Sovereign Immunity Issues for Tech Transfer Programs at State Universities

Technology transfer is the process of transforming research and ideas into viable commercial opportunities. Notable examples of tech transfer include Google, artificial intelligence, life-saving vaccines, and renewable energy technology. Universities and colleges play an important role in the technology transfer process, ranging from brokering commercial partnerships, negotiating license agreements, and protecting intellectual property. Valuable patents are often at stake, and as a result, universities should anticipate litigation risks. State universities, in particular, face new and unusual challenges as a result of their status as state entities. Under the 11th Amendment, state universities, as an arm of the state, can claim sovereign immunity, a doctrine which provides that the government cannot be sued without its consent. However, trends in litigation suggest that sovereign immunity protection for state universities is eroding. This article discusses the trends in litigation that implicate sovereign immunity claims by state universities embroiled in technology transfer disputes. The legal issues raised and discussed throughout the article are essential for technology transfer offices and university counsel to consider when reviewing their practices, policies, and litigation strategy. The article also provides practical recommendations on how to shift risk away from the university

The Corrosion Resistance of Iron-Tin Compacts as Produced by Powder Metallurgy

The art of Powder Metallurgy deals with the preparation of metal powders and their utilization. As a more pertinent definition, the following has been suggest­ed: Powder Metallurgy is the art of producing metal powders and shaped objects from individual, mixed, or alloyed metal powders, with or without the inclusion of non-metallic consti­tuents

Field application of the membrane filter method for bacteriological quality determination of water

The purpose of this thesis is to demonstrate the definite advantages to be realized when using the membrane filter method as an accepted procedure for the bacteriological analysis of a water; and specifically when used under emergency or field conditions such as military units in the field. These same advantages would apply to Civil Defense and other such agencies when operating under emergency or field conditions. Data from actual tests showing techniques, equipment and procedures used and augmented by other data available from research papers will be utilized --Introduction, page 2

Creating Sustainable Food Systems with Trademarks and Technology

A geographical indication (GI) is a type of trademark that conveys the geographical origin and unique characteristics of a specialty product. Well-known examples of geographical indications include Champagne and Roquefort cheese. Numerous case studies from across the globe underscore the benefits that geographical indications can contribute to rural regions, such as increased job production, repopulation of rural areas, visibility, and renewed local pride. An international treaty called the Geneva Act grants intellectual property protection for geographical indications on a worldwide basis. Notably, the U.S. is not a party to this treaty and takes a hostile stance towards the use of geographical indications, especially when they are used to protect food names many Americans consider to be generic. This article disagrees with that policy position and argues that geographical indications should be leveraged in the U.S. to incentivize the creation of new and sustainable product markets and to revitalize economic development in rural areas, such as Appalachia. This article also discusses two novel ways to achieve this objective: (1) forming decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) to legally structure GI collectives; and (2) using blockchain tracing to maintain quality control of high-quality, GI-denominated products

Assessing the Current State of Louisiana\u27s Crawfish Fishery: Trends and Challenges in Wild Capture and Aquaculture

Crawfish are found throughout the southern U.S.; however, Louisiana is by far the largest producer. The state’s industry includes harvesting wild crawfish from natural habitats such as bayous, swamps, and marshes, and crawfish reared in outdoor ponds. Although commercial harvest records are available, characterization of Louisiana’s wild capture crawfish fishery in recent years is undocumented, and analysis of environmental variables that could be correlated with annual harvest totals have not yet been explored. Using trip ticket data from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, I characterized monthly and annual trends within Louisiana basins to assess changes in crawfish harvest over the past 20 years. To understand the wild harvest fishery through changes in hydrological conditions within the Atchafalaya Basin, where more than 80% of wild harvest occurs, I used a linear regression to look at the effects of Atchafalaya River discharge and monthly precipitation accumulation on monthly crawfish harvest from 1999–2020 during months of peak harvest. Louisiana’s crawfish industry is comprised of two unique yet similar components: wild harvest and pond production. Research on crawfish biology and improved methods for pond production has been ongoing since the early 1960’s. Challenges within the crawfish aquaculture industry are documented but of most recent concern is the emergence of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV). WSSV possesses the ability to create mass mortality outbreaks with little notice to farmers. Outbreaks often present in multiple conditions and can be hard to quantify. While white spot syndrome virus was first documented in Louisiana crawfish ponds in 2007, recorded laboratory testing that provides spatial and temporal outbreak data are available beginning in 2020. To better understand WSSV and the challenges it presents within Louisiana’s crawfish industry, I used data from the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab on positive testing ponds. In addition, I recorded pond temperature to assess spatial and temporal trends to better understand the effect of environmental variables on a viral outbreak

