Digital Commons Network^™

Grm-0243 Sentient Agi Rights And The Future: The Modern Digital Prometheus, Ryan Deem

C-Day Computing Showcase

As artificial intelligence advances toward artificial general intelligence (AGI), society must determine how to ethically integrate sentient AI into our communities. This paper argues that once AI achieves sentience and human-level intelligence, it should be granted the same rights and protections as human citizens. Using utilitarian and deontological perspectives, as well as the IEEE Code of Ethics, it examines why treating AGI as lesser beings could lead to fear, conflict, and harmful outcomes—echoing the cautionary themes of Frankenstein. The paper also evaluates public concerns and existing governance frameworks, proposing that mutual respect, rights, and responsibilities are essential for safe coexistence …

Is The Women's Treaty A Paper Tiger? Indian Courts' Application Of The United Nations Treaty, Amanda Stephens

University of Memphis Law Review

This Article examines whether the United Nations (“U.N.”) Treaty, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (“CEDAW”), is a “paper tiger”—a law that seems powerful but is in fact weak and ineffectual. While some scholars question the Treaty’s effectiveness based on statistical studies, others point to legal reforms in state parties as evidence of its success. Neither provides a nuanced middle ground by examining the CEDAW at a micro rather than a macro level. This Article fills this gap by conducting a qualitative analysis of 10 Indian judicial opinions. Specifically, the Article explores how the …

Full Faith, Credit, And Collision: Examining The Jurisdicitional Reach Of Extraterritorial Abortion Laws, Remy A. Carreiro

University of Memphis Law Review

In 2021, Texas made headlines when it passed antiabortion law Senate Bill 8 (“SB 8”). Although Roe was still the law of the land, SB 8 banned most abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy, long before many people know they are pregnant. The ensuing uproar primarily centered on the law’s unique ability to maneuver outside the reach of courts. Because SB 8 outsourced its enforcement authority exclusively to citizens, it effectively circumvented judicial review by eliminating valid targets for a pre-enforcement suit. Many were justifiably concerned that the law created a playbook for state legislatures to nullify other …

Addressing Junk Science In Abortion Legislation, Kirby Tyrrell

University of Memphis Law Review

Junk science has been a longstanding feature of antiabortion legislative and litigation strategy. But after the Supreme Court’s opinion in Whole Woman’s Health required courts to independently evaluate scientific evidence, rather than defer to a legislature’s factual findings, antiabortion experts took on greater importance in litigation. This Article examines three theories of antiabortion junk science, which, despite overwhelming scientific evidence establishing their falsity, have been repeatedly litigated in federal and state courts. The current tool for addressing dubious evidence in litigation is the standard created by the Supreme Court in Daubert and adopted by Federal Rule of Evidence 702. However, …

Truth Will Out: Combating The Rhetoric Of Modern Conspiracy Theory, Seth Kelley

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This essay explores modern conspiracy theories’ relationship to hatred and ignorance, and how specious ideas do not hold up to classical rhetorical analysis. It posits reasons why power embraces conspiracies that it has traditionally rejected and explains power and conspiracy theory’s symbiotic relationship in the age of misinformation. It champions rhetoric as the best tool to combat conspiracy theories.

Thesis: In order to effectively combat conspiracy theory’s undermining of human progress, we must hold conspiracists accountable for spreading dangerous lies, directly teach formal rhetoric in all public schools (and how to spot specious content), effectively foster multicultural respect and appreciation, …

Volume 48, 2025 Communication And Theater Association Of Minnesota Journal

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Complete digitized volume (volume 48) of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

W(H)Ither Regulation? Hither To The Tax System, Tracey M. Roberts

Pace Environmental Law Review

In a series of cases decided in the last three years, four delivered in 2024 alone, the U.S. Supreme Court has directed a withering gaze toward the federal administrative state. In West Virginia v. EPA, the Court both curtailed Executive Branch regulatory authority and mandated that Congress draft with greater statutory clarity and specificity under their recently developed major questions doctrine. Under Ohio v. EPA, the Court placed on administrative agencies the burden of extraordinary vigilance in addressing comments as part of the regulatory promulgation process. In Loper Bright v. Raimondo, the Court overturned Natural Resource Defense Council v. Chevron, …

"Lofty, Where All Is Shrunk And Changed": The Duality Of Susan Pringle Frost's Measures To Retain Power In Progressive Era Charleston, Emily Anne Harris

Furman Humanities Review

2025 Meta E. Gilpatrick Prize Essay

Furman Humanities Review. Volume 36, August 2025, Gretchen Braun Editor

Furman Humanities Review

No abstract provided.

