Water is one of the most important components of the environment, having a direct effect on the maintenance of life on the Earth. In this paper, analysis of groundwater level variations, water balance and all the parameters included in these quantities, i.e. precipitation, evapotranspiration, surface run-off and subsurface run-off, were performed in the area of the Sudety Mountains for the period of November 2002 - October 2015. The groundwater level variations were computed on the basis of the mean Terrestrial Water Storage (TWS) values determined from Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) observations and Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLD AS). TWS data have been determined with a spatial resolution of one degree and temporal resolution of one month. According to the results, groundwater level variation can be approximately determined by water balance changes (with reverse sign). Specifically, for the Sudety area a high average stability of total water storage over the period of past 13 years and decline in groundwater level by about 13 cm (approximately 1 cm/year) was detected., Zofia Rzepecka, Monika Birylo, Joanna Kuczynska-Siehien, Jolanta Nastula and Katarzyna Pajak., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
The study concentrates on analysis of heterogeneous rock mass deformations in the final years of underground coal extraction and during the revitalisation period after the end of mining. The research has been carried out in the Walbrzych Coal Basin where underground mining ceased at the end of the 20th Century. In the paper results of initial stages of ground deformation studies on a fragment of the Walbrzych mining grounds concerning analysis of benchmark height changes in a selected levelling line has been described. The results indicate ground subsidence in the period immediately after end of coal extraction and change to a steady uplift of the ground a few years later (2000-2008). Abnormal changes of heights in tectonic fault zones have also been observed. These could be related to heterogeneous rock mass reaction during the revitalisation period., Jan Blachowski, Stefan Cacoń and Wojciech Milczarek., and Obsahuje bibliografii
GPS permanent stations KRAW, KATO and ZYWI are part of so called Active Geodetic Network which covers entire area of Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB) in Poland and forms precise reference frame for geodetic and geodynamic applications. Moreover the above mentioned stations belong to EUREF Permanent Network. The stations, as datum points, play important role in precise positioning and geoid determination in area of USCB. The study of the stability of these points is one of the main components in precise monitoring of ground deformation in mining areas. The analysis of stability of permanent GPS stations KRAW, KATO and ZYWI are based on the coordinate time series obtained from the EUREF weekly solutions. The relative coordinate time series of weekly solutions for the vectors KRAW - KATO, KRAW - ZYWI , KATO - ZYWI are presented. The consistency, linearity, seasonal variations and jumps in the relative coordinate time series are discussed., Władysław Góral and Jacek Kudrys., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Using GNSS method, fixed points of an observation network were repeatedly surveyed on the surface of the undermined area. Below the surface, at the depth of c. 1 km, there were four mining panels exploited subsequently. The main reaction of the surface points to the changes in the rock massif and the movement of the points were different, according to their surface position, local geo-mechanical conditions etc. This paper analyses the time-dependence of the surface points mining subsidence and horizontal movements on the progress of the exploitation., Hana Doležalová, Vlastimil Kajzar, Kamil Souček and Lubomír Staš., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
High temperature alters the internal microstructure of rocks and consequently changes the physical and mechanical properties of rocks. Many studies have been carried out to examine the transformations in the microstructures of rocks under high temperature through near infrared spectroscopy (NIR), Raman spectroscopy, or thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA). The current review synthesizes the data from a number of literatures and summarizes the major transformations of silica rocks under high temperature. The analysis shows that silica rocks starts to lose the water adsorbed in open pores upon heating at about 150 °C. At 200-300 °C, the reaction between SiOH (silanole) in the rocks generates new Si-O-Si bonds as well as H2O, and decreases the open pores. The rocks undergo volume expansion at >550 °C, and the volume contracts and forms new micro pores or cracks which play an important role in the evacuation of the water., Jishi Geng, Qiang Sun, Yuchun Zhang and Yuliang Zhang., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI), a remote sensing technique, is used for detecting surface deformation in the cities of Prague and Ostrava. PSI is able to detect vertical movements with an accuracy of less than 1 mm for a long time series of the SAR data, but the maximum detectable rate of movement is only a few centimetres per year. This technique is