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Renewable energy systems in offshore platforms for sustainable maritime operations
Get PDFThis study presents a novel Offshore Mooring and Power Platform (OMPP) that integrates Platform-to-Ship
systems to electrify anchored and bunkering ships, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions in maritime
applications. The OMPP consists of a 200 MW floating wind farm, a 300 MW floating photovoltaic farm, and
a hybrid energy storage system, forming an offshore virtual power plant to ensure reliable and continuous
power supply despite the intermittency of renewable energy sources. A case study focused on the Maltese
Islands demonstrates the technical feasibility of the system, utilizing a hybrid energy storage configuration
comprising a 390 MWh battery energy storage system and a 1260 MWh compressed air energy storage system
to eliminate energy deficit hours. The OMPP, rated at 24 MVA, successfully supplies up to four berths with
6 MVA each. While challenges remain in integrating early-stage technologies, the OMPP provides a scalable
and sustainable solution for modernizing port infrastructure, meeting environmental standards, and supporting
sustainable maritime operations.peer-reviewe
Molecular data confirm the occurrence of the allochthonous gambusia holbrooki (Pisces : poeciliidae) in Sicily and the Maltese archipelago
Get PDFA major threat to biodiversity is represented by Invasive Alien Species (IAS), particularly on freshwater ecosystems, which are already heavily altered by human activities. Two of the most pernicious IAS are the eastern and western mosquitofish, i.e., Gambusia holbrooki and G. affinis. These two poeciliids are morphologically very close to each other, and soon after their formal description, G. holbrooki was considered a subspecies of G. affinis. In the following years, several studies proved that these two entities belonged to two different species; nevertheless, it was only at the end of the 1990s that their separate taxonomic status was re-established. In the 1920s and 1930s, both G. holbrooki and G. affinis were asynchronously introduced from the United States into Europe and subsequently translocated globally as biocontrol agents of the malaria vector (i.e., the larvae of the Anopheles mosquitoes), with dramatic consequences for the inland water native fauna. However, due to taxonomic uncertainties and nomenclatural instability, for years, there were doubts about which Gambusia species had been introduced in different regions. The first available molecular studies confirmed the occurrence of G. holbrooki in Europe, but no evidence confirming the occurrence of G. affinis was found. Despite this, some records report the occurrence of western mosquitofish in Italy and Malta. Considering the negative effects that the mosquitofish has on the native biota, it is of paramount importance to know the precise biological diversity of the native and non-native species to better implement environmental management strategies to properly preserve the already-fragile waterbodies. Therefore, to check for the possible occurrence of G. affinis in Italy and Malta, we conducted extensive sampling in Sicily (Italy) and in the Maltese archipelago, aiming to verify the identity of Gambusia populations occurring in the study area. Based on sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, we consistently observed the occurrence of only G. holbrooki in the investigated area, finding, almost exclusively, the most common haplotype known for the species in the whole invaded range (i.e., “HOL1”).peer-reviewe
Arabic in context : essays on language, dialects, and culture in honour of Martin R. Zammit
No full textThis paper delves into the realm of paremiology, the scientific study of proverbs, shedding light on both proverbs and idioms in different varieties of Arabic that specifically mention Malta, the Maltese people, or the Maltese language. This research aims to provide a list of such expressions and examine the perceptions that Arabic proverbs impart about Malta, its inhabitants and its language. The study consists of four main sections; the first one discusses the role of proverbs in the long-standing Arabic–Islamic tradition, and is followed by an overview of existing literature and research in the field. The third section provides a discussion on the collection of the proverbs taken into consideration in this research, assembling a list of these linguistic expressions and presenting them in transcription and their translated versions. Subsequently, a thematic analysis is presented in the final section, which features the central themes that are prevalent in the collected Arabic expressions about Malta. The paper concludes by summarising key findings and implications from this inquiry.peer-reviewe
The green seaweed Ulva : tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials
Get PDFUlva, a genus of green macroalgae commonly known as sea lettuce, has long been recognized for
its nutritional benefits for food and feed. As the demand for sustainable food and feed sources
continues to grow, so does the interest in alternative, plant-based protein sources. With its
abundance along coastal waters and high protein content, Ulva spp. have emerged as promising
candidates. While the use of Ulva in food and feed has its challenges, the utilization of Ulva in other
