The subject of this work was the investigation of zeolite as a sorbent of toxic gases. In Nizny Hrabovec in the Slovak republic, two layers of zeolite with the active component clinoptilolite can be found. The study presented here investigated the ability of this natural zeolite to reduce polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and NO emissions from engine exhaust. Exhaust gases from combustion engines include toxic components such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are a component of hydrocarbons causing harmful influence on life forms. The experiments focused on the potential reduction of these toxic gases based on the sorption and catalytic properties of natural zeolite. Also observed was the influence of chemical adjustment including incorporation of certain metal elements. Chemical analysis by mutually independent technologies served to observe the sorption of PAH with carcinogenic properties on the natural zeolite tested. The experiments showed that chemical modification improved the sorption and catalytic properties of natural zeolite. The PAH were analysed in an extract of the contaminated, thermally-activated natural zeolite and modified zeolite after washing with ammonium chloride, cobalt chloride and copper sulphate. The study also presents results of NO measurements obtained by testing the filter-sorptive automobile system.

Resistance genes in response to root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne javanica) infection suppress one or more of several critical steps in nematode parasitism and their reproduction rate. The reaction of seven commercial tomato genotypes to M. javanica infection was investigated under greenhouse conditions. Current results classified these genotypes as: three resistant (Jampakt, Malika and Nema Guard), one moderately resistant (Fayrouz), and three susceptible (Castle Rock, Super Marmande and Super Strain B). Except Nema Guard, nematode infection significantly reduced plant height, fresh and dry weights of shoots of the other tomato genotypes. Leaf area was significantly reduced for all examined tomato genotypes except Malika and Nema Guard. Total chlorophyll was reduced in all tested tomato genotypes except Jampakt. Infection parameters of M. javanica and their population were significantly reduced on all nematode-resistant tomato genotypes compared to the susceptible genotypes. Also, the maturation rate of M. javanica was suppressed in the resistant genotypes compared to the susceptible genotypes. These results were confirmed by histological study that illustrated a delay in nematode development and their maturation. Total phenolic content significantly increased in nematode infected roots of both resistant and susceptible genotypes except Malika. Among non-infected roots, Malika showed the highest level of total phenols while after M. javanica infection, Nema Guard revealed the highest level of total phenols. Among infected roots, the highest level of total phenols was recorded in Castle Rock. These results suggested that using nematode-resistant tomato genotypes could provide an efficient and nonpolluting method to control root-knot nematodes.

During the Polish Antarctic Geodynamic Expeditions, 1979-91, a wide geophysical and geological programme was performed in the transition zone between the Drake and South Shetland microplates and the Antarctic Plate, in West Antarctica. In the Bransfield Strait area, and along passive continental margin of the Antarctic Peninsula, 20 deep seismic sounding profiles were made. The interpretation yielded two - dimensional models of the crust and lithosphere down to 80 km depth. In the coastal area between the Palmer Archipelago and the Adelaide Island, the Earth's crust has a typical continental structure. Its thickness varies from 36 to 42 km in the coastal area, decreasing to about 25-28 km toward Pacific Ocean. In the surrounding of Bransfield Strait, the Moho boundary depth ranges from 10 km beneath the South Shetland Trench to 40 km beneath Antarctic Peninsula. The crustal structure beneath the Bransfield Strait trough is highly anomalous. Presence of a high-velocity body, with longitudinal seismic wave velocities Vp > 7,0 km/s, was detected there in the 6-32 km depth range. This inhomogeneity was interpreted as an intrusion, coinciding with the Deception-Bridgeman volcanic line. In the transition zone from the Drake Passage to the South Shetland Islands, a seismic boundary in the lower lithosphere occurs at a depth ranging from 35 to 80 km. The dip of both the Moho and this boundary is approximately 25° towards the southeast, indicating the direction of subduction of the Drake Plate lithosphere under the Antarctic Plate. Basing on the results of four Polish Geodynamic Expeditions, the map of crustal thickness in West Antarctica is presented.

Human brain is “the perfect guessing machine” (James V. Stone (2012) Vision and Brain, Cambridge, Mass: The MIT Press, p. 155), trying to interpret sensory data in the light of previous biases or beliefs. Bayesian inference is carried out by three complex networks of the human brain: salience network, central executive network, and default mode network. Their function is analysed both in neurotypical person and Attention Deficit Disorder. Modern human being having predictive brain and overloaded mind must develop social identity, whose evolution went probably through three stages: social selection based on punishment, sexual selection based on reputation, and group selection based on identity.