The paper outlines the history of the European Fibres Group (EFG) and includes its aims and achievements from the time of its formation in 1993 to the present day. The main emphasis is on the subject of "the evidential value of fibres", how the EFG have provided the data and where to locate it. Additionally the paper provides a look into what the group has accomplished in the recognition of the "lack of data" and the research being conducted to correct this problem. Finally it outlines other projects that are underway to improve its members' knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
This paper presents an analysis of nonprofit organizations—the organizational infrastructure of civil society—in East Central Europe, from one important respect: by placing them in the context of the comparative historical sociology of the region's widespread informality. This involves two steps: (1) summarizing an argument about the role of informality in East Central European capitalism today in order to (2) outline its implications for the study of post-state-socialist nonprofits. Most of the empirical examples come from Hungary. These examples serve illustrative purposes and are intended as devices to provoke new analysis. They are meant to open, rather than close, discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
The article offers several announcements related to medical research. The "European Spine Journal" announces the 20.000 Euro GRAMMER European Spine Journal Award for papers that deal with basic science. Meanwhile, the EUROSPINE-The Spine Society of Europe offers a job opportunity for a two-year research fellowship position. The article also launches the website www.orthosurg.org.uk/odi/ for the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI).