Advanced solvent-free application of ninhydrin for detection of latent fingerprints on thermal paper and other surfaces

This work presents the first known experiments of ninhydrin sublimation in vacuum to detect latent fingerprints on thermal paper. In this method, latent fingerprints become visible in rich detail without the background black staining known from the application of ninhydrin solutions to thermal paper. The method involves hanging the thermal paper samples 15 cm above a heating source with dispersed ninhydrin crystals in a vacuum chamber. The optimized conditions for ninhydrin sublimation are 50 mg ninhydrin, 2 to 5 mbar vacuum, and 150 degrees C heating source temperature for 30 min. The application of this method is also successful on the new euro notes. Latent fingerprints can be developed across the transitions from paper to optical variable device (OVD).     

The Authoritative Interpretation Under Article IX:2 of the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization: Current Law, Practice and Possible Improvements

The Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization reservesthe right to adopt ‘authoritative interpretations’of the multilateral trade agreements to the Ministerial Conferenceand the General Council. Given that, to date, this instrumenthas not been used, the present article intends to highlightits structural importance for the balance of powers within thelegal system of the World Trade Organization. It identifiesthe use that could and should be made of it and reviews thepractice so far. The article attempts to explain the reasonsfor the present lack of authoritative interpretations in theWorld Trade Organization and presents several options for thefuture. At the outset, this article explores the parametersthat are relevant for this discussion, notably the possiblescope and legal effects of an authoritative interpretation.Important questions are whether an authoritative interpretationis legally binding on all WTO Members, whether it may modifythe existing law or whether the rules of treaty interpretationare relevant in the formulation of an authoritative interpretation,and whether its validity can be challenged in dispute settlement.     

An Amino Acid Model for Latent Fingerprints on Porous Surfaces*

Abstract: Analytical standards are needed in latent fingerprint detection for research and development as well as for quality control in routine work because normal fingerprints are too varied for comparison studies and tests. One way is to create latent fingerprints. For the amino acid sensitive detection method this can be achieved by coating test items with an amino acid solution using a modified commercial office bubble jet printer. Besides low costs, fast and easy preparation, the main advantage of a bubble jet printer is that the amino acid loading per area on the test item can be calculated by weighing the cartridge on a balance. This opens the possibility to determine the deviation for every printing series. The reproducibility of prints in a printing series made by one cartridge has a deviation of 2–16% and of prints made by different cartridges 20–25%.     

Book reviews

Radical Transitions. The Survival and Revival of Entrepreneurship in the GDR. By Andreas Pickel. Boulder, San Francisco and Oxford: Westview Press, 1992. £25.95 pb.

Europe and German Unification. By Renate Fritsch‐Bournazel. Oxford: Berg, 1992. £30 hb, £8.95 pb.

The Oder‐Neisse Line ‐ A Reappraisal under International Law. By Philip A. Bühler. Boulder: Eastern European Monographs, distributed by Columbia University Press, 1990. $32.50 hb.

Recasting the Ruhr, 1945–1958. Manpower, Economic Recovery and Labour Relations. By Mark Roseman. Oxford: Berg, 1992. £42 hb.

The US Congress and the German Bundestag: Comparisons of Democratic Processes. Edited by Uwe Thaysen, Roger H. Davidson and Robert Gerald Livingston. Boulder, San Francisco, Oxford: Westview Press, 1990. £31.50 pb.

Der verkappte Einheitsstaat. By Heidrun Abromeit. Opladen: Leske und Budrich, 1992.

Wir Kollaborateure. Der Westen und die deutschen Vergangenheiten. Edited by Cora Stephan. Reinbeck bei Hamburg: Rowohlt, 1992. DM9.90 pb.

Die CDU. Organisationsstrukturen, Politiken und Funktionsweisen einer Partei im Föderalismus. By josefschmid. Opladen: Leske und Budrich, 1990. DM48.

Moscow, Germany and the West from Khruschchev to Gorbachev. By Michael J. Sodaro. London: I.B. Tauris, 1991. £29.95 hb, £12.95 pb.

Deutsche Irrtümer. Schönfärberei und Helfershelfer der SED‐Diktatur im Westen. By Jens Hacker. Berlin: Ullstein, 1992. DM68 hb.

Föderalismus in der Bewährung: die deutschen Länder vor der Herausforderung fortschreitender EG‐Integration. Edited by Bernhard Vogel and Günther H. Oettinger. Köln: Deutscher Gemeindeverlag/Kohlhammer, 1992.

The Territorial Imperative: Pluralism, Corporatism, and Economic Crisis. By Jeffrey J. Anderson. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. £35 hb.

The Federal Republic of Germany and NATO: 40 Years After. Edited by E.J. Kirchner and J. Sperling. Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1992. £45 hb.

The Economy of United Germany: Colossus at the Crossroads. By W.R. Smyser. London: Hurst &; Co., 1992. £25 hb.     

Ninhydrin permeability tests of common packaging materials in the field of fingerprint examination

With a simple experimental set-up, common packaging materials were tested for their ninhydrin permeability. The packaging material was loaded with a ninhydrin treated paper on the inside and covered with an amino acid treated paper on the outside. If ninhydrin penetrates through the packaging film, "Ruhemann's purple" will form on the amino acid treated paper. In all, 28 packaging materials were tested over a period of 24 weeks. It turned out that all the films made of polyethylene (PE) showed ninhydrin permeability. With one exception, this permeability occurred after three days already. All packages made of other film material were not permeable to ninhydrin.     

The application of anodic stripping voltammetry to forensic science I. The construction of a low-cost polarograph

Intended for forensic gunshot residue analyses and other applications, a low-cost (about $250.00) polarograph was constructed. This instrument is essentially' an operational amplifier version of a three-electrode potentiostat containing a voltage ramp generator, a scan amplifier, an amplifier and a current-to-voltage converter, two voltage followers and an electrolysis cell. An anodic stripping procedure was developed for the simultaneous determination of a zinc, cadmium, lead, antimony and copper mixture, and used for testing the instrument. Effects of pre-electrolysis time, concentration changes, presence of other species and overlapping were also studied.     

Conflict Avoidance and Political Participation

Previous explanations of mass participation have often focused on sociodemographic characteristics to the neglect of social psychological factors. This study takes a new path in thinking about the role of psychological factors in participation. Specifically, we hypothesize that individual propensities regarding conflict will influence the likelihood of participating in political affairs. We develop more specific expectations for how the avenue of participation interacts with individual propensities toward conflict to influence participation. Using secondary analysis of the Citizen Participation Study (CPS), we show that conflict avoidance is significantly and inversely related to participation in some kinds of activities, consistent with our expectations. Thus, both individual propensities and the political context influence participation. This study provides a new understanding of which individuals participate in political affairs and which avenues they choose. This suggests a need to reconsider the role of psychological factors in models of participation.