Digital Commons Network^™

Joining The Conversation: Law Library Research Assistant Programs And Current Criticisms Of Legal Education, David Mcclure

Scholarly Works

Law libraries should play a greater role in addressing the current crisis in legal education. Proponents for educational reform often view libraries as a vehicle for cost savings, while overlooking the ability of libraries to train students in the skills and competencies that are essential for the practice of law. Libraries’ research assistant programs can be particularly effective in imparting workplace values and lawyering skills beyond the traditional law school curriculum. This article encourages libraries to build on the strengths of their research assistant programs as a substantive way to equip law students with essential skills for today’s legal marketplace.

Adr's Place In Foreclosure: Remedying The Flaws Of A Securitized Housing Market, Lydia Nussbaum

Scholarly Works

Millions of Americans lost their homes during the foreclosure crisis, an unprecedented disaster still plaguing local and national economies. A primary factor contributing to the crisis has been the failure of conventional foreclosure procedures to account for the new realities of securitization and the secondary mortgage market, which transformed the traditional borrower-lender relationship. To compensate for the shortcomings of conventional foreclosure procedures and stem the tide of residential foreclosure, state and local governments turned to ADR processes for a solution. Some foreclosure ADR programs, however, have greater potential to avoid foreclosures than others. This Article comprehensively examines the key components …

Metaphor And Analogy: The Sun And Moon Of Legal Persuasion, Linda L. Berger

Scholarly Works

Drawing on recent studies of social cognition, decision making, and analogical processing, this article recommends that lawyers turn to novel characterizations and metaphors to solve a particular kind of persuasion problem that is created by the way judges and juries think and decide. According to social cognition researchers, we perceive and interpret new information by following a process of schematic cognition, analogizing the new data we encounter to the knowledge structures embedded in our memories. Decision-making researchers differentiate between intuitive and reflective processes (System 1 and System 2), and they agree that in System 1 decision making, only the most …

Legal Writing: A Doctrinal Course, Linda H. Edwards

Scholarly Works

Legal writing instruction in American law schools has come a long way. Although scattered experiential courses and co-curricular activities have existed since legal education moved into a university setting, the modern era of skills education began in the 1950s and 1960s, with the creation of live-client clinics at many law schools. Early legal writing programs soon followed, moving into the main stream of curricular reform during the 1980s and 1990s. As these new courses and new instructors moved into the academy, the language of legal education naturally changed. Law faculties found themselves wanting to describe these new additions to the …

Masculine Law Firms, Ann C. Mcginley

Scholarly Works

This article describes the masculine culture in law firms and analyzes how this culture harms both men and women because of their gender. Part II explains MMT, and analyzes the masculine practices that exist in modern law firms. Part III studies a lawsuit brought by a law firm associate, a white male father of two who allegedly was fired in retaliation for taking leave under the Family Medical Leave Act and because of his failure to adhere to the macho stereotypes prevalent in the law firm. Part IV analyzes how the law should respond to masculine norms, and suggests that …

Plus Ça Change, Plus C’Est La Même Chose, Nancy B. Rapoport

Scholarly Works

This essay takes the original plans from NYU Law School and draws analogies between those plans and the issues facing legal education today.

Benjamin Butler's 1835 Plan for the Organization of a Law Faculty and for a System of Instruction in Legal Science in the University for the City of New-York will make any law school dean feel like Yogi Berra: it’s “deja-vu all over again.” The issue of how best to organize a curriculum to train legal professionals was a hot topic then, and it’s a hot topic now.

An Interactive Channel Model Of The Basal Ganglia: Bifurcation Analysis Under Healthy And Parkinsonian Conditions, R Merrison-Hort, N Yousif, F Njap, Et Al

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Oscillations in the basal ganglia are an active area of research and have been shown to relate to the hypokinetic motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease. We study oscillations in a multi-channel mean field model, where each channel consists of an interconnected pair of subthalamic nucleus and globus pallidus sub-populations.To study how the channels interact, we perform two-dimensional bifurcation analysis of a model of an individual channel, which reveals the critical boundaries in parameter space that separate different dynamical modes; these modes include steady-state, oscillatory, and bi-stable behaviour. Without self-excitation in the subthalamic nucleus a single channel cannot generate oscillations, yet …

The Emergence Of Two Anti-Phase Oscillatory Neural Populations In A Computational Model Of The Parkinsonian Globus Pallidus, R Merrison-Hort, R Borisyuk

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Experiments in rodent models of Parkinson's disease have demonstrated a prominent increase of oscillatory firing patterns in neurons within the Parkinsonian globus pallidus (GP) which may underlie some of the motor symptoms of the disease. There are two main pathways from the cortex to GP: via the striatum and via the subthalamic nucleus (STN), but it is not known how these inputs sculpt the pathological pallidal firing patterns. To study this we developed a novel neural network model of conductance-based spiking pallidal neurons with cortex-modulated input from STN neurons. Our results support the hypothesis that entrainment occurs primarily via the …

