Changes in Fingerprints Depending on Physiological Factors

The aim of the study was to determine the effect of gender, body mass index, and time on the width of friction ridge impressions in fingerprints and the content of sweat and sebum forming the print. The research showed that the friction ridge impressions of women are significantly wider than those of men, and this tendency persists throughout the existence of the print. The differences may result from the anatomical structure of the skin, as well as from the use of protective products such as creams, which are used more often by women. The width of friction ridge impression is similar in underweight and overweight people, but greater than in those with normal body weight, and the amount of sweat and sebum increases with body weight. The passage of time significantly reduces both the width of the friction ridge impression and the content of sweat and sebum secretions in the print.     

HIV,prisons and prisoners' rights

Senior Project Officer, HIV/AIDS and Drug Misusing Offenders Project, at the Standing Conference on Drug Abuse.     

Democracy and Nuclear Arms Control—Destiny or Ambiguity?

Is there a particularly democratic way of dealing with nuclear arms control? Against the background of democratic peace (DP) theory, and using Immanuel Kant's writing as a starting point, this article argues that democracies should indeed develop a preference for arms control, but that Liberalism as well as the nature of nuclear weapons opens the possibility for contingent developments within a DP framework. While DP theory can thus account for the existence of variance, we maintain that a social constructivist complement based on role, identity, and enemy perception can best explain why a given democracy follows a specific path. Case studies of six Western democracies reveal a considerable variance in their nuclear arms control policies, which can indeed be traced back to the countries' respective roles, identities, and images of the Kantian “unjust enemy.”     

EXECUTIVE BRANCH REFORMS IN THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA

The Latvian government is being praised for successful national recovery from the severe economic crisis. However, the praise is followed by accusations that it is achieved at the cost of socially vulnerable populations who are still unable to recover from the economic crisis or simply decided to leave the country. Was the cost of victory too high？ The question still remains to be answered,＂ however it highlights the fact that such a problem exists. Problems and the ability or inability to resolve them are especially brought to the fore during such crisis situations and it is clear that the Latvian government model is not effective enough. The low level of public confidence level towards the Saeima and the government, frictions between coalition partners, lack of responsibiBty, unprofessionalism - are just some of the problems that characterise it. Is an executive branch reform necessary or just some improvements？ Is legal regulation or legal nihilism to blame？ How to make the executive branch stronger and more responsible？ These questions have been addressed during recent years within the context of administrative reforms as the process of forming the government and the executive branch plays a very big or deciding role in national development. The existing system has run its course and no longer provides qualitative government which underlines the necessity for change.     

An Eventful Journey from Christian Feminism to Christian Humanism

This article tells the life story of Una Kroll, a retired medical doctor and Anglican priest, born in 1925. It describes her journeying through life, her higher education at Girton College, Cambridge and training as a doctor in the 1940s as well as the forces leading to her decision to become a missionary nun. The conflict she experienced between her Christian discipleship and her vocation as a doctor came to the fore when she worked in Liberia. In 1937 she married a monk, at considerable cost to his own reputation, and then worked for the National Health Service in England. She became increasingly drawn into the campaigns for the ordination of women as priests in the Church of England and in later life joined the Roman Catholic Church.     

Characterization of Blue Pigments Used in Automotive Paints by Raman Spectroscopy

Micro‐Raman spectroscopy was applied to forensic identification of pigments in paint chips and provided differentiation between paint samples. Sixty‐six blue automotive paint samples, 26 solid and 40 metallic were examined. It was found that the majority of the collected Raman spectra provided information about the pigments present. However, in some cases, fluorescence precluded pigment identification. Using laser excitation at longer wavelengths or pretreatment to effect photobleaching often resulted in reduced fluorescence, particularly for solid color samples, and allowed pigment identification. The examined samples were compared pairwise taking into account number, location, and intensity of absorption bands in their infrared spectra. The estimated discrimination power ranged from 97% for solid paint samples to 99% for metallic paint samples.     

Do Trained Dogs Discriminate Individual Body Odors of Women Better than Those of Men?*

Scent identification lineups using dogs are a potentially valuable forensic tool, but have been dismissed by some critics because of cases where a false identification was shown to have occurred. It is not known, however, why dogs appear to make more false indications to the odors of some persons than of others. In this study, human genders were compared as to the degree their individual odors are distinguishable or "attractive" to dogs. Six dogs were trained to smell an individual's hand odor sample and then find the matching hand odor sample in a lineup of five odors. Using one-gender lineups and two-gender lineups with different gender ratios, it was found that dogs trained for the study identified individual women's hand odors more accurately than those of men. It is hypothesized that this is either because of differences in chemical compounds making discrimination of women's odors easier, or because of greater "odor attractiveness" of women's scents to dogs.     

Challenging the representation of ethnically divided cities: perspectives from Mostar

ABSTRACT

In this introduction, we discuss the scope of the edited volume by outlining the position of Mostar within much broader academic debates on ‘ethnically divided cities’. We question the representations of such contested cities as hopeless spaces of division, and suggest to explore instead the cracks that challenge overpowering logics of partition: the self-directed attempts at inter-ethnic solidarity, grassroots movements for social justice and dignity, and the inconsistent ways people in these cities inhabit and perform ethnic identities. We also introduce the themes of this Special Issue; Divided Cities as Complex Cities; Memories, Affect and Everyday Life; and Grassroots Politics.     

The Association Between Family Violence,Depression and Anxiety Among Women Whose Partners Have Been Treated for Alcohol Dependence

Journal of Family Violence - The negative effects of men’s excessive alcohol consumption on family members are well known. However, less is known about how men’s alcohol dependence is...