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The study was conducted using a mixed methods approach combining lesson observations and interviews with teachers. A total of 204 hours of observation in 34 classes of 7th and 8th graders (aged 13–14 in the Polish primary school system) were conducted to investigate teachers’ behaviour that may exacerbate gender stereotypes and gender bias in the classroom. Moreover, the 25 female teachers conducting the observed lessons were interviewed to identify: (i) teachers’ awareness of stereotypical behaviours of girls and boys during classes; (ii) teachers’ awareness of possible causes of these behaviours; (iii) teachers’ responses to these behaviours, including actions that could deepen gender stereotypes; and (iv) teachers’ sensitivity to the gender polarised content of school textbooks. The results of the study show that teachers, although they are aware of the existence of gender stereotypes and declare their willingness to counteract them, tend to strengthen rather than eliminate these stereotypes with the strategies and actions undertaken. They have difficulty recognising possible reasons for the occurrence of stereotypical student behaviour and have little awareness of the gender-polarised content of school textbooks. The results of the study are discussed, inter alia, in light of the concept of the vicious circle of stereotypes and self-fulfilling prophecies in education.

Understanding canvas paintings as physical systems is fundamental to develop evidence-based environmental specifications for museums. A number of tests were carried out to determine mechanical properties of canvas, canvas sized with animal glue and animal glue-based ground layer (gesso) as a function of relative humidity (RH). The mechanical properties of the canvas samples tested exhibited an anisotropy dependent on the measurement direction, being the stiffness corresponding to the weft direction greater than the warp and diagonal ones. Sizing the canvas with a layer of animal glue significantly increased its modulus of elasticity while the anisotropy of mechanical properties was kept in the composite material. The application of an animal glue-based ground layer on sized canvas increased the elasticity modulus of the system by another order of magnitude (~ 2 GPa) whereas the anisotropy of the material disappeared. The measurements were carried out in a wide range of RH from 30 to 90%. An increase in RH caused a decrease in the material stiffness. Cracking of the gesso layer, which is often responsible for the formation of cracks in paintings, was observed at strains of the order of a few thousandths. Swelling of glue sizing dominated the moisture-induced swelling of the composite material in the less stiff warp direction, completely overriding the shrinkage of the untreated canvas. In contrast, the swelling of the composite material in the stiffer weft direction was much smaller than for pure glue alone, being clearly affected by the textile.

Despite significant progress in cancer therapy, cancer is still the second cause of mortality in the world. The necessity to make quick therapeutic decisions forces the development of procedures allowing to obtain a reliable result in a quick and unambiguous manner. Currently, detecting predictive mutations, including BRCA1 , is the basis for effectively treating advanced breast cancer. Here, we present new insight on gene mutation detection. We propose a cheap BRCA1 mutation detection tests based on the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) or quartz crystal microbalance with energy dissipation (QCM-D) response changes recorded during a hybridization process of an oligonucleotide molecular probe with DNA fragments, with and without the BRCA1 mutation. The changes in the morphology of the formed DNA layer caused by the presence of the mutation were confirmed by atomic force microscopy. The unique property of the developed SPR and QCM tests is really short time of analysis: ca. 6 min for SPR and ca. 25 min for QCM. The proposed tests have been verified on 22 different DNA extracted from blood leukocytes collected from cancer patients: 17 samples from patients with various BRCA1 gene mutation variants including deletion, insertion and missense single-nucleotide and 5 samples from patients without any BRCA1 mutation. Our test is a response to the need of medical diagnostics for a quick, unambiguous test to identify mutations of the BRCA1 gene, including missense single-nucleotide (SNPs).

This paper presents results that show the effect of hydrothermal carbonization and subsequent cold plasma jet treatment with helium and argon on the structure and sorption properties of a material—spent brewery grain. Treatment of activated carbon, with a cold atmospheric plasma jet, was used comparatively. The effect of activation on the pore structure of the materials was carried out by the volumetric method at low pressure (N2, 77 K). The specific surface area as well as the total pore volume, average pore size, and pore size distribution were determined using different theoretical models. A high improvement in the sorption capacity parameter was obtained for hydrochars after cold atmospheric plasma jet treatment with an increase of 7.5 times (using He) and 11.6 times (using Ar) compared with hydrochars before cold atmospheric plasma jet treatment. The increase in specific surface area was five-fold (He) and fifteen-fold (Ar). For activated carbon, such a large change was not obtained after plasma activation. Regardless of the gas used, the increase in structural parameter values was 1.1–1.3.

Thermal effects accompanying gas sorption on micro- and mesoporous materials provide unique insights into the type, course, and efficiency of sorption. In this study, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with different topologies and chemical structures were synthesized and investigated: HKUST-1, Ni-MOF-74, UiO-66, and MIL-140A. These MOFs were characterized structurally and sorptively with respect to selected greenhouse gases (GHGs). Sorption capacities for CO2 and CH4 were determined at several temperatures and measurement pressures, and the maximum sorption capacity was determined using the Langmuir-Freundlich model. Thermal effects accompanying adsorption were quantified through the isosteric heat of adsorption parameter. For each MOF, the values of isosteric heat of adsorption were higher for CO2 than for CH4. The values of this parameter was determined in the following order: HKUST-1 > Ni-MOF-74 > UiO-66 > MIL-140A. Energy homogeneity of the adsorbent surface was observed in nearly all cases, except for UiO-66 during CO2 adsorption. Changes in the determined isosteric heat of adsorption of CO2 with increasing sorption capacity were in the range of 5-15 kJ/mol, while for CH4 they ranged from 1.4 to 17 kJ/mol, respectively. The level of thermal selectivity of CO2 over CH4 was determined in the following order: UiO-66 (1.9) > Ni-MOF-64 (1.7) > MIL-140A (1.5) > HKUST-1 (1.1).

