Methods for ensuring the highest DNA concentration and yield in future and retrospective trace DNA extracts

In forensic laboratories, increased extraction efficiency of trace evidence is paramount because analytical success is intrinsically dependent on the quantity of DNA recovered. Moreover, highly concentrated nucleic acids are vital for effective downstream analysis and high quality results. This study investigated the efficiency of extraction with the Qiagen® QIAamp® DNA Investigator kit, and explored improvements to the methodology that would maximise the recovery of low concentration forensic samples. Controlled amounts of starting cellular material were used to mimic trace (or low level) DNA deposits prior to DNA extraction with the Investigator kit. Addition of the provided carrier RNA along with conducting two successive elutions of 50 µL improved the net recovery of DNA to 95%. Concentration with centrifugal filters post-extraction were able to concentrate DNA but a large net loss was observed. For the concentration of historic, retrospectively extracted DNA, centrifugal methods are able to concentrate DNA extracts previously too dilute for analysis. These concentrated volumes, however are small, allowing for minimal downstream analysis attempts before the sample is exhausted.     

Comparative Politics and the Synthetic Control Method

In recent years, a widespread consensus has emerged about the necessity of establishing bridges between quantitative and qualitative approaches to empirical research in political science. In this article, we discuss the use of the synthetic control method as a way to bridge the quantitative/qualitative divide in comparative politics. The synthetic control method provides a systematic way to choose comparison units in comparative case studies. This systematization opens the door to precise quantitative inference in small‐sample comparative studies, without precluding the application of qualitative approaches. Borrowing the expression from Sidney Tarrow, the synthetic control method allows researchers to put “qualitative flesh on quantitative bones.” We illustrate the main ideas behind the synthetic control method by estimating the economic impact of the 1990 German reunification on West Germany.     

以行政契约作为跨域治理之法制基础--以台北和基隆垃圾处理合作案为例

在地狭人稠的台湾,有关大众运输、环境保护、水资源、河川管理等跨域治理的议题,正显现其重要性与急迫性。整合跨域治理与行政法的理论,以“北基垃圾处理合作案”为例,分析行政契约作为跨域合作的基础,分析其所涉及的相关法制问题,例如契约之合致、订约过程（成立要件）、契约应有之内容、契约之进展（如情势变更、政策变迁等）、履约责任、强制执行、救济方法等,希望能建构行政契约在跨域治理的应用模式,以为未来各级政府间在跨域事务中的合作提供法制经验。     

Why me? An autoethnographic account of the bizarre logic of counterterrorism

The core concern of this article is derived from my personal experience of being stopped and questioned at Heathrow Airport on 28 March 2012 for possession of “suspect materials”: academic books on terrorism. I seek to utilise this experience to reflect on how logics of counterterrorism can become manifested in bizarre and prejudicial ways, and how autoethnography provides a unique means to articulate human experiences of such logics. I further utilise my experience to reflect on the dynamics of academic privilege, which often flourish at the expense of the voices of “ordinary citizens”, and argue that autoethnography can be embraced as an empowering form of self-expression through which “ordinary citizens” might de-subjugate themselves from the margins of academia towards an emancipatory ideal wherein the lived experiences of such citizens occupy a substantial space in academic and popular understandings of (counter)terrorism.     

唐代司法“三司”制度考论

唐代司法活动中,"三司受事"是由中书舍人、给事中、御史组成的常设上诉机构。"三司推事"是由刑部、御史台、大理寺组成接受差遣推鞠大案的临时组织。"三司受事"主要作为常设的最高上诉机构存在,必要时可以奉诏理问要案;"三司推事"自始至终是接受差遣审断重大案件的临时机构,终唐之世并未有承担上诉审职能的明确授权。     

云南高校女性学学科建设的本土化尝试

文章根据云南的实际,阐述了云南女性学学科建设的历程,指出女性学教学的理念及实行社会科学与医学结合、校际结合、师生和生生互动的尝试。     

法国ENA案例教学研究

案例教学是法国国立行政学院 (ENA)最主要的培训方法。认真学习ENA的案例教学经验 ,对于提高我国公务员培训水平有十分重要的意义。     

刍议我国侦查启动程序

立案程序一直是刑事诉讼法修改中讨论的热点。作为侦查启动程序的立案程序在实践中常常有初查和审查穿插其中,而不具侦查法律属性的初查和审查的出现在一定意义上否定了刑事诉讼程序的正当性。对侦查启动程序的完善应从实践的角度出发,应充分考虑侦查实践中审查与初查的合理性,从而在立法上做出完善,使之与实践统一。     

试论票据诈骗案件的认定

票据作为资金运动的重要载体,以其载负巨资的魅力吸引了许多不法分子,使票据诈骗成为金融诈骗案件中发案率最高的一种。由于此类犯罪具有与其他刑事犯罪交叉、参与犯罪主体庞杂等特点,认定时应从犯罪的行为方式、犯罪数额、行为人的主观故意、犯罪主体以及与合同诈骗罪的区别等不同侧面进行分析。