Adolescents' Participation in Service Activities and Its Impact on Academic,Behavioral, and Civic Outcomes

The National Household Education Survey, a nationally representative data set (N=4,306 high school students and one parent of each), was analyzed to describe characteristics of adolescents, the nature of their service activities, and academic, behavioral and civic outcomes associated with service (voluntary compared to school-required and by type of service). Participation in any service is associated with positive outcomes whether service is voluntary or required. Adolescents who worked directly with individuals in need had better academic adjustment; those who worked for organizations had better civic outcomes than adolescents who performed other types of service. Findings are discussed in terms of their significance for adolescent development, educational policy, and the use of large national data sets to examine service participation. Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology at Northern Illinois University. She received her Ph.D. in Psychology: Human Development from the University of Chicago. Her research interests include motivation, resilience, and positive youth development. Professor at Northern Illinois University. She received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research interests include family, community, and out-of-school influences on child and adolescent educational adjustment. Received her M.S. Ed. in Educational Psychology from Northern Illinois University, where she is currently pursuing her doctoral degree. Her current research interests involve the role of adolescents' family, community and school contexts in fostering their social, moral, and educational development.     

Speaking the Language of Friendship: Partnerships in the Political Construction of the Late Sixteenth-Century South-East Charcas Frontier

The present article discusses the importance of partnerships in the political construction of the south-east frontier of late sixteenth-century Charcas, focused on foundation and destruction of San Miguel de la Laguna. In a challenge to the narrative of ‘constant war zone’, the events are here framed as part of a process described as territorialisation, which transformed geographies into territories of the polycentric Catholic Monarchy, politically equipping the land with relations that were expressed through institutions. San Miguel was the product of the ‘friendship’ between its founder and the Chiriguanaes who inhabited the area. Its fate was not the result of untrustworthy natives.     

Kelsen's Theory on International Law during His Exile in Geneva

Kelsen's monistic theory of international law was shaped during his exile in Geneva (1933–1940), but its deep roots are to be found in his Pure Theory of Law, centred on the neo‐Kantian notion of “system.” According to this conception, a legal system can only descend from a single principle. Consequently, Kelsen constructed a monistic theory of law, i.e., a legal system incorporating all norms into a pyramidal structure culminating in a single principle: the fundamental norm. This Kelsenian pyramid must also include international law, considering that if international law were a legal system different from national law (as the dualistic theory assumes), the theoretical construction would need two fundamental norms. This dualism is as incompatible with Kelsen's monistic vision as Schmitt's theory of “Great Spaces,” creating a hierarchical system of international relations. In the Kelsenian pyramid, international law occupies a position superior to national law: The consequences of this assumption are discussed in some documents recently published in German and French.     

Forensic Entomology and the Estimation of the Minimum Time Since Death in Indoor Cases

Eight cases that occurred indoors in which the insects played an important role in the mPMI estimation are presented. The bodies of socially isolated people and old people living alone were discovered in central Italy between June and November. mPMI ranged from a few days to several weeks. Insects were collected during the body recovery and the postmortem. Climatic data were obtained from the closest meteorological stations and from measurements performed on the site. Sarcophagidae and Calliphoridae species were present in 75% of the cases with Lucilia sericata and Chrysomya albiceps collected in 50% of the cases. Chrysomya albiceps was always found in association with Lucilia species. Scuttle flies (Phoridae) were found in 37.5% of the cases, confirming the ability of these species in indoor body colonization. We show that if sealed environment may delay, the insect arrival dirty houses may create the environment where sarcosaprophagous insects are already present.     

Giant Diaphragmatic Lipoma: Two Autopsy Case Reports and Review of the Literature

Lipomas are common benign tumors most frequently found within the subcutaneous areas of the body. Deep-seated lipomas are rare and tend to be larger than cutaneous ones. Lipomas are rarely seen in the thoracic cavity, and they are usually located in the mediastinum, bronchiole, and lungs. Diaphragmatic lipomas have been occasionally reported in the literature, the first being described by Clark et al. in 1886. The authors report two rare cases of giant diaphragmatic lipoma incidentally found during forensic autopsies. In the first case, a Caucasian 85-year-old woman burned to death with another passenger, after her methane-fueled car collided with another car on a highway near Terni, Umbria, Italy. In the second case, a Caucasian 45-year-old man collapsed while walking through the countryside of Perugia. In either case, a large mass in the thorax was observed. The definitive pathologic diagnosis was giant intrathoracic diaphragmatic lipoma without evidence of malignancy. The authors also review the relevant literature and discuss differential diagnoses. These case reports contribute to the establishment of the actual incidence of diaphragmatic lipomas.     

Suicide by self-immolation

In the Western world, self-incineration is a rare event compared with the Asian countries. The circumstances of death are often unusual, and differentiation from homicide is sometimes possible only after evaluating all the investigation results and findings. In many cases of self-cremation, a fire accelerant is used. In our study material at least 30% of the body surface were burned. Unaffected skin was predominantly found on the back of the body. The cases presented by us are inhomogenous as to the motive and differ from those reported in the literature with regard to gender distribution, scene, motivational situation and psychological constitution.     

A comparison of email versus letter threat contacts toward members of the United States Congress

To better understand inappropriate correspondence sent to public officials, 301 letter cases and 99 email cases were randomly selected from the United States Capitol Police investigative case files and compared. Results indicate that letter writers were significantly more likely than emailers to exhibit indicators of serious mental illness (SMI), engage in target dispersion, use multiple methods of contact, and make a problematic approach toward their target. Emailers were significantly more likely than letter writers to focus on government concerns, use obscene language, and display disorganization in their writing. Also, letter writers tended to be significantly older, have more criminal history, and write longer communications. A multivariate model found that disorganization, SMI symptoms, problematic physical approach, and target dispersion significantly differentiated between the correspondence groups. The group differences illuminated by this study reveal that letter writers are engaging in behavior that is higher risk for problematic approach than are emailers.     

The need for a complete dental autopsy of unidentified edentulous human remains

In December 2017, a decomposed unidentified body was found near the river Tronto in Teramo, Italy. The corpse was found without any identifying documents or specific personal belongings, except for a packet of cigarettes. The medical examiner determined a gastric perforation from the intake of hydrochloric acid to be the cause of death. A jar of muriatic acid found near the body led to suicide being considered the manner of death. The Penal Court in Teramo appointed two forensic odontologists to complete the postmortem assessment and collect dental data for personal identification. The corpse was found wearing a complete set of upper and lower dentures. The dental autopsy and 42 periapical X-ray images helped generate a biological profile of a man totally edentulous with upper and lower dentures, as well as an osteosynthesis with two plates and screws in the left ascending ramus of the mandible. In March 2018, the sister of a missing person reported the disappearance of her brother, and a presumptive identification was performed through visual recognition of the decomposed body. The sister confirmed the presence of two dentures and the location of the maxillo-facial surgery for the treatment of the fractured mandible. A complete dental autopsy was able to establish his identity without any DNA comparison needed. This case highlights the importance of performing a complete dental autopsy inclusive of dental radiographs, and its value in the identification of all unknown human remains even when totally edentulous.A complete dental autopsy should be performed in all cases of human identification.

Keypoints

• Despite a corpse being edentulous, a complete dental autopsy can still be useful.
• Dental radiographs, such as bitewings, periapical images, panoramic radiographs, and CT scans, are recommended in all identification autopsies.