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This article is an interview with Sir Tom Devine, a renowned Scottish historian, conducted by a group of graduate students. The interview explores the "golden age" of scholarship on Scottish history from the 1960s to the 1990s and the growing interest in the Scottish diaspora and its global impact. Sir Tom Devine emphasizes the need for more research on the Scottish diaspora in England and the USA, as well as the importance of comparative studies with other European and British ethnicities. The interview also touches on the reinterpretation of Scotland's role in the empire and its relationship to settler colonialism and the Atlantic slave trade. Sir Tom Devine highlights the transformative power of academic research in changing public perceptions of Scottish history. The interview concludes with a discussion on the influence of research on Scottish history in primary and secondary school curricula. The text also discusses modern immigration to Scotland, noting that it has not caused as much controversy as in other countries. The Scottish government's current policy is to increase immigration, and most migrants are white people from professional and skilled backgrounds in England. The text also touches on the influence of non-Scottish scholars on the author's work and the controversies surrounding statues and commemoration in Scotland. It concludes with the challenges faced by historians in exploring controversial topics and the entwining of politics and the profession. The text discusses a controversy surrounding a plaque and the author's response on social media. The author, a professor, was accused of being racist for opposing [Extracted from the article]

The International Review of Scottish Studies is a journal that aims to broaden the scope of research on Scotland's past, present, and future. In this issue, the journal features a research article that explores the film adaptation of Lewis Grassic Gibbon's novel Sunset Song, highlighting the cultural and institutional frameworks that shaped Scottish films and filmmakers. The journal also includes an interview with the National Librarian of Scotland, who discusses the value of the National Library as a repository of knowledge and a space for civic discourse. Additionally, there is an extended research note that attributes authorship to a 1761 pamphlet, Reflections on the Rise and Progress of the British Constitution, based on a close reading of articles in the London Evening Post. The journal welcomes submissions from scholars both in and outside of Scotland, and aims to contribute to debates about Scotland's culture and its engagement with the wider world. [Extracted from the article]

Emmet O'Connor, A Labour History of Ireland, 1824-2000 (Dublin: University College Dublin Press 2011) IN THIS EXTENSIVE, revised second edition of his 1992 survey of the politics of the Irish [...]

A novel method for the determination of hepatotoxins; microcystins (MCs), and nodularin (Nod) in lake water and domestic chlorinated tap water has been developed using liquid chromatography hyphenated with electrospray ionization triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LCESI-MS/MS). Optimization of the mass spectrometer parameters and mobile-phase composition was performed to maximize the sensitivity and reproducibility of the method. Detection of the hepatotoxins was carded out using multiple reaction monitoring experiments, thus improving the selectivity of the method. A total ion chromatogram and a precursor ion scan on ion m/z 135 was also applied to all samples to detect unknown microcystins or microcystins for which there are no standards available. A comprehensive validation of the LC-ESI-MS/ MS method was completed that took into account matrix effects, specificity, linearity, accuracy, and precision. Good linear calibrations were obtained for MC-LR (1-200 [micro]g/L; [R.sup.2] = 0.9994) in spiked lake and tap water samples (1-50 [micro]g/L; [R.sup.2] = 0.9974). Acceptable interday repeatability was achieved for MC-LR in lake water with RSD values (n = 9) ranging from 9.9 (10 [micro]g/L) to 5.1% (100 [micro]g/L). Excellent limits of detection (LOD) and limits of quantitation (LOQ) were achieved with spiked MCs and Nod samples; LOD = 0.27 [micro]g/L and LOQ = 0.90 [micro]g/L for MC-LR in the 'normal linear range' and LOD = 0.08 [micro]g/L and LOQ = 0.25 [micro]g/L in the 'low linear range' in both lake and chlorinated tap water. Similar results were obtained for a suite of microcystins and nodularin. This sensitive and rapid method does not require any sample preconcentration, including the elimination of solid-phase extraction (SPE) for the effective screening of hepatotoxins in water below the 1 [micro]g/LWHO provisional guideline limit for MC-LR. Furthermore, SPE techniques are time-consuming, nonreproducible at trace levels, and offer poor recoveries with chlorinated water. The application of this LC-ESI-MS/MS method for routine screening of hepatotoxins in lake and chlorinated tap water (average [Cl.sub.2] = 0.23 mg/L) is achieved and this study represents the first direct method for the screening of hepatotoxins in chlorinated tap water.

The potential of liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QqTOF-MS) to identify and confirm carbosulfan and seven of its main metabolites (carbofuran, 3-hydroxycarbofuran, 3-ketocarbofuran, 3-hydroxy-7-phenol carbofuran, 3-keto-7-phenolcarbofuran, 7-phenolcarbofuran, dibutylamine) at trace levels from food is explored for the first time. The analytical method developed consists of pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) and LC-QqTOF-MS in positive ion mode, which attains unequivocal identification and quantification of the studied compounds in food, at levels well below of those of concern (0.05 mg/kg for the sum of carbosulfan, carbofuran, and 3-hydroxycarbofuran). PLE recoveries ranged from 55 to 94% with limits of quantification from 10 (for carbosulfan, carbofuran, 3-hydroxycarbofuran, and dibutylamine) to 70 [micro]g/kg (3-keto-7-phenolcarbofuran). The method is precise, with relative standard deviations varying between 5 and 11% for the repeatability (within-day) and 8-13% for the reproducibility (interday). This method was used to monitor the presence and fate of the target compounds in orange, potato, and rice crops treated with a commercial product containing carbosulfan. Field degradation studies show that carbofuran, 3-hydroxycarbofuran, and dibutylamine are the main degradation products formed in the environmental disappearance of carbosulfan.

The International Review of Scottish Studies has undergone changes with a new editorial team and a new home at Edinburgh University Press. The latest issue features an interview with renowned historian Sir Tom Devine, who discusses the global dimensions of Scottish history and emphasizes the importance of a moral imperative in historical research. Another article explores the influence of transnational Celticism on Gaelic revivalism in Scotland. The journal also showcases an expanded Reviews section, inviting readers to actively participate in the scholarly publication. [Extracted from the article]