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The Evolutionary Psychology of Divorce
February 12, 2017
Some of us are lucky. My lovely wife, Kathy, and I are set to celebrate our 20th anniversary this year (hello, Key West!). Given how prevalent divorce is all around us—as well as how deeply divisive and troublesome divorce can be, I consider us beyond fortunate to be where we are today. Divorce wreaks havoc on individuals and on family systems. It can be a traumatic experience for multiple parties—having long-lasting adverse emotional, social, and familial effects. When there’s a big problem...
February 12, 2017
Some of us are lucky. My lovely wife, Kathy, and I are set to celebrate our 20th anniversary this year (hello, Key West!). Given how prevalent divorce is all around us—as well as how deeply divisive and troublesome divorce can be, I consider us beyond fortunate to be where we are today. Divorce wreaks havoc on individuals and on family systems. It can be a traumatic experience for multiple parties—having long-lasting adverse emotional, social, and familial effects. When there’s a big problem...
SwRi and Texas A&M to Test Self-Driving Cars in San Antonio
February 11, 2017
Self-driving car technology is coming to San Antonio streets. The city was tapped as a pilot market by the U.S. Department of Transportation, who is designating several Texas metro areas as areas which will start getting driverless vehicles on the road. Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit research organization based in San Antonio, joined the Texas Department of Transportation, Texas A&M Transportation Institute and the University of Texas at Austin's Center for Transportation Research...
February 11, 2017
Self-driving car technology is coming to San Antonio streets. The city was tapped as a pilot market by the U.S. Department of Transportation, who is designating several Texas metro areas as areas which will start getting driverless vehicles on the road. Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit research organization based in San Antonio, joined the Texas Department of Transportation, Texas A&M Transportation Institute and the University of Texas at Austin's Center for Transportation Research...
Running Has These Unbelievable Effects On The Brain
February 11, 2017
Runners show greater connectivity between vital parts of the brain than non-runners, new research finds. Stronger connections are seen in areas important for decision-making, planning and controlling attention. It is one of the first studies to show the benefits of running on younger brains in this way. Fewer studies, though, have looked at repetitive activities like running or cycling. Dr Raichlen said: “These activities that people consider repetitive actually involve many...
February 11, 2017
Runners show greater connectivity between vital parts of the brain than non-runners, new research finds. Stronger connections are seen in areas important for decision-making, planning and controlling attention. It is one of the first studies to show the benefits of running on younger brains in this way. Fewer studies, though, have looked at repetitive activities like running or cycling. Dr Raichlen said: “These activities that people consider repetitive actually involve many...
The Humans Working Behind the AI Curtain
February 11, 2017
Just how artificial is Artificial Intelligence? Facebook created a PR firestorm last summer when reporters discovered a human “editorial team” – rather than just unbiased algorithms – selecting stories for its trending topics section. The revelation highlighted an elephant in the room of our tech world: companies selling the magical speed, omnipotence, and neutrality of artificial intelligence (AI) often can’t make good on their promises without keeping people in the loop, often working...
February 11, 2017
Just how artificial is Artificial Intelligence? Facebook created a PR firestorm last summer when reporters discovered a human “editorial team” – rather than just unbiased algorithms – selecting stories for its trending topics section. The revelation highlighted an elephant in the room of our tech world: companies selling the magical speed, omnipotence, and neutrality of artificial intelligence (AI) often can’t make good on their promises without keeping people in the loop, often working...
Upchurch on Service of Process via Social Media
February 10, 2017
Angela Upchurch (Southern Illinois University at Carbondale - School of Law) has posted 'Hacking' Service of Process: Using...
February 10, 2017
Angela Upchurch (Southern Illinois University at Carbondale - School of Law) has posted 'Hacking' Service of Process: Using...
Book on Mediation for Estate Planners
February 10, 2017
Susan N. Gary recently published a book entitled, Mediation for Estate Planners (2016). Provided below is a summary of the book: Estate...
February 10, 2017
Susan N. Gary recently published a book entitled, Mediation for Estate Planners (2016). Provided below is a summary of the book: Estate...
The Black Hole Problem in Commercial Boilerplate
February 10, 2017
Rote use of a standard form contract term can erode its meaning, a phenomenon made worse when the process of encrustation introduces various formulations of the term. The foregoing process, when it occurs, weakens the communicative properties of boilerplate terms, leading some terms to lose much, if not all, meaning. In theory, if a clause is completely emptied of meaning through this process it can create a contractual “black hole.” The more frequent and thus potentially more pervasive problem...
February 10, 2017
Rote use of a standard form contract term can erode its meaning, a phenomenon made worse when the process of encrustation introduces various formulations of the term. The foregoing process, when it occurs, weakens the communicative properties of boilerplate terms, leading some terms to lose much, if not all, meaning. In theory, if a clause is completely emptied of meaning through this process it can create a contractual “black hole.” The more frequent and thus potentially more pervasive problem...
Judging Aggregate Settlements
February 9, 2017
Adam Zimmerman (Loyola) and David Jaros (Baltimore) have a new piece forthcoming in the Wash. U. Law Review entitled Judging Aggregate Settlement. It explores the rise of mass settlements across civil, administrative, and criminal law and their impact on the role of the federal judiciary. Here’s the abstract: While courts historically have taken a hands-off approach to settlement, judges across the legal spectrum have begun to intervene actively in “aggregate settlements”—repeated...
February 9, 2017
Adam Zimmerman (Loyola) and David Jaros (Baltimore) have a new piece forthcoming in the Wash. U. Law Review entitled Judging Aggregate Settlement. It explores the rise of mass settlements across civil, administrative, and criminal law and their impact on the role of the federal judiciary. Here’s the abstract: While courts historically have taken a hands-off approach to settlement, judges across the legal spectrum have begun to intervene actively in “aggregate settlements”—repeated...
A ‘Grand’ Unified Negotiation Theory… in Context
February 9, 2017
Negotiation research is pursued from the perspectives of a number of disciplines including psychology, organizational behavior, labor relations, decision sciences, game theory, communications, legal studies, international relations, public policy, and others. Added to these are best practices from several fields engaged in intervention in conflicts. By now, the negotiation field has accumulated a considerable volume of wisdom regarding what drives people and entities to negotiate, how they behave...
February 9, 2017
Negotiation research is pursued from the perspectives of a number of disciplines including psychology, organizational behavior, labor relations, decision sciences, game theory, communications, legal studies, international relations, public policy, and others. Added to these are best practices from several fields engaged in intervention in conflicts. By now, the negotiation field has accumulated a considerable volume of wisdom regarding what drives people and entities to negotiate, how they behave...
Diversity and Uniformity in International Arbitration Law
February 9, 2017
This essay seeks to provide a counterbalance to the frequent push for greater uniformity in international arbitration law. The New York Convention and the UNCITRAL Model Law both have made international arbitration law more uniform, and that increased uniformity no doubt has benefited parties and the system of international arbitration as a whole. But in deciding whether to make further reforms to international arbitration law, policy makers must do more than simply accept that uniformity has benefits....
February 9, 2017
This essay seeks to provide a counterbalance to the frequent push for greater uniformity in international arbitration law. The New York Convention and the UNCITRAL Model Law both have made international arbitration law more uniform, and that increased uniformity no doubt has benefited parties and the system of international arbitration as a whole. But in deciding whether to make further reforms to international arbitration law, policy makers must do more than simply accept that uniformity has benefits....
