Digital Commons Network^™

Guaranteed Rendezvous For Cognitive Radio Networks Based On Cycle Length, Li Gou

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Rendezvous is a fundamental process establishing a communication link on common channel between a pair of nodes in the cognitive radio networks. How to reach rendezvous efficiently and effectively is still an open problem. In this work, we propose a guaranteed cycle lengths based rendezvous (CLR) algorithm for cognitive radio networks. When the cycle lengths of the two nodes are coprime, the rendezvous is guaranteed within one rendezvous period considering the time skew between the two nodes. When T_i and T_j are not coprime, i.e., T_i=T_j, the deadlock checking and node IDs are combined …

Massively Parallel Algorithms For Point Cloud Based Object Recognition On Heterogeneous Architecture, Linjia Hu

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

With the advent of new commodity depth sensors, point cloud data processing plays an increasingly important role in object recognition and perception. However, the computational cost of point cloud data processing is extremely high due to the large data size, high dimensionality, and algorithmic complexity. To address the computational challenges of real-time processing, this work investigates the possibilities of using modern heterogeneous computing platforms and its supporting ecosystem such as massively parallel architecture (MPA), computing cluster, compute unified device architecture (CUDA), and multithreaded programming to accelerate the point cloud based object recognition. The aforementioned computing platforms would not yield high …

Effect Of Spark Advance And Fuel On Knocking Tendency Of Spark Ignited Engine, Abhay S. Joshi

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Knock, in spark ignition engine is the combustion caused by the autoignition of the fuel-air mixture. It is the phenomenon that limits engine performance and thermal efficiency. Knock also has an adverse effect on emissions and fuel economy. Engine designers target engines with maximum power and torque output without compromising on fuel economy. Engine downsizing is the method generally adopted. The main goal of engine downsizing is to achieve better fuel economy while increasing the power and torque output of the engine. Better fuel economy is achieved by reducing the displaced volume which in turn means a much higher brake …

Simulation Of Diesel Particulate Filter Regeneration Using Lattice Boltzmann Method, Kshitiz Kumar Jain

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Lattice Boltzmann Method is a novel approach, which has shown promise in solving a wide variety of fluid flow problems including single and multi-phase flows in complex geometries. Volume elements of the fluid domain are considered to be composed of particles and these particles fall under a velocity distribution function at each grid point. Particles collide with each other under the influence of external forces and the rules of collision are defined so as to be compatible with the Navier-Stokes Equation. In the current work, LBM has been applied to Diesel Particulate filters which is a device used for reducing …

Bruise Detection In Apples Using 3d Infrared Imaging And Machine Learning Technologies, Zilong Hu

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Bruise detection plays an important role in fruit grading. A bruise detection system capable of finding and removing damaged products on the production lines will distinctly improve the quality of fruits for sale, and consequently improve the fruit economy. This dissertation presents a novel automatic detection system based on surface information obtained from 3D near-infrared imaging technique for bruised apple identification. The proposed 3D bruise detection system is expected to provide better performance in bruise detection than the existing 2D systems.

We first propose a mesh denoising filter to reduce noise effect while preserving the geometric features of the meshes. …

Forensic Analysis Of Shallow Precipitation Triggered Lahars In 2016 On Concepción And Maderas Volcanoes, Ometepe Island, Nicaragua, Lindsay Ellingson

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Residents of volcanic landscapes are vulnerable to eruptions and earthquakes where volcanism is active and landslides, lahars, and flooding regardless of activity. Ometepe Island is formed from a pair of volcanoes, one active and the other less so, located in Lake Nicaragua. Steep slopes and tropical storms yield frequent surface movement that present potential for large landslide and lahar/mud/debris-flow catastrophes. Climate and land-use changes exacerbate the hazard potential, but land-use changes continue unregulated and the area lacks a sufficient system of weather monitoring to understand variability across the two volcanic edifices over time. Over the 2016 year, weather stations located …

Predicitng Failure Of Culverts And Associated Impacts In Low Order Streams Of Northern Michigan, Charles King

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The Great Lakes Region of North America has experienced more frequent extreme precipitation events recently, resulting in a large number of stream crossing failures. To evaluate failure risk and potential impacts of crossings in northern Michigan, we identified and conducted coarse assessments of all the stream crossings and dams in the North Branch Paint River Watershed. A subset of 11 culverts were selected from 49 identified sites for hydraulic analysis to estimate crossing failure discharge conditions. Stream crossing dimensions and upstream attributes were used to create metrics that predict failure risk without the need for complex hydraulic modeling, and these …

