The psychosocial effects of conflict in the third world

In current armed conflicts around the world, over 90 per cent of casualties are civilians. This article reviews medical and anthropological evidence of the psychosocial effects of extreme experiences such as torture, mutilation, rape, and the violent displacement of communities. The consequences for women and children are considered in particular. The author argues that the social development programmes of non-governmental development organisations should be extended to support social networks and institutions in areas of conflict, and ends by giving guidelines for mental health promoters working in traumatised communities.     

Australia’s 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper: Deconstruction and Critique

The 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper identifies major themes and recommends preferred strategies in Australia’s engagement with the world. These themes and strategies relate to geopolitics, economics and the ‘new international agenda’; there is also a more specific focus on Australia’s Pacific island neighbours and Timor-Leste. There is a strong emphasis on perceived Australian national interests throughout the document. The geopolitical discussion is primarily ‘realist’; economically the document is pro-globalisation; the discussion of the ‘new international agenda’ involves an Australian-oriented pragmatism; there is an assertion of Australian leadership in the South Pacific. With some minor criticism, Labor has accepted the general direction advocated in the White Paper. The document is thus indicative of the likely future direction of Australian foreign policy. Lack of US response indicates declining US engagement with Australia and the Asia-Pacific or Indo-Pacific region. China, as the other major power highly significant for Australia, has been low-key in its criticisms.     

Greenland from a Commonwealth Perspective

A Commonwealth perspective provides a useful comparative framework for understanding Greenland’s contemporary situation. There are parallels between the constitutional evolution of the Commonwealth, particularly in relation to the British dominions, and Greenland’s autonomous status within the Kingdom of Denmark. There is also a useful Commonwealth perspective on the issue of whether financial support from a metropole continues or becomes less in the event of an autonomous territory moving to full independence. Greenland’s situation also warrants comparison with the many small states within the Commonwealth, given that an independent Greenland would be very much a small state in population terms. As a predominantly indigenous Inuit society, Greenland can also be compared with ‘developed’ Commonwealth countries such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand where indigenous issues are important even though indigenous peoples are in a minority. Going beyond the comparative perspective, Greenland is relevant to specific Commonwealth countries, most notably Canada and the United Kingdom; other Commonwealth countries such as Singapore, India and Australia also have some interests relating to Greenland. Also beyond the comparative perspective Greenland is significant not just for the Commonwealth but for the whole world because of its position in relation to climate change.     

Comparison of glass fragments using particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) spectrometry

A procedure has been developed to analyze the trace element concentrations in glass fragments using particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) spectrometry. This method involves using accelerated protons to excite inner-shell electronic transitions of target atoms and recording the resultant X-rays to characterize the trace element concentrations. The protocol was able to identify those glass fragments that originated from different sources based on their elemental analyses. The protocol includes specific approaches to calculating uncertainties and handling measurements below the level of detection. The results indicate that this approach has increased sensitivity for several elements with higher atomic number compared with X-ray fluorescence methods. While not as sensitive as laser-ablation or inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry methods of dissolved samples, it is entirely nondestructive and entails a much simpler sample preparation process that may be used to presort glass fragments for more comprehensive elemental analysis. As such, the technique described may have a niche role in forensic glass analysis.     

Trading places

This paper examines effects that alternative voting systems can have on electoral outcomes in multicandidate elections. Using ballots collected from a county Republican Party special election, we recount the votes using preference-based voting systems and compare the results to the special election outcome. Relative rankings of candidates change across vote counting rules and voting systems. Because candidates trade places depending on rules, there are strong strategic implications for candidates and for those establishing the rules.     

An Exploration of the Historical Background of Criminal Record Checking in the United Kingdom: From the Eighteenth to the Twenty-First Century

Potentially preventable crimes resulting from failures in criminal record checking and recording emerged as problematic in the eighteenth century and have continued up until the present day. Ranging from child abuse to murders, reports suggest that if criminal records had been evident, in some cases unlawful acts may have been prohibited. The historical background to the emergence of criminal record collection and checking in the United Kingdom (UK) is analysed from the mid-eighteenth century. This time period is chosen because it marks a pivotal change in the treatment of criminals, crimes and the start of the policing system in the United Kingdom. As a result of growing societal concerns over public safety and changes in the legal system, the approach in which criminal records have been utilised in employment decision-making has evolved most rapidly in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. The recording, storing and sharing of criminal record information has received most attention only in the past decade. Developments in recruitment-vetting procedures for the protection of vulnerable persons have only emerged in the last 50 years to manage such crimes in the United Kingdom. In 2002 the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) was established in the United Kingdom to ensure safer recruitment decisions could be made in society. However, the question remains whether or not these practices have been and are effective.