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In this study we compare the titles of scientific letters and those of research papers published in the field of astrophysics in order to identify the possible differences and/or similarities between both genres in terms of several linguistic and extra-linguistic variables (length, lexical density, number of prepositions, number of compound groups, number of authors and number of countries mentioned in the paper bylines). We also carry out a cross-genre and cross-journal analysis of the referred six variables. Our main findings may be summarized as follows: (1) When compared to research paper titles, scientific letter titles are usually shorter, they have a lower lexical density, they include a higher number of prepositions per number of words and a lower number of compound groups per number of words, although they have more up to 4-word compound groups, i.e. the simplest ones. As a consequence, scientific letter titles include less information, which is also less condensed, than research paper titles. (2) The predominance of compound adjectives over compound nouns in the titles of both genres highlights the scientificity of astrophysical discourse. (3) In general terms, our data show a positive correlation between title length and the number of countries mentioned in the bylines for both genres. The positive correlation between title length and number of authors is only met in the case of research papers. In light of these findings, it may be concluded that scientific letters are a clear example of a timeliness and more "immediate" science, whereas research papers are connected to a more timeless and "elaborate" science. It may also be concluded that two different collaboration scenarios are intertwining on the basis of three separate geographic and linguistic publication contexts (Mainland Europe, The United Kingdom and The United States of North America).

The content of 'O' and 'A' level papers on modern British and European History set by two GCE Examination Boards was analysed to find out what particular aspects of the past were emphasised and thus to throw light on the experience of history as a subject which was gained by the candidates. These papers, which are taken by the great majority of the candidates, were found to be dominated by political history, up to 77% of the questions being devoted to the affairs of governments and political leaders. Foreign politics was especially important in papers on European history reaching as high as 44% of the questions set and domestic politics was central to papers on British history attaining means in different groups of papers between 40 and 50%. At the end of the article the wisdom of the approach to school history evident in these papers is questioned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale, aims and objective: Substituting outpatient hospital care with primary care is seen as a solution to decrease unnecessary referrals to outpatient hospital care and decrease rising healthcare costs. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the effects on quality of care, health and costs outcomes of substituting outpatient hospital care with primary care-based interventions, which are performed by medical specialists in face-to-face consultations in a primary care setting. Method: The systematic review was performed using the PICO framework. Original papers in which the premise of the intervention was to substitute outpatient hospital care with primary care through the involvement of a medical specialist in a primary care setting were eligible. Results: A total of 14 papers were included. A substitution intervention in general practitioner (GP) practices was described in 11 papers, three described a joint consultation intervention in which GPs see patients together with a medical specialist. This study showed that substitution initiatives result mostly in favourable outcomes compared to outpatient hospital care. The initiatives resulted mostly in shorter waiting lists, shorter clinic waiting times and higher patient satisfaction. Costs for treating one extra patient seemed to be higher in the intervention settings. This was mainly caused by inefficient planning of consultation hours and lower patient numbers. Conclusions: Despite the fact that internationally a lot has been written about the importance of performing substitution interventions in which preventing unnecessary referrals to outpatient hospital care was the aim, only 14 papers were included. Future systematic reviews should focus on the effects on the Triple Aim of substitution initiatives in which other healthcare professions than medical specialists are involved along with new technologies, such as e-consults. Additionally, to gain more insight into the effects of substitution initiatives operating in a dynamic healthcare context, it is important to keep evaluating the interventions in a longitudinal study design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As humanity reaches the 5.0 industrial revolution, education plays a critical role in boosting the quality of human resources. This paper reports bibliometric research on emerging TiP during 1993-2022 in the educational field to analyse its development on any level of education during the last three decades. This study employed a Scopus database. The findings are that the trend of TiP publication in educational fields has tended to increase every year during the past three decades and conference paper became the most published document type, the USA is the country which produces the most publications; "Students" being the most occurrences keyword and total link strength. The publication of the TiP is ranked to the Quartile 1, which implies that a publication with the cited performance is a publication with credibility because the publisher has a good reputation. Researchers can find the topics most relevant to other metadata sources such as Web of Science, Publish, and Perish.

The article reviews the November 2016 issue of the periodical 'The Financial Review.'

