A rapid and convenient LC/MS method for routine identification of methamphetamine/dimethylamphetamine and their metabolites in urine

A rapid and sensitive LC/MS method was developed for the simultaneous analysis of N,N-dimethylamphetamine (DMA), N,N-dimethylamphetamine N-oxide (DMANO), methylamphetamine (MA) and amphetamine (A) in urine samples. Employing an Alltech C18 column for solid phase extraction followed by LC/MS analysis using an Alltech Platinum EPS C18 column with a mixture of ammonium formate (0.01 M, pH 3) and acetonitrile (77:23, v/v) as mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.2 mL/min, simultaneous identification and quantitation of A, MA, DMA and DMANO in urine can be achieved using a 5-min chromatographic run. The calibration ranges were 0.10-3.0 micro g/mL for DMANO, 0.05-3.0 micro g/mL for DMA and 0.05-5.0 micro g/mL for both MA and A. The intra-, inter-day precision and accuracy for all analytes, spiked at three different concentrations in quality control samples, were in the ranges of 1.7-8.6, 4.1-10.0, -11.6 to 12.9%, respectively. The newly developed method was applied to the analysis of urine samples obtained from 118 suspected MA/DMA abusers, with the presence of MA confirmed in their urine samples under the drug-use surveillance program. Of these 118 samples, 43 were found to contain DMANO and 11 with both DMANO and DMA.     

论计算机软件反向工程的合法性问题

计算机软件产业的发展对各国的知识产权法体系提出了挑战。从各主要发达国家的立法与司法实践看 ,计算机软件反向工程的合法化已经成为趋势 ,我国应借鉴这一思路 ,在计算机软件保护立法中规定反向工程问题 ,以使软件权利人的权利与对其的限制达致平衡。     

Trends in Non-Muslim Divorces in Singapore

This article examines the trends and patterns in the way thesecular divorce law has been utilized by couples in Singaporeseeking to end their marriage. Social and demographic featuresof the divorcing couples, as well as the ‘fact’relied on in support of their divorce petitions, are studiedand compared to earlier analyses. It is found that while somepatterns observed by earlier researchers have remained intact,others have changed. This article suggests explanations forthese observed patterns and contributes to the discussion onwhether and how the divorce law can be improved in Singaporeand elsewhere.     

Should the Voting Age be Lowered to Sixteen? Normative and Empirical Considerations

This article is an examination of the issue of whether the age of electoral majority should be lowered to sixteen. We consider and reject several arguments raised by both sides of the voting age debate. The key issue, we claim, is the political maturity of young people. Drawing on empirical data collected in nationally representative surveys, we argue that the weight of such evidence suggests that young people are, to a significant degree, politically less mature than older people, and that the voting age should not be lowered to sixteen.     

Crime,deportation and the regulation of immigrants in Canada

Criminality is now one of the most frequently used provisions for deporting non-citizens from Canada. Individuals who are convicted of crimes outlined in current immigration policies can find themselves subject to deportation proceedings after they have served their sentences unless they are eligible to make an appeal and can do so successfully. This paper examines 177 reported immigration appeal hearings in Canada involving non-citizens who are ordered deported on the basis of criminality. Using documentary analysis along with basic statistics to analyze the appeal hearing decisions, I demonstrate how gender and racial ideologies shape the outcome of these decisions. Theories of moral regulation, social control and governmentality are employed to develop an understanding of the state's treatment of immigrants. That a significant number of immigrants in this study were not deported, but were granted stays with strict conditions highlights how deportation hearings are one mechanism for differentiating between ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’ immigrants. This study illustrates how, through the use of racial and gender ideologies, deportation practices are as much about differential exclusion as they are about enforced assimilation. Concerns around criminality rationalizes the ongoing regulation and surveillance of immigrants and the threat of deportation ensures their compliance.This research was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC Grant No. 31-632203). An earlier version of this paper was presented at the British Society of Criminology Annual Meetings in Bangor, Wales, July 2003 and at the Canadian Law and Society Association Annual Meetings in Halifax, Canada, June 2003.     

新城疫病毒诱导原代鸡胚成纤维细胞自噬的研究

为掌握新城疫病毒(NDV)在原代鸡胚成纤维细胞(CEF)上诱导细胞自噬的特性,用NDV感染CEF后,以电镜观察自噬体形成、GFP-LC3荧光迁移以及Western-blot检测LC3-Ⅰ/Ⅱ转化判定自噬。p62降解和GFP-LC3向溶酶体的转移判定自噬流。结果显示,在感染后第12~24小时能在细胞中发现大量双层或单层膜结构;转染的GFP-LC3质粒在病毒感染后呈现显著的点状分布,尤其在NDV感染形成的合胞体中明显;且病毒感染后期发生明显的LC3-Ⅰ向LC3-Ⅱ的转化。NDV感染能够诱导p62蛋白的降解,共聚焦结果显示,GFP-LC3在病毒感染中后期发生向溶酶体的转移,说明NDV感染能够诱导完整自噬流的产生。结果表明,NDV感染CEF后能够强烈诱导细胞自噬发生,这为进一步研究新城疫病毒和禽源细胞互作奠定了基础。     

Examining Self-Advantage in the Suffering of Others: Cross-Cultural Differences in Beneficiary and Observer Justice Sensitivity Among Chinese,Germans, and Russians

Other-related concerns for justice are fundamental components of morality and interpersonal behaviors. In this paper, we investigated macro/cultural and micro/individual differences in justice concerns for others. More specifically, beneficiary sensitivity (BS) and observer sensitivity (OS) were compared across China as a typical collectivist society, and Germany and Russia as two individualistic societies. Individualism–collectivism was assumed to mediate the cultural variance of BS and OS. In Study 1, Chinese participants exhibited more BS but less OS compared to German participants. In Study 2, the Chinese participants exhibited more BS but not significantly different OS compared to Russian participants. Moreover, collectivism mediated this cultural difference in BS but not OS. In Study 3, collectivist participants identified according to their proposals in social value games exhibited more BS than did individualistic participants, while the two groups revealed no significant difference in OS. Taken together, our studies consistently show that higher collectivism both on the cultural and individual levels is related to BS but not to OS, suggesting that collectivist values make people sensitive to self-advantage in comparison to the suffering of others.