Where Judicial Politics Are Legislative Politics: The French Constitutional Council

Judges on France's ordinary and administrative courts make law and policy by interpreting and applying statutes, but the Constitutional Council is overtly involved in policy‐making. The Council serves as a type of ‘third’ chamber of the French parliament, where it may annul unconstitutional legislation, ‘constitu‐tionalise’ various legal principles, and sometimes even prescribe the precise terms of legislation. This ‘court‐like’ body, thus, plays a significant and growing role in French policy‐making.     

From the margins of politics: The influence of think‐tanks in Britain

Independent policy research institutes have not been subject to much attention from political scientists. however, these organisations have grown considerably in number in great britain over the past four decades. some of these institutes ‐ which are better known as ‘think‐tanks’ ‐ are often said to be influential. this article outlines the development of the british think‐tank industry and then concentrates on the character of think‐tank influence. think‐tank influence is not limited to affecting the course of legislation but must be understood in broader political and cultural terms.     

Alcohol loss arising from microbial contamination of drivers' blood specimens

This paper describes the circumstances in which some drivers' blood specimens containing added sodium fluoride (1% w/v concentration) deteriorated as a result of microbial contamination, accompanied by a decrease of alcohol concentration. Strains of the bacteria Serratia marcescens and a Pseudomonas sp. were isolated from the specimens and proven capable of growing at ambient temperature in blood containing sodium fluoride at 1% w/v concentration. They were shown to be active in alcohol degradation in preservatised blood, the activity being dependent on sodium fluoride concentration and storage temperature. Blood diluters were assumed to be a source of microbial cross contamination from one blood specimen to the next. It is recommended that postmortem blood specimens be analysed in separate batches from drivers' specimens when automated blood diluters are used, that the content of fluoride ions be increased to an equivalent of 2% w/v sodium fluoride, and that storage of specimens at temperatures above 4 degrees C be minimised.     

An experimental study of powder tattooing of the skin.

Test firings were conducted on specially prepared live rabbits to determine the approximate maximum ranges at which powder tattooing occurs for different forms of gunpowder. For .38 caliber, powder tattooing from cartridges loaded with flake powder disappears at a range of 18 to 24 in. (0.4 to 0.6 m). Powder tattooing with flattened ball powder extends to 36 in. (0.9 m), while that due to ball powder extends to 48 in. (1.2m) of range. In .22 caliber, powder tattooing was observed out to 24 in. (0.6 m) with flake powder and 18 in. (0.4 m) with flattened ball. Attempts to reproduce the animal powder tattoo patterns on paper revealed that the paper patterns are consistent with skin tattoo patterns only up to 18 in (0.4 m) of range.     

Duverger's Laws: Between social and institutional determinism

Abstract. The purpose of this article is to relocate Duverger's Laws within the debate about the effects of electoral systems on the number of parties. Although Duverger's theory has always been seen as the best example of a purely institutionalist approach to the issue, it is possible to argue that this is only true if one overemphasises the meaning of the laws without considering Duverger's justification and explanations for them. However, if one takes into consideration not only the laws, but also Duverger's theories about the effects of electoral systems on the number of parties as a whole, one can argue that his theses do not have a purely institutionalist character and can therefore coexist with theories that try to take into account variables other than electoral rules.     

The Design and Implementation of Cross-Sector Collaborations: Propositions from the Literature

People who want to tackle tough social problems and achieve beneficial community outcomes are beginning to understand that multiple sectors of a democratic society—business, nonprofits and philanthropies, the media, the community, and government—must collaborate to deal effectively and humanely with the challenges. This article focuses on cross-sector collaboration that is required to remedy complex public problems. Based on an extensive review of the literature on collaboration, the article presents a propositional inventory organized around the initial conditions affecting collaboration formation, process, structural and governance components, constraints and contingencies, outcomes, and accountability issues.