Development of Organic Farming in Poland After 2013 in Terms of Common Agricultural Policy

Organic farming in the European Union is still a small percentage, but there is a noticeable upward trend, albeit mainly in the countries of the old EU (EU-15). At the same time, according to Eurostat data and taking into account the average for the European Union, organic farms are larger than conventional farms, as well as the average age of organic farmers is lower. As a result, organic farming (biological, organic) as a system of permanent self-sustaining and economically sustainable safe management of plant and animal production should be an important alternative to conventional agriculture. In addition, efforts to develop organic farming create the capacity to deal with environmental, animal welfare and rural development, while producing high quality food. The aim of the paper is to provide opportunities for development of organic farming in Poland in the light of EU regulations for the years 2014–2020

КОНСОЛІДАЦІЯ БЮДЖЕТІВ В КРАЇНАХ БАЛТІЇ

The strong growth performance of Baltic states, in the period 2000-07, was accompanied by rapid changes across the economy. Between 2004 and 2007 the Baltic statesstood among the EU countries for their high growth rate. The global financial crisis hit the Baltic statesmuch harder than other countries in the EU. In order to improve public finance sector were necessary radical consolidation. The aim of the article is to show the impact of the consolidation processes to improve the financial performance of the public finance sector.Высокие показатели роста стран Балтии, в период 2000-07, сопровождались быстрыми изменениями всей экономики. В период с 2004 по 2007 год страны Балтии были среди стран ЕС по высокому уровню роста. Глобальный финансовый кризис ударил по Прибалтике гораздо сложнее, чем в других странах ЕС. Для того, чтобы улучшить сектор государственных финансов необходима консолидация бюджетов.Цель статьи показать влияние процессов консолидации, которые улучшают финансовые показатели сектора государственных финансов.Високі показники зростання країн Балтії, в період 2000-07, супроводжувалися швидкими змінами всієї економіки. У період з 2004 по 2007 рік країни Балтії були серед країн ЄС за високим рівнем зростання. Глобальна фінансова криза вдарила по Прибалтиці набагато складніше, ніж в інших країнах ЄС. Для того, щоб поліпшити сектор державних фінансів необхідна консолідація бюджетів.Мета статті показати вплив процесів консолідації, які покращують фінансові показники сектора державних фінансів

Troublesome Tinnitus in Children: Epidemiology, Audiological Profile, and Preliminary Results of Treatment

Introduction. Although tinnitus often has a significant impact on individual's life, there are still few reports relating to tinnitus in children. In our tinnitus clinic, children with distressing tinnitus constitute about 0,5% of all our patients. Objectives. The aim of this study was to analyse children with troublesome tinnitus as regards epidemiology, audiological profile, and preliminary effects of the therapy. Methods. A retrospective study was carried out involving the cases of 143 children consulted in our Tinnitus Clinic in 2009. The selected group with troublesome tinnitus was evaluated and classified for proper category of Tinnitus Retraining Therapy (TRT). Results. The study showed that 41.3% of the children suffered from bothersome tinnitus. In this group 44.1% of the patients demonstrated normal hearing. The success of the therapy after 6 months was estimated on 81.4% of significant improvement. Conclusions. It is recommended that a questionnaire include an inquiry about the presence of tinnitus during hearing screening tests

The Impact of External Pressure on Companies' Responses to Sanctions: an International Comparative Study

What explains the strategies firms adopt in response to economic sanctions? Our study argues that different types of external pressure, such as public shaming, the nature of companies' business relationships, and national-level legal-regulatory environments affects how firms respond to the sanctions imposed against Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. We develop a suite of hypotheses about how external pressure affects firms' compliance behaviors and whether firms adopt reactive and/or proactive strategic responses. We test our hypotheses by analyzing results from a survey of 610 medium-sized companies operating in Germany, Poland, and the United States. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), we find that external pressure is associated with higher levels of compliance and overcompliance with sanctions but is also associated with undercompliant behavior. We also find that compliance with sanctions is associated with a high degree of proactive response, which suggests compliant firms may often seek out legal means of circumventing sanctions. We further observed variation in the effects of external pressure, compliance behavior, and strategic responses on US firms compared to those in European Union members Germany and Poland

A new detector concept based on the prompt gamma radiation analysis for In vivo boron monitoring in BNCT

The problem of boron concentration monitoring during the boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) therapy is one of the main challenges of this type of radiotherapy and is directly related to the nature of the interaction of neutrons with mater. Among the available in vivo methods of boron monitoring positron emission tomography seems to be very promising but it requires a new boron carrier with a β+ emitter, which is not yet clinically available. An alternative solution may be the prompt gamma radiation analysis (PGRA) based on the secondary radiation emitted in the interaction of neutrons with the patient’s tissues. This method requires, however, compact gamma radiation detection systems sustaining high counting rates and characterized by very good energy resolution. In this contribution, we present state-of-the-art solutions for monitoring in BNCT based on PGRA. Moreover, we describe a new concept of such a system based on position-sensitive scintillator detectors equipped with an anti-Compton shield and data analysis supported with modern artificial intelligence algorithms