Lakebed Characterization Using Side-Scan Data For Investigating The Latest Lake Superior Coastal Environment Conditions, Hasan Salih Kulunk

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This thesis provides a review of the development of hydrographic survey equipment and supporting geospatial equipment and technology such as GPS. Using SonarWiz, a sonar image processing software package, lakebed classification methodologies were evaluated for mapping Buffalo Reef in Lake Superior located near Gay, Michigan. The goal was to develop an approach to mapping the reef bed and delineating various components of the lake bottom, including stamp sands, which are migrating from the abandoned Gay copper processing stamp mill to the reef. This contamination of the reef is having an adverse effect on habitats important to local flora and fauna. …

How A Diverse Research Ecosystem Has Generated New Rehabilitation Technologies: Review Of Nidilrr’S Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers, David J. Reinkensmeyer, Sarah Blackstone, Cathy Bodine, John Brabyn, David Brienza, Kevin Caves, Frank Deruyter, Edmund Durfee, Stefania Fatone, Geoff Fernie, Steven Gard, Patricia Karg, Todd A. Kuiken, Gerald F. Harris, Mike Jones, Yue Li, Jordana Maisel, Michael Mccue, Michelle A. Meade, Helena Mitchell, Tracy L. Mitzner, James L. Patton, Philip S. Requejo, James H. Rimmer, Wendy A. Rogers, W. Zev Rymer, Jon A. Sanford, Lawrence Schneider, Levin Sliker, Stephen Sprigle, Aaron Steinfeld, Edward Steinfeld, Gregg Vanderheiden, Carolee Winstein, Li-Qun Zhang, Thomas Corfman

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Over 50 million United States citizens (1 in 6 people in the US) have a developmental, acquired, or degenerative disability. The average US citizen can expect to live 20% of his or her life with a disability. Rehabilitation technologies play a major role in improving the quality of life for people with a disability, yet widespread and highly challenging needs remain. Within the US, a major effort aimed at the creation and evaluation of rehabilitation technology has been the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs) sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. As envisioned at their …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Cross-Linked Polyimide Film Using Tolylene Diisocyanate, Sirichai Reeyakad

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Cross-linked polyimide films were synthesized by the reaction between diisocyanate groups and hydroxyl functional groups in polyimide structure, which was confirmed by IR. During the thermal treatment of the cross-linked polyimide, the thermal labile component (CO₂) in the urethane segments was decomposed which might generate pores in the film. The presence of the pores was confirmed from the dielectric constant of the film. The dielectric constant of the films decreased with the increase of TDI loading. By comparing the properties of the films, the PI50-C1.0 exhibited optimum mechanical and good dielectric properties. The cross-linked structure was also confirmed by DMA. …

