Populism and Patents

Lawyers and other commentators often remark that American courts, and particularly American juries, are prejudiced against large corporate entities. Existing empirical research attempting to confirm this suspicion is contradictory and suffers from a number of shortcomings. In this Article, Professor Moore reexamines the issue by reporting the results of research on an original dataset of over 4000 patent cases and more than a million patents. The results cast substantial doubt on the hypothesis that individuals and corporations are treated identically in jury trials of patent property rights. In jury trials of patent cases between corporations and individuals, the individual won 74% of the time, with the large corporation winning in the remaining 26% of cases. Corporations and individuals won at nearly equal rates with judges. Marshaling a range of other evidence, Professor Moore explains that these results are likely to understate the degree of bias, placing a floor but not a ceiling on the impact of anti-corporate prejudice. Moreover, analysis of patent cases permits the exploration of a related phenomenon—the heroic iconization of the American inventor. As the injured tort victim is sympathetic, the American inventor is idealized for her ingenuity, productivity, and creativity. The individual inventor puts a face on the corporate entity, humanizing or personalizing the party. Hence, even corporate versus corporate litigation has an individual component and therefore an opportunity for bias to impact decision-making

Judges, Juries, and Patent Cases - An Emprical Peek Inside the Black Box

The frequency with which juries participate in patent litigation has skyrocketed recently. At the same time, there is a popular perception that the increasing complexity of technology being patented (especially in the electronic, computer software, biological and chemical fields) has made patent trials extremely difficult for lay juries to understand. These developments have sparked extensive scholarly debate and increasing skepticism regarding the role of juries in patent cases. Juries have participated in some aspects of patent litigation since the enactment of the first patent statute in 1790, which provided for such damages as shall be assessed by a jury. The enactment of the Patent Act of 1870, however, which gave equity courts the power to award common law damages, spawned an era in which patent cases were almost exclusively decided by the bench. This pattern has changed only recently - and the change has been dramatic. In 1940, 2.5 % of all patent cases tried in district court were heard by juries. From 1968 to 1970, the figure was almost unchanged at 2.8%. By contrast, from 1997 to 1999, 59% of all patent trials were tried to juries. This surge in jury requests has prompted a flurry of recent litigation over the right to a jury trial in patent litigation

The Year Round Calendar: An Analysis of Student Outcomes

Almost a decade ago, the National Education Commission on Time and Learning warned Americans that schools were unable to meet the demands of a new global economy. For 150 years, schools had operated on schedules that suited only the top students, while average and poor students simply dropped out to make decent livings on farms or in factories

Worthless Patents

This article presents the first empirical analysis of patent value by examining renewal rate data for nearly 100,000 patents. Finding that 53.7% of all patentees allow their patents to expire for failure to pay maintenance fees confirm common perceptions of patent issuance being a poor measure of innovation value. Even more interesting is the finding that patents which expire for failure to pay maintenance fees share some common identifiable characteristics. In particular, we found that renewed patents had more claims, cited more prior art, received more citations, had more related applications, had more inventors, and spent longer in prosecution. We also found that renewal rates varied both by assignee (individual versus corporation) and (foreign versus domestic) and by technology. By providing a means of systematically identifying worthless patents and their ex ante characteristics, this article complements the author\u27s earlier work on identifying valuable patents by comparing litigated and issued patents. Renewal rate data, however, seems a better predictor of value than litigation data as renewal rate data captures the many ways a patent may be of private value to its owner such as revenue generation via licensing or litigation, defensively, or for signaling purposes. Hence, rather than analyzing a subset of really valuable patents (those that are litigated) which may or may not be representative of all valuable patents, analysis of renewal rate data captures the population of valuable patents

On root/route : engaging nature as therapeutic partner through land praxis in residential child care contexts

