The National Protective Inventory and Malta scheduled property register : Malta’s baseline for cultural heritage protection and more

Chapter 4Statutory heritage protection in the Maltese Islands first started in 1925 with the publication of the Antiquities (Protection) Act, which was followed by the Antiquities (Protection) List of 1932, amended in 1936 and 1939. Th e Antiquities (Protection) List was essentially a “shopping list” of properties meriting protection however the list was extremely basic and generic. The information provided varied depending on the familiarity with the sites by the people compiling the list at the time. No site plans were published with the list, indeed in certain cases a feature of a house in a street was the only feature being protected within a single locality which made locating the site in question difficult let alone its protection. Apart from this, little was done however to protect heritage in Malta between 1939 and 1992 when the (then) Planning Authority was set up. Indeed, heritage protection by MEPA commenced in 1994 with the identification of the most important archaeological sites and areas, delineation of Urban Conservation Areas for the fortified cities around the harbour and the identification of specific sites then under study through the Marsaxlokk Bay and North Harbours Local Plans. Protection of individual sites and buildings continued somewhat sporadically until 2006 when a thematic scheduling agenda was drawn up. Although a few groups of thematic scheduling had been carried out by then, most scheduling was undertaken depending on the studies being conducted at the time. The NPI and MSPR, originally referred to as the List of Scheduled Property started off as little more than a list similar to the Antiquities List with the addition of pertinent information such as the proper address, images, a site plan denoting the extent and site curtilage if necessary, and other information required for planning purposes. In the late 2000s, the need was felt for better organisation of the information available and with it the better organisation of the NPI and creation of the MSPR.peer-reviewe

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS)

ME/CFS is a debilitating condition hardly discussed in the Maltese Islands, and was only recognized in 2009 as a neurological disease in our archipelago despite it being recognized by WHO in 1969. The authors discuss the origin of the combined terminology ME/CFS, the importance of recognizing the condition at an early stage, the appropriate treatment and the potential role of the health services. The authors also highlight the lack of official statistical data available in the Maltese archipelago.peer-reviewe

An audit of compliance of inhaled steroid medication in Maltese asthmatic children : a comparison between 2008 and 2014

In the treatment of bronchial asthma, inhaled therapy with bronchodilators and corticosteroids represents the basis for acute and long-term management. Drug therapy in asthma is predominantly by pressurized metered dose inhalers. The impact of treatment on the disease morbidity and mortality depends to a large extent on appropriate delivery of drugs to the lungs by means of a spacer device and on the continuity of treatment. Poor compliance with medication is a well known problem in conditions which require long-term treatment. This is especially so in asthma where initial improvement may be followed by longer remission and a tendency to stop treatment. Compliance is "the extent to which a person’s behaviour (in terms of taking medications, following diets, or executing lifestyle changes) coincides with medical or health advice." 1. Compliance with preventive therapy such as inhaled corticosteroids (ICS), the effects of which are seen over a period of weeks, may be less than compliance with drugs that relieve asthma symptoms more rapidly such as bronchodilators. To our knowledge there are no previous studies which have assessed the prevalence of non-compliance with inhaled corticosteroids in Maltese children.peer-reviewe

Referral tickets to secondary healthcare : is communication effective?

Communication between primary and secondary health care relies primarily on referral tickets. They determine how patients’ details are conveyed and hence the quality of care. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of referral tickets at the Surgical Outpatients at Mater Dei Hospital in Malta and to develop recommendations for improvement. Consecutive referral tickets between the 7th February and 4th March 2015 were prospectively included in the study and analysed for completeness. The data was entered into a proforma which was revised after the first ten entries. A total of 351 referral tickets were included in the study. Names and surnames were present in all reports and identification number in 99.42% of cases. 44.16% of referrals were inappropriate according to clinical details. The majority of the forms had a history of presenting complaint (98.29%) while the past history, drug history / allergies and examination findings were available in 69.23%, 67.81% and 76.64% respectively. The source of referral was not clear in 56.13%. Only 69.23% of all referral tickets were completely legible while 30.77% were partly legible. This study shows the need for an overhaul in the referral system. Recommendations include the use of electronic referrals and the introduction of feedback letters by hospital specialists.peer-reviewe

Associations of Abdominal Muscle Area and Radiodensity with Adiponectin and Leptin: The Multiethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

ObjectiveThis study examined the associations of muscle area and radiodensity with adiponectin and leptin.MethodsA total of 1,944 participants who enrolled in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis underwent computed tomography to quantify body composition and measurements of adiponectin, leptin, interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, and resistin.ResultsThe mean age and BMI of participants were 64.7 years and 28.1 kg/m2 and 49% were female. With adjustment for age, gender, race/ethnicity, traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors, inflammatory biomarkers, physical activity, and sedentary behavior, a 1-SD increment in total abdominal, stability, and locomotor muscle area was associated with a 19%, 17%, and 12% lower adiponectin level, respectively (P < 0.01 for all) but not leptin (P > 0.05). Muscle radiodensity was more robustly associated with adiponectin and leptin in the multivariable linear regression models. That is, with full adjustment for all covariates, a 1-SD increment in total abdominal, stability, and locomotor muscle radiodensity was associated with a 31%, 31%, and 18% lower adiponectin level (P < 0.01 for all) and a 6.7%, 4.6%, and 8.1% higher leptin level (P < 0.05 for all), respectively.ConclusionsThe data suggest that increases in muscle area and radiodensity may have positive impacts on chronic inflammation and, in turn, reduce the risk of cardiometabolic disease

