Technological Self-Help and Equality in Cyberspace

New technologies challenge the law in many ways, for example, they extend one’s capacity to harm others and to defend oneself from harm by others. These changes require the law to decide whether we have legal rights to be free from those harms, and whether we may react against those harms extrajudicially through some form of self-help (e.g., self-defence or defence of third parties) or whether we must resort to legal mechanisms alone. These questions have been challenging to answer in the cyberspace context, where new interests and new harms have emerged. The legal limits on permissible self-defence have historically been a function of necessity and proportionality to the threat.However, this article argues that case law and historical commentary reveal that equality between individuals is also an important policy issue underlying the limits on self-defence. The use of technologies in self-defence brings the question of equality to the fore since technologies may sometimes neutralize an inequality in strength between an attacker and a defender. A legal approach that limits resort to technological tools in self-defence would ratify and preserve that inequality.However, the relationship between technology and human equality is complex, and this article proposes an analytical structure for understanding it. The objective is to understand which technologies promote equality while imposing the least social costs when used in self-defence. The article proposes principles (including explicit consideration of the effects on equality) for setting limits on technological self-help, and illustrates their use by applying them to several forms of cyberspace counter-strikes against hackers, phishers, spammers, and peer-to-peer networks.Les nouvelles technologies posent de nombreux défis en droit. À titre d’exemple, elles augmentent la capacité des individus d’infliger du mal à autrui, mais aussi leur capacité à se défendre du mal. Ces changements exigent du droit de décider si nous avons ou non le droit, juridiquement parlant, d’être à l’abri du mal. Le droit doit aussi décider si nous sommes libres de réagir au mal de façon extrajudiciaire, par l’entremise d’initiatives personnelles (par exemple, l’auto-défense ou la défense des tierces parties) ou si au contraire nous devons nous en tenir aux mécanismes juridiques. Ces questions posent un défi particulier dans le contexte du cyberespace, d’où émergent de nouvelles menaces et des intérêts nouveaux. Les limites juridiques de l’autodéfense permissible dépendent historiquement de la nécessité et de la proportionnalité de la réaction face à la menace.Cet article soutient toutefois que la jurisprudence et les commentaires historiques révèlent que l’égalité entre individus constitue aussi une question de politique importante qui sous-tend les limites de l’autodéfense. L’utilisation des technologies dans l’autodéfense porte donc au premier plan la question de l’égalité puisque la technologie peut parfois neutraliser une inégalité de force entre une personne qui attaque et une autre qui se défend. Une approche juridique qui limiterait l’utilisation d’outils technologiques dans l’autodéfense entérinerait et préserverait cette inégalité.Pourtant, la relation entre la technologie et l’égalité entre humains est complexe. Cet article propose une structure analytique pour mieux saisir cette relation. L’objectif est de comprendre quelles technologies favorisent l’égalité tout en imposant les coûts sociaux les moins élevés lorsqu’elles sont utilisées pour l’autodéfense. L’article propose des principes pour mettre en place certaines limites aux initiatives personnelles technologiques. L’article illustre aussi l’utilisation de ces principes en les appliquant à de nombreuses formes de riposte contre les pirates informatiques, les hammeçonneurs, les polluposteurs et les réseaux pair à pair. Enfin, l’article considère explicitement les effets de ces principes sur l’égalité

Liability for Botnet Attacks

This paper will consider the possibility of using tort liability to address cyber insecurity. In previous work, I have proposed a hypothetical lawsuit by the victim of a DDoS attack against the vendor of unreasonably insecure software, the flaws of which are exploited to create the DDoS attack army. Indeed, software vendors are facing increasing public disapproval for their contributions to cyber insecurity. However, not all DDoS attack armies are assembled by exploiting flaws in software. Computers are also infected when users voluntarily open infected email attachments or download infected files from file-sharing networks. Accordingly, the cyber insecurity resulting from the large numbers of average end-users with infected computers cannot be entirely addressed by reducing the number of exploitable flaws in widely-deployed software. It may be useful to find additional ways to address other avenues of infection

