Complementary translation

Translatability, as an operative concept, offers a lot of consideration on fundamental issues. The present study focuses on a special approach in translation that is influenced by social bilingualism. The translator's bilingual competence sometimes leads to complementarity in sign and title translation. And complementary translation is viewed as dynamic equivalence.peer-reviewe

Diagnosing Malta's condition in the novel

Throughout the decades Maltese literature has reflected the Mediterranean environment to determine its influence on character. The use of harbour cities (like Birgu and Valletta) in different Maltese novels reflects the social behaviour of the inhabitants. For this presentation two major novels will be discussed: Anton Manwel Caruana's Inez Farrug (1889) and Oliver Friggieri's La Jibnazza Nigi Lura (2006). The former treats social life in harbour districts during the 15,h century and discusses its similarity with 19'h-century social behaviour; and the latter treats industrial life connected with the harbour in the early 20,h century. The paper discusses the relevance of urbanization in terms of these aspects vis-a-vis rural attitudes and way of life in a traditional Maltese environment with some implications of colonialism in Maltese fiction.peer-reviewe

Current issues in dermatology

The overlap between contemporary dermatology and general medicine, presents an opportunity to review recent developments affecting those mundane diseases which are nevertheless important because they form the bulk of dermatological practice. In this article the author mentions the new dermatological agents and drugs in the cure of dermatological diseases.peer-reviewe

New light on Fr Magri's exploration of the Hypogeum : notes from correspondence with the British Museum

In November 1903, a century ago, the Committee of Management of the Museum proposed Father Emmanuel Magri S.J. to supervise the exploration of the Hypogeum in Paola. Dr Temi Zammit, in the Museum Annual Report for 1903 wrote: "The exploration [of the Hypogeum] is being carried on under the supervision of Father E. Magri, S.J., whose competence is unquestionable and who will undoubtedly give us a full report on the completion of the work." Unfortunately, Fr Magri died unexpectedly on 29 March, 1907, in Sfax, Tunisia where he had gone to preach spiritual exercises, and celebrate Easter. With the Report undelivered, and his notes not traced, his work seems completely lost. Magri's notes and correspondence Though very active, Magri left few publications related to archaeology. His notes have never been found, no material related to archaeology has ever been traced in Jesuit archives. But is the picture actually so bleak? Magri 's correspondence proves to be a goldmine. Several letters related to archaeology have actually been traced. Some thirty-five of them, addressed mainly to the Lieutenant Governor were found some years ago in the Palace Archives, Valletta,. These letters are now in the National Archives, in Rabat. I have retraced a new series of letters at the British Museum, eleven letters written by Fr Magri to Dr E.A. Wallis Budge, the Keeper of Assyrian and Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum. These letters shed new light on Magri 's exploration of the hypogeum.peer-reviewe

Explicating an English speaking examination : challenges and considerations

The assessment of speaking has become increasingly important in most language learning programmes. The Maltese postsecondary context saw the revision of the MATSEC Advanced English syllabus and the subsequent introduction of a speaking component as part of this high-stakes examination . The component's outline in the syllabus provided a degree of latitude but also had certain limitations; however, it was immediately clear that it required further refinement to guarantee a more rigorous speaking assessment. This article discusses the initiative undertaken by a group of lecturers of English at the University of Malta Junior College to explicate the speaking examination outlined in the syllabus. It illustrates how these lecturers positioned themselves as test developers in order to elaborate on the 'what' and 'how' of testing second language speaking at post-secondary level. In discussing various challenges and considerations, this article aims to illustrate some means of enhancing the high-stakes testing of speaking proficiency.peer-reviewe

Pitfalls in diagnosis : cutaneous sinus tract of dental origin : a case report

Persistently draining cutaneous sinuses in the region of the head and neck may present to various special ties in medicine. The etiology of such lesions varies considerably and an accurate diagnosis is a pre-requisite to ensure immediate and effective treatment. The most common etiologic factor responsible for intermittently suppurating cutaneous sinuses in the region of the head and neck is the extension of a chronic infection of odontogenic origin. The presence of a cervicofacial sinus should alert the medical and dental professions alike to the necessity of a thorough dental examination including radiographic assessment of teeth and jaws. The following case report describes the clinical presentation, diagnosis and management of a recurrent (two year history) cervical sinus in a 10-year old boy.peer-reviewe

On the Displacement of Eigenvalues when Removing a Twin Vertex

Twin vertices of a graph have the same open neighbourhood. If they are not adjacent, then they are called duplicates and contribute the eigenvalue zero to the adjacency matrix. Otherwise they are termed co-duplicates, when they contribute $-1$ as an eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix. On removing a twin vertex from a graph, the spectrum of the adjacency matrix does not only lose the eigenvalue $0$ or $-1$. The perturbation sends a rippling effect to the spectrum. The simple eigenvalues are displaced. We obtain a closed formula for the characteristic polynomial of a graph with twin vertices in terms of two polynomials associated with the perturbed graph. These are used to obtain estimates of the displacements in the spectrum caused by the perturbation

Penetrating eye injuries at the workplace : case reports and discussion

We describe two recent cases of penetrating eye injury seen at Mater Dei Hospital, both resulting in a poor final outcome and illustrating the importance of wearing appropriate eye protection at the workplace. In case 1, injury was caused by a metal chip produced by a hammer and chisel that penetrated the sclera and lodged in the vitreous cavity, requiring vitrectomy and lens extraction and ultimately resulting in severe visual loss. In case 2, injury was caused by a shard released from an angle grinder disc that struck the orbit and caused severe disruption of the globe, which required enucleation. This is followed by a discussion on penetrating eye injuries, summarising the initial assessment and management of a suspected penetrating injury in the primary care setting and highlighting the need for urgent ophthalmic referral in cases where the nature of work was suggestive of high-speed projectiles, even where the trauma is seemingly trivial.peer-reviewe