‘A Jazzed and Patchwork Modern’: ‘future’ girls and modern masculinities in the early popular romances of Berta Ruck

As a best‐selling writer of popular romances during the first half of the twentieth century, Berta Ruck (1878–1978) has been characterised as a producer of ‘omelettes of frivolity and sweetness’ whose appeal was confined to adolescent girls and the servant classes. Closer attention to some of the early novels and to her own evaluation of her work, however, reveals her attempts to confront and articulate the impact of societal change upon a generation whose world was being irrevocably altered by the Great War and its aftermath. Her almost forensic attention to local detail and her treatment of contemporary questions of gender identity make her a compelling chronicler of the period and lend credibility to her claims of a broader readership than that generally associated with the genre.     

Whole Plastome Sequences of Two Drug-Type Cannabis: Insights Into the Use of Plastid in Forensic Analyses

DNA is one of the fastest growing tools in forensic sciences, increasing reliability in forensic reports and judgments. The use of DNA has increased in different areas of the forensic sciences, such as investigation of plant species, where plastid DNA has been used to elucidate and generate evidence in cases of traceability of genetically modified and controlled plants. Even with several advances and the practice of using DNA in forensic investigations, there are just few studies related to the identification of genetic tools for the characterization of drug and nondrug-types of Cannabis. Herein, the whole plastomes of two drug-type Cannabis are presented and have their structures compared with other Cannabis plastomes deposited in the GenBank, focusing in the forensic use of plastome sequences. The plastomes of Cannabis sativa “Brazuka” and of the hybrid Cannabis AK Royal Automatic presented general structure that does not differs from the reported for other C. sativa cultivars. A phylogenomic analyses grouped C. sativa “Brazuka” with the nondrug C. sativa cultivars, while the hybrid Cannabis AK Royal Automatic placed isolated, basal to this group. This suggests that the analysis of plastomes is useful toward genetic identification of hybrids in relation to C. sativa.     

Denouncing or Supporting the Chilean Dictatorship in West Germany? Local Associations of Solidarity and Their Transnational Networks Since the 1970s

After the coup of 11 September 1973 in Chile, the international solidarity movement, including Chilean exiles, that flourished on a global level not only tried to help the victims of the military junta with their material needs, but also carried out advocacy work in order to denounce the crimes committed by the regime and to collect documents and information that could be used as evidence in future court cases. At the same time, the junta also drew on a network of foreign supporters, including European ones. In order to analyze theses networks’ campaigns to denounce (or cover) the crimes perpetuated and their ongoing judicial and memory struggles in Latin America and Europe, from the 1970s until today, this article provides a study of mobilizations between Chile and West Germany, namely of the Forschungs- und Dokumentationszentrum Chile-Lateinamerika in West Berlin, the West German section of Amnesty International and the supporters of the German sect in Chile “Colonia Dignidad”.     

The star of David in a cedar tree: Jewish students and Zionism at the American University of Beirut (1908–1948)

The American University of Beirut's emergence as a hub of Arab national and cultural identity in the first half of the twentieth century has been well documented by historians. The simultaneous Zionist presence on campus has been largely overlooked. Zionist ideas were predominantly promoted by Palestinian Jewish students who formed a small but vocal minority at AUB prior to 1948. Faculty and non-Jewish students also regularly collaborated with and traveled to Zionist institutions in Palestine for academic, athletic, and leisure purposes. For Arab students on campus, therefore, Zionism was not an abstract concept, but rather a national identity embodied by fellow classmates and friends on campus. As the conflict in Palestine increased in the 1930s and 1940s, so too did political activism and tensions on campus between Zionist and Arab nationalist students. This article analyzes this unique period of exchange, collaboration, and friction at AUB, which came to a swift end with the outbreak of the 1948 War. By focusing on the interactions between Arab and Zionist Jewish students at AUB, I seek to extend the ‘relational’ approach towards Jewish-Arab contact beyond Palestine's borders.     

"A jazzed and patchwork modern": "future" girls and modern masculinities in the early popular romances of Berta Ruck

As a best-selling writer of popular romances during the first half of the twentieth century, Berta Ruck (1878-1978) has been characterised as a producer of 'omelettes of frivolity and sweetness' whose appeal was confined to adolescent girls and the servant classes. Closer attention to some of the early novels and to her own evaluation of her work, however, reveals her attempts to confront and articulate the impact of societal change upon a generation whose world was being irrevocably altered by the Great War and its aftermath. Her almost forensic attention to local detail and her treatment of contemporary questions of gender identity make her a compelling chronicler of the period and lend credibility to her claims of a broader readership than that generally associated with the genre.     

The economic significance of “insignificant” rules

We know relatively little about the economic effects of “insignificant” rules because they are not typically analyzed. Yet, these rules could be cumulatively important. We provide an economic analysis of one proposed rule to control hazardous air pollutants, which is not considered to be economically significant. This rule is of particular interest because it is one of the first in a long series of rules that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will consider for limiting hazardous air pollutant emissions. Our analysis suggests that the proposed controls that EPA has considered are not likely to pass a benefit–cost test. We recommend that an agency base its decision to allocate additional resources to benefit–cost analysis on the expected value of the improved information. In addition, agencies should consider applying a rule of thumb that would specify a threshold level of risk reduction that needs to be achieved before some kinds of regulation are considered.     

Plasma,oral fluid and sweat wipe ecstasy concentrations in controlled and real life conditions

In a double-blind placebo controlled study on psychomotor skills important for car driving (Study 1), a 75 mg dose of +/- 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) was administered orally to 12 healthy volunteers who were known to be recreational MDMA-users. Toxicokinetic data were gathered by analysis of blood, urine, oral fluid and sweat wipes collected during the first 5h after administration. Resultant plasma concentrations varied from 21 to 295 ng/ml, with an average peak concentration of 178 ng/ml observed between 2 and 4h after administration. MDA concentrations never exceeded 20 ng/ml. Corresponding MDMA concentrations in oral fluid, as measured with a specific LC-MS/MS method (which required only 50 microl of oral fluid), generally exceeded those in plasma and peaked at an average concentration of 1215 ng/ml. A substantial intra- and inter-subject variability was observed with this matrix, and values ranged from 50 to 6982 ng/ml MDMA. Somewhat surprisingly, even 4-5h after ingestion, the MDMA levels in sweat only averaged 25 ng/wipe. In addition to this controlled study, data were collected from 19 MDMA-users who participated in a driving simulator study (Study 2), comparing sober non-drug conditions with MDMA-only and multiple drug use conditions. In this particular study, urine samples were used for general drug screening and oral fluid was collected as an alternative to blood sampling. Analysis of oral fluid samples by LC-MS/MS revealed an average MDMA/MDEA concentration of 1121 ng/ml in the MDMA-only condition, with large inter-subject variability. This was also the case in the multiple drug condition, where generally, significantly higher concentrations of MDMA, MDEA and/or amphetamine were detected in the oral fluid samples. Urine screening revealed the presence of combinations such as MDMA, MDEA, amph, cannabis, cocaine, LSD and psilocine in the multiple-drug condition.