Myanmar and the argument for engagement: A clash of contending moralities?

Through an analysis of Myanmar’s history, together with the instability that arose in consequence of it, this paper argues that the international community needs to overcome its policy divide by embracing a combination of diplomatic pressure and targeted engagement designed to enhance, in the long-term, the security and stability, of Myanmar and its people. While the idea of even limited engagement may be repugnant to some, the analysis will show that the ‘middle path’ advocated by this paper represents the best sustainable option to resolve the crisis in Myanmar.     

Book reviews

Professor Jay W. Forrester's book, Urban Dynamics, is an important, but controversial, contribution in the area of computer simulation of urban problems. This article presents a critical examination of this book.     

Regulation of technology transfer: The Mexican experience

Beginning some 20 years ago, regulation of technology transfer became common-place in a number of developing countries. Whether such regulation could prove beneficial was often questioned, particularly in the industrialized world. But with a 15–20 year history to study, we can now look at the impact that regulation has had. Mexico presents a good case study, as its original law was one of the earliest, and the country's political continuity has led to a detectable evolvement of the technology-transfer process that allows analysis of various factors over time.     

The social construction of criminal responsibility and insanity

This study examines the effects of judicial instructions (traditional American Law Institute [ALI] not guilty by reason of insanity [NGRI] instructions contrasted with ALI instructions supplemented with the guilty but mentally ill [GBMI] alternative) and case information cues (delusional content and planfulness) on student and community subjects' attributions of responsibility. GBMI instructions substantially reduced the probability of NGRI and guilty verdicts in response to vignettes portraying highly psychotic defendants and altered the pattern of variability in responsibility construal ratings. Variation in delusional content cues (self-defense versus non-self-defense) influenced ratings of criminal appreciation but did not affect the verdict distributions. Less planfully commited crimes resulted in higher proportions of insanity verdicts. However, individual differences in responsibility construals of the defendant and in attitudes toward the insanity defense were stronger predictors of verdicts than the design variables, suggesting that individual differences in social-moral cognition are at least as relevant to the attribution of responsibility as are case cues or legal frames of reference. Contrary to previous studies,Witherspoon death penalty attitudes were not related to verdicts, but people without conscientious scruples toward the death penalty were more likely to render guilty verdicts.     

Studies of toxic gas production during actual structural fires in the Dallas area

Gases produced during structural fires were studied as to their potential toxicities. Carbon monoxide was the only gas measured in concentrations considered to be lethal within a short period of time. No correlations were found between gases produced and materials burning. However, significant correlations were discovered between gases produced and the physical aspects of the fire (intensity, burning rate, and the like). The organic compounds identified within the gases gave insight as to another potential health hazard not yet considered. These organic compounds are the products of free radical reactions and as free radicals their potential as toxics is enormous.