A Resource-Constrained Optimal Control Model for Crackdown on Illicit Drug Markets

In this paper we present a budget-constrained optimal control model aimed at finding the optimal enforcement profile for a street-level, illicit drug crackdown operation. The objective is defined as minimizing the number of dealers dealing at the end of the crackdown operation, using this as a surrogate measure of residual criminal activity. Analytical results show that optimal enforcement policy will invariably use the budget resources completely. Numerical analysis using realistic estimates of parameters shows that crackdowns normally lead to significant results within a matter of a week, and if they do not, it is likely that they will be offering very limited success even if pursued for a much longer duration. We also show that a ramp-up enforcement policy will be most effective in collapsing a drug market if the drug dealers are risk-seeking, and the policy of using maximum enforcement as early as possible is usually optimal in the case when the dealers are risk averse or risk neutral. The work then goes on to argue that the underlying model has some general characteristics that are both reasonable and intuitive, allowing possible applications in focussed, local enforcement operations on other similar illegal activities.crackdown enforcement;illicit drug markets;optimal control

Justice League? Depictions of Justice in Children’s Superhero Cartoons

The literature argues that media depictions of criminal justice present messages that conform to and promote the dominant ideology about the crime problem and how to solve it. Research has focused on television news and adult programs, but little research has examined messages about justice present in children’s shows. To fill this gap, an ethnographic content analysis of children’s cartoons was conducted, using a sample of episodes from Batman: The Animated Series, Spider-Man, and Justice League Unlimited. Several themes emerged. First, the justice system is often depicted as ill equipped to handle serious crime. Second, story lines suggested that the justice system is relatively weak, plagued by corruption or ineffectiveness. Third, heroes are driven by their notions of justice, recognizing that only they can stop the worst criminals and are morally obligated to do so. Fourth, heroes are willing to use force to capture offenders, but they also use brain power. Finally, although heroes work largely outside the law, they are supportive of the efforts of honest justice system actors. In sum, these shows provide messages about justice that are consistent with and supportive of the dominant ideology that derides rehabilitation and emphasizes incapacitation. They are also congruent with messages, images, and frames presented in adult-oriented media. By drawing on moral elements and the problem frame, they act as cultural primers by which young people may interpret subsequent imagery of crime and justice. The consistency across genres contributes to the social reality of crime and control

Crime in Televised Presidential Campaign Ads: The Making of Visual Metaphor

In televised campaign advertisements, political rhetoric potently combines with visual metaphors. Drawing on a digital library of presidential campaign ads from 1952 to 2016, the qualitative media analysis scrutinized how crime rhetoric became visual metaphor. Crime images were positioned and manipulated alongside other content to craft a story about crime and the candidates. Across all ads, two tactics emerged: depicting crime as a problem akin to other social ills – a dark stain; and posing crime as the sinister side to an otherwise vibrant society – a lurking shadow. Candidates were branded as janitors and sheriffs who could rally against these foes

On the scaling behaviour of cross-tie domain wall structures in patterned NiFe elements

The cross-tie domain wall structure in micrometre and sub-micrometre wide patterned elements of NiFe, and a thickness range of 30 to 70nm, has been studied by Lorentz microscopy. Whilst the basic geometry of the cross-tie repeat units remains unchanged, their density increases when the cross-tie length is constrained to be smaller than the value associated with a continuous film. This occurs when element widths are sufficiently narrow or when the wall is forced to move close to an edge under the action of an applied field. To a very good approximation the cross-tie density scales with the inverse of the distance between the main wall and the element edge. The experiments show that in confined structures, the wall constantly modifies its form and that the need to generate, and subsequently annihilate, extra vortex/anti-vortex pairs constitutes an additional source of hysteresis.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Europhysics Letters (EPL