Public health as an agent of internal colonialism in interwar Czechoslovakia: shaping the discourse about the nation’s children

Shmidt’s text discusses the specifics of internal colonialism in the discourses and practices of the dominant group (Czechs) concerning Slovaks and Rusyns, ethnic groups from the peripheral, eastern areas of interwar Czechoslovakia. By targeting the reproductive patterns of these groups, seen as undesirable by the authorities, internal colonialism shaped the discourse about children by consistently opposing the normalized childhood inside the nation to the supposedly abnormal child development outside the civilizing process. Shmidt focuses on three interwar projects aimed at introducing new public health practices as an ‘infrastructure of dependence’ with regard to the peripheral groups. Being directly supported by the Rockefeller Foundation, these projects contributed to building the new Czechoslovak nation and securing its international legitimacy.     

Suicidal ideation in adolescence: Depression,substance use,and other risk factors

The interrelationships of depression and suicide with adolescent drug use, delinquency, eating disorders, and the risk factors for these different problems were investigated among 597 9th and 11th graders in an urban high school. There is a strong association of drug use with suicidal ideation among girls, and a stronger relationship with attempts among girls and boys. Suicidal youths are ill-adjusted and display a lack of attachment and commitment to family and school. Causal models indicate that poor interpersonal interactions with parents, absence of peer interactions, and life events lead to depression, which in turn leads to suicidal ideation. Depressive symptoms are the strongest predictors of suicidal ideation. Among females, depression predicts drug involvement, and in turn, drug use increases suicidal ideation. Drug use is only one class of problem behaviors that constitutes a risk factor for suicidal behavior in adolescence. Delinquency and eating disorders also have direct effects on suicidal ideation beyond those of depressive affect. As for drug involvement, these problem behaviors are more predictive of suicidal behavior among girls than boys. Similarity and specificity of the predictors for problem behaviors within and between the sexes are discussed. Although young women use drugs to handle feelings of depression, drug use appears ineffective in the long run in relieving these depressive feelings. Understanding the dynamics of suicidal ideation in adolescence has important public health implications, since ideation is a strong predictor of attempts, especially among females.Revised version of a presentation at the Workshop on Adolescent Depression, Princeton, NJ, June 3, 1987.Work on this research has been partially supported by Research Grants DA00064, DA01097, DA03196, and DA02867, and by Research Scientist Award DA00081 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse; and awards from the John D. and Catherine MacArthur Foundation and the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, New York State Psychiatric Institute. Partial support for computer costs was provided by Mental Health Clinical Research Center Grant MH30906-07 from NIMH to the New York State Psychiatric Institute.Received Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University. Research interests include adolescent psychosocial development, epidemiology and risk factors for drug use, and interpersonal networks.Work on this research was carried out while a Research Associate at the School of Public Health, Columbia University. Received Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University. Research interests include personal networks and social support systems in chronic illness, societal factors in mental health, psychosocial consequences of drug use and abuse, panel mortality, and survey methodology.Received M.P.H. from Columbia University. Research interests include reliability and child psychiatry.     

Assisted suicide and human rights

The case of R (Pretty) v. Director of Public Prosecutions, gave the House of Lords the opportunity to comment on the issues surrounding the application of the European Convention on Human Rights to the crime of assisted suicide in the case of the terminally ill. A conservative approach was taken in relation to both this issue and indeed in relation to the possibilities of judicial control of the Law Officers of the Crown.     

STR data for the AmpFlSTR Profiler Plus loci from Greece

Allele frequencies for the nine STRs included in the AmpFlSTR Profiler Plus kit (D3S1358, VWA, FGA, D8S1179, D21S11, D18S51, D5S818, D13S317 and D7S820) were estimated from a sample of 143 unrelated individuals living in different regions of Greece.     

Social Support: A Mediator between Child Maltreatment and Developmental Outcomes

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the relationship between child maltreatment, social support, and developmental outcomes in first-year college students. Participants were 202 undergraduate students (137 female, 65 male) who completed surveys at two time points: once before entering college and once during their first year of college. It was hypothesized that child maltreatment would predict poorer developmental outcomes in adolescence and early adulthood, but that social support would mediate this relationship. Results indicated that child maltreatment related negatively to developmental outcomes and to perceived social support; adolescent and young adult development related positively to perceived social support. In addition, a mediational model in which social support mediates child maltreatment and developmental outcomes was supported.

The analysis of casework sized alloy fragments by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) using discrete nebulisation

A discrete nebulisation technique has been developed for the multi-element analysis of 100-μl solution droplets by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The technique increases analytical speed and uses very small solution volumes with only a slight degradation in detection limits when compared to continuous solution introduction.To evaluate its suitability in casework, small alloy fragments were produced by cutting with a hacksaw, sample division and filing. The analysis of fragments from two different brasses indicated that quantitative data could be obtained from fragments as small as 10 μg. The accurate determination of lead, a non-homogeneous constituent of leaded brasses, required sample sizes an order of magnitude greater. Analysis of an alloy of fine grain structure (copper-nickel) demonstrated that quantitative data could be obtained from samples weighing a few micrograms or less.     

Y-chromosome STR haplotypes in Córdoba (Argentina)

Eight Y-chromosome STRs were investigated in a male population sample from Córdoba region (Argentina). Complete Y-chromosomal STRs haplotypes were obtained in 100 individuals, among which 91 different haplotypes were observed. The most common haplotype was shared by 4% of the sample, while 86 haplotypes were unique. The gene diversity was 0.9875 and the discrimination capacity was 0.8600. The combined polymorphism provides a powerful discrimination tool for routine forensic applications.