Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai
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THE SECOND AXELROD TOURNAMENT: A MONTE CARLO EXPLORATION OF UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THE NUMBER OF ROUNDS IN ITERATED PRISONER’S DILEMMA
Get PDFStrategic decision-making in multi-agent interactions inside the Iterated Prisoner\u27s Dilemma (IPD) is investigated in this work using Monte Carlo simulations. Building on Axelrod\u27s work, we present a second-generation tournament with stochastic components, including unpredictable game lengths, to evaluate strategy adaptability and resilience. We analyze how uncertainty influences strategic performance by using a comparison between instances with fixed and uncertain times. We identify, using a descriptive approach, methods demonstrating important behavioral differences between deterministic and uncertain settings. The results provide understanding of adaptive learning, response dynamics, and strategic flexibility, so helping to build strong collaborative strategies for artificial intelligence and decision-making systems. Our results highlight the limitations of exclusively deterministic methods and suggest the necessity for adaptive approaches to improve long-term cooperative success.
JEL Classification: C70; C73; C7
WEALTH EFFECTS IN THE CEE EMERGING ECONOMIES: A LONG-RUN PANEL APPROACH
Get PDFThis paper explores the relationship between actual individual consumption, housing wealth, and stock wealth in a panel of emerging European Union economies. Using the pooled mean group estimator (PMG) and a crisis dummy variable, the analysis captures the effects of the 2008–2010 financial crisis. Results indicate that both housing and stock wealth positively influence consumption, with housing wealth having a slightly stronger impact. Consumption is also sensitive to long-term changes in the income from wages and salaries. Particularly during the crisis, when real estate market downturns significantly affected households in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), the effect of changes in asset prices raised in magnitude. The findings offer important policy implications for managing asset price effects on household consumption, particularly in emerging markets.
JEL classification: D12, E21, E5
GOLD-DECORATED TITANIA NANOTUBES WITH GRAPHENE FOR VISIBLE LIGHT-MEDIATED AMOXICILLIN PHOTODEGRADATION
Get PDFThe degradation of amoxicillin was accomplished using TiO2 nanotubes photocatalysts decorated with Au nanoparticles and containing reduced graphene or nitrogen-doped graphene under visible light exposure. The structural and morphological characterization confirmed the presence of gold nanoparticles and graphene, and the optical properties showed light absorption into visible region. The best results in the degradation of amoxicillin (up to 60%) were reached in the presence of the photocatalyst with nitrogen-doped graphene. A basics kinetic study showed a physical adsorption of the amoxicillin on the catalyst surface, and that the photodegradation step followed the pseudo-first kinetic model with the apparent kinetic constant of 0.0039 min-1
Ethical Dimensions of AI Within Cyber-Integrated Ecosystems
Get PDFThe innovative aspirations and territorial expansion ambitions of Homo technologicus have transformed it into a powerful entity capable of altering anthropic spaces and the surrounding environment in unprecedented ways. The consequences of advanced technologies and AI development can be vast, with asymmetric impacts and profound implications. Therefore, it is essential to examine potential concerns, vulnerabilities, threats, and promising advantages with transparency following the ethical values guiding the scientific community. In light of the rapid proliferation of new technologies, this article aims to examine the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in waste management, focusing on its potential to enhance sustainable living and support biodiversity. To mitigate associated risks, the article proposes a holistic framework emphasizing relational ethics, ensuring transparency, accountability, and genuine ethical commitments in AI deployment. Additionally, the concept of humanwashing, where AI-enabled machines are anthropomorphized to foster acceptance and trust, raises concerns about misleading perceptions regarding AI capabilities. To effectively navigate these ethical challenges, the article advocates for a multidisciplinary approach involving researchers, policymakers, industry leaders, and civil society. Emphasizing relational ethics requires a shift from a traditional ethical framework to one that recognizes all actors\u27 interconnectedness and cumulative impact. Ultimately, the article underscores the necessity of a rigorous ethical framework for integrating AI into waste management. This framework ensures that artificial intelligence technologies contribute positively to sustainable living, preserve biodiversity, and encourage a balanced interplay between people and technological advancements.
 
Sobornost’: Dream or Reality?
No full textThis essay explores the concept of sobornost’ as a cornerstone of Orthodox ecclesiology, tracing its origins, theological implications, and philosophical underpinnings. Coined in the context of 19th-century Slavophile thought, sobornost’—often translated as “catholicity”—balances unity and freedom, offering a mystical vision of the Church as the Body of Christ. The paper examines the term’s adoption into Western theology, its early articulations by thinkers like Khomiakov, and its prominence in ecumenical dialogue, particularly through the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergius. However, the ideal of sobornost’, emphasizing love and mutual prayer, is juxtaposed against the modern struggles of the Orthodox Church, highlighting tensions between spiritual ideals and political realities. The discussion concludes by questioning the contemporary relevance of sobornost’ amid ecclesiastical and geopolitical challenges.
Article history: Received 10.11.2024; Revised 01.11.2024; Accepted 11.11.2024.
