Digital Commons Network^™

A Chink In The Armor: How A Uniform Approach To Proportionality Analysis Can End The Use Of Human Shields, Margaret T. Artz

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The appropriate response to human shields is a recurring issue in modern warfare. Technological asymmetry, disparate obligations, and doctrinal divergence between state and nonstate adversaries combine to make civilians account for 84 percent of combat deaths. Just as a slot machine entices a gambler though he rarely wins, the international community's inconsistent response to human shields has placed shield users on an intermittent reinforcement schedule, thereby ensuring that this tactic remains part of insurgent strategy. Long-term protection of civilians requires eliminating this tactic. Principles of behavior science indicate that an effective way to do so is to uniformly remove its …

Judicial Review Of Constitutional Transitions: War And Peace And Other Sundry Matters, Rivka Weill

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Constitutional transition periods present a twilight time between two executives. At such times, the outgoing executive's authority is questionable because of the democratic difficulties and agency concerns that arise at the end of the executive's term. Thus, parliamentary systems developed constitutional conventions that restrict caretaker governments' action. These conventions seem to achieve the desired results in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. In contrast, in the United States, the prevailing norm is that there is only one president at a time, and this is the incumbent president, who is fully authorized to govern the country and his or …

Virtual Witness Confrontation In Criminal Cases, Yvonne M. Dutton

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Maritime piracy is a serious problem, yet states are not prosecuting captured pirates with any regularity. One of the many reasons cited to explain this phenomenon focuses on the expense and difficulty of mounting cases of such international proportions and which involve evidence, suspects, victims, and witnesses from around the globe. In an effort to help close the impunity gap that surrounds piracy, this Article offers a potential solution to the difficulties associated with obtaining live witness testimony. It proposes a rule to allow witnesses under some circumstances to testify remotely by way of two-way, live videoconferencing technology. While remote …

Cooperation As A Service In Vanet: Implementation And Simulation Results, Hajar Mousannif, Ismail Khalil, Stephan Olariu

Computer Science Faculty Publications

The past decade has witnessed the emergence of Vehicular Ad-hoc Networks (VANET), specializing from the well-known Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANET) to Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) wireless communications. While the original motivation for Vehicular Networks was to promote traffic safety, recently it has become increasingly obvious that Vehicular Networks open new vistas for Internet access, providing weather or road condition, parking availability, distributed gaming, and advertisement. In previous papers [27,28], we introduced Cooperation as a Service (CaaS); a new service-oriented solution which enables improved and new services for the road users and an optimized use of the road network …

Demographic Prediction Of Mobile User From Phone Usage, Shahram Mohrehkesh, Shuiwang Ji, Tamer Nadeem, Michele C. Weigle

Computer Science Faculty Publications

In this paper, we describe how we use the mobile phone usage of users to predict their demographic attributes. Using call log, visited GSM cells information, visited Bluetooth devices, visited Wireless LAN devices, accelerometer data, and so on, we predict the gender, age, marital status, job and number of people in household of users. The accuracy of developed classifiers for these classification problems ranges from 45-87% depending upon the particular classification problem.

Adjunct Faculty Perceptions About Educational Technology Integration In Higher Education Courses: A Descriptive Study, John Lutzyk

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purpose of this applied dissertation was to gain an understanding of adjunct faculty members’ perceptions about integrating educational technology in the classroom. Surveys were distributed to adjunct faculty at the targeted university to collect quantitative data to determine perceptions about educational technology and integration in the classroom. In addition, two focus groups consisting of university administrators were held to discuss the target university’s perceptions and expectations of the both university and adjunct faculty members with regards to technology integration in the classroom.

There were 25 procedures used to complete this study. First, a literature review was completed. Next, formative …

In-House Counsel Beware!, Katrice Bridges Copeland

Faculty Scholarship

This Article argues that the prosecution of Lauren Stevens for covering up the alleged crimes of GSK was misguided both as a matter of law and a matter of policy. In particular, this Article contends that the government should not prosecute attorneys for obstruction of justice or other cover-up crimes for actions taken in good faith during a government investigation into a client's conduct. Part I provides background on the Lauren Stevens case and the convergence of the four prosecution trends that led the government to indict her. Part II argues that Lauren Stevens did not obstruct the government's investigation …

Three Essays On Strategic Risk Taking, Krista Burrill Lewellyn

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

The three essays that comprise this dissertation collectively explore strategic risk taking. The dissertation is underpinned by the notion that corporate executives take strategic risks not randomly, but based on the expectation that outcomes are more likely to be positive rather than negative. Each essay examines how and why decision makers come to vary in their cognitive evaluation of the acceptability of strategic risk taking.