Interpreting Canada\u27s Medical Assistance in Dying Legislation

When the Canadian medical assistance in dying (MAiD) legislation came into force in June 2016, it was widely noted that the meaning of some of its key terms and phrases was unclear. For example, questions were immediately raised about the meaning of “incurable illness, disease, or disability,” “advanced state of irreversible decline in capability,” and “natural death has become reasonably foreseeable.” Interpretation challenges are not uncommon with new legislation. However, in the context of something as significant as access to MAiD and potential criminal liability for getting the meaning of the legislation wrong, these challenges must be confronted by those who have the responsibility and authority to provide interpretative guidance to patients and health care practitioners. The risks of leaving uncertainty and confusion unaddressed in this context are significant both in terms of the seriousness of the consequences and the probability of occurrence. Some individuals may be denied access who should have access (too narrow interpretation) and some individuals may be given access who should not (too broad interpretation). Two individuals in the same circumstances may be treated differently (one allowed and one denied access) simply because their providers interpret the legislation differently. In addition, some individuals may forego effective symptom management in order to maintain the necessary capacity to reiterate their request for MAiD. Other patients may be roused from palliative sedation immediately prior to provision and, by definition, be brought back into a state of intolerable suffering in order to reiterate their request. Finally, the uncertainty about the meaning of key terms and phrases may have a chilling effect on physicians’ and nurse practitioners’ willingness to provide MAiD. With almost a year of experience of MAiD under the federal legislation, it is time for those who can help to clarify the meanings and correct the misunderstandings to do so. In the spirit of contributing to such a project, we propose a set of interpretations of key phrases in the legislation. We call upon all relevant entities to exercise their authority and capacity to provide interpretative guidance for, and education about, the practice of MAiD in Canada. They can do this by adopting, endorsing, and disseminating interpretations such as those presented in this paper

Bacterial Quorum Sensing and Microbial Community Interactions

Many bacteria use a cell-cell communication system called quorum sensing to coordinate population density-dependent changes in behavior. Quorum sensing involves production of and response to diffusible or secreted signals, which can vary substantially across different types of bacteria. In many species, quorum sensing modulates virulence functions and is important for pathogenesis. Over the past half-century, there has been a significant accumulation of knowledge of the molecular mechanisms, signal structures, gene regulons, and behavioral responses associated with quorum-sensing systems in diverse bacteria. More recent studies have focused on understanding quorum sensing in the context of bacterial sociality. Studies of the role of quorum sensing in cooperative and competitive microbial interactions have revealed how quorum sensing coordinates interactions both within a species and between species. Such studies of quorum sensing as a social behavior have relied on the development of “synthetic ecological” models that use nonclonal bacterial populations. In this review, we discuss some of these models and recent advances in understanding how microbes might interact with one another using quorum sensing. The knowledge gained from these lines of investigation has the potential to guide studies of microbial sociality in natural settings and the design of new medicines and therapies to treat bacterial infections

Natural images from the birthplace of the human eye

Here we introduce a database of calibrated natural images publicly available through an easy-to-use web interface. Using a Nikon D70 digital SLR camera, we acquired about 5000 six-megapixel images of Okavango Delta of Botswana, a tropical savanna habitat similar to where the human eye is thought to have evolved. Some sequences of images were captured unsystematically while following a baboon troop, while others were designed to vary a single parameter such as aperture, object distance, time of day or position on the horizon. Images are available in the raw RGB format and in grayscale. Images are also available in units relevant to the physiology of human cone photoreceptors, where pixel values represent the expected number of photoisomerizations per second for cones sensitive to long (L), medium (M) and short (S) wavelengths. This database is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial Unported license to facilitate research in computer vision, psychophysics of perception, and visual neuroscience.Comment: Submitted to PLoS ON

