Developing a new scoring method to evaluate human decomposition in a humid,continental (Dfb) climate in Quebec

The published literature shows a lack of methods to evaluate the patterns and extent of decomposition of human remains and to estimate the post-mortem interval (PMI) in humid, continental (Dfb) climates such as Quebec. The aim of this study was to address this gap in the current knowledge base by providing the first observations from human corpses studied under controlled conditions in Quebec. A 12-month study was conducted at the site for Research in Experimental and Social Thanatology; the first human taphonomy facility in Canada. Six human donors with known time of death were deposited across spring (n = 1), summer (n = 3), and autumn (n = 2) 2021. The lack of suitability of the total body score method to evaluate the extent of decomposition at the facility prompted the development of a new scoring system based on the macromorphoscopic changes observed. The scoring system was applied to the donors to evaluate decomposition throughout seasons. All donors followed comparable decomposition trajectories, regardless of the season of deposition. Eighty-five percent of taphonomic patterns appeared in the first 25 experimental days or 5000 Kelvin accumulated degree days (350 ADD). Extensive desiccation of tissues was observed at a median of 21 experimental days across donors, resulting in a plateau within decomposition with no extensive skeletonization. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first published report of experimentally observed desiccation in such a form in a Dfb climate. This study provides new data on the types of decomposition patterns to expect in forensic investigations in southern Quebec and comparable climates.     

Examining the Canadian Government's Resistance to Including Socioeconomic Concerns in Genetically Modified Seeds Regulation: A Policy Transfer and Multilevel Approach

In 2011, Canadian Members of Parliament refused to transfer a regulatory initiative taken from Argentina that would have required an analysis of potential harm to export markets before authorizing the sale of any new genetically modified seed. This was the purpose of Bill C‐474, which was defeated in the House of Commons. After exploring Argentina's regulatory framework as a source of transfer, this paper combines a multilevel analysis with a typology of policy transfer mechanisms in order to address the complexities underlying this unsuccessful attempt. We explore how the mechanisms of competition and coercion might have impeded the transfer of such an initiative at the international and the macro‐state levels. Moreover, while a policy transfer network in support of the bill called on previous experiences with genetically modified seeds, their efforts appear to have been outweighed by another network using arguments based on the mechanisms of competition, coercion, and mimicry.     

加拿大环境影响评价制度的比较与启示

加拿大从20世纪70年代就开始发展环境影响评价制度,至今其涉及环境影响评价制度的法律法规不计其数。加拿大有关环境影响评价的法律主要是《加拿大环境评价法》,该法明确规定了环境影响评价的主要目的,归纳为谨慎行事、预防污染、重视合作以及鼓励公众参与。而加拿大环评制度的主要内容也很好地体现了这一原则。《加拿大环境评价法》第19条规定了环境评价的主要内容,其中的可替代性方案、缓解措施以及研究委员会的报告都是该部法律中比较有特色而且值得研究的内容,这些严格谨慎的规定使加拿大环境影响评价制度可以发挥更大的作用,更好地预防污染,保护环境。本文以介绍和分析加拿大环境评价制度的对象和内容为主,并对比分析我国环境影响评价的内容,旨在为完善我国环境影响评价制度有所启示和借鉴。     

The Investigative Study Role of Canada's House Committees: Expectations Met?

Canada's House of Commons committee system, established to enhance the effectiveness of parliament, has operated in approximately its present form since 1986. However, information about what it accomplishes remains limited. This article focuses on the investigative/policy studies of committees. A questionnaire given to former cabinet ministers and analysis of previously unexplored committee data support the view that these studies have achieved a modest influence on governments, well short of expectations held in the mid-1980s. Furthermore, their influence is as a source of political intelligence more than the collaborative policy work and technical expertise given central importance by creators of the system. This supports scepticism about the influence achieved by the all-party agreement that continues to be reflected in about 70 per cent of committee reports, and may also be reflected in the written responses to committee reports by governments, an estimated 50 per cent of which are ambiguous. Nevertheless, the original vision reflected in the committees persists among many Canadian advocates of parliamentary reform.     

