Enhancement of executive control through short-term cognitive training : far-transfer effects on general fluid intelligence

We predicted that short-term training of executive control would improve both cognitive control itself (Hypothesis 1) and general fluid intelligence (Hypothesis 2). We randomly assigned 120 high school students to the experimental and control groups. The former underwent a 14-day training of four executive functions: interference resolution, response inhibition, task switching, and goal monitoring. The latter did not train anything. The training significantly improved cognitive control and IQ. The control group also improved their IQ scores but gained less than the experimental one. However, the amount of IQ scores enhancement did not correlate with the majority of indices of the training effectiveness, thus justifying the supposition that such enhancement resulted from the general effect of participation in the training rather than from the improvement of executive functions underlying Gf

Comparison of selected results of meteorological measurements made with traditional and automatic instruments (according to data from Kraków)

Nowadays, at the meteorological stations traditional measurements are often replaced with automatic ones. The main aim of this master thesis is to compare the two measurement methods, according to results of selected meteorological measurements made at the scientific station of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków in 2014. The correlation and differences between methods were studied. It was indicated when the biggest differences occur and which situations are associated with them. The author attempted to determine the homogeneity of the series and assessed the sense of resigning from the conventional measurements. The values compared were taken for the same time periods in order to reduce the differences caused by averaging and data processing methods. It was shown that the correlation coefficient was very strong in every comparison made (the highest in case of air temperature, the lowest in case of precipitation). However, some significant differences in specific situations were shown. Variable trend and magnitude of deviations depending on the time of the measurement in the course of day and year occurred. Deviations were caused by differences in construction and sensitivity of devices as well as by meteorological conditions, mistakes made by observer and random factors. It was concluded that despite the advantages of automatic measurements, conventional measurements should not be abandoned. Regardless the technical advancement, automatic measurement systems can brake down and the traditional ones serve as a security in case of lack of the data. In most comparisons, the data series obtained are not homogenous. Despite theoretically high correlation, there are very significant differences between methods that prevent thoughtless resignation from classic measurements. Furthermore, traditional measurements are required for the calibration of the automatic sensors.Na przełomie XX i XXI wieku znacznie przyspieszył proces automatyzacji w polskiej służbie meteorologicznej. Na stacjach synoptycznych zainstalowano automatyczne stacje meteorologiczne fińskiej firmy Vaisala wraz czujnikami m.in. temperatury i wilgotności powietrza, ciśnienia powietrza, kierunku i prędkości wiatru. Od 2004 roku dane z przyrządów automatycznych zaczęły być danymi podstawowymi, a przyrządy obsługiwane przez obserwatorów były traktowane jako zapasowe. W styczniu 2014 roku większość przyrządów tradycyjnych na stacjach synoptycznych została wycofana z użytku (w tym termometry rtęciowe) i zastąpiona przyrządami automatycznymi. W wielu wypadkach nie przeprowadzono pomiarów porównawczych i nie wyliczono współczynników korygujących, zatem istnieje obawa, że została zerwana jednorodność serii pomiarowych,podstawowego warunku wszelkich badań klimatologicznych. Według instrukcji WMO (1983) wyniki pomiarów z nowych przyrządów należy weryfikować przynajmniej przez jeden rok. Celem niniejszego opracowania jest porównanie wyników pomiarów meteorologicznych wykonanych przyrządami tradycyjnymi i automatycznymi w 2014 roku na stacji naukowej Zakładu Klimatologii IGiGP UJ w Krakowie. Porównanie dotyczy wybranych elementów pogody, tj. sumy dobowej usłonecznienia, aktualnej temperatury powietrza w terminie pomiarowym, dobowej temperatury maksymalnej i minimalnej, aktualnej wilgotności względnej powietrza w terminie pomiarowym oraz sumy dobowej opadów atmosferycznych

Obrazowanie metodą optycznej koherentnej tomografii u pacjentów z ostrym zawałem serca

