Repression and Monarchical Resilience in the Arab Gulf States

Why the uprisings that broke out across the Middle East and North Africa in 2010-11 ousted the leaders of republics but left monarchies largely intact remains puzzling. One promising explanation for the resilience of monarchical regimes argues that monarchs exercise repression in a comparatively restrained and largely effective fashion. Proponents of this theory tend to conflate two crucial causal factors: the level of state coercion exercised against opposition activists and the degree of indiscriminateness with which coercion is deployed. By treating these variables as analytically distinct, a more compelling explanation for monarchical resilience can be advanced. The advantages of the revised argument are illustrated by revisiting the divergent trajectories of the uprisings in Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.     

中国入世与菲中贸易

自从１９７９年中国实行改革开放以来,菲中两国的经济关系持续发展。菲律宾对华贸易要比它与世界其他国家的贸易增长得更快。近几年来,我们可以看到,由于菲律宾比素对人民币的比值相对较低,菲律宾对华出口骤增。尽管中国在菲律宾外贸总额中所占的份额已经由８０年代的２％增长到现在的４％,但总的来说仍然偏少。 当前的菲中贸易结构以工业制成品为主体。正如其整体贸易结构一样,菲律宾的对华出口贸易以半成品为主。中国的工业制品则包含更多的制成品——电子产品、金属制品和建筑材料。近几年,在中国对菲律宾出口中消费品、食品及食…     

Autopsy findings in the eyes of fourteen fatally abused children

The eyes of fourteen fatally abused children and sixteen control cases were examined histopathologically. Ten of the abused children showed intraocular change. The most common ocular changes were subdural hemorrhage of the optic nerve and retinal hemorrhage which involved all the layers of the retina, but most commonly the nerve fiber layer, ganglion cell layer and inner nuclear layer. The presence of blood cavities within the retina partially supported the hypothesis of traumatic retinoschisis. The control cases of non-abused children rarely showed intraocular hemorrhage.     

Relationship between the concentration of ethanol and methanol in blood samples from Swedish drinking drivers

Headspace gas chromatography was used to determine the concentration of ethanol and methanol in blood samples from 519 individuals suspected of drinking and driving in Sweden where the legal alcohol limit is 0.50 mg/g in whole blood (11 mmol/l). The concentration of ethanol in blood ranged from 0.01 to 3.52 mg/g with a mean of 1.83 +/- 0.82 mg/g (+/- S.D.). The frequency distribution was symmetrical about the mean but deviated from normality. A plot of the same data on normal probability paper indicated that it might be composed of two subpopulations (bimodal). The concentration of methanol in the same blood specimens ranged from 1 to 23 mg/l with a mean of 7.3 +/- 3.6 mg/l (+/- S.D.) and this distribution was markedly skew (+). The concentration of ethanol (x) and methanol (y) were positively correlated (r = 0.47, P less than 0.001) and implies that 22% (r2) of the variance in blood-methanol can be attributed to its linear regression on blood-ethanol. The regression equation was y = 3.6 + 2.1 x and the standard error estimate was 0.32 mg/l. This large scatter precludes making reliable estimates of blood-methanol concentration from measurements of blood-ethanol concentration and the regression equation. But higher blood-methanol concentrations are definitely associated with higher blood-ethanol in this sample of Swedish drinking drivers. Frequent exposure to methanol and its toxic products of metabolism, formaldehyde and formic acid, might constitute an additional health risk associated with heavy drinking in predisposed individuals. The determination of methanol in blood of drinking drivers in addition to ethanol could indicate long-standing ethanol intoxication and therefore potential problem drinkers or alcoholics.     

Fatal intoxication by dextromethorphan: a report on two cases

A report is given of two young people who died after intake of dextromethorphan, one by suicide and the other for uncertain reasons. To our knowledge this is the first reported fatal intoxications with this drug.     

The morphogenesis of electrically and heat-induced dermal changes in pig skin

In order to establish pathological evidence in dermis for distinguishing between sequelae of electrical torture and those of other superficial injuries, the skin of eleven fully anaesthetized Danish Landrace pigs have been exposed to heat and electrical energy from either 50 Hz alternating current (a.c.) or direct current (d.c.) via 12 mm large contact knobs or via a pointed 0.5 mm large electrode (only 50 Hz a.c.). The lesions have been examined from 1 to 126 days after the injury. While heat lesions exposed to energy lower than 60 joule only gave minor changes, heat lesions exposed to more than 60 joule showed changes in both collagen fibres (basophilic or eosinophilic fibres without any birefringence or coarse cross-striation in polarized light, respectively) and dermal cells (granular cytoplasm). Areas exposed to 50 Hz a.c. via 0.5 mm. electrode showed basophilic collagen fibres and in a few biopsies on day 7 calcium salts on collagen fibres. Using 12 mm large electrodes the changes were minor, but basophilic and eosinophilic collagen fibres with no birefringence or with fine/coarse cross-striation respectively were seen. Even cells with 'vesicular nuclei' were seen on day 1 and 2 after the injury. The changes in the anode area showed resemblance to that of heat lesions (basophilic collagen fibres). Eosinophilic collagen fibres with fine densely spaced cross-striation in polarized light and 'vesicular nuclei' as well as collagen fibres with calcium salts were seen in the cathode lesions. It is concluded that the dermal changes in the cathode area are specific for electrical injury from day 1 to 14. However, earlier studies have demonstrated dermal changes specific for electrical injury at day 0 and the presence of calcified collagen fibres up to 2 months after injury. The dermal changes in anode lesions were non specific and could not be differentiated from those found in heat lesions. Alternating current lesions (50 Hz) were specific from day 1 to day 7, when the pointed electrode was used, but only in a few days when the energy was transferred via the 12-mm electrodes.     

Adolescents’ Engagement in Ethnic Harassment: Prejudiced Beliefs in Social Networks and Classroom Ethnic Diversity

Research on ethnic victimization to date has done little to identify the reasons why adolescents victimize their peers due to their ethnic background. To address this limitation, we examined: (1) the extent to which prejudiced attitudes within adolescents’ close and larger social networks determine their engagement in ethnic harassment, and (2) the extent to which classroom ethnic diversity plays a role in any such link. Our sample included 902 Swedish adolescents (M _age ?=?14.40, SD?=?.95; 50.3% girls). We found that Swedish adolescents who held negative attitudes toward immigrants or who were surrounded by prejudiced peers were more likely to be involved in ethnic harassment, particularly in classrooms with high ethnic diversity. Adolescents in classrooms with a high anti-immigrant climate were more likely to harass their immigrant peers. These findings suggest that prejudiced beliefs in youth social networks put young people at risk of engaging in ethnic harassment, particularly in ethnically diverse classrooms.