industries, including in biomaterials, biostimulants, and biorefineries, has been growing. This review
aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current status, challenges and opportunities
associated with using Ulva in food, feed, and beyond. Drawing on the expertise of leading
researchers and industry professionals, it explores the latest knowledge on Ulva’s nutritional value,
processing methods, and potential benefits for human nutrition, aquaculture feeds, terrestrial feeds,
biomaterials, biostimulants and biorefineries. In addition, it examines the economic feasibility of
incorporating Ulva into aquafeed. Through its comprehensive and insightful analysis, including a
critical review of the challenges and future research needs, this review will be a valuable resource
for anyone interested in sustainable aquaculture and Ulva’s role in food, feed, biomaterials,
biostimulants and beyond.peer-reviewe
Evaluating ChatGPT’s performance in creative text translation for communication : a case study from English into German
Get PDFIn recent years, there has been a growing interest in using generative artificial intelligence (AI) for machine translation (MT) tasks. One notable feature of generative AI systems is prompting, through which users can provide instructions to guide the output. Prompting presents both opportunities and challenges in the field of Translation Studies. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the quality of MT output generated by ChatGPT. The impact of prompting techniques on translation quality is also analyzed in order to gain insights into optimizing the use of generative AI in translation workflows. The study employed three prompts – zero-shot prompt, context prompt, and few-shot with context prompt – to translate a creative text for the English-German language pair. The raw MT outputs were manually annotated, and the results of these annotations were then compared. The results revealed that most errors concern style. Interestingly, the translation produced using the simple zero-shot prompt outperformed those generated with the other two more complex prompts. However, the longer prompts led to a steady reduction in stylistic and fluency errors, while accuracy errors increased.peer-reviewe
FLPSO-AMPS : an optimized WSN model for air quality monitoring in tier-2 smart cities
Get PDFWireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are composed of small, cost-effective sensing nodes that are
primarily employed for the collection of environmental data. These networks are integral to various
applications including industrial pollution monitoring, disaster management, and air quality
regulation. However, WSNs encounter significant challenges, such as energy efficiency, end-to-end
delay, and packet loss during data transmission. Existing methodologies often fall short in optimizing
the network lifespan while ensuring reliable data delivery. To address these limitations, this study
introduces FLPSO-AMPS, a novel Fuzzy Logic-based Particle Swarm Optimization (FLPSO) approach
aimed at enhancing energy-efficient routing in WSN-based Air Pollution Monitoring Systems (APMS)
for Tier-2 smart cities. The proposed approach leverages fuzzy logic principles combined with PSO
to intelligently select optimal routing paths, thereby ensuring minimal energy consumption and
enhanced network longevity. Unlike conventional methodologies, FLPSO-AMPS incorporates realtime
pollutant data collection and mobility-aware optimization to improve network performance. The
effectiveness of FLPSO-AMPS was validated through extensive simulations, demonstrating superior
performance over existing approaches, particularly with improvements of 10% in energy efficiency,
15% in task delay, 24.5% in packet delivery ratio (PDR), 11.5% in packet loss ratio (PLR), and 20.1%
in throughput. These findings underscore the potential of FLPSO-AMPS in establishing an intelligent,
resource-efficient air quality monitoring framework for smart cities. Future research will explore
security enhancements to safeguard data transmissions in APMS networks.peer-reviewe
Assessing the effectiveness of managers' use of legislation in self-governing organisations
Get PDFPURPOSE: The article aims to diagnose the use of social welfare by local government
organisations (SGOs) observed from the perspective of the application of law by managers.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The first part of the study examined the literature on the
tasks performed by SGOs in the context of public sector reforms in Western Europe. The
second part analysed the results of a survey conducted among SGO managers. Using the
collaborative research approach from the action research group, the analysis of data
obtained from all SGOs in Poland was discussed. The study was conducted on a selected
research sample of 2,573 SGOs. A separate set of formative indicators was determined for
each aggregate, creating indexes, which gave the construct scale a multi-index form. The
significance level was 0.05.FINDINGS: The presented conclusions provide information on the extent to which SGO
managers apply legal acts and on how these activities are adapted to the real needs of clients
in the social welfare system.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The need to define new development directions was confirmed,
requiring adaptation of legal norms to management systems operating under new conditions.
The statement that something is a new challenge for social policy can be understood as the
hypothesis that we are dealing with a new social problem and the suggestion that it can be
solved with the help of a reformed legal system. It is necessary to rationalise public spending
by implementing instruments characteristic of managing private-sector organisations, such
as privatisation, efficiency measures, cost accounting, and benchmarking solutions.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: It was confirmed that junior managers believe that applicable legal acts
effectively help those in need. Strong correlations were found between statements 32 (The
organisation does not confine itself to carrying out only the basic tasks arising from current
legislation and legal acts) and 78 (Existing legislation makes it easier to reach out to those
in need in SGOs). This warrants further interdisciplinary research across law, management science, and quality to improve legislative processes in social policy. This should also
consider active social policies aimed at permanently removing individuals at risk of poverty
and social exclusion from the social assistance system.The article presents the results of the Project no. 046/ZZO/2023/POT financed
from the subsidy granted to the Krakow University of Economics.peer-reviewe
Liberal norms, colonial sediments : the case of OECD aid statistics
Get PDFUp until today, rules of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) allow colonial powers to count transfers to remaining
overseas territories as official development assistance (ODA). We systematically
quantify this under-researched practice of intra-imperial transactions counted
as aid—not to be conflated with aid to former colonies—from 1960 to 2022.
This quantitative analysis is underpinned by an analysis of the history of the
ODA concept and of OECD peer reviews of ODA, which reveal how the inclusion
of such transfers in ODA is normalised. To analyse this theoretically, we
propose the notion of norm sedimentation, which we define as the naturalised
coexistence within an international organisation (IO) of norms that are founded
on conflicting or contradictory values. Stemming from different time periods,
older (colonial) norms remain valid without their compatibility with current
fundamental (liberal) norms claimed by the institution being questioned. The
concept of norm sedimentation is particularly useful in studying inert and naturalised
norms and hitherto understudied non-liberal norms. The article concludes
by discussing the consequences of colonial aid: A normalisation and
perpetuating of colonial understandings of the metropoles’ limited responsibilities
for their colonial subjects and a boosting—through the inflated aid figures—
of the image of major powers as benevolent actors.peer-reviewe
Perspectives from Malta : policy initiatives for the prevention of mental health distress
Get PDFWhilst mental health intervention and treatment have received considerable global attention and effort, the preventative aspect is commonly afforded less focus. Malta, the focus of this paper, is one of the regions where mental health prevention work merits further consideration. While local stress levels are reported to be on the increase, the dire need for prevention prevails to enhance the quality of life and mental wellbeing of those residing in Malta. The primary aim of this paper is to present evidence-based initiatives that have been or are currently being undertaken in some of the priority mental health areas in Malta, namely suicide, risk factors in Loneliness, and substance use disorder. Furthermore, recommendations shall address further intersectional efforts to prevent poor mental health. Initiatives in this area need to be at the top of the state’s agenda as they are crucial in the diagnosis and management of mental health distress. Although mental health prevention efforts in Malta are still in a developmental phase, several ongoing initiatives address local gaps. The importance of standardised evaluation metrics, defined success indicators, such as reduced stigma and improved access, and routine data collection is also emphasised. Additionally, establishing a centralised monitoring body to oversee these processes is proposed. This would ensure sustainability, efficient use of limited human resources, and continuous improvement in mental health prevention. This paper advocates for a shift towards a more proactive, evidence-based, and sustainable approach to mental health prevention within the Maltese context.peer-reviewe
The heart of the university campus : building connections and driving innovation through outreach initiatives at the University of Malta Library
Get PDFThe University of Malta Library’s Outreach Department has reimagined the role of academic
libraries as dynamic centers of creativity, well-being, and community engagement. Between
2023 and 2025, creative and forward-thinking initiatives demonstrated how innovative programming, cultural projects, and personalized support can enhance inclusivity, academic
success, and sustainability on campus. By bridging traditional library functions with forward-looking outreach strategies, the University of Malta Library has positioned itself as the heart
of the university, fostering stronger connections between students, staff, and the wider
community.peer-reviewe