Policy learning as complex contagion: how social networks shape organizational beliefs in forest-based climate change mitigation

Policy Sciences - Policy learning can alter the perceptions of both the seriousness and the causes of a policy problem, thus also altering the perceived need to do...     

Dentists' qualifications affect the accuracy of radiographic identification

This study assessed the effects of forensic odontologists' training and experience upon the accuracy of their dental radiographic identifications. Forty participating odontologists with various levels of training and experience completed a Web-based survey of their qualifications and then completed nine Web-based radiographic identification cases. They made their identifications using the American Board of Forensic Odontology Categories and Terminology for Body Identification. The results indicate that odontologists with high levels of training and experience performed significantly more accurately than those with lower levels. We conclude that high levels of training and experience in forensic odontology should be developed, maintained, and required of dentists who participate in a forensic team dealing with challenging identification cases.     

Circumstances and macropathologic findings in 1590 consecutive cases of bodies found in water

The diagnosis of drowning relies primarily on critical examination of the subject's individual characteristics, circumstances, and postmortem macropathologic changes. In this retrospective study, based on 1590 consecutive cases of bodies found in water and undergoing autopsy at the Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Helsinki, from 1976 to 1998, the frequency of circumstantial data and macropathologic changes crucial for the diagnosis of drowning were determined. The fatal events were eyewitnessed in 403 cases (25.3%), and suicide notes were found in 83 cases (5.2%). External foam, frothy fluid in airways, and overlap of the anterior margins of lungs were found in 275 (17.3%), 739 (46.5%), and 669 (42.1%) of the cases, respectively, but no one of these changes, tested against dry-land controls, were specific for drowning. The association of external foam and overlap of the lung margins was exclusive of drowning but was observed in only 176 cases (11.1%). After cross-analysis, 964 (60.6%) of the cases had no circumstantial data or macromorphologic pathologic findings that allowed a definite diagnosis of drowning. The diagnostic problems in putative drowning cases, based on this study sample, have not been overrated. Studies to investigate and improve the reliability of complementary methods for the diagnosis of drowning are warranted.     

Fatal iatrogenic BaSO4 embolism: morphological and ultrastructural findings confirmed by X-ray microanalysis and ICP-AES

A 42-year-old woman died from massive barium sulfate (BaSO(4)) lung embolism after a balloon catheter intended for elective colonography was inserted into her vagina. The vaginal insertion of the balloon catheter caused a bilateral laceration of the vaginal wall which was followed by penetration of BaSO(4) into the afferent veins and massive pulmonary embolism. Fluoroscopy performed during the fatal events and post-mortem X-rays revealed a radio-opaque substance in the vagina and uterus, the pelvic vessels and the vena cava, the right heart chambers, the lungs, and the kidneys. In addition to lungs, finely granular intravascular particles were demonstrated histologically in several organs including the brain and the glomerular capillaries. Scanning (SEM) and transmission (TEM) electron microscopy together with X-ray microanalysis, and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) allowed the definite identification of BaSO(4) in lungs and confirmed its capacity to penetrate the pulmonary filter and to embolise via the systemic circulation in various organs.