The nascent coffee ring with arbitrary droplet contact set: an asymptotic analysis

We consider the effect of droplet geometry on the early-stages of coffee ring formation during the evaporation of a thin droplet with an arbitrary simple, smooth, pinned contact line. We perform a systematic matched asymptotic analysis of the small-capillary number, large-solutal Péclet number limit for two different evaporative models: a kinetic model, in which the evaporative flux is effectively constant across the droplet, and a diffusive model, in which the flux is singular at the contact line. For both evaporative models, solute is transported to the contact line by a capillary flow in the droplet bulk while, local to the contact line, solute diffusion counters advection. The resulting interplay leads to the formation of the nascent coffee-ring profile. By exploiting a coordinate system embedded in the contact line, we solve explicitly the local leading-order problem, deriving a similarity profile (in the form of a gamma distribution) that describes the nascent coffee-ring. Notably, for an arbitrary contact-line geometry, the ring characteristics change due to the concomitant asymmetry in the shape of the droplet free surface, the evaporative flux (for diffusive evaporation) and the mass flux into the contact line. We utilize the asymptotic model to determine the effects of contact-line geometry on the growth of the coffee ring for a droplet with an elliptical contact set. Our results offer mechanistic insight into the effect of contact-line curvature on the development of the coffee-ring from deposition up to jamming of the solute; moreover our model predicts when finite concentration effects become relevant

The nascent coffee ring with arbitrary droplet contact set: an asymptotic analysis

We consider the effect of droplet geometry on the early-stages of coffee ring formation during the evaporation of a thin droplet with an arbitrary simple, smooth, pinned contact line. We perform a systematic matched asymptotic analysis of the small-capillary number, large-solutal Peclet number limit for two evaporative models: a kinetic model, in which the evaporative flux is constant across the droplet, and a diffusive model, in which the evaporative flux is singular at the contact line. For both evaporative models, solute is transported to the contact line by a capillary flow while, local to the contact line, solute diffusion counters advection. The resulting interplay leads to the formation of the nascent coffee ring. By exploiting a coordinate system embedded in the contact line, we solve explicitly the local leading-order problem, deriving a similarity profile (in the form of a gamma distribution) that describes the coffee ring profile in its early stages. Notably, the ring characteristics change due to the concomitant asymmetry in the shape of the droplet free surface, the evaporative flux (in the diffusive evaporative regime) and the mass flux into the contact line. We utilize the asymptotic model to determine the effects of geometry on the growth of the coffee ring for a droplet with an elliptical contact set. Our results offer mechanistic insight into the effect of contact-line curvature on the development of the coffee-ring from deposition up to jamming of the solute; moreover our model predicts when finite concentration effects become relevant

Excitonic coupling dominates the homogeneous photoluminescence excitation linewidth in semicrystalline polymeric semiconductors

We measure the homogeneous excitation linewidth of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene), a model semicrystalline polymeric semiconductor, by means of two-dimensional coherent photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy. At a temperature of 8\,K, we find a linewidth that is always $\gtrsim 110$\,meV full-width-at-half-maximum, which is a significant fraction of the total linewidth. It displays a spectral dependence and is minimum near the 0--0 origin peak. We interpret this spectral dependence of the homogeneous excitation linewidth within the context of a weakly coupled aggregate model.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, Supplementary Materia

Ghajn Klieb, (Rabat, Malta)

Between October and December 1999 a team of local and foreign undergraduates from the University of Malta carried out a survey of the site at Ghajn Klieb outside Rabat. The exercise constituted the practical part of a unit on the Principles of Archaeological Surveying directed by Dr Nicholas Vella of the Department of Classics & Archaeology. For the survey the team was joined by Hanna Stager, a graduate of the same department, who also researched some of the references used in this article. Initial reconnaissance of the site was carried out on 15 October 1999 with Nathaniel Cutajar and Michelle B uhagiar, Curator and Assistant Curator respectively at the National Museum of Archaeology. The scatter of surface ceramics and the existence of previously known and unknown features revealed the extent and potential of the site. It was decided that the locality of Ghajn Klieb warranted systematic study that could be carried out in various stages, with the longterm aim being an assessment of human activity and cultural behaviour at the site. The Museums Department gave the go-ahead for this project, and permission to collect the surface ceramics was granted. This short report is intended to give an outline of the work undertaken to date. Emphasis is placed on the field methods adopted and on the presentation of what we believe to be worth talking about at this stage. An effort is here made by the senior author to unravel the collaborative nature of the exercise by lending weight to individual thoughts and interpretations that arose while work progressed in the field.peer-reviewe

Rapid prototyping-coded masks for x-ray backscatter imaging

Coded masks (CM) often lack a self-supporting structure that is difficult to manufacture without recourse to drilled holes in place of ideal square apertures, degrading imaging properties. An alternative approach is presented with three-dimensional (3-D) printed CM molds cast with a radio-opaque material that allows square elements to be retained. Two methods are presented; hot casting a bismuth alloy (density 8.6  g cm  −  3) and cold casting with tungsten powder/epoxy resin (densities 9.6 and 10.6  g cm  −  3). A critical review of 3-D printed-CM fabrication along with some typical x-ray backscatter images is presented. A signal-to-noise ratio from both the machined tungsten and cold cast 3-D printed mask were comparable, with the former having a slight advantage. Also, 3-D printed cold cast masks were found to be more economical and easier to rapid prototype over traditional drilled tungsten masks