The aim of the study was to analyze creativity profiles and understanding of creativity in Poland and Japan. The study included 597 participants (233 Polish and 364 Japanese). Qualitative and quantitative analyses were carried out (mixed method). We identified the existence of five different creativity profiles and ten categories for defining creativity, with significant differences in frequency between the two countries. The obtained results are discussed from the perspective of intercultural differences and the individualism / collectivism theory (Hofstede, 1983).

As part of the work, studies of the rock’s permeability to gases were carried out using the original measuring apparatus, which makes it possible to study gas seepage through a porous medium under confining pressure conditions corresponding to in situ. Samples of selected sandstone, sapropelic coal, marble, granite, limestone, and spongiolite rocks were used for permeability studies. The permeability of these rocks was determined in relation to helium (He) and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) in various values of the confining pressure: 1, 5, 10, 15, and 30 MPa. The obtained variability ranges of permeability coefficients allowed to assign the tested samples to particular classes, from poor and tight permeable rocks, where k ∞  < 1 mD and k ∞  < 0.1 mD (granite, marble), through good permeable rocks with a value of 10 <  k ∞  < 100 mD (limestone, spongiolite, sandstone), to very good permeable rocks with coefficient k ∞  > 100 mD (coal). The Klinkenberg slippage effect was twice as large for He compared to CO 2 , and as permeability increased, the slippage effect disappeared. The Walsh model was used to analyze the obtained results, based on which it was found that the highest impact of effective stress was observed for a granite sample, the smallest for sapropelic coal, where an increase in effective stress by about 30 MPa reduced the permeability of coal to He by 50% and to CO 2 by 30%. Changes in the structural properties of rocks as a result of subjecting them to gas seepage processes under confining pressure conditions were also examined. Open porosity, specific surface area, pore size distribution, and mean pore diameter in the samples were determined. In most of the studied rocks, a decrease in porosity and a reduction in the pore space of the rocks were observed after permeability tests under confining pressure conditions.

The study was conducted using a mixed methods approach combining lesson observations and interviews with teachers. A total of 204 hours of observation in 34 classes of 7th and 8th graders (aged 13-14 in the Polish primary school system) were conducted to investigate teachers' behaviour that may exacerbate gender stereotypes and gender bias in the classroom. Moreover, the 25 female teachers conducting the observed lessons were interviewed to identify: (i) teachers' awareness of stereotypical behaviours of girls and boys during classes; (ii) teachers' awareness of possible causes of these behaviours; (iii) teachers' responses to these behaviours, including actions that could deepen gender stereotypes; and (iv) teachers' sensitivity to the gender polarised content of school textbooks. The results of the study show that teachers, although they are aware of the existence of gender stereotypes and declare their willingness to counteract them, tend to strengthen rather than eliminate these stereotypes with the strategies and actions undertaken. They have difficulty recognising possible reasons for the occurrence of stereotypical student behaviour and have little awareness of the gender-polarised content of school textbooks. The results of the study are discussed, inter alia, in light of the concept of the vicious circle of stereotypes and self-fulfilling prophecies in education.

The presence of various pesticides in natural streams and wastewater is a significant environmental issue due to their high toxicity, which causes harmful consequences even at low quantities. One cost-effective method to remove these pollutants from water could be through adsorption using an inexpensive, easily obtained adsorbent—biochar. The presented research demonstrates the efficacy of applying biochar obtained from wheat grains to eliminate alachlor from water. The sorption properties of the biochar and the likely removal mechanisms are defined. The study found that the biochar removed 76–94% of alachlor, depending on the initial concentration of the pesticide in water. The maximum removal of alachlor (94%) using biochar occurred at an initial pesticide content of 1 mg/L. Both the pseudo-second-order kinetic (R2 = 0.999) and the Langmuir isotherm models (R2 = 0.996) effectively characterized the elimination of alachlor by wheat grain biochar. The biochar’s maximum adsorption capacity for alachlor was 1.94 mg/g. The analyzed biochar, with its micropores and various surface functional groups, was able to effectively adsorb alachlor and trap it within its structure.

The paper presents research on the influence of grain size of selected coals and their structural parameters on the diffusion coefficient and methane sorption isotherms. Two coals from Polish hard coal mines, differing in the coal rank, were tested. Sorption isotherms for methane were determined. An unconventional sequence of pressures 0→0.1→0→0.5→0→1.5 MPa was employed to assess the speed of achieving sorption equilibrium at different pressures. The studies of CH4 accumulation kinetics were performed on various grain classes of the tested coals. Both the sorption capacity of coal and the diffusion coefficient proved to be highly sensitive to the experimental methodology. Critical measurement parameters in terms of determining the diffusion coefficient concerning the assumptions of the Crank model were indicated. The influence of the equivalent radius of coal grain on the process kinetics was demonstrated. The stepwise pressure increase factor was examined in the context of minimising the impact of sorption isotherm non-linearity on the results. The importance of the width of the grain class of coals was determined to reduce their maceral inhomogeneities. These factors are the most common reason that makes it difficult to quantitatively compare diffusion coefficient values.