Optimization of DNA extraction from low-yield and degraded samples using the BioRobot EZ1 and BioRobot M48

Robotic extraction of DNA from dilutions of blood and semen using either the BioRobots EZ1 or BioRobots M48 consistently produced lower recoveries than standard organic extractions of the same samples. In an effort to increase the efficiency of robotically extracted DNA, glycogen and carrier RNA were added following cell lysis. The addition of glycogen, postlysis, resulted in no improvement in DNA recovery with the BioRobot EZ1. However, when carrier RNA was added to the cell lysate of limited and degraded samples extracted on the EZ1 or the M48, DNA recoveries dramatically increased four- to 20-fold. DNA yields obtained by robotic extraction in the presence of carrier RNA were as high, or higher, as those obtained by organic extraction lacking carrier RNA, while experiments that utilized carrier RNA in both types of extractions showed increased sensitivity for both methods. Furthermore, carrier RNA substantially increased the recovery of fragmented DNA with the EZ1.     

Fighting cutbacks: some issues for public sector administrators

AbstractAdministrators of many publicly funded organizations are facing the need to implement cutbacks in the light of current budgetary restrictions. An alternative or supplementary course of action to making cuts is to resist them. This article examines four organizations - a Montreal university, a Montreal social service centre and two British health authorities - to see how they dealt with this issue of resistance. Resisting cutbacks requires the use of political strategies which are effective in persuading funding agencies to increase or maintain budgets. The four case studies illustrate the components of a successful strategy in terms of identifying the relevant interest groups, building coalitions and creating legitimacy. In addition, the question of whether administrators should resist budget cuts is explored. The pitfalls of resistance that were encountered by the four organizations are identified, as are the advantages. It is shown that while resistance is a viable option for many public administrators, it is no simple matter. Those contemplating this course of action need to be aware of the issues involved so that they can assess and enhance their chances of success, while minimizing any detrimental effects that resistance may have on the organization and its employees.     

Radiocarbon dating as tool to assist in triaging cases of unidentified human remains in Victoria,Australia: A case series

In cases where human remains are unidentified because there is no initial identification hypothesis, limited contextual information, and/or poor preservation, radiocarbon (¹⁴C) dating may be a useful tool to further assist with identification. Through measuring the amount of ¹⁴C remaining in organic material, such as bone, teeth, nail, or hair, radiocarbon dating may provide an estimated year of birth and year of death for a deceased person. This information, may assist in, establishing whether a case of unidentified human remains (UHR) is actually of medicolegal significance and therefore, requires forensic investigation and identification. This case series highlights the application of ¹⁴C dating to seven of the 132 UHR cases in Victoria, Australia. Cortical bone was sampled from each case and the level of ¹⁴C was measured to provide an estimated year of death. Four of the seven cases analyzed contained the levels of ¹⁴C consistent with an archeological timeframe, one contained a level of ¹⁴C consistent with a modern (i.e., of medicolegal significance) timeframe, and the results for the remaining two samples were inconclusive. Applying this technique not only reduced the number of UHR cases in Victoria but also has investigative, cultural, and practical implications for medicolegal casework in general.     

Performance Testing of a Semi-Automatic Card Punch System,Using Direct STR Profiling of DNA from Blood Samples on FTA™ Cards

The 1.2 mm Electric Coring Tool (e-Core™) was developed to increase the throughput of FTA^™ sample collection cards used during forensic workflows and is similar to a 1.2 mm Harris manual micro-punch for sampling dried blood spots. Direct short tandem repeat (STR) DNA profiling was used to compare samples taken by the e-Core tool with those taken by the manual micro-punch. The performance of the e-Core device was evaluated using a commercially available PowerPlex™ 18D STR System. In addition, an analysis was performed that investigated the potential carryover of DNA via the e-Core punch from one FTA disc to another. This contamination study was carried out using Applied Biosystems AmpflSTR™ Identifiler™ Direct PCR Amplification kits. The e-Core instrument does not contaminate FTA discs when a cleaning punch is used following excision of discs containing samples and generates STR profiles that are comparable to those generated by the manual micro-punch.     

