THE CONVERGENCE OF THE ECONOMIC SIZE OF FARMS IN POLAND – THE ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS

The research discussed in the article concerned the level of development of agriculture in Poland. The main aim of the study was to verify the hypothesis of convergence of the economic size of farms. The analysis confirmed the existence of beta-convergence, however, showed no occurrence of sigma-convergence and gamma-convergence. Based on the results of the analysis of marginal vertical beta-convergence, Poland was divided into two clubs with different paths of development. In one of them the process of convergence was confirmed, but in the second one the phenomenon of divergence was revealed.Badanie opisane w artykule dotyczyło upodabniania się poziomu rozwoju rolnictwa w Polsce, którego miernikiem była wielkość ekonomiczna przeciętnego w województwie gospodarstwa rolnego. Głównym jego celem była weryfikacja hipotezy o zachodzeniu konwergencji wielkości ekonomicznej gospodarstw. Przeprowadzona analiza potwierdziła zjawisko konwergencji typu beta, jednak nie wykazano zachodzenia konwergencji typu sigma ani gamma. Na podstawie wyników analizy krańcowej konwergencji typu beta, podzielono Polskę na dwa kluby o odmiennych ścieżkach rozwoju. W jednym stwierdzono zjawisko konwergencji, w drugim dywergencji

Implementation of Europe 2020 Strategy : the taxonomic analysis

The article concerns the implementation of the Europe 2020 Strategy. The main aim was to analyse the spatial diversity of countries in terms of the degree of implementation of the strategy and the progress that countries have made in this regard. An attempt was made to assess the relative developmental disparities between countries. The methods of multivariate statistical analysis were applied. To assess the degree of implementation of the strategy a dynamic version of Hellwig’s synthetic variable method was used. The analysis of the disparities between countries was made with a dynamic measure of the relative taxonomy, proposed by Wydymus. The scientific aim was to evaluate the progress made by countries in implementing the objectives of the strategy and the relative developmental disparities between Member States with particular attention to the countries that joined the EU in 2004. The study confirmed the strong differentiation of EU Member States. The majority of countries that joined the Community in 2004, has made significant progress and reduced the disparities compared to others. The countries, political leaders of EU (Germany, France, Great Britain, and Italy) have achieved rather disappointing results. Most of the countries made significant progress in achieving specific objectives such as increasing investment in R & D, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, increase the use of renewable energy and reducing the number of young people do not continue education. The biggest problem remains the fight against poverty and social exclusion. The evaluation of the progress made by individual EU members can not only help to identify good practices, but also to prevent making the same mistakes. The results of the study can be used by the European Commission as well as the institutions and authorities of the different countries of the Community to evaluate the progress made and to take appropriate actions

THE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE IN POLAND IN THE YEARS 2004-2011 – THE TAXONOMIC AND ECONOMETRIC ANALYSES

The aim of the paper was to assess the regional differentiation of the level of agriculture and its changes over time. Based on the synthetic measure of development the rankings of regions (provinces) were created. The objects were also classified and divided into groups of a similar level of agriculture. In addition, in order to identify the long-term tendency in this sector of economy, the process of β-convergence of the level of agriculture has been studied. For the verification of hypotheses dynamic panel models were applied. All computations were performed in the Gretl, based on CSO data.Celem artykułu była ocena regionalnego zróżnicowania poziomu rolnictwa oraz jego zmian w czasie. Dla kolejnych okresów badania ustalono rankingi województw oraz dokonano ich klasyfikacji. Ponadto badano proces β-konwergencji poziomu rozwoju rolnictwa. Weryfikacja hipotezy o zachodzeniu konwergencji absolutnej pozwoliła na identyfikację długoterminowych tendencji w tym dziale gospodarki. W oparciu o analizę konwergencji warunkowej wskazano główne determinanty rozwoju. Do weryfikacji postawionych hipotez wykorzystano dynamiczne modele panelowe. Obliczenia przeprowadzono w programie GRETL

Changes in European eel ovary development and body and ovary chemistry during stimulated maturation under controlled conditions: preliminary data

This study compared changes in the biochemical composition of muscles and ovaries of maturing female European eels during hormonal stimulation with carp pituitary homogenate under controlled conditions and in the development of oocytes. It has been found that differentiation of oocyte size in eel is visible from the beginning of the gamete maturation process. This differentiation increases as gonads grow. Furthermore, oocytes are at different development stages and are still highly differentiated in terms of size during ovulation. Moreover, the biochemical composition of the body and gonads was found to change. During the process of maturation, the relative fat content in the eel body decreases both in the muscles (from 21.99 ± 4.3 to 18.48 ± 3.3 %) and in gonads (from 25.76 ± 2.71 to 15.21 ± 4.7 %), with the changes in ovaries being more rapid. Protein content in muscles also decreased (from 15.98 ± 3.13 to 12.35 ± 1.6 %) during the process of female maturation. Different trends were observed for polyunsaturated fatty acids (EPA and DHA). The total amount of these acids decreased in muscles (P\0.05) but increased in ovaries (P[0.05)

