NOVEL TRENDS IN CHEMISTRY, RESEARCH AND EDUCATION at the Faculty of Science of Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice 2023

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Ladislav Janovec

An enormous progress in computer technology, closely linked with advances in computational chemistry, has enabled the user to exploit the principles of quantum chemistry to elucidate the chemical phenomena.

Computational chemistry is the branch of science that requires, except an academic knowledge, software skills to fully exploit a potential of theoretical methods. The aim of this textbook is to help the user take the legendary first step in the field of computational chemistry to opening a new horizon of knowledge.

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Ivana Šišoláková - Radka Gorejová - Jana Shepa - Renáta Oriňaková

The university textbook "Advanced Electrochemical Methods" is a teaching aid intended for master's or doctoral students studying electrochemical subjects at the Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice.

These textbooks follow and further develop textbooks focused on the basic electrochemical methods currently used in modern research. The presented teaching texts are processed in sixteen clear chapters, where they provide a theoretical principle and derivation of electrochemical processes and mechanisms in individual methods. Teaching texts also consist of practical laboratory exercises, in which students can try out the real application of the studied electrochemical methods.

The practical tasks are focused primarily on the demonstration of research that is carried out at our workplace. Students will be able to try, for example, electrochemical modification of the electrode surface, preparation of electrochemical sensors for the determination of analytes, preparation and characterization of a dye-sensitized solar cell or electrochemical evolution of hydrogen.

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Janka Vrláková - Stanislav Vokál

Atomic and nuclear physics are relatively young scientific disciplines forming the final part of the general physics course at the Faculty of Physics of the Jagiellonian University. Their aim is to explain the nature of the basic physical properties of atoms, atomic nucleus and elementary particles.

This is also the content of the lectures and exercises ‘General Physics IV’ in the 2nd year of the Bachelor's degree in Physics at the Faculty of Natural Sciences (PF) of the P.J. Šafárik University (UPJŠ) in Košice. They are followed by optional lectures ‘Nuclear Radiation in the Environment’, ‘Introduction to the Physics of the Microworld’ in the 3rd year of the Bachelor's degree of single-discipline study of physics, or teacher study of physics in combination with another subject, and ‘Subnuclear Physics’ in the 1st year of the Master's degree of teacher study of physics in combination with another subject.

In the aforementioned lectures, the latest experimental findings on the structure and behaviour of the microworld are presented by means of physical theories and their subsequent experimental verification in experiments.

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Vlasta Demečková - Petra Hradická - Petra Adamková

The learning material for the course Practice in Immunology is based on several years of experience with teaching this subject, but mainly to provide students from the Biology Department at the Faculty of Natural Sciences, UPJŠ in Košice with sufficient theoretical background for practical exercises. It also serves as a scientific diary for detailed recording of all experimental data necessary for preparing laboratory protocols from individual exercises.

In studying biology, it is essential that students thoroughly understand not only the basics of each discipline but also acquire practical skills, including designing scientific experiments, selecting appropriate analytical/investigative techniques up to interpreting and presenting experimental data. The goal of this new publication is therefore to provide master's students with a practical study guide that supports and expands their knowledge about basic immunology principles.

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Ján Kleban a kolektív

Predkladaný pracovný zošit na praktické cvičenia z cytológie je určený poslucháčom 1. ročníka bakalárskeho štúdia biológie a 1. ročníka bakalárskeho medziodborového štúdia v kombinácii s biológiou na Prírodovedeckej fakulte Univerzity Pavla Jozefa Šafárika v Košiciach. Slúži ako návod, ktorý má študentom uľahčiť prácu a umožniť rýchlejšiu orientáciu v zadanej úlohe. Úprava pracovného zošita do formy protokolov umožňuje študentom zakresliť vlastné pozorovanie a tým stimuluje študentov k presnejšiemu a trvalejšiemu zapamätaniu si precvičovanej úlohy a zároveň umožňuje spätnú kontrolu pedagógom. Počas cvičení sa študenti postupne oboznámia so základnými pojmami optiky, s aplikáciami využívajúcimi mikroskopickú techniku, ale aj so základnými rozdielmi medzi štruktúrou rastlinnej a živočíšnej bunky a ich organelami.

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Mária Kožurková

These university textbooks are intended for first-year master's degree students at the Faculty of Natural Sciences of UPJŠ in Košice. The scope and content of the works included in these scripts are primarily based on time and spatial constraints, taking into account the material demands of the tasks.

