An exploration of multi‐country political conflict/cooperation interdependence

Previous investigations of dynamic conflict actions and reactions among major countries have generally assumed the unit of analysis to be either a dyad or a triad. Our objective of the papa‐is to explore this assumption. The empirical analysis employs quarterly political conflict/cooperation among the United States, the (former) Soviet Union, China, Japan, and (West) Germany from 1950 to 1991. The model consists of a system of dynamic multiple regression equations. Various groups formed among mese countries are tested to find out whether they can be considered an autonomous unit of analysis. The analysis reveals several groups of countries whose political relations can be considered to be autonomous. In particular, either the United States‐the Soviet Union dyad or the United States‐the Soviet Union‐China triad is not an appropriate, autonomous unit of analysis in dynamic conflict action‐reaction models, because these countries are significantly influenced by the presence of other countries. New directions for future research are also suggested.     

Authoritarianism and the planetary mission of queer of color critique: a short reflection

ABSTRACT

This contribution to a journal special issue on comparative populisms investigates the necessity and possibility of queer of color critique’s engaging authoritarian formations in the contemporary moment. Initiated as an examination of neoliberal formations, queer of color critique must – the paper argues – train its interests on and develop its theorizations around the emergence of fascist formations around the globe. To do so, it turns to the anti-fascist work of the Frankfurt School as well as the lesser known anti-fascist writings and insights coming from the black radical tradition, scholarship within North American indigenous studies, and anti-racist feminist cultural production.     

朝鲜半岛新危机与美国东北亚同盟体系新变化

朝鲜半岛危机与美国东北亚同盟体系的构建与演化关系密切。2010年至2011年初,朝鲜半岛危机呈现出新的特点,美日、美韩同盟的演变也进入了新的阶段,呈现出新的变化。此轮朝鲜半岛新危机的特点是,海上危机与核危机并发。美国东北亚同盟体系的新变化是,同盟反应以军事压制为主,双边同盟强化并赋予新的内容,三边同盟趋势化且日韩互动提升。     

Polymerase Resistance to Polymerase Chain Reaction Inhibitors in Bone*

Abstract: Amplification of DNA from aged or degraded skeletal remains can be a challenging task, in part due to naturally occurring inhibitors of the polymerase chain reaction. PCR inhibitors may act by inactivating a polymerase itself, or compete with or bind other reaction components, although various polymerases may be differentially susceptible to such insult. In this study, ten thermostable polymerases from six bacterial species were examined for their ability to amplify DNA in the presence of bone‐derived or individual PCR inhibitors. Two polymerases, one from Thermus aquaticus and one from Thermus thermophilus, showed lower susceptibility to inhibition from bone, while polymerases from Thermus flavus were highly susceptible. Addition of bovine serum albumin improved the activity of most of the enzymes. Taken together, the results indicate that thermostable DNA polymerases have different susceptibility to bone‐derived PCR inhibitors, and that those most often used in forensic laboratories may not be optimal when working with DNA from skeletal remains.     

目击辨认中对辨认反应时间的实验研究

本课题对目击辨认中辨认反应时间这一因素进行了研究,共征集被试60名(男、女各30人),采用模拟犯罪事件的实验研究方法,每一名被试分别对男、女犯罪嫌疑人各辨认一次,共发生120次辨认,结果发现:(1)目击辨认准确率较低;(2)正确辨认反应时间与错误辨认反应时间有明显差异,正确辨认反应时间显著小于错误辨认反应时间。     

Viewing time measures and sexual interest: another piece of the puzzle

Abstract

The present study compared a viewing time (VT) measure with the Sexual Deviance Card Sort (Laws et al., 2000 Laws, D. R., Hanson, R. K., Osborn, C. A. and Greenbaum, P. E. 2000. Classification of child molesters by plethysmographic assessment of sexual arousal and a self-report measure of sexual preference. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 15: 1297–1312. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and past sexual behaviour. Twenty-six adult males who committed a contact sexual offence (19 of whom had child victims and seven with adult victims) each completed the self-report card sort and viewed 640 slides of nude and clothed males and females, ages 5, 9, 13 years and adult. The offenders were unaware that their viewing time was being recorded. VT allowed for greater consistent classification of sexual interest: for gender preference, 79% for individuals with child victims, 86% for individuals with adult victims; for age preference, 84% for individuals with child victims, and 57% for individuals with adult victims. Results demonstrated that a combination of nude and clothed computer-modified imagery can provide accurate sexual interest classification.     

Modified cobalt thiocyanate presumptive color test for ketamine hydrochloride

A new presumptive color test for ketamine hydrochloride is reported. The test is a modification of the cobalt thiocyanate test currently used for cocaine and involves basifying samples rather than acidifying them. The two-step procedure for liquids and three-step procedure for powdered samples are straightforward, definitive, and utilize reagents commonly used in forensic drug analysis. The test works on ketamine hydrochloride in both powder and liquid form and has a sensitivity of c. 1.25 mg. Performing the test with numerous other controlled substances and related chemicals demonstrates the test to be highly selective.     

Human genomic DNA quantitation system, H-Quant: development and validation for use in forensic casework

The human DNA quantification (H-Quant) system, developed for use in human identification, enables quantitation of human genomic DNA in biological samples. The assay is based on real-time amplification of AluYb8 insertions in hominoid primates. The relatively high copy number of subfamily-specific Alu repeats in the human genome enables quantification of very small amounts of human DNA. The oligonucleotide primers present in H-Quant are specific for human DNA and closely related great apes. During the real-time PCR, the SYBR Green I dye binds to the DNA that is synthesized by the human-specific AluYb8 oligonucleotide primers. The fluorescence of the bound SYBR Green I dye is measured at the end of each PCR cycle. The cycle at which the fluorescence crosses the chosen threshold correlates to the quantity of amplifiable DNA in that sample. The minimal sensitivity of the H-Quant system is 7.6 pg/microL of human DNA. The amplicon generated in the H-Quant assay is 216 bp, which is within the same range of the common amplifiable short tandem repeat (STR) amplicons. This size amplicon enables quantitation of amplifiable DNA as opposed to a quantitation of degraded or nonamplifiable DNA of smaller sizes. Development and validation studies were performed on the 7500 real-time PCR system following the Quality Assurance Standards for Forensic DNA Testing Laboratories.