Fatal Drowning Accident and Undiagnosed Hydrocephalus

Abstract: Bodies found in water present several diagnostic challenges for the forensic examiner, such as the identification of the time and mechanism of death, the postmortem submersion time, and above all the circumstances of drowning. We report the case of a 33‐year‐old security guard found dead in Venice, in the water of the lagoon, who at autopsy presented a previously undiagnosed hydrocephalus with macrocephaly. The victim remained asymptomatic until 2 months before death and had never undergone a neurological or radiological examination. In the article, we emphasize the need to perform a thorough autopsy in all suspected drownings, discuss the etiopathogenesis of the neurological disease and hypothesize a possible relationship between the hydrocephalus and the drowning accident. Finally, we discuss the major clinical and forensic implications of macrocephaly and hydrocephalus in adults.     

The contribution of university research to the growth of academic start-ups: an empirical analysis

The aim of this paper is to analyze empirically under which circumstances the universities located in a geographical area contribute to the growth of a special category of local new technology-based firms (NTBFs), those established by academic personnel (academic start-ups, ASUs). We examine the effects of a series of characteristics of local universities on the growth rates of ASUs and we compare them with the effects of the same university characteristics on the growth of other (i.e., non-academic) NTBFs. In the empirical part of the paper, we estimate an augmented Gibrat law panel data model using a longitudinal dataset composed of 487 Italian NTBFs observed from 1994 to 2003. Out of these NTBFs 48 are ASUs. The results of the econometric estimates suggest that universities do influence the growth rates of local ASUs, while the effects on the growth rates of other NTBFs are negligible. In particular, the scientific quality of the research performed by universities has a positive effect on the growth rates of ASUs; conversely the commercial orientation of research has a negative effect. These results indicate that universities producing high-quality scientific research have a beneficial impact on the growth of local high-tech start-ups, but only if these firms are able to detect, absorb, and use this knowledge. In this perspective, a greater commercial orientation of university research leading to a reduction of the knowledge available for absorption by these companies, can be detrimental.     

Statistical analysis of DNA mixtures using peak area information and allelic drop out

A case of a woman killed in Perugia is reported. The woman was beaten to death and the body showed evidence of bites, kicks and punches. The request of the Court was to verify the presence of bites and if they belonged to humans. Morphological examination and genetic analysis with human Y-specific markers were performed in order to verify the origin of the bites. The DNA profile from the surrounded area of the traces was compared with the profile of the victim's husband (the suspect).The results showed a match between the profile of the suspect and that of the traces for all loci examined. Due to the fact that also other relatives of the husband's male lineage lived in the same house, it was not possible to identify the man who really contributed to the traces. Therefore, the analysis was implemented with autosomal STR markers, which showed a mixed genetic profile. In order to verify the number and the identity of the contributors, statistical analysis based upon peak area information was performed with Probabilistic Expert Systems.     

The observer actant in the contemporary legal discourse: a semiotic meditation*

ABSTRACT

The sensorial access to the law that a society grants to its members is underpinned by a logic of exhibition and disclosure that, in turn, results from a more abstract cultural propensity to either transparency or opacity. Through investigating the systems of signs by which the functioning of the law is either concealed to external audiences or manifested to them in a more or less spectacular way, one can gain a firmer grasp on the juridical aesthetics of a society. This semiotic approach entails two advantages: on the one hand, the possibility to compare and contrast different regimes of disclosure and secrecy in the synchronic dimension, connecting the discourse of the law with other – apparently distant – types of discourse, adopting the same aesthetics of transparency or opaqueness in other domains of social life and discursive production; on the other hand, the opportunity for a more insightful intelligence of the diachronic development of such aesthetics, so that it may be interpreted as the long-term byproduct of historical watersheds in the history of culture. The article, in particular, proposes to link the socio-pathology of anorexia with several other practices and texts of present-day culture that adopt the same rhetoric of transparency in other discursive arena, including that of law. In all these sign productions, indeed, the trend that predominates is one that, adhering to an ideology of immediacy and transparency, pretends to eliminate all filters, all hindrances, but also all material signifiers that would mar the purity of the content. Although this utopia cannot correspond to any actual semiotic state – for any content needs a material expression to be conveyed – it nevertheless exerts a powerful influence on the present time, until it manifests itself in extreme forms of ‘transparentist’ radicalism.     

Two cases of acute propane/butane poisoning in prison

Hydrocarbon inhalation is seldom chosen as a means to commit suicide. This practice is exclusively a prerogative of the prison population; it is, however, only exceptionally found in this environment. The two cases of lethal inhalation of propane/butane gas observed by us over a very short time occurred in this context. Toxicologic analyses were performed by means of gas chromatography (head space) and revealed a propane/butane mixture in all specimens (heart blood, bile, and urine) except vitreous humor. Although fatal arrhythmia posthydrocarbon gas abuse is well known, the concentrations of the two hydrocarbons were sufficient to induce death by asphyxiation and were distributed (fairly) homogeneously in all biological fluids and organs examined, a parameter permitting one to assume that death occurred within a relatively short period of time. The absence of finding in vitreous humor and the trace amount in urine suggests that both men died very quickly.     

Crimes Against Humanity and the Limits of International Criminal Law

Crimes against humanity are supposed to have a collective dimension with respect both to their victims and their perpetrators. According to the orthodox view, these crimes can be committed by individuals against individuals, but only in the context of a widespread or systematic attack against the group to which the victims belong. In this paper I offer a new conception of crimes against humanity and a new justification for their international prosecution. This conception has important implications as to which crimes can be justifiably prosecuted and punished by the international community. I contend that the scope of the area of international criminal justice that deals with basic human rights violations should be wider than is currently acknowledged, in that it should include some individual violations of human rights, rather than only violations that have a collective dimension.     

Italy in international politics: October 1st ‐ december 31st, 1969

The financial crisis has prompted an extensive debate on the lessons to be learned, particularly from a regulatory point of view, and especially in Europe where the crisis could mean a serious setback for financial integration. The Larosière Report has set out guidelines for improving the European regulatory framework and has inspired a proposal for European legislation. Although the Report has been praised for its effort to overhaul European financial regulation, many details are still vague. In particular, there are seven points at the macro-level of prudential supervision on which clearer and tougher solutions are needed. Furthermore, there are two unresolved problems in the proposals for micro-supervision. It is important to take all of these issues into account in the future discussion on European legislation.