The fossil fuel extraction era in the Upper Silesia and Zagłębie region is coming to an end before our very eyes. However, coal is here to stay, as evidenced by heavy metal laden heaps and land subsidence. Research shows how large a role culture can play in taming decarbonisation. The researchers prove that we are in need of good transformation narratives, which could introduce us to the transition process from coal fueled electricity to nuclear energy.  

It’s 1974. Thousands of records laid out on the floor of doctor Jolanta Wadowska-Król’s flat form a grim labyrinth. These are the medical records of children living near the Non-Ferrous Smelting Plant ‘Szopienice’ in Katowice. Many of them have blood lead levels well above the acceptable limit. The diagnosis is surprising — it’s lead poisoning, an occupational disease affecting workers in daily contact with toxic metals, causing damage to the haematopoietic and nervous systems, among other things. And so, the fight for the health and lives of the doctor’s young patients begins.

One of the most recognisable elements of the Upper Silesian landscape is the post-mining waste heaps — remnants of coal mining — which are connected with the region’s industrial heritage that the community struggles with to this day. These sites, known to contain a mixture of toxic substances (often difficult to identify) and prone to fire, are sometimes also extremely biodiverse. Given sufficient time, the mining waste storage sites that scare away any potential passersby can turn into the so-called green islands with a spontaneously developing wildlife.

The use of genetically modified micro-organisms (GMMs), as well as the chemical compounds they produce, has a universal tacit approval. Whereas, the production of food using genetically modified organisms (GMOs), mainly plants, is vehemently opposed. Some argue that GMO foods are harmful and should not be consumed, while others believe that they can do a lot of good, e.g. reduce hunger in countries facing food shortages and improve the living standards in developing countries. What are the actual benefits of GMOs – and do they carry any risks?

Cryptocurrency is a term not coincidentally made up of two elements: the prefix crypto- and the noun currency. It is basically a means of settlement, not stored, however, in the computer system of any bank, but rather maintained by thousands of computers scattered around the world. It is built on a technology called blockchain. How are cryptocurrencies created? Can something that does not physically exist have value? It is still difficult to say if cryptocurrencies have more advantages or disadvantages.

It is now difficult to imagine the world of art without the presence of elements of information technology. Just as people used to primarily paint with a brush on a canvas or sculpt in stone or wood in the past, nowadays many works are created with a greater or lesser contribution of digital technologies. AI (Artificial Intelligence), which is now able to generate artworks using algorithms and neural networks, AR (Augmented Reality), and VR (Virtual Reality) technologies are now increasingly entering the domain of art.

On 10 April 1998 the governments of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland adopted the Good Friday Agreement. The document, subsequently countersigned by Northern Ireland’s main political parties, symbolically ended 30 years of bloody conflict in the region. While everything looked great on paper, the reality proved more complicated. The transformation of Belfast and Northern Ireland turned out to be a long process.

The Polish National Film Archive boasts one of the largest collections of films in Europe. It contains 2,000 Polish feature films (from 1908 to the present day), 160 pre-war films, 100,000 documentaries and short films, and over 2,000 animated films. Most were recorded on film stock, a perishable and degradable material. The only way to prevent the loss of film heritage and to preserve it for posterity is digitisation and comprehensive digital restoration. Not only can the contemporary viewer admire the cinema that captivated previous generations, but also follow the development of Polish cinematography.

There has never been a single and unified masculine ideal that has persisted over the centuries. On the contrary, while looking from a historical perspective, it can be concluded that masculinity has always been a category prone to transformation. It has been a reflection of economic, political, social, and cultural changes, which have undergone periodic phases of collapse and transformation. However, the postmodern definition crisis, which dates back to the last century and continues to this day, seems to have resounded the loudest. Ever since researchers began to study masculinity, it has become increasingly clear that masculinity, contrary to popular opinion, is not a monolithic construct.