The Role of University Spinout Companies in an Emerging Technology: The Case of Nanotechnology

This study examines the role of university spin-out (USO) companies in the emergence of a new technology, in our case nanotechnology. Three unique data-sets based on patents, co-publications, and firm data pertaining to the unfolding field of nanotechnology in the UK were developed. Subsequent analysis suggests that USOs play an important though not a dominant role. Furthermore, the results indicate that USOs in certain subfields of nanotechnology do not have a strong and growing proprietary technology base, raising questions about the commercial sustainability of these ventures. Overall, we observed that USOs are important contributors to technological change in specific subfields of nanotechnology, but that other actors, notably, large firms and (non-university affiliated) new technology-based firms are even more significant agents of technological change.     

On "Coherence" and "Law": An Analysis of Different Models

The aim of this paper is to compare different conceptions of the role of (normative) coherence in the legal field. More precisely, it aims to deepen Neil MacCormick's theory of legal reasoning, in which coherence is essentially considered an interpretative tool, and Ronald Dworkin's legal theory, in which coherence occupies a more crucial place. The main results of this paper can be summarized in two points. A) For Dworkin, coherence is not just an interpretative standard but constitutes the hard core of his theory of law. B) As a consequence of A, Dworkin's reflections on coherence (as an interpretative standard) cannot be separated from his theory of law grounded on the concept of integrity.     

‘If I Would Stay Alive,I Would Be Their Voice’: On the Legitimacy of International People's Tribunals

In recent years there has been a proliferation of People's Tribunals (PTs), promising to address atrocities that have fallen through the net of a statist international legal order. However, the status of such informal tribunals has remained controversial in both literature and practice. The dominant view has been that PTs simply lack legitimate authority. Positing that, in the language game of legitimacy, PTs are put on a perpetual argumentative backfoot, this article examines aspects of their input, process and output legitimacy. It is argued that the right of victims-survivors to be heard reigns supreme and it is in upholding that right that the authority of PTs is legitimised. In the current state of international justice, PTs constitute indispensable, quasi-judicial institutions that bridge gaps in access to justice, challenge official narratives (or silences) about atrocities and, potentially, open up new avenues towards justice and recognition.     

Death Due to an Unusual Angio‐Seal‐Related Complication: Case Report and Literature Review

Angio‐SealTM is a vascular closure device (VCD) that can be applied to the femoral artery following cardiac catheterization to achieve hemostasis. Although it has been demonstrated to be superior to conventional manual pressure and to reduce time to hemostasis and patient ambulation, the use of this VCD is not without its complications. In this report, we describe the case of a 55‐year‐old man who died due to an extremely rare event that occurred several hours after the deployment of an Angio‐SealTM VCD: acute complete transverse laceration of the femoral artery that occurred because of the particular fragility of the vessel due to an unrecognized and asymptomatic arteriosclerotic disease. Few data are available in the literature about the incidence of such events, and much more remains to be done to determine how to prevent and manage its occurrence.     

Forensic DNA Challenges: Replacing Numbers with Names of Fosse Ardeatine’s Victims*

Abstract: The Fosse Ardeatine massacre was a mass execution carried out in Rome on March 24, 1944 by Nazi German occupation troops during the Second World War as a reprisal for a partisan attack conducted on the previous day in central Rome. The 335 civilians were taken to the “Cave Ardeatine” and they were shot. Only 323 corpses out of 335 have been identified. The aim of this work is the genetic and anthropological analysis of the remains exhumed from grave number 329 of Fosse Ardeatine’s Shrine to assess their identity. So far, such remains have been supposed to belong to MM but mitochondrial analysis excluded a biological relationship to two living maternal relatives. Our analysis indicated that remains recovered in grave number 329 do not belong to MM. This result suggests that genetic analysis of the remains should be also applied to the other 12 unknown corpses to elucidate their identity.     

Frequency assessment of SNPs for forensic identification in different populations

Allele frequencies for 16 previously described autosomal SNPs were tested in 1020 unrelated individuals originating from three different continents (Africa, Asia and Europe). The populations analyzed included Africans from Benin Gulf (180), Asians from Mongolia (160) and Europeans from Italy (680).