131I thyroid activity and committed dose assessment among family members of patients treated with radioactive iodine

The main goal of the present study was estimation of an internal contamination of 131I among family members of patients treated with radioactive iodine. Thyroid activity measurements of 131I in examined volunteers were performed using a whole-body spectrometer at the institute of nuclear physics, Polish academy of sciences. During this research, 20 relatives of patients treated with 131I were examined: eight women and 12 men with an age in the range from 3 to 72 years. In the case of nine individuals, the activity of 131I in the thyroid was below the detection limit, but among the remaining 11 individuals, the activity varied from (9 ± 3) Bq up to (1140 ± 295) Bq. Subsequently, based on the measurements of thyroid 131I activities, the corresponding doses were assessed. The highest estimated effective dose reached 218 μSv, while the thyroid equivalent dose was 2.4 mSv. In addition, the experimental data obtained were statistically analysed together with the results of surveys of the individuals participating in the study by means of correspondence analysis and nonparametric tests: Mann–Whitney, gamma, χ2 and Yule Phi coefficient. These analyses revealed relationships between 131I activities in the thyroids of the examined individuals and their housing conditions as well as consumption of meals prepared by the patients

Comparison of paleobotanical and biomarker records of mountain peatland and forest ecosystem dynamics over the last 2600 years in central Germany

As peatlands are a major terrestrial sink in the global carbon cycle, gaining an understanding of their development and changes throughout time is essential in order to predict their future carbon budget and potentially mitigate the adverse outcomes of climate change. With this aim to understand peat development, many studies have investigated the paleoecological dynamics by analyzing various proxies, including pollen, macrofossil, elemental, and biomarker analyses. However, as each of these proxies is known to have its own benefits and limitations, examining them in parallel allows for a deeper understanding of these paleoecological dynamics at the peatland and a systematic comparison of the power of these individual proxies. In this study, we therefore analyzed peat cores from a peatland in Germany (Beerberg, Thuringia) to (a) characterize the vegetation dynamics over the course of the peatland development during the late Holocene and (b) evaluate to what extent the inclusion of multiple proxies, specifically pollen, plant macrofossils, and biomarkers, contributes to a deeper understanding of those dynamics and interaction among factors. We found that, despite a major shift in the regional forest composition from primarily beech to spruce as well as many indicators of human impact in the region, the local plant population in the Beerberg area remained stable over time following the initial phase of peatland development up until the last couple of centuries. Therefore, little variation could be derived from the paleobotanical data alone. The combination of pollen and macrofossil analyses with the elemental and biomarker analyses enabled further understanding of the site development as these proxies added valuable additional information, including the occurrence of climatic variations, such as the Little Ice Age, and more recent disturbances, such as drainage

The Śnieżka peatland as a candidate for the Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point for the Anthropocene series

The subalpine, atmospherically fed Śnieżka peatland, located in the Polish part of the Sudetes, is one of the nominated candidates for the GSSP of the Anthropocene. Data from two profiles, Sn1 (2012) and Sn0 (2020), from this site are critical for distinguishing the proposed epoch, while an additional core Sn2 is presented to support main evidence. The Sn0 archive contains a wide array of critical markers such as plutonium (Pu), radiocarbon (F14C), fly ash particles, Hg and stable C and N isotopes which are consistent with the previously well documented 210Pb/14C dated Sn1 profile, which provides a high-resolution and comprehensive database of trace elements and rare earth elements (REE), Pb isotopes, Pu, Cs, pollen and testate amoebae. The 1952 worldwide appearance of Pu, owing to its global synchronicity and repeatability between the cores, is proposed here as a primary marker of the Anthropocene, supported by the prominent upturn of selected chemostratigraphic and biostratigraphic indicators as well as the appearance of technofossils and artificial radionuclides

Properties of humic acids in humus horizons in forest soils of the Stolowe Mountains

Study presents physical−chemical and chemical properties of humic acids in ectohumus (Ol and Ofh) and mineral humus (A) horizons of brown soils developed on granite, siltstone and permian sandstone. The examined profiles were located in forest habitat representing the fresh mountain forest under spruce and beech stands growing on moder type of forest humus

Composition of organic matter in the humus horizons of forest soils in the Stolowe Mountains

The study presents quantitative analysis of the humus horizons of mountain soils in the Stołowe Mountains (south−western Poland) diverse in terms of parent material and stand species structure. The study included moder ectohumus horizons (Ol − raw humus, Ofh − detritus humus) and Ah mineral humus horizon in brown soils developed on granite, siltstone and permian sandstone. The examined profiles was located in Norway spruce or beech forests representing the fresh mountain forest habitat

Characteristics of bottom sediments of retention reservoir młyny and a possibility of their agricultural use