quite suitable for detecting recent movements in most Prague localities. On the other hand, in Ostrava and its surroundings, affected by undermining, where subsidences (1992-2006) amount to decimetres per year, movements cannot be fully detected by the PSInSAR technique. The paper presents results of analysing PSI data for two localities in Prague and one locality in the Ostrava areas. The localities are strictly situated in built-up areas with many suitable reflectors. Data from the ERS-1/2 and ENVISAT satellites covering a 13-year period for the Prague (1992-2005) and a 14-year period for the Ostrava (1992-2006) area were used. Annual movement velocities and time-series of reflectors were determined. At these three localities, where different types of movements were identified, the application and possible limitations of PSI in urban areas are shown., Pavel Kadlečík, Vladimír Schenk, Zuzana Seidlová and Zdeňka Schenková., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The main objective of this paper is to explain how the application of various interpolation methods influence the determination of vertical crustal movements at any given point. The paper compares several methods of interpolation and verifies their suitability, including kriging, minimum curvature, nearest neighbor, natural neighbor, polynomial regression, inverse distance to a power, and triangulation with linear interpolation. The calculations show that the chosen interpolation method has significant influence on the final result of the study. Nearest neighbor method was chosen to be the best., Kamil Kowalczyk, Jacek Rapinski and Marek Mroz., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Anemia frequently complicates chronic kidney disease (CKD). We investigated here the effect of adenine-induced CKD in rats on erythrocyte count (EC), hematocrit (PCV) and hemoglobin (Hb) concentration, as well as on the activity of L-γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT) and the concentrations of iron (Fe), transferrin (Tf), ferritin (F), total iron binding capacity (TIBC) / unsaturated iron binding capacity (UIBC) and hepcidin (Hp) in serum and erythropoietin (Epo) in renal tissue. Renal damage was assessed histopathologically, and also by measuring the serum concentrations of the uremic toxin indoxyl sulfate (IS), creatinine, and urea, and by creatinine clearance. We also assessed the influence of concomitant treatment with gum acacia (GA) on the above analytes. Adenine feeding induced CKD, accompanied by significant decreases (P<0.05) in EC, PCV, and Hb, and in the serum concentrations of Fe, Tf, TIBC, UIBC and Epo. It also increased Hp and F levels. GA significantly ameliorated these changes in rats with CKD. A general improvement in the renal status of rats with CKD after GA is shown due to its antiinflammatory and anti-oxidant actions, and reduction of the uremic toxin IS, which is known to suppress Epo production, and this may be a reason for its ameliorative actions on the indices of anemia studied., B. H. Ali, M. Al Za'Abi, A. Ramkumar, J. Yasin, A. Nemmar., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is a type of thrombotic microangiopathy, in the course of which some patients may develop chronic kidney disease (CKD). It is clinically important to investigate the markers of a poor prognosis. The levels of angiotensinogen (AGT) and interleukin-18 (IL-18) in serum and urine were evaluated. Study was conducted in 29 children with a history of HUS. Serum and urine AGT concentration was significantly higher in children after HUS as compared to the control group. No differences depending on the type of HUS and gender were noted. The serum concentration of IL-18 in children after HUS was significantly lower, whereas in urine did not differ significantly between the sick and healthy children. A negative correlation between the concentration of AGT in serum and albuminuria in patients after HUS was detected. The results indicate that the concentration of AGT in serum and urine in children after HUS increases, which may indicate the activation of the intrarenal renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. The statement, that AGT may be a good biomarker of CKD after acute kidney injury due to HUS requires prospective studies with follow-up from the acute phase of the disease on a larger group of patients. Reduced IL-18 serum concentration in children after HUS with no difference in its urine concentration may indicate a loss of the protective effects of this cytokine on renal function due to previously occurred HUS., K. Lipiec, P. Adamczyk, E. Świętochowska, K. Ziora, M. Szczepańska., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The study deals with Anglophone and francophone identities in Africa on the example of Cameroon. In contemporary Africa, though quite hidden, one may encounter two ways of how both identities come into latent or open conflict. Language policies in Africa still show an inevitable impact and heritage of colonial past when European languages entered the African linguistic, political, social and cultural arenas causing further problems expecially in multi-ethnic societies or in states which came to existence by a junctiona of two different entities. This is exactly the case of Cameroon., Jan Záhořík., and Obsahuje bibliografii