This paper explores the translation and implementation of Smart Specialisation in Wales. It finds that rather than taking a new approach to innovation policy, Welsh policy-makers are following a largely cluster-based rationale, which omits the important entrepreneurial discovery process to identify the real strengths of the region. The fresh idea presented by this paper is that a replication of past policy approaches that have been tried and found wanting is taking place rather than a new approach to innovation policy across Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: (i) To determine the current state of online grocery shopping, including individuals' motivations for shopping for groceries online and types of foods purchased; and (ii) to identify the potential promise and pitfalls that online grocery shopping may offer in relation to food and beverage purchases. Design: PubMed, ABI/INFORM and Google Scholar were searched to identify published research. Setting: To be included, studies must have been published between 2007 and 2017 in English, based in the USA or Europe (including the UK), and focused on: (i) motivations for online grocery shopping; (ii) the cognitive/psychosocial domain; and (iii) the community or neighbourhood food environment domain. Subjects: Our search yielded twenty-four relevant papers. Results: Findings indicate that online grocery shopping can be a double-edged sword. While it has the potential to increase healthy choices via reduced unhealthy impulse purchases, nutrition labelling strategies, and as a method to overcome food access limitations among individuals with limited access to a brick-and-mortar store, it also has the potential to increase unhealthy choices due to reasons such as consumers' hesitance to purchase fresh produce online. Conclusions: Additional research is needed to determine the most effective ways to positively engage customers to use online grocery shopping to make healthier choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It is widely acknowledged that there is a global divide on health care and health research known as the 10/90 divide. Methods: A retrospective survey of articles published in the BMJ, Lancet, NEJM, Annals of Internal Medicine & JAMA in a calendar year to examine the contribution of the developing world to medical literature. We categorized countries into four regions: UK, USA, Other Euro-American countries (OEAC) and (RoW). OEAC were European countries other than the UK but including Australia, New Zealand and Canada. RoW comprised all other countries. Results: The average contribution of the RoW to the research literature in the five journals was 6.5%. In the two British journals 7.6% of the articles were from the RoW; in the three American journals 4.8% of articles were from RoW. The highest proportion of papers from the RoW was in the Lancet (12%). An analysis of the authorship of 151 articles from RoW showed that 104 (68.9%) involved authorship with developed countries in Europe or North America. There were 15 original papers in these journals with data from RoW but without any authors from RoW. Conclusions: There is a marked under-representation of countries in high-impact general medical journals. The ethical implications of this inequity and ways of reducing it are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identification of genomic variability in population plays an important role in the clinical diagnostics of human genetic diseases. Thanks to rapid technological development in the field of massive parallel sequencing technologies, also known as next-generation sequencing (NGS), complex genomic analyses are now easier and cheaper than ever before, which consequently leads to more effective utilization of these techniques in clinical practice. However, interpretation of data from NGS is still challenging due to several issues caused by natural variability of DNA sequences in human populations. Therefore, development and realization of projects focused on description of genetic variability of local population (often called "national or digital genome") with a NGS technique is one of the best approaches to address this problem. The next step of the process is to share such data via publicly available databases. Such databases are important for the interpretation of variants with unknown significance or (likely) pathogenic variants in rare diseases or cancer or generally for identification of pathological variants in a patient's genome. In this paper, we have compiled an overview of published results of local genome sequencing projects from United Kingdom and Europe together with future plans and perspectives for newly announced ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Within the European Union (EU), substantial efforts are being made to achieve economic and social cohesion, and the reduction of health inequalities between EU regions is integral to this process. This paper is the first to examine how self-reported conditions and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) vary spatially between and within countries. Methods: Using 2014 European Social Survey (ESS) data from 20 countries, this paper examines how regional inequalities in self-reported conditions and NCDs vary for men and women in 174 regions (levels 1 and 2 Nomenclature of Statistical Territorial Units, 'NUTS'). We document absolute and relative inequalities across Europe in the prevalence of eight conditions: general health, overweight/obesity, mental health, heart or circulation problems, high blood pressure, back, neck, muscular or joint pain, diabetes and cancer. Results: There is considerable inequality in self-reported conditions and NCDs between the regions of Europe, with rates highest in the regions of continental Europe, some Scandinavian regions and parts of the UK and lowest around regions bordering the Alps, in Ireland and France. However, for mental health and cancer, rates are highest in regions of Eastern European and lowest in some Nordic regions, Ireland and isolated regions in continental Europe. There are also widespread and consistent absolute and relative regional inequalities in all conditions within countries. These are largest in France, Germany and the UK, and smallest in Denmark, Sweden and Norway. There were higher inequalities amongst women. Conclusion: Using newly available harmonized morbidity data from across Europe, this paper shows that there are considerable regional inequalities within and between European countries in the distribution of self-reported conditions and NCDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the interplay of creativity, education, and the expressive arts. We begin by presenting a narrative literature review focusing on the use of artistic tools to promote creativity, self-expressiveness, and meaningful aspects of emotional and social learning. This review reveals strong connections between the different components of this interplay, and a special attention is given to the use of arts to promoting creativity and meaningful learning. We then propose the Empowering Creative Education Model (ECEM), which aims to provide a practical framework for employing artistic tools in each of the model's four developmental circles: I, Us, Educational and Community. Each of the four circles includes unique aspects of personal development.

