The Punic tombs of the Maltese islands

This study analyzes the distribution of the Punic tombs found thus far in various parts of the Maltese Islands. It also discusses the main burial methods and customs which the natives of these islands practiced in the Punic Period.peer-reviewe

Phoenician and Punic tombs in Malta

This study examines the Phoenician and Punic tombs discovered in the Maltese Islands from various aspects. The first chapter considers the historical and archaeological background of the Phoenicians in Malta between 700 B.C. and A.D. 100. The second part (Chapters 2 and 3) deals with the correlation between the distribution of tombs and geomorphology, water resources, soils and land-use; this section also discusses which areas of the Maltese Islands were likely to be inhabited during this period. The third section of this study (Chapter 4) concentrates on the type of society which emerges from the burial evidence during the Phoenician Period. The fourth part (Chapters 5 and 6) is concerned with the dating and utilization of tombs, while it also estimates the living and buried population of the Maltese Islands; this section also attempts to calculate a potential population for the Maltese archipelago from different land-use figures. The final part of this dissertation examines with different maps the location of Punic urban and rural settlements in the Maltese Islands in relation to later historical settlement patterns during the Roman and Byzantine eras, the Middle Ages and the Modern Period

Imagined and imaginary whales: Benedict Anderson, Salman Rushdie and George Orwell

George Orwell, anticipating many of the arguments made by Benedict Anderson in the “Patriotism and Racism” chapter of Imagined Communities, illuminated patriotism and nationalism as shifting aspects of a wider dialectical interplay between an identification with imagined communities and a loyalty to humanity. Orwell's essay “Inside the Whale” can be seen, contrary to Salman Rushdie's criticism that it advocates quietism, as an essay about imaginary homelands. In this reading the whale is a metaphor for a dialectical space created by a writer in order to gain purchase on the unceasing dialectic of history. Analysis of The Lion and the Unicorn in this article links Orwell's work with that of Anderson and Rushdie by exploring in his vision of a classless England the relationship between the personal imaginary homeland and the political imagined community

A brief outline of the legal history of harbour pilotage in Malta

When a vessel calls at a port infrequently or perhaps even for the first time, it is virtually impossible for her master to have a good knowledge of the winds, seas, currents, tides, traffic separation schemes, geology, infrastructure and traffic of that port and its approaches. Whether a port is a compulsory pilotage area or not depends primarily on the decision of the port authorities of that country. However, the traffic systems of that port have a heavy influence on such decision. In fact, most of the world's ports are compulsory pilotage areas. The Grand Harbour has been described as 'the finest in the world' , but as a port, pilotage was very necessary due to the, 'narrowness of the entrance and the usual variableness of the wind' . Malta's main harbours are compulsory pilotage areas. Therefore, every vessel entering and exiting the Ports of Valletta and Marsaxlokk requires a pilot. The law lays down a number of exceptions to this rule. The Malta Maritime Authority Act also reserves the right of the Director of Ports to exempt any vessel from the compulsory requirement of pilotage services at will.peer-reviewe

Comparing predictive performance of near infrared spectroscopy at a field, regional, national and continental scales by using spiking and data mining techniques

The development of accurate visible and near infrared (vis-NIR) spectroscopy calibration models for selected soil properties is a crucial step for variable rate application in precision agriculture. The objective of the present study was to compare the prediction performance of vis-NIR spectroscopy at local, regional, national and continental scales using data mining techniques including spiking. Fresh soil samples collected from farms in the UK, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands were scanned with a fibre-type vis-NIR spectrophotometer (tec5 Technology for Spectroscopy, Germany), with a spectral range of 305-2200 nm. After dividing spectra into calibration (75%) and validation (25%) sets, spectra in the calibration set were subjected to three multivariate calibration models. The partial least squares regression (PLSR), multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) and support vector machines (SVM), with leave-one-out cross-validation were used to establish calibration models of total nitrogen (TN), total carbon (TC) and soil moisture content (MC). The results showed the lowest model performance to be obtained when the single field (local scale) data were used in the calibration models. The effect of spiking was significant and the best model performance was obtained when local samples collected from two fields in the UK were spiked with European soil samples (continental), followed by when the same samples were spiked with UK samples (national). Therefore, these results suggest that continental and national vis-NIR calibration models can be successfully used to predict TN, TC and MC. Therefore, selection of the optimal soil samples with the appropriate data mining technique should be considered when developing vis-NIR calibration models for a non-standard soil to cover a wide variation range