The aim of this paper is to present four cases of patients withacute myocardial infarction (MI). The primary percutaneouscoronary intervention (PCI) was guided with optical coherencetomography (OCT). The OCT inspection preceded by aspirationthrombectomy done in a native vessel allowed to assess thepathology of its wall and lumen which play a part in myocardialinfarction. Based on baseline OCT, the diameter and length ofthe stent was chosen, which did not always correlate withangiographic assessment. Moreover, using the OCT, one canaccurately assess the final effect of the procedure, providinginformation on the mechanism of possible complications. Thecurrent experience of the authors indicates that OCT imaging inacute myocardial infarction is feasible and helpful in optimizationof the primary PCI. Nevertheless, prolonged time of PCI andincreased volume of the contrast agent needed for OCT imagingmight be some limitation in unstable MI patients.W pracy została przedstawiona seria czterech przypadków pacjentów z ostrym zawałem mięśnia sercowego, u których pierwotną angioplastykę wieńcową wykonano pod kontrolą optycznej koherentnej tomografii (OCT). OCT poprzedzone trombektomią aspiracyjną, wykonane w natywnym naczyniu pozwala dokładnie ocenić patologię ściany naczynia i jego światła leżące u podłoża zawału. Na podstawie zakresu nieprawidłowości obserwowanych w OCT można precyzyjnie dobrać szerokość i długość stentu, co nie zawsze odpowiada ocenie angiograficznej. Ponadto wizualizacja za pomocą OCT pozwala ocenić efekt zabiegu, dostarczając informacji na temat mechanizmu ewentualnych powikłań. Dotychczasowe doświadczenie autorów pracy wskazuje, iż obrazowanie OCT w ostrym zawale serca jest wykonalne i na jego podstawie można uzyskać cenne dodatkowe informacje, które pomagają w optymalizacji procedury, niemniej wiąże się ono z wydłużeniem czasu trwania zabiegu i zwiększeniem ilości podanego kontrastu, co w przypadku pacjentów niestabilnych może być pewnym ograniczeniem

Usefulness of transesophageal echocardiography before cardioversion in atrial arrhythmias

Background: Although many thromboembolism risk factors are well defined, formation of thrombus ordense spontaneous contrast (sludge) in the left atrium remains enigmatic and confounding. Exclusionof the thrombus is extremely important with respect to planned reversal of sinus rhythm. Data regardingthe routine transesophagal echocardiography (TEE) before cardioversion are inconclusive. The authorsfocused on analyzing the usefulness of TEE before cardioversion by assessment of factors influencing therisk of thrombus and/or dense spontaneous echo contrast with the intention of extending indications forTEE in the group with a high risk of thrombus or to forgo TEE in the low risk group. Methods: Two hundred sixty-nine consecutive patients with persistent (> 48 h) atrial fibrillationor atrial flutter, in whom a direct current cardioversion was planned, were undergoing TEE for thedetection of the left atrial thrombus or dense spontaneous echo contrast. Additional clinical and echocardiographic data were collected. The relationship between both thrombus and dense spontaneous echo contrast and covariates was analyzed with the use of binary logistic regression. Results: Left atrium (LA) appendage (LAA) thrombus and/or sludge were detected in 79 (29%)patients. Signs of dementia in mini-mental state examination (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.16; p = 0.005),low velocities in LAA (HR: 3.38; p = 0.032); presence of spontaneous echo contrast in LA (HR: 3.38;p = 0,003) consecutive episode of AF (HR: 2.27; p = 0,046); longer duration of atrial fibrillation (HR:1.009; p = 0.022); were significant predictors of thrombus and/or dense spontaneous echo contrast.None of the patients with a CHA2DS2VASc score ≤ 1 had thrombus or sludge in the LAA. Among patientswith a CHA2DS2VASc score > 1, the prevalence of thrombus or sludge in LAA was independentof the CHA2DS2VASc score value.Conclusions: Amongst many factors, including an established as risk for thromboembolism onlya few of them increased the risk for the presence of thrombus in LAA: low velocities in LAA, presenceof spontaneous echo contrast, longer duration of arrhythmia, consecutive (not first) arrhythmia episodeand signs of dementia from a mini-mental state examination questionnaire. It was believed that therecould be a need for an extension of indications of TEE in vast majority of the patients with atrial arrhythmias, due most often to an unpredictable occurrence of thrombus and potentially disastrousthromboembolism. The only exception could have been the group of the patients with a CHA2DS2VAScscore ≤ 1

