Comparison of the Class and Individual Characteristics of Turkish 7.65 mm Browning/.32 Automatic Caliber Self‐Loading Pistols with Consecutive Serial Numbers

Abstract: Firearms identification is based on the fundamental principle that it is impossible to manufacture two identical items at the microscopic level. As firearm manufacturing technologies and quality assurance are improving, it is necessary to continually challenge this principle. In this study, two different makes of 7.65 mm Browning/.32 Automatic caliber self‐loading pistols of Turkish manufacture were selected and examined. Ten pistols with consecutive serial numbers were examined and each fired 10 times. The fired cartridge cases were recovered for comparison purposes. It was found that for each make of pistol, the individual characteristics within the firing pin impression, ejector, and breech face marks of all 10 pistols were found to be significantly different.     

Preparation of Disappearing Inks and Studying the Fading Time on Different Paper Surfaces

Abstract: Disappearing inks have been used in different fields, but it may be abused in forgery and counterfeiting. This research was conducted on the preparation of disappearing inks using different concentrations of thymolphthalein, phenolphthalein, and their mixture. The prepared inks were applied to different types of handwriting papers. It was found that the handwriting stability increased by increasing thymolphthalein, phenolphthalein, or alkali concentration, but in the case of using 4 mL of 1 normal (N) NaOH, the handwriting stability of phenolphthalein and its mixture inks decreased. Deciphering of the faded handwriting was evaluated by different methods; using optical deciphering, the faded handwriting did not respond to the different light sources. All the faded handwriting was visible when treated with alkaline solution. There was no change in the faded handwriting when heated to 100°C; phenolphthalein and mixture inks containing 0.5 mL of 1 N NaOH became red when only Azhar and Xerox papers were heated to 150°C.     

Sudden Death Due to Hydatid Disease: A Six‐Year Study in the Northern Part of Tunisia

Human ecchinococcosis also known as hydatid disease is a zoonotic infection caused by the tapeworm Ecchinococcus with 2–3 Million cases worldwide. We hereby report a 6 years period study of Sudden death due to hydatidosis aiming to analyze the epidemiological criteria, death circumstances, and autopsy observations attributed to hydatid disease. During the past 6 years, 26 death cases were due to hydatid disease. Our analysis shows that the sex ratio (M/F) was 1.6, the mean age was 31‐year old, and 65% of the subjects lived in rural places. In 17 cases, death occurred in the victim's place, five victims died after a heavy exercise, and in two cases, death occurred immediately after trauma. At autopsy, 91% of the cysts were found in the liver. In three cases, death followed a septic state, and in two cases, it followed an acute respiratory failure. Death was attributed to anaphylaxis in 17 cases.     

Prevalence of sexual abuse in organised competitive sport in Australia

Abstract

This article reports the first phase of a three-phase research programme investigating the prevalence and long-term sequelae associated with sexual abuse in a non-psychiatric sample of male and female Australian athletes. A cross-sectional, retrospective design, using a mailed survey, provided a quantitative assessment of sexual abuse prevalence in a national sample of elite athletes and a regional sample of club athletes. Results from the total sample (n = 370) revealed that 31% of female and 21% of male athletes reported experiencing sexual abuse at some time in their lives. Of these, 41% of females, and 29% of males had been sexually abused within the sports environment. It was also found that almost half, 46.4%, of the elite group reporting sexual abuse had been sexually abused by sports personnel. For the club group, this figure was 25.6%. Implications of these results and current initiatives for the prevention of sexual abuse of athletes in Australia are discussed.     

Foreclosing on the American dream? The financial consequences of low-income homeownership

Federal programs have consistently encouraged ever-lower-income households to buy homes, despite concerns about the long-term sustainability and desirability of homeownership from the perspective of wealth-building, especially since the recent housing market collapse and the epidemic of mortgage foreclosures. We ask in this paper: can very low-income households build wealth through sustainable homeownership, with the aid of an innovative public program? We answer this question by examining 122 very low-income households who purchased their homes between 1996 and 2007 after completing an extensive asset-building and homeownership education/counseling program offered by the Housing Authority of the City and County of Denver (DHA), called HOP. We analyze our own longitudinal surveys and focus groups, as well as data compiled from administrative agency sources, real estate records, and longitudinal census data from the Neighborhood Change Database and the Piton Foundation's Neighborhood Facts Database. We find that homeownership attained through HOP typically did provide very low-income households with opportunities to build home equity (both absolutely and relative to generic homeowner cohorts in Denver) and net wealth, although this was contingent on time of purchase and ethnicity. Our multivariate analyses revealed that changes in annualized home equity appreciation were associated with the ethnic composition of the neighborhood and age of property. Annualized wealth accumulation was associated with annualized home equity appreciation, being married throughout the tenure of homeownership, and year of home purchase. HOP homebuyers received exceptionally favorable initial mortgage terms and conditions, often enhanced with down-payment assistance from their own DHA escrow account or from local housing and neighborhood development organizations, resulting in a dramatically low rate of default and foreclosure to date. Moreover, HOP homebuyers were not immune to financial stresses, and the continuing lack of wealth for many makes them vulnerable to future interruptions in primary wage earner's employment or health. We discuss the implications for low-income homeownership policy and argue that the goal of expanding homeownership opportunities should not be abandoned.     

Jocks, gender, binge drinking, and adolescent violence

Previous research has suggested a link between athletic involvement and elevated levels of adolescent violence outside the sport context. The present study expanded on this literature by positing differences in the sport-violence relationship across dimensions of athletic involvement (athletic participation vs. jock identity), type of violence (family vs. nonfamily), and gender as well as by examining the impact of binge drinking on the sport-violence relationship. Regression analyses using a sample of 608 Western New York adolescents indicated that (a) jock identity (but not athletic participation) was associated with more frequent violence, (b) jock identity predicted nonfamily violence (but not family violence), and (c) the link between jock identity and nonfamily violence was stronger for boys than for girls. Binge drinking predicted family violence among nonjocks only.     

THE PRIVATE SECTOR IN PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING PROGRAMS

Assimilating disadvantaged workers in labor markets has been the focus of national policy initiatives for at least two decades. In recent years, public policies have been formulated which will not only provide incentives for the private sector to employ the disadvantaged, but also afford the private sector a larger responsibility in formulating and implementing targeted employment programs. The Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) and Target Jobs Tax Credit (TJTC) are two major examples. This paper initially reviews the public and private employment and training efforts between 1962 and 1982. Considerable attention is given to summarizing and evaluating the performance of these efforts, especially in light of recent program initiatives by the Reagan Administration.     

Le Plan financier de la Commission Lambert: evaluation et mise en oeuvre par le gouvernement fedbderal

Sommaire: Dans cet article, I'auteur analyse, de I'intérieur du gouvernement fédéral, les difficultés techniques, bureaucratiques et politiques auxquelles I'administration Trudeau a dø faire face au moment de la mise en oeuvre du plan financier quinquennal proposé par la Commission royale sur la gestion financière et I'imputabilité. Il conclut que les modifications apportées au plan en question, au moment de sa mise en oeuvre, ont sérieusement diminué le rôle de ce dernier en matière d'imputabilité du gouvernement au Parlement. Abstract: The author of this article analyses - from within the federal government -the technical, bureaucratic and political difficulties the Trudeau government faced when implementing the five-year financial plan proposed by the Royal Commission on Financial Management and Accountability. The author concludes that the amendments made to that plan did, upon implementation, seriously diminish the accountability role of the government with respect to Parliament.