Odour nuisance as a consequence of preparation for circular economy

Purpose: The main objective of this article is to assess the intensity of odour nuisance in urban areas, as resulting from the current solid waste disposal management policy. Design/Methodology/Approach: During the study severaal parameters were evaluated: in-situ odour concentration using the NasalRanger method (expressed in ouE/m3), hedonic odour sensory quality and description of odours using predefined descriptors (the list of descriptors included 109 items). For the purpose of evaluation of the hedonic sensory quality, a five-point scale was used in accordance with VDI 3883 recommendation: 1- pleasant, 2-neutral, 3-unpleasant, 4-very unpleasant, and 5-extremely unpleasant. Findings: The analysis of the results has confirmed a considerable impact of the average air temperature on the occurrence of odour nuisance. Practical Implications: A solution that may translate into the reduction of odour nuisances in urban areas is a closed-loop economy, which has become an important issue for the future and competitiveness of enterprises. Reuse and recycling of materials are two of the main characteristics of a closed-loop economy. Originality/Value: On the basis of the conducted sensory tests it is plausible to state that the smell nuisance depends on numerous factors.peer-reviewe

Multitasking effects on individual performance : an experimental eye-tracking study

Purpose: The main objective of this research is to identify the impact of parallel performance of various tasks on the individual effectiveness. Moreover, a methodological goal was set for the research to explore the possibilities of using eye-tracking in the studies of multitasking. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study was conducted in the form of an experiment. All participants worked at the same computer station time was measured with Eye Tracker. Findings: It was confirmed that multitasking requires more time to accomplish tasks and deteriorates creativity, but not correctness of the answers in case of simple tasks. Interestingly, in case of multitasking under time pressure, the performance was worse. Practical Implications: Deeper understanding of the determinants and effects of multitasking on organizational and individual performance enables the adjustment of work organization and management style in order to achieve optimal results. Originality/Value: This paper brings new insights to the studies of multitasking not only in terms of the results of an experimental research, but also in terms of methodological concerns like eye-tracking as a new method of empirical diagnosis.peer-reviewe

Application of Internet of Things in the Movement of Goods at Customs Level during Covid-19 Pandemic

The rapid growth of trade volume makes it necessary on the one hand to increase the safety and security of international trade and, on the other hand, to leave the flow of goods unobstructed. The Covid-19 pandemic severely impacted the world goods and services trade which, after almost 2 years, are still not back to December 2019’s volumes. This chapter investigates some of the different suggestions proposed by international organizations to mitigate the pandemic effect on international trade, with a specific focus on trade facilitation measures such as international certifications (i.e., Authorized Economic Operator), risk management strategies and new technologies which are deeply transforming and helping the movement of goods at customs level. After reviewing published reports, this chapter aims to verify which are the most feasible solution to be implemented by the government at the customs level for improving customs operations enhancing their efficiency and effectiveness

Proposal for a Method of Constructing Inclusive Urban Green Infrastructure

Population ageing and growing awareness of the need for physical activity is one of the most important topics in Europe nowadays. But it should be noted that there is still no interdisciplinary and integrated approach to urban environment planning concerning physical activity of elderly people which would take into account special needs and possibilities of this particular group. Elderly people represent one of the groups which are threatened with social exclusion for different reasons. This article presents a proposal for a method of constructing a spatial system consisting of natural and anthropogenic elements of urban environment which can be interpreted as Inclusive Urban Green Infrastructure, enabling active and healthy ways of recreation, including the needs of elderly persons. It is based on the existing elements of the environment, but to create a well-functioning system in urban space it is necessary to introduce additional elements, both natural and man-created. The method refers to the spatial definition of areas for active recreation which meet the adopted, specific for elderly people, pro-health and functional requirements. Creation of such a system in cities would contribute to inclusion of this group into social life, thus boosting social coherence and integration across generations, and would also bring beneficial health results. Such infrastructure would also be of considerable importance for sustainable urban growth and improvement of the quality of urban space. The paper is based on source materials from the fields of science investigating health in connection with physiology of the process of ageing, influence of physical activity on this process, impact of negative features of the environment on the health of elderly people as well as urban space planning and development. The proposed methodology of constructing Inclusive Urban Green Infrastructure is presented on the example of Łódź, using data from the Geographic Information System (Topographic Objects Database) and population database for cities

Correlation between locally ordered (hydrogen-bonded) nanodomains and puzzling dynamics of polymethysiloxane derivative

