Virtual reality is an emerging and versatile technology that is gaining increasing interest from the scientific community, particularly regarding user experience. A review of the literature highlights the need for updated analyses that comprehensively address current trends in this field. The objective of this study is to analyze the evolution of scientific publications related to virtual reality and user experience, identifying trends, the most influential authors, relevant journals, and international collaborations, to provide a comprehensive overview. A bibliometric analysis was conducted using the Web of Science Core Collection database, identifying a total of 1,848 relevant publications. Network analysis techniques and Bradford’s law were applied, allowing for the examination of the distribution and impact of publications, as well as collaboration between authors and institutions. The results show an exponential growth in scientific output, particularly since 2019. While the United States leads in the number of publications, most of the influential authors are from Europe, with notable scientific output in Spain and Portugal. Current research hotspots include virtual reality applications in education and healthcare (over 70% of the analyzed publications), which align with Sustainable Development Goals, particularly 3 and 4. Trends indicate a shift towards integrating virtual reality with artificial intelligence, adaptive systems, and multisensory interaction to enhance immersion and usability. Challenges include a lack of standardized methodologies to assess immersion, presence, and cognitive load, which limits comparisons across studies and hinders the development of best practices. Future research should focus on refining interaction paradigms, improving accessibility, and developing ethical frameworks that respect data privacy and protect the user from cybersickness and the psychological effects of prolonged virtual reality exposure.
Until the founding of the Republic of Latvia, women were practically excluded from law studies and work in the justice system. The territory of Latvia was part of the Russian Empire and thus subject to the 1864 judicial reform and its laws, which required a law degree and experience to be eligible for working in the justice system and prohibited women from these positions. Following the founding of the Republic of Latvia in 1918 and, more specifically, the establishment of the University of Latvia which had a stronger focus on gender equality in 1919, Latvian women finally had the opportunity to earn the necessary degrees and pursue careers in the judiciary. However, to gain the required experience and be admitted to practice in the court, Bar association, or notaria, women initially needed someone to employ them. In this regard, specific well-known men with liberal worldviews played a significant role.
Examples and threats of withdrawing from international treaties have occupied the agenda of public opinion more than ever in recent years. South Africa’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court, the USA’s withdrawal from the Iran Nuclear Agreement and withdrawal threat from the Paris Agreement, the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union, and Venezuela’s withdrawal from the American Convention on Human Rights are the first examples that come to mind. These unusual examples of treaty withdrawal involve states governed by authoritarian regimes, as well as treaties that concern individual civil rights and freedoms. Both cases have debated the appropriateness of withdrawal decisions and the compatibility of the methods used to make these decisions using values such as democracy and the protection of human rights. Türkiye’s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention by presidential decree and the claim that the country can withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights through the same method have caused legal debates and criticisms. Given the significance of the Istanbul Convention, particularly in terms of human rights law, and the international obligations arising from Türkiye’s membership in the Council of Europe, these issues also need to be evaluated from the perspective of international law. In light of Türkiye’s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention, this study aims to examine the issues of authority and procedure regarding withdrawal from international treaties from the perspective of international law. For this purpose, examining the executive-centered approach of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties would be appropriate first, followed by the new phenomenon based on the principles of separation of powers and democracy, which leads to questioning this approach at the international level, particularly in the context of human rights treaties.
The German occupiers abolished the Supreme Court in the General Government. In the Polish (non-German) judiciary sector, there was no court of the highest instance to ensure the unification of jurisprudence. The competence to ensure the uniformity of jurisprudence and resolve existing doubts and legal issues was transferred to the courts of appeal. The objective of the present article was to demonstrate the procedure and practice of issuing legal theses by the Court of Appeal in Kraków. The article also presents changes in the composition of the judges and the territorial jurisdiction of the Kraków Court of Appeal. Archival sources constitute the source basis of the work. We also resorted to the latest subject literature. The work is based mainly on the analysis of archival sources and legal acts, so the scientific methods typical of the history of law were applied.
