The topic of the diploma thesis is a comparison of the old and new left in the Czech Republic. The diploma thesis focuses on a comparison of the selected relevant left-wing political groups operating in the Czech Republic. The thesis examines differences and similarities between the KSČM, the socialist wing of ČSSD on one side and the Green Party and the left-liberal tendencies and offshoots of the ČSSD (such Idealists) on the other hand. The work is divided into three main parts. The first part of the thesis is theoretical. The theoretical part defines main terms such as a political party, political movement, left-right axis of the political spectrum, the old left, the new left etc. The explanation of the terms is very important for understanding the thesis. In the second part of this thesis, I analyze single significant and relevant political parties. I focus on the origin and development of political parties and their electoral program, their attitude to selected issues, electorate, potential cooperation between themselves and so on. The third part is comparative. The goal of this thesis is to find out whether the analyzed political parties fulfill leftist characteristic. Next goal of this thesis is to find out whether the classification on left-right axis of the political spectrum is still...

Concept: creating new "quiet street" in oposition with the Křížová Street, creating new public and semipublic colorfull spaces with green rest areas.

The project manage to transform = reconstruct the object of a cultural center and a museum in the center of Kopřivnice town. It analyses and widens the offerings of functions and increases aesthetic and cultural values of the building(s) and the surroundings. It also solves urban connections to the environment and wider relations in the town level.

Matthew R. Borglin This thesis demonstrates efficacy of Octenyl Succinic Anhydride (OSA), as a biofilm sanitizer. Biofilms allow bacteria to adhere to solid surfaces with the use of excreted polymeric compounds. For example, surfaces found in food production or processing facilities such as the interior of a raw milk holding tank, are some of the most susceptible to biofilm contamination. When present, biofilms can cause a variety of negative effects, which include; reduction of product shelf life, corrosion, and outbreaks of foodborne illnesses. The close association of biofilms with the majority of foodborne illness cases led the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to create a new category of sanitizer specifically designed for treatment of mature biofilms. The efficacy of sanitizers in this new regulatory category is determined by the EPA protocols MB-19 and MB-20. The EPA’s protocols outline methods for cultivating, treating, and measuring effects on Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms in a continuous flow stir bar bioreactor. Biofilm modification by OSA was verified by the presence of octenyl esters on OSA treated biofilms with single point Raman spectrophotometry. OSA modified biofilm’s antimicrobial properties were first investigated with crystal violet staining in 96-well microtiter plates with inconclusive results. However, effective antimicrobial properties where apparent when using the CDC Biofilm Reactor. OSA treatments consistently returned a 6-log CFU/coupon reduction in biomass compared to controls. Inhibition of planktonic and/or biofilm regrowth was demonstrated using the 96-well plate methodology. This thesis demonstrated the effectiveness of OSA chemical esterification reaction as a biofilm treatment. In doing so, this work suggests a new approach for biofilm remediation by chemically modifying the structural components of biofilm.

