Digital Commons Network^™

Normalizing Copyright In The Electronic Environment, Vicenç Feliú

Vicenç Feliú

This article is an update of an article written by Professor Ann Bartow in 2003 entitled Electrifying Copyright Norms and Making Cyberspace More Like a Book. In Electrifying Bartow examined the social norms applied when using copyrighted works in the analog world, she explains how social norms develop, coalesce, and become de facto rules of behavior. She proposed that, at the time the article was written, real world copyright norms were not making their way into cyberspace because copyright holders were using their own normative view to exercise control of works embodied in electronic formats. She focused on non-profit libraries …

The Codification Of Professionalism: Can You Sanction Lawyers Into Being Nice?, Debra Moss Curtis

Debra Moss Curtis

On October 31, 2013, the Florida Supreme Court in The Florida Bar v. Norkin made it clear that “it wants the trend of escalating incivility among lawyers to stop.” With that decision, in which a lawyer was suspended and publicly reprimanded for his behavior, the court urged “Members of the Florida Bar, law professors, and law students should study” this case “as a glaring example of unprofessional behavior.” This article heeds the courts’ directive to do so, but also places it in the context of the movement to enhance professionalism statewide.At the heart of the professionalism movement is a conflict—between …

Orphans In Turmoil: How A Legislative Solution Can Help Put The Orphan Works Dilemma To Rest, Vicenç Feliú

Vicenç Feliú

The orphan works issue has continued to grow in the United States despite strong efforts to find a workable solution. Stakeholders on both sides of the issue have proposed and opposed both solutions and compromises that could have alleviated the problem and are still no closer to an agreement. This paper posits that the solutions offered in the proposed legislation of 2006 and 2008 provide a strong working foundation for a legislative answer to the issue. To create a workable solution to the orphan works issue, a new legislative effort would have to take into account the questions raised by …

The Hot Topics While In College: Wildfire Risk Perception Among University’S Population., Thomas Wuerzer

Thomas Wuerzer

In 2012, wildfires destroyed about approximate 9 million acres of US lands and 2013’s fire season was equally destructive. In many states, the number of fires, burned acreages, and destroyed lives and property are devastating and a threat to the resident’s quality of life. Research shows that the re-occurrences and intensity of wildfires in the US, particular in the West, follow similar pattern than droughts or shifting early snow-pack melts. Environmental precursors show that the 2014 will be distressing. This study is focusing primarily on college students and their risk perception of wild fires in a fire prone US State; …

Enzyme Entrapment In Polyaniline Films Observed Via Florescence Anisotropy And Antiquenching, Louis R. Nemzer, Marissa Mccaffrey, Arthur J. Epstein

Louis R Nemzer

The facile entrapment of oxidoreductase enzymes within polyaniline polymer films by inducing hydrophobic collapse using phosphate buffered saline (PBS) has been shown to be a cost-effective method for fabricating organic biosensors. Here, we use fluorescence anisotropy measurements to verify enzyme immobilization and subsequent electron donation to the polymer matrix, both prerequisites for an effective biosensor. Specifically, we measure a three order of magnitude decrease in the ratio of the fluorescence to rotational lifetimes. In addition, the observed fluorescence antiquenching supports the previously proposed model that the polymer chain assumes a severely coiled conformation when exposed to PBS. These results help …

A Model Of Band-Pass Phenotypic Resistance In A Modified Beverton-Holt Framework, Louis R. Nemzer

Louis R Nemzer

A new mathematical model of phenotypic bacterial resistance to a periodically applied antibiotic is presented. Using a modified Beverton–Holt framework, and without appealing to any explicit internal timescale or heritable mutations, we map the parameter-space regions corresponding to bacterial colony survival or extinction. It is demonstrated that band-pass behavior, in which colony survival occurs at intermediate – but not short or long – antibiotic application periods, is a possible regime for some initial population values if the bactericidal activity is sufficient. However, below this threshold value of antibiotic efficacy, a ‘‘fixed-point catastrophe’’ occurs, and colony extinction does not occur when …

Beg Borrow Or Steal: Ten Lessons Law Schools Can Learn In Evaluating Their Curriculum From Other Educational Programs, Debra Moss Curtis

Debra Moss Curtis

Beg, Borrow or Steal: Ten Lessons Law Schools Can Learn in Evaluating their CurriculumBy Debra Moss CurtisIt is indisputable that law schools are clamoring for and working toward change in their curriculum. Generally, higher education institutions have been acknowledged to have a “responsibility to endeavor to prepare graduates who are able to manage and respond effectively to change and its demands, challenges ad tensions.” However, despite criticisms and active discussions regarding curriculum reform for 25 years, law school curriculum reform has been seen as tedious and frustrating, resulting through the years in only modest changes.While in the past, …