Essay 1 draws from the approach/inhibition theory of power, to explore how power not only provides the means for CEOs to exert their risk preferences, but actually affects what the risk preferences are. Power is …

Users' Perceptions Regarding Networking And Resource Sharing In Selected Academic Libraries Of Bangladesh, Abul Kalam Siddike

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Across the disciplines, technology is spawning brand new carries in even as it changes in the way we performed old ones. Standing at the edge of 21^st century probably there is no dispute over the recognition of technologies in information activities. Unprecedented changes in the use of information are reshaping our personal activities, our community and organizational practices. Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) bring the global information to our finger end. With the emergence of Internet, information kept in different locations has become asset of the world community bringing –almost every day in equal platform. To control over the …

Effect Of Video On The Teaching Of Library Studies Among Undergraduates In Adeyemi College Of Education, Ondo, J. Ayodeji Akerele, Adeola F. Afolabi

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Teaching makes acquisition of knowledge and skills possible through systematic interaction between teachers and learners. It happens everyday and involves teacher, learner, methodology and materials interaction. Part of these materials are known as instructional resources.

The use of instructional materials in teaching process provide the basis for improved teaching and learning of a subject. They are designed, produced and use to achieve specific instructional goal. Ayinde (1997) opined that an intelligent use of audio-visual aids will save time and stimulate students’ interest. It increase the retention of knowledge and stimulate understanding and attitude. They help students to recognize a problem. …

Use Of Multimedia For Teaching In Nigerian University System: A Case Study Of University Of Ibadan, A.B. Oshinaike, S.R. Adekunmisi

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The use of multimedia in industries has been extensive, as it has been effective in increasing productivity and retention rates, where research has shown that people remember 20% of what they see, 40% of what they see and hear, but about 75% of what they see and hear and do simultaneously (Lindstrom, 1994). Multimedia is now permeating the educational system as a tool for effective teaching and learning. With multimedia, the communication of information can be done in a more effective manner and it can be an effective instructional medium for delivering information.

Multimedia access to knowledge is one of …

The Identity Crisis Of Libraries In The Attention Economy, Nishat Kazi

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

In the present day world, the ecology that the human beings inhabit is laden with various kinds of spaces and places. Our ecology encompasses different kinds of cyberspaces and market places that continuously sway our mind. This character of continuously influencing and controlling the human psyche according to Herbert Simon makes our economy an ‘attention economy’. The concept of ‘attention economy’ revolves around the innumerable existing spaces and places and the human attention. Attention Economy is considered to be one where there is scarcity of human attention. Davenport & Beck defines attention as, “focused mental engagement on a particular message …

Can Professional Development Improve Teachers’ Perceptions About Inclusive Teaching In An Inner City School, Solomon Homidas

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation examined the question of whether professional development can improve teachers’ perceptions of inclusive teaching in an inner city school. The study drew upon survey methods to collect measurements of teachers' perceptions about inclusive teaching before and after professional development sessions. The hypothesis was that exposure to professional development would give teachers an improved impression of inclusive teaching, which in turn could make them more committed to the inclusive teaching paradigm. If the hypothesis was correct, the study would show that professional development should be considered an important component of developing teachers who work in inclusive settings, especially …

Students’ Perceptions Of Bullying And The Impact Of Lessons On Pro-Social Behaviors And Bullying Prevention, Jia Borror

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purpose of this study was to increase fifth-grade students’ perceptions and knowledge of bullying, adult assistance, and bystander behaviors. The researcher developed a survey to assess students’ perceptions and knowledge of bullying prior to 3 months of interventions, which included lessons and activities on pro-social behaviors and bullying prevention. The goals of the intervention were to increase knowledge of bullying, enhance students’ interpersonal skills through character education, and increase the seeking of adult assistance and bystander responses. The research site was an urban, public elementary school in southeast Florida. The study focused on the following research questions:

1. What …

An Elementary-To-Middle School Transitional Program And Its Effect On Student Behavior, Kyle Sheer

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The transition from elementary to middle school has proven to be difficult for all stakeholders. Reports of increased discipline infractions and truancy, combined with a noticeable drop in overall student achievement, have resulted in numerous attempts to ease the anxieties and frustrations that are characteristic of this transition. Schools often establish transitional programs to prepare incoming middle school students with the skills needed to be successful in a new educational environment. Transitional programs are often very expensive to operate and require an extensive amount of planning. This program evaluation considered 1 specific transitional program that took place during the summer …

The Impact Of Selected Behavior Intervention Strategies On Achievement Of Students In Adult Basic Education, Doris J. Granberry

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide a better understanding of the strategies that were available to practitioners in adult education programs that were designed to improve student retention. The adult center where this dissertation was implemented experienced a large number of Adult Basic Education Program students who discontinued their studies before earning either the General Equivalency Diploma or the traditional High School Diploma. Many students exhibited aggressive behavior toward the teachers and other students. Consequently, the teachers felt helpless to alter the trend.

