规范构成要件要素与明确性原则关系之辨正

在规范构成要件要素与明确性原则关系的探讨中,传统刑法理论从明确性原则角度审视规范构成要件要素,往往自陷困惑。如果从规范构成要件要素本身存在的原则基础出发,审视其与明确性原则之间的关系或许是一个很好的观察视角。     

US Patent and Trademark Office refuses registration of flavour trade mark

In a case of first impression, the Trademark Trial and AppealBoard of the US Patent and Trademark Office has held that theflavour orange is not registrable for use with quick-dissolvingantidepressant tablets and pills.     

S&;T Parks and business incubators in middle-sized countries: the case of greece

This paper links the policy context regarding S&T parks to the objectives and characteristics of the established parks and incubators in a relatively small, converging European country. S&T parks and incubators in Greece during the past decade and a half have gradually shifted in terms of ownership and management from university/research institute to the private sector and in terms of financing from public to private funds, also involving the provision of seed capital and access to venture capital. This gradual shift toward more private engagement has created a variety of models out of which, it is hoped, successful innovative companies will emerge in larger numbers than in the past.

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Comments on the Comments

Abstract. The paper replies to Bix and Soper ( Bix 2007 ; Soper 2007 ). Bix's paper raises methodological questions, especially whether a form‐theorist merely needs to reflect on form from the arm‐chair so to speak. A variety of methods is called for, including conceptual analysis, study of usage, “education in the obvious,” general reflection on the nature of specific functional legal units, empirical research on their operation and effects, and still more. Further methodological remarks are made in response to Soper's paper. Soper suggests the possibility of substituting “form v. substance” of a unit as the central contrast here rather than form v. complementary material or other components of a unit. Various reasons are given here for not doing this. Among other things, it is also argued here that form does not, contrary to Soper's suggestion, always follow substance.     

A Desultory Defense of Democracy: OAS Resolution 1080 and the Inter-American Democratic Charter

This article evaluates the effectiveness of OAS mechanisms for safeguarding democracy through multilateral diplomacy, what some scholars have dubbed the interamerican defense of democracy regime. Drawing on a range of international relations theories, this study derives competing hypotheses about member states' responses to democratic crises in the Americas. It then analyzes all instances in which a collective response—that is, an application of Resolution 1080 or the Inter-American Democratic Charter—was debated in the OAS between 1991 and 2002. Patterns of state behavior suggest that domestic politics, rather than the structural or systemic traits of the interamerican system, best explain foreign policy responses to crises of democracy in the region. The OAS record in confronting such crises is uneven.     

The judicial role in life-sustaining medical treatment decisions.

Although there has been speculation regarding the pervasiveness and nature of judicial decisions regarding life-sustaining medical treatment (LSMT), no attempt has been made to empirically assess their prevalence or the issues they address. An exploratory study utilizing a mail survey of a nationwide random sample (N = 905) of state trial court judges was conducted to provide initial information regarding this decision-making process. Twenty-two percent of the responding judges had heard at least one LSMT case, and judicial review did not appear endemic to particular states. The number of judges hearing LSMT cases dropped from 1975 to 1981 but has increased since then. Three major issues predominate: patient competency, appointment of a surrogate decisionmaker, and resolution of the ultimate issue of forgoing LSMT. Relatively few cases either contested a prior directive's validity or involved imposing sanctions for instituting or forgoing LSMT. Although subject to different interpretations, the results suggest the courts are having a significant impact on certain aspects of the LSMT decision-making process. However, the infrequency with which any one judge is called upon to make an LSMT decision causes concern about the judiciary's ability to respond in a timely and appropriate manner. With their potential for a profound effect on the actions of health care providers, greater attention to this decision-making process is warranted.     

A unique case of congenital bilateral absence of parietal bones in a neonate

The remains of an unidentified female neonate were discovered in a field in central Missouri. Examination revealed bilateral absence of the parietal bones. A search of the literature describing similar defects suggests that the present case represents a unique condition, described here for the first time.     

伊朗问题的走向分析

美伊交恶已久,近来因伊朗核开发问题更是剑拔弩张。然而,伊朗核问题和平解决的可能性依旧存在,其中有美国中东政策的重点是否转移、伊朗利用核能的界限是否突破、国际社会的牵制作用以及美伊仍有互相妥协的余地等因素。但如果伊朗不能适时调整强硬政策,美国对伊动武的可能就会增大。     

津巴布韦严重的经济与政治危机剖析

当前,津巴布韦面临严重的经济与政治危机:工、农业生产持续衰退,通货膨胀率居高不下,债台高筑,国民经济总体状况恶化;国内各种政治势力不断制造事端;西方国家对穆加贝政权持续施压。这种危机状况既源于穆加贝政权抗衡西方式民主制而遭受西方国家的制裁,也与国内土地改革产生的负效应等因素不无关系。津巴布韦的经济与政治危机已引起国际社会密切关注。非洲国家,主要是南部非洲国家,寻求在穆加贝继续执政的框架内找到解决问题的办法。而以英、美为主导的西方国家执意继续施压,执意欲搞垮穆加贝政权。对此,津巴布韦政府通过平抑物价、实行企业股份本地化两项措施,以期缓解社会矛盾和改善民生。