Identification and synthesis of by-products found in 4-methylthioamphetamine (4-MTA) produced by the Leuckart method

The synthesis of the designer drug 4-methylthioamphetamine (4-MTA) has been carried out using the well-known Leuckart reaction in four versions. The treatment of 4-methylthiophenylacetone with formamide, mixture of formamide/formic acid, ammonium formate, and mixture of ammonium formate and formic acid followed by acid hydrolysis brought about the formation of 4-MTA contaminated with a number of impurities. The gas chromatography mass-spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of the reaction mixtures allowed identification of the most prominent impurities, such as diasteromers of N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]amine, N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]methylamine, N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]formamide, the Schiff bases derived from 4-MTA and 4-methylbenzaldehyde (benzaldimine) and 4-methylthiophenylacetone (ketimine) as well as some heterocycles: 4-methyl-5-(4'-methylthiophenyl)pyrimidine, 4-(4'-methylthiobenzyl)pyrimidine, 2,6-dimethyl-3,5-di-(4'-methylthiophenyl)pyridine, 2,4-dimethyl-3,5-di-(4'-methylthiophenyl)pyridine. The correctness of identification was confirmed by independent synthesis of these compounds. Each synthesized reference compound was characterized by means of MS, (1)H and (13)C NMR, and IR methods. The stereochemistry of (RR/SS) diasteromer of N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]amine was confirmed by a crystallographic method.     

Independent Discretion or Democratic Legitimisation? The Relations between National Regulatory Authorities and National Parliaments under EU Regulatory Framework for Network‐Bound Sectors

The European legislator, being supported in that regard by the Court of Justice, confers upon national regulatory authorities (NRAs) the exercise of the most important tasks concerned with the regulation of the network‐bound sectors, while at the same time guarantees NRAs a far‐reaching independence in exercising of their discretionary powers and shielding NRAs against other public authorities, including national parliaments. This, in turn, raises many doubts from the perspective of some essential constitutional principles of the Member States, such as, among others, ‘the domain of the law,’ which reserves the regulation of issues sensitive to the citizens as an exclusive parliament's prerogative. It is submitted in this article that national parliaments should play a much more active role in regulating the network‐bound sectors. The main point is to strengthen the protection of fundamental rights of regulated parties and create the real democratic legitimisation of NRAs, while not undermining those regulatory objectives that are already accorded at the EU level.     

Damage caused to fibres by vapour cloud explosions

Research on the very specific damage to single textile fibres caused by vapour cloud explosions is presented. Vapour cloud explosion experiments were carried out using a selection of 41 garments differing in colour, fibre composition and textile construction. Fibres subjected to a vapour cloud explosion become wider at the end, often taking the form of a ball, bulb or shovel, while the morphological structure of the remaining part of the fibre remains almost unchanged. The presented results can clearly indicate that an explosion took place at the scene of the crime. The authors would like to be able to provide investigators with specific information on how to link clothes (and thus people) to a specific type of crime.     

A serological and histological study of the Egyptian mummy 'Iset Iri Hetes' from the Ptolemaic period III-I B.C

Serological and histological examinations of the muscles of the calf of an Egyptian mummy dated between the third and first centuries B.C. were performed. Human protein was identified, the ABO phenotype was determined as type B, and morphological disruption of the cells was observed.     

Anticipated Transition to Adulthood: The Effect of Educational Track,Gender, and Self-Evaluation on Finnish and Polish Adolescents' Future Orientation

In Finland and Poland, a total of 352 (192 boys and 160 girls) 17-year-old general secondary and vocational school students participated in a study investigating their anticipated transition to adulthood. In times of large sociohistorical change in both countries, Finland (economic depression) and Poland (change from socialism to market economy), we investigated to what extent those changes were reflected in the students' probability estimations (for potential goal attainment in three future life domains; education, occupation and family life), generational comparison (attaining a life different from the life of parents), future time extension (for anticipated events in those life domains), and self-evaluations (self-esteem and control over future). The results showed that girls in both countries expressed a higher level of probability for success in education than boys did. As expected, vocational school students in both countries expressed a lower probability of success in future occupation than general secondary school students did. General secondary school students from both countries expressed higher levels of self-esteem and control over future than vocational school students did. Unexpectedly, no differences between boys' and girls' probability estimations for family life were found, in either country. However, girls from both countries anticipated an earlier and more rapid transition to adulthood than boys did, thus reflecting social time tables. The results suggested that the educational track remains a significant stratifying factor in times of societal change in both countries.     

Risk and Protective Factors for Adolescent Relationship Abuse across Different Sexual and Gender Identities

Journal of Youth and Adolescence - Little is known about the characteristics and context of adolescent relationship abuse victimization across youth of different sexual and gender minority...     

Exploring the role of dependence in influencing small states’ alliance contributions: A reputation mechanism argument and assessment

Dependence has been demonstrated to be a main factor driving small states’ alliance contributions. However, the causal pathway linking dependence on the one hand, and small states’ contributions on the other, is seldom explicated and assessed. Furthermore, the ways in which dependence may shape, not only drive, such contributions, have received little attention. The purpose of this article is to elaborate the role of dependence in these regards. Drawing on Glenn H. Snyder’s “fear of abandonment” concept, it is argued that reputation is the main mechanism linking dependence and contributions. The article specifies the causal pathway and assesses it against case-study evidence of Norway’s and Sweden’s military participation in ISAF. The process tracing lends much support to the proposed mechanism, and comparison helps clarify how different alliance relationship status (member or partner) impacts on the theorised causal chain.     

Why Do Non-partisans Challenge Parties in Local Politics? The (Extreme) Case of Poland

The article concentrates on recent successes of non-partisans (independents) in Polish local government. A majority of mayors and councillors remains unaffiliated with any party—in this respect Poland is an outlier among European countries. The article examines both the factors determining the cross-national variation in the level of local government partyness and those causing the differences between the municipalities. The analyses of local elections held in 2006 and 2010 demonstrate that non-partisans' successes are primarily due to the previous election results (the advantage of incumbency); a possible ‘partisan offensive’ to colonise new resources in local politics is sluggish.     

A Prospective Study of the Potential Moderating Role of Social Support in Preventing Marginalization Among Individuals Exposed to Bullying and Abuse in Junior High School

Negative physical and psychological long-term consequences of abuse and bullying are well documented. It is reasonable to assume that abuse and bullying early in life also may have an impact on the ability to work and stay economically independent later in life, but such prospective studies are lacking. This study investigates the consequences of exposure to abuse and bullying in junior high school, as measured by receiving long-term social welfare benefits in young adulthood. In addition, it explores the potential protective role of social support. Self-reported data from 13,633 (50.3 % female) junior high school students were linked to registry data on their use of social welfare benefits from the age of 18 and for eight consecutive years. Cox regression analyses were applied to test the relationship between exposure to life adversities and the use of social welfare benefits, and the potential moderating role of social support. The analyses showed that individuals exposed to abuse and bullying had an increased likelihood of receiving social-welfare benefits compared with individuals not exposed to these types of abuse. Exposure to multiple types of abuse led to a higher likelihood of using social welfare benefits compared with single types of abuse and no abuse. The findings on the potential moderating role of social support were mixed, depending on the source of social support. Family support and classmate relationships were protective in reducing the likelihood of the use of social welfare benefits, whereas peer and teachers’ support showed inconsistent patterns. These results are promising in terms of preventing the long-term negative consequences of abuse and bullying.