Youth and the forbidden fruit: Experiences with changes in legal drinking age in North America

The effects of changes in the minimum drinking ages in various North American jurisdictions are reviewed. The research suggests that although most teenagers have experimented with alcohol, the rates of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related traffic collisions can be increased and decreased with the drinking age control legislation.     

Inside the mind of the serial murder

This article approaches a position of delving into the thoughts of those who commit murder serially. The information comes from a variety of sources which include research literature, theory examination and most importantly, serial murderers themselves. More than 400 cases of serial fatal violence as well as interviews with incarcerated serial killers were utilized. Important issues such as locus of motives, expected gains, victim selection processes, planning of the event, the murder event itself, and organization and disorganization of the kill are also discussed. While admitting that serial killers have never been rehabilitated, a call is directed toward a better understanding of the mind of the serial murderer.     

Social Utility in Ultimatum Bargaining

In this article we will provide an overview of factors that influence the weight that self-interest and equity related motives receive in ultimatum bargaining. These factors are grouped into three main categories: factors relating to the context of the game, factors relating to the parties involved, and factors related to characteristics of the game. Results of the studies are discussed in relation to the concept of social utility. The authors point out possible omissions in the literature—especially the lack of interest for the behavior of recipients—and recommend directions for future research.     

Acetaldehyde accumulation during headspace gas-chromatographic determination of ethanol

The acetaldehyde accumulation in blood during the equilibration time of samples processed by gas-liquid chromatographic headspace technique is reported. The quantitative loss of blood ethanol concentration is recorded at various temperatures and times of the preheating process.When the equilibration process is performed at 40 °C, minimal errors, due to ethanol oxidation, are observed.     

Implantation of an RFID-tag into human molars to reduce hard forensic identification labor. Part 2: physical properties

Modifying and implanting existing RFID-tags into extracted human molars was described previously [P. Thevissen, G. Poelman, B. Puers, M. De Cooman, G. Willems, Implantation of RFID-tag into human molars to reduce hard forensic identification labor. Part 1. Working principle, Forensic Sci. Int. 156 (2006)]. Maximal vertical occlusal load during which the implanted RFID-tags remain active was evaluated in vitro. The temperature dependency of the implanted RFID-tags was studied on the extracted teeth to find out the maximal obtainable temperature before failure and a test with embedded thermistors to verify temperature distributions. The maximal working temperature of the implanted RFID-tags was revealed and gave indications for the set-up of measuring intra oral and intra tooth temperature during the cremation of a human body. Fatigue was induced on the implanted teeth by thermocycling. The results of this investigation showed the need of putting an extra insulating layer around the modified tags before implantation. The different in vitro tests indicated that the implanted RFID-tags can support certain oral and forensic circumstances.     

Preparing for major incidents

Major incidents occurred, occur and will still occur all over the world, at any place at any time. Such an event is not always handled like it should and could be. The reason for this is not necessarily a deficiency in preplanning or the non-existence of procedures or guidelines. A possible solution to make things work more fluidly could be the creation of a genuine vision and mission statement on disaster handling followed by the alignment of all involved services within the statement. This would be a real challenge for all authorities and services involved in the planning phase and the preparation for major incidents.     

Incestuous paternity detected by STR-typing of chorionic villi isolated from archival formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded abortion material using laser microdissection

Microscopic examination of a blood clot expelled by a physically and mentally disabled woman taken to the emergency room because of genital bleeding revealed the presence of chorionic villi encircled by decidua, hemorrhage, and necrosis. In order to identify the father of the product of conception, sections of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded abortion material were subjected to laser microdissection: DNA extraction from chorionic villi selectively isolated from the surrounding tissues allowed successful STR-typing of fetal cells, which was otherwise prevented by excess maternal DNA. The large number of homozygous genotypes in the fetal profile suggested incestuous paternity. Analysis of reference DNA samples from male relatives excluded the woman's father, paternal grandfather, and maternal grandfather, whereas the obligate paternal alleles of the fetus were constantly present in the genotypes of the woman's brother, clearly demonstrating brother-sister incest (probability of paternity > 99.99999%).     

Pink teeth in a series of bodies recovered from a single shipwreck

Pink teeth have most often been observed in victims of drowning but have also been reported in subjects who died suddenly and unnaturally. There is general agreement that there is no obvious connection between the occurrence of pink teeth and the cause of death, but the condition of the surroundings (especially humidity) must certainly play an important role in the development of the pink-tooth phenomenon. The frequency and distribution of postmortem pink coloration of the teeth have been studied among a representative sample of 52 cadavers. All the bodies were victims of a single shipwreck that occurred on March 13, 1997, in the middle of the Otranto Canal (Mediterranean Sea). The bodies were recovered from the seawater after approximately 7 months. A distinct pink coloration of the teeth was found in only 18 cadavers (13 females and 5 males) of ages ranging between 13 and 60 years. The phenomenon was more pronounced in younger individuals due to age-related changes of the root canal, less penetrable by the pigment responsible for the postmortem pink staining. By histochemical methods and autofluorescence, hemoglobin and its derivatives have been identified as the most likely pigments responsible for this postmortem process that can be considered analogous to postmortem lividity. These data are consistent with previous reports on pink teeth, indicating that the diffusion of the blood in the pulp into the dentinal tubules causes the red discoloration of the teeth. Based on the results, the pigmentation is more prominent on the teeth with single roots rather than in the posterior teeth with multiple roots.