The aim of these scripts is to teach students basic microbiological techniques and to show them the importance of microorganisms in everyday life and their crucial role in nature. The exercises are designed to enhance students' technical skills and teach them to work according to safety principles.

The text is divided into 13 parts. Each part begins with an introduction to the theory related to the practice topic. The appendix includes a proposal for the preparation of protocols for individual exercises.

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Andrea Morovská Turoňová

The discovery of radioactivity at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries stimulated the rapid development of nuclear sciences. At the interface between nuclear physics and chemistry, disciplines such as radiochemistry, radiation chemistry and nuclear chemistry were formed.

The aim of the Nuclear Chemistry course which is taught at the PF UPJŠ is to provide basic knowledge, with an emphasis on the general value of the subject. It is important to make available the basics of various methods, techniques and their specifics in the application of nuclear phenomena in chemistry and related fields. Emphasis is also placed on the use of correct terminology, knowledge of the context of relationships and basic principles, supplemented by illustrative concrete cases.

The choice of material is rather difficult, but we count on additional monographs and textbooks to fill in the gaps of these teaching texts.

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Miroslava Martinková

This electronic material focuses on the subject of secondary metabolism and its products - secondary metabolites. The material gives an overview of the basic building blocks and construction mechanisms through which molecules can be synthesized in living organisms (plants). The processes of formation of the mentioned metabolites are explained using the basic mechanisms of organic reactions. Several of the secondary metabolites presented have a remarkable biological profile and are used as therapeutics or serve as lead compounds for the development of novel pharmacological agents. This electronic document is primarily intended for students of the Master's degree programme in Organic Chemistry as supporting material for the profile subject Chemistry of Natural Products.

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Mária Ganajová - Jozef Hanč - Ivana Sotáková - Petra Letošníková (eds.)

The International Conference on Research in Didactics of the Science – DidSci+ 2022, continues in the educational legacy of the successful series of the previous DidSci conferences held from 2004 in Krakow, Prague, Brno, or Trnava. The DidSci+ conferences present a platform for enduring international cooperation, focusing on the frontiers and current challenges in science education research. This special edition of DidSci conferences, celebrating its 10th anniversary, was held in Košice, at the Faculty of Science of Pavol Jozef Šafárik University, from June 26 to 29, 2022. The careful double-blind review process has led to two major publications offering a comprehensive look at the latest advances in STEM and science subjects education. The first volume of selected papers is published as the IOP Conference Series proceedings, Vol. 3037 with open access at https://iopscience.iop.org/issue/1742-6596/3037/1, and is primarily devoted to STEM education, assessment, evaluation, feedback strategies, and teacher development. The second volume of selected papers, published by ŠafárikPress, focuses more on curriculum development, educational innovation, and digital technologies, primarily in chemistry and biology. Both publications are intended for a wide audience, including in-service and pre-service teachers of science subjects, university students in scientific disciplines, researchers in science education, professionals in pedagogical and methodological centers, curriculum developers, and textbook authors.

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Adriana Zeleňáková - Jozef Bednarčík

Peer-reviewed Proceedings of the Scientific Conference NANOVIR

The main objective of the scientific conference NANOVIR was the presentation of scientific results obtained during the implementation of the NANOVIR project – Nanoparticles for solving diagnostic and therapeutic problems with COVID-19, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund within the Operational Programme Integrated Infrastructure 2014 – 2020, ITMS: 313011AUW7.

The project was carried out from January 1, 2021, to June 30, 2023, and was supported with a sum of EUR 1,916,004.79. Three co-investigating organizations participated in the project: Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice as the main investigator, the University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice as partner no. 1, and the Institute of Experimental Physics of the Slovak Academy of Sciences as partner no. 2.

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Jozef Kováčik

These "Exercise Manuals" present a concise overview of commonly used methodologies as well as progressive techniques, such as the use of liquid chromatography and fluorescence microscopy. Individual tasks were selected based on the research focus of the Department of Botany at the Faculty of Science, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, particularly in the context of "stress physiology."

Some tasks can also be utilized within the subject "Plant Ecology." Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) is typically used as a model plant for individual tasks due to its long-standing history of research at the Department of Botany and its ease of cultivation under laboratory conditions. The chapters also briefly discuss the significance of monitored parameters, principles of their determination, and metabolism (formation or degradation), aiming to indicate their mutual context.

