The State Judiciary\u27s Role in Fulfilling \u3cem\u3eBrown\u27s\u3c/em\u3e Promise

After a brief overview of school finance litigation since Rodriguez and school desegregation cases since Brown, Part I argues that the adequacy model of reform addresses many of the underlying concerns of the equity model without sharing its methodological and strategic shortcomings. Part II focuses in more detail on Campaign for Fiscal Equity v. State ( CFE ). Part III argues that education reform that is implemented after a finding that a state has violated a state constitutional duty should: (1) equalize funding to the extent necessary to guarantee certain minimum necessary inputs such as qualified teachers, small class sizes, adequate physical infrastructure, and other instrumentalities of learning; and (2) take seriously Brown\u27s proclamation that racial separation is inherently unequal. Part IV encourages courts to structure education reform remedies that: (1) envision a firm but limited judicial role to protect the constitutional rights of minorities from majoritarian failures without exceeding the courts\u27 limited expertise and authority; (2) define adequacy specifically enough to minimize inter-branch tension and provide political cover for legislators who must make difficult decisions to implement education reform; and (3) prioritize collaborative decision-making involving courts, legislatures, state agencies, local school boards, unions, parents, local businesses, and civic organizations, partially through a process analogous to negotiated rulemaking in the administrative law context. Part V borrows several elements from environmental law and proposes a method for implementing education reform that makes state legislatures ultimately accountable for educational outcomes. Finally, Part VI explores some of the daunting challenges faced by education reform efforts and suggests that rigid ex ante injunctions may fail to account for the wide range of obstacles faced by school districts

Monolithic narrow-linewidth InGaAsP semiconductor laser for coherent optical communications

A design for a monolithic narrow-linewidth InGaAsP diode laser has been developed using a multiple-quantum-well (MQW) extended-passive-cavity distributed-Bragg-reflector (DBR) laser design. Theoretical results indicate that this structure has the potential for a linewidth of 100 kHz or less. To realize this device, a number of the fabrication techniques required to integrate low-loss passive waveguides with active regions have been developed using a DBR laser structure. In addition, the MOCVD growth of InGaAs MQW laser structures has been developed, and threshold current densities as low as 1.6 kA/sq cm have been obtained from broad-stripe InGaAs/InGaAsP separate-confinement-heterostructure MQW lasers

The Twenty-First Century Law Library

On November 6, 2008, the J. Michael Goodson Law Library at the Duke University School of Law held a number of events in celebration of its newly renovated and expanded space. This is an edited version of the program, "The 21st Century Law Library: A Conversation," that was held as part of that celebration. The conversation explores the role of the academic law library in legal education in an increasingly digital environment

Quantum Bayesian implementation

Bayesian implementation concerns decision making problems when agents have incomplete information. This paper proposes that the traditional sufficient conditions for Bayesian implementation shall be amended by virtue of a quantum Bayesian mechanism. In addition, by using an algorithmic Bayesian mechanism, this amendment holds in the macro world.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figure

An Experimental Examination of Auction Mechanisms for Discrete Public Goods

[Introduction] In previous research (Ferejohn et al., 1976, 1977, 1979a, 1979b) we have addressed the problem of designing well-behaved choice mechanisms for simultaneously purchasing more than one discrete public good from among several independent alternatives. A "discrete public good" is a public good which is provided in a single, fixed quantity. The initial example that motivated our work (see Ferejohn et al., 1976) was the selection of roughly 30 television programs of fixed duration and content from more than 100 programs that were proposed to public television stations. Several other examples are equally germane, such as the selection of research proposals to be supported by a foundation or the decision by partners in a joint oil exploration venture as to the tracts in a field on which to bid. In practice, most collective decisions are posed as a choice among discrete alternatives to simplify the selection process. See Ferejohn et al. (1979b) for more examples

Fluorescent microplate-based analysis of protein-DNA interactions I:immobilized protein

A simple protein-DNA interaction analysis has been developed using a high-affinity/high-specificity zinc finger protein. In essence, purified protein samples are immobilized directly onto the surface of microplate wells, and fluorescently labeled DNA is added in solution. After incubation and washing, bound DNA is detected in a standard microplate reader. The minimum sensitivity of the assay is approximately 0.2 nM DNA. Since the detection of bound DNA is noninvasive and the protein-DNA interaction is not disrupted during detection, iterative readings may be taken from the same well, after successive alterations in interaction conditions, if required. In this respect, the assay may therefore be considered real time and permits appropriate interaction conditions to be determined quantitatively. The assay format is ideally suited to investigate the interactions of purified unlabeled DNA binding proteins in a high-throughput format

Risk averse behavior in generalized matching pennies games

In experimental studies of behavior in 2×2 games with unique mixed strategy equilibria, observed choice frequencies are systematically different from mixed-strategy Nash predictions. This paper examines experimental results for a variety of such games, and shows that a structural econometric model which incorporates risk aversion into a quantal response equilibrium explains the data very well. Moreover, risk aversion estimates are stable across the different games and are close to those obtained from laboratory and field auction data, as well as from individual lottery choice experiments

Panel: Blanket Licensing and Beyond

Question and answer session