The Mystical and the Personal in Emil Brunner and Baron von Hügel

Paper by Margaret Lewis Furs

Forging Taiwan’s Legal Identity

The legal system in Taiwan is undergoing a transformation. Over a hundred years since the founding of the Republic of China and over thirty years since the end of martial law on Taiwan, a new legal identity is being forged. Public criticism of “dinosaur” judges and esoteric debates among law-trained elites have galvanized efforts to create a more inclusive discussion surrounding legal reforms. Taiwan is facing the challenge of moving from dinosaurs to dynamism. This Article argues that transparency, clarity, and participation both are animating principles of the current reform debate and are beginning to emerge as characteristics of Taiwan’s inchoate legal identity. Embedding these values into Taiwan’s legal identity could, in turn, help foster a shared sense of identity among the populace regarding what it means to be Taiwanese. The trajectory of legal reforms is largely a domestic matter, yet it is tied to considerations that extend beyond Taiwan’s borders. This Article posits that reshaping Taiwan’s legal identity has the potential both to boost Taiwan’s international standing and to further chafe cross-strait tensions. A question to watch is whether the shadow of Beijing might serve as a damper on legal innovation in Taiwan, a point of contrast that emboldens Taiwan to celebrate its distinct system, or perhaps some combination thereof

Criminal Law Pays: Penal Law\u27s Contribution to China\u27s Economic Development

China\u27s rapid rise to become the second largest economy in the world is nothing short of extraordinary. When economic reforms took off in the late 1970s, China had been without formal criminal law for three decades. China\u27s economic development since the launch of the reform period has occurred directly alongside the development of its criminal law, but the academic literature has failed to ask what role criminal law plays in China\u27s impressive growth. This Article argues that not only has the People\u27s Republic of China leadership historically used criminal law in service of economic ends but also, going forward, criminal law will likely play a multifaceted role in the leadership\u27s strategy to sustain growth. This inquiry is particularly timely on the heels of a once-a-decade leadership transition and as China\u27s ability to maintain a robust growth rate is facing rising skepticism. Looking beyond China, the law and development literature more generally has also failed to seriously discuss criminal law. At a time when many are rethinking the role of law in economic development, it is worth broadening the discussion to include criminal law. China is an instructive test case to begin that conversation

Magnetically levitated mesenchymal stem cell spheroids cultured with a collagen gel maintain phenotype and quiescence

Multicellular spheroids are an established system for three-dimensional cell culture. Spheroids are typically generated using hanging drop or non-adherent culture; however, an emerging technique is to use magnetic levitation. Herein, mesenchymal stem cell spheroids were generated using magnetic nanoparticles and subsequently cultured within a type I collagen gel, with a view towards developing a bone marrow niche environment. Cells were loaded with magnetic nanoparticles, and suspended beneath an external magnet, inducing self-assembly of multicellular spheroids. Cells in spheroids were viable and compared to corresponding monolayer controls, maintained stem cell phenotype and were quiescent. Interestingly, core spheroid necrosis was not observed, even with increasing spheroid size, in contrast to other commonly used spheroid systems. This mesenchymal stem cell spheroid culture presents a potential platform for modelling in vitro bone marrow stem cell niches, elucidating interactions between cells, as well as a useful model for drug delivery studies

Mitochondria (and other cytoplasmic structures) in tissue cultures

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