A Model for Female-Perpetrated Domestic Violence

Child abuse often coexists with intimate partner violence. However, limited studies incorporate both phenomena in a single study. Moreover, the examination of female-on-male violence is an important development. Hence, an intrinsic case study of domestic violence is presented to provide insights regarding the nature and impact of female-perpetrated violence. The research approach was qualitative and demonstrated that a model for abusive behavior seems to be similar for both sexes. The data revealed theoretical trends such as the reality of an intergenerational transmission of violence into adulthood, as well as abusive partners presenting with borderline traits.     

Marriage Migration in China and East Asia

This paper explores the connections between the shortage of women in China that is making it more difficult for men to find brides and the growing phenomenon of long distance marriage migration. It argues that marriage migration has tended to be from the poorer areas toward the richer ones. The movement satisfies demand from men too poor or disadvantaged to afford a bride from their local community. Women undertake marriage migration in the hope of achieving a better life for themselves or being able to help their families. A similar phenomenon can be observed in international marriage migration chains such as those from the Philippines, China and Korea to Japan, from the Chinese mainland, Vietnam and Thailand to Taiwan, and from North Korea and Vietnam to China. Marriage migration puts the women who engage in it into an especially vulnerable position.     

Does accessible technology need an ‘entrepreneurial state’? The creation of an EU market of universally designed and assistive technology through state aid

EU State aid law has sought to enable people with disabilities to obtain employment, yet has not been explicitly included in the toolbox of policy options to improve the availability and choice of accessible technology within the EU Internal market. This seems to be the consequence of an inherent bias against State intervention in the market, which is mostly unwelcome since it can limit open and free competition. This also reiterates the ‘less-aid’ policy and the purely economic approach to State aid professed by the European Commission. Against this background, this article discusses the potential for EU State aid policy to foster both ‘design for all’ and innovative assistive devices for people with disabilities. It seeks to argue that the goal of an EU-wide market of accessible technology can be achieved using EU State aid law. In particular, this article aims to highlight that a more targeted use of EU State aid law can lead developers to increase the production of accessible goods, to adjust or reduce prices and to provide consumers with a greater degree of choice in a greater number of marketplaces. Whilst it adopts a legal approach, this analysis relies inter alia on economic evidence and recalls the pamphlet recently published by Mazzuccato, from which the title of this work has drawn inspiration.     

Comparison of the variables affecting the recovery of DNA from common drinking containers

As the boundaries of forensic DNA profiling continue to expand, less obvious sources of biological evidence are being collected at crime scenes for DNA profiling. One example is the recovery of biological evidence from common drink containers, such as bottles and cans, which have been found at crime scenes. There are many variables that may have an impact on recovering a DNA profile from such exhibits. In this research, the effects of person to person variation, time, type of drink (including alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages), and type of drink container, were assessed for their impact on the major analytical outcomes of the DNA process. The results show that the alpha-amylase activity varies from individual to individual and is reduced in the presence of some alcoholic drinks. A reasonable DNA yield was obtained from all samples, however, the concentrations exhibited significant person to person variation. The type of drink container influenced the DNA yield with cans giving a higher yield than bottles of the same drink type. To a reduced extent the presence or absence of alcohol affected the overall DNA yield and when partial or failed DNA profiles were produced they were more likely to be associated with alcoholic drinks than non-alcoholic drinks.     

The role of soft law in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities in the EU: A ‘hybridity’ approach to EU disability law

This article discusses the role of soft law in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities in the European Union (EU). In doing so, it revisits the emergence of the standalone, yet cross-cutting, field of ‘EU disability law’ through the lens of the ‘hybridity theory’ advanced inter alia by Trubek and Trubek. Being speculative in nature, this article construes EU disability law as a fruitful area for an enquiry into the dynamic relationship between hard and soft law. Until the entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam, soft law was crucial to attract disability within the sphere of action of the EU and to embed the social model of disability, displaying a value-setting role. In the post-Amsterdam period, soft law and hard law coexisted, being complementary to one another. Both contributed to a common objective, namely that of advancing equality of opportunities for persons with disabilities. After the conclusion of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the dynamic relationship between hard and soft law has become more complex and akin to what Trubek and Trubek define as ‘transformation’.     

Know Me,Love Me,Fear Me: The Anatomy of Candidate Poster Designs in the 2007 French Legislative Elections

Candidates in many elections spend a significant amount of their budget on posters, yet we know virtually nothing about their communication roles. Based on party strategy and visual communication research, this article argues that poster content is the result of strategic choices by candidates, with major and niche candidates using significantly different poster designs in an effort to influence voters' evaluations. Using an original database of 256 candidate posters from the 2007 French legislative elections and content analysis computer software, I show that niche party candidates consistently emphasize partisan and factual information cues (through size and placement on posters), while major party candidates rely heavily on candidate-oriented visuals and on nonverbal cues (e.g., eye contact) to persuade voters. Preliminary analyses indicate that poster visual design strategies are significantly associated with both major and niche party candidates' electoral performance.     

Comparison of injuries caused by the pistols Tokarev, Makarov and Glock 19 at firing distances of 10, 15 and 25cm

Firings at cloth targets and at human skin from autopsy material were performed from the pistols 7.62 mm Tokarev (TT), 9 mm Makarov (PM) and 9 x 19 mm Glock 19 with common ammunition. The differences were in the soot deposit pattern, the degree of scorching of the synthetic fibres on the edges of the entrance hole and in the findings of the soot and the gunpowder particles. The results were similar on the cloth and on the skin targets. In the case of the TT and the PM, the soot deposit patterns reminded of a blossom or shafts of rays or fans, or the bullet wipe had four narrow and four wide sections regarding the number of lands and grooves. The TT left a large amount of soot and many gunpowder particles and caused the melting of the synthetic fibres on the edges of the entrance hole, producing a defect of the material 0.1-0.3 cm in diameter and defects of textile fibres around the entrance hole. In the skin the TT caused many intraepithelial tears, folds of the epidermis and recesses of the epidermis containing soot. Firings from the PM and the Glock 19 caused the melting only of the ends of individual synthetic fibres on the edges of the entrance hole. The PM left a large amount of soot and only a few gunpowder particles. The Glock 19 gave the least soot and the greatest number of gunpowder particles and also caused tears and recesses in the epidermis. Only in the case of the Glock 19, hexagonal or polygonal zones were seen in the soot deposit pattern. The differences in the soot pattern were more distinct at the firing distance of 10 cm. By increasing the distance from 10 to 15 cm, the intensity of soot diminished and began to disappear at 25cm, but remained more visible in the case of the TT. The gunpowder particles could be found in the epidermis and deeper in both layers of the dermis at all distances fired from the TT and the Glock 19. In the case of firings from the PM, at the distance 10 cm some of the gunpowder particles had penetrated into the dermis and most of them were in the upper layer of the dermis. At the firing distance of 15 and 25 cm, the gunpowder particles were only on and in the stratum corneum.