This paper provides an account of the topological and its description of contemporary culture and use as a research methodology, a topological lens, generally, and in education research specifically. Some commentary is proffered on the relationships between the topological and the topographical, between relations and locations. A critical account is then provided on each of the papers in the special issue on the topological in education research and the specific contributions of each. The editors of the special issue make the important point that the topological is a spatio-temporal phenomenon, not just a spatial one. The topological does not exist in time and space, but rather constructs both and they change in a conjoint manner. As such, a topological lens rejects a construction of space as static and of time (and the temporal) as simply linear and chronological. The topological has been facilitated and articulated by and through practices of commensuration, datafication and digitalisation, flows and scapes, global connectivities and new relations, mobilities of various kinds and multiple networks. The paper argues that much greater emphasis has been given to the spatial in topological research; that is, there has been some neglect of the temporal in the spatio-temporal character of topologies.

The article discusses a 12-country study regarding estimates of lost revenue resulting from the illicit trade of cigarettes. It is said that such illicit trade has compromised health protective measures as well as government revenue. Results show that the estimated annual revenue loss to illicit cigarette trade is over three times the budget of the World Health Organization (WHO). Findings also suggest that lost revenue is greater than the investments made by the government to control tobacco.

The premise of this brief opinion piece is that the fundamental paradigm of education appeared with Plato. It is that there is a co-location in time and space of learners, teachers, and resources. The absence of any of these elements can lead to shortcomings in the meaning of the term "to be educated". Recent events such as COVID-19 demonstrate that the paradigm is subject to challenge but that its premises are firmly established. It is recognised that there are complex philosophical and theoretical arguments surrounding distance education debates. It is not possible in a short article like this to canvass all the possible philosophical positions that affect education. Pointers to these debates are referenced in the article. For the purpose of this article, "philosophy" is taken to mean that department of knowledge or study that deals with ultimate reality, or with the general causes and principles of things. More narrowly, it is the study of general principles of some particular branch of knowledge, experience, or activity--in this case, distance education or flexible learning. "Theory" is taken to mean a scheme or system of ideas or statements held as an explanation or account of a group of facts or phenomena.

This paper discusses why there is a need for a more profound analysis of the European SMEs in the context of knowledge transfer within the state of generational change of the managing board. This paper forms basis for a doctoral thesis on this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a detailed investigation of the top management / Chief Executive Officer (CEO) remuneration package and reveals why this is important to the economy. The goal of this paper is to examine the CEO pay (salary + bonus), wealth delta, cumulative value of options held and total compensation throughout Continental Europe and the United Kingdom across a number of various sectors during years 2005 and 2006. Attention is turned to the pre-crisis data analysis which might instigate the argument that CEO compensation was one of the main reasons which lead management to the excess risk taking and reckless decision making. Therefore, it might be concluded that the relationship between risk and executive remuneration can be more subtle and complex than it has been thought. The paper applies the multiple regression model supported by research hypothesis postulation tested by the correlation method and T-test approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The way the EU budget is funded is often criticized, especially in the light of the increasingly complex devices used to limit net contributions. In addition to the formal UK rebate, there are reduced rates of take-up of different funding streams for certain other countries, all of which makes the funding side of the EU messy. Calls for the budget to be funded by a tax (or taxes) assigned to the EU level have repeatedly been articulated. However, the system has one over-arching attraction which is that it assures the EU of sufficient revenue to fulfill its spending commitments. This paper offers a critique and assessment of the current system for raising the revenue for the EU budget and considers the conceptual case for a move to a tax of Europe. It appraises the case for abandoning the current system in favor of a tax-funded one and concludes that although the case may be conceptually robust, political economy considerations suggest that change is unlikely for the foreseeable future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To systematically review and critically appraise the economic evaluations of one to one interventions to reduce sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and teenage conceptions. Design: Systematic review. Data Sources: Search of four electronic bibliographic databases from 1990 to January 2006. Search keywords included teenage, pregnancy, adolescent, unplanned, unwanted, cost benefit, cost utility, economic evaluation, cost effectiveness and all terms for STIs, including specific diseases. Review Methods: We included studies that evaluated a broad range of one to one interventions to reduce STIs. Outcomes included major outcomes averted, life years and quality adjusted life years (QALY). All studies were assessed against quality criteria. Results: Of 3,190 identified papers, 55 were included. The majority of studies found one to one interventions to be either cost saving or cost effective, although one highlighted the need to target the population to receive post-exposure prophylaxis to reduce transmission of HIV. Most studies used a static approach that ignores