The writer developed lesson plans and strategies to train the students and to teach them how …

Efecto Del Enfoque Del Aprendizaje Basado En Problemas Diferenciando Estilos De Aprendizaje En Un Curso De Estadística, Manuel Pio Rosales Almendra

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

El propósito de este estudio fue evaluar el efecto de la estrategia de Aprendizaje Basado en Problemas (ABP) mediada por los estilos de aprendizaje sobre las variables dependientes desempeño académico, actitud, motivación y satisfacción de los estudiantes en el curso a distancia de estadística II.

Los participantes fueron estudiantes del curso de Estadísticas II en una universidad Mexicana. Se utilizaron cuatro cuestionarios. El primero identificó los estilos de aprendizaje predominantes de los estudiantes (PEPS). El cuestionario de actitud (CUAC) y Motivación (CUMO) hacia el ambiente de aprendizaje propuesto se aplicaron al inicio y al final del curso. El cuestionario de …

Strategic Communication Games: Theory And Applications, Shintaro Miura

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The dissertation consists of the three essays about strategic communication games. Strategic communication games are costless sender-receiver games, and address the question of how much information can be credibly transmitted in equilibrium, and what kind of communication environments facilitate information transmission. Ch. 2, “Multidimensional Cheap Talk with Sequential Messages,” considers a multidimensional cheap talk game where there are two senders who share the private information, and send a message to the receiver sequentially. We suggest a notion of extended self-serving belief, and show that there exists a fully revealing equilibrium if and only if the senders have opposing-biased preferences. Ch. …

Teaching Presence And Communication Timeliness In Asynchronous Online Courses, Erik Skramstad

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purpose of this study was to examine student perceptions of teaching presence and communication timeliness in asynchronous online courses using a survey research methodology. The community of inquiry model developed by Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2000) provided the framework of the study while asking the following research questions:

1. What are student perceptions of teaching presence in asynchronous online courses?

2. What is the communication timeliness of instructors for direct feedback on students’ assignments?

3. What is the relationship between instructor communication timeliness for direct feedback on students’ assignments and student perceptions of teaching presence?

Participants were 59 anonymous …

A Study Of The Processes Involved In Sexual Battery Investigations, Kelly S. Boone

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to identify the common and unique processes employed during investigations of sexual battery. While departmental policies and state statutes provide guidance on the processes to be used in sexual battery investigations, there is a great deal of variability in the combination of processes that can be employed to investigate these cases. There is also some degree of variability in the outcomes associated with these investigations. This study examined the processes employed during sexual battery investigations in an effort to identify common themes. Importantly, the study identified the variation in cases that are genuine versus unfounded, …

Developing Athletic Accountability Systems To Control Spending At Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Travis A. Blue

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Athletic departments at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) were not performing well due to anomalies in accounting systems. Further, because the HBCUs lacked the funding, staff, and training necessary to support such programs, strategic plans were needed to help establish better accounting systems in HBCUs. This goal involved training staff within the athletic departments to take full responsibility for their fiscal accountability.

The researcher developed two surveys to provide a quantitative assessment, to make recommendations, and to develop ideas for training that would strengthen the fiscal accountability of athletic department personnel. The research questions for this study were as …

The New Kinship, Naomi R. Cahn

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Over the past century, the Supreme Court has articulated numerous doctrines that protect family privacy. These doctrines are not, however, well-suited to the brave new world of families formed through donor eggs, sperm, and embryos. As the number of donor-conceived children born to same-sex and heterosexual couples and to single parents increases, and as these families develop connections to one another, the law has not yet adjusted. This Article provides an extensive mapping of these “donor-conceived family communities,” and it reaches two major conclusions that support the development of these new families. First, relational interests, the traditional focus in family …

The Age Of Innocence: The First 25 Years Of The National Collegiate Athletic Association, 1906 To 1931, W. Burlette Carter

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

The article traces the history of the most powerful body in amateur sports, the NCAA, discussing the regulation of amateur sports before it arose, the factors that led to its creation, early definitions of amateurism, key issues facing the early body, its promotion of University amateur sports as a training ground for soldiers during World War I, emerging conflicts among members, its treatment of collegiate segregation policies and campus neglect of women's sports opportunities, and how past problems in amateur sports regulation were prologue for the issues facing intercollegiate athletics regulators and participants today.