We examined the behavior of poly(mercaptopropyl)methylsiloxane (PMMS), characterized by a polymer chain backbone of alternate silicon and oxygen atoms substituted by a polar pendant group able to form hydrogen bonds (−SH moiety), by means of infrared (FTIR) and dielectric (BDS) spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and rheology. We observed that the examined PMMS forms relatively efficient hydrogen bonds leading to the association of chains in the form of ordered lamellar-like hydrogen-bonded nanodomains. Moreover, the recorded mechanical and dielectric spectra revealed the presence of two relaxation processes. A direct comparison of collected data and relaxation times extracted from two experimental techniques, BDS and rheology, indicates that they monitor different types of the mobility of PMMS macromolecules. Our mechanical measurements revealed the presence of Rouse modes connected to the chain dynamics (slow process) and segmental relaxation (a faster process), whereas in the dielectric loss spectra we observed two relaxation processes related most likely to either the association−dissociation phenomenon within lamellar-like self-assemblies or the sub-Rouse mode (α′-slower process) and segmental (α-faster process) dynamics. Data presented herein allow a better understanding of the peculiar dynamical properties of polysiloxanes and associating polymers having strongly polar pendant moieties

Trendy nr 4/2016

W nowym numerze TRENDÓW piszemy o kompetencjach kluczowych – informatycznych, matematycznych, technicznych, umiejętności uczenia się, innowacyjności i przedsiębiorczości. W kwietniu 2017 r. zastanowimy się nad tym, jak kształtować pozostałe – umiejętność porozumiewania się w języku ojczystymi obcym, kompetencje społeczne i obywatelskie, świadomość i ekspresję kulturalną. Kompetencje kluczowe to kompetencje, które wspierają rozwój osobisty, włączanie w życie społeczne, aktywne obywatelstwoi możliwość znalezienia zatrudnienia. Proces kształtowania i rozwijaniaw sobie kompetencji kluczowych trwa przez całe życie i nigdy się niekończy. Autorzy artykułów w tym numerze udowadniają, że kształtowanie kompetencji kluczowych nie jest trudne – to codzienność i stały element pracy w szkołach

Enhanced pharmacological efficacy of sumatriptan due to modification of its physicochemical properties by inclusion in selected cyclodextrins

The study focused on the pharmacological action of sumatriptan, in particular its antiallodynic and antihyperalgesic properties, as an effect of cyclodextrinic inclusion of sumatriptan, resulting in changes of its physicochemical qualities such as dissolution and permeability through artificial biological membranes, which had previously been examined in vitro in a gastro-intestinal model. The inclusion of sumatriptan into β-cyclodextrin and 2-hydroxylpropylo-β-cyclodextrin by kneading was confirmed with the use of spectral (fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR); solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy with magic angle spinning condition, 1H and 13C MAS NMR) and thermal (differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)) methods. A precise indication of the domains of sumatriptan responsible for its interaction with cyclodextrin cavities was possible due to a theoretical approach to the analysis of experimental spectra. A high-performance liquid chromatography with a diode-array detector method (HPLC-DAD) was employed to determine changes in the concentration of sumatriptan during dissolution and permeability experiments. The inclusion of sumatriptan in complex with cyclodextrins was found to significantly modify its dissolution profiles by increasing the concentration of sumatriptan in complexed form in an acceptor solution compared to in its free form. Following complexation, sumatriptan manifested an enhanced ability to permeate through artificial biological membranes in a gastro-intestinal model for both cyclodextrins at all pH values. As a consequence of the greater permeability of sumatriptan and its increased dissolution from the complexes, an improved pharmacological response was observed when cyclodextrin complexes were applied

Analiza kosztów realizacji koncepcji zrównoważonego rozwoju w przedsiębiorstwie

The activity of enterprises has a significant effect on the country’s economic growth of domestic economy but on the other hand it can be the major cause of environmental hazards. In this context an approach of the government that should support and promote enterprise actions on sustainable development, and encourage and stimulate enterprises to undertake pro-ecological initiatives. When planning an effective strategy for achieving sustainable development in an enterprise the three main pillars (spheres) should be taken into account, namely economic (financial), ecological (environmental) and social (human). The achievement of sustainable development in an enterprise is connected with costs incurred for environmental management. The aim of this paper is to analyse costs borne by enterprises to improve environmental management efficiency. An analysis was carried out by using the AHP method.Realizacja koncepcji zrównoważonego rozwoju w przedsiębiorstwie związana jest z kosztami ponoszonymi na zarządzanie środowiskowe. Za cel artykułu przyjęto przeprowadzenie analizy kosztów przedsiębiorstwa ponoszonych na wzrost efektywności zarządzania środowiskowego. Analizę przeprowadzono z wykorzystaniem metody AHP

