Toward a prenominal syntax? A brief look at statistical alternations

This pilot study aims to show that people indeed use subconscious statistical processing to aid in the acquisition of constructions, and frequent form-function mappings emerge as structures that work well together. The current study is a modified replication of Wells et.al. (2009), in which frequency distributions of NL-English speakers' relative clauses were manipulated, causing them to more quickly process a less frequent, irregular form. The construction under consideration here is the prenominal clause, rare in English, but attested in many primary languages. The hypothesis was that, given minimal exposure to this construction, subjects would statistically re-categorize their linguistic systems. The infrequent/irregular prenominal phrase was compared with the frequent/regular postnominal RC. Pre- and Post-Tests recorded participants’ self-paced reading times. During two brief Experience Blocks, spaced two days apart, subjects received limited exposure to both target structures. Reading times in the prenominal structure decreased more than that of the RC, for each subject, indicating faster processing. A preliminary analysis of results shows that all subjects reanalyzed the statistical distributions of the prenominal clause.Ope

Estimating youth locomotion ground reaction forces using an accelerometer-based activity monitor.

To address a variety of questions pertaining to the interactions between physical activity, musculoskeletal loading and musculoskeletal health/injury/adaptation, simple methods are needed to quantify, outside a laboratory setting, the forces acting on the human body during daily activities. The purpose of this study was to develop a statistically based model to estimate peak vertical ground reaction force (pVGRF) during youth gait. 20 girls (10.9 ± 0.9 years) and 15 boys (12.5 ± 0.6 years) wore a Biotrainer AM over their right hip. Six walking and six running trials were completed after a standard warm-up. Average AM intensity (g) and pVGRF (N) during stance were determined. Repeated measures mixed effects regression models to estimate pVGRF from Biotrainer activity monitor acceleration in youth (girls 10-12, boys 12-14 years) while walking and running were developed. Log transformed pVGRF had a statistically significant relationship with activity monitor acceleration, centered mass, sex (girl), type of locomotion (run), and locomotion type-acceleration interaction controlling for subject as a random effect. A generalized regression model without subject specific random effects was also developed. The average absolute differences between the actual and predicted pVGRF were 5.2% (1.6% standard deviation) and 9% (4.2% standard deviation) using the mixed and generalized models, respectively. The results of this study support the use of estimating pVGRF from hip acceleration using a mixed model regression equation

Stratification of the Legal Profession: A Debate in Need of a Public Forum

The American legal profession cannot presently meet the legal needs of the population. Ordinary citizens’ demand for legal services continues to rise, but those services are increasingly unaffordable. Recent law school graduates struggle to find professional employment opportunities, particularly ones that can provide salaries to meet their rising debt obligations. At the same time legal education continues to provide a general program of education while legal practice is increasingly specialized. The legal profession has not been innovative about meeting these related challenges. This article argues that the stratification of the legal profession has not been adequately explored as a way to increase access to legal services. Specifically, stratification would involve the training, education and licensure of professionals - other than lawyers - to provide some legal services. For example, a one-year program that focused on housing law leading to a limited license as a housing advocate could be created. This might be an effective way to meet an area of high consumer demand. However, because the state judiciaries regulate the scope of the legal profession’s monopoly, there is inadequate public participation and, accordingly, insufficient external pressure on the legal profession to consider these options. These deficiencies can be illustrated by comparing the judiciaries’ regulation of legal services to the legislatures’ regulation of health care services. This article proposes reforms to allow for public participation in the debate on the scope of the legal profession’s monopoly

The Legal Profession’s Monopoly: Failing to Protect Consumers

This article explores the implication of the legal monopoly that occurs through the current attorney regulation system used in most states. Through the lens of consumer protection, the author discusses how the current regulatory regime, limiting the practice of law to only those who have law licenses and law degrees, effects a landscape where many potential legal consumers' needs are not being met. First, the author provides a general discussion of consumer protection and the public interest. Then, the author focuses specifically on the legal profession, discussing the historical justification for the legal profession's monopoly: consumer protection, advancing the integrity of the judicial system and the rule of law, and economic protectionism. Next, she turns to the impact this monopoly has on consumer protection: self-policing systems deprive the consumer of the full force of state and federal consumer protection; limiting competition drives up costs, restricts access, and stifles innovation. Finally, she looks at reassessing the legal profession's monopoly. She argues that the strength of the argument justifying limiting legal services providers to only licensed attorneys does not have the same force over the entire spectrum of legal work. Therefore, she feels there can be a strong case for some regulation of legal service, especially when addressing the issues caused by the gap in access to legal services

Post-Watergate: The Legal Profession and Respect for the Interests of Third Parties

This article acknowledges that the proper execution of a lawyer's duties will often demand the lawyer put his or her client's interests first, even when it harms the interests of others. That conclusion, however, should not preclude a lawyer, who is an agent of justice in addition to being an advocate, from routinely assessing the consequences of his or her conduct on the interests of third parties. Part I of this article gives a brief overview of Watergate and focuses on the specific conduct of some of the lawyers who were disciplined. Part II of this article gives an overview of the history the American Bar Association's efforts to codify ethical rules including the promulgation of the 1983 Model Rules of Professional Conduct. Part III will discuss post-Watergate events involving lawyers that have impaired the public's trust of the profession, which suggest there is still room for improvement. Lastly, Part IV will discuss possible reforms to the Model Rules and legal education that could help instill in lawyers a principle of evaluating the impact of their conduct on third parties as a routine part of legal practice and ethical decision-making

