Digital Commons Network^™

Reading John Noonan, Jospeh Vining

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John Noonan is a giant in American law and legal practice -- a distinguished legal historian and a true judge. His reflections on the nature of law have a special importance. This essay is a comment on basic elements in his thought.

Bringing A World Of Light To Technology And Judicial Ethics, David Hricik

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The Luddites thought that by smashing machines in early 19th Century England, they could eliminate the threat that those machines presented to them. Of course, they were wrong. As was the case during the Luddites’ time, technology continues to march inexorably onward in today’s society. As a result, those within the legal community—judges in particular—have no choice but to begin using technology. Although judges are currently using technology, they sometimes do so without understanding what they are doing.

Already, today’s “new-fangled” contraptions have ensnared judges. Perhaps the most widely known example is Judge Kozinski of the United States Court of …

New Insights On Free Energies And Saint-Venant’S Principle In Viscoelasticity, L. Diseri, G. Gentili, John Murrough Golden

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This work was conceived in 1999 and brought near completion by 2003. Giorgio Gentili was deeply involved in this research until his untimely death. He is greatly missed. Work pressures on the other authors forced a postponement of research on this topic, originally envisaged as lasting a few months but in the event it turned out to be nearly ten years. We now dedicate this work to the memory of Giorgio and to his Family.

Mitigating The Impacts Of The Renewable Energy Gold Rush, Amy Wilson Morris, Jessica Owley

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No abstract provided.

Hate Speech In Cyberspace, Richard Delgado, Jean Stefancic

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Coauthored with Jean Stefancic Hate Speech in Cyberspace analyzes why hate speech and other expressions of contempt are so ubiquitous on the Internet Building on our previous work on hate speech we identify features of cyberspace that predispose users to communicate in this fashion and suggest a number of remedies

The Hobby Lobby Moment The Supreme Court - 2013 Term: Comments, Paul Horwitz

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No abstract provided.

Finding Hidden Treasures: Research Help In The Library And Archives, Joan M. Naturale, Diana Moore

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At the 2009 Deaf History International Conference, Ulf Hedberg spoke on the preservation of Deaf materials. The objective was to promote the preservation of Deaf materials by individuals, institutions, and organizations and to encourage the donation of Deaf materials to libraries, archives, museums, or organizations. In this chapter our objective is to identify the numerous resources at the Gallaudet University Library Deaf Collections and Archives and the Rochester Institute of Technolo-gy’s (RIT) Wallace Library, which are now on the Internet. The resources discussed here contain biographical materials that relate to this book’s theme of telling Deaf lives. Since the year …

Training The New Litigator: Some Assembly Required, Leonard M. Niehoff

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The financial crisis of 2008 brought the legal profession to a crossroads. Indeed, it brought the profession to so many crossroads that we awoke to find ourselves in a surreal cityscape that seemed to consist of nothing but dangerous intersections. Law firms faced tough decisions about which way to go: Should we get smaller, or stay the course, or take advantage of the buyer's market for new and lateral hires? Should we jettison struggling clients or stand beside them? Should we cut budgets for business development, or do we need them now more than ever? Should we pursue some practice …

Material Falsity In Defamation Cases: The Supreme Court's Call For Contextual Analysis, Charles D. Tobin, Leonard M. Niehoff

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In the book The Phantom Tollbooth, one of the characters, Milo, declares that he comes from a faraway land called Context. After a circuitous journey through many strange cities, bearing names that have meanings Milo struggles to understand, he finds himself back at home in his bedroom.

Context, by and large, is the home base for courts in defining the boundaries between actionable and nonactionable speech. Often, after circuitous travels through precedent and logic, courts meander back to the simple notion that the meaning and legal significance of words are determined by their context.

