Innovation Performance in Poland and Polish Companies

The goal of this paper is to analyse the current innovation situation of Poland's economy and Polish companies in comparison to EU countries. The article presents also results of survey on investing in innovations in large Polish companies.Wciąż najbardziej innowacyjnymi przedsiębiorstwami w Polsce są duże przedsiębiorstwa, co wynikać może przede wszystkim ze znacznej ilości środków finansowych na tego typu działania. Niemniej jednak, to właśnie sektor MSP jest sektorem dominującym w polskiej gospodarce i to właśnie jego aktywność innowacyjną powinno się pobudzać

Electrochemical deposition of silver crystals aboard Skylab 4

Silver crystals were grown aboard Skylab 4 by an electro-chemical reaction and subsequently returned to earth for comparison with crystals grown at 1- and 5-g. Both the Skylab and earth-grown crystals show a variety of structures. Certain tendencies in structure dependency on gravity level, however, can be discerned. In addition, downward growing dendrite streamers; upward growing chunky crystal streamers; growth along an air/liquid interface; and ribbon, film, and fiber crystal habits were observed in experiments conducted on the ground with solutions of varying concentrations. It was also observed that the crystal structures of space and ground electro-deposited silver crystals were very similar to the structures of germanium selenide and germanium telluride crystals grown in space and on the ground by a vapor transport technique. Consideration of the data leads to the conclusions that: (1) the rate of electrochemical displacement of silver ions from a 5 percent aqueous solution by copper is predominantly diffussion controlled in space and kinetically controlled in 1- and higher-g because of augmentation of mass transport by convection; (2) downward and upward crystal streamers are the result of gravity-driven convection, the flow patterns of which can be delineated. Lateral growths along an air/liquid interface are the result of surface-tension-driven convection, the pattern of which also can be delineated; (3) electrolysis in space or low-g environments can produce either dendritic crystals with more perfect microcrystalline structures or massive, single crystals with fewer defects than those grown on ground or at higher g-levels. Ribbons or films of space-grown silicon crystals would find a ready market for electronic substrate and photocell applications. Space-grown dendritic, metal crystals present the possibility of unique catalysts. Large perfect crystals of various materials are desired for a number of electronic and optical applications; and (4) vapor transport growth of germanium selenide and germanium telluride is affected by convection mechanisms similar to the mechanisms hypothesized for the electrochemical deposition of silver crystals. Evidence and considerations leading to the preceding summaries and conclusions are presented. The implications of the findings and conclusions for technological applications are discussed, and recommendations for further experiments are presented

Poland's 2011 Online Election Campaign: New Tools, New Professionalism, New Ways to Win Votes

This article analyzes the use of the online environment within the context of the Polish parliamentary election of 2011. Using traditional methods of content analysis, we find that parties tend to adhere to a professionalized model of campaigning, and adapting online tools to suit the objectives of the campaign. There also appears to be a recognition that their most likely visitors to these online presences would be converts, and so they attempt to mobilize supporters rather than convert browsers. New parties and candidates are more likely to target browsers, with the latter offering a more personalized experience to online visitors. Importantly, when analyzing the outcome of the contest, we find that being online matters for candidates when controlling for all other variables. Equally, the reach the candidate has, which may well influence their vote share, is dependent on offering a more personalized, representational image and having a frequently updated online presence that should encourage repeat visits. Cumulatively, we suggest the future of online campaigning must not only focus on having a presence, but on using it in a way that appeals to a range of visitors, encouraging repeat visits, and that this strategy could have a positive impact on election outcomes. © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Redukcja czasów przezbrojeń frezarki CNC z wykorzystaniem systemu zerowania erowa na przykładzie firmy samasz w Białymstoku

The paper presents a practical way to shorten changeover of HAAS VF3 milling machine during the production of parts for mowers performed at a manufacturing company SaMASZ, Bialystok. A typical SMED approach was applied, i.e. times of individual actions were measured upon a priorly recorded film. Then, the operations were grouped into external and internal ones. For the purpose of analysis the Gantt diagram was used. In order to increase the share of external actions, the EROWA zero-point system chuck was used. As a result, most of the internal actions could be converted into external ones, that do not take up valuable working time of the machine. Calculated resulting economic effect significantly reduces production costs and the EROWA system applied in the process further improves machining precision of manufactured parts, and thus the quality of the manufactured agricultural machinery.Artykuł prezentuje praktyczny sposób skrócenia czasów przezbrojeń frezarki HAAS VF3 podczas produkcji części dla kosiarek wykonywanych przez przedsiębiorstwo produkcyjne SaMASZ, w Białymstoku. W publikacji wykorzystano typowe podejście SMEA to znaczy czasy poszczególnych operacji mierzono na podstawie nagranego uprzednio filmu. Następnie operacje zostały pogrupowane na zewnętrzne i wewnętrzne. W analizie wykorzystano również wykres Gantta. W celu udziału zewnętrznych operacji wykorzystano system zerowania EROWA. W rezultacie część wewnętrznych operacji została zamieniona na zewnętrzne, które nie zajmują cennego czasu maszyny. Skalkulowane efekty ekonomiczne pozwoliły na znaczącą redukcję poziomu kosztów. Dodatkowo wykorzystanie systemu EROWA pozwoliło na poprawę precyzji wykonywanych części i jakości wyprodukowanego sprzętu rolniczego

A microelectrode study of the reduction of phenyl-substituted ethenes in toluene/dimethylformamide mixtures

The voltammetry of trans-stilbene, triphenylethene, and tetraphenylethene has been investigated in DMF/ toluene mixtures containing Bu4NBF4 as a function of the electrolyte concentration, solvent composition and substrate concentration. The voltammetric data show that all three ethenes undergo reduction in two le(-) steps but the separation of the potentials for the two steps depends substantially on the medium as well as the structure of the ethenes. The behavior can be understood in terms of ion pairing phenomena