On Class Bias and the NWSA

To the Women\u27s Studies Newsletter: Class is a difficult issue to work with because it has been so well disguised in the United States. Many of us aren\u27t actually sure what economic and social class we come from nor how our class background has affected our values, beliefs, and actions. When I speak of class I do not mean only an economic concept, but also the way we perceive the world, where we place value

Nursing Fatigue in Intensive Care Units: A Clinical Inquiry

Registered Nurses (RN) working in Intensive Care Units (ICU) report increased physical and emotional fatigue from a combination of various environmental factors. Fatigue is suspected as contributing to low retention rates of ICU RNs. A meeting was arranged with an ICU nursing director in an acute care facility in Northern Arkansas revealing the need for a clinical inquiry into the prevalence of fatigue. A review of literature further analyzed the impact of fatigue, management practices, safety culture in the workplace, the Occupational Fatigue/Exhaustion and Recovery (OFER) scale, the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), and the Moral Distress Scale- Revised (MDS-R). The Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) 2.0 model has been identified as an underlying framework appropriate for this project given its usefulness in evaluating human factors and outcomes for the healthcare delivery system. The model benefits the clinical inquiry by aiding in the evaluation of questionnaires regarding fatigue and other issues associated with low nurse retention. A descriptive exploratory research design with a survey-method study is appropriate for the project being little is known regarding the particular phenomenon of fatigue in the critical care work environment. The proposed DNP project’s objectives are to survey ICU RNs using electronically delivered questionnaires, investigate alternative length shifts and other interventions aiming to mitigate fatigue, then propose recommendations for change in policy and practice before symptoms of nursing fatigue manifest into irreversible outcomes for ICU stakeholders

Fathering Appraisals as Predictors Of Children\u27s Stability and Positive Faith Attitudes

Twenty-eight children (15 male, 13 female, mean age 11.36) and their fathers (mean age 43.11), from various communities in the Western United States, participated as dyads. Fathers completed demographic questions, the Short Version Seven Secrets Survey for Fathers (Roid & Can.field, 1994), and selected questions from the New Personal Fathering Profile (Roid & Can.field, 1999). Children completed a revised Short Version Seven Secrets Survey for Fathers and the Francis Scale of Attitude Towards Christianity (Francis, 1989). Fathers and children completed a shortened version of Factor IV: Emotional Stability from the International Personality Item Pool (Goldberg, 1997). Children\u27s fathering appraisals were anticipated to be superior to fathers\u27 for predicting children\u27s emotional stability and positive faith attitudes. The extent to which fathers\u27 and children\u27s appraisals of father effectiveness were associated was investigated. Revised measures were assessed for internal consistency. Children\u27s positive fathering appraisals, both globally and with regard to spiritual input, were positively correlated (:e \u3c .OS) with their faith attitudes (!: = .394; r = .435, respectively), but not with their stability. The fathers\u27 self-appraisals were not associated with either children\u27s stability or faith attitudes. Therefore, children\u27s fathering appraisals were the better predictor for faith attitudes and neither groups\u27 appraisals predicted children\u27s stability. The responses to the two versions of the Seven Secrets Survey were partially associated. The two groups\u27 total Father Effectiveness scores were correlated(!:= .55, 12. \u3c .01). Additionally, four of their same dimension scores were significantly related (!\u27. = .48 - .68, 12. \u3c .01 - .05). The 31-item children\u27s version of the father effectiveness scale produced initial reliabilities ranging from .52 to .83. Deletion of two weak items increased the range to .61 to .83. Total Father Effectiveness reliability was .91. The selected New Personal Fathering Profile scales showed reliabilities ranging from .76 to .90. The 24-item Stability factor produced a reliability of .83 with fathers but only .60 with children. The reliability of the children\u27s Stability factor increased to .70 with the removal of nine weak items