Too “Hot” To Ignore: Fire Hazards At The Boise Wildland Urban Interface, Juli Mccoy, Thomas Wuerzer

Thomas Wuerzer

As part of a larger interdisciplinary study on “Fire, GIS, and Planning” we seek to provide the fire-planning resources needed by fire managers and the public to better understand the economic and environmental/ecological threats caused by the increasing number of fires. Our research seeks to assess the current potential for destructive wildfires in the Boise Foothills, as well as the attitudes of homeowners who may be impacted by a wildfire event.

Legal Education In Disruption: The Headwinds And Tailwinds Of Technology, Jon M. Garon

Jon M. Garon

By harnessing improvements on communications and computational systems, law firms are producing a revolution in the practice of law. Self-help legal manuals have transformed into sophisticated interactive software; predictive coding can empower clients to receive sophisticated legal advice from a machine; socially mediated portals select among potential lawyers and assess the quality of the advice given; and virtual law firms threaten to distintermediate the grand edifices of twentieth century Big Law. These changes may profoundly restructure the legal practice, undermining the business model for many solo and small firm practices.

This paper focuses on the implications of these profound disruptive …

Correcting The Supreme Court – Will It Listen? Using The Models Of Judicial Decision-Making To Predict The Future Of The Ada Amendments Act, Kate Webber

Kate Webber

No abstract provided.

Corporation Sole - Appendix A, Vicenç Feliú

Vicenç Feliú

This work is a revision and update of a study carried out in 1933 by Monsignor Patrick J. Dignan. Dignan’s purpose in his study was to outline the history of how the Roman Catholic Church (the Church) secured laws for the protection of church property in accordance with the hierarchical nature of the Church. The purpose of the present article is to bring up to date Dignan’s work and complete a survey of the law in its present state. As a secondary purpose, the present article also provides legal reference librarians with a unified collection of the laws controlling Church …

Corporation Sole - Appendix B, Vicenç Feliú

Vicenç Feliú

This work is a revision and update of a study carried out in 1933 by Monsignor Patrick J. Dignan. Dignan’s purpose in his study was to outline the history of how the Roman Catholic Church (the Church) secured laws for the protection of church property in accordance with the hierarchical nature of the Church. The purpose of the present article is to bring up to date Dignan’s work and complete a survey of the law in its present state. As a secondary purpose, the present article also provides legal reference librarians with a unified collection of the laws controlling Church …

Ethanol Shock And Lysozyme Aggregation, Louis R. Nemzer, Bret N. Flander, Jeremy D. Schmit, Amitabha Chakrabarti, Christopher M. Sorensen

Louis R Nemzer

Irreversible protein–protein aggregation is associated with several human maladies, including Alzheimer's disease, and poses a challenge to pharmaceutical formulation and preservation efforts. The existence of multiple agglomeration pathways that lead to different final morphologies complicates the ability to determine the aggregation fate of proteins under various reaction conditions. Using lysozyme (3 mg/mL) as a model protein for dynamic light scattering and circular dichroism studies, we observed dense, non-fibrous aggregation triggered under acidic (pH 4) conditions by a destabilizing “ethanol shock” of 16% (v/v) ethanol. However, ethanol concentrations 15% and below did not lead to aggregation. The aggregation fate of these …

Us Patent #8,326,389 - A System For In Vivo Biosensing Based On The Optical Response, Arthur Epstein, Louis R. Nemzer

Louis R Nemzer

A system for continuous in vivo biosensing of specific analyte molecule concentrations based on the dynamic optical properties of electronic polymers is disclosed. The biosensor system includes at least one implant member subcutaneously exposed to the interstitial fluid of the subject, and a reader member at least temporarily positioned over the implant member to probe it with light of specific wavelengths through the skin. The system has many potential applications, including the real-time monitoring of blood glucose levels in diabetics as a method to supplement or replace conventional capillary blood testing.

Outcomes Assessment And Legal Research Pedagogy, Vicenç Feliú, Helen Frazer

Vicenç Feliú

This article explores application of a taxonomic approach in legal research pedagogy to outcomes assessment based on Prof. Paul Callister's adaptation of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives which integrates instructional design and learning activities compatible with formative assessment during the learning process and summative assessment at its conclusion. It reviews the development of outcomes assessment initiatives by legal educators and the development of outcomes assessment standards by the American Bar Association for the accreditation of law schools.

