Stages of postmortem formation of washerwoman's skin--results of systematic qualitative and quantitative experimental studies

The development of washerwoman's hands depends upon the length of submersion. Until now there have been no results published on the qualitative and quantitative time-related changes with regard to washer-woman's hands. The fingertips of 50 hands from 35 corpses were qualitatively examined at early postmortem (1-4 h after death). The quantitative investigations were confined to the tips of the middle fingers. Submersion of the hands in water at 37 degrees C was interrupted at intervals of 10 min, 30 min, 60 min, 2 h, 3 h, 4 h, 6 h, 10 h and 24 h for a period of 30s-1 min. The width of three adjoining ridges of the skin were measured in three defined areas of the middle fingertips and photographs were taken. Quantitative results: No relevant differences were seen in the changes of the width of the skin ridges between the right and left hand after submersion in water; there was no specific difference between the sexes. During the soaking process the skin ridges influence each other. The age of the individual corpse has no influence on the change in width of the skin ridges. Concerning the qualitative test results, six time-limited stages could be classified: stage I: physiological dry state; stage II: softened state; stage III: swollen and compressed state; stage IV: partial wrinkle covering; stage V: epidermal lysis; stage VI: loss of relief outlines.     

Mixing God's Work and the Public Business: A Framework for the Analysis of Faith‐Based Service Delivery

Over the past thirty years, there has been a dramatic transformation in the way the American political process operates. There has been a growing public perception that traditional political institutions lack the capacity to meet existing challenges. This has led many observers to call for a rethinking of how government does its work. Numerous alternatives, including the use of faith‐based organizations, have been suggested. The current popular debate on the appropriate role of faith‐based organizations in public service delivery has shed little light on a number of important issues raised by engaging such actors in governance issues. The impact of using faith‐based institutions to design and implement public policy must be considered not only in terms of traditional evaluation standards, but also regarding potential long‐term impacts on the political process itself. This article outlines a theoretical framework for the evaluation of faith‐based organizations as “alternatives” to conventional governance structures. It identifies key practical and theoretical issues raised by such substitution, in both short and long range systemic terms.     

“Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose” – what about code and law?

Law and information technology are interlinked. Since Lessig's “code is law” the discussions address the viability of law in technology markets. But recently, the direction of view has changed by way of conversion; in the context of smart contracts, the notion “law is code” became prevalent. The contribution looks into the interdependencies between law and code and pleads for a new functional understanding of law.     

The Pacifism of Andrew Carnegie and Edwin Ginn: The Emergence of a Philanthropic Internationalism

This study analyses the pacifism of Andrew Carnegie and Edwin Ginn against the backdrop of the emergence of new philanthropic practices. Scientific philanthropy and the institutional model of the philanthropic foundation provided the means for new approaches to the peace cause. The study thus argues that Ginn and Carnegie personified a shift from a non-institutional pacifism to an institutional internationalism. Despite noteworthy similarities in Ginn and Carnegie's approach to peace, however, their two philanthropic foundations—the World Peace Foundation and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace—differed in strategies. This study suggests that the leadership of these institutions shaped these different approaches to conflict.