Age determination of blood spots in forensic medicine by force spectroscopy

We present a new tool for the estimation of the age of bloodstains, which could probably be used during forensic casework. For this, we used atomic force microscopy (AFM) for high-resolution imaging of erythrocytes in a blood sample and the detection of elasticity changes on a nanometer scale. For the analytic procedure we applied a fresh blood spot on a glass slide and started the AFM detection after drying of the blood drop. In a first step, an overview image was generated showing the presence of several red blood cells, which could easily be detected due to their typical "doughnut-like" appearance. The consecutively morphological investigations in a timeframe of 4 weeks could not show any alterations. Secondly, AFM was used to test the elasticity by recording force-distance curves. The measurements were performed immediately after drying, 1.5 h, 30 h and 31 days. The conditions were kept constant at room temperature (20 degrees C) and a humidity of 30%. The obtained elasticity parameters were plotted against a timeline and repeated several times. The elasticity pattern showed a decrease over time, which are most probably influenced by the alteration of the blood spot during the drying and coagulation process. The preliminary data demonstrates the capacity of this method to use it for development of calibration curves, which can be used for estimation of bloodstain ages during forensic investigations.     

Analysis of the Federal District’s Legislative Chamber in the Information Age

The study investigates the satisfaction with the work of the parliament of Brazilian Federal District. The survey was based on the competencies extracted from the institutional mission and targeted citizens who frequently use social networks. Inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The results showed a great unsatisfaction about the institution. The most satisfied respondents are the less educated, while the most educated, older, and highest income respondents are the most unsatisfied. The results also highlighted the low interaction between respondents and the Chamber, the absence of an effective official communication channel, and actions associated with sustainable economic development will be more effective in increasing satisfaction.     

The Concealed Information Test is Susceptible to Misleading Information

An approach toward detecting hidden knowledge is the Concealed Information Test (CIT). It relies on the memory of crime‐relevant information. This study investigated whether its validity is susceptible to memory distortion by misleading information. A misleading information paradigm was employed to distort memory prior to an interrogation with a CIT. Forty‐one participants watched a video with specific crime‐related information. After a 1‐week retention interval, misleading information was introduced. Afterward, a CIT was performed, followed by a threefold memory test. When misleading information was presented, memory performance was reduced, and no physiological response differences between crime‐relevant and crime‐irrelevant information were found. Without presenting misleading information, physiological responses differed between responses to crime‐relevant and crime‐irrelevant information. However, responses in all physiological measures also differed between misleading and irrelevant information. The results indicate that the CIT is susceptible to misleading information, which reduces its validity in specific constellations.     

Soziale Gerechtigkeit und die drei Welten des Wohlfahrtskapitalismus

Der Aufsatz verbindet die normative Diskussion über Soziale Gerechtigkeit in der politischen Philosophie mit empirischen Ergebnissen aus der Sozialstaatsforschung. Damit verknüpft er zwei Diskussionsstränge, die bisher meist isoliert voneinander verlaufen sind. Die Argumentation wird über die Beantwortung von vier Fragen entfaltet. Der normativen Frage: welche regulativen Leitideen liefert die Gerechtigkeitsdebatte in der politischen Philosophie? Der handlungstheoretischen Frage: welche Urteilskriterien und Handlungspräferenzen lassen sich für eine gerechtigkeitsorientierte Politik gewinnen? Der empirischen Frage: Wie lassen sich die drei Welten des Wohlfahrtskapitalismus auf dem Hintergrund der hierarchisch geordneten Gerechtigkeitskriterien beurteilen? Sowie schließlich der institutionellen Frage: welche institutionelle Logik eine (notwendig gewordene) Reform des Sozialstaats tragen soll, wenn diese gleichzeitig sozial gerecht sein und eine realistische Aussicht auf ihre Verwirklichung haben soll.     

德国医疗卫生改革：行为体、利益与立法过程分析——以《加强法定医保竞争法》（2007）为例

2007年3月德国《加强法定医保竞争法》（GKV-WSG）出台。本文分析了该法出台前后德国医疗卫生改革所带来的新的行为体格局以及2009年1月1日起生效的改革内容。笔者认为,《加强法定医保竞争法》在多个方面承袭了“渐变”的发展模式,但同时该法也带来了德国医疗卫生体制的深刻变革,尤其在行为体格局方面。因此本文主要探讨实验治理的新形式、对立的利益格局、艰难的谈判进程以及倾向于否决的行为体结构。     

Evolutionarily stable preferences in contests

We define an indirect evolutionary approach formally and apply it to (Tullock) contests. While it is known that the direct evolutionary approach in the form of finite population ESS yields more aggressive behavior than in Nash equilibrium, it is now shown that the indirect evolutionary approach yields the same more aggressive behavior, too. This holds for any population size N, if the evolution of preferences is determined by behavior in two-player contests. The evolutionarily stable preferences (ESP) of the indirect approach turn out to be negatively interdependent, thereby “rationalizing” the more aggressive behavior.     

Towards a broad understanding of innovation and its importance for innovation policy

This paper considers the changes in the concept of innovation during recent decades and the degree to which such changes have been of significance to innovation policy. We observe that: (1) the notion of innovation in research, statistics, and policy is becoming increasingly broad; (2) while this broader notion is conceptually more adequate for understanding the complexity of innovation activity, it also makes it increasingly difficult to gain a clear, unambiguous picture of innovation activity; (3) policy concepts built upon this extended understanding of innovation are becoming more complex in terms of governance capacities, coordination capabilities, and evidence-based policy formulation. The broad perception of innovation will, in fact, require substantial innovations in political and administrative systems to apply.     

Critical social media information flows: political trust and protest behaviour among Kazakhstani college students

ABSTRACT

In political regimes where traditional mass media are under state control, social networking sites may be the only place where citizens are exposed to and exchange dissident information. Despite all the attempts, complete control of social media seems to be implausible. We argue that the critical information that people see, read and share online undermines their trust in political institutions. This diminishing trust may threaten the legitimacy of the ruling regime and stimulate protest behaviour. We rely on original survey data of Kazakhstani college students to confirm these expectations. The data are unique in that they directly measure exposure to critical/dissident information, as opposed to simply assuming it. The analysis leverages Coarsened Exact Matching to simulate experimental conditions. This allows us to better identify the consequential mechanism and the attitudinal precursor by which social media influence protest in an authoritarian context.