Development of optical fiber technology in Poland 2015
The paper is a digest of works presented during the XVIth National Symposium on Optical Fibres and Their Applications. The Symposium is organized since 1976. OFTA 2015 was organized by Optical Fibre Laboratory of the Faculty of Chemistry at University of Maria Curie Skłodowska, and Institute of Electronics and Information Technology of Lublin University of Technology, in Nałęczów on 22-25 September 2015. The meeting has gathered around 120 participants who presented 85 research and technical papers. The Symposium organized every 18 months is a good portrait of optical fibre technology development in Poland at university laboratories, governmental institutes, company R&D laboratories, etc. Topical tracks of the Symposium were: optical and photonic materials, technology of classical, tailored and structural photonic optical fibres, light propagation physics in optical fibres, passive and active optical fibre components, optical fibre sensors, passive and active optical fibre networks, optical fibre amplifiers and lasers, optical fibre network issues: modulation, architectures, economy, etc.
Laser Technology and Applications 2012
The research and technical achievements in the area of lasers are summarized every three years by the National Symposium on Laser Technology held in the Baltic See Resort ś winoujście near Szczecin, Poland. The paper presents a review of the main symposium subjects tracks debated during this key national laser event in September 2012. There are shown development tendencies of laser materials and technologies and laser associated branches of optoelectronics in this country, including the efforts of academia, governmental institutes, research businesses and industry. The symposium work are divided to two branches: development of lasers and laser applications, where the laser systems operators and laser users present their achievements. Topical tracks of the meeting are presented, as well as the keynote and invited subjects delivered by key representatives of the laser industry. The STL 2012 was a jubilee meeting held for the Xth time.
Palaeomicrobiology: current issues and perspectives
Palaeomicrobiology is an emerging field that is devoted to the detection, identification and characterization of microorganisms in ancient remains. Data indicate that host-associated microbial DNA can survive for almost 20,000 years, and environmental bacterial DNA preserved in permafrost samples has been dated to 400,000–600,000 years. In addition to frozen and mummified soft tissues, bone and dental pulp can also be used to search for microbial pathogens. Various techniques, including microscopy and immunodetection, can be used in palaeomicrobiology, but most data have been obtained using PCR-based molecular techniques. Infections caused by bacteria, viruses and parasites have all been diagnosed using palaeomicrobiological techniques. Additionally, molecular typing of ancient pathogens could help to reconstruct the epidemiology of past epidemics and could feed into current models of emerging infections, therefore contributing to the development of appropriate preventative measures.