Organizational Learning Facilitators in the Canadian Public Sector

An implicit patriarchal bargain between Emirati fathers and daughters is examined from a social constructionist perspective. Using qualitative methodology we found that fathers explicitly encourage their daughters to pursue tertiary education and careers, but hedge this break from tradition with implicit understandings that daughters will observe norms that can only realistically be followed in public sector employment. The persistent public-private imbalance in female employment patterns can thus be construed, as a ‘wicked problem” that cannot be addressed through market incentive-based policies such as Emiratization but rather through behavioral changes on the part of both UAE businesses and Emirati families.     

The October Crisis Revisited: Counterterrorism as Strategic Choice,Political Result,and Organizational Practice

Counterterrorism is generally understood in terrorism research as the product of rational strategic choice by governments. This is rarely the case, however: Strategic choice is often heavily circumscribed by the effects of crisis, when factors become significant drivers of government action. This paper uses the October Crisis of 1970 to demonstrate how the assumption of rational choice can be very misleading, and argues that scholarly research on counterterrorism needs a more nuanced understanding of how a governments' intent is translated into action.     

Beyond Formal Equality: Closing the Gender Gap in a Changing Labour Market – A Study of Legislative Solutions Adopted in Canada

This article looks at the position of women in the Canadian labour market and at the legislative measures adopted to address their segregation in terms of occupation, wages and working conditions. Federal and provincial legislators have, with relative success, attempted through a series of measures to respond directly to the issue of discrimination against women in the workplace and in the labour market. They have, however, remained relatively insensitive to other factors that make the situation of working women precarious, such as the rise of ‘non-standard’ work. These inequalities are not peculiar to Canada and legislative responses to these questions vary according to specific national realities and legal traditions. A study of the legislative evolution in Canada serves to illustrate some of the challenges faced to redress this gender gap.     

North American Organised Crime

The Italian-American mafia is one of the most enduring images of organised crime, but separating fictional images of organised crime from the real thing has not been easy. Overall, organised crime is a continuing criminal enterprise that rationally works to profit from illicit activities that are often in great public demand. Its continuing existence is maintained through the use of force, threats, monopoly control, and/or the corruption of public officials. The past 20 years have seen a decline in the influence of Italian-American organised crime in the US, but this has been offset by the rise of other forms of organised crime, not least groups from the former USSR. Meanwhile, the Canadian underworld is dominated by Asian groups, East European groups, Italian groups, and outlaw motorcycle gangs. The major organised crime groups in Mexico are extended networks composed of Mexican nationals living in Mexico, Mexican-Americans, and Mexican immigrants living in the United States, operating as competing networks in the illicit drug business from supply, to transit, to destination and buyers.     

The front and back stages of carceral expansion marketing in Canada

This article examines how provincial and territorial government agencies and prison authorities in Canada promote new penal infrastructure initiatives. Through an analysis of press releases, websites, opening ceremonies and open houses to promote jail and prison construction projects, our analysis reveals discourses that are legitimating carceral expansion in the Canadian context including: the pursuit of public safety and institutional security; providing opportunities for rehabilitation and healing; addressing the legacies of colonization through the ‘indigenizing’ of imprisonment; generating economic stimulus through prison-related employment and other financial contributions; and the establishment of ‘environmentally-friendly’ prisons. Drawing from government records obtained using Access to Information and Freedom of Information requests, we also provide examples of how front stage messages communicated to the public are assembled by bureaucrats and marketing firms in the back stage of these punishment campaigns.     

Police use of body worn cameras

This article gives an overview of police use of body-worn cameras (BWCs). In doing so it explores the widespread adoption of BWC technology around the world and shows how different jurisdictions are adopting the cameras for a variety of uses. Next, the review examines the empirical research of BWCs and assesses the perceived benefits and concerns of the technology. The article then examines a case study of police use of BWCs in Canada. Politicians and civil rights groups have called on police in Canada to adopt BWCs to improve accountability, but little movement has been made in this direction. The article identifies several reasons why police have been slow to adopt the technology in Canada despite public demand and the widespread deployment of the technology elsewhere. It concludes with suggestions for areas of future research.