Wirtschaftspolitischer Handlungsspielraum im Zeitalter der Globalisierung. Eine empirische Untersuchung am Beispiel von Währungskrisen

This article assesses the popular view that currency crises represent a prime example of the constraints that globalization imposes on governments’ policy autonomy. We show that governments in fact have the possibility to respond to speculative pressure in different ways. Whether or not policymakers succumb to this pressure is not solely determined by economic factors but also a question of political considerations. Political preferences, institutions, and events significantly affect policy responses to currency crises. Our results suggest that national governments retain substantial short-run policy autonomy even in highly internationalized policy areas such as monetary and exchange rate policy.     

Degradation of biomolecules in artificially and naturally aged teeth: implications for age estimation based on aspartic acid racemization and DNA analysis

Postmortem teeth are the most stable structures, and can be used to gain different information (age estimation, genetic data). Over long postmortem intervals (PMI), degradation processes may alter the molecular integrity and thus affect the reliability of applied molecular methods. Whereas some knowledge on the degradation of biomolecules in bone during the PMI exists, data for teeth are lacking. In particular, the impact of degradation processes in dentine on age estimation based on aspartic acid racemization (AAR) cannot be estimated yet. Hence, the molecular stability of both collagen and DNA was analyzed systematically, and their impact on the reliability of age estimation based on AAR and genetic analyses was checked. Two hundred and ten human and 59 porcine teeth were heated (90 degrees C in water) to simulate collagen and DNA diagenesis; 14 naturally aged teeth (PMI: 3 days to 1700 years) were analyzed comparatively. Peptide patterns of cyanogen bromide (CNBr)-cleaved collagen were employed as a new approach to check the collagen integrity. In the same samples, collagen yields, amino acid compositions, AAR in different protein fractions, and DNA integrity were analyzed. In heated human and porcine teeth the collagen content declined during the heating experiment. The amino acid composition in human samples was collagen-like until 12 days of heating. In naturally aged teeth, the collagen yielded from 9.5 to 15%, and no discrepancy of amino acid composition to that of modern collagen was observed. Electrophoresis of CNBr-peptides showed an altered pattern in experimentally degraded samples from day 10 on; naturally aged collagen displayed the typical collagen pattern. AAR increased in all protein fractions with increasing duration of the heating experiment; naturally aged samples displayed a slow accumulation of AAR. DNA degraded progressively, and after 32 h of heat exposure no more DNA was detectable, whereas the amplification of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA was successful up to 48 h. STR typing was reliable up to 16 h, and sex determination up to 40 h of heat exposure. In naturally aged samples of DNA quality, yield and typing success did not correlate with PMI. The data highlight a remarkable stability of collagen dental proteins. Within relevant forensic periods a postmortem rise of AAR under normal conditions is negligible, and analyses of dental DNA has a high chance to be successful. However, after large PMI and/or extreme postmortem conditions age estimation based on AAR and genetic analyses lose their reliability.     

Comparing Attitudinal and Strategic Accounts of Dissenting Behavior on the U.S. Courts of Appeals

Students of judicial behavior have increasingly turned to strategic accounts to understand judicial decision making. Scholarship on the Supreme Court and state high courts suggests that the decision to dissent is better understood in light of strategic considerations rather than simply reflecting ideological disagreement. We investigate whether these findings comport with behavior by judges on the U.S. Courts of Appeals. We develop a spatial model of the decision to dissent that incorporates both attitudinal and strategic elements and subject this model to empirical analysis. We find that ideological disagreement between a judge and the majority opinion writer is a more persuasive explanation of the decision to dissent than a strategic account in which a judge conditions a dissent on whether circuit intervention would obtain the judge's preferred outcome. Though we do not discount the existence of other types of strategic behavior on the Courts of Appeals, our research suggests that strategic accounts of dissenting behavior are not generalizable to all courts .     

Attempted Drug‐facilitated Sexual Assault—Xylazine Intoxication in a Child

There are only a few cases of drug‐facilitated sexual assaults on children reported in the literature so far. Here, a case of a four‐year‐old boy is presented. He was unconscious, and the accompanying adults reported that the child had been at a playground on his own. Returning home, he complained of having been stung and collapsed immediately. Urine and serum samples of the child were investigated. In the toxicological analysis, xylazine, a sedative and muscle relaxant used in animals, was detected. Subsequent quantification by GC/MS after solid‐phase extraction revealed 0.053 mg/L xylazine in serum and approximately 0.63 mg/L in urine. Furthermore, the child was examined by a forensic medical specialist. Police investigations revealed that the godfather, who had been previously accused of sexual abuse of children, had injected the child with the drug, possibly in preparation for a shared bath.     

Examination results and autopsy findings in assaults on elderly people

As the percentage of elderly people in the population grows, violence against persons of advanced age constitutes an increasing social problem. The findings of the clinical forensic examinations (CE group) and autopsies performed on elderly violence victims (> or = 60 years) between 1999 and 2008 at the Institute of Legal Medicine of the Hanover Medical School were retrospectively analysed. In all, the study material comprised 55 victims of the CE group (35 females and 20 males, median age 73.5 years) and 55 autopsies (33 females and 22 males, median age 72.7 years). In most of the autopsy cases, the suspect was a family member or partner. In contrast, the alleged perpetrator was a stranger in most cases of the CE group. Blunt force injuries were most often found in the CE group victims (63.6%). Altogether, 38.2% (CE group) and 20.0% (autopsy cases) of the violent assaults were associated with robbery. In the majority of the CE cases, the victims suffered potentially or acute life-threatening injuries. In summary, the analysis shows that elderly people frequently become victims of robbery and blunt force injury. In most homicides of old people, the perpetrator is familiar to the victim. In surviving elderly violence victims, the assault is more likely to be reported to the police if the suspect is a stranger.     

Clinical forensic examination findings in assault cases among adolescents

Child and youth criminality has risen markedly over the past 25 years and causes increasing concern to the general public. The clinical forensic examination cases of youth violence victims examined at the Institute of Legal Medicine of the Hanover Medical School and its Oldenburg Branch between 1999 and 2008 were retrospectively analyzed. In all, 55 adolescents (37 females, 18 males; median age 15.5 years) were examined. In most cases the suspect was a close (40.0%) or passing (23.6%) acquaintance. 16 assaults were committed by two or more adolescents jointly. Most of the juveniles were victims of sexual assaults (56.4%). In 15 victims of sexual offences (51.7%) diagnostic findings were obtained on the basis of anogenital injuries and/or the presence of sperm. In summary, the analysis shows that adolescents frequently become victims of sexual assault. In addition, youth violence is often committed in a group.     

Unexpected Serotonin Syndrome,Epileptic Seizures,and Cerebral Edema Following 2,5‐dimethoxy‐4‐bromophenethylamine Ingestion

4‐bromo‐2,5‐dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C‐B) is a designer drug. In Europe, 2C‐B is easily obtained and used for recreational purposes. It is known for its stimulating effects similar to those of 3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine, although in higher doses it has more hallucinogenic effects. Here, we report a case of 2C‐B ingestion, confirmed by liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry, in an 18‐year‐old man. The neurological consequences were severe, including the development of serotonin syndrome and severe brain edema. Supportive therapy resulted in a stable condition, although, after several months, the patient still suffered from severe neurological impairment due to the drug‐induced toxicity. This case showed that 2C‐B could not be identified with the drugs of abuse screening routinely used in Dutch hospitals. The use of 2C‐B carries many risks, with potentially profound neurological damage, that both consumers and healthcare physicians are unaware of.