the potential re-infection of treated patients. Conclusion: One to one interventions have been shown to be cost saving or cost effective but there are some limitations in applying this evidence to the UK policy context. More UK research using dynamic modelling approaches and QALYs would provide improved evidence, enabling more robust policy recommendations to be made about which one to one interventions are cost effective in reducing STIs in the UK setting. The results of this review can be used by policy makers, health economists and researchers considering further research in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers how the emerging European spatial development policy agenda is influencing the performance of regional strategic planning in the United Kingdom. The European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP) was agreed in 1999 as a non-binding and indicative framework intended to guide institutions in the exercise of their spatially significant competences. This paper explores the way in which and the extent to which the spatial planning policy messages and approach of the ESDP have been integrated into the planning process in England and how they have helped to inform the development of substantive objectives for regional planning policy. The research revealed considerable variation in the way that different regions had considered the European agenda and the ESDP as important contexts which can be used to inform strategy and policy development. Overall, the findings suggested that the European context and the ESDP are beginning to be accepted as important frames of reference in the production of Regional Planning Guidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the current Labour government's industrial policy—as most recently reflected in its document on manufacturing strategy—in the context of industrial policy in the UK over the last 50 years and the form that it has taken elsewhere in Europe. It concludes that the thematic priorities for UK industrial policy in the 1960s—international competitiveness, innovation, competition, and skills—continue to be the key themes of UK policy today. The paper presents data that illustrate the gaps that exist in key indicators of performance between the UK and its main economic competitors. The difference between the 1960s and the 2000s is that there are new instruments of policy. Two areas in particular are focused on—competition policy and technology policy—and an attempt is made to assess the likely effectiveness of these new instruments. The paper concludes that the international evidence base for these new approaches is reasonably robust but that it is still too soon to tell if they are having the hoped‐for impact on the performance of the UK economy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background: The substantial increase in the complexity of breast cancer care in the last few decades has resulted in significant improvements in survival rates and also in the quality of life of breast cancer survivors. However, across Europe there are variations in outcomes and access to the latest techniques. Whilst much of this variance is due to differences in health economies between European member states, training variation may also play a part. Training in breast cancer surgery varies greatly across Europe, not only in its basal discipline (general surgery, gynaecology or plastic surgery) but also in the length of training and whether there is any requirement for specialist training. Several countries have been leading the way in training breast specialist surgeons (the USA, the UK, Australia and New Zealand) with dedicated 1- or 2-year fellowships either within or in addition to standard training. Access to such training is limited and consequently many women in Europe are still treated by generalists, potentially denying them access to the best care. This paper reviews the issues surrounding training provision in breast surgery and some of the challenges which need to be addressed to improve the current situation. Summary: Breast surgery training in Europe is of variable quality and duration, which may result in variations in the quality of care received by patients with breast cancer. Specialist training standards are urgently required which should be adopted by all European member states. Excellent models are available in the USA, the UK and Australia and New Zealand on which to base this training. Key Messages: The quality of training in breast surgery needs to be upgraded and harmonised across Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Patient and public involvement (PPI) is a requirement for UK health and social care research funding. Evidence for how best to implement PPI in research programmes, such as National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Collaborations for Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRCs), remains limited. This paper reports findings from an action research (AR) project called IMPRESS, which aims to strengthen PPI within CLAHRC East of England (EoE). IMPRESS combines AR with Normalisation Process Theory (NPT) to explore PPI within diverse case study projects, identifying actions to implement, test and refine to further embed PPI. Methods: We purposively selected CLAHRC EoE case study projects for in-depth analysis of PPI using NPT. Data were generated from project PPI documentation, semi-structured qualitative interviews with researchers and PPI contributors and focus groups. Transcripts and documents were subjected to abductive thematic analysis and triangulation within case. Systematic across case comparison of themes was undertaken with findings and implications refined through stakeholder consultation. Results: We interviewed 24 researchers and 13 PPI contributors and analysed 28 documents from 10 case studies. Three focus groups were held: two with researchers (n = 4 and n = 6) and one with PPI contributors (n = 5). Findings detail to what extent projects made sense of PPI, bought in to PPI, operationalised PPI and appraised it, thus identifying barriers and enablers to fully embedded PPI. Conclusion: Combining NPT with AR allows us to assess the embeddedness of PPI within projects and programme, to inform specific local action and report broader conceptual lessons for PPI knowledge and practice informing the development of an action framework for embedding PPI in research