Toward a Theory of Effective Supranational Adjudication

Supranational adjudication in Europe is a remarkable and surprising success. Europe\u27s two supranational courts -- the European Court of Justice (ECJ) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) -- issue dozens of judgments each year with which defending national governments habitually comply in essentially the same manner as they would with domestic court rulings. These experiences stand in striking contrast to those of many international tribunals past and present. Can the European experience of supranational adjudication be transplanted beyond Europe? Professors Helfer and Slaughter argue that the effectiveness of the ECJ and the ECHR is linked to their power to hear claims brought by private parties directly against national governments or against other private parties. Such supranational jurisdiction has allowed the European courts to penetrate the surface of the state, to forge direct relationships not only with individual citizens but also with distinct government institutions such as national courts. Over time, this penetration and the deepening relationships between supranational jurists and domestic legal actors have led to the evolution of a community of law, a web of nominally apolitical relations among subnational and supranational legal actors. The simple provision of supranational jurisdiction, however, is not a guarantee of effective adjudication. Drawing on the observations of scholars, practitioners, and judges, Professors Helfer and Slaughter develop a checklist of factors that enhance the effectiveness of supranational adjudication. They distinguish among those factors that are within the control of member states; those that are within the control of the judges themselves; and those that may be beyond the control of either states or judges. Isolating the factors in this way provides both a rough metric for evaluating the effectiveness of other supranational tribunals and a potential set of prescriptions for judges on those tribunals seeking to enhance their institutions\u27 effectiveness. After developing the checklist, Professors Helfer and Slaughter use it to analyze the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC). Although the UNHRC was established expressly as a committee of experts rather than a court, analysis of its recent practice reveals that it is becoming increasingly court-like. Moreover, within the constraints imposed by severely limited resources, UNHRC members are independently following many of the checklist prescriptions for increased effectiveness. The next step is for the organization to enter into a sustained dialogue with its European counterparts, harmonizing its decisions with theirs in some areas while consciously preserving its own distinctive jurisprudence in others. Structured and regular interaction between these tribunals would add additional voices to an emerging transjudicial conversation, potentially laying the foundation for a global community of law

Is Jan Gehl’s theories correct? : a study about life between buildings in Malmo

Att röra sig i städernas gaturum till fots hör för många till vardagen men varför och hur rör man sig? Jan Gehls Life Between Buildings går igenom just detta och ger förklaringar på vad som lockar människor till gaturum men även hur människor beter sig i gaturummen. Denna uppsats syfte är att undersöka ifall Gehls teorier om livet mellan huskroppar stämmer överens med vad som händer på två av Malmös mest gångtrafikerade gator. Detta åstadkoms genom att först undersöka hur Malmö stad arbetar med sina gaturum, undersöka mer precist vad Gehl skriver om livet mellan hus och två platsstudier där människors rörelse och beteende observeras utifrån tre kategorier. Resultatet visar att Malmö stad i skrift på många sätt försöker främja det som Gehl föreslår attraherar fler människor till gaturummen men att de brister i utförandet på sina gator. Det observerade beteendet och rörelserna på gatorna går i linje med det som Gehl i sitt verk beskriver och man kan tydligt se vart människor väljer att gå, sitta eller stå. Vidare tar uppsatsen upp vad Malmö stad hade kunnat arbeta mer med utifrån vad Gehl skrivit. Uppsatsen avslutas med en del som tar upp faktorer som kan ha påverkat studiernas resultat.Moving around the city on foot is part of many people’s everyday life, but why and how do they move? Jan Gehl’s Life Between Buildings goes through this and provides explanations to what attracts people to the street as well as how people behave in the streets. The purpose of this essay is to investigate whether Gehl’s theories about life between buildings agree with what happens on two of Malmö’s most pedestrianized streets. This was achieved by first examining how Malmö city works with its open spaces, examining more precisely what Gehl writes about life between buildings and two case studies where peoples movement and behavior are observed based on three categories. The results show that Malmö city in many ways tries to implement what Gehl suggests promotes more people to use the street in text but that they fall short when it comes to execution of what they have written. The observed behavior and movement on the streets correlate to what Gehl describes in his work and you can clearly see where people choose to walk, sit, or stand. Furthermore, the essay addresses what Malmo city can improve in their open spaces based on what Gehl has written. The essay is concluded by a section that addresses factors which may have influenced the results of the studies

