Invitation Letter StES 2018
11th Scientific Conference
“Students Encountering Science”
Dear colleagues,
In November 2018 the University of Banja Luka will host the 11th multidisciplinary international scientific conference “Students Encountering Science – StES 2018”. The conference is an opportunity for students from around the world to present their scientific achievements and it will take place from 29 November to 1 December 2018 in Banja Luka.
It is our pleasure to invite you to participate, to think about a paper you could present and to immerse yourself in the world of science and research. You can apply if you are an undergraduate, master or doctoral student or a young researcher (under 30).
“Students Encountering Science” is the leading multidisciplinary students’ scientific conference organized by the Students’ Parliament of the University of Banja Luka. The aim of the conference is to present students’ scientific achievements and the possibility of their practical application, as well as to determine the course of further research. StES conference is an opportunity to improve students’ scientific research, promote the spirit of academic community, exchange opinions and make new friends.
This year, there are six scientific fields and three of them (natural, social sciences and humanities) have a topic.
Natural Sciences – Science in the Service of Mankind
Scientific achievements constantly change our lives and help us advance, so we must ask ourselves whether scientific discoveries benefit people and whether they are in the service of mankind. What is the right way of finding answers? How much time should we put in finding them? Is the time invested in research directly proportional to the quality of research? If you are interested in finding answers to these questions, join us at “Students Encountering Science 2018”. We are eager to see what young researchers and undergraduate, master and doctoral students think about these issues and how scientific research is developing in our region.
Social Sciences – European (dis)integration
Even though the “united Europe” project attempted to bring peace and unity to the old continent after years of balkanization and conflict, differences in cultures of the European nations at the beginning of the 21st century have led many to believe that this project is a failure. When it comes to the Balkans, the EU accession process is of special significance. On the one hand, Europe is viewed as a synonym of abundance, organization, high culture and enlightenment, but on the other, people from the Balkans wish to keep their way of life in that Europe. It is justified to claim that the process of joining the EU is integrative and disintegrative at the same time, considering the obvious differences between different regions of Europe, special geopolitical position of the Balkan countries and clearly visible identity differences.
With this in mind, there are many questions to be answered – Are the aforementioned differences enough for us to consider ourselves different from the rest of Europe, or we could overcome those differences? Are the Balkan countries willing to solve their internal problems or are they waiting for someone else to solve them? Are the EU accession criteria irrelevant, or they are not only an obligatory, but a crucial step in the Balkan countries’ development? Are the disintegrative processes more influential than the integrative ones, and what is the cause of that – the “wrong” historical moment or the fact that the seed of disintegration is planted deeply within the very idea of European integration?
All students interested in the topic are welcome to answer these questions from their professional point of view.
Humanities – Post-identity
Due to the intertwined local and global changes occurring, identity has become a complex category impossible to describe from only one point of view. In the bland of different group and individual characteristics, (self)definition has never been more challenging. Different influences we are exposed to have led to many diversified self-identifications which defy all types of identification we know. We labeled those different self-identifications “post-identity’. Post-identity refers to any situation where it is impossible to determine only one meaning of subjective identification or where subjective identification is no longer intentional. Both subjective and group identities are diluted and replaced with lifestyles; at the same time, strong patterns of former identities still exist, even though they are no longer the source of identification, but merely one form of it. This means that identity becomes an accessory we can choose to wear when we please, without any value in itself.
When analysed within the scope of humanities, the term “post-identity” can be used instead of all others regarding self-identification. We can use it to describe all changes of opinion in the last fifty years. One of the reasons why any movement trying to redefine the position of mankind or underprivileged social groups can be viewed through the lenses of (self)identification is the fact that redefinition of the existing identity is nothing but its definition through comparison with the spectrum of various other existing identities. Finally, post-identity is also (auto)chauvinism, an attempt to re-evaluate group identity we know.
Does the post-identity era denote gaining personal freedom that can help us build a new, so far unexplored field of human self, or does it mean the end of mankind as we know it?
Organizing Committee
Banja Luka, May 2018
OFFICIAL LANGUAGES
Serbian
Bosnian
Croatian
English
APPLICATION/PAPER SUBMISSION
Applying/Submitting papers via email:
Natural Sciences
Engineering and Technology
Medical Sciences
Biotechnical and Agricultural Sciences
Social Sciences
Humanities
Application should include:
- Title
- Full name of lead author and co-authors
- Students’ affiliation (faculty and university)
- Mentor’s full name and title
- Authors’ email address
- Field
- Abstract (up to 250 words)
- Keywords (3 – 6 words)
(All the above should also be submitted in English)
Papers will be revised and the selected ones will be published in the conference proceedings prior to the conference.
Important dates:
- Early application/paper submission due: 1 September 2018
- Application/paper submission due: 1 October 2018
- Acceptance notification: 31 October 2018
- Conference programme: 20 November 2018
Conference fees:
Local participants pay BAM 20 (EUR 10) in cash upon registration.
Foreign participants pay BAM 40 (EUR 20) in cash upon registration.
*For applications after 1 September 2018:
Local participants pay BAM 40 (EUR 20)
Foreign participants pay BAM 60 (EUR 30).
The best paper in each discipline will be awarded BAM 300.
Organizer: Students’ Parliament of the University of Banja Luka
Co-organizer: University of Banja Luka
Patron: Ministry of Science and Technology of the Republic of Srpska, Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Srpska
Time and Venue: 29 November – 1 December 2018, University of Banja Luka
Address: Bulevar vojvode Petra Bojovića 1A, 78 000 Banja Luka