Available online: 11.01.2025; Available print: 30.01.2025
Intelligentsia congolaise, refondation de l’etat et developpement local en territoire de Fizi, Sud-Kivu, R. D. Congo
Get PDFCongolese Intelligentsia, Rebuilding the State and Local Development in Fizi Territory, South-Kivu, R. D. Congo. Several authors have demonstrated, through theoretical and empirical studies, that democratic institutions play a very important role in the economic growth process. By clearly defining the mechanisms for accession to power and alternation of power, democratic regimes inhibit political destabilization. Most of the population of Fizi Territory, in the province of South Kivu, lives from agriculture, fishing, livestock breeding, small-scale trade and artisanal mining. Following the cyclical instability observed since the independence of Congo-Zaïre in 1960, the Territory of Fizi has remained a red zone. The Force Bendera dam, Lake Tanganyika and the RN5, the main sources of local development, have never been exploited. Until 2008, the political intelligentsia navigated blindly without any local development planning tools. The long-awaited basic elections never took place. Sovereignty at grassroots level was violated and is now in the hands of the protectors of the land. As a result, the rebuilding of the now non-existent state is a real and pressing priority. Identity-based violence must be banished by all means
Révision du code minier et fiscalité miniere en République démocratique du Congo. Répenser la conciliation des intérêts de l’état et ceux des investisseurs du secteur minier
No full textRevision of the Mining Code and Mining Taxation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Rethinking the Reconciliation of the Interests of the State and Those of Investors in the Mining Sector. The new Mining Code of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) introduced modified fiscal and customs regimes, impacting both the state and extractive companies. For the state, these regimes led to an increase in public revenues, contributing to the financing of essential services such as health, education, and infrastructure. For extractive companies, the new regimes resulted in higher fiscal burdens, with high tax rates and a multiplicity of taxes and royalties. This increased pressure on operating costs, making Congolese mining companies more competitive while discouraging foreign investments and leading to a decline in mining production. To reconcile the fiscal interests of the state with those of mining operators, it is recommended to strengthen the legislative and regulatory framework of the Congolese mining fiscal regime, promote dispute resolution methods such as arbitration or mediation, and consider renegotiating fiscal contracts
Exploring the Relationship between Body Image and Self-Confidence Dimensions among females Sport Students
Get PDFThis study explored the relationship between body image and dimensions of self-confidence among female sports students at University of Setif 2. Using a descriptive correlational approach, this study utilized a sample of 88 female students specializing in Physical Education and sports sciences. Data were collected using a body image scale and a self-confidence dimensions scale. Statistical analysis was conducted using the SPSS V 26 software. The results revealed strong and statistically significant positive correlations between body image and linguistic fluency, independence, and physiological and psychological dimensions. These findings underscore the importance of positive body image in enhancing various aspects of self-confidence among female sports students. Based on these results, it is recommended that universities implement programs to promote positive body image and self-confidence among sports students, incorporate media literacy education to counter negative influences, and provide targeted support for students struggling with body image issues.
Article history: Received 2025 April 09; Revised 2025 May 29; Accepted 2025 June 03; Available online 2025 July 30; Available print 2025 August 3
Physical Education and Sport in Romania: Between Ideal, Reality, and Prospects for Reform
Get PDFPhysical Education and Sport (PES) represent a foundational pillar in contemporary educational architecture, supporting the holistic development of individuals. This study provides an integrative analysis of the educational ideal in this field, the systemic realities in Romania, and potential directions for reform, benchmarked against European best practices. Through a comparative approach, it highlights the convergences and divergences between Romania and other countries in Central, Southeastern, and Baltic Europe, offering a reflective framework for developing a sustainable, inclusive, and student-centered physical education.
REZUMAT. Educația fizică și sportul în România: între ideal, realitate și perspective de reformă. Educația fizică și sportul (EFS) constituie un pilon fundamental în arhitectura educațională contemporană, susținând dezvoltarea integrală a individului. Studiul de față oferă o analiză integrativă a idealului educațional în domeniu, a realităților sistemice din România și a direcțiilor posibile de reformă, raportate la bune practici europene. Printr-o abordare comparativă, sunt evidențiate convergențele și diferențele dintre România și alte state din Europa Centrală, de Sud-Est și din regiunea baltică, oferindu-se un cadru de reflecție asupra dezvoltării unei educații fizice sustenabile, incluzive și centrate pe elev.
Cuvinte-cheie: educație fizică, reformă curriculară, comparație internațională, politici educaționale, sănătate publică.
Article history: Received 2025 May 26; Revised 2025 July 03; Accepted 2025 July 05; Available online 2025 July 30; Available print 2025 August 3
Marius Turda, În căutarea românului perfect: specific național, degenerare rasială și selecție socială în România modernă [In search of the perfect Romanian: national specifics, racial degeneration and social selection in modern Romania], Iași, Polirom, 2024, 307 p.
Get PDFProfessor Marius Turda’s work is a new and intriguing history of how the national character was defined after the formation of the modern Romanian state, with the upper limit of investigation set at the year 1950. Shaping national identity gradually became more problematic, as the process of finding a proper specificity gradually turned into one of distinguishing oneself from the Other; it became easier to say what a Romanian was not, rather than what a Romanian truly was. Turda analyses this process of identity distinction from two perspectives: on the one hand, antisemitism and racism, involving the exclusion (physically and spiritually) of Jews, Roma, and other ethnic minorities from the “body of the nation;” on the other hand, through eugenics and the identification of dysgenic elements and factors contributing to both individual and national degeneration. The peasant served as the leitmotif of all literary, philosophical, and cultural works concerning Romanian identity, so it also became central to scientific attempts to define the nation. Ultimately, culture and science gave rise to a form of scientism that sought to discover—and even improve—the Romanian. Doctors viewed things beyond the romanticized vision of rural life; the peasant needed to be civilized, and this process is described as “a true experiment of civilization, culture, and social selection, without which the Romanian state could not be conceived as national” (13). Beyond the individual peasant, rural families were seen as the wellspring of physical and moral national regeneration. Plans were drawn up to protect the nation’s biological capital, involving direct state intervention in the private sphere, a phenomenon known as biopolitics