Health diplomacy of the European Union and its member states in Central Asia. EL-CSID Policy Brief Issue 2018/5 • April 2018

In the soft power context, health is increasingly seen as an area that generates particular diplomatic benefits because it is ostensibly non-political and can bring both immediate and long-term advantages equally to the donor and the recipient country. Since the European Union’s role in the international affairs is increasing, the EU is expected to play a central role in global health guided by the principles of solidarity, i.e. to provide an equitable and universal access to quality health services. Some commentators point to a lack of coherence and coordination between EU health and other policies1. Also, ambiguities do exist about the scope of national and European competencies in the area of health policy2. The role of the smaller member states may be unusually significant as they "use the health arena to demonstrate their commitment to the multilateral systems that provide them with a voice and allow them a leading role on the global stage”3. Thus, health diplomacy offers an intriguing insight into the dynamics in the EU’s approaches to Central Asia, the region that is incrementally becoming of interest to Europe

Heart Rate Response to Sound and Light

Heart rate response to varying sound and light intensitie

Attitudes to contemporary English interference on Welsh

The research outlined in this thesis is based on the hypothesis that there is a connection between interference usage and language attitudes. The milieu chosen for the research is present day Wales, with the contact situation under investigation involving the English and Welsh languages. The research proceeds by investigating the attitudes and usage of four groups of subjects from the Aberystwyth area. These comprise groups of Lecturers and local Teachers and two less well-educated groups of urban subjects from Aberystwyth and rural subjects from Llangwyryfon. The language attitudes investigated involve both general attitudes towards the language situation in Wales and attitudes towards language standards in Welsh with particular reference to interference from English. The instrument employed to elicit this data was a questionnaire comprising largely closed questions. Comparable examples of interference usage, mainly in the lexical field, were elicited by the use of a number of specially devised tests. Results showed that the two less well-educated groups were not as normative towards certain kinds of interference (especially lexical) and less aware of other kinds. In addition, these groups also tended to be less pro- Welsh on an index of Welsh commitment which consisted of questions on language use and on political aspects of the language situation. In the usage tests, high levels of interference usage were revealed in the same less well-educated groups. Some differences were also revealed between sub-groupings of the Lecturer and Teacher groups on the basis of the medium of instruction employed by the subjects in their work. Any differences are, however, restricted to the attitude questionnaire and are not paralleled in usage. It is posited that while there is a clear relationship between the two phenomena tested, it is not proven that the relationship is a direct one

A Preliminary Investigation of the Lipid of Halophilic Bacteria as a Food Additive

This study was conducted to evaluate the feasibility of obtaining workable quantities of the unusual ether-linked phosphatidyl glycerophosphate of halophilic bacteria through batch culture of Halobacterium halobium. Once isolated and purified, physical, emulsification, and toxicological properties of the lipid were evaluated with respect to its use as a nonnutritive lipid substitute or an emulsifier by the food industry. These evaluations included physical descriptions, melting properties, hydrophile-lipophile balance (HLB) determination, and oral and intraperitoneal administration of the lipid to laboratory mice

EL-CSID Policy Brief 9: Diaspora and its role in the European cultural diplomacy with Kazakhstan. Institute for European Studies Issue 2018/09, September 2018

The bilateral relations between Kazakhstan and the nine European Union countries examined in this policy brief are characterised by the existence of large ethnic communities or “beached diasporas”. In this policy brief, the European diasporas living in Kazakhstan are discussed in the context of European cultural diplomacy. The brief analyses their role and that of various specialised ethnic-cultural agencies in EU cultural diplomacy. It asks how the promotion of culture via diasporas can assist the EU in its cultural diplomacy

EL-CSID Policy Brief 5: Health diplomacy of the European Union and its member states in Central Asia. Institute for European Studies Issue 2018/5