พอลิแล็กทิกแอซิด/พอลิไวนิลแอลกอฮอล์/แกรฟีนนาโนคอมพอสิต, จาฬุพักต์ รัตนคช

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อพัฒนาวิธีการเตรียมพอลิแล็กทิกแอซิด/พอลิไวนิลแอลกอฮอล์/แกรฟีนนาโนคอมพอสิต รวมถึงศึกษาอิทธิพลของการเติมอนุภาคแกรฟีนต่อสัณฐานวิทยา สมบัติเชิงกล สมบัติทางความร้อน และสมบัติการนำไฟฟ้าของวัสดุนาโนคอมพอสิตที่เตรียมได้ โดยเริ่มด้วยการสังเคราะห์แกรฟีนจากแกรไฟต์ด้วยวิธีของฮัมเมอร์ และใช้กรดแอลแอสคอร์บิกเป็นตัวรีดิวซ์ พิสูจน์เอกลักษณ์ของอนุภาคแกรฟีนที่เตรียมได้ด้วยเทคนิคอินฟราเรดสเปกโทรสโกปีและเทคนิคเอกซเรย์ดิฟแฟรกชัน จากนั้นเตรียมของผสมระหว่างพอลิไวนิลแอลกอฮอล์กับแกรฟีนที่ปริมาณต่าง ๆ ด้วยวิธีแช่เยือกแข็ง แล้วนำไปผสมกับพอลิแล็กทิกแอซิดด้วยเครื่องอัดรีดสกรูคู่และขึ้นรูปเป็นชิ้นงานด้วยกระบวนการอัดแบบ ศึกษาสัณฐานวิทยาเพื่อวิเคราะห์อันตรกิริยาของผสมระหว่างพอลิไวนิลแอลกอฮอล์กับแกรฟีนด้วยกล้องจุลทรรศน์แบบคอนโฟคอล และวิเคราะห์ภาคตัดขวางของชิ้นงานคอมพอสิตด้วยกล้องจุลทรรศน์อิเล็กตรอนแบบส่องกราด ผลการทดสอบสมบัติเชิงกล สมบัติทางความร้อน และสมบัติการนำไฟฟ้าของวัสดุนาโนคอมพอสิตที่เตรียมได้ พบว่าปริมาณผลึกลดลงเมื่อปริมาณแกรฟีนเพิ่มขึ้น แต่ไม่ส่งผลต่ออุณหภูมิกลาสทรานสิชัน อุณหภูมิหลอมเหลวผลึก และอุณหภูมิการเกิดผลึก อีกทั้งการเติมแกรฟีนที่มีการใช้พอลิไวนิลแอลกอฮอล์เป็นตัวพาลงในพอลิเมอร์เมทริกซ์ ทำให้ความทนแรงดึง และความยืดสูงสุด ณ จุดขาด มีแนวโน้มลดลงด้วย อย่างไรก็ดีการเติมแกรฟีนในปริมาณน้อย ๆ สามารถช่วยเพิ่มความทนแรงดึงได้เมื่อเปรียบเทียบกับงานวิจัยก่อนหน้าที่ไม่มีการเติมตัวพาหรือตัวช่วยเพิ่มการกระจายตัว นอกจากนี้พบว่าปริมาณแกรฟีนที่เพิ่มขึ้น ทำให้ค่าการนำไฟฟ้าของคอมพอสิตเมื่อเทียบกับพอลิแล็กทิกแอซิดบริสุทธิ์เพิ่มขึ้น คอมพอสิตที่พัฒนาขึ้นสามารถนำไปประยุกต์ในงานที่ต้องการสมบัติการต้านทานไฟฟ้าสถิตย์ได้

ผลของการเติมเถ้าแกลบต่อการเกิดชั้นฟิล์มในกระบวนการอะลูมิไนซิงแบบผงบนนิกเกิลบริสุทธิ์, บุญฤทธิ์ เฮงประยูร

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

การปรับปรุงกระบวนการอะลูมิไนซิงแบบผงทำได้โดยการเจือธาตุซิลิกอนเพื่อเพิ่มความเสถียรของชั้นออกไซด์ที่เกิดขึ้นในการใช้งานที่อุณหภูมิสูง ซึ่งเถ้าแกลบมีส่วนประกอบของซิลิกาอยู่มากกว่า 90 เปอร์เซ็นต์โดยน้ำหนัก ในงานวิจัยนี้จะหาความเป็นไปได้ในการใช้เถ้าแกลบแทนซิลิกาจากอุตสาหกรรม (ควอทซ์) เพื่อเจือซิลิกอนลงในกระบวนการอะลูมิไนซิงแบบผง โดยวิเคราะห์ถึงความแตกต่างของโครงสร้างผลึก สารเจือในเถ้าแกลบ ขนาดอนุภาค ลักษณะพิ้นผิวและพื้นที่ผิวจำเพาะระหว่างผงควอทซ์และผงเถ้าแกลบที่จะส่งผลต่อโครงสร้างจุลภาค โครงสร้างของสารประกอบของชั้นแพร่และปริมาณซิลิกอนที่พบในชั้นแพร่ในผิวชิ้นงานที่ใช้สารตั้งต้นเป็นควอทซ์และเถ้าแกลบ ซึ่งปริมาณสารเจือที่เติมคือ 9, 13.5, 18 เปอร์เซ็นต์โดยน้ำหนัก เผาที่อุณหภูมิ 800 และ 1000๐C เป็นเวลา 4 ชั่วโมง และทดสอบความต้านทานการเกิดออกซิเดชันที่อุณหภูมิ 1000๐C เป็นเวลา 100 ชั่วโมง ชิ้นงานที่นำมาทดสอบคือ นิกเกิลบริสุทธิ์, ชิ้นงานที่ทำอะลูมิไนซิงที่ 900๐C เป็นเวลา 4 ชั่วโมง, ชิ้นงานที่เติมควอทซ์ 13.5 เปอร์เซ็นต์โดยน้ำหนัก ทำอะลูมิไนซิงที่ 1000๐C เป็นเวลา 4 ชั่วโมงและชิ้นงานที่เติมเถ้าแกลบ 13.5 เปอร์เซ็นต์โดยน้ำหนัก ทำอะลูมิไนซิงที่ 1000๐C เป็นเวลา 4 ชั่วโมง นำชิ้นงานมาวิเคราะห์ลักษณะพื้นผิวและโครงสร้างของสารประกอบออกไซด์ที่เกิดขึ้นที่ผิว พบว่าชิ้นงานที่เติมเถ้าแกลบจะมีปริมาณซิลิกอนที่พบในชั้นแพร่มากกว่าและมีความสามารถในการต้านทานการเกิดออกซิเดชันที่อุณหภูมิสูงดีกว่าชิ้นงานที่เติมควอทซ์

