Religijność młodych Niemców i nauczanie religii w niemieckich szkołach państwowych

W artykule zaprezentowano dane empiryczne obrazujące system wartości młodych Niemców oraz pozycję, jaką zajmuje w nim religijność. Powołano się w nim na badania nad młodzieżą (Shell Jugendstudie), które zrealizowano w latach 2015 i 2019 (przedostatnie i ostatnie opublikowane studia nad młodzieżą). Dokonano również deskrypcji podstawowych aktów prawnych, których zapisy odnoszą się do nauczania religii w szkołach państwowych. Pokazane zostały również przykładowe rozwiązania dotyczące nauczania religii i etyki praktykowane w poszczególnych krajach związkowych Niemieckiej Republiki Federalnej

Deep eutectic solvents for purification of waste cooking oil and crude biodiesel

The goal of this work was to explore the applicability of deep eutectic solvents in biodiesel production process. Biodiesel was produced from waste cooking oil via base-catalysed transesterification. The efficacy of two base catalysts KOH and NaOH on the conversion of triglycerides into biodiesel was tested. Eutectic mixtures DES 1 (K2CO3  : C2H6O2  = 1 : 10) and DES 2 (C5H14ClNO  : C2H6O2 = 1 : 2) were prepared. DES 1 was used for feedstock deacidification and DES 2 for biodiesel purification via extraction. Effects of DES 2 to biodiesel ratio and the extraction duration on free glycerol removal were tested. Samples were analysed using FTIR and 1H NMR spectroscopy. Synthesis of biodiesel was carried out for 3 h at 60 ° C with mass ratio KOH : methanol : oil = 1 : 40 : 100. DES 2 was effective for purification of biodiesel. Mass ratios 0.5:1 and 1:1 proved best and 45 minutes of extraction was enough to reduce free glycerol and increase the content of fatty acid methyl esters

Deep eutectic solvents for purification of waste cooking oil and crude biodiesel

The goal of this work was to explore the applicability of deep eutectic solvents in biodiesel production process. Bi-odiesel was produced from waste cooking oil via base-catalysed transesterification. The efficacy of two base cata-lysts KOH and NaOH on the conversion of triglycerides into biodiesel was tested. Eutectic mixtures DES 1 (K2CO3 : C2H6O2 = 1 : 10) and DES 2 (C5H14ClNO : C2H6O2 = 1 : 2) were prepared. DES 1 was used for feedstock deacidification and DES 2 for biodiesel purification via extraction. Effects of DES 2 to biodiesel ratio and the extraction duration on free glycerol removal were tested. Samples were analysed using FTIR and 1H NMR spectroscopy. Synthesis of biodiesel was carried out for 3 h at 60 ° C with mass ratio KOH : methanol : oil = 1 : 40 : 100. DES 2 was effective for purification of biodiesel. Mass ratios 0.5:1 and 1:1 proved best and 45 minutes of extraction was enough to reduce free glycerol and increase the content of fatty acid methyl esters

Learning Sustainability with EPS@ISEP – Development of a Water Disinfection System

Proceedings of the 8th International Symposium on Project Approaches in Engineering Education (PAEE), Guimarães, 2016The European Project Semester (EPS) is a one-semester capstone project/internship programme offered to engineering, product design and business undergraduates by 18 European engineering schools. EPS aims to prepare future engineers to think and act globally by adopting project-based learning and teamwork methodologies. The EPS@ISEP programme – the EPS programme provided by ISEP – the School of Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute of Porto – started in 2011 and has since welcomed 3rd and 4th year mobility students during the spring semester. In particular, sustainable development is a pervasive concern within EPS projects. It was in this context that, in 2012, a team of EPS@ISEP students decided to develop a water disinfection system. While the technical goal of the project was to design and develop a fluid disinfection system for removing bacteria, viruses and seaweeds, the overall objective was far more ambitious: to help students learn, develop and adopt sustainable practices for their future professional life. The system was intended to be a simple and effective solution for water treatment and recycling. At a larger scale, the project contributes to the preservation of the planet's fresh water resources and to the improvement of the population’s health by eliminating harmful microorganisms from the water. This challenge was, by itself, motivational and exposed the team to new learning experiences. The team found several approaches for water treatment and, after a detailed analysis, decided to adopt Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation for the removal of microorganisms. This multidisciplinary real world problem drove the team during the semester. The team surveyed and compared different methods for water cleansing and recycling, chose one approach and, then, designed, built and tested the prototype. In addition, the students also addressed marketing, sustainability as well as the ethic and deontological issues regarding the proposed solution while developing crosscultural understanding, teamwork and communication skills. The project provided an excellent opportunity to foster the concept of sustainable development amongst students

