A note on portraying the accuracy of violence predictions

We discuss two major reviews of the accuracy of dichotomous (yes/no) violence predictions (Monahan, 1981; Otto, 1992), which reported rates offalse positive errors that were calculated using conceptually and mathematically dissimilar methods. We outline potential problems that result from analyzing data in the form of 2×2 contingency tables and offer some recommendations for future research on the prediction of violence.     

Autopsy artifact created by the Revivant AutoPulse resuscitation device

In certain cases, the evaluation and correct identification of resuscitative artifacts is critical to the correct diagnosis and determination of the cause and manner of death. Resuscitative artifacts can resemble homicidal or accidental injury and thus possibly be misinterpreted. Occasionally, new technologies and/or medical procedures will create original and/or distinctive artifacts. In 2003, the San Francisco Fire Department emergency personnel began field-testing the Revivant AutoPulse, an automated chest compression device. This device is currently being used in two other counties in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as regions of Florida, Virginia, and Ohio. We present three cases of resuscitative artifact that could be potentially confused with homicidal or accidental injury. These cases illustrate resuscitative artifacts, specifically lateral chest and horizontally oriented upper abdomen cutaneous abrasions created by this automated chest compression device.     

Fracture pattern interpretation in the skull: differentiating blunt force from ballistics trauma using concentric fractures

There have been several anthropological studies on trauma analysis in recent literature, but few studies have focused on the differences between the three mechanisms of trauma (sharp force trauma, blunt force trauma and ballistics trauma). The hypothesis of this study is that blunt force and ballistics fracture patterns in the skull can be differentiated using concentric fractures. Two-hundred and eleven injuries from skulls exhibiting concentric fractures were examined to determine if the mechanism of trauma could be determined by beveling direction. Fractures occurring in buttressed and non-buttressed regions were examined separately. Contingency tables and Pearson's Chi-Square were used to evaluate the relationship between the two variables (the mechanism of trauma and the direction of beveling), while Pearson's r correlation was used to determine the strength of the relationship. Contingency tables and Chi-square tests among the entire sample, the buttressed areas, and the non-buttressed areas led to the null hypothesis (no relationship) to be rejected. Pearson's r correlation indicated that the relationship between the variables studied is greater than chance allocation.     

When Am I My Group? Self-Enhancement Versus Self-Justification Accounts of Perceived Prototypicality

The tendency to view the self as a prototypic member of a group is thought to be at the foundation of many social psychological phenomena. Two opposing accounts of perceived prototypicality have been suggested in the psychological literature. The self-justification account portrays this as a defensive tendency that occurs in response to threatened group status. The self-enhancement account portrays this as a strategic tendency to associate the self with positively viewed groups. These competing views were tested using both a minimal group (Study 1) and a naturalistic group (Study 2). Both studies showed that perceived prototypicality increased with increasing group status. Moreover, the effect of status was moderated by group importance (Study 1) and behavioral choice (Study 2). Both interaction patterns supported the self-enhancement view, suggesting that people view themselves as prototypic group members when doing so will promote a positive identity. These findings contradict common statements in the social identity literature.     

CREATING NEW TECHNOLOGY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS: A SYSTEM DYNAMICS MODEL

While the study of mature organizations and bureaucracies is well established, there has been comparatively little examination of the creation and development of new organizations. What work has been done is highly fragmented, primarily by discipline, and concentrates on different facets of a complex phenomenon. Following a literature review and classification this article attempts a conceptual integration; it proposes a system dynamics model for the creation and development of one particular organizational type: new, technology based organizations. Drawing upon concepts from ecology, the central concept of the model is that new venture creation takes place within, and is thus dependent upon, a larger context of "ecosystem" consisting of environmental resources (technical expertise, capital, services) and existing inhabitants (individuals, firms, and institutions). Intraorganizational factors are also discussed including a set of proposed measures for new venture success. The article closes with some suggestions for the direction of future research and describes a research project the authors have recently begun.     

B. Review article

There are two works which are tailor‐made for a short ‘double‐barrelled’ review article. They are: (a) Akbar S.Ahmed, Millennium and Charisma among Pathans: A Critical Essay in Social Anthropology (London, Henley and Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul, Ltd., 1976), pp.173 (price not indicated, but around £4.50); (b) idem, Pukhtun Economy and Society: Traditional Structure and Economic Development in a Tribal Society (London, Henley and Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul, Ltd., 1980), pp.406, diagrams, maps, plates (price not indicated but around £15.00 or $35.00).     

Combined DNA Typing and Protein Identification from Unfired Brass Cartridges,,,

Biological evidence analysis from contact traces is adversely affected by low quantity and quality of DNA. Proteins in these samples contain potentially individualizing information and may be particularly important for difficult surfaces such as brass, where DNA may yield incomplete profiles. In this study, touched unfired brass cartridges were sampled using dry tape or wet swabs and analyzed by separating DNA and protein from the same collected material, thus producing both genomic and proteomic information. DNA recovery was similar for both collection methods, with tape yielding an average of 1.36 ± 1.87 ng and swabs, 1.34 ± 3.04 ng. Analysis by mass spectrometry identified 95 proteins, with the two collection methods showing no significant difference (p = 0.76) in the average number of collected proteins: 44.5 ± 10.9, (tape) versus 47.9 ± 20.4 (swabs). Proteins can be collected from fingerprints at levels necessary to provide identifying information, thus expanding information obtained from challenging evidence.