Scientific Uncertainty and Science-Based Precaution

The debate between advocates of the "Precautionary Principle" and those of "science-based regulation" hinges in large part on the standard of proof to be applied to the scientific evidence that a given action poses a danger of serious and irreversible environmental harm. We propose an intermediate approach, which we term "science-based precaution," intended to facilitate adaptive management of environmental issues – that is, learning through experience and experimentation.We propose that evidence justifying precautionary action must be sufficient to create a "reasonable belief" of serious and irreversible environmental danger. In other cases, in which the proponents of an action bear the burden of proof that the actions they propose will not cause environmental harm, we propose that they must make a "clear showing"to that effect. Both of these standards of proof are derived from a scale constructed from the standards of proof used in various branches of US law.The "reasonableness" standard of proof for the application of the Precautionary Principle is more cautious than the record of international efforts to protect the stratospheric ozone layer and to deal with climate change. It is analogous to the standard of proof imposed by US administrative law, and is also consistent with the position of the European Union and the holdings of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body in the beef hormones case. We further propose a Reasonableness Principle: that scientific research and technological innovations promising major benefits not be unreasonably blocked before their full implications are understood.     

"赔命价"考析

"赔命价"是中国一种古老而又影响至今的以"杀人赔钱赔物"为主要内容的少数民族刑事习惯法.这种千百年流传下来的习惯法,为什么仍然有着如此顽强的生命力?其理由是什么?它的现实存在又有何利弊?本文拟就此类问题试作考析.     

Negotiating Difference Across Time: The Temporal Meanings of the Sydney Mardi Gras in Lesbian and Gay Life Narratives

This paper examines the temporal meanings of the annual LGBTI pride event, the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Drawing on findings from a large-scale oral history project, the paper explores ways in which Australian lesbians and gay men place Mardi Gras within life narratives. Three temporal frameworks were commonly used by our interviewees. First, Mardi Gras acted as an annual temporal marker through which to plan a year. Second, changing personal understandings of Mardi Gras were used by interviewees to position themselves within the life course. Third, the shifting meanings of Mardi Gras were deployed as a means of narrating broader historical changes in the LGBTI community. We argue that, although lesbian and gay identities might now be considered increasingly mainstream and even “ordinary”, each of these temporal frameworks represents the continued differing experiences of time and space between homosexual and heterosexual lives.     

关于宪政的几个基本理论问题

宪政要义在于限制政治权力、保护个人自由和权利,而民主则主要解决政治权力的来源及其获得方式问题。为了达成一种宪法秩序,应在宪政与民主之间建立相互支持的关系。实行宪政的关键在于“良宪之治”,而非“宪政程序化”。     

泛消费、去技能与再组织：互联网时代的基础性零工经济何以可能

在互联网高速发展的背景下,零工经济的兴起已然成为时下就业领域最热门的现象之一。其中,以日常生活服务为导向的基础性零工经济得以盛行离不开以下因素：社会的泛消费化意识形态及互联网技术的进步促成了消费形式与内容的变迁,从而为基础性零工经济的产生提供了现实基础;基础性零工经济所秉持的去技能的劳动形式与劳动内容,则满足了其劳动密集型服务业的本质需求,使得扩张所需的大量劳动力涌入成为可能;零工经济所特有的算法加持下的劳动控制,则实现了平台从信息中介向零工经济再组织者的转变,推动了整个社会都投入到零工经济的维系之中。尽管零工经济的兴起是社会转型的一种必然,但是其带来的劳动不稳定性问题依旧值得全社会深思。     

Negative Life Events and Depressive Symptoms in Late Adolescence: Bonding and Cognitive Coping as Vulnerability Factors?

The objective of the present study was to examine the effects of parental bonding and cognitive coping in the relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms in adolescence. A sample of 1310 adolescents attending an intermediate vocational education school filled out a questionnaire. Adolescents with a poor parental bonding relationship seemed to be more vulnerable to depressive symptoms in the face of adverse life events than adolescents with more optimal bonding styles. Cognitive coping strategies seemed to play an even more important role. The use of self-blame, rumination, catastrophizing, positive refocusing, and positive reappraisal appeared to be related to depressive symptoms. In addition, self-blame, rumination, and positive reappraisal seemed to have a moderating role in the relationship between the amount of stress experienced and depressive symptoms. Developing prevention and intervention programs aimed at the formation of optimal bonding relationships and teaching adolescents adaptive cognitive coping strategies seems advisable.     

论现代生活方式

改革、环境革命、信息化和知识经济等催生了现代生活方式。现代生活方式具有时代性、创新性,更加追求精神消费、共生性、个体性、多样性等特点。要从营造消费文化、创造丰富的物质财富和优美的生活环境、全面完善生活方式内容等方面创造现代生活方式,与此同时要摒弃不健康的生活方式。     

尚未完成由传统向现代的转变--山东女性生活方式管窥

2000年第二期中国妇女社会地位抽样调查(山东)数据,反映了山东女性的活动空间、休闲方式、时间分配与家务劳动、生活消费、社会交往的情况,体现了她们对生活的满意程度。调查发现:女性仍然是家务劳动的主要承担者,无论是生活消费、休闲方式,还是社会交往,女性均落伍于男性,还未完成由传统向现代的转变,女性的活动空间有待于进一步扩展。     

简论保险合同成立后的诚信义务

近二三十年来,英国有关保险合同成立后诚信义务的法律获得了较多关注和重大发展。本文借鉴有关成果,结合我国合同法、保险法和海商法,对保险合同后诚信义务的主要方面作了分析,希望对我国保险法律的完善有所帮助。     

Visualizing Lives: New Pathways for Analyzing Life Course Trajectories

The goal of statistical analysis is to find patterns in data. Most statistical methods rely on analyzing the effect of the same set of variables on the population under study, i.e., nomothetic analysis. Therefore, when data are collected in the social sciences, most often they are put in a framework that resembles a spreadsheet: each row represents a separate individual, and each column represents a separate characteristic (or variable) that pertains to that individual.However, not all individuals in the study are affected by the same set of variables: each individual may have his/her own individual set of relevant variables, suggesting that methods be developed that consider them individually, i.e., idiographic analysis. Moreover, lives are lived chronologically, and are often best described in narrative form. These narratives usually have to be condensed, or abridged in other ways, in order to fit the data framework and permit what one might call ``algorithmic analysis. Each set of methods has its advantage: nomothetic methods generate general laws that apply to all, while idiographic methods trace the putative causal relationships that are unique to each individual.This paper describes another data collection and analytic framework, one that (a) is chronological; (b) recognizes that different people may have experienced entirely different events and thus may need different ``variables to understand their behavior; (c) recognizes that, even if people experience similar events, they may have entirely different reactions to them; and (d) can be studied (and patterns inferred) using an exploratory graphical analysis that is more free-form than algorithmic analysis. Examples of this type of analysis used in different medical and criminal justice contexts are given, and suggested directions of research in this area are described.