SAS
HRS4R
From 10 to 15 September 2026, the Director of the Institute of Measurement Science of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (IMS SAS), Assoc. Prof. Viktor Witkovský, paid a working visit to the University of Montenegro in Podgorica. The visit took place within the framework of the bilateral project SK-MNE-25-0025 “Characteristic Function-Based Goodness-of-Fit Test for Fuzzy Data with Application to Climate Analysis.” The project combines the expertise of IMS SAS in characteristic functions, statistical methods and measurement science with the expertise of the University of Montenegro in mathematical statistics and fuzzy data analysis.
A major part of the working programme consisted of discussions and joint scientific work with the project team from the partner institution, the Faculty of Science and Mathematics, University of Montenegro, led by Assoc. Prof. Božidar Popović. The working meetings focused primarily on the development of the theory of characteristic functions for fuzzy random variables and on the preparation of a new joint paper with the working title “Characteristic Families for Fuzzy Random Variables: Convolution, Weak Convergence, and Endpoint-Process Representations.” This research directly follows the main scientific objectives of the project, which include the development of theoretical and empirical characteristic functions for fuzzy data and the subsequent use of these tools in constructing statistical methods for fuzzy and interval-valued data.
The collaboration between the research teams has already resulted in two joint scientific papers in 2026. The first, “A goodness-of-fit test for multivariate logistic distributions”, by Božidar V. Popović, Andjela Mijanović and Viktor Witkovský, was published in the journal Statistics and uses characteristic functions to construct a new goodness-of-fit test for the multivariate logistic distribution. The second paper, “A robust goodness-of-fit test based on the empirical characteristic process of the median”, was published in Statistical Papers, Vol. 67, Article 94. Both publications are registered as outputs of the SK-MNE-25-0025 project.
An important part of the visit was also devoted to discussions on the further development of institutional cooperation. The partners discussed the renewal and extension of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Institute of Measurement Science, Slovak Academy of Sciences, and the Faculty of Science and Mathematics, University of Montenegro. The existing Memorandum provided a framework for joint research, scientific projects, joint publications and the development of software tools; its originally specified term was until 31 December 2025.
On 14 September 2026, a meeting between Assoc. Prof. Viktor Witkovský and Prof. Sanja Peković, Vice-Rector for Internationalisation of the University of Montenegro, also took place at the Rectorate of the University of Montenegro. The discussion focused on possibilities for extending the existing cooperation beyond individual research teams and on creating conditions for closer institutional cooperation between the University of Montenegro and the Slovak Academy of Sciences. Prof. Peković serves as Vice-Rector for Internationalisation and as a Full Professor at the University of Montenegro.
The working visit therefore contributed not only to addressing specific scientific tasks of the bilateral project, but also to strengthening the long-term cooperation between the research institutions in Bratislava and Podgorica and to creating new opportunities for joint projects and scientific activities.
This research was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation of Montenegro; the Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic; and the Slovak Research and Development Agency under the bilateral project SK-MNE-25-0025, implemented within the Agreement between the Governments of the Slovak Republic and Montenegro on Scientific and Technical Cooperation.
Meeting at the Rectorate of the University of Montenegro in Podgorica, 14 September 2026. From left: Assoc. Prof. Božidar Popović, Prof. Sanja Peković, Vice-Rector for Internationalisation of the University of Montenegro, and Assoc. Prof. Viktor Witkovský, Director of the Institute of Measurement Science, Slovak Academy of Sciences.