Ethical obligation and legal requirements: On informed consent practices in Bangladesh

Informed consent to medical intervention is fundamental in both ethics and law. But in practice it is often not taken seriously in developing countries. This paper provides an appraisal of informed consent practices in Bangladesh. Following a review of the ethical and legal principles of informed consent, it assesses the degree to which doctors adhere to it in Bangladesh. Based on findings of non-compliance, it then investigates the reasons for such non-compliance through an appraisal of informed consent practices in Bangladesh and provides recommendations aimed at improving such practices. The significance of this paper lies in unveiling the interdependence between the ethical and legal traits of informed consent and their ramifications on strengthening the patient-oriented approach of duty to care.     

A partnership project for a new Red List of the Italian Flora

Abstract

The IUCN Red Lists assessment provides an internationally accepted system to verify the extinction risk of species. Working Groups of the Italian Botanical Society have recently discussed the importance of producing a reliable list of species at the national level. This list could be the starting point for future in situ and ex situ plant conservation activities.     

Law and ‘race’ in the citizenship spaces of Myanmar: spatial strategies and the political subjectivity of the Burmese Chinese

As Myanmar undergoes political and societal transition, observers are asking questions about citizenship and ethnic identity. How does one think about citizenship and people's negotiations with law in political-legal regimes that do not subscribe to liberal democratic norms? This paper investigates how law marginalizes the Burmese Chinese minority in Myanmar and the nature of their legal participation. Since law asserts cultural power impacting the way people think and behave, we engage with the concept of legal consciousness to understand how perceptions of legal vulnerability shape political subjectivity ambivalently. The paper highlights the spatial strategies and everyday practices that the Burmese Chinese deploy to navigate oppressive laws, but signals that internal social divisions and geopolitical considerations deter collective action towards rights assertion. It argues that studying the multiple sites and scales through which law is engaged contributes towards recovering citizenship aspirations where engagement with power and authority are articulated differently from Western norms.     

Legal constraints and opportunities for biochar: a case analysis of EU law

This article addresses biochar from a legal point of view. It analyses different policies and regulations from a European (Flemish) point of view and provides a first and general insight in what potential legal constraints the development of a biochar industry might face and what opportunities lie ahead. This is due to the fact that biochar is a recent product and a lot of scientific uncertainty still exists regarding the consequences of its application. From the analysis it appears a multitude of policies and legislative measures influence the development of the biochar industry. Hence, it is important that all these policies and legislative measures are analyzed in an appropriate manner. Moreover, considerable lobbying, negotiating and cooperation between different disciplines (legal, scientific, economical, etc.) will be required so as to develop a feasible and safe biochar framework.     

Linkage of genetics and ethics: more crossing over is needed

Since the development of recombinant DNA technology in the mid 1970s, there has been increasing interest in the ethical, legal, and social implications of genetics and related fields. The web sites of five different organizations (government, academic, and independent not-for-profit) that deal explicitly with genetics and ethics are reviewed here. Some of the sites cover genetics and other issues in bioethics while others cover human genetics exclusively. The target audiences for the sites include medical and scientific professionals, students, and the general public. Among the issues examined are genetic testing, genetic discrimination in employment and health insurance, genetically modified foods, stem cells and DNA patenting. Resources for those interested in legal issues are particularly well-represented on these sites.     

Chiral separation of cathinone derivatives used as recreational drugs by HPLC-UV using a CHIRALPAK® AS-H column as stationary phase

