The nature of regional and national identity in Catalonia: problems of measuring multiple identities

Abstract. National identity learning processes become quite problematic in multiple identity territories. In the case of Spain, bilinguism and conflictual identities in the periphery is often opposed to the unilinguism and majoritarian culture of the centre. The contents of actual Catalan identity and the political behaviour that it entails can perhaps be explained by the perception that today's Catalan and immigrant adolescents have of what it means to 'be a catalan'. The view of the political arena by the young depends mainly on the language approach.     

Attracting private investment to contaminated properties: The value of public interventions

We employ a mail survey of private developers that uses conjoint choice experiments and Likert‐scaled attitudinal questions to examine preferences for policy instruments and incentives intended to encourage brownfield cleanup and redevelopment. Our analysis suggests that developers judge public hearing requirements at brownfield redevelopments unattractive, but that they place a relatively high value on liability relief—from both cleanup costs and claims by third parties. Reimbursement of environmental assessment costs is not particularly attractive. We also find considerable heterogeneity among developers in the value they place on these incentives, depending on their experience with contaminated sites. © 2006 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management     

Visualization of postmortem chondrocyte damage by vital staining and confocal laser scanning 3D microscopy

The present study was designed to investigate whether the combination of vital dyes [calcein acetomethyl ester and ethidium homodimer (LIVE/DEAD Viability/Cytoxicity Kit)] together with confocal laser scanning 3D microscopy was a suitable process to detect postmortem chondrocyte damage, and whether this process could be used to establish postmortem interval. Human knee cartilage from 13 autopsies (postmortem interval from 1 day to 2.5 months) was incubated with the two dyes. The chondrocytes revealed intense staining according to their vitality. For those cases that were stored mainly at 4 degrees C there was a vitality of approximately 88 to 96% within the first 4.5 days, which decreased to 58% after 6 days and to 9% after 1.5 months. After 2 days and 14 days at summer temperatures there were 70% and 8% vital chondrocytes respectively. Three of the 13 cases showed that altered body and storage conditions limited the efficacy of the method. Initial data suggested a time and temperature dependent increase in cell breakdown. Under stable cooling conditions the use of vital dyes and confocal laser scanning 3D microscopy to measure chondrocyte loss may be a valuable tool for estimating the postmortem interval.     

Giant Diaphragmatic Lipoma: Two Autopsy Case Reports and Review of the Literature

Lipomas are common benign tumors most frequently found within the subcutaneous areas of the body. Deep-seated lipomas are rare and tend to be larger than cutaneous ones. Lipomas are rarely seen in the thoracic cavity, and they are usually located in the mediastinum, bronchiole, and lungs. Diaphragmatic lipomas have been occasionally reported in the literature, the first being described by Clark et al. in 1886. The authors report two rare cases of giant diaphragmatic lipoma incidentally found during forensic autopsies. In the first case, a Caucasian 85-year-old woman burned to death with another passenger, after her methane-fueled car collided with another car on a highway near Terni, Umbria, Italy. In the second case, a Caucasian 45-year-old man collapsed while walking through the countryside of Perugia. In either case, a large mass in the thorax was observed. The definitive pathologic diagnosis was giant intrathoracic diaphragmatic lipoma without evidence of malignancy. The authors also review the relevant literature and discuss differential diagnoses. These case reports contribute to the establishment of the actual incidence of diaphragmatic lipomas.     

No Moscow stooges: identity polarization and guerrilla movements in Donbass

Abstract

The paper argues that the grounds for the conflict in Donbass were prepared when different sections of Ukraine’s population developed conflicting perspectives of the past, the role of Russia in Ukraine’s history, and of how relations with the West should evolve. These differences lay the foundations for what became polarized identities and mutually exclusive ideologies. The study goes on to explore a changing political landscape of a leaderless uprising and formation of a protest movement out of locally available ingredients, the emergence of armed militias in unfolding security vacuum and the developments on the battlefield. As the rebel-held territories drifted away from mainland Ukraine, their new identity was formed by the war. The paper argues that understanding the internal dynamic of the guerrilla war and population’s survival has been key to the resolution, which is increasingly unlikely.