The Macmillan Encyclopedia of Philosophy–40 years later

Journal of Indian Philosophy -     

Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT): A reliable indicator of the risk of driving under the influence of alcohol when determined by capillary electrophoresis

Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) is a marker of chronic alcohol abuse, which has recently been introduced to evaluate the physical fitness for obtaining a driving license. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence of elevated CDT levels in subjects stopped while driving under the influence of alcohol by using a validated method based on capillary electrophoresis. The study was carried out on a group of 40 drunken drivers (group A) and on a control group (n = 51) of subjects chosen from the general population (group B). CDT was directly determined by capillary electrophoresis in free solution and UV detection at 200 nm. CDT results from both groups were classified as “negative” or “positive” on the basis of the cut-off set at 2.00% (CDT index). The subjects classified as “positive” in group A were 24 (60%), whereas in group B were 2. The subjects classified as “negative” in group A were 16 (40%), whereas in group B was 49 (96.1%). The comparison of the observed percentages, evaluated with the χ²-test, was highly significant (p < 0.001). The present study confirms the high prevalence of chronic alcohol abusers among drunken drivers and the usefulness of CDT as a predictor of the risk of drunk driving.     

The role of firm and national level factors in fostering R&D cooperation: a cross country comparison

This paper explores the factors that affect firms’ propensity to engage in R&D cooperation using a CIS-3 sample of innovative firms located in seven European countries. It performs the analysis separately for the manufacturing and the service sectors in order to examine whether there are specific features that shape the service firms’ R&D cooperative behaviour in particular ways. Differences between the manufacturing and the service sectors in the cooperative behaviour of firms become much more evident once an appropriate structure of endogeneity is determined. We compare different countries because, so far, the empirical evidence produced comes from single countries or countries that are all quite homogeneous in terms of industrial structure. Instead, we consider also countries, such as transition economies, that have not been analyzed so far. We find that public subsidies positively affect firms’ propensity to engage in R&D cooperation in all countries, but they seem particularly important to enhance firms’ cooperativeness in the service sector. Implications for innovation policy are examined.     

Death scene evaluation in a case of fatal accidental carbon monoxide toxicity

Exposure of humans to high concentrations of carbon monoxide can result in death, due to the formation of carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb), which impairs the oxygen carrying capacity of the haemoglobin. Carbon monoxide is responsible of a great number of accidental domestic poisonings and deaths throughout the world, particularly in homes that have faulty or poorly vented combustion appliances. A case is reported, in which a 21-year-old woman was found dead, due to carbon monoxide poisoning from a gas water heater, despite the puzzling evidence that the heater has been used for more than 10 years without any problem. An evaluation of the exposure to CO was performed, by measuiring the rate of production of CO from the heater, and using the Coburn-Forster-Kane equation to describe the kinetics of the poisoning process. The death was attributed to an accidental poisoning from carbon monoxide due to a sum of unfortunate circumstances.