This approach highlights that determining an individual parameter cannot provide a general explanation for the overall causes and impacts of observed changes; however, it can serve as a basis for testing hypotheses at the level of other parameters.

For deeper study of specific issues, there is an abundance of high-quality international monographs and review articles available.

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Jana Shepa (ed.)

The book of abstracts from 6th International Conference on Nanomaterials: Fundamentals and Applications, NFA 2022 is composed of contributions from the participants of this international conference. The conference consisted of 4 invited lecture and 52 abstracts of participants. The conference is focused on nanotechnology and its application in various research areas. All contributions are professionally processed and inspiring.

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E-publication

Denisa Maceková-Monika Václavková-Marek Kvet-Ivana Sotáková
The Digilib Digital Library of Formative Assessment Tools – User Guide, Part A introduces the Digilib application as the key component of the library, designed to support the implementation of formative assessment in teaching at all levels of education. It explains the structure of the system, its modules, the principles of user roles, and the possibilities for working with the digital formative assessment tools. Particular attention is paid to the possibilities for creating, editing, and assigning the tools to students, as well as to providing personalised real-time feedback. The User Guide also explains how the Digilib application is interconnected with the affiliated applications Digiform and Digilib Images, which expand the possibilities for creating and visualising assessment tools. The guide is intended for teachers at all levels of education, student teachers, school administrators, and digital coordinators who are interested in the systematic use of the Digilib digital library to support the implementation of formative assessment, enhance the quality of the educational process, and foster the development of students’ self-assessment and reflective competences.
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Denisa Maceková-Monika Václavková-Marek Kvet-Ivana Sotáková

The publication Digiform: A Supporting Application to Digilib – User Guide, Part B presents the Digiform web application as a tool that extends the functionality of the Digilib digital library of formative assessment tools. The application enables the creation and editing of formative assessment tool templates, which can be adapted to the specificities of individual subjects and levels of education and subsequently imported into the Digilib environment for use in the teaching process. The guide provides a detailed description of how to work with the Digiform application, from creating new templates, editing and personalising them, through to their export and implementation in the main Digilib application. Attention is also given to the interconnection with the Digilib Images application, which enables the integration of visual elements into the assessment tools, thereby enhancing their didactic effectiveness and visual appeal. The guide is intended for teachers at all levels of education, student teachers, school administrators, and digital coordinators who are interested in the systematic use of the Digilib digital library to support the implementation of formative assessment, enhance the quality of the educational process, and foster the development of students’ self-assessment and reflective competences.

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Kveta Markušová - Daniela Kladeková

Electrochemistry is the science that studies ionic systems and the processes or phenomena that occur at the interface between ionic systems and metals or semiconductors. At the current stage of development, electrochemistry can be divided into two main areas based on its focus. The first one - ionics - deals with the properties of ionic systems (solutions, melts, solid electrolytes). The second area - electrodeics - focuses on phenomena at the electrode/ionic system interface.

Both ionics and electrodeics investigate equilibrium and non-equilibrium phenomena and processes. Research into the properties of ionic systems under equilibrium conditions provides information and insights into the structure and composition of electrolyte solutions, melts, and solid electrolytes, while measurements under non-equilibrium conditions provide data on the electrical conductivity of ionic systems. In the field of electrodeics, the study of equilibria at the electrode/solution (or melt) interface is the domain of electrochemical thermodynamics. Measuring the rates of processes occurring at this phase interface and explaining the principles governing these processes fall under the scope of electrode process kinetics or electrochemical kinetics.

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Ľubomír Šnajder - Ján Guniš

The publication lists interim results of qualitative educational research focused on the development and evaluation of programming tasks being carried out by authors since 2005 in the frame of programming competition PALMA junior.

The publication consists of three chapters: Computer science competitions in Slovakia, Tasks in computer science education, Selected problems of PALMA junior competition. The first chapter provides an overview of computer science competitions for a primary and secondary schools in Slovakia. The second chapter described the issue of learning tasks - their components, focus, formulation types, and development system of tasks. The third chapter contains the assignments and commented author solutions of selected problems represented focus of PALMA junior competition – programming, algorithms and mathematics.

For each problem is mentioned analysis of pupils’ solutions aimed to ways of thinking, typical misconceptions, sets of preparatory and extended problems. The publication is addressed to computer science teacher trainers, authors of programming competitions problems, and computer science teachers.  

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