Trade unions in the Maltese private sector revisited

This paper explores the latent power of Maltese trade unions in the private sector by reviewing the presence of collective agreements in force in 2008. The study adopts a similar methodology to one published in Bank of Valletta Review in 1996, based on 1995 data. Over this 13-year period, the number of private sector collective agreements in force has dropped from 212 to 168; the number of full-time, private sector employees covered by collective agreements is slightly higher (22,879 as against 22,128); but the proportion of the same employees covered by collective agreements is lower by 6.2 percentage points (from 32.9% to 26.7%). The data invites a sober reflection on the power of trade unions in contemporary society.peer-reviewe

A Robust Random Forest Prediction Model for Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission Based on Individual Medical History

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) continues to be a leading cause of mortality and reduces manpower throughout the world. HIV transmission from mother to child is still a global challenge in health research. According to UNAIDS, in every 7 girls, 6 are found to be newly infected among adolescents whereby 15-24 years are likely to be living with HIV which is the maternal age and likely to transfer to the child. Machine learning methods have been used to predict HIV/AIDS transmission from mother to child but left behind some important considerations including the use of patient-level information and techniques in balancing the dataset which may impact models’ performance. A robust prediction model for mother-to-child HIV/AIDS transmission is vital to alleviate HIV/AIDS detrimental effects. The Random Forest Machine Learning method was employed based on features from the individual medical history of HIV-positive mothers. A total of 680 balanced data tuples were used for model development using the ratio of 75:25 for training and testing the dataset. The Random Forest model outperformed the most commonly used learning algorithms achieving the performance of 99% accuracy, recall and F1-score of 0.99 and an error of 0.01, thus improving the prediction rate

Ode to confidence : Poetry groups for dysarthria in multiple sclerosis

Purpose: Approximately 40–50% of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) have dysarthria impacting confidence in communication. This study explored how people with MS experienced a novel therapeutic approach combining dysarthria therapy with poetry in a group format. Method: Participants were recruited through MSWA (formerly known as the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Western Australia), a leading service provider for people living with all neurological conditions in Western Australia. They attended eight weekly sessions led by a speech pathologist and a professional poet. The study was co-designed and qualitative, using observational field notes recorded during sessions and semi-structured in-depth interviews with participants after programme completion. The results from an informal, unstandardised rating scale of communication confidence, along with standardised voice and speech measures, were used to facilitate discussion about confidence in the interviews. Result: Nine participants with MS completed the group programme. Analysis of the qualitative data revealed participants’ positive views regarding the pairing of speech pathology and poetry. Thematic analysis identified four core themes: living with MS and its “series of griefs”; belonging to a group – “meeting with a purpose”; the power of poetry; and poetry as a medium for speech pathology. Conclusion: Poetry in combination with dysarthria therapy represents a novel, interprofessional approach for improving communication confidence in individuals with MS

The role of lithosphere thickness in the formation of ocean islands and seamounts: contrasts between the Louisville and Emperor-Hawaiian hotspot trails