The evolution of political language on the example of prime-minister - Mateusz Morawiecki

Autorka pracy pt. Ewolucja języka politycznego na przykładzie wybranego polityka – Mateusza Morawieckiego bada czy w trzech okresach jego kariery politycznej następował postęp w dziedzinie jego przemówień. Część teoretyczna stanowi objaśnienie pojęć w zakresie komunikacji politycznej, retoryki polityki, kreowania wizerunku oraz erystyki. W części analitycznej autorka przy pomocy samodzielnie opracowanych narzędzi bada trzy okresy kariery politycznej prezesa Rady Ministrów, przypadające na lata 2015-2016, 2017-2018 oraz 2019. W zakończeniu przywołuje wnioski w jakich aspektach nastąpiła ewolucja języka politycznegoThe Author of The Political Evolution on the example of the indicated politician – Mateusz Morawiecki try to explore three periods of time in career of Polish Prime-Minister, especially in public speeches case. The theoretical part is the explanation basic definitions of political communication, political rhetoric, PR and eristic. The analytical part of the Bachelor thesis bases on the Author's instrument, which was especially created to explore these three periods of Prime-Minister's career - first includes 2015-2016 years, second 2017-2018 and third 2019 year. Final part is the Author's conclusion

Tendencies of the ristandardisation of the contemporary italian in e-mails.

Celem niniejszej pracy była weryfikacja istnienia odmiany neostandard języka włoskiego i obecności jej cech charakterystycznych w nieformalnych e-mailach. Dla przeprowadzonych badań duże znaczenie miało ujęcie społeczne tego zagadnienia. Z tego powodu, pracę otwiera opis podstawowych pojęć z zakresu socjolingwistyki. Następnie przedstawiono socjolingwistyczną sytuację Włoch oraz ogólne mechanizmy zmian językowych. Badania zostały przeprowadzone w odniesieniu do list cech włoskiego języka neostandard autorstwa Francesco Sabatiniego, Gaetano Berruto i Mirco Tavoni. Analizę przeprowadzono m.in. z wykorzystaniem oprogramowania do analizy tekstu - TaLTaC2. W pierwszej kolejności przeanalizowane została morfologia a następnie składnia badanego corpusu językowego. Osiągnięte rezultaty są interesujące. Corpus okazuje się być raczej konserwatywny w swoich wyborach językowych. Przyczyn tego faktu należy doszukiwać się w wysokim poziomie wykształcenia nadawców wiadomości oraz użyciu kanału pisanego. Dla większości cech neostandard można też wykazać na podstawie naszego corpusu na jakim poziomie ewolucji znajduje się ona w tej konkretnej odmianie języka.The aim of this paper was to verify the existence of the neostandard variety of Italian and the presence of its characteristic features in the informal e-mails. The social point of view was very important for the reasearch. That’s why, the thesis begins with a description of some of the key concepts of sociolinguistics. Further, we present Italy‘s socio-linguistic situation and the linguistic mechanisms of the movement of a language.Our thesis‘ guiding thread is a list of the neostandard traits by Francesco Sabatini, Gaetano Berruto and Mirko Tavoni. The analysis was performed, among others, by applying a software for text analysis - TaLTaC2. The presence of neostandard characteristics, the morphological ones and the syntactic ones, was analyzed. Our research led to interesting results. The corpus was fairly conservative. The high level of education and the use of written means of comunication by senders are what caused such a result. For several neostandard traits we can also indicate the moment of change in which a specific point of the linguistic systen may be found.Questo lavoro ha avuto come obiettivo la verifica della esistenze della varietà neostandard della lingua italiana e la presenza dei suoi tratti caratteristici nelle mail informali. Nella ricerca è stata molto importante l’ottica sociale di questo fenomeno. Per questo motivo la tesi comincia con la descrizione dei concetti chiave di sociolinguistica. Successivamente viene presentata la situazione sociolinguistica dell’Italia e i meccanismi linguistici di movimento di una lingua.La nostra tesi prende come il filo conduttore le liste dei tratti neostandard di Francesco Sabatini, Gaetano Berruto e Mirko Tavoni. L’analisi è stata svolta poi tra l’altro con l’applicazione del software per analisi del testo – TaLTaC2. Viene quindi annalizzata la presenza dei tratti neostandard, prima morfologici poi sintattici.La nostra ricerca ha portato i risultati interessanti. Il corpus è risultato abbastanza conservativo. Le cause di questo fatto sono l’alto grado di istruzione dei mittenti e l’uso del canale scritto. Per diversi tratti neostandard si può indicare anche la fase del cambiamento in cui si trova il determinato punto del sistema linguistico