Liberal Justices\u27 Reliance on Legislative History

This Article presents a strong case against the conventional wisdom that legislative history is a politicized\u27 resource, invoked opportunistically by federal judges. The premise that judges regularly rely on legislative history to promote their preferred policy positions-if true-should find ample support in the majority opinions of liberal Supreme Court Justices construing liberal (pro-employee) labor and civil rights statutes. By analyzing all 320-plus majority opinions in workplace law authored by eight liberal Justices from 1969-2006, the authors establish that legislative history reliance is actually associated with a constraining set of results. When the eight liberal Justices use legislative history as part of their majority reasoning, they do so to justify a higher proportion of their pro-employer outcomes than their pro-employee decisions. The authors explain how liberal Justices use legislative history to illuminate the contours of complex statutory bargains that often favor conservative or pro-employer positions. After considering alternative explanations, the authors conclude that Justices Brennan, Marshall, Souter, Stevens, and others are willing to follow so frequently a legislative history trail leading away from their presumed ideological preferences mainly because they have invoked this interpretive resource in principled fashion. The Article also describes how, in the face of Justice Scalia\u27s fervent opposition to legislative history, liberal Justices since 1986 have opted not to rely on that resource in a series of pro-employer majorities that Scalia joins. One result of the liberals\u27 strategic restraint is that their use of legislative history in the remaining (mostly pro-employee) majority opinions appears more ideological than it was before Scalia joined the Court. Intriguingly, Justice Scalia\u27s strong resistance to legislative history when used by liberal Justices does not extend to majorities authored by his conservative colleagues. Scalia seems prepared to give these conservative colleagues more of a free ride: he is as likely to join their majorities, or vote for their results, when they rely on legislative history as when they do not

Liberal Justices\u27 Reliance on Legislative History

This Article presents a strong case against the conventional wisdom that legislative history is a politicized\u27 resource, invoked opportunistically by federal judges. The premise that judges regularly rely on legislative history to promote their preferred policy positions-if true-should find ample support in the majority opinions of liberal Supreme Court Justices construing liberal (pro-employee) labor and civil rights statutes. By analyzing all 320-plus majority opinions in workplace law authored by eight liberal Justices from 1969-2006, the authors establish that legislative history reliance is actually associated with a constraining set of results. When the eight liberal Justices use legislative history as part of their majority reasoning, they do so to justify a higher proportion of their pro-employer outcomes than their pro-employee decisions. The authors explain how liberal Justices use legislative history to illuminate the contours of complex statutory bargains that often favor conservative or pro-employer positions. After considering alternative explanations, the authors conclude that Justices Brennan, Marshall, Souter, Stevens, and others are willing to follow so frequently a legislative history trail leading away from their presumed ideological preferences mainly because they have invoked this interpretive resource in principled fashion. The Article also describes how, in the face of Justice Scalia\u27s fervent opposition to legislative history, liberal Justices since 1986 have opted not to rely on that resource in a series of pro-employer majorities that Scalia joins. One result of the liberals\u27 strategic restraint is that their use of legislative history in the remaining (mostly pro-employee) majority opinions appears more ideological than it was before Scalia joined the Court. Intriguingly, Justice Scalia\u27s strong resistance to legislative history when used by liberal Justices does not extend to majorities authored by his conservative colleagues. Scalia seems prepared to give these conservative colleagues more of a free ride: he is as likely to join their majorities, or vote for their results, when they rely on legislative history as when they do not

Impact of E22 on two-stroke and four-stroke snowmobiles

A push to reduce dependency on foreign energy and increase the use of renewable energy has many gas stations pumping ethanol blended fuels. Recreational engines typically have less complex fuel management systems than that of the automotive sector. This prevents the engine from being able to adapt to different ethanol concentrations. Using ethanol blended fuels in recreational engines raises several consumer concerns. Engine performance and emissions are both affected by ethanol blended fuels. This research focused on assessing the impact of E22 on two-stroke and four-stroke snowmobiles. Three snowmobiles were used for this study. A 2009 Arctic Cat Z1 Turbo with a closed-loop fuel injection system, a 2009 Yamaha Apex with an open-loop fuel injection system and a 2010 Polaris Rush with an open-loop fuel injection system were used to determine the impact of E22 on snowmobile engines. A five mode emissions test was conducted on each of the snowmobiles with E0 and E22 to determine the impact of the E22 fuel. All of the snowmobiles were left in stock form to assess the effect of E22 on snowmobiles currently on the trail. Brake specific emissions of the snowmobiles running on E22 were compared to that of the E0 fuel. Engine parameters such as exhaust gas temperature, fuel flow, and relative air to fuel ratio (λ) were also compared on all three snowmobiles. Combustion data using an AVL combustion analysis system was taken on the Polaris Rush. This was done to compare in-cylinder pressures, combustion duration, and location of 50% mass fraction burn. E22 decreased total hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide for all of the snowmobiles and increased carbon dioxide. Peak power increased for the closed-loop fuel injected Arctic Cat. A smaller increase of peak power was observed for the Polaris due to a partial ability of the fuel management system to adapt to ethanol. A decrease in peak power was observed for the open-loop fuel injected Yamaha

