A Comparison Between Digital Radiography,Computed Tomography,and Magnetic Resonance in the Detection of Gunshot Residues in Burnt Tissues and Bone

The radiological search for GSR is crucial in burnt material although it has been rarely tested. In this study, thirty‐one bovine ribs were shot at near‐contact range and burnt to calcination in an oven simulating a real combustion. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) were performed before and after carbonization and compared with former analyses with DR (digital radiography); thus comparing the assistance, the radiological methods can provide in the search for GSR in fresh and burnt bone. DR demonstrated the greatest ability in the detection of metallic residues, CT showed lower abilities, while MR showed a high sensitivity only in soft tissues. Thus, DR can be considered as the most sensitive method in the detection of GSR in charred bones, whereas CT and MR demonstrated much less reliability. Nonetheless, the MR ameliorates the analysis of gunshot wounds in other types of remains with large quantities of soft tissues.     

The mourning process and “living with the dead”: Two case reports and a review of the literature

The discovery of mummified bodies in domestic settings is not unusual in the medico‐legal context. It is often a marker of social isolation, even in our urban modern society, and usually occurs among elderly people living alone or in precarious conditions. However, bereaved subjects can sometimes be found managing their grief by deliberately keeping the corpses of their loved ones at home. Investigation of these atypical cases can be challenging and often requires a multidisciplinary effort by different forensic specialists. We report two cases of people who lived for several months with the mummified remains of a relative. In both cases, the judge ordered a forensic psychiatry assessment of the survivors’ competency and the reasons for this peculiar behavior, which is regarded as abnormal in our society. Case 1 describes a shared psychosis, which developed out of a condition of extreme seclusion of the entire family. Case 2 shows that even a mild personality disorder on which a series of traumatic events operates can trigger psychotic decompensation, causing extreme denial of the reality of death. The analysis of these cases contributes to our knowledge of the scantly studied phenomenon of “Living with the Dead” and raises questions about the psychopathology behind it. It is useful to identify subjects who are more prone to developing this “deviant” behavior, in order to distinguish people with mental illness from those who merely want to profit from the death of a loved one.     

An Empirical Study of Patent Grant Rates as a Function of Race and Gender

In this article we examine the rate at which patent applications are granted as a function of the inventor's race and gender. Empirical analysis of more than 3.9 million U.S. applications finds minority and women applicants are significantly less likely to secure a patent relative to the balance of inventors. Further analysis indicates that a portion of this bias is introduced during prosecution at the Patent Office, independent of the quality of the application. Mechanisms underlying these disparities are explored. The article concludes with a discussion of our results and their interaction with patent law, innovation policy, and employment trends.     

尚昌平和她的南疆

<正>After more than 50 visits there since her fi rst one two decades ago,Shang Changping has an abiding love of southern Xinjiang.When she travels around the oasis of Taklimakan Desert,she feels every cottage could be her second home,she says.While 20 years passed,she matured from a girl to a woman,and her love and understanding of Xinjang became more profound.She even speaks with a Xinjiang accent!     

专家辅助人出庭质证规则研究

现代科学技术的迅猛发展对司法审判产生了巨大的影响,各种科学问题、技术证据、鉴定意见呈现于法庭,法官在审判案件中由于知识和经验的局限性而难以判断,在此背景下专家辅助人制度应运而生。英美法系有专家证人制度,存在完善的以交叉询问为主的专家证人出庭质证规则,大陆法系国家和地区有诉讼辅助人制度,虽然立法中没有明确的出庭质证规则,但是有完善的鉴定人出庭质证规则。我国当前专家辅助人出庭质证规则没有明确的规定,但准用证人出庭质证规则。不过目前缺乏进一步的理论阐述,且简单直接适用也存在问题,同时缺乏系统的、具体的、具有可操作性的质证规则。对此笔者提出构建专家辅助人出庭质证规则的建议。     

新世纪马来西亚华文教育研究综述

马来西亚是除中国大陆、台湾、港澳地区以外唯一保留华文教育体系的国家并且华文教育体系完备,具有鲜明的国别特点。对2000年以来马来西亚华文教育的相关文献进行梳理和归纳,主要是整体状况、学校、教材、课程、师资与学习动机六个主题。新世纪马来西亚华文教育总体呈现以下五个特点:华文教育的推广和国家建设之间的博弈;各层次华文学校皆在夹缝中生存;华文教材和课程体系不完善且水平参差不齐;华文师资紧缺且教师专业素质不高;华文学习动机体现了深层次的语言意识形态。马来西亚华文教育在华人的努力和奋斗下,整体上既有困境和挑战也有光明的未来,发展道路并不平坦,但由于各种国际和国内因素的交织,尚有较大的发展空间。     

Ingredients of institutional reputations and citizen engagement with regulators

The purpose of this study is to examine the link between the reputational components of efficacy and moral reliability of institutions, and citizens' compliance with institutional recommendations. Research on bureaucratic reputations highlights the significance of positive political reputations based on credibility and legitimacy, but the impact of these components is not systematically isolated and studied. We draw insights from political psychology to move beyond a positive‐negative valence‐based approach of reputation, and highlight the different effect of efficacy and moral reliability components of reputation on citizens' cooperation, engagement in water saving activities, and levels of complaints. We use the Cypriot Water Authority as a case study and inquire how its institutional reputation influences Cypriot citizens' behavior regarding water use. Our data was collected via a representative national survey administered to a random sample of 800 Cypriots in the spring of 2009 and show that favorable perceptions of particular components of institutional reputation shape the levels of satisfaction with specific organizational outputs.     

One Hundred and One Cases of Plastic Bag Suffocation in the Milan Area Between 1993 and 2013—Correlations,Circumstances, Pathological and Forensic Evidences and Literature Review

Plastic Bag Suffocation is a rare cause of death in developed countries and almost unknown in the rest of the world. This study aims to retrospectively evaluate cases of PBS _asphyxia in Milan's Department of Legal Medicine from 1993 to 2013. Cases were selected from the database of 21,472 autopsies performed in the considered timeframe. One hundred and one cases were considered to be cases of Plastic Bag Suffocation, comprised of 100 suicides, no accidental events and 1 homicide. The most relevant elements pertaining to this type of death were evaluated for both the corpses and the crime scenes. From this study the typical PBS victim is an adult male, aged 52.3 years on average, depressed or afflicted by chronic or terminal diseases, and found at home. In 42.6% of cases, the victims were found with the plastic bag still positioned over their head, fastened by tying. Also common among these cases are drugs, alcohol and chemical abuses. According to the collected data, it is impossible to outline a pathognomonic detrimental background that leads to this cause of death. Crime scene investigation is, therefore, the one and only technical resource for evaluating these cases.