New technology and new initiatives in U.S. workplace testing

A current perspective of workplace drug testing in the USA is presented covering three major issue areas: (1) epidemiology, (2) new technology and (3) initiatives to reach out and assist small business. First, national illegal drug-use self-reported survey data is compared with national laboratory drug testing results, illustrating a number of inconsistencies. During the 17-year period (1988-2004) the number of laboratory positive test results has decreased by 66% while during the same period self-reported drug-use has increased by 30%. The lack of concurrence between lab results and self-report surveys are examined in light of the typical panel of drugs being tested in U.S. laboratories, the increased specificity of immunoassay screening tests, and the critical issues of adulteration and substitution. Second, a brief review of the state-of-the-science in rapid point-of-collection (POCT) oral fluid drug-testing devices is presented along with some device evaluation findings. In general the window of drug detection in oral fluid is measured in hours. Most of the available oral fluid POCT devices can detect methamphetamine and amphetamines and opiates very well. The ability to detect cocaine appears to vary significantly across devices, while the ability to detect cannabis use is generally poor across all devices. Finally, efforts to reach out and assist small businesses in the development of workplace anti-drug programs are discussed in the context of increasing workplace programs in the European Union.     

A new approach to measuring technology with an application to the shape of the diffusion curves

This paper documents the sources and measures of the cross-country historical adoption technology (CHAT) data set that covers the diffusion of about 115 technologies in over 150 countries over the last 200 years. We use this comprehensive data set to explore the shape of the diffusion curves. Our main finding is that, once the intensive margin is measured, technologies do not diffuse in a logistic way.

A comparison of educational processes at similar U. K. and U. S. institutions of higher learning

The structure and organization of the middle tier of higher education in similar institutions in the U. K. and U. S. are compared to draw conclusions on the effect which differences and similarities have upon the quality of the educational process, its cost-effectiveness, student independence and maturity, faculty load, relationships with business, industry and government.     

Comparing U.S. and European police subcultures: A field study

This article is a satire of sociology and field anthropology research on comparative police behavior; it uses humorous anecdotes to make a serious point. The author argues that until police supervision is undertaken by civilian review boards, police behavior will never conform to community morality despite attempts at police reform. To support this argument, the author compares U.S., German, Italian, Russian, and French police subcultures in an attempt to calculate (a) the correlation between police behavior and its conformity to community morality, and (b) whether a high correlation results from a high degree of civilian oversight. The author concludes that, because no country has appreciable civilian oversight, and because the police of no country conform to community morality, there is therefore a perfect correlation between lack of civilian oversight and lack of police conformity to community morality.     

Dilemmas of U.S. export control of technology to China [1]

Technology transfer from the U.S. and its allies to China is basically a combination of West-East and North-South characteristics. China's “unbalanced” development strategy for the past several decades has resulted in some technologically advanced military fields, like strategic nuclear forces, and a strikingly backward civilian sector. This uniqueness confounds U.S. decisions on export control of potential military technology to China, whereas western Europe and Japan can take full advantage of the economic opportunities beginning in the late 1970s. The U.S. relative disadvantage in economic terms as compared with its allies in dealing with China is hypothesized to be more serious than when dealing with the Soviet group. Meanwhile, the U.S. policy to ban some critical technologies to China may also be eroded by China's concerted efforts to get access to them and the informal channels rooted in the extensive Chinese network in the U.S. science and technology community.     

The strategic value of new university technology and its impact on exclusivity of licensing transactions: An empirical study

Commercialization of new university technology within the new product development process is an important tool by which established firms can expand their innovative capabilities. The strategic importance of the university technology to the firm, however, can vary considerably. An exclusivity agreement is a useful tool to protect the firm’s investment and help ensure that value is appropriated through the commercialization process. An empirical study of 66 technology transfer projects in the information and communications technology industry reveals that licensing transactions are usually secured by some form of exclusivity agreements when the product innovation enabled by the new university technology is new-to-the-firm or new-to-the-market and the firm’s perception of the strategic value of the new technologies is high.      