Rock climbing culture in Austin, TX

textThe sport of rock climbing has seen a boom over the last two decades. Interestingly, this boom has not been due to the extreme commercialization of the sport, but by the increasing availability of indoor climbing venues that allow individuals to foster the skills that allow them to eventually climb outdoors. While the demographics of climbers can vary by region, in Austin, Texas climbers tend to be middle class, male, and white. Throughout my research on the climbing culture in Austin I seek to discover what features of the sport lend themselves to appealing to such a particular demographic, and through ethnographic methods, in-depth interviews, and participant observation, I gain insight on their motivations. Additionally, climbing offers a peculiar mixture of pain, injury, and potential for serious injury, yet climbers see is as a "stress reliever." Throughout this thesis, I seek to discover how climbers manage this apparent contradiction, and what their participation in the sport can tell us about other aspects of their social existence.Sociolog

Verifying and Looking into Data: Validity of Mathematics Curriculum Based Measures

The mathematical performance of U.S. students has drawn attention from the field of education as well as the public sector. An integral component of the nationwide initiative to improve mathematics instruction is using data for decision-making. However, data is only useful if it is reliable and valid, which requires technically sound measures. This dissertation includes two articles: (a) a literature review on the criterion validity of mathematics curriculum-based measures and (b) a correlational study analyzing the criterion validity of a mathematics curriculum-based measure. The first study is a review of the literature that administered mathematics curriculum-based measures (m-CBMs) and examined the criterion validity of the scores. The review includes 40 articles that met the following criteria: (a) published in a peer-review journal, (b) administered a m-CBM with school age students, (c) reported quantitative data regarding the validity of scores, and (d) was published in English. Variables were identified and coded that may moderate the validity of scores produced, these variables included the mathematical focus of the measure and administration protocol (i.e., timing, paper pencil/computer, proctor, and grouping [i.e., classwide, small group, individual]). Results suggest concepts and applications m-CBMs yielded the strongest validity coefficients to standardized measures of mathematics performance for students in upper elementary and middle school. Scores from numeracy measures indicate evidence of criterion validity to standardized measures of mathematical achievement for early elementary students. There was no evidence the proctor or grouping moderate the validity; a mismatch between the administration format or the m-CBM and the criterion measure may affect the validity. The second article analyzes the criterion validity of a computer adaptive m-CBM used for universal screening purposes. Data from 1195 students in third through eighth grade attending four schools located in the rural Southern U.S. were included. Correlational analyses were used to identify the predictive and concurrent validity of the computer adaptive m-CBM to the end-of-year state assessment. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to identify whether student demographic variables (i.e., gender, race, free and reduced meals, limited English proficiency, special education, Section 504) moderated the validity. Results suggest the m-CBM had strong criterion validity to the end-of-year state assessment across grades. Validity coefficients were strongest to the major content domain and the weakest to the additional and supporting content. Moderator analyses reveal that the demographic variables: gender, SPED, FARMS, Section 504, and LEP moderated the criterion validity of m-CBM

Mississippi ASL Project

American Sign Language (ASL) is a manual language used by many deaf people in the United States and Canada. For much of its existence, ASL was believed to be a system of rudimentary gestures and signs based on the English language. However, studies that analyzed the linguistic properties of this signed ‘mode’ (Stokoe, 1960) legitimized that it was a language independent of spoken language, with its own system of principles and elements to construct meaningful utterances. Like any language, ASL is influenced by the social demographics of its users. Social demographics such as ethnicity, geographic location, age, gender, and socioeconomic status are elements that cause variation in both spoken and signed languages. ASL is a young language created by a historically marginalized group of individuals as a way to communicate thoughts and ideas in a society designed on the ability to hear. As such, ASL was recognized as an autonomous language and has been the subject of sociolinguistic research since the 1960s. Most sociolinguistic research in ASL consists of large-scale studies has been conducted in the past 15 to 20 years. No research up to date has been conducted within the geographic boundaries of a state. This pilot study examines phonological and lexical variation of ASL in Mississippi through a series of Atlas-style interviews, and identities age and geographic location as the two most significant social influences that cause variation in Mississippi

Caregiving in Central Texas : the role of adult day centers

During the 20th century, improvements in medical care and quality of life resulted in greatly increased life spans for all groups in the United States and elsewhere. The result has been an increase in the number of years in which one enjoys good health and a high level of functioning. However, aging populations also result in an almost inconceivable increase in the prevalence of those suffering from dementia. As the number of individuals who survive into their eighties and nineties increases, the burden of dementia care increases for families and society. In this dissertation I examine the sources of care of older individuals with dementia, paying particular attention to the role of adult day center (ADC) in relieving the burden of dementia care for families. Previous research shows that in the majority cases of families provide extensive informal care for an individual with dementia, but the demands of this task can cause tremendous strain due to the nature and progression of the disease. Due to an increase in women’s labor force participation since the 1960s, the supply of individuals free to provide unpaid care has shrunk, and those who do provide this care have less time to devote to it. This may lead to role strain, where conflict arises due to the competing demands of having multiple roles. Many families in this situation decide to utilize adult day care to help cope with this burden. ADC is particularly appealing since it provides many support services without the steep cost of nursing homes. Through in-depth interviews and field observation, my project investigates the increased prevalence of ADCs and outsourced care for individuals with dementia through three lenses: first, I analyze the micro-level dynamics of these family units and whether ADCs and caregiving literacy specifically help to reduce conflict, strain, and disorganization. Additionally, I examine the pathways into the caregiving career and ADC utilization. Finally, I present the concept of “caregiving literacy,” exploring how caregivers further this knowledge, how it influences ADC utilization, and the role that ADCs play in the acquisition of further caregiving literacy.Sociolog

Culture and the Sweet 16 Boys Basketball Tournament

This is a cultural look at the importance of the Kentucky Boys Sweet 16 Basketball Tournament