Geography (e-books)

E-book

Stela Csachová - Ján Kaňuk - Alena Gessert - Ladislav Novotný - Štefan Gábor - Jozef Šupinský

This book addressed the inquiry-based learning and teaching with the support of geospatial technologies. Today, geospatial technologies are influencing geography teaching learning, particularly in secondary education. Theoretical framework gives the reader the insight to inquiry-based learning, with special focus on inquiry in geography. The one-by-one step of inquiry is analysed in detail. The major part of the book presents the eleven models of geography lessons, representing the subject content of physical, human and regional geographies, various levels of inquiry and use of different geospatial technologies. The readers are acquainted with the use of geographic information system (particularly Google Earth and ArcGIS online), web portals, webGIS, open data, mobile applications and new forms of 3D cartographic visualisation (virtual reality, 3D print, dynamic 3D map) in teaching geography. The lesson models were tested with the students to be geography teachers in school year 2021/2022. This books serves as resource mainly for undergraduate teacher students and in-service geography teachers.

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E-book

Vladimír Sedlák

In the presented university textbooks, so-called satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS, from the English Satellite Based Augmentation Systems, in Slovak Systémy rozširujúce základné satelitné systémy) are also discussed. These systems enhance, expand, or refine the basic satellite navigation systems. They are supportive satellite systems for GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems). Currently, the long-operational American GPS and Russian GLONASS systems, as well as the partially operational European Galileo system (since December 2016), have and will continue to have broad applications in various fields of human activity, both professional and personal.

The university textbook Globálne navigačné satelitné systémy (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) reflects the current progressive development in the technological and instrumental principles and components of such satellite navigation systems. It presents the state of these satellite technologies from their historical origins and development to the present. The rapid advancements, particularly in the instrumental base of satellite navigation systems, will require updates on their current state in future editions of these university textbooks.

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E-book

Vladimír Zeleňák(ed.)

The proceedings contain abstracts of contributions from participants of the Student Scientific Conference of the Faculty of Science, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, which took place on April 22, 2015.

The Student Scientific Conference (SSC) enjoys long-term popularity among the faculty's students and teachers, and we are pleased that this was no different this year, with 128 contributions submitted to the SSC.

The contributions were organized into 19 sections, additionally complemented by an open programming competition and the final of the IHRA contest. For many students, presenting at the SSC is one of the first opportunities to gain experience in presenting their results before a professional audience. Considering the number of submitted contributions, along with the members of the expert juries from the faculty's teaching staff and the audience who came to support their classmates' presentations, the SSC is an event where a large part of the student and academic community of the faculty meets at one place and time. Many abstracts presented in this proceedings were developed as part of students' work on partial tasks that are components of research projects at the departments of the Faculty of Science, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University.

The abstracts represent, in a way, an overview of research topics at the individual workplaces of the faculty. The SSC proceedings thus serve as a useful tool that students and faculty teachers can use to present the faculty externally to partners, employers, and potential collaborators. Partners from practice have shown interest in cooperating in organizing the SSC for a long time. Since 2005, the association of IT companies has awarded a Prize for the Most Original Work and a Prize for the Work with the Best Prospects for Practical Application.

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E-book

Dušan Barabas - Alena Labunová

These study materials aim to provide basic information about biogeographical issues from a geographical perspective, i.e., a perspective focused primarily on the aspect of spatial differentiation of the biosphere. The basis for the division of the biosphere is its historical development, during which individual taxa and communities were formed.

The historical development of the biosphere did not occur under stable, constant conditions, but rather in ever-changing conditions caused by the position of our planet within the solar system, the position of the Earth's axis relative to the ecliptic, and also the position of the solar system within the galaxy. All changes in the Earth's position, together with the movement of continents (drift) and climate changes, created the prerequisites for the spatial expansion of the biosphere. The historical development of the biosphere, various perspectives, the hierarchical level of differentiation, and the causes of differentiation are incorporated in this study material, whose aim is to outline the basic principles of this division.

The goal is also to highlight certain differences in the understanding of terminology, as well as to point out some fundamental relationships operating within the landscape system in the broadest sense of the word. The section devoted to the ecological principles of the functioning and formation of the landscape system, according to MIČIAN and ZATKALÍK (1984), outlines the issues of understanding the terms ecosystem and geosystem. For this reason, the presented text includes chapters that attempt to explain the understanding and approach to some basic concepts.

These study materials are intended for students of single-subject, interdisciplinary, and supplementary studies as basic teaching material. By expanding the knowledge from this study material with further information, which is elaborated in more detail in the literature listed in the bibliography of this text, graduates will gain a comprehensive view of biogeographical issues.

Authors

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E-book

Božena Velebná

The following material has been created during the two years of teaching English for Chemists at the Faculty of Science of the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University and is therefore designed to meet the needs of this course. The main motivation was the lack of appropriate materials, especially as the groups generally comprise students with a very diverse level of English. This diversity therefore became the main criterion determining both the form and the content of this text.

In the ten units that provide material for a one semester course, the emphasis is put on teaching the students vocabulary and terminology, which is introduced via authentic texts, depending on the topic of each unit. Students are encouraged to learn the meaning of new words in context. Grammar is included too, with the aim of demonstrating and explaining grammatical rules by means of examples taken directly from the texts. For the more advanced students, grammatical exercises in this material can serve for revision while the beginners might need more supplementary materials.

I hope that this material, the preparation of which has been a challenging as well as enjoyable experience will be useful for future teachers and the students of this course.

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