Correlation of age and ossification of the medial clavicular epiphysis using computed tomography

OBJECT: The aim of this study was the examination of relationship between the age and the ossification of medial epiphysis of the clavicle referred to CT examination. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Concerning the epiphyseal ossification of the clavicle CT's of 100 patients (50 male and 50 female) between 16 and 25 years (10 patients for each year) were analyzed by three viewers. RESULTS: In the legal relevant age segment (16-25a) we saw a turnover from stage 3 to stage 4 at the age of 21 years. The calculated empiric distribution function showed 95% of stage 4 over 21 years while 75% of the patients with stage 3 were under 21 years. A reconstruction kernel suitable for osseous structures should be used, images should be viewed or presented in a bone window. CONCLUSION: According to these results it can be concluded that a person with stage 4 is probably 21 years or older, while a stage 3 leads to an estimated age under 21 years. On the other hand, a confidence level of 99.67% is not reached. Therefore, CT of the medial epiphysis of the clavicle will only be suitable for age estimation around the age of 21 years, if this relevant statistic obstacle is defeated. Bearing this in mind, further studies are needed to evaluate slice thickness as the most critical parameter.     

Politikwandel und seine Messung in der vergleichenden Staatstätigkeitsforschung: Konzeptionelle Probleme und mögliche Alternativen

Policy change is an important concept in comparative policy analysis. Despite its central significance, most empirical studies fail to provide clear-cut definitions and measurement of this concept. Against this background, this article evaluates previous scholarship on policy change in the areas of social and environmental policy. We find that most studies use proxies for measuring policy change even though they contradict the basic idea of policy-making activities. Furthermore, studies usually neither capture the complexity of policy change, nor take into the possibility of policy change through dismantling account. Additionally, the empirical focus of most analyses is too narrow, thereby impeding robust statements about causality. In response to these shortcomings, we propose a new conceptual perspective, which captures policy change as a broader empirical phenomenon. We discuss its advantages as well as its disadvantages and show the implications for the research process.     

Law Students on Interdisciplinary,Problem‐Solving Teams: An Empirical Evaluation of Educational Outcomes at the University Of Denver's Resource Center for Separating and Divorcing Families

Models of lawyering in separation and divorce disputes are evolving to emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration, problem solving, alternative dispute resolution, and changes in legal education that reflect these changes in practice. At the University of Denver's Resource Center for Separating and Divorcing Families (Center), supervised law and mental health graduate students worked as a team to provide assessment and service planning, mediation, therapy, and agreement drafting to parents. Evaluation results showed client satisfaction, and that students acquired new knowledge, skills, and values in line with a collaborative, problem‐solving orientation. Strengths and weaknesses of the model are considered.     

Why They Join: Pathways into Indonesian Jihadist Organizations

ABSTRACT

Why do Indonesian Muslims join Islamist extremist groups? This article explores four pathways to entry into Indonesian militant groups: study sessions, local conflict, kinship, and schools. It argues that within all four of these pathways, social bonds and relationships are the common thread in encouraging entry as well as in fostering commitment. Specifically, these relationships contribute to the formation and eventual consolidation of one’s identity as a member of the jihadi group through regular participation in activities, attending meetings, narrowing the circle of friends to those within the group, and participating in increasingly risky and possibly violent activities together. Drawing on original fieldwork including 49 interviews with current and former members of Jemaah Islamiyah, Mujahidin KOMPAK, Darul Islam, Mujahidin Tanah Runtuh, Indonesia’s pro-ISIS network, and other jihadist groups as well as 57 depositions and court documents, this article explores the development and evolution of these pathways and how relational ties play a role in each.     

The national politics of EU enlargement in the Western Balkans

Abstract

European enlargement has often been viewed from an institutional perspective. The academic literature in the field has tended to focus primarily on how the Commission or the Council has addressed the issue of EU expansion. Relatively little attention has been paid to the role of individual member states. This article considers the way in which domestic political concerns and national politics affects the way in which EU members approach enlargement to the Western Balkans. It does this by examining studies conducted on seven countries: Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Hungary, Greece and Cyprus. It shows that there are in fact a wide variety of factors that shape individual member state attitudes towards enlargement. These factors include economic and commercial goals, ties to the region and to individual accession states, concerns over immigration, general foreign policy priorities and national ideological approaches towards the future shape and orientation of the European Union.     