Sex differences in the language development rates of two-year olds

The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the language development rate of male and female children, 24 to 30 months of age, during a three month time period

The Twenty-First Century Delivery of Legal Services: Thoughts for Legal Education

The twenty-first century lawyer will face rapid and unsettling changes in the way legal services are delivered. Legal futurists foresee many aspects of legal services being delivered more efficiently with the use of technology. For example, future breakthroughs in artificial intelligence may expand the ability to automate many tasks that currently require the skill of a lawyer. Similarly, less complex legal services such as the drafting of wills and trusts are being commoditized and provided more quickly and cheaply by new market entrants, such as LegalZoom, which provide on-line documents to millions of satisfied consumers. Additionally, new categories of licensed legal professionals are beginning to challenge established models of delivering legal services, and will continue to do so. These changes are all, and will continue to be, disruptive. Although every business faces disruptive changes at some point, in the legal services area these changes involve unique issues, particularly when they encounter the barriers that control entry into a regulated profession that is intertwined with the judicial branch of government. For example, as new technologies and market players increase the public's access to legal services, questions arise about how to define and protect the fundamental values of the legal profession, how to maintain the independence of lawyers and the judicial branch, how to define the practice of law, and how to increase the public's access to affordable and competent legal services. For legal educators, it can be challenging-and often impossible-to imagine how these changes will affect our students during their professional careers. Furthermore, although we can envision some of the changes on the horizon, others are not yet within view. Within this framework, legal education needs to prepare students for the future. This essay examines three categories of disruptive changes that will be relevant to the future delivery of legal services-technological advancements, new regulated categories of legal professionals, and new unregulated market players. During their careers, today's law students will have to grapple with how these changes will affect the legal profession and access to legal services. This essay provides some thoughts for legal educators about preparing law students for this task. Part I of this essay will give a brief overview of the three changes and how they may impact the future delivery of legal services. Part II will discuss how these changes challenge the identity and values of the legal profession and how these challenges should impact the future of legal education

Collaborations between Lawyers and New Legal Professionals: A Path to Increase Access to Justice and Protect Clients

This article explores the ongoing challenge of access to affordable legal services for civil matters. Part I introduces the idea that there are a variety of innovations that could be made to improve the public’s access to justice, but this essay pays particular attention to the various relationships between advanced practice registered nurses and physicians as a possible template for associations between lawyers and other legal professionals. Part II examines the challenges to accessing justice in the current legal market. Part III discusses the rise of alternative legal professionals to serve the unmet legal market demands. Part IV looks at advanced practice register nurses as a model for the legal professions innovations with new categories of legal professionals. Finally, Part V explores models for the delivery of legal services in light of the rise of alternative legal professionals

CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES; WASTE MANAGEMENT To Reauthorize the Hazardous Sites Remediation Act Fund and Raise Fees on Solid Waste Disposal; to Authorize the Department of Human Resources to Regulate Land Disposal Sites for Septic Waste; to Change the Criteria for Property Qualifying for a Limitation of Liability to Site Contamination; to Provide for Liability for Clean-up Actions Notwithstanding That the Identity of the Responsible Person is Unknown Prior to the Commencement of an Emergency Clean-up Action; to Limit the Liability of New Purchasers of Brownfields for the Remediation Subsurface Water

The Act amends the Hazardous Sites Remediation Act Fund and raises the fees for waste disposal from 50 cents per ton to 65 cents per ton in 2003 and again to 75 cents per ton in 2008 until 2013. The Act authorizes the Department of Human Resources to regulate land disposal sites for septic waste. The Act permits federal agencies such as the Department of Defense to pay solid waste and hazardous substance reporting fees. Additionally, the Act includes a .provision returning fifty percent of the solid waste handling fees to local governments to be used for the cleanup of landfill sites. The Act increases the hazardous substance reporting fees. The Act provides for liability for cleanup actions even if the identity of the responsible person is unknown prior to the commencement of an emergency clean-up action. The Act limits the liability of new purchasers of brownfields for the remediation of subsurface water. Finally, the Act establishes a $3000 (three thousand)application fee for individuals seeking to redevelop a site

Assessment of Parents Educational Needs and the Availability of Resources for Feeding Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

The purpose of this research was to assess educational needs of parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabiliies (IDD) and define the availability of resources for children with IDD who experience feeding disorders in Shelby County. Participants were primary caregivers of a child beween three and 18 years with IDD who experience a feeding disorder. A questionnaire of quantitative and qualitative responses was distributed to members of the Special Education Parent Teacher Alliance of Shelby County and Support and Training for Exceptional Parents in Tennessee. The questionnaire reached 665 potential participants. Eight participants responded to the survey, The majority of the participants do not believe Shelby County is meeting needs in providing accessible services for feeding disorders. Conclusively, Shelby County may not be providing accessible services for children with IDD and feeding disorders. However the response rate was limited therefore more research should be completed analyzing the community\u27s needs