• Energy Research

The aim of the present research is to assess the impact of factors such as welfare, infrastructure, security, and the environment on inbound tourism as well as to develop its forecast. Six proxy indicators of the above-mentioned factors were selected as variables, namely, welfare (real GDP per capita, life expectancy, consumer price index), infrastructure (passenger transportation volume), security (total recorded crimes), and the environment (CO2 emissions). We used a time series-univariate ARIMA model to forecast the inbound tourism in the Republic of Uzbekistan, and applied the ARDL model to assess the impact of lagged real GDP per capita on inbound tourism in both the short and long terms. The results of our research show that security and welfare significantly affect the inflow of foreign tourists in the country, along with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, the effects of which are expected to persist beyond 2026.

Low quality in a museum’s internal microclimate can induce both the deterioration of the exhibit collections, as well as affecting the health of visitors, employees and restorers. Starting from this premise, the present study aims to study the perception of visitors and employees of Darvas-La Roche Museum House (Romania) in relation to the air quality in the exhibition spaces. Their opinions were analyzed based on a questionnaire comprising 11 items aimed at understanding the influence of the indoor environment on the health of individuals, the degree of disturbance induced by the indoor air, if they experienced symptoms of illness after visiting the museum, etc. The obtained data were analyzed statistically in the SPSS 28 program, using tests such as coefficient, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and model summary, in order to obtain correlations between the sets of variables. The results obtained indicate that the majority of respondents perceived the indoor air quality as good, but there were also exceptions (approximately 20% of the respondents), which indicated different symptoms induced by the indoor air. Most of those (%) affected stated that they had pre-existing conditions, wear contact lenses or are smokers. In their case, the statistical-mathematical analyses indicated strong correlations between the ailments they suffer from and the appearance of certain discomforts (caused by too low or too high temperature, dust or dry air, etc.) and disease symptoms (nasal congestion, eye and skin irritations, coughs, migraines, frequent colds, etc.).

Cultural events are relevant attractions in contemporary cities that can be understood as celebrations, but also as agents of urban change. The primary objective of this study is to identify emerging themes in the area of cultural events, especially the Night of Museums, and to highlight the relationships among museums as places of learning and aesthetic satisfaction. To reach this goal, an exploratory and descriptive study was conducted. Multinomial logistic regression (MLR) and Regression Analysis were further performed. The results show that physical environment and situational interactions play a decisive role in contextual perception of the importance of events. Curiosity, gratuity, the need to learn and spending free time in the most pleasant way are just a few reasons that lead citizens to direct their attention in a special way. Additionally, this study not only limited to cultural tourism, but also contributes to literature in the area of economy, sustainability and environment. Moreover, our findings have implications for policy makers to identify practices and education that can improve the understanding of cultural and social value.

The quality of the indoor microclimate in museums is a problem of great interest to the contemporary society, given that it is in close connection with the health and comfort of visitors and employees, as well as with the integrity of the exhibits. Taking into account the fact that museums are places that have a special role in the community’s life and therefore attract a very large number of visitors of all ages, a very important issue is to determine the degree of safety that the indoor microclimate presents. Thus, the quality of the indoor microclimate was investigated inside an iconic museum in Romania, dating back to the 19th century, because pollutants from external or internal sources of the building, generated secondary, often anthropogenic, as a tendency to defend/adapt to climate change (CC), contribute to both local and regional pollution, but also lead to challenges in identifying links between air quality (AQ) and and climate change (CC). The methodology used was based on monitoring the main parameters of the microclimate (temperature, relative humidity and CO2) over a period of between October 2020 and March 2021, 21 weeks, as well as on determining the microbiological contamination of the air and some indoor exhibits located in three different areas of the museum. At the same time, the study aims to identify cheap, easy to implement and non-invasive solutions for removing fungi identified on exhibits for long-term preservation and reducing the risk of various pathologies in humans following prolonged exposure. The results obtained show that the indoor microclimate in the old heritage building favours the development of fungi, which have a high degree of contamination of the air (over 800 CFU/m3) and of the exhibits, representing a potential risk for the health of the visitors and museum workers. Thus, six species of yeast and five different fungi genera were identified in the air, while on the exhibits were individualised six fungi genera, a species of yeast and a bacterium. The most viable solution for cleaning materials, prolonging their lifespan and reducing the risk of disease in humans was represented by the use of essential oils (EO). Three essential oils (lavender, mint and lemon) were applied on an exhibit with five different microorganism genera, and it was observed that they have the ability to inhibit the spores from moulds and bacteria, being a very good alternative to the usual chemical treatments that are used in the cultural heritage field.

(1) Investigating, collecting data with specific character, as well as registering and investigating data concerning ornaments and colors, patterns as expressive possibilities of designs of Romanian folk textile are important activities to do. The first goal of the research undertaken was to collect, preserve, and protect knowledge about old patterns and weaving techniques in selected regions of Romania, and the second to use old patterns for the modern needs of folk handicraft weaving and the clothing industry. (2) In the undertaken research, material was obtained from antique textiles, clothes, and paintings on canvas, from selected objects in the Maramureș region and Bihor region. The selection was made by the ReliefF method. The specimens of specification throw weight by the geometry method was used to characterize the types of weaving techniques. Principal component analysis methods were used to reduce the amount of data of the vector of textural features. (3) The research on selected Romanian textiles allowed for the construction of a model of texture features that describes them. The results include the specimens’ measurements, analysis of fabric structures, yarn specification, and the reconstruction of the fabrics. Based on the obtained results, a simulation of fashion trends was performed. (4) The analysis of individual components increased the knowledge of weaving techniques in the studied regions and may be an inspiration for contemporary design in local and regional handicrafts as well as in the clothing industry.