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Influence of urbanization patterns on the escape behaviour of birds
Dontová, Alena ; Mikula, Peter (advisor) ; Brlík, Vojtěch (referee)
Urbanization, i.e., the anthropogenic transformation of natural habitats into urban areas, has significant impact on the biodiversity. One of the key factors for successful animal survival in urban environments is the increase in their tolerance towards humans manifested by their decreased shyness. One of the field methods for assessing the level of the shyness across different individuals, populations, and species of animals is measuring their flight initiation distance. In this thesis, I focus primarily on birds, as their responses have been most extensively studied. Previous studies focused on differences in escape behaviour among birds mainly between urban and rural areas, and focused mainly on Europe and North America. However, human settlements vary in their history, size, population density, and other characteristics. Therefore, the observed patterns in bird behaviour may not always be universally applicable across all cities. In this thesis, through a literature review, I summarize how the escape behaviour of birds differs not only between urban and rural environments but also depending on the characteristics of human settlements, such as their size, history, degree of urbanization, the density of the local human population and the ecoregion. I found that the most important characteristics are the...
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Impact of leisure and social activites on quality of life among erderly in Europe - SHARE data analysis
Pluhařová, Markéta
Impact of leisure and social activites on quality of life among erderly in Europe - SHARE data analysis Abstract Due to demographic aging, the quality of life of an increasing proportion of seniors is becoming more important than ever. According to activity theory and the concept of active aging, active life is a way to experience good old age. The diploma thesis focuses on the impacts of leisure and social activities on the quality of life of elderly over 65 in 17 European countries. Sixth wave data from The Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) from 2015 and the easySHARE panel dataset are analyzed using binary regression analysis and multilevel modeling using binary regression analysis. The relationship of 11 selected activities, which were divided for the needs of this thesis into social, individual activities and activities aimed at helping others, and quality of life is controlled for socio-economic, demographic and health characteristics. Quality of life is meassured using the CASP-12 indicator. For social and individual activities, active elderly have a higher chance of a high quality of life (CASP-12 score> 39) than inactive. Elderly who do not provide personal care assistance to people from the same household also have a better chance than caregivers. Key words ageing, ageing of...
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Ability of plants to adapt to anthropogenic pollution
Vachek, Tadeáš ; Münzbergová, Zuzana (advisor) ; Dostál, Petr (referee)
Due to global climate change and human interventions, the environment is changing rapidly. This brings many stress factors that organisms must adapt to. One of the adaptive mechanisms currently widely discussed is rapid evolution, i.e., hereditary change based on natural selection occurring at an ecologically relevant pace. This work deals with the synthesis of knowledge about rapid evolution, the methodology of its research, and its role in the adaptive processes of plants to anthropogenic pollution, focusing on heavy metals in soil and artificial light at night. The collected studies indicate that heavy metals exert strong selective pressure that can lead to the separation of a tolerant population from the original within a few generations. However, the significance of artificial light at night as a selective factor for plant evolution has not yet been studied. Although individual studies deal with adaptive evolution in phototactic insects in response to artificial light at night, extensive research has not been conducted here either. From the general examination of the effects of artificial light at night on organisms (especially animals), both direct and indirect impacts on their functioning are evident, many of which have not yet been described in detail. Thus, the direct and indirect impacts...
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Juniper pastures in the Wallachia area and predictors of their preservation
Mizera, Ondřej ; Křenová, Zdeňka (advisor) ; Mudrák, Ondřej (referee)
Common juniper (Juniperus communis), as a species of predominantly open habitats, used to be part of semi-natural grassland communities, such a pastures. In the area of Moravian Wallachia (eastern part of the Czech Republic) this type of grassland is known as juniper pasture, however as in the whole of Europe, it is a type of habitat that is disappearing rapidly from the landscape, among other reasons due to the absence of juveniles in the population. A total of 20 potentially preserved juniper pastures were identified within nine cadastral areas in the Moravian Wallachia (Beskydy Protected Landscape Area) and visited during the vegetation period. The total number of J. communis individuals was recorded, including their dendrometric (crown height and radius) and descriptive characteristics (sex, vitality, developmental stage, sociability, form). Characteristics of vegetation cover and type of site management were also recorded to define the main factors influencing the vitality and proportion of juvenile individuals in the population of J. communis. Field research was supplemented by analyses of orthophotos and topographical data processed in a GIS environment. In total 2,896 juniper were recorded at 20 locations, while the population of J. communis in the area of interest can be characterized by...
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The impact of team autonomy, reflexivity and participation on employees' mental health
Mandousová, Michaela ; Šípová, Ivana (advisor) ; Mudrák, Jiří (referee)
Mental health is an important topic in the context of the work environment. Therefore, the thesis examines the impact of team autonomy, reflexivity, and participation on employees' mental health. The theoretical part focuses on the topic of mental health, the JD-R model, burnout syndrome, engagement, and team factors with a focus on autonomy, reflexivity, and participation. The empirical part aims to test whether team autonomy, reflexivity, and participation together with burnout syndrome score or work engagement are significant predictors of burnout syndrome and engagement measured one year apart. The data used to test the stated hypotheses were obtained within the framework of the international H-WORK project, which conducted a field-based longitudinal study. The project was initiated in response to growing mental health problems in the working population in Europe. This paper uses data from two companies that underwent restructuring during the project. Because of this, there was a large drop out. The data in the research part, which was subjected to linear regression analysis, was collected from 59 respondents. The results did not support the stated hypotheses. This result may be influenced by several factors, such as the high experimental mortality already mentioned. Key words: mental health;...