Etiology of nocturia response in men with diminished bladder capacity

Aims: To test the hypothesis that patients with nocturia owing to diminished global or nocturnal bladder capacity improve via increased bladder capacity. Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of voiding diaries completed at a VA urology clinic between 2008-2017. Inclusion required patients aged at least 18 years, male, undergoing treatment for nocturia, and having completed at least two 24-hour voiding diaries >= 1 month apart. Patients were divided into two cohorts: responders (any decline in nocturia) and non-responders (no change or any increase in nocturia). Patients were further sub-stratified as having low global bladder capacity (maximum voided volume [MVV] = 200 mL). Wilcoxon rank-sum was applied with a Bonferroni correction to test significance. Results: Forty pre- and post-treatment diaries from 27 patients, and 19 pre- and post-treatment diaries from 17 patients were identified as having low global and low nocturnal bladder capacity, respectively. Nocturia responders with low global bladder capacity demonstrated significant decline compared to non-responders in nocturnal urine volume (NUV) (-140 vs +75, P < 0.01) and nocturnal bladder capacity index (NBCi) (-0.59 vs +0.23, P < 0.01). Patients with low nocturnal bladder capacity similarly demonstrated decreased NUV (-30 vs +160, P = 0.04) and NBCi (-1.4 vs +0.33, P < 0.01). There was no significant change in MVV or NMVV for either group. Conclusions: Treatment directed at lowering nocturnal urine production and enabling patients to consistently void at capacity is a rational strategy to treat nocturia in patients with low bladder capacity

Multiple Modes of Nrf2 Regulation and Transcriptional Response

Cells have defense systems to deal with chemical insults from the environment. Some examples are chemical scavengers like glutathione and enzymes such as superoxide dismutase that inactivate radicals and other reactive chemicals in the cytoplasm. It is perhaps surprising that these protective systems are not maximally expressed in an unstressed cell. Rather, the ability to inactivate toxic chemicals is tightly regulated and only induced when needed. As a consequence, unstressed cells are usually very sensitive to radicals, but become more resistant as the cellular defense system has been appropriately upregulated after a few hours. The transcription factor Nrf2 is known to be a master regulator of many cytoprotective enzymes and proteins. Chemical inducers of Nrf2 inactivate its repressor, Keap1, when they react with critical cysteine residues in Keap1. The release of Nrf2 from Keap1 results in enhanced expression of genes involved in detoxification. This generates a feedback loop where Nrf2 induces protective enzymes capable of inactivating the chemical that reacted with Keap1. An unproven, but likely, scenario is that Nrf2 transcriptional response can vary depending on the nature of the chemical insult. The aim of this chapter is to examine the mechanisms by which the cell can sense different reactive chemicals and modulate protective responses. It is likely that this knowledge is of vital importance in the development of clinical Nrf2 activators in preventive medicine

