Direct and inverse problems for unsteady heat conduction equation for a cylinder were solved in this paper. Changes of heat conduction coefficient and specific heat depending on the temperature were taken into consideration. To solve the non-linear problem, the Kirchhoff’s substitution was applied. Solution was written as a linear combination of Chebyshev polynomials. Sensitivity of the solution to the inverse problem with respect to the error in temperature measurement and thermocouple installation error was analysed. Temperature distribution on the boundary of the cylinder, being the numerical example presented in the paper, is similar to that obtained during heating in the nitrification process.

The new evaluation rules proposed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education in July 2018 are set to cure some of the ailments of the existing system, notably the “punktoza” phenomenon (i.e. publishing for volume, not scientific quality). However, it should be pointed out that the method of fixing old “bugs” might in fact create some new ones. In this article I discuss three elements of the proposed regulations, namely: the principle of “inheritance of prestige”, treatment of chapters in edited volumes, and possible variants of ministerial registry of academic publishers. To address those issues empirically I use an existing dataset covering citation of books in 2009–2013 (Torres-Salinas et al. 2014). While the new evaluation rules apply relatively high value to chapters in edited volumes, they in fact have disproportionately low scientific impact. What is more, the correlation between citation of books and chapters in edited volumes is very low, casting doubt on the assumed “inheritance of publishers' prestige”. Finally, there seems to be a high risk that the registry of publishers will not reproduce the exponential distribution observed in the actual structure of scientific impact (and apparently sought by the new system), thereby jeopardizing validity of such evaluation.

Carbon taxing is an efficient instrument that is implemented by several countries to reduce CO2 emissions. Taxed products and services that result in emitting CO2 in their processes will be replaced by more sustainable alternatives. Carbon taxing is associated with concerns about high energy prices that can negatively affect households and businesses. Egypt, one of the low middle-income developing countries, depends on fossil fuels to supply more than 93% of its total energy supply. In this paper, an analysis is carried out to assess the effects of a suggested carbon tax on the major carbon emitting sectors; power generation, transport and industry. The results show that the power generation sector can absorb and benefit from a suggested tax at a rate of USD 5 per ton of emitted CO2. The transport sector, which relies heavily on subsidized liquid fuels, needs an urgent reform program to remove these subsidies, which costs the country about 10 billion USD annually, and after that, the carbon tax can be introduced. The industry sector may be affected negatively by the suggested tax, due to competitiveness with non-taxed imported products. On the other hand, this tax can help this sector to be prepared to compete when exporting its products to foreign markets that apply carbon taxes. In conclusion, developing countries like Egypt need a well-planned carbon tax program that can make revenues, remove subsidies, and prepare local industries for fair competitiveness in the global market.