*The present publication was elaborated as part of the research project entitled “Charakter prawny i rola tez prawnych uchwalanych przez polskie (nieniemieckie) sądy apelacyjne w Generalnym Gubernatorstwie w okresie II wojny światowej” financed by the National Science Center, Poland –under contract No. UMO-2017/27/N/HS5/00812.
У години у којој се навршава двадесет година од потписивања Дејтонског мировног споразума, јавни простор у Босни и Херцеговини (даље: БиХ) је испуњен бројним оцјенама о његовој досадашњој примјени. Питања као што су расподјела надлежности између БиХ и ентитета, реформа правосуђа, контроверзне одлуке Уставног суда БиХ, улога тзв. међународне заједнице у БиХ перманентно су актуелна. С тим у вези, могу се чути опречна мишљења о евен туалним промјенама Дејтонског устава, од којих је већина утемељена на интересним, политичким и идеолошким постулатима. Настала у оваквим околностима, књига проф. др Петра Кунића, редов ног професора Правног факултета Универзитета у Бањој Луци, под насловом „Промјене Устава Босне и Херцеговине – pro et contra“ издваја се по научном приступу анализи Дејтонског устава и могућностима његових промјена.
Law in general. Comparative and uniform law. Jurisprudence, Law of Europe
Liability claims against transnational corporations before the courts are one of the possible steps to take towards ensuring respect for human rights in their conduct of business in third States. As stated in Article 8 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in Article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, access to justice is a fundamental right. However, the human rights violations committed by corporations have an irretrievable connection with denial of justice. The existing order does not provide an adequate response, as ‘governability gaps’ and the scope of influence of companies escape the regulatory and coercive power of the State of origin. The host countries’ lack of capacity or will to ensure that companies operating in their territory respect human rights; the absence of effective judicial systems; and the legal obstacles created by complicated business structures all lead to the need for complementary, more regularised business behaviour at the operational level.
Published online: 30 September 2020
El artículo analiza la decisión del Tribuna Constitucional Federal alemán de enero de 2015, relacionado con dos recurso de amparo de dos maestras musulmanas que querían usar el velo durante el ejercicio de su trabajo en la escuela. El BVerfG anulará un inciso del art. 57.4 de la Ley de educación del Land de Renania del Norte-Westfalia, que prohibía a las profesoras el uso del velo, mientras que permitía el uso de símbolos religiosos cristianos y judíos, por considerarlo contrario al derecho constitucional de libertad religiosa (art. 4 de la LF), art. 3 LF, al derecho de igualdad de trato y no discriminación por religión y por raza (art. 3. LF), y contrario a la igualdad en el acceso al funcionariado (art. 33 LF). Esta decisión está teniendo una gran repercusión cara a la inclusión de los ciudadanas musulmanes con origen en la inmigración en la sociedad alemana. Reflejaremos las consecuencias legales y la aplicación inmediata de esta doctrina en tribunales inferiores. El estudio se centra en el empleo que el BVerfG realiza de las técnicas de la argumentación jurídica, la ponderación, el principio de proporcionalidad, y principio de concordancia práctica, para resolver los derechos fundamentales en conflicto. El BVerfG realiza una utilización innovadora en la ponderación de los DF, por un lado los derechos referentes a las maestras, como son la igualdad de trato y paridad de las religiones en un contexto social de un creciente pluralismo religioso, el principio de no discriminación por religión, la igualdad de acceso al funcionariado, la no discriminación de las mujeres. En el otro lado de la balanza, se situarán; el derecho de libertad religiosa de los alumnos y el derecho de educación de los padres, así como el mandato constitucional educativo de la escuela y el principio de la paz escolar. El BverfG apostará por un modelo constitucional de defensa de la neutralidad abierta del Estado hacia las religiones, reforzando el modelo vigente de separación con cooperación amistosa, pero insistiendo en la necesidad de una nueva apertura y flexibilización hacia la presencia de las religiones minoritarias, concediendo a éstas el mismo trato jurídico que a las religiones de mayor tradición histórica en el país (neutralidad abierta hacia todas las religiones, Toleranzslösung), a su vez con respeto a la historia y a la tradición alemana, y rechazando un modelo de neutralidad estricta o de distancia con las religiones, (strenge Neutralität Lösung o Distanz Neutralität), separándose de la sentencia del segundo senado del BVerfG, en el caso Ludin de 2003, que dejaba esta opción como posible. La nueva decisión del primer senado rechaza también un modelo de cooperación (neutralidad positiva), pero que privilegiara las confesio nes cristianas (protestantes y católicas) o la cultura dominante (Deutsche Leitkultur) lo que acabaría en un retorno a una cierta confesionalidad de Estado. El fallo concluye que una ley general prohibiendo el uso del velo a las profesoras en las escuelas públicas alemanas sería contrario a la LF y que sólo se podría prohibir en los casos concretos en que ello represente un peligro real en unas determinadas circunstancias y no por un peligro meramente abstracto, otorgando el amparo constitucional a las dos recurrentes.