Long-Period Fiber Grating Corrosion Sensors For Life-Cycle Monitoring And Assessment Of Reinforced Concrete Structures, Yizheng Chen

Doctoral Dissertations

"This study aims to: (1) explore, develop, calibrate and validate Fe-C coated, long period fiber grating (LPFG) sensors for short-term mass loss measurement of the Fe-C coating; (2) develop, calibrate, and validate steel tube-encapsulated, fiber optic probes and LPFG sensors for long-term mass loss detection of the steel tube; (3) correlate the corrosion process of packaging metal materials with that of steel bars in direct contact with the packaged probe or sensor except for a thin insulation tape; and (4) apply both types of corrosion sensors into reinforced concrete (RC) structures for reinforcing bar corrosion monitoring and structural condition assessment. …

Repair Of Metallic Components Using Hybrid Manufacturing, Renwei Liu

Doctoral Dissertations

"Many high-performance metal parts users extend the service of these damaged parts by employing repair technology. Hybrid manufacturing, which includes additive manufacturing (AM) and subtractive manufacturing, provides greater build capability, better accuracy, and surface finish for component repair. However, most repair processes still rely on manual operations, which are not satisfactory in terms of time, cost, reliability, and accuracy. This dissertation aims to improve the application of hybrid manufacturing for repairing metallic components by addressing the following three research topics. The first research topic is to investigate and develop an efficient best-fit and shape adaption algorithm for automating 3D models' …

Discrete Ordinates Ct Organ Dose Simulator (Doctors), Edward T. Norris

Doctoral Dissertations

"Computed tomography (CT) has become pervasive in medical diagnostics as improved imaging techniques and processing algorithms provide higher quality information to doctors. However, the exponentially increasing usage of CT has raised concerns regarding long term low-dose radiological risks.

Currently, the dose to patients is computed using Monte Carlo methods and experimental tests. In other areas of radiation transport, deterministic codes have been shown to be much faster than Monte Carlo codes.

Currently, no deterministic methodology exists to automatically generate a spatially distributed dose profile from a CT voxel phantom. This work proposes a new code, Discrete Ordinate CT Organ Dose …

Volumetric Error Compensation For 5-Axis Machine Tools, Jennifer Ruth Creamer

Doctoral Dissertations

"This work presents a geometric error compensation method for large 5-axis machine tools. The compensation method presented here uses tool tip measurements recorded throughout the axis space to construct a position-dependent geometric error model that can easily be used for error compensation. The measurements are taken using a laser tracker, permitting rapid error data gathering at most locations in the axis space. First two model types are compared for generating table-based error compensation and experimental results are presented. Table-based compensation is then extended to machine tool controller types with restrictions on the number or combination of compensation tables using an …

Cognition-Based Approaches For High-Precision Text Mining, George John Shannon

Doctoral Dissertations

"This research improves the precision of information extraction from free-form text via the use of cognitive-based approaches to natural language processing (NLP). Cognitive-based approaches are an important, and relatively new, area of research in NLP and search, as well as linguistics. Cognitive approaches enable significant improvements in both the breadth and depth of knowledge extracted from text. This research has made contributions in the areas of a cognitive approach to automated concept recognition in.

Cognitive approaches to search, also called concept-based search, have been shown to improve search precision. Given the tremendous amount of electronic text generated in our digital …

Numerical Simulation Of Viscoelastic Buckle Folds: Implications For Stress, Fractures, Porosity And Fluid Flow, Xiaolong Liu

Doctoral Dissertations

"Over the past several decades, buckle folds have been exclusively studied by numerous methods. However, lots of assumptions and simplifications are made, which may not result in realistic in-situ stress conditions leading to rock failure. This study represents the first numerical simulation of folding under the consideration of gravity and pore pressure to simulate the structural development of buckle folds.

