On the one hand, shale gas extraction has been portrayed as the future of Poland's energy sector, and on the other, as an undertaking potentially harmful to the natural environment that might spark public protests. Why are opinions on this issue so widely disparate?

There are approximately 15 million users of system heat in Poland, but unfortunately nearly 70% of the fuel used in heat production is fossil fuel. Therefore, the CO2 emission reduction in the heat production industry is becoming one of the key challenges. City Heat Distribution Enterprise Ltd. in Nowy Sącz (Miejskie Przedsiębiorstwo Energetyki Cieplnej sp. z o.o.) has been conducting a self-financed research and development project entitled The use of algae as carbon dioxide absorbers at MPEC Nowy Sącz. The project deals with postcombustion CO2 capture using Chlorella vulgaris algae. As a result of tests conducted in a 1000 l hermetic container under optimal temperature and light conditions, the recovery of biomass can be performed in weekly cycles, yielding approximately 25 kilograms of biomass per year. Assuming that half of the dry mass of the algae is carbon, it can be said that 240 grams of carbon is bound in one cycle, which, converted to CO2, gives 880 grams of this gas. Our results showed that around 45.8 kilograms of CO2 per year was absorbed. Additionally, it is possible to use waste materials and by-products of technological processes as a nutrient medium for algae

The article is an introduction to the monographic content of a volume containing articles dedicated to contemporary models of building residential districts in Europe, where the issue of an attractive, beautiful architectural form must integrate the dimension of energy efficiency. Individualism must be subject to flexible regulations so that the current understanding of the concept of spatial order brings with it commonly desirable qualities as an effective strategy against the processes of the city›s sprawl. Attached is the output of the HOPU-S URBACT II project (2007-2013), which became an inspiration for the topic.

This article addresses the issue of the interpretation of proper names in poetry. The state of research on the functions of proper names in literature is well described, but it is possible to note the lack of a fixed interpretation strategy in poetry which means that, despite little interest in poetry, its researchers often try to propose their own methods of analysis. The authors of the article, who tackle onyms in the poetry of Bruno Jasieński, present their own methodological approach to the matter, based on B. Waldenfels’ concept of the “phenomenology of the alien”.

The category of expectation constitutes an important element of reflection in many scientific disciplines focusing on man. it is treated in both the categories of expectations inscribed in large social projects (e.g. of utopian nature) and individual expectations which build human daily routine. The article is divided into two parts. in the first, the issues of interpersonal expectations, analysed in the perspective of social psychology and sociology, will be undertaken. what will be explored here are the problems of defining the notion of expectation and the problems of expectations at school, which will be exemplified by the pygmalion effect. The first part is completed with some considerations on the meaning of expectation in sociology, the role of expectations in interaction, and the relations between expecting and social order.

In the second part, the author focuses on the issues of expectations inscribed in utopian projects (“great expectations”). pedagogical utopias and relations between utopias and popularization of normative (formal) or informal pedagogies are subjected to analysis. The author makes here some references to the concept of post-materialistic society, attempting to elicit relations between this type of society and popularization of nonformal pedagogies.

An analysis of the power system functioning and the behaviors of the energy market participants allows the trends taking place within years to be identified, including these associated with the evolution of the electric energy and power demand profiles. The problems of balancing the peak power demand are of both a short and long term nature, which implies the need for changes in the electricity generation sector. Apart from the existing “silo-type” generation units, the construction of distributed energy sources implemented in the civic formula in the framework of self-sufficient energy communes and energy clusters is becoming increasingly important. Support for these programs is realized both at the legislative level, as well as within dedicated competitions and ministerial activities. The financial support carried out by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management and the Regional Operational Programs is also noticeable. One of the activities aimed at spreading the idea of clustering was the competition for certified energy clusters, conducted by the Ministry of Energy. The goal of the contest was the promotion and development of the distributed energy sector, which could be used for the improvement of energy security in the local manner and constitute a basis for the knowledge necessary in planning and developing the state’s energy policy. The paper presents a synthetic analysis of the results of the competition for a certified energy cluster from the perspective of planning and operational needs related to the functioning of the power system. Further, the information about the investment plans of new generation capacities, including their breakdown with respect to type, achievable power and costs has been provided. Also, the balancing of the demand for electric energy by own generation within the energy clusters has been characterized for three time perspectives

The paper presents the results of the energy analysis of the conversion of solar radiation energy into electrical energy in Polish weather conditions. The effect of sunlight and working temperature on the photovoltaic module on its power curve P = f(U) is shown. STC and NOCT conditions are described for which the manufacturers specify the parameters of the photovoltaic modules. The manufacturers of photovoltaic panels should give the PPV = f(E) characteristic for the different values of the operating temperature of the modules. An analysis of the economic efficiency of a photovoltaic power plant investment of 1 MWp taking the current legal regulations for the three variants into account was presented. Variant I – the investor benefits from the support of public aid of operational only, Variant II – the investor benefits from the support of public aid for investment in the amount of PLN 1 million, Variant III – the investor benefits from the support of public aid for investment in the amount of PLN 2 million. For all variants, indicators for assessing the economic effectiveness of the investment and the value of the auction price from the maximum price to the price at which the project loses its profitability are determined.

