Digital Commons Network^™

Capitalism And Freedom -- For Whom? Feminist Legal Theory And Progressive Corporate Law,, Kellye Y. Testy

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Beginning at least in the 1980s, the version of corporate law and governance prevailing in the U.S. (as well as widely exported to other nations) was a radically privatized one, treating the corporation as a contractual arrangement for maximizing shortterm share price in a laissez faire global marketplace. Though many robust and varied social movements, many of which were bolstered by the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle, have been and are engaged in challenging this hegemony from many angles, few have found their way into corporate law reform. That is not to say, however, that there are no progressive legal …

Cash For Kidneys? Utilizing Incentives To End America's Organ Shortage, Steve P. Calandrillo

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This article addresses the growing organ shortage in America, analyzes current donation and procurement law, and explores both monetary and nonmonetary incentives aimed at eliminating the worsening crisis.

Part I details the law governing human organ donation. Under both the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (“UAGA”) and the National Organ Transplant Act (“NOTA”), no donor of a human organ may receive “valuable consideration” for providing it. Congress’ intention was simply that the organ recipient be given the “gift” of life—not one which she had to purchase on the market. In reality, the consequences of the Act bear little resemblance to its …

Vanishing Vaccinations: Why Are So Many Americans Opting Out Of Vaccinating Their Children?, Steve P. Calandrillo

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Part I of this Article details the historical development and medical achievements made possible by vaccines. From Edward Jenner to Jonas Salk to Albert Sabin, immense strides have been made in eradicating or substantially eliminating some of the worst diseases in human history. Smallpox, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, influenza, hepatitis A and B, and even the chicken pox are all now largely preventable.

Literally hundreds of millions of deaths have been avoided and many more lives markedly improved, to say nothing of the financial ramifications for the American healthcare system. All fifty states have therefore enacted compulsory …

Flawed Justice: Limitation Of Parental Remedies For The Loss Of Consortium Of Adult Children, William S. Bailey

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This article presents the inherent contradiction between a parent-child relationship that has steadily evolved from the early 20th Century to the present and the multitude of court decisions on damages that remain studiously ignorant of this shift.

Part I of the article will set forth the common law origins of restrictions on recovery for wrongful death within the context of a shifting view of children from economic units to objects of adoration. Part II will examine the devastating impact that the loss of an adult child has on parents both from their perspectives and from now existing research.

In the …

Ionizing Radiation Induces A Stress Response In Primary Cultures Of Rainbow Trout Skin, Fiona Lyng, M. Lyons-Alcantara, P. Owell, Sharon Ni Shuilleabhain, Colin Seymour, D. Cottell, Carmel Mothersill

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Fish skin is very vulnerable to damage from physical and chemical pollutants because it is in direct contact with the aquatic environment. In this study, the effect of g radiation on primary cultures of rainbow trout skin was investigated. Primary cultures containing two cell types, epidermal cells and goblet mucous cells, were exposed to doses ranging from 0.5–15 Gy 60Co g radiation. Expression of PCNA, c-myc and BCL2 was investigated as well as growth and levels of apoptosis and necrosis. Morphological and functional changes were also studied. The irradiated cultures showed evidence of a dose-dependent increase in necrosis and enhanced …

Assessment Of Obesity And Fear Of Fatness Among Inner-City Dublin Schoolchildren In A One-Year-Follow-Up Study, Anne Griffin, Katherine Younger, Mary Flynn

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Background: Positive secular trends in adolescent obesity and an increased prevalence of fear of fatness, particularly among girls, have been documented world-wide. There is a lack of consensus about assessment criteria for childhood obesity and no standard exists for assessing Irish children. In 1990, the Irish National Nutrition Survey used body mass index (BMI) $26 kgm22 to describe the prevalence of overweight among Irish adolescents.

