Digital Commons Network^™

The Citizen As Founder: Public Participation In Constitutional Approval, Tom Ginsburg, Justin Blount, Zachary Elkins

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No abstract provided.

Denotational Style Correctness Of A Cps-Transform Based Compiler, Arthur Nunes-Harwitt

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RIT department of computer science technical report. Correctness is a crucial property for compilers; programmers rely on it when writing code. Ideally, correctness should be proved. Work on compiler correctness has focused on direct translation strategies. However, in practice, the continuation passing style (CPS) transform (or a variant) is often used in the translation process. Here a simple source language and its CPS-transform based compiler are introduced. A tractable proof for this compiler is presented, including a denotational proof of the correctness of a CPS-transform. The benefits of the proof are discussed.

An Object-Oriented Natural Language Expert System, Kenneth Staffan, Henry Etlinger

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This paper highlights the design and implementation of a prototype object-oriented Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS). There were two main goals for the prototype. One was to create a small tutoring system which fit into the niche of current commercially available systems, while exhibiting some of the more intelligent features found in larger custom systems. The other was to experiment with an object-oriented model, design approach, and implementation for such a system. A masking technique for pattern matching is one of the key paradigms driving the intelligent diagnosis. The prototype provides a means for practicing sentence construction, by checking a student's …

Towards Flow Cytometry Data Clustering On Graphics Processing Units, Jeremy Espenshade, Doug Roberts, James Cavenaugh

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Like many modern techniques for scientific analysis, flow cytometry produces massive amounts of data that must be analyzed and clustered intelligently to be useful. Current manual binning techniques are cumbersome and limited in both the quality and quantity of analyses produced. To address the quality of results, a new framework applying two different sets of clustering algorithms and inference methods are implemented. The two methods investigated are fuzzy c-means and minimum description length inference and k-medoids with BIC. These approaches lend themselves to large scale parallel processing. To address the computational demands, the Nvidia CUDA framework and Tesla architecture are …

Radial Velocities Of Stars In The Galactic Center, Qingfeng Zhu, Rolf P. Kudritzki, Donald F. Figer, Francisco Najarro, David Merritt

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We present results from K band slit scan observations of a ∼20′′×20′′ region of the Galactic center (GC) in two separate epochs more than five years apart. The high resolution (R = ≥14, 000) observations allow the most accurate radial velocity and acceleration measurements of the stars in the central parsec of the Galaxy. Detected stars can be divided into three groups based on the CO absorption band heads at ∼2.2935 μm and the He I lines at ∼2.0581 μm and ∼2.112, 2.113 μm: cool, narrow-line hot and broad-line hot. The radial velocities of the cool, late-type stars have approximately …

Monadic Parsing Using Javascript, Axel-Tobias Schreiner

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Pdf of an interactive website created from: http://www.cs.rit.edu/~ats/projects/jsm/paper.xml Monad is a class in Haskell which is fundamental to encapsulating side effects. A monadic type can be used, e.g., to maintain and manipulate state alongside another computation or to bypass sequential execution and recover from failure. A significant problem domain is parsing: support for monadic parsers exists for Haskell, Python, and other languages. This web page describes monadic LL(n) parsing with JavaScript, complete with a base class for monadic classes which wrap state functions, a notation to embed monadic computations in JavaScript (i.e., an equivalent to the do notation in Haskell), …

Breaking The Paypal Hip: A Comparison Of Classifiers, Kurt Alfred Kluever

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Human Interactive Proofs (HIPs) are a method used to differentiate between humans and machines on the internet. Providers of online services such as PayPal.com use HIPs to prevent automated signups and abuse of their services. In this experiment, a three step algorithm has been developed to break the PayPal.com HIP. The image is preprocessed to remove noise using thresholding and a simple cleaning technique, and then segmented using vertical projections and candidate split positions. Four classification methods have been implemented: pixel counting, vertical projections, horizontal projections and template correlations. The system was trained on a sample of twenty PayPal.com HIPs …

Bounds Onsome Ramsey Numbers Involving Quadrilateral, Xiaodong Xu, Zehui Shao, Stanislaw Radziszowski

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For graphs G_1,G_2,...,G_m the Ramsey number R(G_1,G_2,...,G_m) is defined to be the smallest integer n such that any m-coloring of the edges of the complete graph K_n must include a monochromatic G_i in color i, for some i. In this note we establish several lower and upper bounds for some Ramsey numbers involving quadrilateral C_4, including R(C_4,K_9) < = 32, 19 < = R(C_4,C_4,K_4) < = 22, 31 < = R(C_4,C_4,C_4,K_4) < = 50, 52 < = R(C_4,K_4,K_4) < = 72, 42 < = R(C_4,C_4,K_3,K_4) < = 76, and 87 < = (C_4,C_4,K_4,K_4) < = 179.

