Due to its dynamic growth during the last decade, crowdfunding has become a kind of phenomenon among the methods of investing and raising capital. There is also a growing interest in crowdfunding among researchers and scientists. This article attempts to systematise the concepts and classifications of crowdfunding on the basis of the constantly developing literature on the subject. The paper analyses existing crowdfunding definitions to embed the concept more accurately among other models concerning value co-creation. The author highlights the features of crowdfunding that are often perceived as the essence of the trend, by citing various definitions created in recent years. A secondary goal is to propose an extension of English-to-Polish translations of terminology and to add arguments to the discussion while offering inspiration for further research. The main research method used is a descriptive method supported by a critical analysis of the literature on the subject.

The paper presents the reflections of representatives of American neorealism on the topic of unipolar distribution of power in the international system. The author discusses the concepts of the balance of power and hegemonic stability, which served as foundations on which the referenced authors formulated own hypotheses regarding potential for durability and peacefulness of a system dominated by one superpower. The article also presents opinions of various neorealists on the international situation post-Cold War and distribution of power in the modern world.

The following paper focuses on the issue of Polish nuclear program and the prospect of its prompt implementation within the framework of the project on strategy regarding Poland’s energy security until 2040. The text also shows the development of this program since the 1950s and discusses types of reactors which could be used in the potential nuclear power plant blocks.

Artykuł podejmuje problematykę relacji pomiędzy malarstwem a muzyką. Punktem wyjścia jest analiza obszernego, liczącego kilkadziesiąt obrazów, cyklu malarskiego Włodzimierza Pawlaka, zatytułowanego Partytury do baletu Sokrates (2002-2008). Wspólne dla wszystkich obrazów tego cyklu jest zastosowanie przez malarza motywu pięciolinii. Na poszczególnych obrazach pojawiają się ponadto malowane w typie „gorącej abstrakcji” plamy barwne tworzące zróżnicowane efekty kolorystyczno-ekspresyjne, które nadają obrazom charakter zapisu emocji związanych z przeżyciem muzycznym. W dalszej części artykułu przywołane są niektóre aspekty muzycznych fascynacji w malarstwie wybranych artystów reprezentujących tradycję modernizmu, a szczególnie abstrakcji (Kandinsky, Mondrian). Autor zwraca też uwagę na postępujący od XIX w. proces nasycania słownika teorii i krytyki artystycznej terminami muzycznymi, odwołując się do klasycznych autorów, takich jak Delacroix, Baudelaire’a i Pater. W konsekwencji autor spogląda na malarski cykl Włodzimierza Pawlaka jako na przykład współczesnej kontynuacji romantycznych w swych źródłach ideałów estetycznych, zwracając uwagę na ich ahistoryczny, nie wyczerpany do dziś potencjał.

Chemical Munitions Search & Assessment (CHEMSEA) project has performed studies on chemical weapon (CW) detection, sediment pollution and spreading as well as biological effects of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) dumped in the Baltic Sea. Results suggest that munitions containing CWAs are more scattered on the seafloor than suspected, and previously undocumented dumpsite was discovered in Gdansk Deep. Pollution of sediments with CWA degradation products was local and close to the detected objects; however the pollution range was larger than predicted with theoretical models. Bottom currents observed in the dumpsites were strong enough for sediment re-suspension, and contributed to the transport of polluted sediments. Diversity and density of the faunal communities were poor at the dumping sites in comparison to the reference area, although the direct effects of CWA on benthos organisms were difficult to determine due to hypoxic or even anoxic conditions near the bottom. Equally, the low oxygen might have affected the biological effects assessed in cod and caged blue mussels. Nonetheless, both species showed significantly elevated molecular and cellular level responses at contaminated sites compared to reference sites.