W pracy przestawiono charakterystykę właściwości fizykochemicznych osadów dennych zbiornika Młyny na rzece Julianpolka oraz ocenę możliwości ich rolniczego wykorzystania na podstawie koncentracji pierwiastków śladowych (Ni, Zn, Pb, Cu). Badania wykazały następujące zawartości metali (w mg·kg-¹): Pb - 3-109, Zn - 25-302, Cu - 39-79 oraz Ni - 10-69. Zgodnie z klasyfikacją osadów wodnych PIG, osady denne z niektórych części zbiornika Młyny należy zaliczyć do zanieczyszczonych. Wartości indeksów geoakumulacyjnych Igeo kwalifikują osady do klasy 1., to jest osadów nieobciążonych lub umiarkowanie obciążonych. Według wytycznych PIOŚ i IUNG, jakość osadów odpowiada glebom o II stopniu zanieczyszczenia, które stwarzają ograniczenia dotyczące uprawy niektórych roślin konsumpcyjnych. Jednak zgodnie z rozporządzeniami Ministra Środowiska (w sprawie rodzaju oraz stężeń substancji, które powodują, że urobek jest zanieczyszczony, oraz w sprawie standardów jakości gleby i ziemi) badane osady nie są zanieczyszczone, co oznacza, że mogą być stosowane do rekultywacji lub ulepszania gruntów o przeznaczeniu rolniczym lub leśnym, z wyjątkiem osadów położonych w najbliższym sąsiedztwie zapory.The paper presents a characteristic of physical and chemical properties of bottom sediments from retention reservoir Młyny located on the Julianpolka River and an assessment of their usefulness for agricultural application, based on the concentration of trace elements (Ni, Zn, Pb, Cu). Heavy metal concentrations (in mg·kg-¹) were: Pb 3-109, Zn 25-302, Cu 39-79, and Ni 10-69. According to classification of bottom sediments quality used by Polish Geological Institute, the sediments under study were contaminated in some parts of reservoir. The values of geo-accumulation index Igeo qualify sediments to the class 1, which involves not polluted or moderately polluted sediments. According to the standards of the State Inspectorate for Environmental Protection and the Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation, sediment quality was comparable with that of soils of the 2nd level of heavy metal contamination. According to these standards, production of vegetables is not allowed in soils or sediments of such quality. However, two regulations of the Ministry of Environment (a) on the kind and concentration of substances that pollute bottom sediments, and (b) on soil and earth quality standards, classify the sediments under study as uncontaminated, with the exception of sediments located in the close proximity of the dam. Bottom sediments of the reservoir Młyny are suitable for reclamation and improvement of soils in agriculture and forestry

Estimation of bulk density of the mountain soils from the organic carbon content

The missing data on bulk density make impossible the calculations of soil water retention, organic carbon pools and evaluation of the numerical indices of soil and forest habitat fertility and potential productivity. A common reason of skipping of bulk density measurement is the high content of rock fragments in soil, in particular in the subsoil layers, that may hamper the collection of samples with undisturbed soil structure. The aim of present study was to analyse the relationships between bulk density and basic properties of mountain soils, where the problem of high skeleton content is relatively common, selection of the properties of the largest impact on the soil bulk density, and the fitting of the mathematical model (equation) that allows the prediction of soil bulk density at the highest available statistical significance. Forest soils in the Sudeten Mountains and the Sudeten Foreland, SW Poland (total number of samples N=580), situated on various bedrocks (granite, basalts, gneiss, mica schists, sandstones, mudstones, etc.) were selected to analysis. It was found in those soils featured by large variability of soil texture (the range of clay content 0−40%), skeleton content (0−74%), and organic carbon content (0.09−50%) in the soil profile, that the bulk density (having the values 0.10−1.87 g/cm3 in mineral layers and 0.04−0.58 g/cm3 in organic/litter layers) was individually correlated with the organic carbon content, skeleton content, clay content, and the depth of sampling (depth of particular soil layer), but the multifactor analysis has shown, that the organic carbon content has the highest impact on the bulk density and the organic carbon alone is sufficient for reliable prediction of soil bulk density. The best fitting of the measured and predicted bulk densities (R2=0.83) was provided by ‘dose−response’ Hill model: dv=1.72–[(2.36·Corg0.6)/(13.80.6+Corg0.6)], that returned dv values between 0.10 and 1.72 g/cm3 in a range of Corg content between 50 and 0%

Statystyki polskich fonemów uzyskane z dużych zbiorów tekstów

The phonetical statistics were collected from several Polish corpora. The paper is a summary of the data which are phoneme n-grams and some phenomena in the statistics. Triphone statistics apply context-dependent speech units which have an important role in speech recognition systems and were never calculated for a large set of Polish written texts. The standard phonetic alphabet for Polish, SAMPA, and methods of providing phonetic transcriptions are described.W niniejszej pracy zaprezentowano opis statystyk głosek języka polskiego zebranych z dużej liczby tekstów. Triady głosek pełnią istotną rolę w rozpoznawaniu mowy. Omówiono obserwacje dotyczące zebranych statystyk i przedstawiono listy najpopularniejszych elementów