Deep Eutectic Solvents for Purification of Waste Animal Fats and Crude Biodiesel

U ovom je radu istražena mogućnost primjene niskotemperaturnih eutektičkih otapala za ekstrakcijsku deacidifikaciju otpadnih životinjskih masti te uklanjanje glicerola i glicerida iz sirovog biodizela. Istraživanje je uključilo odabir povoljnog katalizatora te masenog omjera katalizatora, metanola i masti koji bi rezultirali najvećom konverzijom triglicerida u metilne estere masnih kiselina. Definirano je potrebno vrijeme pročišćavanja sirovog biodizela te optimalan maseni omjer otapala i sirovog biodizela. Ekstrakcijskom deacidifikacijom pomoću niskotemperaturnog eutektičkog otapala na bazi kalijeva karbonata uspješno je reducirana kiselost sirovine uz relativno mali utrošak otapala (maseni omjer otapala i masti: 0,25 : 1,00) i kratko vrijeme trajanja procesa (30 min). Kalijev hidroksid pokazao se kao učinkovitiji katalizator. Udio katalizatora u reakcijskoj smjesi utječe više na konverziju masti od udjela metanola. Udio glicerola i glicerida reduciran je ekstrakcijom pomoću niskotemperaturnog eutektičkog otapala na bazi kolin klorida na vrijednosti manje od standardom propisane vrijednosti (EN 14214:2019). Odabrano se otapalo pokazalo selektivnim zbog toga što nije došlo do redukcije udjela metilnih estera. Pri masenom omjeru otapala i biodizela 1 : 1 i 90 min trajanja ekstrakcije postignuti su najbolji rezultati. Pročišćeni biodizel također zadovoljava standard kvalitete s obzirom na udio estera, gustoću i viskoznost.Given the fact that biodiesel produced from oil used in the food industry is not competitive with fossil-based diesel, it is necessary to use cheaper raw materials for its production. Thereby, waste edible oil, by-products of the manufacturing process of edible oils, inedible oils, and waste animal fat are considered the economically acceptable raw materials. The goal of this work was to investigate the applicability of deep eutectic solvents for extractive deacidification of waste animal fats and removal of glycerol and glycerides from crude biodiesel. Extractive deacidification of waste animal fat was conducted using deep eutectic solvent potassium carbonate – ethylene glycol (1 : 10, mol.), and it was used in mass ratio 1 : 4 (solvent : fat), at 60 °C for 30 min. Total acid number was reduced from 26.63 to 1.1 mg KOH/g fat. After purification of the feedstock, biodiesel was synthesised with different catalysts (KOH and NaOH), and KOH exhibited better conversion; therefore it was chosen for further experiments. In order to define the optimal reaction conditions, the influence of mass ratio catalyst : methanol : fat on the conversion of triglycerides into fatty acid methyl esters was investigated. At all reaction conditions, high quality biodiesel was obtained, i.e., the ester content was above the EN 14214 limit (96.5 %). The influence of catalyst load was greater than of methanol. At the highest concentration of catalyst, neutralisation of free fatty acids occurred. Biodiesel synthesised at 1 : 40 : 100 (KOH : methanol : fat) was chosen as the best, and was used for further experiments – extraction of glycerol and glycerides from crude biodiesel. For that purpose, deep eutectic solvent choline chloride – ethylene glycol (1 : 2.5, mol.) was used. The influence of mass ratio solvent : biodiesel and extraction duration was investigated. Increase in mass ratio and extraction duration resulted in a slight increase in ester content. To confirm the removal of glycerol and unreacted glycerides, samples of biodiesel before and after extraction were analysed by gas chromatography. Three samples after extraction were chosen – one at the lowest and one at the highest mass ratio of solvent to biodiesel, and one at the highest duration of extraction. Crude biodiesel contained too high concentrations of free and total glycerol. After extraction for 90 min, a significant reduction was observed – the extraction efficiencies for free glycerol, diglycerides, triglycerides, and total glycerol were: 90.77 %, 13.19 %, 10.43 %, and 21.59 %, respectively. The content of glycerol and glycerides after extraction was well below the EN 14214 limit. Density and viscosity of biodiesel were within the range defined by the European standard EN 14214

Whole-genome informed circulating tumor DNA analysis by multiplex digital PCR for disease monitoring in B-cell lymphomas: a proof-of-concept study