Cathinone derivatives gained high popularity on the recreational drugs market during the past 10 years. All these compounds are chiral, and the pharmacological potency of the enantiomers of these stimulants is supposed to differ. The goal of this research was to develop a reliable and easy‐to‐perform high‐performance liquid chromatography ultraviolet method for the chiral separation of a set of 24 cathinone derivatives. A commercially available CHIRALPAK® AS‐H column consisting of amylose tris [(S)‐α‐methylbenzylcarbamate] coated on 5‐µm silica gel was found to be suitable to resolve a majority of the tested compounds. High‐performance liquid chromatography measurements were performed in normal phase mode under isocratic conditions with a mobile phase consisting of hexane, isopropanol, and triethylamine at a flowrate of 1 ml/min. The ratio between hexane and isopropanol was optimized by means of three model substances. Under final conditions with a mobile phase of hexane, isopropanol, and triethylamine (97:3:0.1), 19 out of 24 compounds were successfully resolved into their enantiomers and detected at a wavelength of 254 nm. A correlation between the substituents of the nitrogen atom and the separation results are shown. Furthermore, enantiomer separation results of four cathinone derivatives were compared with the results of their amphetamine analogs. Chirality 24:486–492, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Manufacturing marginality among women and Latinos in neo-liberal America

Intersectionality is the study of how categorical distinctions made on the basis of race, class and gender interact to generate inequality, and this concept has become a primary lens by which scholars have come to model social stratification in the USA. In addition to the historically powerful interaction between race and class, gender interactions have become increasingly powerful in exacerbating class inequalities while the growing exclusion of foreigners on the basis of legal status has progressively marginalized Latinos in US society. As a result, poor whites and immigrant-origin Latinos have increasingly joined African Americans at the bottom of American society to form a new, expanded underclass.     

From small Maria to massive Campbell: Forty years of rat eradications from New Zealand islands

Abstract

Over the last four decades the eradication of rats from islands around New Zealand has moved from accidental eradication following the exploratory use of baits for rat control to carefully planned complex eradications of rats and cats (Felis catus) on large islands. Introduced rodents have now been eradicated from more than 90 islands. Of these successful campaigns, those on Breaksea Island, the Mercury Islands, Kapiti Island, and Tuhua Island are used here as case studies because they represent milestones for techniques used or results achieved. Successful methods used on islands range from bait stations and silos serviced on foot to aerial spread by helicopters using satellite navigation systems. The development of these methods has benefited from adaptive management. By applying lessons learned from previous operations the size, complexity, and cost effectiveness of the campaigns has gradually increased. The islands now permanently cleared of introduced rodents are being used for restoration of island‐seabird systems and recovery of threatened species such as large flightless invertebrates, lizards, tuatara, forest birds, and some species of plants. The most ambitious campaigns have been on remote subantarctic Campbell Island (11 300 ha) and warm temperate Raoul Island (2938 ha), aimed to provide long‐term benefits for endemic plant and animal species including land and seabirds. Other islands that could benefit from rat removal are close inshore and within the natural dispersal range of rats and stoats (Mustela erminea). Priorities for future development therefore include more effective methods for detecting rodent invasions, especially ship rats (Rattus rattus) and mice (Mus musculus), broader community involvement in invasion prevention, and improved understanding of reinvasion risk management.     

Milk banks through the lens of Muslim scholars: one text in two contexts

When Muslims thought of establishing milk banks, religious reservations were raised. These reservations were based on the concept that women's milk creates 'milk kinship' believed to impede marriage in Islamic Law. This type of kinship is, however, a distinctive phenomenon of Arab tradition and relatively unknown in Western cultures. This article is a pioneer study which fathoms out the contemporary discussions of Muslim scholars on this issue. The main focus here is a religious guideline (fatwa) issued in 1983, referred to in this article as 'one text', by the Egyptian scholar Yūsuf al-Qaradāwī who saw no religious problem in establishing or using these banks. After a number of introductory remarks on the 'Western' phenomenon of milk banks and the 'Islamic' phenomenon of 'milk kinship', this article analyses the fatwa of al-Qaradāwī 'one text' and investigates the 'two contexts' in which this fatwa was discussed, namely, the context of the Muslim world and that of Muslim minorities living in the West. The first context led to rejecting the fatwa and refusing to introduce the milk banking system in the Muslim world. The second context led to accepting this system and thus allowing Muslims living in the West to donate and receive milk from these banks. Besides its relevance to specialists in the fields of Islamic studies, anthropology and medical ethics, this article will also be helpful to physicians and nurses who deal with patients of Islamic background.