Survival problems of archaeophytes in the Polish Flora

These considerations have been based on the updated list of archaeophytes appearing in Poland. The extent of endangerment has been assessed for particular species according to the updated IUCN classification. Non-threatened and invasive species have also been taken into consideration. A number of quite fundamental changes have been made to the classification, as compared to the publication of Zając et al. of 2009

Some regularities in the distribution of kenophytes in the Polish Carpathians and their foreland

The Polish Carpathians and their northern foreland are a rewarding object for the kenophyte distribution research. The study, using the cartogram method, showed that the number of kenophyte species decreases with increasing altitude. Only few kenophytes were found in the lower forest zone. This regularity concerns also the species that reach higher altitudes in the mountains of their native lands. A number of species migrated into the Carpathians through rivers and streams. River valleys generate many open habitats, which are easily colonized by kenophytes due to the lack of competition. In the Carpathians, towns used to be founded in the mountain valleys and this was also a favouring factor of kenophyte propagation. The arrangement of mountain ranges in the Polish Carpathians, including their foreland, hindered the migration of some species and allowed to discover the possible migration routes into the area covered by research. Tracing these migration routes was possible only for those species that have not occupied the whole available area yet. Additionally, the study indicated the most dangerous invasive species in the Polish Carpathians and their foreland

Extinct and endangered archaeophytes and the dynamics of their diversity in Poland

A full list of extinct and endangered archaeophyte species for Poland is presented according to IUCN categories. The species are analysed in respect of their origin and syntaxonomic classification. Endangered archaeophytes should be cultivated in botanical gardens and open-air museums, and next reintroduced to natural sites

The role of rivers and streams in the migration of alien plants into the Polish Carpathians

The Carpathians are among the regions of Poland that are generally less susceptible to invasive alien plants. The factor limiting the spread of the species of this group is, above all, the mountain climate. Even species originating from other mountain regions, e.g. the Himalayan Impatiens glandulifera, have their localities only at low elevations, in the Carpathian foothills. In most cases, alien plant species migrate into the Carpathians from the lowlands. The river valleys provide the migration corridors used by alien species in the course of their progress into new territories of the upper mountain localities. The situation along some mountain rivers, where invasive alien species dominate the native vegetation, is dramatic. Their spread is facilitated not only by easy diaspore transport but also by some anthropogenic factors, such as, river engineering and the transformation of riparian habitats and progressing devastation. Currently, we can observe some invasive alien plants Ñin statu nascendiî, developing a new, secondary range in the Carpathians (e.g. Chaerophyllum aureum) or at the foothills, along the Wis≥a (Vistula) and San river valleys (e.g. Eragrostis albensis). For some species, cities were the destination for the first stage of future migration, e.g. Acer negundo. In the Carpathians, where many national parks and nature reserves are located, the continuous monitoring of the spread of invasive alien plants should be one of the principal activities of botanists

The influence of habitat conditions on the performance of two invasive, annuals : impatiens glandulifera and Bidens frondosa

The investigations of habitat conditions on the variability of selected population features in the two invasive, annuals with different life-history traits were conducted in the years 2008-2010, in the Polish part of the Carpathian Mountains in communities characterized by the gradual decrease of light availability. The individuals of Impatiens glandulifera were surveyed along roadsides, in willow thickets, as well as inside and along the edges of the riparian forest, whereas the individuals of Bidens frondosa were observed in riverside gravels characterized by a different species composition. Each year, the number and density of individuals (stems) occurring in the particular sites were examined, as well as the height and the fruit production in 30 randomly chosen stems were surveyed. Moreover, the number of seeds per fruit, the diaspore dimensions and the seedling recruitment in laboratory conditions were examined during each season. As the values of height of individuals, number of fruits per stem, number of seeds per fruit, as well as the seedling abundance in some groups were not consistent with the normal distribution and the variances were not homogeneous, the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test was used in statistical analyses. Much greater number and density of individuals of Impatiens glandulifera were found in riparian forest, than in willow thickets and along the roadsides. In all sites the number and density of individuals increased steadily in consecutive seasons. The great number and density of Bidens frondosa individuals observed in shady and partly shady sites during the first year of studies raised in the second year and subsequently dramatically decreased in the third season. The lowest number and density of individuals noted in the first season in unshaded site raised substantially in subsequent years. The height of stems, as well as seed and fruit production of both taxa diminished with a decrease of height of neighboring plants. The seed dimensions presented the spatial and temporal variability, whereas the number of seedlings among consecutive years and in successive sites did not differ. The considerable height of the individuals of Impatiens glandulifera, high production of large fruits and seeds in open and dry roadside areas can contribute to more effective ballistic dissemination, while substantial seedling recruitment enables the colonization of new, perhaps more advantageous sites. On the other hand, lower individual height, as well as fruit and seed production and considerable seedling emergence allow the population to last and to gradually extend the area in forest communities. The considerable abundance of the high-statured Bidens frondosa individuals, substantial production of large capitula and achenes contribute to long persistence of populations in open and sun-lit sites. The gradually decrease in the height of the stems, achene number and size observed in partly-shaded and shaded places might allow to long-distance dispersal of seeds by animals, while substantial seedling recruitment might contribute to establishment in new areas