Nonoscillatory solutions of discrete fractional order equations with positive and negative terms

summary:This paper aims at discussing asymptotic behaviour of nonoscillatory solutions of the forced fractional difference equations of the form \begin{align} \Delta ^{\gamma }u(\kappa )&+\Theta [\kappa +\gamma ,w(\kappa +\gamma )]\\=&\Phi (\kappa +\gamma )+\Upsilon (\kappa +\gamma )w^{\nu }(\kappa +\gamma ) +\Psi [\kappa +\gamma ,w(\kappa +\gamma )],\quad \kappa \in \mathbb {N}_{1-\gamma },\\ u_{0} =&c_{0}, \end{align} where $\mathbb {N}_{1-\gamma }=\{1-\gamma ,2-\gamma ,3-\gamma ,\cdots \}$, $0<\gamma \leq 1$, $\Delta ^{\gamma }$ is a Caputo-like fractional difference operator. Three cases are investigated by using some salient features of discrete fractional calculus and mathematical inequalities. Examples are presented to illustrate the validity of the theoretical results

Extracorporeal Shockwave for Intermittent Claudication and Quality of Life: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Importance Intermittent lower limb claudication limits function and quality of life. Supervised exercise programs are not readily available, and a noninvasive alternative is needed.Objective To assess extracorporeal corporeal shockwave therapy in improving quality of life in patients with claudication.Design, Setting, and Participants In this double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial, patients in the outpatient setting at a single tertiary center for vascular surgery were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to extracorporeal shockwave therapy or placebo therapy with no shockwaves delivered. Recruitment was between June 2015 and January 2020, with 12-week follow-up ending in March 2020. A convenience sample of patients with claudication and conservative treatment requirements who refused or were unable to participate in supervised exercise were eligible. Patients receiving anticoagulation therapy or with an active cancer were excluded. Of 522 patients screened, 389 were eligible, 138 were enrolled, and 110 completed follow-up and were included in the primary analysis. Statistical analysis was completed by May 2021.Intervention In the intervention group, patients received 100 impulses of 0.1mJ/mm/cm2 in an area of the gastrocnemius muscle 3 times weekly for 3 weeks. The steps for treatment were replicated for the control group without delivering the treatment.Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcome was the Physical Functioning domain of the 36-item Short-Form Quality of Life Questionnaire at 12-week follow-up. Secondary outcomes included walking distances, ankle brachial pressure index, and other quality-of-life measures.Results Of 138 patients recruited and randomized, 92 (67%) were male, and the mean (SD) age of the study population was 67 (9.6) years. The intervention group had a significantly higher physical function score at 12 weeks (estimated median difference 3.8; 95% CI, 0.0-7.7; P = .03). However, this significance did not remain when adjusting for covariates. At 12 weeks, the intervention group had significantly longer pain-free and maximum walking distances (pain-free estimated median difference, 34.1, 95% CI, 11.4-56.8; P = .004; maximum estimated median difference, 51.4; 95% CI, 10.7-86.5; P = .01).Conclusions and Relevance To our knowledge, this is the first double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial to consider extracorporeal shockwave therapy for the management of intermittent claudication. It demonstrated efficacy for walking distances, may have a positive effect on quality of life, and may provide a safe, noninvasive alternative therapy for patients with intermittent claudication

Prevalence of the Staphylococcal Enterotoxins Genes in Raw and Milk Products along the Value Chain in Mbeya and Mbozi Districts, Tanzania

The study determined the prevalence of genes coding for Staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) from Staphylococcus aureus isolates in milk produced and sold in Mbeya and Mbozi districts in Tanzania. Samples of raw milk (n=300), boiled hot (ready-to-consume) milk (n=72) and sour milk (n=72) were randomly collected from smallholder dairy farmers, milk collection points (MCP) and milk shops. Laboratory analysis showed that 59.7% of the milk samples contained Staphylococcus species. Biochemical tests showed that 12.4% of the isolates were positive for S. aureus, of which 5.6, 2.5 and 4.3% were from samples collected from farmer’s herd milk, MCP and milk shops, respectively. Furthermore, multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction (mPCR) results showed that 36.4% of the total S. aureus isolates (n=55) had SEs genes. Frequently observed gene was Sea (32.6%) while Sej was not detected in any of the isolates. The distribution of the SEs genes along the milk market channel showed 35, 15 and 50% of the genes came from isolates samples collected at farm level, MCP and milk shops, respectively. Moreover, no statistical difference were observed for SE coding gene between the districts and seasons, though higher (65%) prevalence of S. aureus isolates carrying SEs genes were observed in dry than wet season (35%). The prevalence of SE coding gene in raw, boiled hot and sour milk were 4.3, 5.6 and 4.2%, respectively. The results obtained show that milk produced and marketed in the two districts contained S. aureus isolates expressing gene for enterotoxins production which pose a potential public health risk. Hence, the results indicate the need to institute proper hygienic measures by all milk stakeholders in order to avoid contamination of milk with S. aureus. Further studies on the diversity and distribution of enterotoxins producing S. aureus in the Southern highlands and other areas in the country are recommended. Keywords: Boiled hot milk, sour milk, enterotoxins, Staphylococcus aureus, Multiplex PC

Hepatitis E Outbreak on Cruise Ship

The outbreak was probably foodborne