Methods for parasitological examination in sheep herds

Infection with endoparasites is a problem in sheep flocks worldwide. In order to avoid treating animals with anthelmintics unnecessarily, or missing animal groups in need of treatment, it is important that there are diagnostic tools that effectively detects sheep groups with a high degree of infection. A common way of estimating the degree of infection in sheep farms is to analyze the number of parasitic eggs in samples from a certain number of animals in the flock. The result is then used to estimate the overall degree of infection in the flock. The purpose of this study was first to investigate the distribution of parasitic eggs between the individuals in a relatively small flock of sheep as well as to investigate what endoparasite species were present in the flock. The third, and most important purpose of the study, was to investigate to what extent the number of individual fecal samples included in a composite sample influences the accuracy of the estimation of the flock mean. Material in the form of individual fecal samples were examined from two different sample groups; 60 fecal samples came from Vidilab (a laboratory that routinely examines fecal samples for parasitological analysis) and 49 samples were collected from a hobby flock. In both cases, the individual samples were analyzed with the McMaster method independently, as well as in the form of composite samples that were made up of samples from several individuals per group. The individual samples that were included in the composite samples were sorted both randomly and in different pools consisting of samples with high and low egg counts, respectively. The composition of the parasites in the pool samples was examined using digital droplet (dd) PCR. Finally, a Bootstrap analysis was conducted with data from the different sampling groups to theoretically determine how the egg count result is influenced by different individual numbers that can be included in pooled sampling. This study showed that the range of egg secretion between individual sheep egg was high in both sampling groups. A small proportion of the animals yielded high egg counts while the majority of individuals only excreted small amounts or no parasitic eggs at all. In the ddPCR study, the three most common endoparasites in Swedish sheep herds were detected (Haemonchus contortus, Trichostrongylus spp. and Teladorsagia circumcincta). In addition, the study indirectly showed that there were other Trichostrongyle species in the samples. The Bootstrap analysis showed that the accuracy of the test result increased with the number of individual samples, as shown in previous studies. In summary, this study supports the findings made in previous studies. The test results for examining pool samples are influenced by several factors where the individual number tested is the most important factor in increasing precision.Infektioner med mag- och tarmparasiter är ett betydelsefullt veterinärmedicinskt problem i fårbesättningar världen över. För att undvika att avmaska djuren i onödan eller missa djurgrupper i behov av behandling är det viktigt att det finns diagnostik som effektivt fångar upp fårgrupper med ett högt smittryck. Ett vanligt sätt att uppskatta smittläget fårbesättningar är att analysera antalet parasitägg i samlingsprover från träck hos ett visst antal djur i besättningen. Resultatet används sedan för att uppskatta smittrycket i besättningen i stort. Den här studien hade två övergripande syften: huvudsyftet var att undersöka i vilken utsträckning antalet individuella träckprover som ingår i ett samlingsprov påverkar provsvarets precision. Ett ytterligare syfte var att undersöka hur utskiljningen av parasitägg samt parasitartförekomsten fördelade sig mellan individerna i en relativt liten hobbybesättning. Provmaterial i form av individuella träckprover undersöktes från två olika grupper; varav 60 prover kom från Vidilab (ett laboratorium som rutinmässigt undersöker träck för parasitologisk analys), och 49 prover samlades in från en uppländsk hobbybesättning. I båda fallen analyserades träckproverna med McMasterteknik dels var för sig, dels som samlingsprover från flera individer per grupp. De individprover som ingick i de poolade samlingsproverna sorterades både slumpmässigt och i olika pooler bestående av prover med hög respektive låg äggutskilning. Parasiternas artsammansättning i samlingsproverna undersöktes med hjälp av digital droplet (dd)PCR. Slutligen genomfördes bootstrapanalys med data från de olika provtagningsgrupperna för att teoretiskt ta reda på hur precisionen i de samlade resultaten påverkas av olika individantal som kan ingå i poolade samlingsprover. Den här studien visade att spridningen mellan individernas äggutskiljning var stor i båda provtagningsgrupperna. En liten andel av djuren utskilde stora mängder parasitägg medan majoriteten av individerna endast utskilde liten mängd eller inga parasitägg alls. I ddPCRundersökningen påvisades de tre vanligaste endoparasiterna som infekterar svenska får. Undersökningen visade dessutom indirekt att det förekom andra trichostrongylida arter i proverna. Bootstrapanalysen visade att precisionen för provresultatet ökade med antalet ingående individprover, något som även visats i tidigare studier. Sammanfattningsvis stödjer den här studien de fynd som gjorts i tidigare studier. Provresultaten vid undersökning av samlingsprover påverkas av flera faktorer där individantalet som provtas utgör störst roll när man vill öka precisionen

The otter in Sweden : the effects of environmental pollutants in relation to population size and pathological findings