Zombies Among Us: Injunctions In Defamation Cases Come Back From The Dead, Jim Stewart, Leonard M. Niehoff

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Here's a scary thought: an individual, unhappy with negative statements that have been made about him, sues for defamation and persuades the trial court to issue an injunction prohibiting the speaker from engaging in that speech again. An appellate court reviews the injunction and, in large measure, upholds it. This creepy scenario brings shudders to free speech and media advocates, who have long viewed such injunctions as prior restraints that the First Amendment forbids in all but the most extreme and extraordinary cases. As a recent decision from the Michigan Court of Appeals demonstrates, however, decades of United States Supreme …

Effects Of Clergy Reporting Laws On Child Maltreatment Report Rates, Frank E. Vandervort, Vincent J. Palusci

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Child maltreatment (CM) reporting laws and policies have an important role in the identification, treatment, and prevention of CM in the United States (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [US DHHS], 2012). Abuse by a member of the clergy “is not only a personal and emotional betrayal, but [also] a spiritual betrayal, with secrecy amplified by the unprecedented and systemic cover-up committed by the Church hierarchy” (Coyne, 2011, p. 15). Recent controversies have resulted in the consideration of changes in mandated U.S. reporting laws that include increasing requirements for clergy and extension to additional professions (Freeh, Sporkin, & Sullivan, …

Unfriendly Unilateralism, Monica Hakimi

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This Article examines a category of conduct that I call “unfriendly unilateralism.” One state deprives another of a benefit (unfriendly) and, in some cases, strays from its own obligations (noncompliant), outside any structured international process (unilateral). Such conduct troubles many international lawyers because it looks more like the nastiness of power politics than like the order and stability of law. Worse, states can abuse the conduct to undercut the law. Nevertheless, international law tolerates unfriendly unilateralism for enforcement. A victim state may use unfriendly unilateralism against a scofflaw in order to restore the legal arrangement that existed before the breach. …

Contemporary Practice Of The United States Relating To International Law, April 2014, Kristina Daugirdas, Julian Davis Mortenson

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• Another Mexican National Executed in Texas in Defiance of Avena Decision • Manhattan Arrest of Indian Consular Official Sparks Public Dispute Between the United States and India • United States Questions Claims Based on China’s “Nine-Dash Line” in the South China Sea • United States Takes Steps to Combat Illegal Trade in Wildlife • U.S. Compromises Facilitate Agreement on World Trade Organization’s Bali Package; Question Remains Whether Bali Package Requires Congressional Approval • Destruction of Syrian Chemical Arms Delayed • Iran Nuclear Agreement Is Implemented Notwithstanding Expressions of Distrust by Iran and the U.S. Congress

Who's In Charge Of Global Finance?, Michael S. Barr

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The global financial crisis caused widespread harm not just to the financial system, but also to millions of households and businesses and to the global economy. The crisis revealed substantive, fundamental weaknesses in global financial regulation and raised serious questions about whether national regulators and the international financial regulatory system could ever be up to the task of overseeing global finance. This Article analyzes post-crisis reforms with two questions in mind: First, how can we build an effective international financial architecture with more than one architect? Second, can we build a system that is legitimate and accountable? The Article suggests …

Election Law's Lochnerian Turn, Ellen D. Katz

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This panel has been asked to consider whether "the Constitution [is] responsible for electoral dysfunction."' My answer is no. The electoral process undeniably falls well short of our aspirations, but it strikes me that we should look to the Supreme Court for an accounting before blaming the Constitution for the deeply unsatisfactory condition in which we find ourselves.

Responding To Agency Avoidance Of Oira, Nina A. Mendelson, Jonathan B. Wiener

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This Article proceeds as follows: Part I provides a background of the system of presidential oversight of regulation through OIRA review. Part II analyzes: (1) the incentives for agencies to cooperate with or avoid OIRA, (2) a broad array of agency avoidance tactics, and (3) corresponding response options (especially in a repeat-player relationship). Part III argues that response options to agency avoidance should not be unquestioningly pursued or rejected. Instead, they should be evaluated using many of the same principles OIRA employs in reviewing agency regulation, including a systematic consideration of the benefits and costs of particular response actions and …

Contemporary Practice Of The United States Relating To International Law, July 2014, Kristina Daugirdas, Julian Davis Mortenson

