A study of female robbers in a Southern Correctional Institution

A stratified random sample of thirty-three female robbers incarcerated at the Florida Correctional Institute at Lowell was selected and interviewed. The findings indicated that the majority of the sample was black, under thirty, of average intelligence, and single. The female robber was typically found to operate with an accomplice, use a firearm, and be motivated by a desire for financial gain. A preliminary typology that included two major categories, situational robbers and career robbers, was developed.     

Violent Crime in the Urban Community: A Comparison of Stockholm and Basel

In this article the authors present some preliminary findings from a comparative study of police recorded violent crimes in Stockholm and Basel. They present the first results from a comparative analysis of the situational context, the ecology of crime, and of offender residences in these cities. There is impressive evidence of basic similarities in the situational context of violent crime and the residential distribution of violent offenders. Yet there are also significant differences, some of which may have interesting implications for crime prevention. Firstly, violent crime seems to be more highly concentrated during weekend nights in Stockholm than in Basel. Secondly, they find evidence that the presence of weapons in a community increases the risk of more serious outcomes of violent events. Efforts to reduce the availability of weapons may thus have significant effects on the outcomes of violence, but not necessarily on its frequency. Thirdly, they show that offenders in both cities are highly concentrated in socially disorganised communities with few economic and social resources.     

The Demographic Consequences of the End of Chile's Nitrate Boom,c.1907–1940

This article deals with the demographic consequences of the end of Chile's nitrate boom following the 1929 crisis. The traditional economic historiography has maintained that this crisis impacted heavily on nitrate production, and that in turn the crisis triggered a permanent exodus from the nitrate districts to other geographical zones. Contrary to this widely held belief, we have shown in this article that: there was no substantial fall in production; there was indeed a fall in nitrate population, but this was limited; this took place in some nitrate areas only; overall, the decline in nitrate population was a short term phenomenon only. The population making a living from nitrate production (or activities directly related to it) did not emigrate in as large numbers as previously thought, since production remained high up to the 1960s.     

Y-chromosome STRs in an Antioquian (Colombia) population sample

Haplotype data were obtained from a sample of 777 unrelated male individuals from Antioquia Department (Colombia), for eight Y-chromosome STRs (DYS19, DYS385, DYS389 I, DYS389 II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392 and DYS393). A total of 442 different haplotypes were identified of which 334 were represented only once in the database and the most frequent haplotype was found in 32 individuals. A high haplotype diversity was found (99.45%). Genetic distances were calculated using previously published haplotype data and the lowest values were found for the comparisons with samples of lberian origin.     

Science and Policy in International Environmental Agreements: Lessons from the European experience on Transboundary Air Pollution

Science and policy come together in the use of computer models for International Environmental Agreements (IEAs). We study a successful case in using Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs) in defining the long-range transboundary air pollution policies in Europe. In the light of the history of the LRTAP Convention of the UN-ECE, we consider the special circumstances which led to the success of the RAINS model that was employed. We find that the collaborative, self-aware and evolutionary character of the institutional framework built among the LRTAP Convention, IIASA and the EU facilitated the successful adoption of RAINS. We also show how the limits of computer models, fully recognised in this case by producers and users, leave issues of uncertainty, distribution and ethics unresolved. When facing international negotiations, several coalitions might emerge. An analysis of the situtation is done in terms of First-Comers and Late-Comers in Environmental policy, the first group undertaking the initiative to formulate international policies on issues that are of concern to themselves and for which they have acquired technologies, models and know-how, while the second group is just following international policy and most often viewing it as a constraint. This is discussed in the example of the Spanish participation in the negotiations about sulphur emissions in the buildup to the Oslo Protocol. The adoption of the precautionary principle is often being used as a way to handle uncertainty when facing urgent policy responsibilities for environmental issues.