In the text, a polemic is undertaken against the model of the child expected in Polish institutions of early childhood education, and which appropriates the rationalities producing social practices. The source of this model is in the logic of standardization whose cognitive and effects on identity are criticized by the author. Identifying the sources of validation of the practices normalizing some children and stigmatizing others, who do not meet the requirements of the cognitively rigid and morally trivialized standards, the text points to developmental psychology as a discipline which potentially triggers this form of oppression. In conclusion, the author describes briefly a number of examples of educational solutions in which an attempt has been made to move beyond the discourse of standardized quality in child education.

The advent of language implementation tools such as PyPy and Truffle/Graal have reinvigorated and broadened interest in topics related to automatic compiler generation and optimization. Given this broader interest, we revisit the Futamura Projections using a novel diagram scheme. Through these diagrams we emphasize the recurring patterns in the Futamura Projections while addressing their complexity and abstract nature. We anticipate that this approach will improve the accessibility of the Futamura Projections and help foster analysis of those new tools through the lens of partial evaluation.

The article outlines how to use the convergence of collections to determine the position of a mobile device based on the WiFi radio signal strength with the use of fuzzy sets. The main aim is the development of the method for indoor position determination based on existing WiFi network infrastructure indoors. The approach is based on the WiFi radio infrastructure existing inside the buildings and requires operating mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets. An SQL database engine is also necessary as a widespread data interface. The SQL approach is not limited to the determination of the position but also to the creation of maps in which the system dening the position of the mobile device will operate. In addition, implementation issues are presented along with the distribution of the burden of performing calculations and the benets of such an approach for determining the location. The authors describe how to decompose the task of determining the position in a client-server architecture.

At the early stage of information system analysis and design one of the challenge is to estimate total work effort needed, when only small number of analysis artifacts is available. As a solution we propose new method called SAMEE – Simple Adaptive Method for Effort Estimation. It is based on the idea of polynomial regression and uses selected UML artifacts like use cases, actors, domain classes and references between them. In this paper we describe implementation of this method in Enterprise Architect CASE tool and show simple example how to use it in real information system analysis.

The global financial and European debt crises exposed the need for a new approach to fiscal modeling to support decision making analytically. With this purpose, in the following paper we present a macro-fiscal model. By capturing macro-fiscal interlinkages, especially those between fiscal variables and exchange rates, the model enables to analyze various fiscal scenarios with the focus of its impact on debt sustainability and real sector, as well as to conduct forecasting exercises, for small open economies with potentially large share of foreign currency denominated debt in the overall public debt. Finally, the model is applied to Georgian economy to interpret its’ historical data, provide an optimal policy path for future and analyze debt sustainability under several stress scenarios.

Fly-ash is a form of production waste produced as a result of the burning of coal for energy production. Millions of tonnes of this waste are produced worldwide every year; hence it is extremely important to dispose of it in a useful way, including through treating the initial raw material to obtain a material of higher quality. The aim of the present work is to determine the suitability of processed fly-ash from lignite for reinforcing (stabilizing) soils used in the building of road foundations and embankments. The results provide a method of recycling this waste while at the same time obtaining new materials and technologies for use in road building. This is an important issue both environmentally and in terms of the positive effect that processed fly-ash can have on the stability of road structures.

This article presents the results of experiments carried out using fly-ash produced from lignite at the P¹tnów Power Plant. This ash was first modified (activated) using a Wapeco magnetic activator, and then used to produce hydraulic binders (with the addition of cement) and soil-binder mixtures. These mixtures were made using natural soils from seven different deposits in the Lubuskie region (western Poland). They were stabilized using two hydraulic binders (strength ratings 3 MPa and 9 MPa) added in different amounts (6% and 8% relative to the mass of the soil). During the experiment, a determination was made of the increase in the strength of the analysed samples (after 14, 28, and 42 days) and the increase in the bearing ratio (immediately after consolidation and after 7 days).

Interpretation of the results of the experiment made it possible to assess the dynamics of the increase in compression strength and load-bearing capacity of various soils stabilized with hydraulic binders produced from lignite ash, and to indicate possibilities for the use of these materials.

The analysis showed that it is possible to use these binders for the stabilisation of soils, enabling soils formerly considered to have weak load-bearing capacity (clayey sand; clayey, sandy gravel; clays) to be classified as fully usable in road construction.