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United States Negotiates Prisoner Exchange to Secure Release of U.S. Soldier Held in Afghanistan • United States Refuses to Grant Visa to Iranian UN Envoy • Multilateral Naval Code of Conduct Aims to Prevent Unintended Conflict in Contested Areas of East and South China Seas • Senate Approves Treaties to Regulate Fishing • United States Indicts Chinese Military Officials for Economic Espionage • U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Terminate Long-Running Efforts to Force Argentina to Pay Defaulted Sovereign Debt • United States Condemns Uganda’s Antigay Law as Violating Human Rights • President Barack Obama Certifies That U.S. Peacekeepers in Mali …

Graduate Teaching Assistants; Critical Colleagues Or Casual Components In The Undergraduate Learning Laboratory? An Exploration Of The Role Of The Postgraduate Teacher In The Sciences., Barry Ryan

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Laboratory training is key to many science subjects and those that teach the practical laboratory skills maintain a pivotal role in undergraduate science training. Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) are regularly used in higher education institutes to teach these practical lab skills. The GTA can be involved in both laboratory teaching and assessing all levels of undergraduates. This varied and challenging role requires support from the institute and if appropriately provided the learning experience can be rewarding not only for the undergraduate, but also for the GTA. In this review, the critical role of the laboratory GTA will be examined, their …

Play Hard, Work Harder. Alternative Reality Game And Scenario Based Assessments For Learning., Barry Ryan

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In this paper, an evaluative case study is detailed as an example of alternative reality game and scenario based assessments for learning. This pedagogic approach is evaluated and recommendations for practice offered. Integrating technology into the assessment process, and final student product, influenced the chosen pedagogy. The use of technology permitted this assessment approach to be adopted for a medium sized (n=40) student cohort. The use of wikis, eportfolios and digital reflective diaries were central to creating a learning environment that centralised the student and allowed them to construct and create their knowledge through scaffolded alternative reality games and scenarios. …

Total Safety Management: What Are The Main Concerns In The Integration Of Best Available Methods And Tools, Maria Chiara Leva, Nora Balfe, Tom Kontogiannis, Emmanuel Plot, Micaela De Michela

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“BP released findings from its own internal investigation of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, revealed inefficient Organization interfaces among BP management, the rig crew and well site leader. Also according to the investigation, one important contributor to the accident was inadequate guidelines for critical tests and operations”. (Pires and Mosleh 2011) Over the recent past, the accumulation of major mishaps, crises and accidents have made it clear that organisations must still improve their capabilities to address safety “not as a stand-alone activity that is separate from the main activities and processes of the organization” but as an …

Safety Risk Registers: Challenges And Guidance, Nora Balfe, Maria Chiara Leva, Brian Mcaleer, Michael Rocke

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A risk database, or risk register, is a central tool for organisations to use to monitor and reduce risks, both those identified during initial safety assessments and those emerging during operations (Whipple and Pitblado, 2010). The risk register should contain all analysed risks and should prioritise the areas that require managerial attention. When populated with information on each risk, including risk ranking, the risk register can be analysed to present the risk profile for different aspects of the organisation (Filippin and Dreher, 2004). When reviewed and updated over time, it can also be analysed to present trends within the risk …

Modelling The Reporting Culture Within A Modern Organisation, Ewan Douglas, Samuel Cromie, Maria Chiara Leva, Nora Balfe

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Research shows that there are many factors that can influence the operation of a “Reporting Culture” within organisations, ranging from the attitudes to the workers, to the methodology implemented, to the managerial attitudes within the organisation (Reason, 1998). Understanding and modelling these factors may help develop an optimum reporting system. Historically, research has focused on the concept of “Near Miss Reporting” which is based on the idea of identifying the “bottom” of the safety triangle concept put forward in Heinrich (1941) which suggests that for each accident there are dozens of near misses, and identifying these near misses will hopefully …

Human Factors Engineering At Design Stage: Is There A Need For More Structured Guidelines And Standards?, Farzad Naghdali, Maria Chiara Leva, Nora Balfe, Samuel Cromie

