The floriculture industry in Malta

The floriculture industry in Malta is relatively small when compared to that of other European countries. However, despite several constraints, a number of growers deal exclusively with the production of floriculture products for local use. In the early 1970s, a locally based company was much involved in the export of floricultural products to the United Kingdom. This year (2002), four local growers initiated the growing and export of gladioli flowers to Italy.peer-reviewe

UV and global irradiance measurements and analysis during the Marsaxlokk (Malta) campaign

A solar radiation measurement campaign was performed in the south-eastern village of Marsaxlokk (35 500 N; 14 330 E; 10m a.s.l), Malta, between 15 May and 15 October 2012. Erythemal solar radiation data (from a UVB-1 pyranometer), and total horizontal solar radiation (global and diffuse components) from two CM21 pyranometer were recorded. A comparison of atmospheric compounds from ground measurements and satellites shows that TOC (total ozone column) data from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument OMI, TOMS and DOAS algorithms correlate well with ground-based recorded data. The water vapour column and the aerosol optical depth at 550 nm show a significant correlation at the confidence level of 99 %. Parametric models for evaluating the solar UV erythemal (UVER), global (G) and diffuse (D) horizontal irradiances are calibrated, from which aerosol effects on solar irradiance are evaluated using the Aerosol Modification Factor (AMF). The AMFUVER values are lower than AMFG, indicating a greater aerosol effect on UVER than on global solar irradiance. In this campaign, several dust event trajectories are identified by means of the HYbrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model and by synoptic conditions for characterizing desert dust events. Hence, changes in the UV index due to atmospheric aerosols are described.peer-reviewe

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have proven efficacy in the treatment of panic disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and social anxiety disorder. Accumulating data shows that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor treatment can also be efficacious in patients with generalized anxiety disorder. This review summarizes the findings of randomized controlled trials of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor treatment for generalized anxiety disorder, examines the strengths and weaknesses of other therapeutic approaches and considers potential new treatments for patients with this chronic and disabling anxiety disorder

The Canadian National Bibliography: 50 years of continuity and change

It is a pleasure for me to be here today to share with you the celebration of the 50 th anniversary of Canadiana, Canada’s national bibliography. I speak on behalf of all of my colleagues at the National Library of Canada in saying we are proud of our bibliographic heritage and it is an honour for me to be the person having this opportunity to tell you about the creation and evolution of our national bibliography and some of our hopes for its future. The theme of our session today asks a question: Is bibliography indispensable or redundant? Certainly, in the early days of Canada’s history, there was no question as to the need for bibliographic services. Our first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, identified the need for a national library not long after the country was created in 1867. Throughout the decades of the first half of the 20 th century, librarians and researchers repeatedly lobbied the Government of Canada to provide two essential services: bibliographic control of Canadian publications and identification and location of these resources for loan. Given the other more pressing priorities in the years immediately following the second world war, it is a tribute to the government of the day that it approved the creation in 1950 of the Canadian Bibliographic Centre to compile and publish a national bibliography and to create and maintain a national union catalogue