The Hawaii-Emperor and Louisville seamounts form the two most prominent time-progressive hotspot trails on Earth. Both formed over a similar time interval on lithosphere with a similar range of ages and thickness. The Hawaii-Emperor seamounts are large and magma productivity appears to be increasing at present. The Louisville seamounts, by contrast, are smaller and the trail appears to be waning. We present new major-and trace element data from five of the older (74-50 Ma) Louisville seamounts drilled during International Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 330 and compare these to published data from the Emperor seamounts of the same age. Despite drilling deep into the shield-forming volcanic rocks at three of the Louisville seamounts, our data confirm the results of earlier studies based on dredge samples that the Louisville seamounts are composed of remarkably uniform alkali basalt. The basalt composition can be modelled by ~1.5–3% partial melting of a dominantly garnet lherzolite mantle with a composition similar to that of the Ontong Java Plateau mantle source. Rock samples recovered by dredging and drilling on the Emperor Seamounts range in composition from tholeiitic to alkali basalt and require larger degrees of melting (2–10%) and spinel-to garnet lherzolite mantle sources. We use a simple decompression melting model to show that melting of mantle with a potential temperature of 1500ºC under lithosphere of varying thickness can account for the composition of the shield-forming tholeiitic basalts from the Emperor seamounts, while post-shield alkali basalt requires a lower temperature (1300–1400ºC). This is consistent with the derivation of Hawaii-Emperor shield-forming magmas from the hotter axis of a mantle plume and the post-shield magmas from the cooler plume sheath as the seamount drifts away from the plume axis. The composition of basalt from the Louisville seamounts shows no significant variation with lithosphere thickness at the time of seamount formation, contrary to the predictions of our decompression melting model. This lack of influence of lithospheric thickness ischaracteristic of basalt from most ocean islands. Theproblem can be resolved if the Louisville seamounts were formed by dehydration melting of mantle containinga small amount of water in a cooler plume. Hydrous melting in a relatively cool mantle plume (Tp=1350–1400°C) could produce a small amount of melt and then be inhibited by increasing viscosity from reaching the dry mantle solidus and melting further. The failure of the plume to reach the dry mantle solidus or the base of the lithosphere means that the resulting magmas would have the same composition irrespective of lithosphere thickness. A hotter mantle plume (Tp≈1500°C) beneath the Emperor seamounts and the Hawaiian Islands would have lower viscosity before the onset of melting, melt to a larger extent, and decompress to the base of the lithosphere. Thus our decompression melting model could potentially explain the composition of both the Emperor and Louisville seamounts. The absence of a significant lithospheric control on the composition of basalt from nearly all ocean islands suggests that dehydration melting is the rule and the Hawaiian islands the exception. Alternatively, many ocean islands may not be the product of mantle plumes but instead be formed by decompression melting of heterogeneous mantle sources composed of peridotite containing discrete bodies of carbonated and silica-oversaturated eclogite within the general upper mantle convective flow

Unfolding dynamics of proteins under applied force

Understanding the mechanisms of protein folding is a major challenge that is being addressed effectively by collaboration between researchers in the physical and life sciences. Recently, it has become possible to mechanically unfold proteins by pulling on their two termini using local force probes such as the atomic force microscope. Here, we present data from experiments in which synthetic protein polymers designed to mimic naturally occurring polyproteins have been mechanically unfolded. For many years protein folding dynamics have been studied using chemical denaturation, and we therefore firstly discuss our mechanical unfolding data in the context of such experiments and show that the two unfolding mechanisms are not the same, at least for the proteins studied here. We also report unexpected observations that indicate a history effect in the observed unfolding forces of polymeric proteins and explain this in terms of the changing number of domains remaining to unfold and the increasing compliance of the lengthening unstructured polypeptide chain produced each time a domain unfolds

Luton Roma Trust Evaluation

A Community Fund commissioned/funded independent evaluation of the services provided by Luton Roma Trust (LRT) to their Roma clients and wider statutory services/civil society in relation to community engagement, creating an inclusive society and supporting the development of accessible public sector services

The impact of the parenting for respectability programme on violent parenting and intimate partner relationships in Uganda: a pre-post study

Background There is a growing need for interventions that reduce both violence against children and intimate partner violence in low- and middle-income countries. However, few parenting interventions deliberately address this link. We tested the feasibility of a 16-session group-based parenting programme, Parenting for Respectability, in semi-rural Ugandan communities. Methods This was a pre-post study with parents and their children (N = 484 parents; 212 children). Results Pre-post comparisons found large effects for parent-reported reduced harsh parenting (Cohen’s f2 = 0.41 overall; f2 = 0.47 (among session attendees); with an overall reduction of 26% for harsh parenting. Session attendees reported higher reductions than non-attendees (p = 0.014), and male caregivers reported higher reductions than female caregivers (p<0.001). Children also reported reduced harsh parenting by attending fathers (f2 = 0.64 overall; f2 = 0.60) and attending mothers (f2 = 0.56 overall; f2 = 0.51); with reduction in harsh parenting ranging between 27% to 29% in the various categories. Overall, spousal violence reduced by 27% (f2 = 0.19 overall; f2 = 0.26 (among session attendees). Both parents and children reported reduced dysfunctional parent relationships; parents: f2 = 0.19 overall; f2 = 0.26 (among session attendees); and children: f2 = 0.35 overall; f2 = 0.32 (for attending parents); with reductions ranging between 22% to 28%. Parents who attended more than 50% of the program reported greater effects on reduced dysfunctional relationships than those who attended less than half of the program (B = -0.74, p = 0.013). All secondary outcomes were improved with f2 ranging between 0.08 and 0.39; and improvements ranging between 6% and 28%. Conclusion Results suggest the importance of more rigorous testing to determine program effectiveness

