Evaluation of the Photodegradation of Crystal Violet upon Light Exposure by Mass Spectrometric and Spectroscopic Methods

Abstract: Crystal violet is a very common dye in ballpoint ink. Recent research suggests that the degradation of triarylmethane dyes gives an indication of the age of a ballpoint pen entry on a document. The main problem for the quantitative evaluation of the degradation is that it is highly dependent on the exposure to light. Moreover additional factors, such as additives and substrate play an important role in this process. The aim of this work is to compare the degradation pathways of the pure dye in water and ethanol upon exposure to xenon light by UV/VIS spectrophotometry and laser desorption ionization. Significant differences have been observed in the products and the kinetics of the degradation. N-demethylation, an expected decomposition process, was found to take place only in aqueous solution and kinetics calculations showed that the degradation occurred 2.5 times faster in ethanol compared to water. The degradation of crystal violet in inks from four ballpoint pens on paper was also studied for entries made over 2–3 years. It was observed that degradation reactions were quenched by the presence of another dye due to competitive absorption. It was also observed that the thickness of a stroke (concentration of ink) influenced the degradation process. In the absence of light only one ballpoint pen showed slight degradation. A better understanding of the influence of the paper, ink composition, and storage conditions is necessary to interpret correctly the age of an ink based on the degradation of dyes.     

Institutionalizing precarious migratory status in Canada

This paper analyzes the institutionalized production of precarious migration status in Canada. Building on recent work on the legal production of illegality and non-dichotomous approaches to migratory status, we review Canadian immigration and refugee policy, and analyze pathways to loss of migratory status and the implications of less than full status for access to social services. In Canada, policies provide various avenues of authorized entry, but some entrants lose work and/or residence authorization and end up with variable forms of less-than-full immigration status. We argue that binary conceptions of migration status (legal/illegal) do not reflect this context, and advocate the use of ‘precarious status’ to capture variable forms of irregular status and illegality, including documented illegality. We find that elements of Canadian policy routinely generate pathways to multiple forms of precarious status, which is accompanied by precarious access to public services. Our analysis of the production of precarious status in Canada is consistent with approaches that frame citizenship and illegality as historically produced and changeable. Considering variable pathways to and forms of precarious status supports theorizing citizenship and illegality as having blurred rather than bright boundaries. Identifying differences between Canada and the US challenges binary and tripartite models of illegality, and supports conducting contextually specific and comparative work.     

Multilevel blame games: Blame‐shifting in the European Union

Who blames whom in multilevel blame games? Existing research focuses either on policymakers' preferences or their opportunities offered by the institutional structures in which policymakers operate. As these two strands of literature barely refer to each other, in this article we develop an integrated theoretical model of blame‐shifting in multilevel governance systems and assess it empirically. In line with the first strand, we assume that policymakers have a preference for shifting blame onto actors on a different level from themselves. In line with the second, we suppose that opportunities for doing so depend on institutional responsibility for policymaking and policy implementation. We check the plausibility of our integrated model by examining policymakers' blame attributions in three cases where European Union migration policies have been contested: border control, asylum, and welfare entitlements. We find that our integrated model does better in explaining blame‐shifting in these cases than the isolated models.     

Anfechtung des Verpflichtungs- oder Verfügungsgeschäfts; Hemmung der Anfechtungsfristen durch Vergleichsverhandlungen

Hat (auch) der Schuldner die Einverleibung eines Rechtes beantragt, so nimmt er bis zum Zeitpunkt der Einverleibung Rechtshandlungen (bzw Unterlassungen) vor; daher ist dieser Zeitpunkt für das Vorliegen der subjektiven Voraussetzungen der Absichtsanfechtung ma?gebend. Dass auch der Vertragspartner die Einverleibung beantragen h?tte k?nnen, ist unerheblich. – Bei der Schenkungsanfechtung genügt es, wenn das (selbst?ndig anfechtbare) Verfügungsgesch?ft in der kritischen Frist liegt. – Vergleichsgespr?che k?nnen auch dann die "unverzügliche Einklagung" (§ 9 Abs 1 Z 2 AnfO) hinausschieben, wenn diese nur mit dem Schuldner ohne Einbeziehung des Anfechtungsgegners geführt werden.     

Territorial representation

Abstract This paper examines the opinion congruence of voters and representatives in European Parliament elections taking nation as the constituency of interest, an implied model of representation similar to that in a classic Miller and Stokes analysis. Congruence is greater for some countries than others. MEPs are even less representative of their voters than are candidates in general, and all are more pro–integrationist than the electorate. Differences between countries are explained by variations in electoral systems and in national party systems. A genuine European party system and a common and PR electoral system would make MEPs more representative, but almost certainly less integrationist.     

Territorial representation

This paper examines the opinion congruence of voters and representatives in European Parliament elections taking nation as the constituency of interest, an implied model of representation similar to that in a classic Miller and Stokes analysis. Congruence is greater for some countries than others. MEPs are even less representative of their voters than are candidates in general, and all are more pro–integrationist than the electorate. Differences between countries are explained by variations in electoral systems and in national party systems. A genuine European party system and a common and PR electoral system would make MEPs more representative, but almost certainly less integrationist.     

The Democratic Quality of Institutional Regimes: a Conceptual Framework

Lijphart's spectrum of democracies – recently expanded by Jack Nagel to a sub-majoritarian sphere of pluralitarian systems which use disproportional electoral systems in order to manufacture majority governments from minorities in the electorate – is based on only one dimension: inclusion of preferences. Political scientists in the Lijphartian tradition wrongly assume that inclusion of preferences, which is an input characteristic, automatically leads to responsiveness, which refers to actual policy decisions and hence is an output characteristic. We therefore add 'responsibility' as a second input characteristic and employ it alongside the inclusiveness of institutional regimes. We argue that in representative democracies there exists a trade-off between inclusiveness and responsibility. This trade-off helps us to measure the democratic quality of institutional regimes. The now expanded spectrum of democracies based on these two dimensions shows that majoritarian democracy proper – in which governments represent a majority of individual preferences but not more than necessary – is the best possible combination of the two democratic values.     

Keine einstweilige Verfügung zur Absicherung des Nichtleistungsrisikos

Der Anspruch auf Feststellung, nicht verpflichtet zu sein, eine vom Dienstgeber zugewiesene T?tigkeit verrichten zu müssen, kann nicht durch einstweilige Verfügung gesichert werden; die Leistung kann nur auf eigenes Prozessrisiko zurückgehalten werden, ohne die im Fall des Unterliegens eintretenden Verzugsfolgen durch einstweilige Verfügung absichern zu k?nnen.     

Interest organisation and intermediation in the New Länder

This article examines the formation of civil society in the new German Länder. In the case of the economic interest organisations (employers and industry associations and trade unions), the initiative came largely from the west. Although formal organisational structures were quickly put in place, levels of participation remained relatively low. The resultant weakness in terms of organisational resources perpetuates dependency upon counterparts in the west. A case study on the formation of environmental organisations in the east shows that the initial dynamism in this sector has given way to stagnation and fragmentation. This is symptomatic of the apparent inability of the new Länder to sustain the autonomous organisational activity normally associated with a pluralist civil society.