The Infrared Luminescence Technique For Document Examination And Forgery Analysis, Andrew Davidhazy

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Infrared photography is nothing new and in the reflected infrared mode its property of seeing thorough certain materials is well known. However a a seldom seen and used application allows the trained investigator to visualize information that has been washed out of documents and is undetectable to the unaided eye. This is facilitated by new infrared sensitive digital cameras such as the Fuji IS-1. Added here in February 2008.

Deriving A Taxonomy Of Its Transition Costs, Zhi Tang, Delmonize Smith, Joanne Hale

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Those charged with implementing information technology often face the daunting task of assessing the total organizational costs of such initiatives. Our study posits evaluating such expenditures as IT transition costs - organizational resource expenditures stemming from a positive IT investment decision. A content analytic review of academic, IT-related articles yielded 57 cases germane to the construct. Data produced a meaningful and comprehensive taxonomy that distinguished IT transition costs by two dimensions: goal (prescriptive, evaluative, adaptive, corrective) and target (human, structure, process, technology). The significance of the taxonomy as a useful guide to both practitioners and future research is discussed.

What Influences Salary: A Study Of Mis Faculty Job Offers, M. Pamela Neely, Thomas Tribunella, Zhi Tang, Clyde Eiríkur Hull

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What matters when you’re negotiating a job offer? We address this and other questions using data from the Association for Information Systems (AIS) Salary Surveys on compensation, rank, publication data, and similar data associated with MIS Faculty job offers. Our study has three primary findings. First, school and individual factors influence the position and salary offered, but individual factors have a stronger impact. Second, we find the position (i.e., associate/assistant professor and teaching load) offered by schools partially mediates the relationship between school and individual factors and the starting salary. Third, the direct impact of individual factors is also influenced …

Chinese American Librarians In The 21st Century: Profile Update, Ruan Lian, Jian Anna Xiong

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There is an increasing need to understand the role of Chinese American librarians as one of the largest ethnic librarian groups in American library communities and a renewed interest to demonstrate and prove a critical role they play in the Library and Information Science profession. With first-hand insights, this study reports the current status of Chinese American librarians. It helps develop our knowledge about the Chinese American librarians in the 21st Century. A sequel study in a separate paper reports the findings of career development of Chinese American librarians and documents strategies they adapted to meet challenges and barriers facing …

Property And Probable Cause: The Fourth Amendment's Principled Protection Of Privacy, Ricardo J. Bascuas

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No abstract provided.

Does Red Lion Still Roar?, Cass R. Sunstein

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No abstract provided.

Judicial Transparency In An Age Of Prediction, Adam M. Samaha

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The Empirical Legal Studies (ELS) movement is making strides toward understanding judicial behavior, and ELS models could become the foundation for more accurate prediction of judicial decisions. This essay raises two questions. First, what would an age of predictable judicial behavior look like? Second, would satisfying the informational needs of ELS prediction models also exhaust the demands for 'judicial transparency"? The essay concludes that a state of predictable judicial behavior, if somehow stable, would leave almost no litigation to observe; and that a prediction-oriented information policy would nearly meet the demands of today's transparency advocates. One shortfall involves the intrinsic …

Carbon Sequestration And Sustainability, Alexandra B. Klass, Sara E. Bergan

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This Symposium Essay explores the question of whether the developing technology of geologic carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), which involves capturing CO2 emissions from industrial sources and power plants and sequestering them underground, is consisting with principles of sustainable development. This Essay concludes that while CCS on its own may not be consistent with basic principles of sustainability, it presents a potential opportunity to create sufficiently deep cuts in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to allow the transition to a more sustainable future.