The Delimitation of Bipolar Metropolitan Area Within the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region

The objective of the article was to re-define the bipolar metropolitan area within the area of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie region (NUTS 2). Concentration of metropolitan features, as well as socio-economic situations of its communes (NUTS 5) in 2011, and also the dynamics of communes’ development in the period 2009-2011 were considered in the procedure of delimitation. Bydgoszcz and Toruń, as the economically strongest cities in the region, were established as the dual core of the bipolar metropolitan area. It was assumed that the determined metropolitan area would cover the best developed and the fastest developing communes which met the following criteria of a metropolitan area: neighbourhood, continuity, compactness, maximum distance and population. The development levels of the communes were determined with the use of synthetic measure. Its values were calculated considering the economic (e.g. the amount of income) and also social (e.g. unemployment) aspects of regional development, as well as features typical of metropolitan areas, such as: well-developed sectors of R&D, knowledge-based economy and serving superior services. In the research, linear arrangement methods classifying as taxonomic tools of multivariate data analysis was applied. The metropolitan area resulting from the research (BipOM) slightly differs from the Bydgoszcz-Toruń Metropolitan Area (B-TOM) which was formally appointed in 2005 and composed all of the communes located within the area of the Bydgoski and Toruński districts (NUTS 4). Chełmża and Koronowo, as the less developed communes of the districts, were excluded from the new metropolitan area, while the communes of Ciechocinek, Nakło and Unisław, belonging to the neighbouring districts of the region, were included in the BipOM due to their significant level of regional development and its dynamics. Furthermore the Inowrocław district (bordered on the BipOM) was identified as the prospective candidate for the BipOM, due to the fact that its communes demonstrate a high potential for regional development

Characterization of ultra-shallow aluminum implants in silicon by grazing incidence and grazing emission X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy

In this work two synchrotron radiation-based depth-sensitive X-ray fluorescence techniques, grazing incidence X-ray fluorescence (GIXRF) and grazing emission X-ray fluorescence (GEXRF), are compared and their potential for non-destructive depth-profiling applications is investigated. The depth-profiling capabilities of the two methods are illustrated for five aluminum-implanted silicon wafers all having the same implantation dose of 1016 atoms per cm2 but with different implantation energies ranging from 1 keV up to 50 keV. The work was motivated by the ongoing downscaling effort of the microelectronics industry and the resulting need for more sensitive methods for the impurity and dopant depth-profile control. The principles of GIXRF and GEXRF, both based on the refraction of X-rays at the sample surface to enhance the surface-to-bulk ratio of the detected fluorescence signal, are explained. The complementary experimental setups employed at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) for GIXRF and the University of Fribourg for GEXRF are presented in detail. In particular, for each technique it is shown how the dopant depth profile can be derived from the angular intensity dependence of the Al Kα fluorescence line. The results are compared to theoretical predictions and, for two samples, crosschecked with values obtained from secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) measurements. A good agreement between the different approaches is found proving that the GIXRF and GEXRF methods can be efficiently employed to extract the dopant depth distribution of ion-implanted samples with good accuracy and over a wide range of implantation energies

Evaluation of five multisteroid LC‒MS/MS methods used for routine clinical analysis: comparable performance was obtained for nine analytes

Objectives: A mass spectrometry (LC‒MS/MS)-based interlaboratory comparison study was performed for nine steroid analytes with five participating laboratories. The sample set contained 40 pooled samples of human serum generated from preanalyzed leftovers. To obtain a well-balanced distribution across reference intervals of each steroid, the leftovers first underwent a targeted mixing step. Methods: All participants measured a sample set once using their own multianalyte protocols and calibrators. Four participants used in-house developed measurement platforms, including IVD-CE certified calibrators, which were used by three participants; the 5th lab used the whole LC‒MS kit from an IVD manufacturer. All labs reported results for 17-hydroxyprogesterone, androstenedione, cortisol, and testosterone, and four labs reported results for 11-deoxycortisol, corticosterone, cortisone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), and progesterone. Results: Good or acceptable overall comparability was found in Bland‒Altmann and Passing‒Bablok analyses. Mean bias against the overall mean remained less than ±10 % except for DHEAS, androstenedione, and progesterone at one site and for cortisol and corticosterone at two sites (max. -18.9 % for androstenedione). The main analytical problems unraveled by this study included a bias not previously identified in proficiency testing, operator errors, non-supported matrix types and higher inaccuracy and imprecision at lower ends of measuring intervals. Conclusions: This study shows that intermethod comparison is essential for monitoring the validity of an assay and should serve as an example of how external quality assessment could work in addition to organized proficiency testing schemes