Objectives: (1) To examine the range in classification of Dublin schoolchildren as overweight according to four standard assessment methods; (2) to assess changes in weight status, prevalence of fear of fatness and accompanying slimming practices …

Mobile And Accessible Dublin: An Application Of The Prospective Methodology In Developing A Vision For The Future Integration Of Transportation And Land Use In Dublin, Elzbieta Krawczyk

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Contemporary cities can be characterised by a high pace of change and the growing complexity of their systems. Technological, economic and social evolution brings transformation that needs to be dealt with and accommodated in order to sustain consistent harmonious growth. Many cities are not prepared to adapt to these changes. This results in a vast range of urban problems. The rapid growth of Dublin during the last decade has intensified infrastructural and transportation problems. A number of institutions have been addressing these difficulties through the application of various solutions. This paper presents an attempt to address the lack of efficient …

Soap Opera, Com Mercialisation An D The Proletarian Isation Of Cultural Production, Edward Brennan

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Abstract This article is based in a broader study of the production of Fair City, Ireland’s most popular television soap opera. The study argues that such shows are potentially important in civil society. They can promote discussion and debate on hidden or taboo social issues. They may thus inform public opinion. Until recently the potential role of soap opera in civil society has largely been overlooked. The research examined the social issues that Fair City could introduce to public discussion by examining its production process. It found the main limits on what the show could and could not say to …

Child Sexual Abuse In Sub-Saharan Africa: A Literature Review, Kevin Lalor

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Objective. This article reviews the English-language literature on child sexual abuse in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The focus is on the sexual abuse of children in the home/community, as opposed to the commercial sexual exploitation of children. Method. English language, peer-reviewed papers cited in the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) are examined. Reports from international and local NGOs and UN agencies are also examined. Results. Few published studies on the sexual abuse of children have been conducted in the region, with the exception of South Africa. Samples are predominantly clinical or University based. A number of studies report that approximately five …

The Establishment Clause During The 2004 Term: Big Cases, Little Movement, Marci A. Hamilton

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No abstract provided.

Stealing Signs: Is Professional Baseball's United States-Japanese Player Contract Agreement Enough To Avoid Another Baseball War Note, Casey D. Duncan

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No abstract provided.

A Neural Network Approach To Key Frame Extraction, Rajesh Narasimha, Andreas Savakis, Raghuveer M. Rao, Ricardo De Queiroz

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We present a neural network based approach to key frame extraction in the compressed domain. The proposed method is an amalgamation of both the MPEG-7 descriptors namely motion intensity descriptor and spatial activity descriptor. Shot boundary detection and block motion estimation techniques are employed prior to the extraction of the descriptors. The motion intensity (“pace of action”) is obtained using a fuzzy system that classifies the motion intensity into five categories proportional to the intensity. The spatial activity matrix determines the spatial distribution of activity (“active regions”) in a frame. A neural network is used to pick those frames as …

Information Literacy Programmes And Course Curricula: The Case For Integration, Anne Ambrose, Brian Gillespie

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The advent of the Internet and the profusion, complexity and haphazard nature of the information available through electronic and digital resources has highlighted the issue of information literacy in third level institutions worldwide. How do we deal with the information explosion to which we are subjected on a daily basis? In particular how do our students learn to exploit the range of resources available to advance their studies and research? Can these students become fully independent learners as proposed by the new teaching and learning methodologies without the necessary foundation skills? The authors argue, based on international standards and benchmarking …

Ecotoxicological Research At Dit, Maria Davoren, Colm O'Dowd, Sharon Ni Shuilleabhain

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The term ecotoxicology first defined by Rene Truhart in 1969, essentially describes the study of the harmful effects of chemicals upon ecosystems.

Defects In Death-Inducing Signalling Complex Formation Prevent Jnk Activation And Fas-Mediated Apoptosis In Du 145 Prostate Carcinoma Cells, James Curtin, Thomas Cotter

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Androgen-independent prostate carcinomas are resistant to chemotherapy and cell lines derived from androgen-independent prostate carcinomas such as DU 145 cells are highly resistant to Fas-mediated apoptosis. The incubation of DU 145 cells with anti-Fas IgM agonistic antibody of Fas receptor fails to activate JNK, a stress kinase involved in regulating apoptosis. We have previously shown that JNK activation is sufficient and necessary to promote Fas-mediated apoptosis in DU 145 cells. We investigate the mechanisms by which JNK activation and apoptosis are abrogated. HSP27 is overexpressed in DU 145 cells and has previously been reported to sequester DAXX and prevent JNK …

Plug Beebee Station Into Producing Hydrogen Power, Roman Press, Marianne Buehler

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No abstract provided.