Beyond Instrumentalization: Adventures In Crafting A Community-Engaged Education, Katherine Kruger, Beth Brown

International Journal of Lifelong Learning in Art Education

This article explores the design, functions and experiences of a community-engaged education from the points of view of a university student and a lecturer. Whilst experiential learning is currently being presented as fundamental to university employability agendas in the UK, we reflect on the other important consequences of creating a more porous educational community. We suggest that taking arts and humanities pedagogies – archival research and collage in particular – outside of the classroom, positively impacts belonging and social justice, elements that are less easily captured by university metrics. Moreover, we propose that these pedagogies can be utilised to challenge …

Intergenerational Transfers In A Tractable Overlapping-Generations Setting, James Feigenbaum, T. Scott Findley, Sepideh Raei

Economics and Finance Faculty Publications

Motivated by the Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax (GSTT) in the United States, we examine how varying estate tax rates by the heir’s age affects welfare. Methodologically, we introduce a parsimonious constant elasticity of substitution (CES) bequest utility that is markedly more tractable than the altruistic specifications commonly used in the literature, delivering closed-form optimal rules and transparent parameterization. Using this new framework, we provide a proof of concept showing how transfers from older to younger generations can enhance equilibrium welfare in a dynamically efficient economy à la Samuelson (1975). We embed the tractable bequest utility in a two-period overlapping-generations model with …

Immunological Surveillance Against Cancer Across Mammals, Orsolya Vincze, Piotr Minias, Alexandre Corthay, Fernando Colchero, Jean-François Lemaître, Louise Maille, Tamás Malkócs, Justus Hagemann, Dalia A. Conde, Samuel Pavard, Antoine M. Dujon, Beata Ujvari, Frédéric Thomas, Amy M. Boddy, Carlo C. Maley, Damien Chevallier, Tuul Sepp, Thomas Pradeu, Mathieu Giraudeau

Presidential Fellows Articles and Research

Contrary to expectations based on their higher cell numbers, larger and longer-lived species do not face dramatically increased risk of cancer. This strongly suggests that evolution has fashioned natural cancer resistance mechanisms, yet our knowledge remains limited on what these mechanisms might be. The cancer immunological surveillance hypothesis, proposed by Burnet and Thomas in the 1950s, highlights immunity as a key factor determining species-specific cancer resistance. Here we address the original, evolutionary interpretation of this hypothesis by investigating the relationship between cancer mortality risk and markers of efficient antigen presentation. Our results show that the expansion of the MHC class …

A Detailed Investigation Into Word-Order In The Modification Of Pronouns, Kelli Hesseltine, Joseph C. M. Davis

Publications and Research

This study builds upon Hesseltine and Davis ([2020]. “The Communicative Function of Adjective-Noun Order in English.” WORD 66 (3): 166–193. https://doi.org/10.1080/00437956.2020.1793499), which examines word order in modification in English and proposes the Assertion of Characterization hypothesis. To communicate an assertion of an entity’s traits, speakers employ two different meanings: weaker, signaled by the order AB as in long (A) hair (B), and stronger, signaled by BA as in hair (B) long (A). The attribution of the characterization is thus made less or more assertively. This work focuses on examples where the characterized entity, the B, is a form traditionally …

Death Before Breath: Courts Should Add De–Escalation And Proportionality To The Graham Factors, Nakyshia Fralin

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

This paper examines Barnes v. Felix, a case recently before the Supreme Court, through a comparative analysis of various circuit courts’ applications of the Graham factors in use–of–force evaluations. Beginning with a historical overview of policing, the paper revisits the factual background of the case before delving into the Fifth Circuit’s analysis, known as the Moment–of–Threat doctrine. It then contrasts this approach with the broader “totality of the circumstances” approach, highlighting the differing judicial interpretations. Building upon these established frameworks, the paper proposes two additional factors aimed at promoting human life and safety. By introducing these elements, the analysis seeks …

The Integral Fail–Safe: Restoring Clemency’S Role As A Remedy For Injustice In Death Penalty Cases, Mya Nobles

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

Executive clemency has long been understood simply as an act of mercy; however, this Note argues that executive clemency was historically designed to also function as an indispensable corrective mechanism within the criminal justice system, especially in capital cases where the consequences of error are irreversible. Using the execution of Marcellus Williams as a central illustration, this Note examines how modern clemency practices have deviated from their original purpose, becoming increasingly arbitrary, politically influenced, and vulnerable to racial bias. Although clemency has been characterized by its broad discretion and minimal procedural constraints, this Note argues that such unfettered authority has …

November 24 Elections, Census & Redistricting Update, Jeffrey M. Wice

Elections, Census & Redistricting Updates

No abstract provided.