Uttern (Lutra lutra), är ett rovdjur som livnär sig mestadels på fisk därmed är en toppkonsument i näringskedjan. Detta gör arten extremt sårbar för miljöföroreningar som bioackumuleras. Under 1950-talet minskade utterpopulationen i Sverige kraftigt både i antal och i distrubution. Från att tidigare ha funnits i hela Sverige, med undantag av Gotland, fanns på 1980-talet utter bara på ett fåtal platser i Sverige. Även i andra delar av Europa minskade uttern dramatiskt i antal, medan populationer på andra platser verkade vara opåverkade. Förklaringarna till minskningen av utterbeståndet antas vara ökningen av PCB samt DDT i miljön under början och mitten av 1900-talet. Uttern tillhör Statens vilt och påträffade döda uttrar ska skickas in till Naturhistoriska riksmuseet (NRM) eller Statens veterinärmedicinska anstalt (SVA) för kemiska analyser och obduktion. Inte patologiska förändringar har kunnat härledas direkt till miljögifters påverkan, men bland de som observerats finns förändringar i rörbenens sammansättning, minskad näringsstatus och eventuellt cystor på sädesledaren. Det är alltså främst genom observationer av förändringar i populationsstorlek i relation till miljögiftskoncentrationer samt genom toxikologiska studier på bland annat mink (Neovison vison), en nära släkting till uttern, som det har visats att uttern påverkats mycket negativt av miljögifters spridning i miljön. Sedan tillverkningen av PCB och DDT förbjöds i Europa under 1970-talet, har halterna av dessa kontaminanter i utter minskat, samtidigt som uttern har visat tecken på förbättrad näringsstatus och reproduktionsförmåga. Utterbeståndet är alltså numera på uppgång. 2006 uppskattades utterpopulationen till mellan 1600 och 2000 individer och utter finns återigen på platser där den har varit försvunnen under flera årtionden. Trots detta, finns fortfarande hot i miljön som uttern står inför. Fortfarande är uttern utsatt för ämnen såsom metylkvicksilver och flera klororganiska föreningar. Ämnen såsom per- och polyfluorerade ämnen, som kan ha en levertoxisk samt hormonstörande effekt, visar till och med på en uppåtgående trend i utter. Vad detta kan innebära för utterpopulationen är inte helt klarlagt och därför behövs mer forskning på området.The European otter (Lutra lutra), is a fish-eating predator, thus being a top consumer in the food-chain. This makes the otter very susceptible to certain accumulating environmental pollutants. During the 1950’s the otter population in Sweden went through a dramatic decline in population size. Being very common in whole of Sweden before, with exception of the island of Gotland, the otter in Sweden was in the 1980’s close to extinction. Also, in other parts of Europe the otter populations were decreasing dramatically, while at some locations the population sizes appeared to have been left unaffected. The reasons for this appear to be the increased distribution of PCB and DDT in the environment during the first half of the 20th century. When an otter is found dead in Sweden it shall be sent in to the Swedish Museum of Natural History (SMNH) or the Swedish Veterinary Institute (SVA) for necropsies and chemical analyses. Few pathological changes have been observed in Swedish otters that can be derived from environmental pollutants, but the main ones are bone mineral alterations, cysts on the spermatic duct and reduced signs of reproduction. It is therefore mainly through alterations in population size and distribution in relation to concentrations of pollutants in different areas that environmental causes of the decline in population size have been proved. High concentrations of PCB and DDT were recorded when populations were decreasing, while lower concentrations have been observed in striving and growing otter populations. Also experimental toxicological studies performed on mink (Neovison vison), a close relative to the otter, shows that some environmental pollutants are a great threat to otters. Since the ban of PCB and DDT in Europe in the 1970’s, the concentrations of these compounds in otter tissue have decreased significantly at the same time as otter health parameters such as body condition and sign of reproduction have gone up. Nowadays, the otter population is increasing, both in distribution and in numbers. In 2006 the otter population was estimated to between 1600 and 2000 individuals. Despite these positive observations, the otter is still facing both old and new threats in its role as a top-predator. Concentrations of some organochlorides are still high and concentrations of per- and polyfluorinated compounds have been recorded to increase in the Swedish otter population. The impact of this has not yet been made clear and more research on this matter is needed

Assessment of local abundance, demographics, health and exploitation of Chesapeake Bay American eel

The Chesapeake Bay supports the largest U.S. harvest of American eel Anguilla rostrata, yet little is known about the underlying production rates sustaining harvests. Demographic attributes were compared between six sub-estuaries and with an unexploited population in the Hudson River. A mark-recapture experiment in the Potomac River yielded growth, abundance, and production estimates. Sub-estuaries characterized by lower salinity had a lower proportion of females, and American eels were older, slower growing and showed increased parasitism. Female American eels were larger, older, and had higher growth rates than other gender types. Local abundances were 10-fold higher in the Potomac River estuary in comparison to the Hudson River, but growth rates were similar. Mortality rates were twice as high as those in the Hudson River estuary. The production model indicated American eel recruitment and biomass decreased substantially during the past 20 years