Analysis of Luminescent Gunshot Residue (LGSR) on Different Types of Fabrics

The collection of gunshot residue on fabric can be an arduous task due to the microscopic size of particles (blind collection) and sheddability of some fabrics. The introduction of luminescent markers and consequent formation of luminescent gunshot residue (LGSR) can facilitate this analysis. In this study, different fabrics were analyzed in order to verify the persistence of the LGSR on them, the possibility of collecting and analyzing particles by video spectral comparator (VSC) and SEM/EDS. Also, different colored fabrics were used as targets in order to investigate influence of fabric color on LGSR visualization. Furthermore, the influence of the fabric type in the distribution of the LGSR deposited around the projectile´s hole entrance was evaluated. The fabric sheddability did not alter collection of the particles or analysis. It was possible to observe and collect LGSR on all tested fabrics, even after the fabric had been shaken, or in colored fabrics.     

The Contribution of Body Mass and Volume of Distribution to the Estimated Uncertainty Associated with the Widmark Equation

The Widmark equation is used forensically for the determination of the amount of ethanol (alcohol) that may have been consumed and also to determine the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of an individual at a specific time. It is important to be able to estimate the uncertainty associated with Widmark equations. To date, there has been no detailed determination of contribution to the final uncertainty of Widmark calculations of the volume of distribution of ethanol (V_d), using anthropometric equations, or the contribution of an individual’s body mass. Using published data, published literature, and freedom of information data, we determined that the variability (%CV) associated with V_d was ~10% (Watson et al. and Forrest anthropometric equations) and that the %CV associated with estimated body mass was ~15% compared to ~3% when body mass was directly measured. These data allow an estimation of the overall uncertainty of Widmark calculations using general error propagation. The estimated total uncertainty for BAC calculations increased from ~11% (volume consumed) and ~22% (BAC) to ~19% (volume consumed) and ~37% (BAC) when using measured body mass compared to estimated body mass. These results demonstrate that forensic practitioners should be mindful of the increase in estimated uncertainty in calculated Widmark equation results when estimated body mass is used rather than measured body mass. These data further improve the knowledge around the uncertainty of results calculated with the Widmark equation.     

区域贸易协定的最新趋势及其对多哈发展议程的负面影响

当前各种区域贸易协定正在朝着跨地区、跨大陆、跨大洋的方向迅猛发展。导致这种异常现象的原因错综复杂 ,既有历史上的法律漏洞 ,又有现实的政治安全、外交策略和经贸利益等因素的考虑。过多的区域贸易协定直接威胁着多边贸易谈判的进程和前景 ,越来越严重地侵蚀着WTO的基石、精神和宗旨。区域贸易协定和最惠国待遇在多边贸易法律秩序中的“例外”和“基本原则”的法律定位 ,越来越变得只具有法律文字和理论上的意义。面对多边主义和区域主义的双重挑战 ,中国应主动适应、参与和利用这种双向并进趋势 ,力争在两条基本的发展轨道上实现“双赢”的最佳目标。     

The relationship between gunshot-residue particle size and Boltzmann distribution

Gunshot-residue(GSR)particles usually form spherical structures,have special dimensions,and a composition that consists of burned and partially unburned matter with a 0.5–50-mm diameter(sometimes larger).The GSR particle-size distributions have been argued to be caused by the effects of equilibrium-surface distributions during formation and have not yet been correlated with a theoretical analysis or probability distribution.This study proposes a model to explain the GSR particle-size distribution quantitatively.Based on the data,and,as predicted by our model,the number of GSR particles decreases proportionally to the inverse square of the GSR particle size as the particle size increases.This result occurs because of the abundance of microstructures that are encountered in the GSR particles.     

试论适用无过错责任原则的侵权案件中的证明责任分配

长期以来,适用无过错责任原则的侵权案件中的证明责任如何分配众说纷纭。但是,学界一直尚未有从证明责任基本理论角度专门探讨该问题的文章。笔者试从基本理论出发探讨了适用无过错责任原则的侵权案件中的证明责任的分配原则,据此对我国相关立法规定提出了质疑和合理化建议,深入探求了因果关系推定时的证明责任归属,主张高度危险作业致人损害的侵权诉讼以及饲养动物致人损害的侵权诉讼中对因果关系不存在的证明责任应当由加害人承担。     

