Editorial: Daily life during a pandemic

The first two issues of the Education Horizons, published in 2021, reflect on how the epi‑ demiological situation in Poland and in the world contributed to significant transformations in the area of education, care and upbringing. However, the range of influence of the new context of functioning is much greater – it has left its mark on almost all spheres of our lives. Persistent beliefs, emotions and behaviours have changed and are still being changed. The way of perceiving and experiencing everyday challenges posed by dy‑ namically changing circumstances has also been changing, as well.

The Motion and Range of Landslides According to Their Height

The frequency of catastrophic geological disasters has been increasing significantly, causing tremendous losses of life and property. The study of landslide motion remains incomplete. The variables H/L (ratio of landslide height to length) are often used to describe landslide motion; however, they may also be affected by the height of the landslide itself. To better understand landslide dynamics, this paper aimed to 1) identify the process of landslide motion in relation to height; 2) understand the range of influence of sliding bodies according to height; and 3) construct a formula of landslide disaster range based on the travel distance of the slide center and changes in the center and shape of the sliding body. In this paper, medium-fine quartz sand was used in experiments to observe the movement patterns and sliding body barycenter variations occurring during landslides. We describe the changes that occur during landslides and their deposits’ morphological characteristics and barycenter variations with height. Based on these observations, a landslide model is derived. This paper proposes a new method of estimating the effects of landslides, which can help to mitigate the effects of disasters.

Influence of the Central City on the Location of Commercial Buildings in the Agglomeration. The Example of Krakow, Poland

Shaping the spatial policy belongs to the tasks of the local commune governments, which through the acts of local law in the form of local spatial development plans establish rules of land development for specific purposes. Analyzing properties which are not significantly diversified in terms of location, because they belong to the same area of the “local market”, it can be concluded that linking land properties with the functions they can perform and with their development possibilities is the most significant attribute which shapes the level of land value. Suburbanization processes influence the decisions of communes located in the immediate vicinity of urban agglomerations as to the directions of allocating land for specific purposes, especially in the areas within the city’s range of influence. The subject of the research is real estates with commercial, service and industrial functions located in the district of Krakow, within the boundaries of communes directly adjacent to Krakow. The aim of the works is to analyze the links between the location of areas designated for commercial development and the location of main communication routes and the distance from the city borders.

Dynamics of Constitutional Cultures

Although it has been claimed that we live in an age of constitutionalism, national and transnational constitutions neither appear as uniform models nor as uncontested means of setting the rules of the game in the political, economic, or religious domain. This book aims to convince readers of a cultural perspective on constitutions. Tying in with the research approach of the Käte Hamburger Center “Law as Culture”, the term “constitutional culture” evokes the multidimensional life of a constitution that cannot be restricted to its – though essential – textual normative provisions and authorized interpreters. Grasping the foundational force and societal influence of constitutions by means of cultural theory and analysis also calls for the investigation of narratives, symbols, rituals, materials, and places in which constitutions are framed and reproduced. With this objective in mind, the contributions to this volume, written by lawyers, sociologists, and political scientists, illuminate different dimensions of the cultural manifestation of constitutions as well as contemporary legal, political, and social struggles arising around their shape and range of influence in various regions of the world.

Chinese Traditional Aesthetics in Qing Palace Drama*-Take “Story of Yanxi Palace” as an example

Among the TV series that emerged in the summer of 2018, Yu Zheng’s “Story of Yanxi Palace” was the most popular, and it continued to surpass “Ruyi’s Royal Love in the Palace” (a court drama of the same type), with a wide range of influence and a high degree of discussion. This article attempts to explore the spiritual beauty of the plot, the exquisite beauty of costumes and the quaint beauty of the pictures through analyzing the plot, costumes, props, shots and other visual content of the drama from an aesthetic perspective.

Promocja turystyczna w działalności Lokalnych Grup Działania w Polsce

Tourist promotion in the activities of Local Action Groups in Poland The presence of the so-called „Lokalne Grupy Działania” (Local Action Groups, LAGs) has been clearly recognizable in the Polish rural and small-town landscapes for at least a dozen years. By under taking activities on various grounds they obviously support local development, being – at the same time – a source and an effect of local entrepreneurship. According to the principle ”think globally, act locally”, LAGs realize tasks in the field of local tourism development, in terms of tourism facilities, formation of human capital, and tourism promotion. The latter is the goal of the research in this paper. The research resulted in a determination of the broad range of promotional activities and tools used by LAGs. Simultaneously, their effectiveness and the range of influence were evaluated and common good practices in the field of tourism promotion were described. Apart from the generally positive evaluation of tourism promotion provided by LAGs and based on their knowledge on the local tourism potential, specific conditions negatively affecting the durability of results and the period of influence of the promotional message were indicated.

Seismic Response Study of Tunnels Running underneath a Subway Station in Parallel

A tunnel passing below a metro station is taken as the object of our study, and a two-dimensional plane model is established to study the effects of their dynamic interaction to seismic excitation. Comparative analysis is used to obtain the influence law between the underground structures and on the soil. The results show that (1) the influence of the underground structure on the soil response is related to structure depth. The range of influence of the station structure on the surface is approximately five times the width of the station, and the surface response is obviously significant within this range. (2) The existence of the tunnel is conducive to reducing the acceleration of the column in the station. It increases the displacement difference between the stations, but the impact on the internal force of the station is not significant. (3) The influence of the station on the dynamic response of the tunnel is consistent with regard to tunnel acceleration, difference in displacement between the top and bottom of the tunnel, and internal force. The presence of the station will reduce the dynamic response of the tunnel.

Magnum miraculum est homo. . . . The Phenomenon of Man in the Light of Hermetic Excerpts: Lactantius, Div. inst. 7.13.3

The aim of this paper is to present the question of human nature in a hermetic approach based on the source texts of Asclepius and Corpus Hermeticum. As the reference point for a research on hermetic anthropology serves one of the hermetic fragments found in Lactantius’ Divinae institutiones (i.e. Div. inst. 7.13.3), who focused on a characteristic feature of every human being: their dual nature – both divine and hylic. The analysis of Div. inst. 7.13.3 is preceded by a short study, based on the anthology by M.D. Litwa, of the range of influence of hermetic texts on literature from antiquity to the Middle Ages.