Political security: from the 1990s to the Arab Spring

The 1994 Human Development Report (HDR) set out the definition and parameters of political security in fewer than 400 words. It was defined as the prevention of government repression, systematic violation of human rights and threats from militarization. This was intended to establish an agenda that would protect people against states that continued to practice political repression, systematic torture, ill treatment and disappearance. Yet, the concept of political security has evolved in both theory and practice. This has been done through an ongoing debate, which has been shaped more by immediate crises and the practice of international relations, than the parameters set out in the 1994 HDR report. In practice, achieving the ambitions of the political security agenda has become tied to questions of humanitarian assistance and intervention. This was narrowly interpreted throughout the 1990s as a debate surrounding the nature and legitimacy of humanitarian intervention. In the 2000s, this was institutionalized into a Responsibility to Protect agenda, only to see the second decade of the twenty-first century reveal the need for a far more complex and nuanced debate about how this should be carried out.     

Long Allele Designations at D2S1338 and D19S433 Loci as Influenced by Various Multiplex STR Kits

European forensic laboratories are replacing the STR multiplex kits with the new generation 16/17 STR kits. This study examines the influence of the new generation kits and the new Applied Biosystems 3500xL Genetic Analyzer on the designation of long D2S1338 and D19S433 off‐ladder alleles. Different allele calls were obtained using the new NGM? (Applied Biosystems) and PowerPlex^® ESI? (Promega) kits compared with AmpF?STR^® SGM Plus? kit (Applied Biosystems). Sequence analysis was used to determine accurate allele designation. The new multiplex kits and the 3500xL Genetic Analyzer improved accuracy of long allele designations. DNA databases worldwide include countless profiles obtained by previous kits. Discrepancies between the new and former technologies may cause failure to detect hits. Discordance is expected due to primer sequence differences between various kits. An additional discordance, occurring in long alleles, independent of primer sequence is reported in this study.     

Artificial Intelligence,Neom and Saudi Arabia's Economic Diversification from Oil and Gas

Saudi Arabia is diversifying its economy by becoming a global technological hub. Driven by its ‘Vision 2030' initiative, it has embarked on the most ambitious and far-reaching transformation plan in the Kingdom's history. At the core of this transformation are the investment and development of artificial intelligence (AI) and its integration into a new mega-city, Neom. Currently under construction, Neom is seeking to integrate robotics and AI seamlessly into every aspect of citizens' lives in a bid to generate revenues from key economic sectors for the future. This transition from an economy based on hydrocarbons to AI is, however, more than economic. It is a bid to secure the survival of the House of Saud and meet the growing challenges of constructing a state around oil. Nevertheless, what happens in Neom may provide insights into how AI will impact the world beyond a cross-roads built on sand.     

An evaluation of the relevance of routine DNA typing of fingernail clippings for forensic casework

DNA extracted from fingernail clippings of victims in forensic cases is a possible source of DNA from the perpetrator in cases where victims struggled or defended themselves. The source of this DNA on a victim's fingernails could possibly originate from contact with the suspect's blood, saliva, semen or scratched skin. In this technical note we evaluate the relevance of routine DNA typing of fingernail clippings in the forensic biology laboratory when, in real casework, normally only small quantities of nail material is sent. This was carried out by extracting DNA from fingernail clippings from a number of volunteers, before and after aggressively scratching other volunteers. No blood was drawn from the scratching, but skin flakes were observed under the nails before cutting and subsequent DNA typing. The DNA extracted was then typed using the STR systems: HUMTHO1, HUMTPOX and HUMCSF1PO (CTT triplex) and the system of D1S80. These profiles were compared with profiles achieved by similar typing of buccal swabs as a reference from each volunteer. In this study, the profile detected from each volunteer's clippings was the same before and after scratching, and matched the profile of the corresponding volunteer as defined by typing each volunteer's reference buccal swab. Fingernail clippings that are sent to our lab in actual casework are usually so small that additional treatment by swabbing or removing debris from below the clipping is not possible. For this reason, in this simulation the entire clippings were used for DNA extraction, to maximize the possibility of finding an additional profile. In conclusion, the findings from this study show that although the profiles obtained when typing fingernail clippings are those of the donors themselves, we suggest that typing of fingernail clippings should be carried out in forensic cases only when relevant. We would suggest that fingernail clippings not be routinely sent to the biology laboratory as items of evidence to be tested.     

Presentation of a three-banded allele pattern--analysis and interpretation

The Israel police forensic biology laboratory received as an item of evidence in an attempted murder case, a pair of trousers belonging to a suspect. A bloodstain was observed on the trousers and analyzed by STR typing for nine loci using the Promega GenePrint STR silver stain detection kits. The genetic profile defined was found to be identical to that of the victim's at all nine loci. Within this profile a three-banded allele pattern was observed at the D16S539 locus, both in the bloodstain and in the victim's reference blood sample. Confirmation of this phenomenon was accomplished by amplifying the extracted DNA from both the trousers and the victim's blood sample using the PowerPlex 16 kit by Promega and the AmpFlSTR SGM Plus kit by Perkin Elmer, followed by analysis of the amplification products by capillary electrophoresis on the ABI prism 310 genetic analyzer. The same three-banded allele pattern was observed at the D16S539 locus in both specimen and reference DNA, using each of the three kits. Three additional loci located on chromosome 16 (D16S3407, D16S2617 and D16S3082), not employed for forensic identification, were also analyzed and did not show three-banded allele pattern.