‘If they don't use it, they lose it’: how organisational structures and practices shape residents’ physical movement in care home settings

Older people living in long-term facilities (nursing and residential homes providing 24-hour care) spend the majority of their time inactive, despite the known health and wellbeing benefits of physical activity and reduced time spent sedentary. In order to successfully embed interventions that aim to increase physical activity or reduce sedentary behaviour, it is necessary to understand the features of the care environment that influence residents’ routine patterns of movement. Drawing on an organisational perspective, this paper explores the structures and mechanisms that shaped different care practices concerning residents’ movement in two contrasting care homes in the north of England. This study adopted an ethnographic approach, using a combination of qualitative observations, informal conversations and interviews. A grounded theory approach to data analysis was adopted. The findings illustrate the importance of translating espoused values of care into tangible and acceptable care practices, systems of management, staff training and development, and the use of care planning in residents’ routine patterns of movement. Understanding how organisational factors shape routine movement among care home residents will help inform the development of embedded and sustainable interventions that enhance physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour. This study is part of a wider programme of research developing and testing a complex intervention, embedded within routine care, to reduce sedentary behaviour among care home residents

Heavy Drinking in College Students Is Associated with Accelerated Gray Matter Volumetric Decline over a 2 Year Period

Background: Heavy and/or harmful alcohol use while in college is a perennial and significant public health issue. Despite the plethora of cross-sectional research suggesting deleterious effects of alcohol on the brain, there is a lack of literature investigating the longitudinal effects of alcohol consumption on the adolescent brain. We aim to probe the longitudinal effects of college drinking on gray matter change in students during this crucial neurodevelopmental period. Methods: Data were derived from the longitudinal Brain and Alcohol Research in College Students (BARCS) study of whom a subset underwent brain MRI scans at two time points 24 months apart. Students were young adults with a mean age at baseline of about 18.5 years. Based on drinking metrics assessed at both baseline and followup, subjects were classified as sustained abstainers/light drinkers (N = 45) or sustained heavy drinkers (N = 84) based on criteria established in prior literature. Gray matter volumetric change (GMV-c) maps were derived using the longitudinal DARTEL pipeline as implemented in SPM12. GMV-c maps were then subjected to a 1-sample and 2-sample t-test in SPM12 to determine within- and between-group GMV-c differences in drinking groups. Supplementary between-group differences were also computed at baseline only. Results: Within-group analysis revealed significant decline in GMV in both groups across the 2 year followup period. However, tissue loss in the sustained heavy drinking group was more significant, larger per region, and more widespread across regions compared to abstainers/light drinkers. Between-group analysis confirmed the above and showed a greater rate of GMV-c in the heavy drinking group in several brain regions encompassing inferior/medial frontal gyrus, parahippocampus, and anterior cingulate. Supplementary analyses suggest that some of the frontal differences existed at baseline and progressively worsened. Conclusion: Sustained heavy drinking while in college was associated with accelerated GMV decline in brain regions involved with executive functioning, emotional regulation, and memory, which are critical to everyday life functioning. Areas of significant GMV decreases also overlapped largely with brain reward and stress systems implicated in addictive behavior

A person-centered approach to understanding negative reinforcement drinking among first year college students [post-print]

The current study used a person-centered approach (i.e. latent profile analysis) to identify distinct types of college student drinkers based on the predictions of motivational, social learning, and stress and coping theories of maladaptive drinking. A large sample (N = 844; 53% female) of first-year undergraduates from two institutions, public and private, who reported consuming one or more drinks in the last three months completed measures of depressive and anxiety symptoms, positive alcohol-outcome expectancies, negative life events, social support, drinking motives, drinking level and drinking-related problems. Latent profile analysis revealed a small subgroup of individuals (n = 81, 9%) who conformed to the anticipated high-risk profile; specifically, this group demonstrated high levels of negative affect, coping motives, drinks per week, and drinking-related problems. However, additional groups emerged that showed patterns inconsistent with the proposed vulnerability profile (e.g., high negative affect, positive expectancies, and negative life events, but relatively low drinking levels). Findings from our person-centered approach showing the presence of groups both consistent and inconsistent with the predictions of motivational, social learning, and stress and coping theories highlight the need to identify and target certain college students for prevention and intervention of negative affect-related drinking