Event-Driven Visual Attention For The Humanoid Robot Icub, F Rea, G Metta, C Bartolozzi

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Fast reaction to sudden and potentially interesting stimuli is a crucial feature for safe and reliable interaction with the environment. Here we present a biologically inspired attention system developed for the humanoid robot iCub. It is based on input from unconventional event-driven vision sensors and an efficient computational method. The resulting system shows low-latency and fast determination of the location of the focus of attention. The performance is benchmarked against an instance of the state of the art in robotics artificial attention system used in robotics. Results show that the proposed system is two orders of magnitude faster that the …

Patients’ Experience Of A Regional Allergy Service, Rb Jones, A O'Connor, E Kaminski

School of Nursing and Midwifery

No abstract provided.

A Systematic Review Of Educational Interventions To Change Behaviour Of Prescribers In Hospital Settings, With A Particular Emphasis On New Prescribers., Nicola Brennan, Karen Mattick

Peninsula Medical School

AIMS: Prescribing is a complex task and a high risk area of clinical practice. Poor prescribing occurs across staff grades and settings but new prescribers are attributed much of the blame. New prescribers may not be confident or even competent to prescribe and probably have different support and development needs than their more experienced colleagues. Unfortunately, little is known about what interventions are effective in this group. Previous systematic reviews have not distinguished between different grades of staff, have been narrow in scope and are now out of date. Therefore, to inform the design of educational interventions to change prescribing …

Evidence-Based Programs In Children's Services: A Critical Appraisal, Nick Axford, Louise Morpeth

Peninsula Medical School

No abstract provided.

Sudden Unexpected Death In Epilepsy (Sudep): Development Of A Safety Checklist, Rohit Shankar, David Cox, Virupakshi Jalihal, Scott Brown, Jane Hanna, Brendan Mclean

Peninsula Medical School

Purpose The incidence of sudden death appears to be 20 times higher in patients with epilepsy compared with the general population. Epilepsy-related death, particularly sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP), is still underestimated by healthcare professionals and this may reflect the mistaken belief that epilepsy is a benign condition. The risk of death associated with epilepsy appeared rarely to have been discussed with patients or their families. It appears the decision to discuss SUDEP and also to peg SUDEP risk is arbitrary and clinical. Unfortunately there is no structured evidenced mechanism at present to represent person centered risk of SUDEP …

Large-Volume Results In Su(2) With Adjoint Fermions, Debbio L Del, B Lucini, C Pica, A Patella, A Rago, S Roman

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Taming finite-volume effects is a crucial ingredient in order to identify the existence of IR fixed points. We present the latest results from our numerical simulations of SU(2) gauge theory with 2 Dirac fermions in the adjoint representation on large volumes. We compare with previous results, and extrapolate to thermodynamic limit when possible.

The Evaluation Of A Biometric-Based Identification System For Remote-Based Exam Invigilation, Nathan Clarke, Paul Dowland, Steve Furnell

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

To critically evaluate the technology options available for a continuous biometric-based identification system. To design and implement a continuous biometric-based identification system for use within e-learning. The prototype will be independent but built around the University’s current Perception system in the first instance. To evaluate the operational characteristics of the system and the human-factors of acceptance, usability and privacy, and disseminate the system across the University. To investigate the pedagogical factors underpinning this new area of e-assessment. Prior research has raised concerns regarding information security in e-learning systems for over a decade now (Littman, 1998). However, in reality much more …

Signature Verification Based On Moments Technique, Shaymaa Al-Juboori

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

In this research we will present the signature as a key to the biometric authentication technique. I shall use moment invariants as a tool to make a decision about any signature which is belonging to the certain person or not. Eighteen voluntaries give 108 signatures as a sample to test the proposed system, six samples belong to each person were taken. Moment invariants are used to build a feature vector stored in this system. Euclidean distance measure used to compute the distance between the specific signatures of persons saved in this system and with new sample acquired to same persons …

Using Meta-Ethnography To Understand The Emotional Impact Of Caring For People With Increasing Cognitive Impairment., Jane Grose, Julia Frost, Janet Richardson, Heather Skirton

School of Nursing and Midwifery

The majority of people with degenerative neurological conditions are cared for within their own families. Cognitive impairment can be a significant and increasing symptom of these conditions. In this article we report how a team of experienced researchers carried out a meta-ethnography of qualitative research articles focusing on the impact of caring for a loved one with cognitive impairment. We followed the seven-step process outlined by Noblit and Hare. Synthesized findings from 31 papers suggest emotional impact is complex and uncertain and varies from day to day. The benefit of using meta-ethnography is that the results represent a larger sample …

"Until The Trial Is Complete You Can't Really Say Whether It Helped You Or Not, Can You?": Exploring Cancer Patients' Perceptions Of Taking Part In A Trial Of Acupressure Wristbands, John G. Hughes, Wanda Russell, Matthew Breckons, Janet Richardson, Mari Lloyd-Williams, Alex Molassiotis

School of Nursing and Midwifery

No abstract provided.