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The importance of polyploidization in the evolution of grasses of the tribe Triticeae
Papoušek, Lukáš ; Urfus, Tomáš (advisor) ; Chrtek, Jindřich (referee)
Polyploidization, as a process of chromosome set multiplication, represents one of the most significant forces that shaped the evolution of angiosperms. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms of polyploidization is also important. It most often originates through unreduced gametes (less so through somatic polyploidization). Autopolyploids are the result of polyploidization within one species, or population, while the formation of allopolyploids is preceded by interspecific hybridization. Polyploidization also played a major role in the tribe Triticeae (Poaceae), which includes economically significant crops (wheat, rye, and barley). The taxonomy ofthe entire tribe, especially the generic concept, has been based on genomic concepts in recent decades. However, taxonomy is considerably complicated, particularly due to hybridization, or allopolyploidization. The result of allopolyploidization and even hybridization itself is a reticulate pattern, and it is not at all easy to determine the boundaries between taxa, even at the generic level. Triticum aestivum can be considered a model species for the study of allopolyploidy, both due to its economic significance and its origin through several rounds of hybridization events. Although allopolyploidy prevails, autopolyploidy can be encountered to a lesser...
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Religious conflicts in Europe - the model example of Judaism
Luňák, Václav ; Havlíček, Tomáš (advisor) ; Lepič, Martin (referee)
This bachelor thesis is a thorough analysis of European religious conflicts over the last fifty years. It focuses on the study of their dynamics, causes and consequences. It also explores the significant relationship between the religious conflicts associated with Judaism in Europe and the political and religious situation in Israel and the surrounding states. It analyses how these conflicts affect the dynamics of political and religious relations between Europe and the Middle East. It pays particular attention to the role that the growing Muslim population in Europe plays in anti-Semitic religious conflicts and the implications of these developments for regional stability. Last but not least, the paper analyses the localization of conflicts in Europe, with an emphasis on Western Europe. It determines whether there is a greater concentration of religious conflicts associated with Judaism in this part and what factors influence this situation. The first part of the thesis provides a comprehensive overview of religious conflicts in geographically defined Europe, examining their historical development and analysing the involvement of different religions in these disputes. The next part of the thesis pays particular attention to conflicts directed against the Jewish community. The main part then...
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Europeans in the U.S. in light of the 1920 census
Přenosil, Adam ; Velková, Alice (advisor) ; Kulhánová, Ivana (referee)
Europeans in the U.S. in light of the 1920 census Abstract This bachelor's thesis deals with the topic of European immigrants in the United States in the early 20th century. The main objective is to analyze people born in Europe using already processed data for individual persons from the 1920 U.S. census. The population of European immigrants is first studied as a whole and then several national groups (Germans, Italians, Scandinavians, English, Irish, Jews and Poles) are defined and analyzed separately. The main object of the analysis is the sociodemographic structure of European immigrants with a primary focus on sex, age, occupation, urbanization, and literacy. The geographic distribution of European immigrants within the U.S. is also analyzed. In addition, the results of the analysis are compared with specialized literature. Keywords: U.S. census, Europeans, immigrants, immigration
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Metabolic specifics of persons with increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus
Chocholová, Denisa ; Vejražková, Daniela (advisor) ; Krejčí, Hana (referee)
Diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2) is a metabolic disorder characterized by elevated blood glucose levels. The issue of the disease and its prevention is very topical, with the increasing prevalence of obesity in recent years leading to a constant rise in newly diagnosed individuals, with predictions for 2030 estimating up to 11 % of the world's population. The aim of the thesis is to evaluate the dynamics of glucose processing during a 3-hour oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in individuals at increased risk of developing DM2 and in a control group of healthy individuals with consideration of intersex differences. Information inherent in the glycemic trajectory could be significant both in terms of predicting potential glycemic dysregulation and other health complications such as dyslipidemia and other components of the metabolic syndrome (MS). It could thus contribute to extending the time interval suitable for very early and therefore more effective prevention. Furthermore, the thesis evaluates certain gene variants that may increase the risk of developing DM2. In this context, the genes MTNR1B and NME7 were investigated. A total of 1262 individuals (1035 women and 227 men) with various degrees of glucose tolerance underwent the extended 3-hour OGTT. Participants were examined in terms of...
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Biology and ecological dynamics of Baltic Fucus belts
Kivader, Martin ; Neustupa, Jiří (advisor) ; Němcová, Yvonne (referee)
The belt-forming algae of the genus Fucus are key species of the otherwise species-poor Baltic Sea. The distribution of the Fucus species is limited by the reduced salinity of brackish water to which the Baltic populations have adapted. The genus Fucus is known for high phenotypic plasticity and the absence of reproductive barriers, complicating the study of its recent radiation. The recent speciacion of the Baltic endemic F. radicans from locally adapted F. vesiculosus populations probably happened twice independenly 2 500-400 years ago. Baltic Sea is the largest brackish ecosystem characterised by a pronounced salinity gradient ranging from 1.2 to 30.2 ‰. It is influenced by the discharge of over 200 rivers and water exchange with the ocean is limited by the shallow Danish Straits. Since 1970s, Fucus decline and local extinction due to eutrophication of the Baltic Sea have been reported. Baltic water has high residence time which leads to accumulation of nutrients. In 1974, Helsinki Commission was established and the Helsinki Convention on the protection of the Baltic Sea Area was signed in response to its worsening state. Fucus belts, however, continue to decline and their ability for recovery is limited. Increased sedimentation due to eutrophication has in many locations resulted in the loss of...
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