A new and efficient method of the synthesis of tributyl-β-keto- and tributyl-β-alkoxycarbonylalkylidenephosphorane via treatment of tributyl[(trimethylsilyl)- methylene]phosphorane with acid chlorides or chloroformate is described. These compounds have been studied less often than their triphenyl analogues (Maryanoff and Reitz, Chem Rev 1989, 89, 870; Taillefer and Cristau, Top Curr Chem, 2003, 229, 41; Appel, Loos, and Mayr, J Am Chem Soc 2009, 131, 704) because trialkyl-stabilized ylides are very reactive, highly perishable, and more difficult to synthesize. This paper also presents the reaction of in situ generated tributyl-β-keto- and tributyl-β-alkoxycarbonylalkylidenephosphoranes with p-nitrobenzaldehyde as a model aldehyde to obtain α,β-unsaturated ketones and esters. All reactions result in Wittig products in a completely E-stereoselective manner.

The mechanism of the reaction of tributyl[(trimethylsilyl)methylene]phosphorane with benzaldehyde and its p-substituted analogues has been examined. It has been found that the electronic nature of the p-substituents in aromatic aldehydes strongly influences the stereochemical and kinetic outcome of the Peterson olefination whereas temperature substantially affects their Hammett correlation. This indicates that the Peterson olefination is a multistep reaction involving the formation of at least an oxyanion/betaine and a carbanion as intermediates. In turn, moderate Z-selectivity might be the result of “steric approach intermediate control”; however, E-selectivity seems to result from the silicon–oxygen interaction and interactions of steric substituents in competing erythro- and threo-betaines.

This paper presents the results of geochemical and acoustic investigations of sediments in the Polish sector of the southern Baltic Sea. Its objective was to indicate areas of gas bubble formation and the occurrence of methane. Over 3000 nautical miles of transects were recorded using a variety of hydroacoustic instruments, and five coring points were selected for further analyses of pore waters (CH4, SO42−, H2S, NH4+, total alkalinity) and sediments (grain size distribution, Corg, Ntot, LOI and WC). Gas turned out to be present at shallow depths in different forms such as recent and buried pockmarks, and gas-saturated sediments (including gas pockets and seepages). It was found that methane was widespread in the sediments of the study area, both in the surface sediments, e.g. in the vicinity of the Hel Peninsula or in the central Gulf of Gdańsk, and in deeper sediment layers, e.g. in the Gdańsk Deep and the Słupsk Furrow. Chemical analysis showed that as a result of the rapid decomposition of organic matter, sulphates were depleted in the top 20cm layer of sediments and that methane was produced at relatively shallow depths (in some areas even at depths of 20–30cm bsf) compared to other regions of the Baltic, reaching concentrations of>6mmol l−1 in the 30–40cm layer below the sediment surface. The sulphate-methane transition zone (SMTZ) was 4–37cm thick and was situated in the uppermost 50cm of the sediments.

Efficient synthesis of alkenylphosphonium salts via treatment of enolizable aliphatic aldehydes with tributyl[(trimethylsilyl)methylene]phosphorane has been described. The simple way for preparation of tributyl[(trimethylsilyl)methylene]phosphorane is also presented.

The mefenamic acid sodium, potassium, and calcium salts with general formulae [Na(mef)(H2O)2]n·nH2O, [K(mef)(H2O)]n and [Ca(mef)2(H2O)2]n·nH2O have been synthesised, studied by X-ray crystallography, 1H and 13C NMR and IR spectroscopy. The complex salts are air stable and soluble in water. During heating the Na and K complexes melt in the complexed water and next recrystallise in anhydrous form. In the solid state all salts create one-dimensional coordination polymers. The central atoms are five, six and seven coordinated, respectively, for Na, K and Ca complexes. In all structures exist OH⋯O, NH⋯O and CH⋯O hydrogen bonds. The vibrational analysis has been carried out for mefenamic acid and its three coordination polymer compounds on the basis of experimental results as well as quantum mechanical calculations. The theoretical and experimental vibrational frequencies are similar and reveal characteristic vibrations for all IR active oscillators. In the IR spectra of salts exist strong bands at ca. 1365 and 1600cm−1 typical for carboxylate groups.