Pregnancy Planning, Smoking Behaviour During Pregnancy, And Neonatal Outcome: Uk Millennium Cohort Study, Anika Flower, Jill Shawe, Judith Stephenson, Pat Doyle

School of Nursing and Midwifery

Abstract Background Pre-pregnancy health and care are important for the health of the future generations. Smoking during pregnancy has been well-researched and there is clear evidence of harm. But there has been little research on the health impact of planning for pregnancy. This study aims to investigate the independent effects of pregnancy planning and smoking during pregnancy on neonatal outcome. Methods This analysis made use of data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study. The study sample consisted of 18,178 singleton babies born in UK between 2000 and 2001. The neonatal outcomes of interest were low birthweight (<2.5 Kg) and pre-term birth (<37 completed weeks gestation). Logistic regression was used to estimate the association between pregnancy planning and/or smoking and neonatal outcome. Adjusted odds ratios were used to calculate population attributable risk fractions (PAFs). Results 43% of mothers did not plan their pregnancy and 34% were smoking just before and/or during pregnancy. Planners were half as likely to be smokers just before pregnancy, and more likely to give up or reduce the amount smoked if smokers. Unplanned pregnancies had 24% increased odds of low birth weight and prematurity compared to planned pregnancies (AORLBW1.24, 95% CI 1.04-1.48; AORPREM1.24, 95% CI 1.05-1.45), independent of smoking status. The odds of low birth weight for babies of mothers who were smoking just before pregnancy was 91% higher than that of mothers who were not (AORLBW1.91, 95% CI 1.56-2.34). Women who quit or reduced the amount smoked during pregnancy lowered the risk of a low birth weight baby by one third (AORLBW0.66, 95% CI 0.51-0.85) compared with women whose smoking level did not change. Smaller effects were found for prematurity. If all women planned their pregnancy and did not smoke before or during pregnancy, 30% of low birthweight and 14% of prematurity could, in theory, be avoided. Conclusions Planning a pregnancy and avoiding smoking during pregnancy has clear, independent, health benefits for babies. Quitting or reducing the amount smoked during pregnancy can reduce the risk of low birthweight.

Modeling Speech Imitation And Ecological Learning Of Auditory-Motor Maps, C Canevari, L Badino, A D'Ausilio, L Fadiga, G Metta

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Classical models of speech consider an antero-posterior distinction between perceptive and productive functions. However, the selective alteration of neural activity in speech motor centers, via transcranial magnetic stimulation, was shown to affect speech discrimination. On the automatic speech recognition (ASR) side, the recognition systems have classically relied solely on acoustic data, achieving rather good performance in optimal listening conditions. The main limitations of current ASR are mainly evident in the realistic use of such systems. These limitations can be partly reduced by using normalization strategies that minimize inter-speaker variability by either explicitly removing speakers' peculiarities or adapting different speakers to …

The Effects Of Elevated Temperature And Pco2 On The Developmental Eco-Physiology Of The European Lobster, Homarus Gammarus (L.), Daniel Peter Small

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

The successful completion of the early developmental stages in organisms with complex life cycles is crucial to the persistence of a species both at the local and global scale. Thus changes in the abiotic environment experienced during larval and early benthic development can have profound effects on the development and ultimately dynamics of populations of marine invertebrates. The effects of elevated temperature and pCO2 in line with future predictions of anthropogenic climate change, ocean warming and ocean acidification (OA), on the survivorship and growth during early development of marine invertebrates is beginning to be understood, yet the underlying physiological ontogeny …

Understanding Sediment Mobilisation Under Plunging Waves Within A Gravel Beach, Ian Phillip Ball

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

Numerical modelling currently cannot accurately reproduce the onshore-offshore transport asymmetry observed on gravel beaches. The role of the impulsive pressure response generated by plunging waves has been hypothesised to aid mobilisation of sediment, and thus may contribute to transport asymmetry. This process is not currently included in models. Laboratory tests were conducted across a range of wave conditions to investigate the role of plunging wave-breaker impacts on the mobilisation of sediment of gravel beaches. Pressure records were obtained at positions close to the plunging impact locations, to monitor the localised pressures that lead to sediment mobilisation. The correction of the …

Signalling And Behaviour Of Globodera Pallida In The Rhizosphere Of The Trap Crop Solanum Sisymbriifolium, Ayano Sasaki-Crawley