印证与自由心证--我国刑事诉讼证明模式

我国刑事诉讼通行“印证证明模式”,将获得印证性直接支持证据视为证明的关键;注重证明的“外部性”而不注重“内省性”。采取印证证明模式的主要原因包括非直接和非言词的审理方式、审理与判定的分离、重复的事实审理需要案件在书面上的可检验性与印证性等。同时,该模式与法官的素质以及占主导地位的认识论有一定的关系。印证证明模式具有易把握与可检验的优点,但刑事司法的现实环境常常使印证要求无法达到。在我国,应当谨慎而适度地借鉴典型的自由心证证明方式,以适应刑事司法的现实需要。     

On Sen on comparative justice

Against scepticism from thinkers including John Rawls and Thomas Nagel about the appropriateness of justice as the concept through which global ethical concerns should be approached, Amartya Sen argues that the problem lies not with the idea of justice, but with a particular approach to thinking of justice, namely a transcendental approach. In its stead Sen is determined to offer an alternative systematic theory of justice, namely a comparative approach, as a more promising foundation for a theory of ‘global justice.’ But in the end Sen offers no such thing. He does not develop a theory of justice and this is all to the good; for if values are plural in the way Sen suggests, then justice is not a master idea but one value among many, and it should be neither the first virtue of social institutions, nor the notion that frames all our reflections on ethical and political life.     

Full circle? Ideas and ordeals of creating a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific

Abstract

In 2004 and 2006, proposals were made at APEC summits to establish a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP). This was an essentially a reworking of an idea first raised in the mid-1960s to create a Pacific Free Trade Area, or PAFTA. Although the PAFTA initiative never advanced, it helped lay the first organizational foundations for regional economic community building in the Asia-Pacific. The recent FTAAP proposal thus brings us full circle to the antecedent origins of APEC itself. If realized, an FTAAP would also create a free trade zone that would encircle the Pacific Rim economy and thereby subsume the region's now large number of bilateral and sub-regional free trade agreements (FTAs) into one unified agreement. Yet there are many inherent problems with establishing an FTAAP. These broadly relate to deconstructing the preferentialism of existing bilateral and sub-regional FTAs, achieving a consensus on the technical policy content and ideational principles on which an FTAAP would be based, and addressing various geopolitical issues such as reconciling the formation of a pan-regional Asia-Pacific FTA with an already fragile multilateral trading system. Growing interest in a ‘rival’ East Asia Free Trade Area project presents another geopolitical challenge. In considering these and other questions, it is concluded that many obstacles will remain in the path to realizing an FTAAP, and that this may not actually be a desirable objective to pursue for some time yet.     

Multilateralising regionalism: what role for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement?

Abstract

The Asia-Pacific region is home to a large and rapidly growing number of preferential trade agreements (PTAs). These agreements differ widely in design, scope and purpose. The “noodle bowl” that has resulted runs the risk of distorting investment and trade. Neither global institutions (the WTO) nor regional institutions such as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) grouping have successfully addressed these issues. Amidst this increasingly messy situation, the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement stands out for a range of important economic and political reasons, not least of which is its potential to take existing PTAs in the Asia-Pacific region in a new direction. The aim of the TPP negotiators is to produce a comprehensive, high quality, multi-party agreement to tame the tangle of PTAs and be a potential stepping stone to achieving the goal of liberalizing regional trade on a non-discriminatory basis. The economic gains from removing border barriers among the countries involved in the initial TPP negotiations are likely to be limited, however, given the small size of many of the economies and the existing PTAs among them. To date, the US has been unwilling to offer a single set of arrangements for all TPP partners, preferring to build on existing bilateral agreements. Pessimism about the immediate results from the TPP should be tempered, however, by considerations of the dynamics that it might set in train; on the other hand, it has the potential to divide the region and exacerbate China's concerns about “containment”.     

Quantitative Analysis of the DNA Distribution on Cigarette Butt Filter Paper*

The distribution of DNA on the filter paper of smoked cigarette butts was quantitatively mapped using real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The filter papers from smoked cigarette butts collected from indoor and outdoor sources were sliced into equal pieces and the amount of DNA on each slice was determined. This study found that the cigarette butt filter papers sliced parallel to the seam of the cigarette had more uniformly distributed DNA on the slices and in most cases, there was enough DNA on each slice to obtain a complete DNA profile. The perpendicular slices had a less uniform pattern of distribution and some slices did not have enough DNA to obtain an interpretable DNA profile. Cigarette butts found indoors also had more DNA per cigarette on average than cigarette butts found outdoors.