Warning behaviors and leaked intent: Potential new avenues to prevent mass shootings

On March 12, 2018, John Laubscher, owner of AJ’s Archery in Nelson, NY, had a gut feeling and refused to sell a rifle to a Syracuse University student—disrupting a mass shooting ( https://www.syracuse.com/crime/2018/04/how_gun_shop_owner_thwarted_on_the_edge_su_student_from_buying_high-capacity_rif.html . Accessed 10 Nov 2021). Prompted by this, we surveyed the opinions, beliefs, attitudes, and current practices of gun sellers in Onondaga County, NY, in regard to safe gun sales. The primary outcome was to determine which types of “concerning behaviors” are more likely to cause a seller to intervene in some manner. Secondary outcomes included the following: ascertaining the frequency of denials of customer purchases, frequency of reporting to law enforcement, and identifying any gaps that make it difficult for gun sellers to report behaviors to the authorities. Follow-up interviews were conducted with those who were willing to speak with the authors in more depth. A response rate of 12.9% was achieved. Sixty-two percent (62.5%) of respondents had some experience in uniformed services, with specialized training in mental or emotional crises, as well as deception detection. The majority found the training helpful in their gun selling career. Reasons for personal denials were reported as: “interest in illegal fittings,” “information revealed during conversation,” and “lack of basic knowledge of using the firearm looking to purchase.” Two respondents stated that due to a lack of a “reporting protocol,” they would not report any concerns to law enforcement. The study helps inform future research in regard to surveying more sellers across NY state and nationwide.     

Introduction: Dimensions of Sino–Japanese rivalry in a global context

Abstract

This special issue analyzes the evolving notion of Sino–Japanese rivalry and its effects on concrete foreign policy measures of both states in a global context. China’s emergence as a great power and Japan’s attempts to ‘normalize’ its foreign relations took place alongside both countries increasing their political engagement in world regions beyond Northeast Asia. As a result, there has been increasing mutual monitoring of and increasing concern expressed about the intentions and actions of the respective other on these different levels of world politics. This has largely been neglected in the literature. This special issue closes the gap in the literature by providing answers to the following questions: Is there a Sino–Japanese rivalry in the first place? Which factors define this rivalry? Are there different levels and/or kinds of rivalry? Which factors influence Sino–Japanese rivalry in different regions and on different levels of the international system? Do these factors differ across regional and institutional boundaries? Answering these questions requires us to conceptualize what is meant by rivalry as well as to focus on Sino–Japanese interaction in different world regions and on the level of international institution building. This special issue also contributes to the literature on interstate rivalry by challenging common understandings of the concept of rivalry and by adding new facets and interpretation of rivalry based on the concrete empirical cases. It will therefore provide a broadened perspective on the characteristics of Sino–Japanese relations, the mutual impacts of Japan’s and China’s globalizing foreign policies, and on our understanding of the determinants and mechanisms of interstate rivalries.     

Awareness of Sexual Violence Services Among LGBQ-Identified College Students

ABSTRACT

The sexual victimization of sexual minorities enrolled in college is not a topic that has been well researched. The present study examines the awareness that college minority students have of services they can access in the event they experience sexual violence. The results indicate that many students are unaware of specific services that they can access if they are sexually victimized. Disclosing an incident of sexual violence, or being the recipient of a disclosure of sexual violence, is related to knowledge of aftercare services. Non-White students demonstrate less awareness of services than White students, indicating that these students may not receive aftercare in the event of sexual victimization because they do not have the knowledge of which services are available. Several policy recommendations and directions for future research stem from these findings.     

Estonia caught between East and West: EU conditionality,Russia's activism and minority integration

This article takes a subjective approach to studying norm compliance in order to determine how EU conditionality and Russia's activism have affected elite attitudes toward minority policies, majority–minority relations, and language use in Estonian society in the post-accession period. The results of a Q method study and semi-structured interviews with integration elites in spring 2008 reveal four distinct viewpoints. The study casts doubt upon the success of EU conditionality in Estonia by demonstrating that European minority rights norms remain contested and have not been internalized by a substantial portion of elites. In addition, the study points to an important role for Russia's activism in the development of a more inclusive society. Russia's activism actually works against minority integration by reinforcing pre-existing domestic norms that are not compatible with European minority rights standards and by aggravating tensions over history and language, which frustrate integration efforts. This article ultimately contributes to studies on the effects of international pressure on minority integration by pointing to the need for greater attention to the ways in which multiple actors at both the international and domestic levels structure the influence of EU conditionality.