended sediments, it was found maximum of suspended sediments in the spring likely as effect of the spring melting of snow. Erosion caused by water from melting snow in our conditions does not reach the same intensity as the erosion caused by torrential rainfall. However, the torrential rainfall has only a local character, while the spring melting of snow usually affects larger territory. Erosive potential of water stored in snow cover can be established on the basis of the quantity of water resulting from melting snow and the speed of melting snow. Erosion caused by melting snow is given by quantity and the maximum speed of water runoff, which may be enhanced by rainfall, occurring in parallel with the snow melting. The total soil loss due to melting snow is also influenced by other factors: soil moisture, which affects the size of infiltration, soil freezing, the topography, the protective effect of vegetation, soil erodibility and implemented erosion control measures.
The work analyzed erosive potential of snow cover during the cold period 1981/82 to 2007/2008 for the part of the Czech Republic, which falls within the scope of the Brno branch of the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (CHMI). For zoning of erosive potential of snow cover in the area of interest 22 climatological stations has been chosen (with regard to their equitable representation in different altitudes and different climatic conditions).
The work brings erosive potential determination of water stored in snow cover. Its size corresponds to the altitude and climatic conditions represented by climatic region (according to Estimated Ecological Pedological Unit - EPEU) of investigational sites. Closeness of the relationship, expressed as a coefficient of correlation is 0.794, respectively 0.844. By the GIS interpolation on the basis of altitude a map of the erosive potential of the water stored in snow cover for the field of interest was processed.