programmes. To embed PPI within similar programmes teams, professionals, disciplines and institutions should be recognised as variably networked into existing PPI support. Further focus and research is needed on sharing PPI learning and supporting innovation in PPI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past half-century has been characterised by major technological developments and massive societal change, which have profoundly changed how food is produced, processed, sold and consumed. These days we are faced with a huge choice of pre-packaged foods when we shop in modern supermarkets and we can buy seasonal food all year round, in and out of season. For decades now, the need to guide choice has been recognised, and retailers and many manufacturers have provided increasing amounts of on-pack information and signposting, and more recently UK retailers have led the way in championing front-of-pack information provision, to supplement the standard back-of-pack nutrient composition table. From a European perspective, the present paper summarises developments in nutrition labelling information and signposting, the legislation that controls on-pack declarations, and research conducted to assess whether or not the information is used, understood and supports healthier choices. It also considers whether more could be done to influence behaviour change positively, giving examples of approaches identified in the research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a learning analytics policy and strategy framework developed by a cross-European research project team -- SHEILA (Supporting Higher Education to Integrate Learning Analytics), based on interviews with 78 senior managers from 51 European higher education institutions across 16 countries. The framework was developed adapting the RAPID Outcome Mapping Approach (ROMA), which is designed to develop effective strategies and evidence-based policy in complex environments. This paper presents four case studies to illustrate the development process of the SHEILA framework and how it can be used iteratively to inform strategic planning and policy processes in real world environments, particularly for large-scale implementation in higher education contexts. To this end, the selected cases were analyzed at two stages, each a year apart, to investigate the progression of adoption approaches that were followed to solve existing challenges, and identify new challenges that could be addressed by following the SHEILA framework.

Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the natural monopoly features of infrastructure industries, together with their strategic roles, have been important elements in state intervention. The aim of this paper is to evaluate what relative weight was attached to market failure problems on the one hand and geo-political factors on the other. For the period 1830-1939, how far were geo-political factors stronger than natural monopoly problems in accounting for the scale of intervention in the various countries of the Western World? How far did the policy instruments for security and market failure overlap? Whilst most of the infrastructure sectors are covered - including internal telecommunications, coal, gas, shipping, electricity and water - special attention is devoted to international submarine telegraph tables and railways. The paper concludes by demonstrating strong differences between Britain and USA on the one hand and Continental Europe plus Japan on the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on evidence from the United Kingdom and elsewhere in Europe, this paper explores how people have responded to flood warning information and how these responses impact upon the effectiveness of a flood warning through saving lives and injuries, and reducing economic damages. Methods of flood warning that the public rely upon are discussed alongside empirical evidence of how flood victims prepare for, and respond to, flood warnings in rapid to mediumonset floods. The paper investigates why some members of the public fail to act appropriately, or most effectively, to flood warning information, touching on ideas of a lack of understanding, mistrust in authority and a lack of ownership of flood reducing actions. The paper examines the styles of public learning about flood warning response which might be most appropriate and effective, and how recent positive steps to increase the publics understanding of effective response might be further enhanced in the United Kingdom. Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how to achieve flexibility in fiscal policy without sacrificing credibility or independence in monetary policy. The idea is to create a framework that generates fewer conflicts between policies but greater discipline within them. We assume an independent central bank and restraints on national fiscal policies. Using a theoretical model, we examine the consequences of assigning leadership to fiscal policies in order to exploit the implicit (but rule based) coordination available under standard transmission mechanisms and to allow priorities and targets to differ between policy makers. This works best when leadership takes the form of a debt rule (with hard or soft targets) to precommit fiscal policies over the longer term; but monetary independence to guarantee the credibility and discipline in the short term policies. Compared to the uncoordinated policies operating in Europe, inflation biases and debt/deficit ratios are both lower for no loss in output volatility. That matches the experience of the UK, an economy whose empirical reaction functions show fiscal leadership. On a wider sample of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries, the gains from debt targeting are estimated at 2–4% of gross domestic product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A response to a study on whether terrorism is a force for urban dispersal or whether terrorism drives people together is presented. It cites the costly travel effect and the city walls effect which counter the tall targets effect. The author says that terrorism is in decline in Europe and North America, but is on the rise in the Middle East. The incidence of terrorism in large cities in the U.S. and Great Britain which is indicative of the tall targets effect is mentioned. The article elaborates on the correlation between terrorism and urban land use.