A Two Phase Approach To Bayesian Network Model Selection And Comparison Between The Mdl And Dgm Scoring Heuristics, Michael Kane, Sahin Ferat, Andreas Savakis

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This paper presents an efficient algorithm for learning a Bayesian belief network (BBN) structure from a database, as well as providing a comparison between two BBN structure fitness functions. A Bayesian belief network is a directed acyclic graph representing conditional expectations. In this paper, we propose a two-phase algorithm. The first phase uses asymptotically correct structure learning for efficient search space exploration, while the second phase uses greedy model selection for accurate search space exploration. The minimum description length (MDL) structure fitness function is also compared with the database given model probability (DGM) fitness function in the second phase. The …

Effective Hourly Rates Of Contingency-Fee Lawyers: Competing Data And Non-Competitive Fees, Lester Brickman

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The article critically examines the impact of contingency fees on the tort system, arguing that these fees have risen significantly over the past few decades without a corresponding increase in risk, leading to exploitative practices that harm clients and drive up costs. The author challenges Herbert Kritzer's research on contingency fees, asserting that Kritzer's data underestimates the true earnings of specialized contingency-fee lawyers and fails to represent national trends accurately. The article advocates for reforms to align contingency fees more closely with the actual risk and effort involved in cases, ensuring fairness for clients and reducing systemic inefficiencies.

Of World Music And Sovereign States, Professors And The Formation Of Legal Norms, Justin Hughes

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No abstract provided.

An Autopsy Of The Structural Reform Injunction: Oops ... It's Still Moving, Myriam E. Gilles

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No abstract provided.

Mwir And Lwir Spectral Signatures Of Water And Associated Materials, Herbert J. Mitchell, Carl Salvaggio

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Spectral infrared emissivity measurements have been made of a variety of materials both with and without surface water. The surface water was either natural, in the form of dew or residual rainwater, or artificially introduced by manual wetting. Materials naturally high in water content were also measured. Despite the rather diverse spectral population of the underlying materials, they exhibited very similar, featureless, water-like spectra; spectrally flat with a very high magnitude across the emissive infrared region. The implication to exploitation personnel that may use emissive infrared hyperspectral image data is that in areas where condensation is likely (e.g. high humidity) …

The Importance Of Background In The Detection And Identification Of Gas Plumes Using Emissive Infrared Hyperspectral Sensing, Herbert Mitchell, Gerard P. Jellison, David P. Miller, Carl Salvaggio, Craig J. Miller

Articles

Using a Fourier transform infrared field spectrometer, spectral infrared radiance measurements were made of several generated gas plumes against both a uniform sky and terrestrial background. Background temperature, spectral complexity, and physical homogeneity each influenced the success of emissive infrared spectral sensing technology in detecting and identifying the presence of a gas plume and its component constituents. As expected, high temperature contrast and uniform backgrounds provided the best conditions for detectability and diagnostic identification. This report will summarize some of SITAC’s findings concerning plume detectability, including the importance of plume cooling, plumes in emission and absorption, the effects of optical …

Where To Now For Irish Catholicism?, Eamon Maher

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Material reproduced by kind permission of Reality

Minimal K-Rankings And The A-Rank Number Of A Path, Victor Kostyuk, Darren Narayan, Victoria Shults

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Given a graph G, a function f: V(G) -> {1, 2, ..., k} is a k-ranking of G if f(u) = f(v) implies every u - v path contains a vertex w such that f(w) > f(u). A k-ranking is minimal if the reduction of any label greater than 1 violates the described ranking property. The a-rank number of G, denoted u,(G) equals the largest k such that G has a minimal k-ranking. We establish new results involving minimal rankings of paths and in particular we determine u(Pn), a problem suggested by Laskar and Pillone in 2000. We show u(Pn) = …

The Adoption Of Entreprise Resource Planning (Erp) Systems, John Ettlie, Victor Perotti

