In the last phase of Franciszek Karpiński's life as a writer (the first quarter of the 19th century), he practically gave up poetry and concentrated instead on writing memoirs. This article tries to find out to what extent his autobiographical work, especially his Historia mego wieku i ludzi, z którymi żyłem [A History of My Century and the People with Whom I Lived], is influenced by an attitude characteristic of the sentimentalism of the previous century. As this analysis shows Karpiński's narrative exhibits both a sensitivity much indebted to Rousseau's autobiographical method and skilful shifts of tone, from satire and irony to various shades of melancholy. For sentimentalist aesthetic and poetics the continual manipulation of tone is a means of alerting the reader to the world's complexity. As in the novels of Lawrence Sterne, that complexity is experienced by way of careful observation of fragments of reality, defined by the subjectivity of the observer and the truth of his emotions.

From its beginnings – in Poland it was the second half of the 18th century – the novel, a genre that eluded the distinctions of traditional normative poetics, had to face all kinds of strictures, not only in the sphere of aesthetics. At the same time, due to its innovatory representation of reality and its effectiveness as a tool of persuasion, it aroused a genuine interest among the enlightened elites. This positive attitude appears to have been shared by Ignacy Krasicki, whose work (not excepting novels) was generally regarded as a model of unparalleled literary excellence. This article re-examines his achievement as a novelist and discusses at greater length his first novel Mikołaja Doświadczyńskiego przypadki. Published in 1776, it was the first Polish novel and the most interesting example of early realistic fiction until the appearance in 1815 of Dwaj panowie Sieciechowie by Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz.

The paper presents the results of the analysis of the content of selected heavy metals in used engine oils collected in car service stations during oil change. The main purpose of the research was to determine the difference in heavy metal content (Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, Zn, Hg, Cd) depending on the engine type and oil change interval. The analysis comprised 80 samples of used engine oils obtained from passenger cars. The content of heavy metals was tested with use of the HDMaxine analyzer, operating on the basis of HDXRF (High-Definition X-Ray Fluorescence). Upon analyzing the differences in the average content of the examined elements, depending on the type of engine, it can be concluded that in oils coming from diesel engines the following elements showed a higher concentration – Cr (three times), Fe (1/3 times ), Ni (two times), Pb (1/2 times), whereas in oils coming from gasoline engines, only the average Cu content was higher (¾ times). Zinc had a comparable level of concentration. The multi-factor analysis of variance showed that in diesel engines the levels of Fe, Cr, Pb and Ni are statistically significantly different than in the reference group of gasoline engines. The study findings suggest that, depending on the engine type, the content of selected heavy metal elements in used oils varies. Therefore, to ensure proper handling of waste oils and reduce environmental risk, selective collection of used oils depending on the engine type may definitely be considered.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the biochemical possibilities of converting waste lignocellulosic biomass to second generation bioethanol. Three substrates were used in the research: barley straw, rye straw and triticale straw. In the first stage of the research bacterial strains capable of converting waste biomass to produce sugars used to produce energy-useful ethanol were selected. Of the eight strains isolated the three with the highest potential were selected on the basis of activity index value. The raw materials were subjected to enzymatic hydrolysis using the simultaneous saccharifi cation and fermentation method (SSF process). Based on the conducted research, it was found that the examined waste biomass is suitable for the production of cellulosic bioethanol. As a result of distillation 10% and 15% (v/v) ethanol was obtained, depending on the strain and the type of raw material. It was demonstrated that the bacterial strain had a greater impact on the effectiveness of the process than the type of straw used.