An Addendum To Cox And Posner: A Visa To 'Snitch', Eleanor Marie Brown

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Cox and Posner’s landmark contribution is the first article to have highlighted the challenges of information asymmetry in immigration screening. While Cox and Posner have undoubtedly made a significant contribution, there is a critical oversight in their framework: they do not discuss the importance of targeted ex post mechanisms of screening educational elites. This Essay is an attempt to remedy Cox and Posner’s omission. Why is this oversight so problematic? In the post-9/11 world, U.S. immigration policy currently finds itself on the horns of a dilemma. While immigrant educational elites are critical to U.S. economic growth, terrorist networks have stepped …

Video-Rate Fluorescence Molecular Tomography For Hand-Held And Multimodal Molecular Imaging, Metasebya Solomon

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In the United States, cancer is the second leading cause of death following heart disease. Although, a variety of treatment regimens are available, cancer management is complicated by the complexity of the disease and the variability, between people, of disease progression and response to therapy. Therefore, advancements in the methods and technologies for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and therapeutic monitoring are critical to improving the treatment of cancer patients.

The development of improved imaging methods for early diagnosis of cancer and of near real-time monitoring of tumor response to therapy may improve outcomes as well as the quality of life of …

“All Textbooks In The Library!” An Experiment With Library Reserves, Tony Greiner

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

In the fall of 2010, a grant of $36,000 allowed Portland Community College Library to purchase and place on reserve a copy of every required text at one of its campuses. A smaller college “center” also placed all required texts on reserve. The program was very popular with students and parts of the reserve collection received heavy use. Compared to the previous fall term, overall use of reserves at the Cascade Campus library rose 35%, and the Southeast Center collection saw an increase of 110%. However, use of the collection was unevenly distributed, with 26% of the books having more …

Mothers’ Perception Of The Influence Of Interactive Media On Children Cognitive And Social Development In Lagos, Nigeria., Ifeanyi Adigwe

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This study attempts to investigate mothers’ perception on the influence of interactive media on children cognitive and social development in Lagos Nigeria. It may be surprising, but recent video game research has demonstrated positive, social, and educational related benefits from video game play. However, many parents and teachers fear the negative effect of video games, worrying that video games will turn their children, into mindless, violent, isolated, unhealthy individuals. While some of these concerns are not completely unfounded, video game research has uncovered a wide array of effects of video game play, including many positive influences of video games in …

Faculty Perceptions Of The Value Of Academic Libraries: A Mixed Method Study, Kelly L. Heider, Sandra Janicki, Joann Janosko, Blaine Knupp, Carl Rahkonen

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This article details the findings of a year-long study at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) Libraries which examined IUP faculty members’ perceptions of the value of library resources and services to both their research and teaching. Through a mixed-method study, which included an online survey and follow-up focus groups, the researchers found that faculty were dissatisfied with IUP Libraries’ marketing initiatives but satisfied with its small embedded librarian program. As a result, marketing and growth of the embedded librarian program became the two main focus areas for improvement in the next academic year.

Représentations De La Violence Révolutionnaire Dans La Littérature Et Le Cinéma Français (1928-1986), Antoine Krieger

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In my dissertation, I study the constants and the variables of the representation of: mostly left-wing) militants in 20th century French literature and film. I demonstrate that they are young idealists seeking personal rejuvenation through political violence. Moreover, I show how those works are a reflection of major trends in French cultural and political history during specific time-periods such as the inter-war period, the occupation of France by Nazi Germany or the Algerian War of Independence. My theoretical approach is a "sociology of literature" influenced by the theories of Lucien Goldmann and Marc Angenot. However, I also occasionally use postcolonial …

Developmental Higher Education: Exploring Time Lapse As A Precursor To Mathematics Developmental Education Placement, Debra Satterfield Holley

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Developmental Higher Education: Exploring Time Lapse as a Precursor to Mathematics Developmental Education Placement: This dissertation attempts to elucidate two of the many factors that could be contributing to the high rate of students who take developmental or remedial mathematics classes. Because many possible causal factors exist, the current focus was on examining the time lapse between the student’s most recent mathematics course and taking a placement test on course placement. Mathematics instructors at a community college in Eastern North Carolina indicated that this factor appears to be significant among the students at the college based on their informal observations. …