Taxonomist - Bogumił Pawłowski (1898-1971)

Despite a signifi cant progress in the development of taxonomic research methods which are presently dominated by molecular methods, it is the specifi c man’s talent which is decisive for work quality in the fi eld of taxonomy. The variety in the world of vascular plants is enormous and it is diffi cult to fi nd the genetically established differences between the populations. It requires a well developed sense of observation and the ability of segregation of multi-trait systems. Professor Bogumił Pawłowski was exactly such a taxonomist showing that specifi c talent. Floristic research in Beskid Sądecki was his school where he recognized the variety of plants in their natural habitats. He was engaged very early by his master Władysław Szafer in creating large works which were necessary for the botany in Poland. He becomes a co-author of the fi rst edition of “Polish Plants” and then he gets engaged in describing subsequent families in the multi-volume “Flora of Poland” which was initiated by Marian Raciborski. He also carries out intensive phytosociological research in the Tatra Mountains, along with his master and colleagues. It gives him the opportunity to recognize the fl ora of those mountains and to discover new species for them. After the II World War he becomes the main initiator of preparations for the second edition of “The Polish Plants”, i.e. the work which was rather new as it covered the post-war territory of Poland, whereby most of the book must have been changed and supplemented. At nearly the same time he works at the probably most important work of his life, i.e. “Flora of the Tatra Mountains” whose fi rst volume covering Pteridophytes, Gymnosperms and Angiosperms, is published in mid fi fties. Unfortunately, the work ended at that point, although the Professor had gathered materials for that during his whole life. In the beginning he is a coeditor, jointly with Władysław Szafer, of subsequent volumes of “The Flora of Poland”, then he becomes its editor himself, and he edits the fi nal volumes together with his disciple Adam Jasiewicz. He works out the whole families or genera for particular volumes. His greatest contribution covers the works on Alchemilla genus, where he is a highly esteemed monographer in the European scale. Those research works were carried out not only in Poland but also in other mountain ranges of our continent. Professor’s position in the fi eld of the European systematics made the editors of “Flora Europaea” engage him as their regional associate, where he works out some particular genera for the fi rst three volumes. Professor Bogumił Pawłowski showed wide interests in the fi eld of taxonomy. He published a number of works, mainly in Polish magazines, in the Latin language which he had mastered perfectly. It is worthwhile to mention the rich herbarium collections in the context of his achievements in the fi eld of systematics. It is a taxonomist’s workshop and, in principle, it will be possible to fully appreciate the Professor’s contribution in the development of taxonomy both in Poland and worldwide, as soon as they have been newly elaborated

Fenomenologiczne wątki w psychologii poznania : badania Danuty Gierulanki nad przyswajaniem pojęć i rozumieniem tekstu

Renesans badań nad umysłem, którym nowych impulsów (idei, metod) dostarczyła współczesna kognitywistyka, niespodziewanie aktualnymi czyni dawniejsze badania nad czynnościami (aktami poznawczymi) i stanami umysłu prowadzone przez psychologów. Należą do nich z całą pewnością prace krakowskiej badaczki Danuty Gierulanki, która przez ponad trzy dekady ubiegłego wieku (głównie w latach czterdziestych, pięćdziesiątych, i sześćdziesiątych) prowadziła w duchu fenomenologicznym badania z zakresu problematyki uznanej później za centralną przez wspomniany tu interdyscyplinarny nurt badań nad ludzkim poznaniem (cognitive science). Procesy nabywania pojęć w ich naturalnym kontekście (lekcja szkolna) oraz rozumienie tekstu stanowiły przedmiot badań D. Gierulanki, podejmowany — kolejno — w pisanej pod kierunkiem Władysława Heinricha rozprawie doktorskiej O przyswajaniu pojęć geometrycznych (1948), w publikacji książkowej pod podobnym tytułem (wydanej przez PWN w 1958 r.) oraz w późniejszej rozprawie habilitacyjnej Zagadnienie swoistości poznania matematycznego (1962)

Terminologia w tekstach naukowych z zakresu językoznawstwa na przełomie XIX i XX wieku

This article endeavours to describe one of the most significant qualities of the academic style, that is, the semantic system that has been shaped within it. The author aims at discussing the terms used in old academic publications in the field of linguistics (from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries). Since one of the key features of the terminological system is its changeability, the comparison of vocabulary used in texts written in different periods is believed to be justifiable. Basing on the analysis of the research material, the author characterises tendencies in the development of marked vocabulary in old scientific publications, taking into account the way it has been introduced in the text

Składnia dawnych tekstów naukowych z zakresu nauk humanistycznych (na przykładzie artykułów językoznawczych i pedagogicznych) – wstępne rozpoznanie problemu

This article endeavours to describe the syntactic system of the old academic publications in the field of linguistics and pedagogy (from 20th century). The research material is constituted by six texts issued in different periods of the development of selected disciplines. In this article it is assumed that the time of texts creation and the specificity of scientific discipline have an impact on the syntactic system. Basing on the analysis of the research material, the author has verified the hypotheses. The following elements have been analysed: relation between simple sentences and compound sentences and parataxis and hypotaxis. The author has also established the functions which are performed by given sentences that are used in early linguistic and pedagogical publications