The first topic covered in this dissertation is the fracture associated to the single layer fold. It is concluded that burial depth, viscosity, and permeability are critical for the initiation of major fracture sets at the hinge zone with varying …

Dissolution-Enlarged Fractures Imaging Using Electrical Resistivity Tomography (Ert), Elnaz Siami-Irdemoosa

Doctoral Dissertations

"In recent years the electrical imaging techniques have been largely applied to geotechnical and environmental investigations. These techniques have proven to be the best geophysical methods for site investigations in karst terrain, particularly when the overburden soil is clay-dominated. Karst is terrain with a special landscape and distinctive hydrological system developed by dissolution of rocks, particularly carbonate rocks such as limestone and dolomite, made by enlarging fractures into underground conduits that can enlarge into caverns, and in some cases collapse to form sinkholes.

Bedding planes, joints, and faults are the principal structural guides for underground flow and dissolution in almost …

Novel Applications Of Pulse Pre-Pump Brillouin Optical Time Domain Analysis For Behavior Evaluation Of Structures Under Thermal And Mechanical Loading, Yi Bao

Doctoral Dissertations

"This study aims to: (1) develop an analytical model for the strain transfer effect of distributed fiber optic sensors in a uniform or non-uniform stress field; (2) develop a measurement approach to monitor strains in concrete and detect damage (e.g. crack and delamination) in bonded and unbonded concrete overlays; (3) characterize the strain and temperature sensitivities of distributed fiber optic sensors at elevated temperatures; (4) develop a thermal annealing approach to enhance the thermal stability and temperature sensitivity of the distributed sensors; and (5) apply the distributed sensors to assess structural behaviors of concrete and steel structures exposed to fire. …

High-Volume Recycled Materials For Sustainable Transportation Infrastructure, Seyedhamed Sadati

Doctoral Dissertations

"The objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of using high performance concrete made with high-volume of recycled materials in transportation infrastructure. The main focus was to develop mixtures for rigid pavement construction. A variety of fine and coarse recycled concrete aggregates (RCA) were investigated. The feasibility of replacing 50% of Portland cement with industrial by-products and supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) was also evaluated. Experimental program was conducted to quantify the effect of concrete mixture design and RCA characteristics on mechanical properties, drying shrinkage, cracking potential, and durability of concrete. The development of a database and analysis using …

Smart Rocks For Bridge Scour Monitoring -- Design And Localization Using Electromagnetic Techniques And Embedded Orientation Sensors, Andro Radchenko

Doctoral Dissertations

"River bridge scour is an erosion process in which flowing water removes sediment materials (such as sand, rocks) from a bridge foundation, river beds and banks. As a result, the level of the river bed near a bridge pier is lowering such that the bridge foundation stability can be compromised, and the bridge can collapse. The scour is a dynamic process, which can accelerate rapidly during a flood event. Thus, regular monitoring of the scour progress is necessary to be performed at most river bridges. Present techniques are usually expensive, require large man/hour efforts, and often lack the real-time monitoring …

The Effect Of Testing Conditions On Lost Circulation Materials' Performance In Simulated Fractures, Montri Jeennakorn

Doctoral Dissertations

"Lost circulation (LOC) problems increase costs of drilling significantly. It is not only the cost of the drilling fluid that is lost into the formation but also the costs of subsequent problems that can be higher than the cost of the drilling fluids. LOC also possibly leads to a serious risk of blowout incident.

Lost circulation materials (LCM) are regularly added to the drilling fluids with an expectation of plugging the flow path. Due to the difficulties of testing and monitoring LCM sealing processes in the field, LCM evaluation in the laboratory is often used to prove and assure successful …

Optimal Design And Freeform Extrusion Fabrication Of Functionally Gradient Smart Parts, Amir Ghazanfari

Doctoral Dissertations

"An extrusion-based additive manufacturing process, called the Ceramic On-Demand Extrusion (CODE) process, for producing three-dimensional ceramic components with near theoretical density was developed. In this process, an aqueous paste of ceramic particles with a very low binder content (<1 vol%) is extruded through a moving nozzle at room temperature. After a layer is deposited, it is surrounded by oil (to a level just below the top surface of most recent layer) to preclude non-uniform evaporation from the sides. Infrared radiation is then used to partially, and uniformly, dry the just-deposited layer so that the yield stress of the paste increases and the part maintains its shape. The same procedure is repeated for every layer until part fabrication is completed. Sample parts made of alumina and fully stabilized zirconia were produced using this process and their mechanical properties including density, strength, Young's modulus, Weibull modulus, toughness, and hardness were examined. Microstructural evaluation was also performed to measure the grain size, and critical flaw sizes were obtained. The results indicate that the proposed method enables fabrication of geometrically complex parts with superior mechanical properties. Furthermore, several methods were developed to increase the productivity of the CODE process and enable manufacturing of functionally graded materials with an optimum distribution of material composition. As an application of the CODE process, advanced ceramic components with embedded sapphire optical fiber sensors were fabricated and properties of parts and sensors were evaluated using standard test methods"--Abstract, page iv.

