Validation of thin layer chromatography with AccuTOF-DART™ detection for forensic drug analysis

Abstract: Thin layer chromatography (TLC) is a technique that is commonly employed in the forensic drug analysis of pharmaceutical preparations. Detection is typically accomplished using various visualization spray reagents. Conventional gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC‐MS) analysis is typically performed to confirm the TLC results. Depending on the drugs tested and the instrument conditions required, this confirmation can take up to an hour to complete. Direct analysis in real time (DART?) is an ionization source, coupled to an accurate‐mass time‐of‐flight mass spectrometer that has the capability to ionize materials under ambient conditions. To streamline analysis, the combination of TLC with DART? detection is proposed to screen and subsequently identify drug compounds, all from the same TLC plate. DART? confirmations of TLC analyses take <10 min to complete and compare favorably to GC‐MS in sensitivity and selectivity. This study validates the use of TLC‐DART in the forensic identification of the components of several pharmaceutical preparations.     

The total effects of boot camps that house juveniles: A systematic review of the evidence

Boot camp programs were first introduced in the 1980s, became increasingly popular as a correctional sanction, and were widely adopted and implemented throughout the United States. This study involved an examination of the prevalence of state run boot camps for juvenile delinquents and a systematic review of the existing evaluations of boot camp programs that house juveniles. In addition to the effects of boot camps on recidivism, within program effects on participants’ attitudes and perceptions of boot camp, and jurisdiction-level effects on bed space were examined. Findings revealed that boot camps are less prevalent than they were in the 1990s. Boot camps, by themselves, typically do not have an effect on participants’ odds of recidivism. Boot camps do seem to improve individuals’ attitudes and other behaviors within programs. Boot camps also appear to reduce the number of confinement beds jurisdictions require, often resulting in cost savings. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for research and practice.     

Why does bureaucratic corruption occur in the EU?

Why does bureaucratic corruption occur in the EU system? Several examples suggest that bureaucratic corruption exists and that the Commission’s anti-fraud agency, OLAF, is not a fully independent authority. We thus develop a novel interpretation of the principal-supervisor-agent model to cope with non-independent anti-fraud units. This model shows that corruption is likely to occur when the expected value to the client from bribing the agent is larger than the expected value to the principal of truth-telling by the supervisor. Overall, this analysis points to the risks of flawed incentives and the lack of institutional independence among principal, agent, supervisor and client. Our main policy recommendations as a result of these findings are that OLAF should be placed outside the Commission, and that whistleblowers should receive adequate protection.     

British power and stability: The historical record

What explains the persistence and proliferation of the resident ambassador? Why is the role apparently important both to the conduct of international affairs and to the work of governments? I do not try to propose a new theory of ambassadors, but I do offer conclusions about the nature of living in a globalized society of states where the economic logic of markets and the political logic of communities are at cross‐purposes. It is a world in which we depend on institutions to help us maintain order and stability. Ambassadors are one of those institutions. At one level they are the concrete day by day reproduction of the society of states. At another level they act on behalf of the members of their community, helping that community to maintain its strength and cohesion by doing what needs to be done, abroad. An increase in the intensity of interactions among states, therefore, seems to lead to an increase in diplomatic representation facilitated rather than impeded by the new technologies of transportation and communications. Ambassadors are still lying abroad, it seems, because changes in technology have brought ‘abroad’ much closer to home while the myriad effects of globalization have made much more of abroad relevant to people and their governments. Far from being in decline, the resident ambassador seems likely to continue flourishing.     

How robust is the welfare state when facing open borders? An evolutionary game-theoretic model

How robust is the welfare state when confronting open borders? To answer that question, we develop an evolutionary game-theoretic model combined with an ingroup–outgroup model. The simulations reveal that welfare states in general will transform into low-welfare societies unless the societies in time generate a sufficiently large amount of social recognition of the reciprocators in such a crisis. The recognition implies that the “always cooperators” in favour of supportive policies towards free riders need to step down and hand over privileges to those willing to reciprocate, namely the “willing punishers”. The open-border society is modelled by letting a small amount of random types enter the society each year. Interestingly, it is not the defectors who compromise high-welfare societies. Instead, it is the excessive presence of cooperators who crowd out the reciprocators, thus making society increasingly vulnerable to free riding. This accentuates the need for timely recognition and actions against the risk of moving towards a low-welfare society.

     

Religion und Wirtschaft. Mauss,Simiand und das Durkheim’sche Programm

Berliner Journal für Soziologie - Der Artikel zeigt auf, dass das Werk Emile Durkheims zwei Forschungsprogramme im Bereich der Wirtschaftssoziologie umfasst. Beim ersten liegt der Schwerpunkt...