The aim of the study was twofold. First it was to investigate sources and symptoms of foreign language listening anxiety (FLLA) among a very specific group of foreign language learners: proficient students of English (C1, C2) who were on the verge of completing their MA studies in the English department, with teaching English as their specialisation. The second goal was to create an instrument which would allow for a detailed analysis to be carried out of the factors giving rise to FLLA and identification of its symptoms. To achieve this aim, the author of this article proposed a new taxonomy of factors responsible for FLLA which served as a basis for constructing a questionnaire to investigate seven categories of FLLA sources and three categories of its symptoms. The research showed that the possibility of getting a poor mark, fast speech, mind drifting away while listening, and being evaluated were identified by participants as being the most common anxiety-provoking factors, although they were experienced less intensely than by less proficient students. As far as the effects of FLLA are concerned, the most common somatic symptoms were found to be a pounding heart and the mind going blank.

The article aims to discuss foreign language writing anxiety and present the results of the study which was to investigate whether writing apprehension can be observed among advanced adult learners of English. Analysing anxiety from a three dimensional perspective proposed by Lang (1971) the study revealed that advanced adult students most intensely experience cognitive anxiety whose most prevailing symptoms are panic, worry and elements of test anxiety. Somatic anxiety has also been observed in this group of participants with heart pounding, freezing up, mind going blank and jumbled thoughts as the most common symptoms. Finally, the research revealed that avoidance behaviour appears infrequently among advanced writers. The research results have been used as the basis for formulating pedagogical implications on how to reduce students’ writing apprehension.

The article reports the results of a study investigating the influence of gender on foreign language speaking anxiety (FLSA) of a group of second year university students. The research revealed no gender differences in the level of anxiety measured with the foreign language speaking anxiety scale (FLSAS) developed for the purpose of this study. Moreover, no statistically significant interaction was observed between gender and a) perceived difficulty of speaking skills, b) self-assessment of one’s speaking skills, c) self-efficacy level, d) general speaking anxiety, and the level of speaking-in-class anxiety. Some gender differences in the apprehension level were observed in the case of speaking activities and patterns of interaction: females were found to be more anxious while speaking in front of the class, in small groups and during presentations and role-plays. However, in the majority of investigated speaking tasks gender differences did not reach the level of significance.

The aim of the work was to analyze the effi ciency and reliability of pollutants removal (total suspended solids – TSS, BOD5, COD) in a collective wastewater treatment plant with activated sludge and hydroponic lagoon during its long term operation. The tested object was designed to treat wastewater in flowing through the sewerage system and wastewater delivered by the septic truck. The projected capacity of the treatment plant was 1200 m3∙d-1. The technological system for wastewater treatment consisted of a mechanical part, a flowing biological reactor working according to the BARDENPHO process, a secondary settling tank and a hydroponic lagoon. The efficiency and reliability of pollutants removal in the analyzed treatment plant were assessed on the basis of the data concerning influent and effluent wastewater collected during the years 2011–2018. On the basis of the measurements results, there were determined characteristic values of the selected pollution indicators in wastewater and the average efficiency of pollutants removal. The technological reliability of the wastewater treatment plant was assessed for the basic pollution parameters (BOD5, COD, TSS) in accordance with the elements of the Weibull’s reliability theory, with regard to normative values of the indicators specified in the Regulation of the Minister of Environment. The analysis was carried out using the Statistica 13.1 software. It was proved that in the wastewater treatment plant with an activated sludge and hydroponic lagoon the level of organic pollutants removal expressed by BOD5 was on average 99.5%, COD – 98.1% and TSS – 99.4%. The technological reliability of the system was 100% in terms of the removal of pollutants from the basic group, which means that during the long term operation (8 years) it provided failure-free operation and guaranteed the fulfillment of the requirements that can be found in the Polish law regulations concerning the analyzed pollutants.

This article presents a system of precise navigation for a visually impaired person which uses GPS navigation and an infrared sensor in the form of an infrared matrix. The presented system allows determining the orientation and distance of a blind person relative to a selected object, e.g. a wall or road edge. The application of the above solution facilitates a significant increase in the accuracy of determining the position of a blind person compared to the accuracy offered by commonly used ground satellite devices. The system uses thermal energy accumulated in the environment without the need to generate additional signals. The main parts of the system are a simple infrared matrix, data processing system and vibrating wristband. Messages and navigation warnings are sent to a blind person in the form of a vibration code. The article describes the method of determining the path of a specified width and distance from the wall of a building, curb, etc., along which a blind person should move. The article additionally describes the method of determining the orientation of a blind person depending on the selected object. Such a method facilitates verifying whether the visually impaired person is moving according to the indicated direction. The method can also be used to navigate mobile robots. Due to the use of natural energy for data registration and processing, the mobile navigation system can be operated for a long time without the need to recharge the battery.

The main aim of this paper is to analyse the effect of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) subsidies on technical efficiency of Polish dairy farms. We have distinguished several types of subsidies and provided an analysis to find out which types are most likely to engender systematic differences in technical efficiency. A balanced panel of microeconomic data on Polish dairy farms over an eight-year period (between 2004 and 2011), taken from the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN), is used. The translog production function is estimated by employing the Bayesian approach. The empirical results show that the elasticity of production with respect to livestock is the highest, whereas with respect to feed is the lowest. The mean technical efficiency in the covered period is 83%. The research reveals the negative effect of subsidies on technical efficiency.

Coal in Poland is an available conventional fuel providing energy security and independence of the country. Therefore, conventional energy generation should be based on coal with the optimal development of renewable energy sources. Such a solution secures the energy supply based on coal and the independence of political and economic turmoil of global markets. Polish coal reserves can secure the energy supply for decades. Coal will surely be important for energy security in the future despite the growing share of oil and gas in energy mix. The development of renewable power generation will be possible with the conventional energy generation offsetting volatile renewable power generation as Poland’s climate doesn’t allow for the stable and effective use of renewable energy sources. Considering the policy of the European Union with respect to emission reductions of greenhouse gasses and general trends as reflected in the Paris agreement in 2016, as a country we will be forced to increase renewable energy production in our energy mix. However, this process cannot impact the energy security of the country and stability and the uninterrupted supply of energy to consumers. Therefore seeking the compromise with the current energy mix in Poland is the best way to its gradual change with the simultaneous conservation of each of the sources of energy. It’s obvious that Poland can not be lonely energy island in Europe and in the world, which increasingly develops distributed energy and/ renewable technologies as well as energy storage ones. One can notice that without renewable generation and the reduction of coal’s share in country’s energy mix we will become the importer of electricity with raising energy dependence.

Pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS) is a benign disease that rarely undergoes malignant transformation. Th ere are two types of disease: localized (nodular tenosynovitis) and diff used (pigmented villonodular synovitis/tenosynovitis) with intra- or extra-articular locations. Th e second one is limited to synovium of the burse (PVNB) or tendon sheath (PVNTS). Th e intraarticular lesions are usually located in the knee, hip, ankle and elbow joints. Histologically, PVNS is a tenosynovial giant cell tumor, characterized by proliferation of two types of mononuclear cells — predominantly small, histiocyte-like cells and larger cells with dense cytoplasm, reniform or lobulated nucleus, with accompanying multinucleated giant cells and macrophages overloaded with hemosiderin that give typical image on MRI — currently selected as a gold standard for its diagnosis. Th e classic X-ray and CT are non-specifi c but similar to ultrasound should be used to evaluate disease progression and treatment response if radiotherapeutic and pharmacological methods were selected for treatment. An open arthroscopic surgery could also be applied in selected cases.