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This paper addresses a fundamental question in evidence based policy making--can scientists and policy makers work together? It first provides a scenario outlining the different mentalities and imperatives of scientists and policy makers, and then discusses various issues and solutions relating to whether and how scientists and policy makers can work together. Scientists and policy makers have different goals, attitudes toward information, languages, perception of time, and career paths. Important issues affecting their working together include lack of mutual trust and respect, different views on the production and use of evidence, different accountabilities, and whether there should be a link between science and policy. The suggested solutions include providing new incentives to encourage scientists and policy makers to work together, using knowledge brokers (translational scientists), making organisational changes, defining research in a broader sense, re-defining the starting point for knowledge transfer, expanding the accountability horizon, and finally, acknowledging the complexity of policy making. It is hoped that further discussion and debate on the partnership idea, the need for incentives, recognising the incompatibility problems, the role of civil society, and other related themes will lead to new opportunities for further advancing evidence based policy and practice.

Self-reported attachment characteristics, substance use and behavioural problems were assessed in 68 male juvenile delinquents from rural and urban areas. As was predicted, insecure attachment characteristics were related to behavioural problems, substance use, and poor family functioning. Urban delinquents reported more substance use and more interpersonal problems with peers and family members than their rural counterparts. Contextual influences on adolescent attachment relationships and adjustment problems may have implications for the administration and delivery of psychological treatments in youth correctional settings.

A static method coupled with gravimetric analysis was developed to measure the solubility of solids in supercritical carbon dioxide. To test the validity and accuracy of this method, the solubilities of naphthalene and phenanthrene were determined. Excellent agreement was obtained between the data in the literature and the data obtained using this method.

In public health, the generation, management, and transfer of knowledge all need major improvement. Problems in generating knowledge include an imbalance in research funding, publication bias, unnecessary studies, adherence to fashion, and undue interest in novel and immediate issues. Impaired generation of knowledge, combined with a dated and inadequate process for managing knowledge and an inefficient system for transferring knowledge, mean a distorted body of evidence available for decisionmaking in public health. This article hopes to stimulate discussion by proposing a Global Registry of Anticipated Public Health Studies. This prospective, comprehensive system for tracking research in public health could help enhance collaboration and improve efficiency. Practical problems must be discussed before such a vision can be further developed.

Objective: To examine rates of behavioural and substance use problems in incarcerated young offenders and to explore rural and urban differences in the expression and severity of these problems. Method: We assessed a sample of 68 confined male young offenders (63.3% rural and 35.3% urban), using the Drug Use Screening Inventory (DUSI) and the Youth Self-Report (YSR). Results: Based on clinical cut-offs, data showed high rates of externalizing behavioural problems (75.4%) and substance use problems (95.7%). Urban delinquent youths showed higher rates of attention problems, delinquent behaviours, and externalizing behaviours than those in rural communities. Conclusions: Incarcerated young offenders show elevated rates of psychological problems that require treatment. Rural and urban differences in the rates of these problems may reflect differences in community service availability in these areas or in environmental influences on the development of child behavioural problems.

Self-reported attachment characteristics, substance use and behavioural problems were assessed in 68 male juvenile delinquents from rural and urban areas. As was predicted, insecure attachment characteristics were related to behavioural problems, substance use, and poor family functioning. Urban delinquents reported more substance use and more interpersonal problems with peers and family members than their rural counterparts. Contextual influences on adolescent attachment relationships and adjustment problems may have implications for the administration and delivery of psychological treatments in youth correctional settings.