Poland’s investment development path – in search of a synthesis

Cel – Celem artykułu jest dokonanie podsumowania badań prowadzonych przez zespół autorski w odniesieniu do inwestycji zagranicznych napływających do Polski i wypływających z Polski. Metoda badań – Badania te nawiązują do koncepcji Investment Development Path (ścieżki rozwoju inwestycji zagranicznych – ŚRIZ), wprowadzonej do literatury z zakresu biznesu międzynarodowego przez J.H. Dunninga. W artykule przedstawiono wyniki cyklu wcześniejszych badań, opartych o analizę polskiej pozycji inwestycji wychodzących netto (PIWN), obliczonej w oparciu o dostępne dane wtórne w porównaniu do innych krajów, jak również w przekrojach geograficznych i branżowych. Wyniki – Artykuł przedstawia koncepcję ŚRIZ Dunninga, a następnie podsumowuje wyniki wcześniejszych badań empirycznych wykorzystujących to podejście w różnych krajach. W dalszej kolejności artykuł skupia się na wynikach trzech analiz autorów. Pierwszy poświęcony jest PIWN całej gospodarki polskiej w porównaniu z innymi krajami. Drugi dotyczy struktury geograficznej ŚRIZ, trzeci odnosi się do struktury branżowej polskiej ŚRIZ. Oryginalność/wartość – Niniejszy artykuł jest pierwszym w Polsce kompleksowym podejściem do ścieżki rozwoju inwestycji zagranicznych Polski, uwzględniającym szereg analiz przekrojowych. Na końcu artykułu przedstawiono również zbiór rekomendacji dla polityki gospodarczej oraz propozycji dla przyszłych badań naukowych.Purpose – The objective of the paper is to provide a summary of the research conducted by the authors on outward and inward foreign direct investment (FDI) from and into Poland. Research method – The studies presented in this paper rely on the concept of Investment Development Path (IDP) developed and extended by J.H. Dunning in the field of international business. This paper summarises the results of a series of earlier studies based on the analysis of net outward investment (NOI) position of Poland in an international and comparative context embracing various geographic and sectoral cross-sections. Results – The article first introduces Dunning’s IDP concept and reviews the findings of other studies investigating the said concept in different countries. Afterwards, the paper focuses on three analyses of the authors. The first one is devoted to the NOI position of the Polish economy as compared to other countries. The second one explores the geographic patterns of Poland’s IDP, while the third one looks at the sectoral trends of Poland’s IDP. Originality/value – This paper is arguably the first one to address the issue of Poland’s IDP in a complex manner, concentrating on a number of cross-sectional analyses. The paper concludes with a number of recommendations for economic policy and suggestions for future research.Marian Gorynia: [email protected] Nowak: [email protected] Trąpczyński: [email protected]ław Wolniak: [email protected] Gorynia - Wydział Gospodarki Międzynarodowej, Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny w PoznaniuJan Nowak - IBD Business School, WarszawaPiotr Trąpczyński - Wydział Gospodarki Międzynarodowej, Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny w PoznaniuRadosław Wolniak - Wydział Nauk Ekonomicznych, Uniwersytet WarszawskiAkoorie M., 1996, New Zealand: The Development of a Resource-rich Economy, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London-New York.Barry F., Goerg H., McDowell A., 2003, Outward FDI and the Investment Development Path of a Late-Industrializing Economy: Evidence from Ireland, “Regional Studies”, vol. 37(4), pp. 341-349.Bellak C., 2001, The Austrian Investment Development Path, “Transnational Corporations”, vol. 10(2), pp. 68-107.Boudier-Bensebaa F., 2008, FDI-Assisted Development in the Light of the Investment Development Path Paradigm: Evidence from Central and Eastern European Countries, “Transnational Corporations”, vol. 17(1), pp. 37-63.Buckley P.J., Castro F.B., 1998, The Investment Development Path: the Case of Portugal, “Transnational Corporations”, vol. 7(1), pp. 1-15.Campa J.M., Guillen M.F., 1996, Spain: a Boom from Economic Integration, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London.Clegg J., 1996, The United Kingdom: a Par Excellence Two-Way Direct Investor, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London.Dunning J.H., 1981, Explaining the International Direct Investment Position of Countries: Towards a Dynamic or Developmental Approach, “Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv”, vol. 117, pp. 30-64.Dunning J.H., 1986, The Investment Development Cycle Revisited, “Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv”, vol. 122 (4), pp. 667-676.Dunning J.H., 1997, Alliance Capitalism and Global Business, Routledge, London – New York.Dunning J.H., Lundan S.M., 2008, Institutions and the OLI Paradigm of the Multinational Enterprise, “Asia Pacific Journal of Management”, vol. 25(4), pp. 573-593.Dunning J.H., Narula R., 1994, Transpacific Direct Investment and the Investment Development Path: The Record Assessed, “Essays in International Business”, vol. 10, pp. 1-69.Dunning J.H., Narula R., 1996, Foreign Direct Investment and Governments: Catalysts for Economic Restructuring, Routledge, London – New York.Dunning J.H., Narula R., 1996a, The Investment Development Path Revisited: Some Emerging Issues, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments: Catalysts for Economic Restructuring, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London – New York.Dunning J.H., Narula R., 2002, The Investment Development Path Revisited, [in:] Theories and Paradigms of International Business Activity. The Selected Essays of John H. Dunning, Volume 1, Dunning J.H. (ed.), Edward Elgar Cheltenham, Northhampton.Dunning, J.H., Kim C.