The objective of this paper is to derive the characteristics of an effective governance framework ensuring incentives for conducting a prudent fiscal policy.We study this problem with the use of econometric tools and a sample of 28 European Union Member States between 2003 and 2017. By looking at specific reforms and measures, not only we verify the synthetic effectiveness of fiscal constraints but also we analyse specific elements of the governance framework.Our study shows that fiscal balances are affected not only by the economic cycle, but, among others, by the level of public debt and its cost. We find that the existence of numerical fiscal rules, in that specifically revenue and expenditures rules, their strong legal entrenchment, surveillance mechanisms, sanctions, and flexibility with respect to business cycle have a significant impact on curbing deficits.

The present article takes up one of the needs present in today’s Cognitive Linguistics: applying its theoretical assumptions to a detailed study of the phenomena encountered in particular languages. The instrument tested for this purpose is one of the aspects of construal offered within Cognitive Grammar – scope (Langacker 1987, 2000, 2008, etc.). It is applied to the description of several English temporal constructions in order to check both the range of phenomena which it can refer to as well as the efficiency and accuracy of such an account.

The article discusses an application, within the sphere of foreign language pedagogy, of one of the psychological mechanisms omnipresent in language – construal (Lan-gacker 2008: 4-5, Tomasello 2003: 13). In the fi rst part, the article takes up two major issues: a more detailed characterization of the construal aspects in question: profi le and base, as well as the problems often encountered in pedagogical grammar while referring to the uses of one of the English tenses – Present Perfect: the number of uses, the manner of defi ning them, and the level of schematicity at which the description should take place. The second part of the article is devoted to an analysis of the uses of Present Perfect by means of the presented Cognitive Grammar tools. In the conclu-sions this analysis is reviewed from the perspective of the above-mentioned problems and some pedagogical implications fl owing from the model proposed by the author are discussed.

Today’s discussions concerning metonymy abound in distinctions that may be far from obvious for those who would like to get acquainted with the major achievements and directions of research in this field. That is why the article aims to trace the path that metonymy has covered within Cognitive Linguistics from its initial characterisation in the publication by Lakoff and Johnson (1980) to the present day. The article attempts to provide a general historical perspective on the phenomenon trying to indicate and discuss both the major trends as well as the consecutive stages in the development of the cognitive thought on metonymy. The author identifies different directions of expansion of the phenomenon, enumerates different types of metonymy, and its most frequently discussed dimensions. The article is concluded with an attempt to summarize the key elements of progress that has been made in understanding metonymy since 1980.

The article aims to discuss the levels of application, efficiency, as well as potential dangers and methods of avoiding them which can be encountered while applying metaphors in formulating a business strategy. The theory underlying the research is the Conceptual Theory of Metaphor by Lakoff and Johnson (1980) and the analysis was based on an article presenting a new business strategy – the Blue Ocean Strategy devised by Kim and Mauborgne (2005a).

Extraction of natural resources such as shale gas can disrupt the internal structure of rock, leading to the release of vast amounts of energy in the form of earthquakes. Is the risk of such human-induced quakes high in Poland? Scientists from the PAS Institute of Geophysics are trying to find the answer.

Measuring cosmic distances is one of the most important, fascinating and difficult challenges facing astronomers today. The objective is not just to identify the distances between objects in space – such distances are also key to finding out how our Universe is structured and how it evolves. They also evidence the amount of energy emitted by objects and makes it possible to determine their nature.

The article presents two floating architectural structures developed in response to the needs of local communities. The first one – a river barge “Louise-Catherine” – was adapted in 1929 according to the design of Le Corbusier, one of the most influential architects of the first half of the 20th century, for the purposes of Salvation Army shelter docked on the Seine in Paris and it continued its operation as such until 1994. The second one – Bertha von Suttner state junior high school – was developed in a shipyard to serve as a school, which purpose it has been fulfilling since 1994 while moored on the Danube River in Vienna. The author’s intention was to describe both structures while highlighting common features as well as differences, and to analyse them in view of certain selected aspects. The background for the projects’ development was described account taken of different reasons and circumstances. Issues under analysis include decision making processes in terms of architectural programme, functions and spatial developments. The analysis also includes technical aspects such as structural developments, material and infrastructure – in terms of the floating Viennese school – account taken on safety of using a barge as a school establishment. A separate part of the article is dedicated to the issue of social reception, and incase of the former Salvation Army shelter – actions aimed at the protection of a historic structure.

For many centuries, Upper Silesia was the scene of intensive language contact between a continuum of West Slavic dialects (or the Polish and Czech languages) and German colonists, mainly in the 13th century. The process of colonisation under German town law led to the establishment of hundreds of new towns and villages, some with German names. The oldest historical sources for Upper Silesia are Liber fundationis episcopatus Vratislaviensis (Book of endowments of the Bishopric of Wrocław), dating back to c 1305, as well as registers of such endowments from c 1325. German medieval place names in Upper Silesia are a minority, and no such town names can be found in many areas. This article is an analysis of the percentage of German place names in relation to all place names [in Upper Silesia]. It defines the areas with the largest number of such names and contains a linguistic analysis of the names. Interestingly, the area with the largest number of German place names is the Duchy of Teschen, with the castellany of Oświęcim (which was once part of the Duchy of Teschen), the neighbouring part of the Duchy of Racibórz and the western part of the Duchy of Opole. In the Duchy of Bytom (the Siewierz part of which no longer belongs to Upper Silesia), German place names were not very common. For the areas covered by the Diocese of Kraków, the names of parish priests are known as well. The presence of the German name of parish priests in towns and villages with German place names half a century from their establishment indicates that German people may have lived there, especially because it is certain in some cases that they did.

This paper presents a non-invasive measurement method for simultaneous characterization of diameter and refractive index of transparent fibres. The method is based on scattering of a polychromatic beam of light by a side-illuminated fibre under study. Both quantities of interest are inversely calculated from the scattering far-field region in the vicinity of the primary rainbow. The results of practical measurements are examined with the use of a novel optical system for laboratory-level tests. An analysis of prediction errors for 20– 120 μm thick fibres having various refractive indices helps to assess the outcome of the measurement data. The results show a clear route to improve the measurement process in on-line industrial process control.

The multidisciplinary journal Polish Polar Research is bibliometrically analysed as a medium of international scientific communication in light of current citation data from SCI Ex 1996 -2002. Despite its world-wide distribution and distinctive visibility in the polar society, the journal 's two-years impact factor is invariably not very high (below 0.35) because the cited papers are mostly from the 1980s. The increasing participation of foreign (co)authors in the Polish quarterly, paired with the slowly growing number of citing articles in SCI Ex are already promising steps to the immediate information transfer and subsequently improved brief-term journal impact. Citation links with polar investigators from Germany,and also from Great Britain, Spain and the USA are clearly manifested, especially in fields of marine Antarctic ecology and biology. Even if Polish Polar Research may successfully compete with several low-rated journals from different countries indexed in SCI Ex in related categories, its continuing internationalization is urgently required.