Depositional Systems, Sequence Architecture, And Controlling Factors Of An Eocene Stratigraphic Sequence At Minfeng Steep Margin Of Dongying Depression, Eastern China, Zhixin Li

Doctoral Dissertations

“This study is carried out in Minfeng area, the steep margin of Dongying half graben, eastern China, by integrating 3-D seismic, wireline log, and core data, and aims to interpret the depositional systems, reconstruct sequence stratigraphic architecture, and understand the controlling processes and factors at the steep margin of a rift basin. In the first part of this work, an Eocene stratigraphic sequence is divided into three systems tracts, corresponding to different stages of lake evolution, as early expansion (EEST), late expansion-early contraction (LEECST), and late contraction (LCST). EEST is the thickest and diagnostic by the best-developed marginal and basinal …

Promoting Access Over Ownership: Realigning Antitrust And Intellectual Property Law To Usher In An Era Of Collaborative Consumption, Adrian Kuenzler

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Following the US Supreme Court's endorsement of the promotion of consumer welfare as the single goal of antitrust and intellectual property laws, many courts have reasserted their commitment to the market access doctrine for antitrust and intellectual property law liability. These courts have rejected the Court's submission in GTE Sylvania to adhere to a strict output/profitability test concentrating predominantly on the positive and negative welfare effects regarding allegedly infringing conduct. This Article examines several important antitrust and intellectual property law decisions and locates within them a common flaw to express an intelligible, distinct doctrinal function for giving precedence to market …

The "Strict Liability" Of Direct Patent Infringement, Lynda J. Oswald

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

In 1995, the Federal Circuit summarily attached the label of "strict liability" to direct patent infringement, even though that term does not appear in any US Patent Act enacted in the past two centuries. The catechism of "strict" direct patent infringement liability is now so well engrained in patent doctrine that it is easy to lose sight of how recent the advent of this terminology is in the case law, and how troublesome application of this standard has proven, even to the Federal Circuit, which created it. The first Patent Act (1790) preceded the emergence of tort law as a …

Free Speech Or Slavery Profiteering?: Solutions For Policing Online Sex--Trafficking Advertisement, Marguerite A. O'Brien

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Online sex trafficking is big business. The Department of Homeland Security estimates that sex trafficking generates billions of dollars per year. The marketplace for sex has moved from the street corner to classified ad websites such as Backpage.com, and all too often the victims of online sex trafficking are minors. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported an 846 percent increase in reports of child sexual exploitation between 2010 and 2015--growth the organization attributes to the availability of sex ads on websites such as Backpage.com. Law enforcement agencies and victims have sought to hold Backpage.com liable for facilitating …

Flagging The Middle Ground Of The Right To Be Forgotten: Combatting Old News With Search Engine Flags, Hannah L. Cook

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Incomplete and outdated news articles present an increasing problem for individuals who find themselves stigmatized on the basis of truthful but misleading reports. This Article proposes a moderate solution between the European right to be forgotten and the protectionless status quo in the United States. It proposes a flagging system, administered through Federal Trade Commission adjudications, where links to articles whose private harms outweigh their public benefits are flagged in the search results of an individual. This flag will help combat psychological biases that may cause decisionmakers to place an irrational weight on these articles while preserving the ability of …

Federalism And Federalization On The Fintech Frontier, Brian Knight

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

The rise of financial technology (fintech) has the potential to provide better-quality financial services to more people. Although these enhanced financial services have arisen in order to meet consumer need, their regulatory status threatens that progress. Many fintech firms are regulated on a state-by-state basis even though their transactions are interstate, and they compete with firms that enjoy more consistent rules through federal preemption. This dynamic can harm efficiency, competitive equity, and political equity. This Article examines developments in marketplace lending, money transmission, and online sales of securities in an attempt to identify situations in which greater federalization of the …