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Do Long-Term Memories Punch Holes in the Brain?
January 9, 2016
How the brain encodes and stores memories is one of the enduring mysteries of neuroscience. Memories are thought to be encoded by the strengthening of synaptic connections, and many researchers believe that they are retained by proteins at the synapses. And yet, while memories can persist over our entire lifetimes, these synaptic proteins are continuously being destroyed and replaced, over a time-frame of hours or days. Several years ago, neuroscientist Roger Tsien of the University of California,...
January 9, 2016
How the brain encodes and stores memories is one of the enduring mysteries of neuroscience. Memories are thought to be encoded by the strengthening of synaptic connections, and many researchers believe that they are retained by proteins at the synapses. And yet, while memories can persist over our entire lifetimes, these synaptic proteins are continuously being destroyed and replaced, over a time-frame of hours or days. Several years ago, neuroscientist Roger Tsien of the University of California,...
New York Installing Public Gigabit Wi-Fi
January 9, 2016
Today, workers began installing the first LinkNYC access points in New York. First announced in November 2014, the hubs are designed as an update to the standard phone booth, using upgraded infrastructure to provide gigabit Wi-Fi access points. This particular installation was spotted outside a small Starbucks at 15th St and 3rd Avenue, near Manhattan’s Union Square. 500 other hubs are set to be installed throughout the city by mid-July. LinkNYC anticipates one or two weeks of testing before New Yorkers...
January 9, 2016
Today, workers began installing the first LinkNYC access points in New York. First announced in November 2014, the hubs are designed as an update to the standard phone booth, using upgraded infrastructure to provide gigabit Wi-Fi access points. This particular installation was spotted outside a small Starbucks at 15th St and 3rd Avenue, near Manhattan’s Union Square. 500 other hubs are set to be installed throughout the city by mid-July. LinkNYC anticipates one or two weeks of testing before New Yorkers...
Twitter May Be An ‘Excellent Way’ To Understand Human Behavior And Psychology
January 9, 2016
Even more research has found social media sites, like Twitter, can be used to advance scientific research. A new study published in PLOS ONE looks specifically at Twitter, and how it can be used to extract meaningful information from situations users experience in their daily lives. The study was conducted by David Serfass, a doctoral candidate at Florida Atlantic University, and Dr. Ryne Sherman, a psychology professor at FAU. Since recent studies have found status updates and tweets can be used...
January 9, 2016
Even more research has found social media sites, like Twitter, can be used to advance scientific research. A new study published in PLOS ONE looks specifically at Twitter, and how it can be used to extract meaningful information from situations users experience in their daily lives. The study was conducted by David Serfass, a doctoral candidate at Florida Atlantic University, and Dr. Ryne Sherman, a psychology professor at FAU. Since recent studies have found status updates and tweets can be used...
New Materials on Labor Arbitration
January 8, 2016
Carolina Academic Press has published a new set of materials that can be used to teach an “experiential” course in the practice...
January 8, 2016
Carolina Academic Press has published a new set of materials that can be used to teach an “experiential” course in the practice...
February Argument Calendar Loses Arbitration Case to Settlement
January 8, 2016
The February argument calendar got a little thinner today, as the Court removed MHN Government Services, Inc. v. Zaborowski from the argument schedule in response to a notice from the parties that the case is in the process of settling. At first glance, this case looked like it might be another in the lengthening line of arbitration cases from the West Coast (the Ninth Circuit this time) refusing to enforce arbitration agreements. Perhaps the vigor of the Court’s resolution of DIRECTV, Inc. v. Imburgia...
January 8, 2016
The February argument calendar got a little thinner today, as the Court removed MHN Government Services, Inc. v. Zaborowski from the argument schedule in response to a notice from the parties that the case is in the process of settling. At first glance, this case looked like it might be another in the lengthening line of arbitration cases from the West Coast (the Ninth Circuit this time) refusing to enforce arbitration agreements. Perhaps the vigor of the Court’s resolution of DIRECTV, Inc. v. Imburgia...
Arms Race: Law Firms and the Litigation Funding Boom
January 8, 2016
In November news came out in an employment lawsuit that Gerchen Keller Capital LLC, the nation's largest commercial litigation funder, had poured $93 million into a fly-speck of a Texas plaintiffs firm called AkinMears. Unlike the traditional funding of a single lawsuit, the cash infusion was structured as an advance on AkinMears' expected windfall on its docket of mass torts claims, including roughly 15,000 trans-vaginal mesh claims it would acquire using Gerchen Keller funds. The investment in a claims-bundling...