美国无罪证据开示制度研究

随着近年来美国刑事错案的研究进展,人们发现,在检察官不端行为所导致的错案当中,办案检察官不开示无罪证据这一原因占据了首位.从1963年联邦最高法院确立无罪证据开示制度以来,50多年的实践表明,该制度是美国最具有争议,检察官最不愿意执行的制度之一.随着检察官隐瞒无罪证据导致的错案不断被发现,近年来呼吁强化检察官无罪证据开示义务的声音越来越强烈,但是几次改革却都以失败告终.美国检察官无罪证据开示制度虽然还不尽如人意,但有关研究已经表明,检察官开示无罪证据对于防范冤假错案是非常重要的.美国的相关经验和教训对于防范冤假错案、构建我国的证据制度意义重大.     

Homicide and economic conditions: A replication and critique of M. Harvey Brenner's new report to the U.S. Congress

M. Harvey Brenner has produced two influential studies of the social costs of unemployment, economic inequality, and economic growth, both sponsored by the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress. This paper reports the results of an effort to reproduce Brenner's findings for homicide from his more recent (1984) study. Our conclusions are as follows. (1) Although not obvious from his write-up, Brenner's 1984 results differ substantively from his earlier results. (2) We are unable to reproduce his reported findings. (3) There are serious methodological problems with his procedure for choosing a regression specification.     

U.S. policy on health inequities: the interplay of politics and research

What is the relationship between scientific research and government action in addressing health inequalities in the United States? What factors increase the impact of scientific research on public policy? To answer these questions, we focus on racial and ethnic disparities in health status and health care in the United States. We first review the history of the disparities issue to elucidate how the continual and persistent interplay between political action and scientific research drives government policy. We then analyze two recent government-sponsored reports about racial and ethnic disparities to understand the strategic consequences of issue framing. We draw lessons about how disparities research can have a greater impact on public policy.     

Boundary-spanning in emerging technology research: determinants of funding success for academic scientists

Emerging technologies, including nanotechnologies, are generally seen as those latest scientific innovations which have a potential impact on industry structure, and commercialization and economic potential. Work in this area of emerging technologies has distinct boundary spanning characteristics from the perspective of academic science. First, many emerging technologies involve collaboration of scientists across disciplinary boundaries. Second, because of the commercializability of many emerging technologies, scientists may interact more often with industry throughout the research and commercialization process. We ask, what are the boundary-spanning characteristics of scientists engaged in emerging technology research and how do those characteristics matter in obtaining funding in this area? We examine the characteristics of academic scientists in the United States who are employed in research intensive institutions and who are engaged in funded research in the area of emerging technologies. We address the factors that predict their grant success in areas of emerging technology. Findings reveal that interdisciplinary activities and industry orientation are both important in predicting funding in areas of emerging technology. Moreover, the findings imply that the emergence of new technologies may offer opportunities for women in low representation fields.     

Information flow from Japan to U.S. researchers in applied and basic energy research fields

A recent study conducted by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) evaluated technical information transfer from Japan to the United States. This evaluation was part of a larger assessment of international monitoring of energy technology development conducted for the U.S. Department of Energy. For this study, U.S. researchers in each of ten selected technical fields were identified and interviewed to obtain their perceptions of information transfer from Japan. Results from these interviews indicated that, although there are major differences among the technical fields, U.S. researchers generally consider information transfer from Japan to the U.S. to be inadequate. Researchers particularly noted the difficulties they have attending conferences in Japan or visiting Japanese research facilities. In contrast, Japanese researchers attend all major conferences and frequently visit laboratories in the U.S. Researchers recommended several steps to improve technology transfer from Japan, including improving the screening and translation of technical material published in Japan, promoting binational seminars and workshops, and encouraging laboratory visits and exchanges of research personnel.     

A new approach to detect a set of SNP-SNP markers: Combining ARMS-PCR with SNaPshot technology

Microhaplotypes have become a new promising forensic genetic marker in recent years. The microhaplotype composed of two SNPs, SNP-SNP, indicates strong application potential because of the shortest fragment and good polymorphism and without the interference of stutter and high mutation rate as short tandem repeats (STR) and low polymorphism as a single SNP. Currently, the most common method to detect microhaplotypes is massively parallel sequencing (MPS), however its high cost and the need for special instruments limit its use in general forensic laboratories. In this study, we screened out 8 new SNP-SNP loci and established a new detection method by associating multiplex ARMS-PCR and SNaPshot technology. Firstly, we introduced ARMS-based PCR for SNP1. Then, SBE primers for SNaPshot assay were designed as 20–25 bp upstream complementary sequence next to the position of SNP2. Finally, 8 loci were built into one panel based on different SBE primer lengths and fluorescence colors. In brief, by combing ARMS-PCR and SNaPshot technology, it is easy and fast to profile the SNP1 and SNP2 orderly of the SNP-SNP microhaplotype based on CE platform. Our results suggested that the 8 loci have relatively high polymorphism as well as robust performance.     