Mortgaging The Meme: Financing And Managing Disruptive Innovation, Jon M. Garon

Jon M. Garon

Traditional financing of innovative companies emphasizes the use of patents and associated intellectual property rights to secure debt and provide assets for valuation. Although the model suffices for incremental innovation, it does not account for investments in disruptive innovation, those that undermine traditional business models, supply chains or industry relationships.Disruptive innovation can be described as the introduction of a new conceptual idea or meme into an existing system that causes the system to be fundamentally altered. Assembly lines, air conditioning, digital film, and personal computers represent such innovations, all of which led to fundamental paradigm shifts.The convergence of globalization, a …

Wayfinding In Boise, Students Of Crp503 Plan Making And Implementation, Thomas Wuerzer

Thomas Wuerzer

Executive Summary

This document reviews the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of wayfinding within the Boise and downtown areas. This project was done in coordination with the City of Boise Parks & Recreation (Boise P&R) Department as an in-class Service Learning component of the Community and Regional Planning course “CRP 503 Plan Making and Implementation” at Boise State University.

The purpose of this project is to develop a quality set of findings and recommendations that adhere to accepted planning processes and sound methodology. The goal from the onset is to develop content that is broad-based, all-inclusive, and will be helpful …

The Salary Memo, Robert M. Jarvis

Robert M. Jarvis

This short essay takes a humorous look at how law school deans decide faculty raises.

The Federal Reserve We Need: It’S The Fed We Once Had, Timothy A. Canova

Timothy A. Canova

This article considers the empirical record of the 1942-1951 period of Federal Reserve history when the Fed was more politically accountable and more independent of private financial interests. During the 1940s, federal spending was nearly twice as high as today, and federal borrowing was more than three times higher. Yet, from 1942 to 1951, the Federal Reserve was directed by the White House and Treasury to peg interest rates at 3/8 of one percent on short-term Treasury borrowing and 2.0 to 2.5 percent on long-term borrowing. The U.S. economy grew at a real annual rate of 15 to 20 percent …

"Is It Legal?": An American Law Professor's Tribute To An English Lawyer Tv Sitcom, Robert M. Jarvis

Robert M. Jarvis

Describes the 1990s English TV sitcom "Is It Legal?" and compares it to the 1990s American TV sitcom "Sparks."

Rethinking Intangible Cultural Heritage And Expressions Of Folklore: A Lesson From The Fcc’S Localism Standards, Jon M. Garon

Jon M. Garon

This article reviews the underlying societal imperatives reflected in a policy of intangible cultural heritage and the intellectual property-like regimes being developed to protect these interests. It contrasts UNESCO efforts with more narrowly tailored efforts of WIPO and juxtaposes those approaches with the localism model developed under the FCC. While aspects of the WIPO protection efforts focusing on trademark-like and trade secret-like protections benefit the people and cultures these policies hope to serve, additional copyright-like protections will likely do more harm than good. Instead, global public policy will be far better served through emphasis on the FCC's localism attributes of …

Black Swans And Black Elephants In Plain Sight: An Empirical Review Of Central Bank Independence, Timothy A. Canova

Timothy A. Canova

This paper critically reviews the empirical economic literature that seeks to correlate central bank independence with low inflation rates; discusses the relationship between central bank accountability, economic growth, income and wealth distribution, and financial stability; analyzes the contested theoretical views of central bank independence, and considers the constitutional issues raised by delegations of monetary authority to privately-directed central banks in the context of recent transparency and disclosure reforms in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The empirical literature that seeks to correlate central bank independence with lower inflation rates focuses on data prior to the 2008 collapse, …

Exciton Broadening In Polyaniline Chains During Ion Induced Hydrophobic Collapse And Aggregation, Louis R. Nemzer, Arthur Epstein

Louis R Nemzer

The ion-induced reprecipitation of the emeraldine base form of polyaniline from an aqueous-organic binary solution is a facile method for obtaining polymer nanoparticles and microscale clusters. The hydrophobic collapse and aggregation that accompanies the addition of various cosolutes induces changes in the peak wavelength and linewidth of the main exciton absorption. In particular, we find that the addition of ionic cosoutes leads to a redshifting and broadening of this spectroscopic feature, with divalent coions exhibiting an additional hypsochromic reversal at high concentrations. The denaturant urea, in contrast, causes a blueshift and line-narrowing at all concentrations. Using a quantitative Lorentz fit, …