RR-Lyrae-type pulsations from a 0.26-solar-mass star in a binary system

RR Lyrae pulsating stars have been extensively used as tracers of old stellar populations for the purpose of determining the ages of galaxies, and as tools to measure distances to nearby galaxies. There was accordingly considerable interest when the RR Lyr star OGLE-BLG-RRLYR-02792 was found to be a member in an eclipsing binary system4, as the mass of the pulsator (hitherto constrained only by models) could be unambiguously determined. Here we report that RRLYR-02792 has a mass of 0.26 M_sun and therefore cannot be a classical RR Lyrae star. Through models we find that its properties are best explained by the evolution of a close binary system that started with 1.4 M_sun and 0.8 M_sun stars orbiting each other with an initial period of 2.9 days. Mass exchange over 5.4 Gyr produced the observed system, which is now in a very short-lived phase where the physical properties of the pulsator happen to place it in the same instability strip of the H-R diagram occupied by RR Lyrae stars. We estimate that samples of RR Lyr stars may contain a 0.2 percent contamination with systems similar to this one, implying that distances measured with RR Lyrae stars should not be significantly affected by these binary interlopers

“Only the orangutans get a life jacket”: Uncommoning responsibility in a global conservation nexus

In an era of mass extinction, who gets a life jacket, who is left to drown or swim—and on what basis? This article addresses these questions by analyzing how tropes and practices of responsibility are variously enacted, reworked, contested, and refused across the global nexus of orangutan conservation. Drawing on multisited, collaborative ethnography, we trace the mutually constitutive relation between multiple orangutan figures and commons imaginaries at different nodes of conservation—from environmental activism in the Global North to NGO-villager encounters in rural Borneo. In so doing, we “uncommon” international conservation's encompassing planetary imaginaries, showing how dominant portrayals of the orangutan as a global responsibility are translated and fragmented in different settings. We further contemplate what an analytic of responsibility might bring to ongoing discussions about the “commoning” planetary epoch in which conservation is increasingly embedded: the Anthropocene.European Research Council Starting Grant 758494, Arcus Foundation Great Apes Program, Brunel University Londo

The Example of State Forestry Information System (SFIS) Data Application to Prognosis of Changes in Pine Forests

W pracy pokazano zastosowanie danych z podsystemu «Las» Systemu Informatycznego Lasów Państwowych (SILP) w Polsce do prognozowania zmian lasów sosnowych. Zaprezentowano specjalnie opracowany blok «GAP TAKSACYJNY» modelu komputerowego pozwalający na automatyczne wczytywanie uśrednionych danych taksacyjnych dla wydzieleń leśnych i przeprowadzenie prognoz na przykładzie nadleśnictwa Tuczno z Wielkopolski.The paper shows the application of data from the subsystem «Forest» State Forestry Information System (SILP) in Poland for forecasting changes in pine forests. There was presented a specially designed block «GAP TAKSACYJNY» of computer model that allows the automatic loading of sub-compartment forests data and carrying out prognosis on the example of forest district Tuczno in Wielkopolska

Comprehensive Analysis of Correlations in the Expression of miRNA Genes and Immune Checkpoint Genes in Bladder Cancer Cells

Personalised medicine is the future and hope for many patients, including those with cancers. Early detection, as well as rapid, well-selected treatment, are key factors leading to a good prognosis. MicroRNA mediated gene regulation is a promising area of development for new diagnostic and therapeutic methods, crucial for better prospects for patients. Bladder cancer is a frequent neoplasm, with high lethality and lacking modern, advanced therapeutic modalities, such as immunotherapy. MicroRNAs are involved in bladder cancer pathogenesis, proliferation, control and response to treatment, which we summarise in this perspective in response to lack of recent review publications in this field. We further performed a correlation-based analysis of microRNA and gene expression data in bladder cancer (BLCA) TCGA dataset. We identified 27 microRNAs hits with opposite expression profiles to genes involved in immune response in bladder cancer, and 24 microRNAs hits with similar expression profiles. We discuss previous studies linking the functions of these microRNAs to bladder cancer and assess if they are good candidates for personalised medicine therapeutics and diagnostics. The discussed functions include regulation of gene expression, interplay with transcription factors, response to treatment, apoptosis, cell proliferation and angiogenesis, initiation and development of cancer, genome instability and tumour-associated inflammatory reaction