Book reviews

Jonathan Michie and John Grieve Smith (eds), Managing the Global Economy, (Oxford University Press, Oxford 1995). 343pp. ISBN 0–19–828968–5 (pb).

Hilary Rose, Love, power and knowledge: towards a feminist transformation of the sciences, (Polity Press, Cambridge 1994). 336pp. ISBN 0–7456–1001–3 (pb).

Daniele Archibugi and David Held (eds), Cosmopolitan Democracy, (Polity Press, Cambridge 1995). 190pp. ISBN 0–7456–1380–2, 0–7456–1381 0 (pb).

Olivier Roy, The Failure of Political Islam, (I B Tauris, London 1994). 224 pp. ISBN 1–85043–880–3.

T. Gallagher, Romania After Ceausescu, (Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 1995). 276pp. ISBN 0 7486 0613 0 (pb).

John Gray, Beyond the New Right: Markets, Government and the Common Environment, (Routledge, London and New York 1993). 195pp. ISBN 0–145–09297–3 9, 0–145–10706–7 (pb).

Anthony Giddens, Beyond Left and Right: the Future of Radical Politics, (Polity Press, Cambridge 1994). 276pp. ISBN 0–7456–1438–8, 0–7456–1439–6 (pb).

Nicola Field, Over the Rainbow: Money, Class and Homophobia, (Pluto, London 1995). 193pp. ISBN 0–7453–0825–2.

Red‐Green Study Group, What on earth is to be done? A red‐green dialogue, (Red‐Green Study Group, Manchester 1995). x+69pp. ISBN 0–9525784–0–9.

Darrow Schecter, Radical theories: Paths beyond Marxism and social democracy, (Manchester University Press, Manchester and New York 1994). x+205pp. ISBN 0–7190–4385–9.     

New technology and new initiatives in U.S. workplace testing

A current perspective of workplace drug testing in the USA is presented covering three major issue areas: (1) epidemiology, (2) new technology and (3) initiatives to reach out and assist small business. First, national illegal drug-use self-reported survey data is compared with national laboratory drug testing results, illustrating a number of inconsistencies. During the 17-year period (1988-2004) the number of laboratory positive test results has decreased by 66% while during the same period self-reported drug-use has increased by 30%. The lack of concurrence between lab results and self-report surveys are examined in light of the typical panel of drugs being tested in U.S. laboratories, the increased specificity of immunoassay screening tests, and the critical issues of adulteration and substitution. Second, a brief review of the state-of-the-science in rapid point-of-collection (POCT) oral fluid drug-testing devices is presented along with some device evaluation findings. In general the window of drug detection in oral fluid is measured in hours. Most of the available oral fluid POCT devices can detect methamphetamine and amphetamines and opiates very well. The ability to detect cocaine appears to vary significantly across devices, while the ability to detect cannabis use is generally poor across all devices. Finally, efforts to reach out and assist small businesses in the development of workplace anti-drug programs are discussed in the context of increasing workplace programs in the European Union.     

Surgical Sutures as a Means of Identifying Human Remains*

Abstract: The Food and Drug Administration does not require surgical sutures to be tracked by manufacturer, physician, or patient; thereby, surgical sutures have been of little use to forensic practitioners who are tasked with establishing a positive identification with biological evidence. This study demonstrates the investigative process used to pinpoint suture manufacturers by presenting a case where surgical sutures were a distinctive characteristic that aided in the positive identification of skeletal remains. The suture’s manufacturer, construction material and structure, size, and medical use was determined by contacting a local surgical suture and orthopedic implant manufacturer and utilizing publicly available manufacturer websites, which provide catalogs and specific product details. This research was one of many lines of evidence used to establish the positive identification of a 47‐year‐old male.     

A Longitudinal Exploration of the Effect of Official Processing and Sanctioning on the Academic and Criminal Careers of College Students

This study examines the effect of official processing and sanctioning on the academic and criminal careers of a sample of college students from a large university in a southeastern college town. Using a series of OLS and logistic regression models, the results indicated that offense frequency and severity are risk factors for dropping out/or being dismissed from college, whereas membership in a sorority or fraternity is a protective factor. Additional analyses demonstrated that the severity of punishment as well as the type of punishment (e.g., judicial affairs punishment, criminal justice system punishment) also had a significant effect on future offending. Study limitations and policy implications are also discussed.     

Genetic structure among 38 populations from the United States based on 11 U.S. core Y chromosome STRs

A DNA database consisting of the 11 Y chromosome short-tandem-repeat (Y-STR) recommended by the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods is constructed for 2517 individuals from 38 populations in the United States. The population samples derive from five ethnic groups currently living in 10 states. A multidimensional scaling (MDS) plot places the populations into four discrete clusters (African Americans (AA), European Americans (EA), Hispanic Americans (HA), and Asian Americans (SA)) and one dispersed cluster of Native Americans. An analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) indicates that a large proportion of the total genetic variance is partitioned among ethnic groups (24.8%), whereas only a small amount (1.5%) is found among-populations within ethnic groups. Separate AMOVA analyses within each ethnic group show that only the NA sample contains statistically significant among-population variation. Pair wise population differentiation tests do uncover heterogeneity among EA and among HA populations; however, this is due to only a single sample within each group. The analyses support the creation of AA, EA, HA, and Asian American databases in which samples from different geographic regions within the United States are pooled. We recommend that separate databases be constructed for different NA groups.