Localism As A Production Imperative: An Alternative Framework To Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage And Expressions Of Folklore, Jon M. Garon

Jon M. Garon

In the United States, the policy of localism – the legislative goal of fostering local community expression and competence to deliver local content – finds its home in the Telecommunications Act rather than either the Copyright Act or Trademark Act. Other nations have introduced values of localism into trade policy, content distribution rules, and international efforts to protect intangible cultural heritage and expressions of folklore.Jurisdictions in every continent are struggling to address the pressures of globalism through efforts to protect indigenous peoples’ and minority communities’ languages and culture. These efforts take many forms. Nations have introduced efforts to protect these …

"Is It Legal?": An American Law Professor's Tribute To An English Lawyer Tv Sitcom, Robert M. Jarvis

Robert M. Jarvis

This paper introduces readers to a forgotten 1990s English TV sitcom called "Is It Legal?" and then compares it to a similar American TV sitcom called "Sparks." In the course of describing the show's characters and plots, the paper discusses the regulation of attorneys, the functioning of law firms, and the business aspects of the television industry.

A Closer Look: A Symposium Among Legal Historians And Law Librarians To Uncover The Spanish Roots Of Louisiana Civil Law, Vicenç Feliú, Dennis Kim-Prieto, Teresa Miguel

Vicenç Feliú

The debate regarding whether the origin of Louisiana civil law is based in the Spanish or in the French legal tradition has been ongoing since that state’s incorporation into the United States as a result of the Louisiana Purchase. Distinguished legal scholars have argued in favor of one tradition being dominant over the other, and each has been staunch in support of that view. This article proposes and demonstrates that the Spanish, not French, civil law had an enormous influence on the creation and evolution of Louisiana civil law, and that this legacy resonates today.

The article begins with a …

Enzyme Entrapment In Reprecipitated Polyaniline Nano- And Microparticles, Louis R. Nemzer, Austin Schwartz, Arthur Epstein

Louis R Nemzer

We introduce a novel method for fabricating nano- and microscale polyaniline particles containing an entrapped oxidoreductase enzyme for use in biosensing applications. This facile process utilizes the reprecipitation of the emeraldine base form of polyaniline from an aqueous-organic suspension, with hydrophobic collapse and subsequent cross-linking of the polymer induced by adjusting the ionic strength beyond a critical threshold. We present UV-vis spectroscopy data, including a quantitative treatment of the spectral line width, along with dynamic light scatting results, to explain the conformation changes in the polyaniline chains that accompany this transition. The resultant aggregated supermolecular polyaniline formations immobilize enzymes via …

A Polyaniline-Based Optical Biosensing Platform Using An Entrapped Oxidoreductase Enzyme, Louis R. Nemzer, Arthur Epstein

Louis R Nemzer

A novel optical biosensing platform utilizing the unique solubility and chemochromic properties of polyaniline is presented. A facile, ion-induced reprecipitation method leads to the entrapment of a chosen oxidoreductase enzyme, which, in the presence of its associated substrate, catalyzes a reversible redox change in the host polymer. This change is monitored via the UV–vis absorption and subsequently analyzed to fit a Michaelis–Menten model. Here, in vitro prototype devices demonstrate selective sensing of glucose, choline, and uric acid, and the potential to be adapted for use as part of real-time in vivo monitoring systems is discussed

Review Of Mary Doyle And Cynthia A. Drew, Large-Scale Ecosystem Restoration (Island Press, 2008), Joel A. Mintz

Joel A. Mintz

This book review critically examines Mary Doyle and Cynthia A. Drew's, Large-Scale Ecosystem Restoration. The book is a set of case studies of five watershed-wide ecosystem restoration projects, written from the perspectives of institutional/political history, economics, and ecology. This review assays the work's strengths and shortcomings, both as a source of information about the restoration efforts it covers and as a guide to the evaluation of other similar attempts to restore degraded watersheds.

Financial Market Failure As A Crisis In The Rule Of Law: From Market Fundamentalism To A New Keynesian Regulatory Model, Timothy A. Canova

Timothy A. Canova

This article considers the financial panic of 2008 in historical context by analyzing the institutional and regulatory factors that contributed to the financial and economic crisis. The move away from a Keynesian regulatory model was a function of larger institutional flaws. The Keynesian regime of command-and-control regulation focused on macroeconomic policy objectives designed to achieve full employment, more equitable distributions of wealth and income, greater transparency in the regulatory process, and reduction in monopoly exploitation of consumers. Central to this regime was a model of central banking that required greater accountability to elected branches of government and the use of …