In the soft power context, health is increasingly seen as an area that generates particular diplomatic benefits because it is ostensibly non-political and can bring both immediate and long-term advantages equally to the donor and the recipient country. Since the European Union’s role in the international affairs is increasing, the EU is expected to play a central role in global health guided by the principles of solidarity, i.e. to provide an equitable and universal access to quality health services. Some commentators point to a lack of coherence and coordination between EU health and other policies1. Also, ambiguities do exist about the scope of national and European competencies in the area of health policy2. The role of the smaller member states may be unusually significant as they "use the health arena to demonstrate their commitment to the multilateral systems that provide them with a voice and allow them a leading role on the global stage”3. Thus, health diplomacy offers an intriguing insight into the dynamics in the EU’s approaches to Central Asia, the region that is incrementally becoming of interest to Europe

Ballot paper photographs and low-information elections in Ireland

In an attempt to facilitate greater voting participation in the Republic of Ireland, photographs of candidates have been placed on the ballot paper for local, national and European elections. Limited research undertaken in advance of the implementation of the photograph policy advised that the measure would assist people with literacy problems. However, social psychology research has long demonstrated that people are willing to make considerable judgements about a person when shown a photograph. The advent of ballot paper photographs allows candidates to be evaluated on the basis of their appearance. This article will explore how photographs could have become a factor in voter decision-making. Providing additional knowledge to encourage greater participation and engagement has introduced a possible new level of superficiality into the voter decision-making process

Are life-extending treatments for terminal illnesses a special case? Exploring choices and societal viewpoints

Criteria used by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to assess life-extending, end-of-life (EoL) treatments imply that health gains from such treatments are valued more than other health gains. Despite claims that the policy is supported by societal values, evidence from preference elicitation studies is mixed and in-depth research has shown there are different societal viewpoints. Few studies elicit preferences for policies directly or combine different approaches to understand preferences.Survey questions were designed to investigate support for NICE EoL guidance at national and regional levels. These ‘Decision Rule’ and ‘Treatment Choice’ questions were administered to an online sample of 1496 UK respondents in May 2014. The same respondents answered questions designed to elicit their agreement with three viewpoints (previously identified and described) in relation to provision of EoL treatments for terminally ill patients. We report the findings of these choice questions and examine how they relate to each other and respondents' viewpoints.The Decision Rule questions described three policies: DA – a standard ‘value for money’ test, applied to all health technologies; DB – giving special consideration to all treatments for terminal illnesses; and DC – giving special consideration to specific categories of treatments for terminal illnesses e.g. life extension (as in NICE EoL guidance) or those that improve quality-of-life (QoL). Three Treatment Choices were presented: TA – improving QoL for patients with a non-terminal illness; TB – extending life for EoL patients; and TC – improving QoL at the EoL.DC received most support (45%) with most respondents giving special consideration to EoL only when treatments improved QoL. The most commonly preferred treatment choices were TA (51%) and TC (43%). Overall, this study challenges claims about public support for NICE's EoL guidance and the focus on life extension at EoL and substantiates existing evidence of plurality in societal values

Gone but not forgotten : the (re-)making of diaspora strategies

This review article summarises the literature on the relations between states and their diaspora. Policy makers are struggling to know how best to respond to and possibly harness the potential of kindred communities abroad. The article outlines a wide spectrum of policy initiatives and categorises them into three groups: economic, political and socio-cultural. Five economic, four political and two social-cultural factors are discussed as are the wide variety of implementation strategy evident in different jurisdictions. Though the concentration is on Asia, examples are chosen worldwide. Academically, the article identifies empirical and conceptual deficiencies in studies on diaspora strategies.Non peer reviewe

Campaigning by human branding: Associating with American Presidents

Human branding has become an essential issue in political marketing. It is exemplified in the election of American Presidents. This paper examines the American experience to suggest a typology of human branding that may apply in both presidential and other political systems. It examines examples of presidential human brands from George Washington on but, given significant changes to electoral procedures, concentrates on first-time successful presidential candidates since 1901. The fourfold typology offers an interrelated set of ideal types that will augment the analysis of human branding. It is applied to presidents when they take up office rather than after serving. The typology draws on the source of primary brand association and relation to the core political system of each politician