-S., Lin J.-D., 2001, Incorporating trade into the investment development path: a case study of Korea and Taiwan, “Oxford Development Studies”, vol. 29(2), pp. 145-154.Durán J.J., Úbeda F., 2001, The Investment Development Path: a New Empirical Approach, “Transnational Corporations”, vol. 10(2), pp. 1-34.Durán J.J., Úbeda F., 2005, The Investment Development Path of Newly Developed Countries, “International Journal of the Economics of Business”, vol. 12(1), pp. 123-137.Ferencikova S., Ferencikova S., 2012, Outward Investment Flows and the Development Path. The Case of Slovakia, “East European Economics”, vol. 50(2), pp. 85-111.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Tarka P., Wolniak R., 2012, Foreign direct investment in new EU member states from Central and Eastern Europe: an investment development path perspective, [in:] Internationalization of Emerging Economies and Firms, Marinov M., Marinova S. (eds.), Palgrave Macmillan, New York.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Trąpczyński P., Wolniak R., 2018, EU Countries from Central and Eastern Europe, and the Investment Development Path Model: A New Assessment, “Argumenta Oeconomica” (w druku).Gorynia M., Nowak J., Trąpczyński P., Wolniak R., 2018a, Geographic Patterns of Poland’s FDI: The Investment Development Path Perspective, “Post-Communist Economies” (w druku).Gorynia M., Nowak J., Trąpczyński P., Wolniak R., 2018b, Sectoral Dimensions of Poland’s Investment Development Path Revisited, 44th Annual Conference of the European International Business Academy (EIBA), 13-15 grudnia, Poznań.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Wolniak R., 2006, The investment development path of Poland revisited: a geographic analysis, Proceedings of the 32nd Annual Conference of the European International Business Academy (EIBA), 7-9 December, Fribourg, Switzerland.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Wolniak R., 2007, Poland and Its Investment Path, “Eastern European Economics”, vol. 45(2), pp. 52-74.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Wolniak R., 2008, Poland’s Evolving Net Outward Investment Position: a Cross-Industry Analysis, “Poznań University of Economics Review”, vol. 8(2), pp. 5-25.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Wolniak R., 2010, Investment Development Paths of Central European Countries, “Argumenta Oeconomica”, vol. 24(1), pp. 65-87.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Wolniak R., 2010a, Foreign direct investment of Central and Eastern European Countries, and the investment development path revisited, “Eastern Journal of European Studies”, vol. 1(2), pp. 21-36.Gorynia M., Nowak J., Wolniak S., 2009, Poland’s Investment Development Path: In Search of a Synthesis, “International Journal of Economic Policy in Emerging Economies”, vol. 2(2), pp. 153-174.Götz M., Trąpczyński P., 2016, The Investment Development Path – a bilateral perspective of Germany and Poland, “Przegląd Zachodni”, vol. 3(360), pp. 19-32.Graham E.M., 1996, The United States: Some Musings on its Investment Development Path, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London – New York.Kalotay K., 2008, Russian transnationals and international investment paradigms, “Research in International Business and Finance”, vol. 22 (2), pp. 85-107.Kłysik-Uryszek A., 2013, Ścieżka rozwoju inwestycji (koncepcja IDP). Doświadczenia Polski, „Przegląd Zachodniopomorski”, nr 3/2, s. 187-200.Kumar N., 1996, India: Industrialization, Liberalization, and Inward and Outward Foreign Direct Investment, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London – New York.Lall S., 1996, The Investment Development Path: Some Conclusions, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London.Maşca S.G., Văidean V.L., 2010, Outward FDI and the Investment Development Path in Romania, “Revista Romana de Economie”, vol. 31(2), pp. 49-64.Narula R., 1996, Multinational Investment and Economic Structure: Globalisation and Competitiveness, Routledge, London.Narula R., Dunning J.H., 2000, Industrial development, globalization and multinational enterprises: New realities for developing countries, “Oxford Development Studies”, vol. 2, pp. 141-167.Narula R., Dunning J.H., 2010, Multinational enterprises, development and globalization: some clarifications and a research agenda, “Oxford Development Studies”, vol. 38(3), pp. 263-287.Narula R., Guimón J., 2010, The Investment Development Path in a Globalised World: Implications for Eastern Europe, “Eastern Journal of European Studies”, vol. 1(2), pp. 5-19.Tolentino P.E.E., 1987, The Global Shift in International Production: The Growth of Multinationals from Developing Countries – The Philippines, unpublished PhD thesis, University of Reading.Tolentino P.E.E., 1993, Technological Innovation and Third World Multinationals, Routledge, London.Twomey M., 2000, The Canadian Experience with the Investment Development Path, Canadian Economic History Conference, 20-22 October, Stratfort, Ontario.van Hoesel R., 1996, Taiwan: Foreign Direct Investment and the Transformation of the Economy, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London – New York.Verma R., Brennan L., 2011, The investment development path theory: evidence from India, “International Journal of Emerging Markets”, vol. 6(1), pp. 74-89.Zhang H.-Y., van den Bulcke D., 1996, China: Rapid Changes in the Investment Development Path, [in:] Foreign Direct Investment and Governments, Dunning J.H., Narula R. (eds.), Routledge, London – New York.2(96)183

