Evaluation of preliminary isotopic analysis (13C and 15N) of explosives A likelihood ratio approach to assess the links between semtex samples

Currently, the use of isotopic ratio as corroborative evidence in criminal trials is explored. Beyond the analytical challenges that have been reported elsewhere, the crucial issue of the interpretation of analytical results in a fair and balanced way remains poorly documented. The aim of this paper is to propose a likelihood ratio approach for the evaluation of stable isotope data acquired from semtex samples. It will also lead to recommendations in relation to the acquisition of normalised international data.     

A Chinese Medicine Convert

正I have a confession,and it’s one that I’m sure my Chinese colleagues will berate me for:When it came to Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM),I was a bit of a doubter.I didn’t doubt that Chinese medicine could be effective.I just wasn’t sure that in this age of modern medicine,where pharmacies have come to resemble Hogwarts Potions Labs,     

National Election Cycles and the Intermittent Political Safeguards of Federalism

Scholars have challenged the notion of "political safeguardsof federalism" in a large and well-developed body of work onthe use of coercive policy tools by the federal government.This study suggests, however, that there may be some utilityin re-examining the political factors that help to constrainthe growth of national power. Specifically, it argues that theneed to win votes from subnational constituencies makes nationallawmakers less supportive of mandates, preemptions, and taxsanctions during election cycles and, thus, provides an intermittentsafeguard of state authority. It tests and finds evidence forhypotheses related to that general argument in analyses of thepassage of coercive federalist policies over the last thirtyyears.     

Playing Devil's advocate†: The case against fMRI lie detection

The advent of functional neuroimaging raises the intriguing possibility that investigators might be able to determine (one day) whether an individual is lying or telling the truth, according to the activity of their brain. Ultimately, such techniques might be applied in the forensic sphere. However, the empirical data supporting this conjecture derive from a body of work that is still early on in its development. Hence, when invited to play ‘Devil's advocate’, the author is prompted to critique a pivotal weakness within the current literature. The latter comprises 16 peer‐reviewed functional magnetic resonance imaging studies purporting to describe the neural correlates of lying. Most have demonstrated greater activation of prefrontal regions while participants lie relative to when they tell the truth. Most have failed to detect areas where truthfulness elicits specific activation (consistent with the view that truthfulness constitutes a ‘baseline’ in human cognition and communication; while lying requires something more). However, there is a great deal of variation between the findings described and, crucially, there is an absence of replication by investigators of their own findings. Hence, basic issues of reliability need to be addressed before functional neuroimaging is applied to cases that matter in the ‘real world’.     

Fear and Loathing across Party Lines: New Evidence on Group Polarization

When defined in terms of social identity and affect toward copartisans and opposing partisans, the polarization of the American electorate has dramatically increased. We document the scope and consequences of affective polarization of partisans using implicit, explicit, and behavioral indicators. Our evidence demonstrates that hostile feelings for the opposing party are ingrained or automatic in voters' minds, and that affective polarization based on party is just as strong as polarization based on race. We further show that party cues exert powerful effects on nonpolitical judgments and behaviors. Partisans discriminate against opposing partisans, doing so to a degree that exceeds discrimination based on race. We note that the willingness of partisans to display open animus for opposing partisans can be attributed to the absence of norms governing the expression of negative sentiment and that increased partisan affect provides an incentive for elites to engage in confrontation rather than cooperation.     

The End of Social Democracy?

This article contests the idea that social democracy is dead. It is argued that a proper consideration of the evidence casts doubt on this widely held assumption. In this article, the evidence is examined in relation to post-Fordism, class structure and solidarity, electoral behaviour, post-materialism and the crisis of the welfare state across Europe.     

Game theory and the study of American political development

Game theoretic analyses of American institutions and American political development largely are disconnected enterprises, yet they share many points of contact and thus opportunities for fruitful exchange. In this essay I discuss the value and limits of formalization for the enterprise of institutional analysis that those fields have in common. I conceptualize two broad approaches that formal modelers have taken to study institutions—institutions as game forms, and institutions as equilibria—that have been relatively successful for understanding institutional choice and stability. At the same time, formal modelers have been less successful in addressing institutional change and development, topics about which APD has much to offer. Overall, I contend that crosstalk between the two fields can benefit them both.

     

The Development of the Implied Terms on Quantity in the Law of Sale of Goods

The history of the development of the implied terms on short delivery is a complex story of judicial and academic ignorance of law and facts. Sir Mackenzie Chalmers' statutory formulation of the right to correct delivery was the same as that provided in Judah Benjamin's 1868 work on sales. However, Benjamin's formulation was flawed, which led to a highly unsatisfactory rule of law. This article considers the history of the case law on short delivery, leading up to the 1893 codification. The operation of the statutory rule further illustrates the depth of confusion which remained following codification. A comparison with the history of short delivery in the United States demonstrates that the confusion within the English system could easily have been avoided.     

Sympathy for the Devil: An Exploration of Federal Judicial Discretion in the Processing of White-Collar Offenders

Since the late 1990s, the United States has experienced a series of major corporate malfeasance events leading to the collapse of corporations such as Worldcom and Enron, predatory lending practices which devastated the nation’s real estate market and the Bernie Madoff scandal serving as prime examples. While the leading culprits in such well-publicized cases have met stiff sanctions, the common notion is that white-collar offenders are treated more leniently than street offenders by the criminal justice system. Given the scope and severity of victimization attributable to the contemporary white collar crime epidemic, the matter of sanctioning fairness and severity is of timely importance. This paper examines judicial discretion in the form of the decision to incarcerate and the length of sentences imposed for federal white collar and street level offenders. Findings inform discussion oriented around the related issues of deterrence and public safety.