Law of Europe, Law in general. Comparative and uniform law. Jurisprudence
Landscape fires and excessive use of fire in land use and land-use change have become one of the most important issues in Southeast Asia for about 25 years. The impacts of fires result not only in environmental destruction with adverse effects on health and security, the transport sector and the overall socio-economic conditions, but also affect the relations between neighbouring countries, as transboundary haze pollution pose negative impacts on the neighbor countries. Fire and smoke episodes occur every year but fluctuating. During the last three years burning activities have slowed down in Indonesia, while in the others parts of the region sometimes the situation is worsening. This is why it was proposed to create an institution that would take the lead in solving the problem at regional level. In 2017 the Regional Fire Management Resource Center - Southeast Asia (RFMRC-SEA) was established at the Faculty of Forestry, Bogor Agricultural University (Indonesia), with the assistance of the Global Fire Monitoring Center (GFMC) (Max Planck Institute for Chemistry and University of Freiburg). The aim of the Center, which is an independent academic entity, is to contribute to informed political decision making and the development of relevant policies for Indonesia and the neighboring countries of the Maritime Continent. The structure of a Regional Center of Competence for Fire Management is a measure of the decentralization of the work of the GFMC and is the fourth Regional Center in line (after the establishment of the first three Centers in Southeast Europe/Caucasus, Eastern Europe and Central Asia). Since 2017 many activities have been conducted by the Center, i.e., monitoring of wildfires and land-use fires in the region, monitoring particle emissions in critical situations, collecting and evaluating imagery of burned areas at different land use, sharing the information to the government agencies and others communities (CSO), conducting training for fire investigators using satellite and for law enforcement personnel, and communication with the directly and indirectly using social media
Through a multi-layered, overlapping collection of international and regional treaties, one solution for child statelessness is emerging: the obligation of the birth state to grant nationality to otherwise stateless children. The 1961 Statelessness Convention imposes this obligation partly, but has limited adherence. The International Covenent on Civil and Political Rights provides for a right to a nationality, but does not expressly identify which state is responsible. In addition, treaties in Europe and Africa only cover the right implicitly and partially, though treaties in the Americas cover the right expressly. The interpetation of these disparate treaty obligations is now coalescing into an coherent obligation. In combination with the obligation to take all decisions in a child’s best interests under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, we can now identify the birth state as the state responsible for ensuring that every child is born with a nationality.