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Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems present significant challenges to modern businesses. Although some organizations enjoy a smooth ERP implementation, others experience very public failures. The present research develops a general models that uses differences between appropriability regimes to predict which adoption strategies will lead to successful implementation. In strong appropriability regimes, intellectual property protection (e.g. patents) helps firms secure the benefits of technological innovation. However, ERP software is usually purchased rather than developed, so it is subject to the minimal intellectual property protection typical of a weak appropriateness regime. It is the latter, weak appropriation context that is the recently …

Identification And Use Of Actinomycetes For Enhanced Nodulation Of Soybean Co-Inoculated With Bradyrhizobium Japonicum, A. K. Gregor, Brian Klubek, E. C. Versa

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The utilization of actinomycetes as potential soybean (Glycine max (L.)) co-inoculants was evaluated. Soil samples from Carbondale and Belleville, Ill., were used to inoculate pre-germinated soybean plants to determine antibiotic sensitivity in the native Bradyrhizobium japonicum population. Sensitivity was in the order kanamycin > tetracycline > oxytetracycline > rifampicin > neomycin. Antagonism by five actinomycete cultures toward seven test strains of B. japonicum was also assessed. The ranking average inhibition (across all seven B. japonicum strains) by these actino mycetes was Streptomyces kanamyceticus = Streptomyces coeruleoprunus > Streptomyces rimosus > Streptomyces sp. > Amy colatopsis mediterranei. Ten antibiotic combinations were used to isolate antibiotic-resistant mutants of B. …

Autonomous Field-Deployable Wildland Fire Sensors, Robert Kremens, Jason Faulring, A. Gallagher, A. Seema, Anthony Vodacek

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An Autonomous Fire Detector (AFD) is a miniature electronic package combining position location capability [using the Global Positioning System (GPS)], communications (packet or voice-synthesized radio), and fire detection capability (thermal, gas, smoke detector) into an inexpensive, deployable package. The AFD can report fire-related parameters, like temperature, carbon monoxide concentration, or smoke levels via a radio link to firefighters located on the ground. These systems are designed to be inserted into the fire by spotter planes at a fire site or positioned by firefighters already on the ground. AFDs can also be used as early warning devices near critical assets in …

Real-Time Video Annotation Using Mpeg-7 Motion Activity Descriptors, Andreas Savakis, Pawel Sniatala, Radoslaw Rudnicki

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The MPEG-7 standard provides a framework of standardized tools that can be used to describe and efficiently manage multimedia content. Visual descriptors include color, texture, shape and motion. In this paper, we address the hardware implementation of MPEG-7 motion descriptors using Handel-C. In particular, descriptors for motion intensity and spatial distribution of motion activity are generated and implemented.

The Scholarship Horizons In Engineering Technology: Choosing The Best Path, Abi Aghayere, Wiley Mckinzie, Warren Hill, David Dvorak, Dale Palmgren, Anthony Brizendine

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The issue of scholarship in Engineering Technology (ET) is becoming an important topic of discussion within the ET community due to the evolving missions of many institutions that host Engineering Technology programs. Many of these institutions now require some form of documented scholarship from their ET faculty for promotion and tenure purposes, and it is incumbent upon the ET community to support these faculty by defining not only the meaning of scholarship in ET, but also the yardstick by which such scholarship will be assessed. This issue is pertinent to ET because our programs are traditionally of an applied nature …

Assessing The Impact Of The Concrete Canoe And Steel Bridge Competitions On Civil Engineering Technology Students, Valerie L. Sirianni, Kerin L. Lee, Matt D. Lefevre, James W. Lindholm, Abi Aghayere, Maureen Valentine

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The new accreditation criteria (TC2K) of the Technology Accreditation Commission of ABET require an assessment of Program Intended Learning Outcomes. Some of the learning outcomes required by the “a” through “k” and the Civil criteria of TC2K include leadership skills, teamwork skills, project management skills, communication skills, and design and construction skills.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the American Institute for Steel Construction (AISC) sponsors regional and national concrete canoe and steel bridge competitions on an annual basis. The Civil Engineering Technology (CET) students at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) have participated in these competitions for …