“Whites Only Tree,” Hanging Nooses, No Crime?: Limiting The Prosecutorial Veto For Hate Crimes In Louisiana And Across America, Tamara F. Lawson

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News coverage of three nooses hanging from the "whites only tree" at Jena High School, in Jena, Louisiana, created public outcry. Criticism rose as the public learned that District Attorney Reed Walters exercised his prosecutorial discretion to decline to press charges against the white students that admitted hanging the nooses, yet over zealously charged black students with attempted murder for conduct normally considered a battery or a school-yard-fight. The apparent lack of equity in the exercise of prosecutorial discretion became the focus of heated debate. Although the Jena High School incidents occurred in 2006, the Jena story is unpleasantly reminiscent …

The Other Famous Marks Doctrine, Xuan-Thao Nguyen

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Debates on protection for famous trademarks often center around state and federal antidilution laws. Both the old Federal Trademark Dilution Act of 1995 and the new Trademark Dilution Revision Act of 2006 have generated many law review articles and numerous symposia. The dilution law focuses on trademarks deemed famous within U.S. boundaries. A debate on protection for famous trademarks today is incomplete without a discussion of the other famous marks doctrine. The other famous marks doctrine recognizes marks famous in other countries without actual use in the country where a user adopts the trademark on similar goods and services.

In …

Justice Scalia’S “Renegade Jurisdiction”: Lessons For Patent Law Reform, Xuan-Thao Nguyen

Articles

Justice Scalia called the Eastern District of Texas ("EDTX") the "renegade jurisdiction." Critics label it the "rocket-docket" for patents. All blame it on the ills of patent litigation, demanding for national reform. This Article challenges the prevailing myths with an empirical quantitative study of more than 27,000 patent cases filed in the last decade and a qualitative study on patent forum shopping. This Article contends that the proposed venue reforms will not prevent litigants from shopping for a favorable forum in which to resolve patent litigations. This Article suggests that instead of the quick fixes vis-à-vis proposed venue reform legislation …

Reasonableness And Objectivity: A Feminist Discourse Of The Fourth Amendment, Dana Raigrodski

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This article suggests that a critical reexamination of the Fourth Amendment and its jurisprudence through feminist lenses can shed new light and add to our understanding of it. These insights, in turn, can and should generate a positive feminist Fourth Amendment jurisprudence—a distinctive feminist voice to be integrated systematically into the law of search and seizure, leading to a transformation of the Fourth Amendment itself. Applying feminist theories to particular issues and normative layers of current Fourth Amendment jurisprudence may help guide us through the more difficult task of imagining a feminist jurisprudence of search and seizure law.

The Influence Of Law On Sea Power Doctrines: The New Maritime Strategy And The Future Of The Global Legal Order, Craig H. Allen

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For much of the 2006-07 academic year, elements of the US Naval War College facilitated an elaborate process designed to provide the intellectual foundations for the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) and his staff to draw upon in drafting a new maritime strategy. The process brought together experts from throughout the world to take part in workshops, strategic foundation "war" games, conferences and listening sessions.

It was my privilege as the Charles H. Stockton Chair of International Law to serve as legal advisor throughout the process. This article summarizes the contributions of the Naval War College International Law Department (ILD) …

The Dangers Of The Digital Millennium Copyright Act: Much Ado About Nothing?, Steve P. Calandrillo, Ewa A. Davison

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In 1998, Congress passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), a landmark piece of legislation aimed at protecting copyright holders from those who might manufacture or traffic technology capable of allowing users to evade piracy protections on the underlying work. At its core, the DMCA flatly prohibits the circumvention of “technological protection measures” in order to gain access to copyrighted works, but provides no safety valve for any traditionally protected uses.

While hailed as a victory by the software and entertainment industries, the academic and scientific communities ties have been far less enthusiastic. The DMCA’s goal of combating piracy is …

A "New Approach" To Standards And Consumer Protection, Jane Winn, Nicolas Jondet

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As consumer use of information and communication technology (ICT) products grows, the importance of ICT standards in consumer markets also grows. While standards for manufactured products were once developed at the national level in formal standards bodies, standards for ICT products today are more likely to be developed by informal standards bodies that target global markets, creating new challenges for national consumer protection laws.

