Some Aspects of Nutritive and Biological Value of Carrot Cultivars with Orange, Yellow and Purple-Coloured RootsThe aim of this work was to determine antioxidant activity and some physical and chemical parameters influencing nutritive and biological value of orange, purple and yellow carrot cultivars. The two-year experiment was carried out in Warsaw Agricultural University in 2005 and 2006. Carrot was grown in the experimental field of the University. Six carrot cultivars, differed in storage roots colour and shape, were chosen for the experiment: 'Florida' F1, 'Interceptor' F1, 'Nebula' F1, 'Purple Haze' F1, 'Yellowstone', 'Mello Yello' F1. Immediately after harvest of carrots there were determined: dry matter, total sugars content, total phenolics, total carotenoids, antioxidant activity (DPPH), fractions of dietary fibre, pectines, pH, redox potential, electrical resistance. P-value, which is a combined parameter of some physical and chemical traits, was also calculated. Correlations between some of these quality parameters were determined. Dry mater content was the highest for 'Purple Haze' in 2005, but in 2006 for 'Nebula' similar dry matter content was found. Total sugars content in carrots in 2005 was the highest in 'Purple Haze' but in 2006 'Florida' showed higher sugars content. Total phenolics content was the highest in 'Purple Haze' roots. Total carotenoids content was greatly differentiated between cultivars and varied from below 1 mg·100 g-1to above 14 mg·100 g-1. For cultivars of yellow storage roots the lowest level of carotenoids were found, and the highest for orange-coloured 'Florida', 'Interceptor' and 'Purple Haze'. In all cultivars, from fractions of total fibre, the highest amount was found in the case of cellulose and pectines. The highest antioxidant activity showed purple-coloured cultivar 'Purple Haze', and the lowest activity yellow-coloured cultivars 'Yellowstone' and 'Mello Yello'. Regression analysis showed that antioxidant activity of carrot storage roots was strictly related to carotenoids content (r=0.92) and phenolics content (r=0.87).

A series of catastrophic floods that have occurred over the last twenty years in Poland brought an urgent need for taking preventive steps to monitor river embankment conditions. The main problem seems to be the development of efficient (i.e. fast and economical) measurements for controlling the condition of river embankments, because the execution of the full range of geotechnical measurements is both lengthy and costly. In this situation, a cheap and quick geophysical survey has been proposed to undertake this purpose. In this article the results of geophysical surveys are described which were performed using geoelectric and electromagnetic methods along a section of the Vistula embankment, located near the Maniów area in the Małopolska province. According to the archival data, this region is situated in a high-risk flooding zone. Three geophysical methods were used to recognize conditions of the levee: (i) Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT), (ii) Induced Polarization (IP) and (iii) Electromagnetic Conductivity (EMC). Geoelectrical measurement results were presented in the form of resistivity and polarization cross-sections. Results of conductivity measurement were presented in the form of plots. These parameters effectively supplement geotechnical testing, providing spatial information about the changes within the embankment and its substrate. It allows the prediction of potentially vulnerable areas to water percolation during flooding.

This article presents the results of an integrated interpretation of measurements made using Audio-Magnetotellurics and Seismic Reflection geophysical methods. The obtained results were used to build an integrated geophysical model of shallow subsurface cover consisting of Cenozoic deposits, which then formed the basis for a detailed lithological and tectonic interpretation of deeper Mesozoic sediments. Such shallow covers, consisting mainly of glacial Pleistocene deposits, are typical for central and northern Poland. This investigation concentrated on delineating the accurate geometry of Obrzycko Cenozoic graben structure filled with loose deposits, as it was of great importance to the acquisition, processing and interpretation of seismic data that was to reveal the tectonic structure of the Cretaceous and Jurassic sediments which underly the study area. Previously, some problems with estimation of seismic static corrections over similar grabens filled with more recent, low-velocity deposits were encountered. Therefore, a novel approach to estimating the exact thickness of such shallow cover consisting of low-velocity deposits was applied in the presented investigation. The study shows that some alternative geophysical data sets (such as magnetotellurics) can be used to significantly improve the imaging of geological structure in areas where seismic data are very distorted or too noisy to be used alone