Aleksandar Radivojevic

Traditional use of the native medicinal plant resource of Mt. Rtanj (Eastern Serbia): ethnobotanical evaluation and comparison.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE This study reports on the uses of medicinal plants and ethnobotanical significance of Mt. Rtanj, Eastern Serbia. The aim of the study was collecting information on plant utilization and creating the list of medicinal plants collected by local community in the region of Rtanj Mt. in Serbia. METHODOLOGY A group of generally elderly people from the region were interviewed, asked to identify a certain number of plant taxa used against various human ailments. A quantitative ethnobotanical comparison has been performed in relation to other studies concerning the central Balkan Peninsula. RESULTS There is an inventory of 45 plant species recorded. At the family level, the most common in traditional usage were species of Labiatae (22%), Rosaceae (20%) and Compositae (13%). The results of the survey suggested that Hypericum perforatum was the most popular medicinal plant. Among the 7 different recorded types of preparation, the aerial parts of plants were the most popular (47.3%). The most frequently reported medicinal uses of herbal drugs include remedies for immune system (22.97%), respiratory system (15.77%) and digestive system disorders (15.32%). However, a comparatively small number of available plant species was used for medicinal purposes while the level of ethnobotanical diversity was lower when compared to adjacent regions. CONCLUSIONS Ethnobotanical knowledge in this area is decreasing due to high emigration rates during the last period. The historically developed ethnobotanical heritage should be preserved and promoted on the larger level, getting the special position in the future management plans for this area.

EXPOSURE TO EARTHQUAKES — DISTRIBUTION AND CHANGE OF THE WORLD’S POPULATION WITH REGARD TO DISPOSITION OF SEISMIC ACTIVITIES

Earthquake effects can be distinctly different in two different countries even if the earthquake has the same level of intensity. Loss and damage caused by the earthquake will be much less in developed countries than in developing countries. Due to its inability to prevent and cope with disasters developing countries are in the focus in this article. This paper presents an approach for detecting the most and the least vulnerable countries of the world and the distribution of their population within different earthquake intensity zones. There is also a summary of the change in world population during the 25‑year period (1990–2015), within continents and earthquake intensity zones as well as a comparison between continents. The population growth is unevenly distributed and highest in the zone with probable maximum intensity VIII. In relation to the World population by earthquake intensity zones, the developing countries have the lowest share of its population among the zone with most destructive earthquakes.

Changes in the Household Structure during the Period 1961–2011 in Serbia: Example of Sokobanja Municipality

Serbia and the entire Southeastern Europe was affected by considerable demographic, political, and socioeconomic changes in the second half of the twentieth century. The changes in the population were shown as an insufficient birthrate as well as an intense emigration. Apart from these, certain drastic changes in the household structure occurred. This article examines the total changes in the household number on the territory of the Republic of Serbia, with the municipality of Sokobanja as a prominent example. Other aims of the research are the analysis of the household composition and economic characteristics of the households.

Population Aging in Serbia A Case Study of the Municipality of Bela Palanka

This article focuses on the problem of population aging in the municipality of Bela Palanka typical for the most prominent demographic problems in the territory of the Republic of Serbia and characteristically marked by an unfavorable age structure. The authors tried to determine both spatial and temporal dimensions of the population aging process of the aforementioned municipality.