The Lantern Vol. 51, No. 2, Spring 1985

• Electric Pink • Derby Day • Conversation • Seasons of Sonnets • Long After Killing Us • Haunting Memory • Sacrifice • Is This Positive Enough? • My Teddy Bear • A Gentleman of Ten • Hartman Center • Yesterday\u27s Child • Mors Pueris • Momentary Reflections • Children Sleeping • There\u27s No Place Like Home • I Set My Pleasures Adrift • The Beer Can • Fragments of an Epic • Actaeon • She Sleeps • Chicago • Death Light • Tea With Louise • Balance • The Rivers • Chapel • The Hour of Prayer • Une Fille / Une Femme • A One-Way Mirror • Nonconformity • Cada Noche, Lloro • Reflections on an Empty House Down the Street • Evening Melancholy • Abandoned Road • Big Boy • Baby Brothers • Metro Oscuro • Chuchoterhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/lantern/1126/thumbnail.jp

Using the social entrepreneurship approach to generate innovative and sustainable malaria diagnosis interventions in Tanzania: a case study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There have been a number of interventions to date aimed at improving malaria diagnostic accuracy in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet, limited success is often reported for a number of reasons, especially in rural settings. This paper seeks to provide a framework for applied research aimed to improve malaria diagnosis using a combination of the established methods, participatory action research and social entrepreneurship.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This case study introduces the idea of using the social entrepreneurship approach (SEA) to create innovative and sustainable applied health research outcomes. The following key elements define the SEA: (1) identifying a locally relevant research topic and plan, (2) recognizing the importance of international multi-disciplinary teams and the incorporation of local knowledge, (3) engaging in a process of continuous innovation, adaptation and learning, (4) remaining motivated and determined to achieve sustainable long-term research outcomes and, (5) sharing and transferring ownership of the project with the international and local partner.</p> <p>Evaluation</p> <p>The SEA approach has a strong emphasis on innovation lead by local stakeholders. In this case, innovation resulted in a unique holistic research program aimed at understanding patient, laboratory and physician influences on accurate diagnosis of malaria. An evaluation of milestones for each SEA element revealed that the success of one element is intricately related to the success of other elements.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The SEA will provide an additional framework for researchers and local stakeholders that promotes innovation and adaptability. This approach will facilitate the development of new ideas, strategies and approaches to understand how health issues, such as malaria, affect vulnerable communities.</p

Adenoviral-mediated correction of methylmalonyl-CoA mutase deficiency in murine fibroblasts and human hepatocytes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Methylmalonic acidemia (MMA), a common organic aciduria, is caused by deficiency of the mitochondrial localized, 5'deoxyadenosylcobalamin dependent enzyme, methylmalonyl-CoA mutase (MUT). Liver transplantation in the absence of gross hepatic dysfunction provides supportive therapy and metabolic stability in severely affected patients, which invites the concept of using cell and gene delivery as future treatments for this condition.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>To assess the effectiveness of gene delivery to restore the defective metabolism in this disorder, adenoviral correction experiments were performed using murine <it>Mut </it>embryonic fibroblasts and primary human methylmalonyl-CoA mutase deficient hepatocytes derived from a patient who harbored two early truncating mutations, E224X and R228X, in the <it>MUT </it>gene. Enzymatic and expression studies were used to assess the extent of functional correction.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Primary hepatocytes, isolated from the native liver after removal subsequent to a combined liver-kidney transplantation procedure, or <it>Mut </it>murine fibroblasts were infected with a second generation recombinant adenoviral vector that expressed the murine methylmalonyl-CoA mutase as well as eGFP from distinct promoters. After transduction, [1-¹⁴C] propionate macromolecular incorporation studies and Western analysis demonstrated complete correction of the enzymatic defect in both cell types. Viral reconstitution of enzymatic expression in the human methylmalonyl-CoA mutase deficient hepatocytes exceeded that seen in fibroblasts or control hepatocytes.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These experiments provide proof of principle for viral correction in methylmalonic acidemia and suggest that hepatocyte-directed gene delivery will be an effective therapeutic treatment strategy in both murine models and in human patients. Primary hepatocytes from a liver that was unsuitable for transplantation provided an important resource for these studies.</p