Metrics or Peer Review? Evaluating the 2001 UK Research Assessment Exercise in Political Science

Evaluations of research quality in universities are now widely used in the advanced economies. The UK's Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) is the most highly developed of these research evaluations. This article uses the results from the 2001 RAE in political science to assess the utility of citations as a measure of outcome, relative to other possible indicators. The data come from the 4,400 submissions to the RAE political science panel. The 28,128 citations analysed relate not only to journal articles, but to all submitted publications – including authored and edited books and book chapters. The results show that citations are the most important predictor of the RAE outcome, followed by whether or not a department had a representative on the RAE panel. The results highlight the need to develop robust quantitative indicators to evaluate research quality which would obviate the need for a peer evaluation based on a large committee. Bibliometrics should form the main component of such a portfolio of quantitative indicators.     

The Future of International Investment Regulation: Towards a World Investment Organisation?

With growth in foreign investment and in the number of companies investing in foreign countries, the application of general principles of public international law has not been deemed adequate to regulate foreign investment and there is, as yet, no comprehensive international treaty on the regulation of foreign investment. Consequently, states have resorted to bilateral investment treaties (BITs), regional trade and international investment agreements (IIAs) and free trade agreements to supplement and complement the regime of protection for foreign investors. In the absence of an international investment court, states hosting foreign investment or investor states have opted for investor-state dispute settlement mechanism (ISDS). This mechanism has brought about its own challenges to the international law of foreign investment due to inconsistency in the application and interpretation of the key principles of international investment law by such arbitration tribunals, and further, there is no appellate mechanism to bring about some cohesion and consistency in jurisprudence. Therefore, there are various proposals mooted by scholars to address these challenges and they range from tweaks to BITs and IIAs, the creation of an appellate mechanism and the negotiation of a multilateral treaty to proposals for reform of ISDS only. After assessing the merits and demerits of such proposals, this study goes further, arguing for the creation of a World Investment Organisation with a standing mechanism for settlement of investment disputes in order to ensure legal certainty, predictability and the promotion of the flow of foreign investment in a sustainable and responsible manner.

     

A Comparative Study of Children and Adult Homicide Rates in the USA and the Major Western Countries 1974–1999: Grounds for Concern?

The aim of this study is to examine the changing patterns of child homicide in the USA and the other 9 major Western countries between 1974 and 1999. On the basis of standardized WHO mortality data, 5-year mean rates of Baby (<1 year), Infant (1–4), Child (5–14), and General Population Rates for Homicide (GPRH) were analyzed for 1974–78 and 1995–99 for the USA and major Western countries. The analysis provided ratios of change for children's homicide between 1974 and 1999 and ratio of ratios between adult' and children's homicide. Over the period USA male Baby homicide rose by 78% and Females 44% with a combined rise in All Children [0–14] homicides of 45%, within the context of a declining adult GPRH. In the 1970s, 3 major Western countries had either higher or similar children's homicide rates to the USA, but by the late 1990s none did. Moreover, between 1974 and 1999, the USA had the biggest rise in Baby (<1) and All Children's deaths, and only France had substantial increases, whereas Baby homicide rates fell significantly in 6 other countries. The findings indicate a worrying deterioration in U.S. child homicides. Possible links with child abuse and explanations for the results are briefly discussed. Urgent case-specific research is required to determine the cause/s for and how to reverse the worsening child homicide situation in the USA.     

Genetics and genomics of core short tandem repeat loci used in human identity testing

Over the past decade, the human identity testing community has settled on a set of core short tandem repeat (STR) loci that are widely used for DNA typing applications. A variety of commercial kits enable robust amplification of these core STR loci. A brief history is presented regarding the selection of core autosomal and Y-chromosomal STR markers. The physical location of each STR locus in the human genome is delineated and allele ranges and variants observed in human populations are summarized as are mutation rates observed from parentage testing. Internet resources for additional information on core STR loci are reviewed. Additional topics are also discussed, including potential linkage of STR loci to genetic disease-causing genes, probabilistic predictions of sample ethnicity, and desirable characteristics for additional STR loci that may be added in the future to the current core loci. These core STR loci, which form the basis for DNA databases worldwide, will continue to play an important role in forensic science for many years to come.     

Allele frequencies for 27 Y-STR loci with U.S. Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic samples

A total of 263 U.S. Caucasians, 260 African Americans and 140 U.S. Hispanics or a subset of 31 Caucasians, 32 African Americans, and 32 Hispanics were typed for 27 Y-chromosome short tandem repeat (Y-STR) markers: DYS444, DYS446, DYS449, DYS463, DYS485, DYS490, DYS495, DYS504, DYS505, DYS508, DYS520, DYS522, DYS525, DYS532, DYS533, DYS534, DYS540, DYS556, DYS557, DYS570, DYS575, DYS576, DYS594, DYS632, DYS635, DYS641, and DYS643. Allele frequencies for each locus are reported along with nomenclature based on sequence analysis.     

Minority studies and women's studies: Do we want to kill a dream?

When we engage in integration of new subject matter into the existing university curriculum, or when we speak of mainstreaming into the existing curriculum, we are engaging in the proliferation of the sickness of the dream deferred. The mainstream is very sick, and rightfully near death. We must be about ultimately replacing it through transformation. Yet neither Women's Studies nor Minority Studies has been transformed; we must be involved in a pluralistic, generative, interactive process that transforms Women's Studies, Minority Studies and the traditional disciplines.