Foucault,epistemology and history

This paper explores the way in which Michel Foucault utilized, re-worked and applied, in the field of the analysis of epistemological transformations, certain concepts from the history of the sciences that had been deployed the Bachelard and Canguilhem. More particularly, the paper focuses attention, on the one hand, upon the distinction between the present and the actual, from which derives the question of ‘recurrence’, and, on the other, on the idea of games of the true and the false.     

Integrating Growth Variability of the Ilium,Fifth Lumbar Vertebra,and Clavicle with Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines Models for Subadult Age Estimation

Subadult age estimation should rely on sampling and statistical protocols capturing development variability for more accurate age estimates. In this perspective, measurements were taken on the fifth lumbar vertebrae and/or clavicles of 534 French males and females aged 0–19 years and the ilia of 244 males and females aged 0–12 years. These variables were fitted in nonparametric multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) models with 95% prediction intervals (PIs) of age. The models were tested on two independent samples from Marseille and the Luis Lopes reference collection from Lisbon. Models using ilium width and module, maximum clavicle length, and lateral vertebral body heights were more than 92% accurate. Precision was lower for postpubertal individuals. Integrating punctual nonlinearities of the relationship between age and the variables and dynamic prediction intervals incorporated the normal increase in interindividual growth variability (heteroscedasticity of variance) with age for more biologically accurate predictions.     

Independence and accountability of independent regulatory agencies: the case of Turkey

For a long time, governments have delegated their regulatory powers to independent regulatory agencies (IRAs). The aim is to reduce transaction costs and to ensure a credible commitment in the regulatory institutional structure. This paper discusses transition to IRAs in Turkey in terms of independence and accountability. To this aim, we firstly analyze the institutional foundations of transition to IRAs in Turkey from a political economy perspective and then measure their formal independence levels. We find that the pragmatic policies of the incumbent government regarding IRAs negatively influence their independence. This injures the credibility of regulatory commitment and increases the political transaction costs of regulatory process in Turkey.     

A cross-sectional study on expression of anger and factors associated with criminal recidivism in prisoners with prior offences

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to determine demographical characteristics leading to crime recidivism and define anger levels and anger expression manners for those who re-commit crime. METHOD: All the literate inmates in Izmit Closed Penitentiary were included in this cross-sectional study. The prisoners were asked to respond to State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory. Their socio-demographic data were collected and a questionnaire was given to them to determine their state of imprisonment, sentence, nature of the crime in which they were involved, their criminal history, their relationship with inmates and prison staff and substance and alcohol use. RESULTS: Of the 438 prisoners, 302 (68.9%) responded to the questionnaires. Crime recidivism among the study cohort was observed to be 37.4%. Mean trait anger, anger out and anger in scores were significantly higher in prisoners with criminal recidivism in comparison with those who did not have prior criminal records. However, mean anger control scores for prisoners with or without criminal recidivism were similar. Unemployment, education level completed at secondary school or below, having committed a crime under the influence of alcohol or narcotics, having been involved in prison fights, having resisted police officers, caused damage in their vicinity when angry and violent crimes were all found to be possible causes of criminal recidivism. Educational level completed at secondary school or below, getting into fights with other prisoners, unemployment and resisting police officers were determined to be the strongest indicators to predict criminal recidivism when all variables were considered according to a logistic regression model. CONCLUSION: It can be proposed that those who have problems with officials or hostile towards others constitute a risk group for criminal recidivism. If prisoners with criminal recidivism can be helped to identify and control their anger, their risk of committing a new crime can be minimised.     

Mixed Messages: Parental Responsibilities, Public Opinion and the Reforms of Family Law

This article explores some issues arising when updating familylaw to keep pace with changes in family practices and values,in particular with changing patterns of parenting. It considersthe extension of parental rights and responsibilities beyondthe conventional boundaries of family law – to unmarriedfathers, step-parents and grandparents – with referenceto four different roles of family law. These roles are: protectingchildren, resolving disputes, regulating family life and promotingfamily norms. The article takes as an example of legal reformthe recently enacted Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006, which extendsparental rights and responsibilities to unmarried fathers whojointly register the child’s birth; but not to step-parentsor grandparents. The mixed messages that this reform conveysare considered in relation to the latest evidence of publicopinion in Scotland about parental obligations and the extentto which they align with public opinion on these issues.     

Turkish population data on nine short tandem repeat loci: HumCSF1PO,HumTHO1, HumTPOX,HumFES/FPS,HumF13B,HumVWA, D3S1358, D7S820, D16S539

Allele and genotype frequencies for the nine loci, HumCSF1PO, HumTHO1, HumTPOX, HumFES/FPS, HumF13B, HumVWA, D3S1358, D7S820 and D16S539 were determined using Silver STR III System on 223-598 unrelated Turkish individuals from different regions of the country.     

Estimation of stature from body parts

Anthropometric technique commonly used by anthropologists and adopted by medical scientists has been employed to estimate body size for over a hundred years. With the increasing frequency of mass disasters, the identification of an isolated lower extremity and the stature of the person it belonged to has created problems for the investigation of the identity of some of the victims. In spite of a need for such a study, there is a lack of systematic studies to identify fragmented and dismembered human remains. The purpose of the paper is to analyze anthropometric relationships between dimensions of the lower extremity and body height. Analysis is based on a sample of middle class male (N=203) and female (N=108) adult Turks residing in Istanbul. The participants are mostly students and staff members of a medical school, and military personnel. Measurements taken are stature, trochanteric height, thigh length, lower leg length, leg length, and foot height, breadth, and length. Of the five variables entered into the regression analysis, all but foot breadth participate in the analysis with leg length as the first and followed by thigh and foot lengths, and finally foot height in males (R(2)). There were also individually calculated formulae for some of these measurements which provided smaller R(2)-values. Student's t-test to assess if there was any intraobserver error in measurements take by individual anthropometrist did not show such any statistically significant difference. In conclusion, the study suggested that estimation of a living height can be made possible using various dimensions of the lower extremity. One must consider differences between populations in order to apply functions as such to others.