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

Potato cyst nematodes (PCN), Globodera rostochiensis and G. pallida, are economically important pests of potato (Solanum tuberosum) crops in potato growing regions worldwide. Integrated management is under threat, with effective nematicides increasingly being withdrawn on environmental and health grounds. Alternative strategies are urgently needed and trap cropping could be one of them. The non-tuber-bearing Solanum sisymbriifolium is regarded as an effective trap crop for PCN with strong hatching ability and immunity to PCN infection and has been used in the UK and The Netherlands. However, its mode of action is unknown. In order to shed light on the mode of …

The Ecology, Distribution And Spawning Behaviour Of The Commercially Important Common Cuttlefish (Sepia Officinalis) In The Inshore Waters Of The English Channel, Isobel Bloor

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

Over the last 50 years there has been a rapid increase in global landings of cephalopods (octopus, squid and cuttlefish). In European waters, cuttlefish are among the most important commercial cephalopod resources and within the North-East Atlantic, the English Channel supports the largest cuttlefish fishery, with the common cuttlefish, Sepia o cinalis (Linnaeus, 1758), dominating landings. S. o cinalis has a short (2 year) life cycle in the English Channel that is punctuated by seasonal migrations inshore and o shore. Using a combination of di erent métiers including beam trawling, otter trawling and coastal trapping, this shared fisheries resource is …

Energy Productivity And Efficiency Of Maize Accounting For The Choice Of Growing Season And Environmental Factors: An Empirical Analysis From Bangladesh, S Rahman, Ms Rahman

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

The paper evaluates sustainability of maize cultivation in Bangladesh in terms of energy use while taking into account factors affecting choice of the growing season and farmers' production environment using a sample selection framework applied to stochastic frontier models. Results reveal that the probability of growing winter maize is influenced positively by gross return, irrigation, subsistence pressure, soil suitability and temperature variability whereas extension contact influences choice negatively. Significant differences exist between winter and summer maize regarding yield, specific energy, net energy balance, energy use efficiency and technical energy efficiency although both systems are highly sustainable and efficient. The energy …

Predicting Malaysian Palm Oil Price Using Extreme Value Theory, K Chuangchid, S Sriboonchitta, S Rahman, A Wiboonpongse

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

This paper uses the extreme value theory (EVT) to predict extreme price events of Malaysian palm oil in the future, based on monthly futures price data for a 25 year period (mid-1986 to mid-2011). Model diagnostic has confirmed non-normal distribution of palm oil price data, thereby justifying the use of EVT. Two principal approaches to model extreme values – the Block Maxima (BM) and Peak-OverThreshold (POT) models – were used. Both models revealed that the palm oil price will peak at an incremental rate in the next 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100 year periods. The price growth level in …

Flap Gate Farm: From Venice Lagoon Defense To Resonating Wave Energy Production. Part 1: Natural Modes, P. Sammarco, S. Michele, M D’Errico

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

No abstract provided.

A Robust Sound Perception Model Suitable For Neuromorphic Implementation., Martin Coath, Sadique Sheik, Elisabetta Chicca, Giacomo Indiveri, Susan L. Denham, Thomas Wennekers

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

We have recently demonstrated the emergence of dynamic feature sensitivity through exposure to formative stimuli in a real-time neuromorphic system implementing a hybrid analog/digital network of spiking neurons. This network, inspired by models of auditory processing in mammals, includes several mutually connected layers with distance-dependent transmission delays and learning in the form of spike timing dependent plasticity, which effects stimulus-driven changes in the network connectivity. Here we present results that demonstrate that the network is robust to a range of variations in the stimulus pattern, such as are found in naturalistic stimuli and neural responses. This robustness is a property …

Nucleon Generalized Form Factors With Twisted Mass Fermions, C Alexandrou, M Constantinou, V Drach, K Jansen, C Kallidonis, G Koutsou

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

We present results on the nucleon form factors, momentum fraction and helicity moment for Nf = 2 and Nf = 2+1+1 twisted mass fermions for a number of lattice volumes and lattice spacings. First results for a new Nf = 2 ensemble at the physical pion mass are also included. The implications of these results on the spin content of the nucleon are discussed taking into account the disconnected contributions at one pion mass.

Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticle Uptake Across The Isolated Perfused Intestine Of Rainbow Trout: Physiological Mechanisms And A Comparison With Caco-2 Cells, Aliaa Rasheed Al-Jubory

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

The wide use of nanoscale materials in food and health care products raises the concern of their possible uptake across the gastrointestinal tract, but very limited data are available on their uptake kinetics, and the potential hazards for humans. In this study, the uptake mechanism of titanium dioxide (TiO2) across the isolated perfused fish intestine and human intestinal Caco-2 cells were evaluated. The in vitro preparation of the whole gut sac and the isolated perfused intestine of rainbow trout were performed using both bulk and nano TiO2 in a concentration of 1 mg l-1 for up to 4 h. The …