Connection to land as a resource for resiliency and well-being is supported by evidenced-based literature for individuals across the life span. This paper invites the reader to imagine residential child and youth care as having a central connection to experiential nature-based therapies across rural and urban settings. To begin, this paper contextualises the notion of Land Praxis theoretically before exploring the application of nature-based therapies in residential care contexts. Drawing upon transdisciplinary and posthuman discourses, an emphasis on organic non-linear connections will be brought forward to inform the application of various experiential therapies in natural environments. As Canadian scholars and practitioners, the authors position themselves within the discourses informing this project while emphasizing the practical application of theory to practice. This standpoint is further informed by the understanding that young people living in residential care often demonstrate elevated mental health, educational, behavioural and social challenges. These realities are confounded by the current global climate crisis, which few now deny, and the increased anxiety associated with planet survival uncertainty. This paper presents an argument that more than ever returning to land-based experiences may be an antidote for the anxiety felt by many young people seeking agency over their uncertain futures

It Takes a System to Build an Affordable Content Program

First Name: Bradley Last Name: Severa Department: Information Technology Services UNL Campus: UNL Email: [email protected] Phone: 4024720606 Track: Emerging Technology Title: Academic Tech Support Spec Session Type: Panel Discussion Session Title: It Takes a System to Build an Affordable Content Program Availability: Anytime Presenters: Brad Severa, M.A., Academic Technology Specialist, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Jane L. Petersen, Director, Academic Technology and Client Services, University of Nebraska-Kearney Dr. Kimberly Carlson, Professor & Assistant Chair, Department of Biology, University of Nebraska-Kearney Mrs. Betty Jacques, Senior Lecturer, Department of Biology, University of Nebraska-Kearney Dr. Brian Moore, Professor of Music Education and Music Technology, Glenn Korff School of Music, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Andrew J. Cano, Virtual Learning Librarian (Assistant Professor) University Libraries, University of Nebraska- Lincoln Michael R. Jolley, M.A., Instructional Design Technology Specialist, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Presentation Abstract: Since 2006, the price of textbooks has dramatically exploded, with the cost of a college text book increasing more than four times the rate of inflation. This cross-campus panel includes Faculty, an Instructional Designer, Librarian and ITS Staff discussing how to build an affordable textbook program. The UNK members will share learning outcomes from the Kelly Grant project including; using OER materials in courses, converting to digital textbooks, lessons learned and helpful hints for success. The UNL members will introduce the Digital Materials Initiative opportunities at the Lincoln campus. A UNL faculty member will discuss his years of experience in creating and using an iBook in his course, and how it has evolved over the years in his department. This is an open panel conversation for the audience to ask questions about OER and for faculty to share their experience with teaching and using OER materials in their course. It takes many people from different specialties, working across campuses to create real impact for students. This large panel represents just a portion of the many people needed to implement all the tools and methods required to create positive change for the University of Nebraska system. Importance: 1. Open Educational Resources (OERs) 2. Affordability 3. Resources for Faculty 4. Improving Learning Outcomes Suggested Audience: Faculty Presentation Needs: No special requirements for this session

KLF9 and JNK3 Interact to Suppress Axon Regeneration in the Adult CNS

Neurons in the adult mammalian CNS decrease in intrinsic axon growth capacity during development in concert with changes in Krüppel-like transcription factors (KLFs). KLFs regulate axon growth in CNS neurons including retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Here, we found that knock-down of KLF9, an axon growth suppressor that is normally upregulated 250-fold in RGC development, promotes long-distance optic nerve regeneration in adult rats of both sexes. We identified a novel binding partner, MAPK10/JNK3 kinase, and found that JNK3 (c-Jun N-terminal kinase 3) is critical for KLF9\u27s axon-growth-suppressive activity. Interfering with a JNK3-binding domain or mutating two newly discovered serine phosphorylation acceptor sites, Ser106 and Ser110, effectively abolished KLF9\u27s neurite growth suppression in vitro and promoted axon regeneration in vivo. These findings demonstrate a novel, physiologic role for the interaction of KLF9 and JNK3 in regenerative failure in the optic nerve and suggest new therapeutic strategies to promote axon regeneration in the adult CNS