January 8, 2016
In November news came out in an employment lawsuit that Gerchen Keller Capital LLC, the nation's largest commercial litigation funder, had poured $93 million into a fly-speck of a Texas plaintiffs firm called AkinMears. Unlike the traditional funding of a single lawsuit, the cash infusion was structured as an advance on AkinMears' expected windfall on its docket of mass torts claims, including roughly 15,000 trans-vaginal mesh claims it would acquire using Gerchen Keller funds. The investment in a claims-bundling...
Leadership (Mediation) Lessons from 10 Wildly Successful People
January 7, 2016
"The challenge is not to get people to talk, but to get them to listen." Former U.S. Senator and peace negotiator George Mitchell on resolving disputes: “First there has to be a certain level of knowledge about the history and nature of the conflict…The second thing you need is a recognition that the people involved must own the resolution because they’re the ones who will live with the consequences…Third, you must really have deep reservoirs of patience and perseverance…Fourth, you have...
January 7, 2016
"The challenge is not to get people to talk, but to get them to listen." Former U.S. Senator and peace negotiator George Mitchell on resolving disputes: “First there has to be a certain level of knowledge about the history and nature of the conflict…The second thing you need is a recognition that the people involved must own the resolution because they’re the ones who will live with the consequences…Third, you must really have deep reservoirs of patience and perseverance…Fourth, you have...
No Meeting of the Minds = Summary Judgment Enforcing Settlement Affirmed
January 7, 2016
The defendant appealed a summary judgment against it on a multi-million dollar claim for breach of a settlement agreement, alleging that a novation had replaced that agreement with a new bargain. Taj Al Khairat, Ltd. v. Swiftships Shipbuilders, LLC, No. 15-30195 (Dec. 4, 2015, unpublished). The Fifth Circuit affirmed, noting that while both principals of the defendant were confident about an agreement to resolve the liability under the settlement, a number of unanswered questions remained about subsequent...
January 7, 2016
The defendant appealed a summary judgment against it on a multi-million dollar claim for breach of a settlement agreement, alleging that a novation had replaced that agreement with a new bargain. Taj Al Khairat, Ltd. v. Swiftships Shipbuilders, LLC, No. 15-30195 (Dec. 4, 2015, unpublished). The Fifth Circuit affirmed, noting that while both principals of the defendant were confident about an agreement to resolve the liability under the settlement, a number of unanswered questions remained about subsequent...
Lawyers Need to Embrace Business Intelligence (BI)
January 7, 2016
A recent IBM eBook points how that “in today’s competitive global marketplace, leading organizations are complementing their current approaches to business intelligence (BI) and analytics.” IBM’s eBook is entitled “Forward Looking Business Intelligence” and given the scope and volume of Electronically Stored Information (ESI) in litigation today the use of BI seems pretty logical given IBM’s three principal types of analytics: Descriptive, which uses BI and data mining to answer...
January 7, 2016
A recent IBM eBook points how that “in today’s competitive global marketplace, leading organizations are complementing their current approaches to business intelligence (BI) and analytics.” IBM’s eBook is entitled “Forward Looking Business Intelligence” and given the scope and volume of Electronically Stored Information (ESI) in litigation today the use of BI seems pretty logical given IBM’s three principal types of analytics: Descriptive, which uses BI and data mining to answer...
A Litigator’s Guide to Arbitration
January 6, 2016
The Construction Litigation Committee presented a discussion panel at the April 2015 ABA Section of Litigation Annual Conference. The panel comprised committee members Jeanne Barnum, Neal Eiseman, Karen Layng, and Michael Powell. John Bulman served as the moderator/“referee.” Tom Dunn coordinated the program as chair with the assistance of liaison Alex Rothenberg. Modeled after ESPN’s show Pardon the Interruption, the format was fast-paced, interactive, and provocative as to the pros and cons...
January 6, 2016
The Construction Litigation Committee presented a discussion panel at the April 2015 ABA Section of Litigation Annual Conference. The panel comprised committee members Jeanne Barnum, Neal Eiseman, Karen Layng, and Michael Powell. John Bulman served as the moderator/“referee.” Tom Dunn coordinated the program as chair with the assistance of liaison Alex Rothenberg. Modeled after ESPN’s show Pardon the Interruption, the format was fast-paced, interactive, and provocative as to the pros and cons...
