Local adaptation is a key concept in biology: shift of genetic structures of populations due to differential survival of genotypes is expected to lead to phenotypes providing an advantage in the local environment. Variation of sequences of twelve candidate genes was investigated in 13 Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) provenances originating from sites distributed along an altitudinal gradient from 550 to 1300 m a.s.l. Signals of selection were assessed in 103 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP). The Bayesian FST-outlier identification methods as implemented in the programs BayeScan and Arlequin did not identify any SNP with a clear evidence of selection. The approaches relying on SNP-climate associations (spatial analysis method based on logistic regression of allele frequencies with environmental variables, Bayesian method applied in BayEnv2) identified several relationships but none of them remained significant after correction for multiple testing. Gene flow, epigenetic inheritance and former management of the studied populations are discussed as potential reasons for this weak evidence of selection signals.

The paper presents a general concept of geodetic observations adjustment based on application of the Edgeworth' series and the principle of an alternative choice. The Edgeworth' series approximates the empirical distribution of measurement errors and gives an opportunity to modify the empirical characteristics of errors distribution. The method of estimation used is based on the principle of the alternative choice. Its natural robustness for outliers was the basis for newly created method called PAC-E. The paper presents the algorithm and some numerical tests that were carried out to compare the results of the proposed method with the results of the classical LS adjustment. Special attention was paid on the effect of non-zero excess and robustness of the proposed method.

The aim of this paper is to compare the efficiency of various outlier correction methods for ECG signal processing in biometric applications. The main idea is to correct anomalies in various segments of ECG waveform rather than skipping a corrupted ECG heartbeat in order to achieve better statistics. Experiments were performed using a self-collected Lviv Biometric Dataset. This database contains over 1400 records for 95 unique persons. The baseline identification accuracy without any correction is around 86%. After applying the outlier correction the results were improved up to 98% for autoencoder based algorithms and up to 97.1% for sliding Euclidean window. Adding outlier correction stage in the biometric identification process results in increased processing time (up to 20%), however, it is not critical in the most use-cases.

Day-boundary discontinuity (DBD) is an effect present in precise GNSS satellite orbit and clock products originating from the method used for orbit and clock determination. The non-Gaussian measurement noise and data processing in 24 h batches are responsible for DBDs. In the case of the clock product, DBD is a time jump in the boundary epochs of two adjacent batches of processed data and its magnitude might reach a couple of ns. This article presents the four GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) systems DBD analysis in terms of change over an 8 year period. For each of 118 satellites available in this period, the yearly value of DBD was subject to analysis including standard deviation and frequency of outliers. Results show that the smallest DBDs appear in the GPS system, the biggest – for the BeiDou space segment. Moreover, the phenomenon of changes in DBDs over time is clearly seen at the beginning of the analysed period when the magnitude and number of the DBDs were larger than for current, newest clock products

The paper presents an empirical comparison of performance of three well known M – estimators (i.e. Huber, Tukey and Hampel’s M – estimators) and also some new ones. The new M – estimators were motivated by weighting functions applied in orthogonal polynomials theory, kernel density estimation as well as one derived from Wigner semicircle probability distribution. M – estimators were used to detect outlying observations in contaminated datasets. Calculations were performed using iteratively reweighted least-squares (IRLS). Since the residual variance (used in covariance matrices construction) is not a robust measure of scale the tests employed also robust measures i.e. interquartile range and normalized median absolute deviation. The methods were tested on a simple leveling network in a large number of variants showing bad and good sides of M – estimation. The new M – estimators have been equipped with theoretical tuning constants to obtain 95% efficiency with respect to the standard normal distribution. The need for data – dependent tuning constants rather than those established theoretically is also pointed out.

The use of quantitative methods, including stochastic and exploratory techniques in environmental studies does not seem to be sufficient in practical aspects. There is no comprehensive analytical system dedicated to this issue, as well as research regarding this subject. The aim of this study is to present the Eco Data Miner system, its idea, construction and implementation possibility to the existing environmental information systems. The methodological emphasis was placed on the one-dimensional data quality assessment issue in terms of using the proposed QAAH1 method - using harmonic model and robust estimators beside the classical tests of outlier values with their iterative expansions. The results received demonstrate both the complementarity of proposed classical methods solution as well as the fact that they allow for extending the range of applications significantly. The practical usefulness is also highly significant due to the high effectiveness and numerical efficiency as well as simplicity of using this new tool.