Fin-de-siècle Central European scholarship takes on a different complexion, if it is approached from the perspective of politically responsible action. The article analyses neither scholarship involved into party politics nor apolitical scientific and scholarly activities but focuses on a specific approach: The scholars I am concerned with in this article strove for the strict division of science and politics; they nevertheless remained committed to political objectives such as improving social conditions. The approaches of Bernard Bolzano, Ernst Mach, Alois Riegl, Sigmund Freud, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Otto Neurath, Hans Kelsen are taken into account.

To investigate the mechanical properties of tunnel lining concrete under different moderate-low strain rates after high temperatures, uniaxial compression tests in association with ultrasonic tests were performed. Test results show that the ultrasonic wave velocity and mass loss of concrete specimen begin to sharply drop after high temperatures of 600°C and 400°C, respectively, at the strain rates of 10‒5s‒1 to 10‒2s‒1. The compressive strength and elastic modulus of specimen increase with increasing strain rate after the same temperature, but it is difficult to obtain an evident change law of peak strain with increasing strain rate. The compressive strength of concrete specimen decreases first, and then increases, but decreases again in the temperatures ranging from room temperature to 800°C at the strain rates of 10‒5s‒1 to 10‒2s‒1. It can be observed that the strain-rate sensitivity of compressive strength of specimen increases with increasing temperature. In addition, the peak strain also increases but the elastic modulus decreases substantially with increasing temperature under the same strain rate.

Genetic research is playing an increasingly important role in cardiology. Inherited cardiovascular diseases which include cardiomyopathies, channelopathies, and familial thoracic aorta aneurysms and dissections, are major causes of sudden death in patients under 35 years of age, while familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is one of the leading causes of myocardial infarction before the age of 50. Genetic testing can determine the implementation of appropriate pharmacotherapy (e.g., for FH, cardiomyopathies, channelopathies), the implantation of a cardioverterdefibrillator (for channelopathies), or the timing of surgical procedures (for aortic diseases). Genetic test results are also crucial for the families of patients with hereditary cardiovascular diseases, as they allow for the identification of those at risk of sudden cardiac death. In this context, it is also important to create legal provisions for post-mortem molecular studies in patients who have died suddenly and are suspected of having a genetic etiology of the disease. The diagnosis of hereditary cardiovascular diseases requires the cooperation of a team of experts: a cardiologist, a radiologist, a clinical geneticist, and a diagnostician with the support of well-equipped laboratories. Leading role of the cardiologist is paramount in the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases, particularly those not part of a malformation syndrome, and the cardiologist should also have the authority to decide on the necessity of genetic testing. Unfortunately, in Poland, there are still no comprehensive regulations on genetic testing that would organize the requirements for genetic diagnostics, the rights of doctors, diagnosticians, and patients.