Globalization,International Organizations,and Telecommunications

Since the 1990s over 158 countries established pro‐market reforms in telecommunications—a fast pace for such a drastic change. For example, Sweden and Botswana, two nations vastly different across multiple dimensions, both liberalized their telecom sectors. Why did so many countries adopt liberal reforms in such a short period of time? Conventional wisdom highlights the role of global markets and technology, powerful states, global diffusion, and domestic politics. I argue that contrary to these claims, diffusion through key international organizations is the critical and overlooked factor in explaining rapid global convergence of pro‐market telecom reforms. Using an original dataset for 189 countries between 1970 and 2003 and event history analysis, I demonstrate that membership in key liberal trading organizations, especially the WTO and the OECD, increases the likelihood that countries will adopt liberal pro‐market reforms in telecommunications. These results speak directly to current public policy debates about the reregulation of global markets and bridges the literatures of policy diffusion, institutional design, and regulatory regimes.     

Viewing The Biggest Loser: modes of reception and reflexivity among obese people

This article builds on previous reception research and scholarship on makeover TV through an analysis of obese people's views of The Biggest Loser (TBL). TBL involves obese people competing to lose weight as personal trainers push them through dietary and physical activity regimes. We articulate four themes characterizing responses to TBL: “That's not reality,” “Public ownership and judgment of the fat body,” “The lure of the transformation,” and “A guilty pleasure.” We consider how these themes are reflected in participants' movement between mediated, discursive, transparent, and referential modes of reception. While some were adamant in their rejection of the program, others were ambivalent in accepting and identifying with the desire for weight loss but questioning TBL's aesthetic dimensions and moralizing undertones. We argue that the reflexivity of viewers complicates appraisals of TBL as governing at a distance and offer some alternative readings of the impact and appeal of the program.     

Does the Gown Help the Town? Examining Town–Gown Relationship Influence on Local Environmental Sustainability in the United States

A US municipality environmental sustainability index, the OSSPI (Opp-Saunders Sustainability Practices Index), found an overwhelming percentage of top-ranked sustainable cities were home to higher education institutions. While this may be a coincidence, this research seeks to determine if and how local communities partner or collaborate with higher education institutions for environmental sustainability purposes. The results of two case studies, San Antonio, Texas and Dubuque, Iowa, suggest there is considerable variability in the town-gown relationships. However, it is found that larger, public universities are more likely to have stronger relationships and effects on local sustainability efforts.     

The UK's electoral reform referendum of May 2011

The UK's second nationwide referendum, held in May 2011, offers rich opportunities for analysing the dynamics of a referendum campaign. The articles gathered together in this symposium address three themes. The first concerns the determinants and dynamics of public opinion during a referendum campaign, the second relates to the potential for interaction between the referendum and simultaneous elections, and the third focuses on coverage of the referendum in the media. Following a brief outline of the background to the referendum, this paper introduces the contribution that each article makes to these themes.     

Police officers’ judgements of veracity,tenseness, cognitive load and attempted behavioural control in real-life police interviews

Abstract

The present experiment examined the apparently incongruent findings that police officers (i) believe that suspects show nervous behaviour when they lie but (ii) seem able to detect deceit in suspects who do not show nervous behaviours. It was hypothesized that police officers’ judgements about whether a suspect is lying would not be correlated with their judgements regarding whether the suspect is tense, but, instead, would be correlated with their judgements regarding whether suspects are having to think hard or attempting to control their behaviour.

Each of 84 police officers saw seven truths and seven lies told by suspects during their police interviews. Participants in Condition 1 were asked to indicate after each clip whether the suspect was lying, whereas participants in Condition 2 were asked to note after each clip to what extent the suspect appeared to be tense, having to think hard or attempting to control their behaviour. Condition 3 was a combination of Conditions 1 and 2 and participants were asked all the above questions. The findings support the hypotheses and therefore negate the assumption that police officers primarily look for cues of nervousness when they attempt to detect deceit.