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Human Factors Engineering (HFE) focuses on the application of human factors knowledge to the design and construction of socio-technical systems. The objective is to ensure systems are designed so as to optimise the human contribution to production and minimise potential f r design-induced risks to health, personal or process safety or environmental performance (OGP, 2011). The ISO standard ISO 9241-210 (2010), Ergonomics of human-system interaction, requires that all new facilities projects apply the principles of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) during early design stages. In practice this means ensuring, as a minimum, that every new facilities project is screened in collaboration …

Apple Pomace As A Potential Ingredient For The Development Of New Functional Foods, Sofia Reis, Dilip K. Rai, Nissreen Abu-Ghannam

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Extruded snacks and baked scones were formulated with increasing levels (0-30%) of apple pomace (AP). The incorporation of up to 20% of AP in extruded snacks and in baked scones does not change significantly (pβ-carotene/linoleic acid system) increased when compared to the products to which no AP was added. Chlorogenic acid and quercetin were the major phenolic compounds found in the products. Loss of phenolic compounds during heat treatment occurred, however the DPPH radical scavenging activity of final products was not affected.

Multi-Criteria Approach Using Simulation-Based Balanced Scorecard For Supporting Decisions In Health-Care Facilities: An Emergency Department Case Study, Waleed Abo-Hamad, Amr Arisha

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Health research is a priority in every economy, and this research – set in the context of building a more sustainable and efficient health-care system – examines how operations management practices can be translated to clinical applications. Health-care systems in general (and emergency departments (EDs) in particular) around the world are facing enormous challenges in meeting the increasingly conflicting objectives of providing wide accessibility and delivering high-quality services efficiently and promptly. The framework proposed in this study integrates simulation modelling, the Balanced Scorecard, and multicriteria decision analysis with the aim of providing a decision support system for health-care managers. Using …

Prosecutor V. Taylor, Charles Chernor Jalloh, David P. Stewart

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No abstract provided.

Exosomes Are Involved In Mediating Radiation Induced Bystander Signaling In Human Keratinocyte Cells, K. Kumar Jella, S. Rani, L. O'Driscoll, B. Mcclean, H. J. Byrne, F. M. Lyng

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There is much evidence supporting the existence of bystander effects in cells that were never exposed to radiation. Directly irradiated cells and bystander cells can communicate with each other using gap junctional intercellular communication or by releasing soluble factors into the surrounding medium. Exosomes and microvesicles are also known to mediate communication between cells. The main aim of this study is to establish whether exosomes and microvesicles are involved in radiation induced bystander signaling. Human keratinocytes, HaCaT cells, were irradiated (0.005, 0.05 and 0.5 Gy) using γ rays produced from a cobalt 60 teletherapy unit. After irradiation, the cells were …

Cell Survival And Dna Damage In Normal Prostate Cells Irradiated Out-Of-Field, L. Shields, I. Vega-Carrascal, S. Singleton, F. M. Lyng, B. Mcclean

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Interest in out-of-field radiation dose has been increasing with the introduction of new techniques, such as volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT). These new techniques offer superior conformity of high-dose regions to the target compared to conventional techniques, however more normal tissue is exposed to low-dose radiation with VMAT. There is a potential increase in radiobiological effectiveness associated with lower energy photons delivered during VMAT as normal cells are exposed to a temporal change in incident photon energy spectrum. During VMAT deliveries, normal cells can be exposed to the primary radiation beam, as well as to transmission and scatter radiation. The …

The Time Has Come For A Restatement Of Child Sex Abuse, Marci A. Hamilton

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No abstract provided.

Success And Failure In Adr: A Dialogue Between Partners, Lela P. Love, Joseph B. Stulberg

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Love and Stulberg critically discuss policy, scholarly, and practice developments in four areas of program development in the area historically referenced as alternative dispute resolution (ADR): the range of process options; the impact of court procedures on ADR program development and practice; the nature of ADR scholarship and training; and the general public's receptiveness to or rejection of the normative principles that structure ADR collaborative processes. Their concluding remarks suggest that the promise of ADR, particularly of the mediation process, remains inspiring to many, even if its effective implementation remains uneven.