Measuring the performance of research and technology programs: A balanced scorecard approach

Research programs, like other government programs, are now being requested to demonstrate relevance and value added to national social and economic needs. Complexity, unpredictability and other factors make it difficult to define specific performance measures for R&D programs. This paper describes the performance measurement efforts of one technology development program within the U.S. Department of Energy and proposes a strategy for applying this balanced scorecard approach to a fundamental research organization. Simple logical models of the inputs, activities, outcomes and long term results of R&D programs are proposed. A critical few measures of performance that answer questions from multiple audiences are then chosen across this performance spectrum. This paper describes work performed by Sandia National Laboratories Energy Policy and Planning Department, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185, with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC0494AL85000. The continued support and enthusiams of Darrell Beschen in the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and Iran Thomas in DOE Office of Energy Research, Basic Energy Sciences, is appreciated. The authors also acknowledge the contributions of John Reed and the training in the logic chart and performance spectrum provided by Ron Corbeil and Steve Montague. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent the opinions of the U.S. Department of Energy.     

Family Group Conferencing Comes to the U.S.: A Comparison with Victim-Offender Mediation

A boy hesitantly appears in the doorway to a meeting room. A large man wearing a name tag greets him thoughtfully and points out where he should sit in the horseshoe of chairs in the room. The boy crosses the room, picks his name tag up off the chair, puts it on crookedly, and sits down. On his face apprehension alternates with bravado. As his mother and sister, done with hanging their coats, enter the room the boy begins to fidget quietly. The large man greets them and points out their places in the horseshoe of chairs; they find their name tags on their chairs and sit down on either side of the boy. Other people that the boy and his family are close to appear in the doorway, are greeted, and move to their seats farther down the arch of the horseshoe: his grandfather and cousin, his basketball coach, his school social worker, an elderly neighbor, and a member of his mother's church. Their faces, and those of his mother and sister, betray various emotions; grim calm, hopefulness, solemnity, foreboding, sadness, and quiet interest. When they are seated, the chairs on one side of the horseshoe arch are full. The investigating officer enters, and sits at the apex of the arch. When they are all seated, the large man leaves the room and comes back with a group of people who have been waiting in a nearby room. The boy's victim enters the room first; she is a small, white-haired woman who shakes a little as she crosses the room and sits in a chair directly across the horseshoe from the boy. The boy glances quickly at her and then looks down and away to avoid her eyes. On her face, anxiety is swiftly replaced by surprise, relief, and then anger as she openly studies the boy across from her. Her daughter, a middleaged woman, sits down on one side of her, and her teenaged grandson takes his place on the other side of the victim. The older woman's minister, two elderly women neighbors, and a middle-aged male friend find their name tags on chairs further down the horseshoe's arch. When they sit down they fill the last vacancies in the horseshoe of chairs. The large man who greeted them all takes his place on a chair at the open end of the horseshoe. He is the conference coordinator and the only one with whom every person present has spoken about this meeting. He smiles quietly, looks around the circle of faces, clears his throat, and begins the family group conference.     

Special Elections to the U.S. House of Representatives: A General Election Barometer?

Vacancies in the U.S. House of Representatives are filled using special elections. These elections occur off the usual American electoral cycle, and their results are routinely portrayed by the American mass media as indications of what to expect in the next general election. We examined the predictive power of special elections results with respect to the general election outcomes for the U.S. House of Representatives from 1900 to 2008. We found that special elections that yield a change in partisan control do have predictive power regarding general election results.     

美国知识产权滥用

美国是以判例法为主的国家。知识产权权利滥用理论的出现和发展也是以司法判例尤其是关于专利权的判例为基础,专利权滥用最有名的判例是莫顿食盐案。①美国最高联邦法院明确支持滥用抗辩,此案也是第一个专利权滥用判决,而且确立为具有法律效力的抗辨。其次是镭射梳案,②此案涉及到版权滥用。依判例法逻辑推理,在商标权领域,滥用抗辨也具有法律效力。