Applying new technologies basing on coal utilization demands precise identification of coal-bed composition. It is suggested, that such possibility is enabled by coal-bed logging with use of - adjusted to this aim - microlithotype analysis. Modification of this research method relies on ten-fold augmentation of 20 point grid size dimensions - up to 500 x 500 [...]. Maceral associations - as identified duringmicroscope observations - are placed in computer database according to their localization in logging. This allows for later graphic interpretation - microlithotype profile drawing. 13 associations has been educed in description, in majority being consistent with commonly used microlithotypes. However, a few changes has been introduced: in description of vitrite, telovitrite, macroscopically recognized in logging as vitrine layers, has been distinguished, as well as detro-gelo-vitrite, macroscopically recognized in logging as durain, while within bimaceralic microlithotypes there has been distinguished: vitrinertite (W), vitrinertite (I), clarite (W), clarite (I), durite (L), durite (I), all on the basis of dominant ingredient named in parenthesis. Accepted research methodology enables precise characteristics of petrographic variation within coal-bed logging. This allows especially to describe variation within dull coal (durain). Basing on research results, it is suggested that the biggest share in seam composition belongs to duroclarite - 23.8%, then vitrite - 18.7% and clarodurite - 17.6%, lower share of few percent belongs to: vitrinertite (I), vitrinertite (W), inertite, clarite (W), vitrinertoliptite, durite (I), durite (L), while both liptite and clarite (L) are less than one percent . Sequence of following microlithotypes also illustrate facies variation, what allows interpretation of environments of peat deposition in paleo-peat bog 116/2. Dominating percentage in log belongs to Forest Moor facies - 33.5%, while the lowest is Forest Terrestial Moor - 12.5%.

Assuming correlation only within the results of measurement repetitions for each quantity observed in a network, equivalence has been proved for two forms of parametric adjustment model, which differ in the approach to measurement repetitions and are called the one-stage and the two-stage model respectively. As a complement to the known criterion of imperceptibility of disturbances in observations, the criterion of imperceptibility of correlation between the components of the observation vector has been formulated, which applies to each of the modules of the two-stage model. Assuming the structure of the observation error, being slightly developed as compared to the standard structure, the cases of meeting of each of the above criteria in those modules have been presented. Then, the relationship which combines measures of internal reliability for both the adjustment models under question has been given.

Covid-19 pandemic is severely impacting worldwide. A line of research warned that facial occlusion may impair facial emotion recognition, whilst prior research highlighted the role of Trait Emotional Intelligence in the recognition of non-verbal social stimuli. The sample consisted of 102 emerging adults, aged 18-24 (M = 20.76; SD = 2.10; 84% females, 16% males) and were asked to recognize four different emotions (happiness, fear, anger, and sadness) in fully visible faces and in faces wearing a mask and to complete a questionnaire assessing Trait Emotional Intelligence. Results highlighted that individuals displayed lower accuracy in detecting happiness and fear in covered faces, while also being more inaccurate in reporting correct answers. The results show that subjects provide more correct answers when the photos show people without a mask than when they are wearing it. In addition, participants give more wrong answers when there are subjects wearing masks in the photos than when they are not wearing it. In addition, participants provide more correct answers regarding happiness and sadness when in the photos the subjects are not wearing the mask, compared to when they are wearing it. Implications are discussed.

Slope deformations, i.e., all types of landslides of rock masses (flow, creep, fall down, etc.), caused by gravitational forces, are the most widespread implementation of geological hazards and a negative geomorphological phenomenon that threatens the security of the population, destroy all utility values of the affected regions, negatively affects the environment, and cause considerable economic damage. Nowadays, the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) provide accurate data for precise observations around the world due to the growing number of satellites from multiple operators, as well as more powerful and advanced technologies and the implementation of mathematical and physical models more accurately describing systematic errors that degrade GNSS observations such as ionospheric, tropospheric, and relativistic effects or multipath. The correct combination of measurement methods provides even more precise, i.e., better measurement results or estimates of unknown parameters. The combination of measurement procedures and their significant evaluations represent the essential attribute of deformation monitoring of landslides concerning the protection of the environment and the population’s safety in the interest areas for the sustainable development of human society. This article presents the establishment and use of a local geodetic network in particular local space for various needs. Depending upon the specific conditions, it is possible to use GNSS technology to obtain accurate observations and achieve the results applicable to the deformation survey for subsequent processing of the adjustment procedure.

This introductory paper sets the scene for the special issue. It describes the rationale for the collection – which has to do with the multiple geopolitical, economic and health-related events of the past 30 years – and summarises some of the overarching changes in East–West migration dynamics within and beyond Europe over this period. However, this introductory article and the nine papers that follow also challenge and nuance the predominant East–West framing of recent intra-European migration. They identify numerous other trends: return migration and immigration into CEE countries, intra-CEE migrations and a range of issues relating to the impacts of migration on children and youth.

This article focuses on the interrelationship between homeland and diaspora at times of crisis. It adopts a comparative lens to look into diasporic (dis)engagement with the homeland, specifically analysing the cases of Greece and Ukraine. The main research issues are how crises affect the engagement between homeland and diaspora – taking Greece and Ukraine as case studies – and which the defining contextual factors are that transform the diaspora engagement. The article unpacks the homeland–diaspora nexus concerning two states with different socio-political backgrounds, both going through severe political and economic crises. In so doing, the article gives prominence to the differentiation between the en-gagement of the two different diasporas with their home countries at times of crisis. Evidence suggests substantial engagement in the Ukrainian case while, in the Greek case, a more mixed attitude – leaning towards disengagement – is apparent.