Policy Transfer among Local Governments: An Information–Theory Approach

We argue that the burgeoning literature on policy transfer suffers from the lack of an analytical framework that would facilitate understanding and, thus, theory–building. We suggest that policy transfer be conceptualized as occurring through a communications and information framework and that it focus on information networks that include producers, senders, and facilitators of information, as well as recipients. We apply this framework to an illustrative study of how British local–authority officials involved in the area of urban regeneration policy learn from each other's experience.
Utilizing this approach, the results of our case study yield several testable hypotheses for future study. In particular, they direct us towards the importance of informal networks in the policy–transfer process, towards an examination of the motivations of producers, senders, and disseminators of information, and towards the difficulty all participants in the network have in assessing the quality and validity of the information they receive.     

The Effect of Time and Temperature on the Persistence and Quality of Latent Fingerprints Recovered from 60-Watt Incandescent Light Bulbs

To understand how time and temperature could affect latent fingerprints, wooden pallets were used to construct five units that each housed ten 60-watt incandescent light bulbs. Fingerprints were deposited on the top, middle, and base of the globes. The bulbs were powered on (except the control bulb in each unit) for 18, 48, 72, 120, 168, 336, 504, and 672 h. Fingerprints recovered from the bulbs by tape lift after black powder processing were given a quality score. A thermal imaging camera determined temperatures on three areas of the bulbs. Fingerprints on the top of the globe (156.3°C) had the lowest quality score, and fingerprints on the middle of the globe (112.6°C) had the highest quality score. The mean quality scores of the three temperature classes were within one standard deviation of one another, meaning there is no way to estimate fingerprint age based on its quality after heat exposure.     

Intensity of innovation in public sector organizations: The role of push and pull factors

The public sector is under pressure to provide new public services with increasingly scarce resources. In response, practitioners and academics have called for more innovation in the public sector. Our understanding of sources of innovation within public sector organizations, however, is inadequate. Motivated by this gap, we develop a conceptual model of how push and pull sources enable innovation within public sector organizations. Key to our theory is that push and pull sources of innovation are enabled by innovation capabilities. Five hypotheses are tested using cross-country survey data from European public sector organizations. Empirical analysis offers strong support for the central role played by innovation capability in enabling push and pull sources of innovation within public sector organizations. This article advances knowledge of the sources of innovation in the public sector and extends theorizing on push and pull mechanisms by examining their relevance to innovation in a public sector context.     

DNA Purification Cell Lysis and Wash Step Modifications for Low-Template DNA Sample Processing,

As DNA technology becomes increasingly sensitive, forensic laboratories are receiving more low-template DNA samples. These samples, already low in DNA content, become even more challenging to process as the available DNA becomes further reduced during the extraction step. In this study, two extraction modifications were tested to determine if the cause of DNA loss could be identified and mitigated. A double lysis technique was used to test for DNA loss in the sample collection substrate, and lysate eluates were re-extracted to determine DNA loss from inefficient binding to the silica column. Both modifications showed DNA was lost at these steps. However, resulting STR profiles from these samples had fewer peaks and lower peak heights when compared to samples processed with no extraction modifications. Overall, the potential benefits of adding these extraction modifications for low-template DNA sample processing are not enough to justify the risk associated with additional manipulation.     

Supporters and Opponents of Perestroyka: The Second Joint Soviet Economy Roundtable

Support and opposition to perestroyka in the USSR and the U.S. are discussed on the eve of Academician Andrey Sakharov's trip to the U.S. in November 1988. Participating in the roundtable are leading Soviet economists, historians, philosophers, publishers and journalists as well as American Sovietologists. Different perspectives are offered on resistance to perestroyka and its origins, on concepts of change, the constitutional revisions in prospect, the pace and scope of the reform and the nationalities issue. Selected statements, notably those of Andrey Sakharov, are of historical significance. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 027, 124.     

Perestroyka and the Congress of People's Deputies

The radical economic reform promised by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987 has not materialized, and the economic situation has seriously deteriorated since 1988. The government is introducing a stabilization package for 1990 to restore financial balance and to dramatically expand the supply of consumer goods. A new Reform Commission chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Abalkin is moving ahead to design and implement a reform strategy which will include a radically different approach to property rights. The next year is critical to determining the fate of Gorbachev's reform efforts. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 027, 052, 113.     

Gorbachev at Two Years: Perspectives on Economic Reforms

This article examines how the Putin leadership, inspired by the example of Yuriy Andropov, has carried out a comprehensive "sovietization" of the Russian political system by systematically eliminating all alternative sources of power (governors, competitive elections, the media, and private business). Drawing on legislation, the press, and data about the backgrounds and career paths of the post-Soviet elite, the central institutions are compared with their Soviet predecessors and the implementation of this strategy is examined. The roles of military, security and other backgrounds are analyzed. The degree of influence likely to be wielded by the siloviki is also considered.