NAS-50 and NAS-40 : new scales for the assessment of self-control

In this paper, we present a new questionnaire for the assessment of self-control as an individual trait. We describe the process of construction of this assessment tool. We also report the results of relevant validation studies. The questionnaire has two independent versions, one based on self-reports (NAS-50) and another one based on other-reports (NAS-40). The first version consists of five subscales (10 items each), called Initiative and Persistence (IP), Proactive Control (PC), Switching and Flexibility (SF), Inhibition and Adjournment (IA), and Goal Maintenance (GM). Seven samples of participants (N = 934 altogether) took part in the validation study. The second version has not been split into subscales. Both versions obtained satisfactory indices of internal consistency, assessed with Cronbach’s alpha (for NAS- 50 total score a = .861, for the subscales a between .726 and .867; for NAS-40 a = .844). The NAS-50 and NAS-40 scores were highly correlated with other measures of self-control, including Tangney, Baumeister, and Boone’s (2004) self-control scale. They also proved to be entirely independent of general intelligence. In conclusion, both versions can be regarded reliable and valid enough, and therefore suitable for the assessment of trait self-control for research purposes

Guzy nadnerczy większe niż 5 cm — czym mogą być — analiza 139 przypadków

Introduction: There is an increasing number of adrenal being tumours discovered incidentally during imaging examinations performed for many different indications. Radiological findings suggesting adrenal pathology may be caused by true adrenal tumours or by other retroperitoneal masses. Generally, the larger the tumour, the higher the possibility of adrenal cancer. Material and methods: Analysis of our data — 139 operations performed over 11 years (2004–2014) in patients with tumours in the adrenal area larger than 5 cm. Results: The most common finding was adrenal cancer (25.2%), benign adenoma (24.5%), pheochromocytoma (12.9%), and metastatic cancer (10.1%). In total, there were 19 various histopathological diagnoses in this group. Conclusion: Although adrenal cancer is the most likely diagnosis in large adrenal tumours, a broad spectrum of various adrenal and retroperitoneal tumours with size more than 5 cm can be found in such patients.Wstęp: Obecnie obserwuje się zwiększoną liczbę guzów nadnerczy wykrywanych przypadkowo przy okazji badań obrazowych wykonywanych z różnych wskazań. Zmiany opisywane jako guzy nadnerczy mogą być zmianami samych nadnerczy, jak i innymi patologiami przestrzeni zaotrzewnowej. Wraz ze wzrostem wielkości guza rośnie ryzyko jego złośliwego charakteru. Materiał i metody: Przedstawiamy analizę 139 pacjentów z guzami nadnerczy większymi niż 5 cm, operowanymi w ciągu 11 lat w latach 2004–2014. Wyniki: Najczęstszymi rozpoznaniami były: rak kory nadnercza (25,2%), gruczolak (24,5%), guz chromochłonny (12,9%), zmiany przerzutowe (10,1%). Łącznie w tej grupie chorych postawiono 19 różnych rozpoznań histopatologicznych. Wniosek: Rak kory nadnercza jest najbardziej prawdopodobnym rozpoznaniem u chorych z dużymi guzami nadnerczy, jakkolwiek w tej grupie chorych można się spodziewać licznych, różnych, rzadszych patologii