IntroductionAnalyzing liquid biopsies for tumor-specific aberrations can facilitate detection of measurable residual disease (MRD) during treatment and at follow-up. In this study, we assessed the clinical potential of using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of lymphomas at diagnosis to identify patient-specific structural (SVs) and single nucleotide variants (SNVs) to enable longitudinal, multi-targeted droplet digital PCR analysis (ddPCR) of cell-free DNA (cfDNA).MethodsIn 9 patients with B-cell lymphoma (diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and follicular lymphoma), comprehensive genomic profiling at diagnosis was performed by 30X WGS of paired tumor and normal specimens. Patient-specific multiplex ddPCR (m-ddPCR) assays were designed for simultaneous detection of multiple SNVs, indels and/or SVs, with a detection sensitivity of 0.0025% for SV assays and 0.02% for SNVs/indel assays. M-ddPCR was applied to analyze cfDNA isolated from serially collected plasma at clinically critical timepoints during primary and/or relapse treatment and at follow-up.ResultsA total of 164 SNVs/indels were identified by WGS including 30 variants known to be functionally relevant in lymphoma pathogenesis. The most frequently mutated genes included KMT2D, PIM1, SOCS1 and BCL2. WGS analysis further identified recurrent SVs including t(14;18)(q32;q21) (IGH::BCL2), and t(6;14)(p25;q32) (IGH::IRF4). Plasma analysis at diagnosis showed positive circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) levels in 88% of patients and the ctDNA burden correlated with baseline clinical parameters (LDH and sedimentation rate, p-value <0.01). While clearance of ctDNA levels after primary treatment cycle 1 was observed in 3/6 patients, all patients analyzed at final evaluation of primary treatment showed negative ctDNA, hence correlating with PET-CT imaging. One patient with positive ctDNA at interim also displayed detectable ctDNA (average variant allele frequency (VAF) 6.9%) in the follow-up plasma sample collected 2 years after final evaluation of primary treatment and 25 weeks before clinical manifestation of relapse.ConclusionIn summary, we demonstrate that multi-targeted cfDNA analysis, using a combination of SNVs/indels and SVs candidates identified by WGS analysis, provides a sensitive tool for MRD monitoring and can detect lymphoma relapse earlier than clinical manifestation

A synthesis of evidence for policy from behavioural science during COVID-19

Scientific evidence regularly guides policy decisions1, with behavioural science increasingly part of this process2. In April 2020, an influential paper3 proposed 19 policy recommendations (‘claims’) detailing how evidence from behavioural science could contribute to efforts to reduce impacts and end the COVID-19 pandemic. Here we assess 747 pandemic-related research articles that empirically investigated those claims. We report the scale of evidence and whether evidence supports them to indicate applicability for policymaking. Two independent teams, involving 72 reviewers, found evidence for 18 of 19 claims, with both teams finding evidence supporting 16 (89%) of those 18 claims. The strongest evidence supported claims that anticipated culture, polarization and misinformation would be associated with policy effectiveness. Claims suggesting trusted leaders and positive social norms increased adherence to behavioural interventions also had strong empirical support, as did appealing to social consensus or bipartisan agreement. Targeted language in messaging yielded mixed effects and there were no effects for highlighting individual benefits or protecting others. No available evidence existed to assess any distinct differences in effects between using the terms ‘physical distancing’ and ‘social distancing’. Analysis of 463 papers containing data showed generally large samples; 418 involved human participants with a mean of 16,848 (median of 1,699). That statistical power underscored improved suitability of behavioural science research for informing policy decisions. Furthermore, by implementing a standardized approach to evidence selection and synthesis, we amplify broader implications for advancing scientific evidence in policy formulation and prioritization

A synthesis of evidence for policy from behavioural science during COVID-19

Scientific evidence regularly guides policy decisions 1, with behavioural science increasingly part of this process 2. In April 2020, an influential paper 3 proposed 19 policy recommendations (‘claims’) detailing how evidence from behavioural science could contribute to efforts to reduce impacts and end the COVID-19 pandemic. Here we assess 747 pandemic-related research articles that empirically investigated those claims. We report the scale of evidence and whether evidence supports them to indicate applicability for policymaking. Two independent teams, involving 72 reviewers, found evidence for 18 of 19 claims, with both teams finding evidence supporting 16 (89%) of those 18 claims. The strongest evidence supported claims that anticipated culture, polarization and misinformation would be associated with policy effectiveness. Claims suggesting trusted leaders and positive social norms increased adherence to behavioural interventions also had strong empirical support, as did appealing to social consensus or bipartisan agreement. Targeted language in messaging yielded mixed effects and there were no effects for highlighting individual benefits or protecting others. No available evidence existed to assess any distinct differences in effects between using the terms ‘physical distancing’ and ‘social distancing’. Analysis of 463 papers containing data showed generally large samples; 418 involved human participants with a mean of 16,848 (median of 1,699). That statistical power underscored improved suitability of behavioural science research for informing policy decisions. Furthermore, by implementing a standardized approach to evidence selection and synthesis, we amplify broader implications for advancing scientific evidence in policy formulation and prioritization