A comparison of methods used in the UK and Ireland for the extraction and detection of semen on swabs and cloth samples

The recent formation of a United Kingdom and Irish working group, the Body Fluids Forum (BFF), highlighted the need to investigate different working practices prior to any inter-laboratory comparison work and identification of best practice. Various dilutions of semen were seeded onto swabs and cloth samples for each BFF member laboratory to test using their standard techniques. The results showed that the detection of acid phosphatase on swabs is best achieved using direct testing rather than on an extract from the swab. Extraction methods for spermatozoa require a balance to be achieved between using a sufficient volume of water to ensure optimal release and minimal volume to ensure a concentrated extract. PSA tests were investigated and found to be more sensitive than Choline. DNA profiles were obtained from samples in which no spermatozoa had been detected during microscopic examination.     

Peak blood-ethanol concentration and the time of its occurrence after rapid drinking on an empty stomach

Healthy men, 20 to 60 years old, drank a moderate dose of ethanol in the morning after an overnight fast. They consumed either neat whisky in amounts corresponding to 0.34, 0.51, 0.68, 0.85, or 1.02 g of ethanol per kilogram of body weight or 0.80 g/kg ethanol solvent diluted with orange juice. The peak blood-ethanol concentration (BEC) increased with the dose administered, but the time required to reach the peak was not markedly influenced over the range of doses studied. At a dose of 0.68 g/kg, the peak BEC ranged from 52 to 136 mg/dL (N = 83), and slow absorption (a late-occurring peak) produced a lower peak BEC. The peak BEC was reached between 0 and 45 min for 77% of the subjects (N = 152) and between 0 and 75 min for 97% of them. The time of peaking in venous blood occurred, on average, 10 min later than in capillary (fingertip) blood although the peak BEC was not appreciably different; the mean venous BEC was 97.0 mg/dL (range, 76 to 112 mg/dL), and the mean capillary BEC was 99.6 mg/dL (range, 75 to 123 mg/dL). When subjects drank 0.80 g/kg ethanol diluted with orange juice over 30 min, the average BEC increment between the end of drinking and the peak was 33 mg/dL (range, 0 to 58 mg/dL). The rate of absorption of ethanol was 1.78 mg/dL/min (range, 0.52 to 4.8 mg/dL/min), and the peak BEC occurred within 60 min after the end of drinking in 92% of the trials. The largest BEC increment (mean, 21 mg/dL; range, 0 to 44 mg/dL) was seen during the first 15 min after the drinking period.     

Roosevelt, Truman and the Development of Postwar Grand Strategy

After its victory in World War II, it was clear that United States should move beyond the disastrous policies of the 1930s, but it was less clear how. Ultimately, a lasting postwar strategy was forged under President Truman. Appreciating how Truman moved well beyond Roosevelt's guiding assumptions is essential to understanding the evolution of American grand strategy. One sees that wartime planning and grand strategy formulation can prove quite inadequate for dealing with postwar challenges. An administration cannot be locked into assumptions, but must constantly test them. Thus, the Truman administration eventually developed and adopted containment and moved far beyond FDR's approach. More substantively, the fundamental geopolitical lesson of World War II and the early Cold War was that the United States must assume the essential balancing role relative to other major powers.     

Views of China and Europe on the New Order of the World

The 7^th Sino-German Security Dialogue Seminar is focused on ＂China, Europe and a new world order＂. Our discussions should include the world order in general, as well as in-depth exchanges on specific issues in the area of international relations that both countries deem important. I want to get to the point directly by stating a basic point： although many factors in the international politics continue to change, as old challenges still exist and new challenges keep cropping up, there still remains a cornerstone for the world order, which is the Unites Nations. This is a starting point very close to the real politics： we must advance the international politics within current structure, and I would like to stress that such international politics must be international politics for peace.     

The Global Era of National Policy and the Pan-Oceanic National Fleet

This article develops a framework for considering the future requirements for U.S. maritime power. It does so by proposing that these requirements must be considered within the context of an integrated National Fleet—the combined capabilities of the three “Sea Services”—the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Coast Guard. It also would include their reserve components, as well as the Military Sealift Command (MSC) and the Maritime Administration's Ready Reserve Force (RRF)—the two organizations responsible for maintaining the nation's strategic sealift fleet.     

Reaching for the Philosopher's Stone: Contingent Coordination and the Military's Response to Hurricane Katrina

When Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast in August 2005, it immediately overwhelmed the abilities of local and state emergency management officials to respond to the ensuing disaster. Although the U.S. Coast Guard and some military units were on scene shortly after the passage of the storm, there seemed to be interminable delays before the military forces began to arrive in numbers to both provide humanitarian relief and secure the affected areas. This article analyzes the response of the National Guard, active-duty military, and Coast Guard forces through the lens of coordination. We find evidence of the successful use of both traditional hierarchical and network-based coordination; we also find support for Donald Kettl's idea of "contingent coordination."