Radio spectrum has become increasingly scarce due to the proliferation of new wireless communication services. This problem has been exacerbated by fixed bandwidth licensing policies that often lead to spectral underutilization. Cognitive radio networks (CRN) can address this issue using flexible spectrum management that permits unlicensed (secondary) users to access the licensed spectrum. Supporting real-time quality-of-service (QoS) in CRNs however, is very challenging, due to the random spectrum availability induced by the licensed (primary) user activity. This thesis considers the problem of real-time voice transmission in CRNs with an emphasis on secondary network ``friendliness''. Friendliness is measured by the secondary real-time voice capacity, defined as the number of connections that can be supported, subject to typical QoS constraints. The constant bit rate (CBR) air interface case is first assumed. An offline scheduler that maximizes friendliness is derived using an integer linear program (ILP) that can be solved using a minimum cost flow graph construction. Two online primary scheduling algorithms are then introduced. The first algorithm is based on shaping the primary spectral hole patterns subject to primary QoS constraints. The second applies real-time scheduling to both primary traffic and virtual secondary calls. The online scheduling algorithms are found to perform well compared to the friendliness upper bound. Extensive simulations of the primary friendly schedulers show the achievable secondary voice capacity for a variety of parameters compared to non-friendly primary scheduling. The thesis then considers the variable bit rate (VBR) air interface option for primary transmissions. Offline and online approaches are taken to generate a primary VBR traffic schedule that is friendly to secondary voice calls. The online VBR schedulers are found to perform well compared to the friendliness upper bound. Simulation results are presented that show the effect of the primary traffic load and primary network delay tolerance on the primary network friendliness level towards potential secondary voice traffic. Finally, secondary user friendliness is considered from an infrastructure deployment point of view. A cooperative framework is proposed, which allows the primary traffic to be relayed by helper nodes using decode-and-forward (DF) relaying. This approach decreases the primary traffic channel utilization, which, in turn, increases the capacity available to potential secondary users. A relay selection optimization problem is first formulated that minimizes the primary channel utilization. A greedy algorithm that assigns relay nodes to primary data flows is introduced and found to perform well compared to the optimum bound. Results are presented that show the primary network friendliness for different levels of primary channel utilization. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

No description available.

No description available.

The presence of cognitive deficits in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is well-documented. Specifically, short- and long-term memory, attention/vigilance, and executive function (e.g. processing speed, mental flexibility, and problem solving) are affected. Cognitive deficits in aging occur in similar areas (i.e., memory and processing speed). Given that a greater percentage of older adults experience sleep-disordered breathing as compared to middle-aged adults, it is possible that OSA may account for some of the deficits typically attributed to aging. This study investigated this hypothesis by comparing middle-aged and older adults with and without OSA on computer-based measures of cognitive performance. No effect of OSA or an interaction between OSA and age on cognitive function was found; an effect of age on processing speed, distinguishing stimuli rapidly, attention, spatial ability/mental flexibility, and both working memory and short-term visual memory was found. This study also explored whether or not cognitive function may be improved in persons with OSA by re-assessing those participants one month after treatment. An effect of treatment on improvements on processing speed, distinguishing stimuli rapidly, mental flexibility, and short term memory was found. Overall, findings reflect the ability of treatment to improve cognitive function among OSA patients, regardless of lack of deficits when compared to those without OSA.

This thesis examines the influence of stress on the activity of hippocampal CA1 area. The main task was to determine whether the stress load affects the changes of the local metabolism of glucocorticoids, and whether the levels of corticosteroid receptors in the CA1 hippocampus are modulated in response to stress. In order to answer these questions, the experiments were carried out using three different rat strains - Fisher, Lewis and Wistar which differ in their activities of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Our results demonstrate that stress has no effect on expression of MR mRNA. Conversely, stress reduces the levels of GR mRNA in CA1 area of the dorsal hippocampus. Moreover, we confirmed that the Lewis and Wistar rats didn't change metabolism of glucocorticoids after stress response. By the Fisher rats increased levels of 11β-HSD1 mRNA expression and therefore increased the metabolism of corticosterone.

Stress is a widespread phenomenon in the western society of these days. It is a risky factor for health and well-being of the majority of people. Based on these facts, it is the main subject for the field of "stress physiology" research, which aims to study processes occurring during stress response and tries to elucidate mechanisms leading to stress-induced health impairment. The first aim of this thesis was to describe effects of psycho-social stress on organism. The second aim was to find out if can stress applied in juvenile age affect the stress response in adulthood. If so, how is the role of glucocorticoid-metabolism enzyme 11β-HSD1 in this influence? To answer these questions, two different animal models inducing stress response in the laboratory rat were used. The first one is the model of mild social stress based on the resident-intruder paradigm. Our results show efficancy of this model. Fisher 344 male rats treated under this model for seven consecutive days show highly elevated plasma corticosterone concentrations and elevated expression of the glucocorticoid receptor gene in the pituitary. Behavioral analysis demonstrates a decreased social behavioral profile of the intruders, suggesting submisive social position of these animals in the resident-intruder paradigm. The second model used is...