As part of the process of creating a single market, the EU developed an innovative and successful form of “coregulation” known as the “New Approach” that coordinated the work of legislators and standards developers to reduce …

Biodiversity, Baking And Boiling, Endangered Species Act Turning Down The Heat, Anna T. Moritz, Kassie R. Siegel, Brendan R. Cummings, William H. Rodgers, Jr.

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Today the Earth faces an extinction event on a scale second only to Earth's largest mass extinction, the Permian-Triassic event, which occurred 250 million years ago. Upwards of 70 percent of the Earth's species could be at risk of extinction with a 3.5°C (6.3°F) rise in temperature, which could occur by the end of this century.

The driver is global warming, caused by anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. As such, a rational climate policy is needed immediately to prevent the complete collapse of biodiversity. Yet, the United States—the world's largest cumulative contributor to emissions—is in a state of paralysis when it …

Real Collaborative Context: Opinion Writing And The Appellate Process, Tom Cobb, Sarah Kaltsounis

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Several questions motivated us to begin experimenting with new and more ambitious forms of collaboration in our teaching. We aimed to infuse the classroom with what might be called “real collaborative context.” We looked for instances of collaboration that actually occur in the legal process and asked students to participate in those processes in order to gain a better understanding of the social aspects of legal practice and jurisprudence.

Our hope is that students will experience collaboration not so much as a classroom performance whose main goal is to assist in learning something else that could also be taught in …

Responsible Debt Relief: An Algorithmic Assessment Of Household Debt Capacity And Repayment Capacity, Robert Manning

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Since the early 1990s, the growth of U.S. household debt in general consumer credit card debt in particular has soared to unprecedented levels-from an aggregate total of less than $4.0 trillion in 1990 to over $13 trillion in 2008. During this period, the average American household dramatically increased its home mortgage debt, from almost $2.5 trillion in 1990 to nearly $10.5 trillion today. Similarly, consumer "revolving" or credit card debt quadrupled from $239 billion to about $950 billion today. Moreover the growth of U.S. credit card debt was paid of through mortgage refinancing, home equity loans, and cash proceeds from …

Templates For Innovation: A Comment On Mumford, Bedell And Hunter, John Ettlie

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The authors confront the nontrivial issue of whether or not creativity and innovation can be planned, and proceed to support an affirmative answer with a well-organizated treatment of the applied research literature relevant to this topic. They outline and reference an incremental approach to this planning process at multiple level of aggregation (organization, group, and individual), and present both a state-of-the-art review and a general, normative approach to this daunting challenge.

Rethinking Trademark Fair Use, William Mcgeveran

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The ever-expanding scope and strength of trademark rights has caused justifiable fears of a threat to free expression. Until now, however, concerned scholars generally focused on perfecting the substance of legal rules that balance free speech against other goals. This effort is misplaced because most cases raising these issues in recent years ended in judicial decisions that favored speech. The real danger arises from the procedural structure of trademark law's various fair use doctrines, which generate excessive ambiguity and prolong litigation before ever reaching such positive outcomes. Resulting administrative costs discourage speakers from using trademarks expressively in the first place, …

Fair Use And Copyright Overenforcement, Thomas F. Cotter

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Economic analysis has long suggested that there are two distinct categories of cases in which the fair use defense, which permits the unauthorized reproduction and other use of copyrighted materials, should apply: first, when the transaction cost of negotiating with the copyright owner for permission to use exceeds the private value of the use to the would-be user; and second, when the individual use is thought to generate some positive externality, such that the net social value of the use exceeds the value to the copyright owner of preventing the use, which in turn may exceed the value of the …

Accelerating Time To Scientific Discovery With A Grid-Enhanced Microsoft Project, Gregor Von Laszewski, Leor Dilmanian

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The composition, execution, and monitoring of challenging scientific applications is often a complex affair. To cope with the issue of workflow management, several tools and frameworks have been designed and put into use. However, the entry barrier to using these tools productively is high, and may hinder the progress of many scientists, or nonexperts, that develop workflows infrequently. As part of our Cyberaide framework we enable workflow definition, execution and monitoring through the Microsoft Project software package. The motivation for this choice is that many scientists are already familiar with Microsoft Project, a project management software package that is perceived …