Law of Europe, Law in general. Comparative and uniform law. Jurisprudence
The article presents the process of creation of new towns in the Duchy of Prussia (1525-1701), which later became Masuria. More specifically, the paper describes how a hamlet received a location privilege. The establishment of towns described here (Olecko, Gołdap, Węgorzewo, Giżycko, Pisz and Ełk) was initiated by Albert, the Duke of Prussia (1525-1568). He was motivated by the idea partially formulated in the location privilege: “For the general growth, elevation and betterment of our duchy”. The duke personally granted the location privilege only to Olecko, which was the sole town established on previously unsettled land. In the remaining cases, he only gave a verbal promise. This did not guarantee a rapid grant of the location privilege as the promise was fulfilled by the duke’s successors in the remaining cases. It happened first in case of Gołdap and Węgorzewo, just several years after the promise had been made. It took a little longer in case of Giżycko (after several decades), while Pisz and Ełk had to wait the longest (almost or more than 100 years). Each town had its own different origins. Gołdap was created quickly (1565-1570) on an area which used to be a duke’s grange. Węgorzewo, Giżycko, Pisz and Ełk waited for several hundred years for a legally binding location privilege. It is important to note that each of the aforementioned towns was established near a former castle of the Teutonic Order. Moreover, the hamlets which developed near the former castles had a different status but they all performed a market or craft function. With time, this function served as a basis for applying for the town privilege. The market function was originally carried out by the peasant hamlets in Węgrorzewo and Giżycko, even though the towns were created on the tenant farmer villages. Furthermore, the old peasant hamlets still functioned but as the contemporary out-of-town jurydykas (German Schloβfreiheit). Pisz was established on the basis of an old peasant hamlet and it never was a tenant farmer village. In case of Ełk it was the exact opposite, there never was a separate peasant hamlet. The tenant farmer village located there evolved into a town. Only two towns were founded due to the inhabitants’ initiative, namely Olecko and Gołdap. The remaining ones were established collectively by the whole community. Most frequently, it took place with the participation of the inhabitants of the former hamlets (Giżycko, Pisz, and Ełk). The former inhabitants did not participate in the process of town building only in the case of Węgorzewo and Gołdap. Generally speaking, each location privilege described here gave the towns the so-called town privilege (German Stadtrecht). It described in detail the area of land and the type of the town privilege which was granted (Culm law in each case). Moreover, it allowed the creation of town authorities (mayor, council and bench) and granted them the option to issue documents and statutes (German Willkür) as well as allowed them to possess a seal. Furthermore, it allowed the towns to organize markets and fairs on certain fixed dates as well as regulated the rights and obligations of the townsmen. Even though the location privilege formally meant the end of the town creation process as far the law was concerned, it did not mean that it was the end of its formation. Further steps had to be made to constitute the authorities and the bench, to write statutes (German Willkür), guild regulations, etc.
History (General) and history of Europe, History of Law
AbstractPost-communist Central and Eastern European ('CEE') legislators and judges have been resistant to equality and antidiscrimination law. This Article argues that these negative attitudes can be explained in part by the specific trajectory that EAL has taken in CEE during and after state socialism, which has differed from Western Europe. In the UK/EU, the formal guarantees of equal treatment and prohibitions of discrimination of the 1960s and 1970s were complemented by a more substantive understanding of equality in the 1990s and 2000s. This development was reversed in CEE—substantive equality, of a certain kind, preceded rather than followed formal equality and antidiscrimination guarantees.The State Socialist concern with equality was real, and yet the project was incomplete in several significant ways. It saw only socio-economic, but not socio-cultural inequalities (relating to dignity, identity or diversity). It was transformative with regards to class, but not other discrimination grounds, especially not gender. While equality was a constitutionally enshrined principle, there was an absence of any corresponding enforceable antidiscrimination right. Finally, the emphasis on the “natural” differences between the sexes meant that sex/gender discrimination was not recognized as conflicting with women's constitutional equality guarantees.
Kontrasygnata aktów głowy państwa stanowi ważną instytucję ustrojową. Jej wprowadzenie ma istotny wpływ na pozycję tak monarchy, jak i obieralnego prezydenta. Jednocześnie jest to pojęcie, co do którego w piśmiennictwie – także współczesnym – występuje szereg nieporo-
zumień. Zbyt często kontrasygnacie przypisuje się inny sens i rolę niż te, które ma w istocie. Dlatego warto sięgnąć do przeszłości, by przypomnieć genezę i kształtowanie się zasady współpodpisu oraz przyjrzeć się jej postrzeganiu w dawnej literaturze przedmiotu. W przypadku monarchii wymóg kontrasygna- ty jest tak ściśle powiązany z zasadą nieodpowiedzialności głowy państwa, że obie te reguły ustrojowe zdecydowaliśmy się przedstawić łącznie, tym bardziej, że zazwyczaj tak opisywano je w niżej przywoływanej literaturze przedmiotu.
History (General) and history of Europe, History of Law