Wet grasslands are being restored across the UK and Europe to reinstate their high biodiversity following over 50 years of drainage and conversion to arable agriculture. The water balance of many wet grasslands is dominated by precipitation and evaporation and it is essential to quantify evaporation rates to understand the hydrological functioning of wetlands and the implications for water resources in catchments where wetlands are being restored. This paper considers data from direct measurements of evaporation from the Pevensey Levels wet grassland using the eddy correlation method. Equations are derived to predict actual evaporation using meteorological data on the site or from standard meteorological station observations. It was found that evaporation could be estimated reliably from meteorological variables, such as wind speed, temperature and humidity and by water availability. It was also found that when water availability is high, evaporation is high and may exceed reference evaporation values, raising questions over the deployment of the two-step Penman-Monteith model unless reliable crop coefficients and relative evaporation figures can be determined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current discussion in Europe focuses closely on (partial) labour market de-regulation as a means to combat constantly high (youth) unemployment. The paper argues that this perspective is too narrow and fails to account for existing national institutional differences. It suggests that the focus should instead be on a combination of different institutional settings, rather than on single aspects. This general issue is approached by investigating the labour market entry process and its determinants in three European countries: West Germany, Italy and Great Britain. These countries differ substantially in their combinations of relevant institutional aspects: labour market regulation, and the education and training systems. Consequently, they display three distinct patterns of labour market entry. Great Britain is characterised by rapid but rather unstable market entry, whilst market entry in Germany is also rapid but relatively stable. The main problems exist in Italy, where first job searches are very protracted. However, once jobs have been found, they are rather stable. Despite substantial deregulation efforts in Italy over the past decade, this situation has changed little. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, several approaches have been proposed for the application of control banding concepts to the assessment and management of various workplace health and safety risks. Whilst many of the earlier approaches have originated in the UK, several of the most recent examples have been developed in Europe. The European schemes have attempted to build upon the lessons learned from the earlier control banding schemes and to apply them to new areas of health and safety. This paper analyses the evolution of the earlier approaches and reviews the more recent European developments in the context of continuing regulatory and societal demands for the improved assessment and regulation of workplace chemical risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A child's disability, long-term illness, or mental ill-health is known to affect siblings' health, social life, school engagement, and quality of life. This article addresses a research gap by its focus on young sibling carers and the impact of providing care to a sibling. A cross-national survey study was conducted in 2018–2019 (Italy, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK) to examine the incidence of adolescent sibling carers, the extent of care they provide, and their self-reported health, well-being, and school situation. The survey was completed by 7146 adolescents, aged 15–17, and 1444 of them provided care to family members with health-related conditions. Out of these, 286 were identified as Sibling Carers and 668 as Parent Carers, while 181 had both sibling(s) and parent(s) with health-related conditions, and thus were identified as Sibling–Parent Carers. Sibling Carers and Sibling–Parent Carers carried out higher levels of caring activities compared to Parent Carers. They reported both positive aspects of caring, such as increased maturity, and negative aspects, such as mental ill-health, impact on schooling and a lack of support. To reduce the negative aspects of a sibling carer role, it is important to recognise them and to implement early preventive measures and formal support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is a lack of studies comparing the status of dental specialties worldwide. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the differences and similarities between the number and types of dental specialties in 31 countries, including every continent, in the world. Materials and methods: Available official documents and webpages from regulatory bodies, official colleges and councils, and dental institutions were collected from 31 countries and analyzed to obtain reliable data on dental specialties. Differences were analyzed using the Lorentz curve and Gini test. Additionally, a cluster analysis was performed to obtain groups of countries with similar patterns in the number and types of dental specialties. Results: A total of 32 different specialties were officially recognized among all the analyzed countries. Orthodontics and oral surgery (100% and 93.1%, respectively) were the two most frequently officially recognized dental specialties worldwide. The total global degree of inequality in the 31 analyzed countries was 42.4%. The Anglo-Saxon countries showed the greatest similarity, approximately 15-fold higher than the European countries. Cluster analysis differentiated six main groups of countries according to the number and types of dental specialties. European countries formed one of the two largest clusters, and the other cluster was of Anglo-Saxon, Asian, African, and several Eastern European countries with a high number of specialties. Conclusions: Officially recognized dental specialties in the different continents and countries show an asymmetric organization. The number, names, and skills of officially recognized dental specialties exhibited significant differences, showing inequalities in their organization. The Anglo-Saxon pattern of dental specialties showed greater equality than the European pattern. Orthodontics was the only constant element among the different patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers policy issues arising in the design, regulation and taxation of lotteries, focusing on the market for an on-line lottery game. Demand determines who buys lottery tickets and in what quantities. The design of lotteries affects the terms on which tickets are supplied. UK data suggest that its lottery may be priced too high to maximize lottery revenue more revenue might be raised if the proportion of sales allocated to tax and other levies were smaller. Having established the positive economics of lotteries, the paper then assesses their welfare implications. Pari-mutuel lotteries enjoy scale economies and, as natural monopolies, are invariably run either by government agencies or a regulated licensee. I estimate consumer surplus and identify the excess burden that arises from existing (over) taxation of lotteries. The large price elasticity of demand implies that revenue raised from the lottery is raised very inefficiently. Moreover, the demand for lottery tickets is inferior (and there is some evidence that such games are contagious and addictive). So using lotteries as a vehicle for raising revenue is extremely regressive. Finally, I consider other policy implications: induced effects on charitable giving and on other forms of gambling; the impact on the government budget; perceptions of risk; and distributional considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents a brief and personal history of the main developments in British vascular plant taxonomy and distribution studies in a European setting since the Second World War. It assesses the importance of the 'European view', and considers recent and current work under two main heads: the factual information itself, and the presentation of the facts, especially in the form of dot distribution maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: People experiencing homelessness (PEH) are known to be at higher risk of adverse health outcomes and premature mortality when compared to the housed population and often face significant barriers when attempting to access health services. This study aimed to better understand the specific health care needs of PEH and the barriers and facilitators associated with their timely and equitable access to health services in the European context. Methods: We conducted an exploratory cross-national qualitative study involving people with lived experience of homelessness and health and social care professionals in Austria, Greece, Spain, and the UK. A total of 69 semi-structured interviews comprising 15 social care professionals, 19 health care professionals, and 35 PEH were completed, transcribed, and analysed thematically. Results: Findings were organised into three overarching themes relating to the research question: (a) Health care needs of PEH, (b) Barriers to health care access, and (c) Facilitators to health care access. Overall, the general health of PEH was depicted as extremely poor, and mainstream health services were portrayed as ill-equipped to respond to the needs of this population. Adopting tailored approaches to care, especially involving trusted professionals in the delivery of care, was identified as a key strategy for overcoming existing barriers. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate there to be a high degree of consistency in the health care needs of PEH and the barriers and facilitators associated with their access to health care across the various European settings. Homelessness in itself is recognized to represent an essential social determinant of health, with PEH at risk of unequal access to health services. Changes are thus required to facilitate PEH's access to mainstream primary care. This can also be further complemented by investment in 'in-reach' services and other tailored and person-centred forms of health care. Trial registration: This study was registered retrospectively on June 6, 2022, in the registry of ClinicalTrials.gov under the number NCT05406687. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]