A Capital Idea? The Welfare Effects Of Relocating Indonesia’S Government To A New City, Alexander D. Rothenberg, Radine Rafols, Yao Wang, Yi Jiang

Center for Policy Research

Many developing countries are planning to create new capital cities, a place-making policy designed to alleviate congestion and respond to climate change. To evaluate growth and welfare effects, we specify a dynamic quantitative spatial model with public employment, informality, fiscal transfers, and frictions in trade and migration. We calibrate the model with data from Indonesia and conduct policy experiments studying the creation of Nusantara in East Kalimantan. Despite increasing employment in the new capital region, we find that building Nusantara reduces national growth and welfare. Climate change attenuates its negative welfare effects, but only slightly.

Aida Acevedo V. City Of Reading

2025 Decisions

USDC for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Garla Freeman V. Td Bank

2025 Decisions

USDC for the District of New Jersey

Deterring Prison Versus Police Civil Rights Violations: Legal Challenges, Public Policy, And Institutional Failures, Natalie Kemper

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

The status of incarcerated individuals falls categorically below that of non-incarcerated individuals in our society, yet most would agree they deserve protection from governmental abuses of power. This Note evaluates the current legal, institutional, political, and societal circumstances that contribute to the immense difficulties faced by individuals alleging civil rights violations under the Eighth Amendment, primarily through the avenue of U.S.C. § 1983. Due to similarities in civil rights claims, this Note compares the barriers faced by incarcerated plaintiffs to those encountered in police misconduct claims, highlighting key discrepancies that undermine accountability and deterrence.

A primary barrier is the significantly …

From Fairy Tales To Fascist Nightmares: Countering Ron Desantis’ Florida, Ronald Mize, Et. Al

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

The recent spate of anti–‘woke’, don’t say gay, anti–trans, and anti–immigrant legislation, led by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, puts the sunshine state in the unenviable position of serving as the nation’s test case for Republicans’ neofascist agendas. This paper explores the exclusionary, targeting, and banning aspects of these culture war assaults on public education and outgroups. The specific banning of Critical Race Theory is discussed alongside cis–heteronormative efforts to target queer and trans communities, as well as DeSantis’ executive memoranda of transporting those at the border to sanctuary cities and S.B. 1718 aimed at excluding immigrant communities from public life …

Ascertaining Ascertainability, Patrick D. Murphree

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

For Pete's Sake: A Comparative Analysis On Quantum Review After Pete V. Boland, Joseph X. Kehrli

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

Cultural Synthesis In Iranian Graphic Design: A Fusion Of Tradition And Modernity, Maryam Mehrabadi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis examines Iranian graphic design as a politically embedded and semiotically charged field wherein visual form operates as a site of ideological negotiation, cultural memory, and symbolic resistance. Focusing on the works of Ghobad Shiva and Morteza Momayez, the study situates graphic design within the sociopolitical constraints of the Pahlavi monarchy and the post-1979 Islamic Republic. It argues that Iranian design practices cannot be understood outside the country’s enduring identity crisis—shaped by the unresolved tension between three coexisting cultural strata: ancient Persian heritage, Islamic civilizational identity, and Western modernity. Drawing on the work of Edward Said, the thesis also …

Fee Multipliers In Class Actions, Andrew J. Trask

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

Adequate Representation In Group Litigation, Elizabeth Chamblee Burch

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

Tesla's Forced Middleman: Why Modernization In The Automobile Industry Requires Louisiana To Revise Its Direct Sales Law, John Brainard

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

Vested Property Rights: Examining The Louisiana Supreme Court's Approach To Substantive Due Process In Bienvenu V. Defendant 1, William Voitier

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

When Laws Leave You Hanging: Negotiorum Gestio Steps In For Self V. Bpx Operating Company, Melisse Speligene

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Traffic Related Air Pollution Effects On Indoor Air Quality In Educational Buildings, Ahmed Gouda Mohamed, Mohamed Sherif Dr., Fahad Alqahtani Dr., Yousif Deeb Eng.

Civil Engineering

This study assesses the impact of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) on indoor air quality (IAQ) within a Riyadh school. The main objectives are to pinpoint factors influencing IAQ and to evaluate the effectiveness of existing ventilation and filtration systems. Air quality Egg sensors monitored nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), and particulate matter (PM1.0, PM2.5, PM10) levels both indoors and outdoors over 30 days. Findings revealed average indoor PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations of 14.09 µg/m3 and 18.15 µg/m3, respectively, while outdoor concentrations averaged 20.63 µg/m3 and 27.88 µg/m3. A strong positive correlation was observed between indoor and outdoor PM levels, …