A systematic review of people with autism spectrum disorder and the Criminal Justice System

This paper provides a systemic review of the available literature on people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the criminal justice system (CJS). The review considers two main types of study: those that examined the prevalence of people with ASD in the CJS and those that examined the prevalence of offending in populations with ASD. In addition, types of offences in people with ASD, co-morbid psychiatric diagnoses, and characteristics of people with ASD who commit offences (including predisposing factors) are considered. A combination of search terms was used in a variety of databases in order to find all of the available literature on this topic, and research studies were included based on specified inclusion and exclusion criteria. It was found that whilst there is an emerging literature base on this topic, there are a wide variety of methodologies used, making direct comparison difficult. Nevertheless it can be concluded so far that people with ASD do not seem to be disproportionately over-represented in the CJS, though they commit a range of crimes and seem to have a number of predisposing features. There is poor evidence of the presence of comorbid psychiatric diagnoses (except in mental health settings) amongst offenders with ASD, and little evidence of the oft-asserted over-representation of certain kinds of crimes. It is recommended that further research of good quality is required in this area, rather than studies that examine populations that are not representative of all those with ASD

The Volcker Rule: A Legal Analysis

This report provides an introduction to the Volcker Rule, which is the regulatory regime imposed upon banking institutions and their affiliates under Section 619 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-203). The Volker Rule is designed to prohibit “banking entities” from engaging in all forms of “proprietary trading” (i.e., making investments for their own “trading accounts”)—activities that former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul A. Volcker often condemned as contrary to conventional banking practices and a potential risk to financial stability. The statutory language provides only general outlines of prohibited activities and exceptions. Through it, however, Congress has empowered five federal financial regulators with authority to conduct coordinated rulemakings to fill in the details and complete the difficult task of crafting regulations to identify prohibited activities, while continuing to permit activities considered essential to the safety and soundness of banking institutions or to the maintenance of strong capital markets. In December 2014, more than two years after enactment of the law, coordinated implementing regulations were issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Rule is premised on a two-pronged central core restricting activities by “banking entities”—a term that includes all FDIC-insured bank and thrift institutions; all bank, thrift, or financial holding companies; all foreign banking operations with certain types of presence in the United States; and all affiliates and subsidiaries of any of these entities. Specifically, the Rule broadly prohibits banking entities from engaging in “proprietary trading” and from making investments in or having relationships with hedge and similar “covered funds” that are exempt from registering with the CFTC as commodity pool operators or with the SEC under the Investment Advisors Act. The Rule couples its broad prohibitions with numerous exclusions and by designating myriad activities as permissible so long as various terms and conditions are met, unless they otherwise would involve or result in a material conflict of interest; a material exposure to high-risk assets or high-risk trading strategies; pose a threat to the safety and soundness of the banking entity; or pose a threat to the financial stability of the United States. The exceptions to the ban on proprietary trading include underwriting by securities underwriters; market-making “designed not to exceed the reasonably expected near term demands of clients”; trading in government securities; fiduciary activities; insurance company portfolio investments; and risk-mitigating hedging activities. The ban on investing in and owning “covered funds” exempts certain types of funds, under specified conditions, and permits de minimis investment in any such fund up to 3% of the outstanding ownership interests of the fund with an aggregate cap on the total ownership interest in “covered funds” of 3% of the banking entity’s core capital. To prevent evasion, the Rule has extensive requirements mandating comprehensive compliance programs that include ongoing management involvement, precise metrics measuring risk assessment, verification and documentation of any activities conducted under one of the Rule’s exceptions or exclusions, and recurring reports and assessments. Full compliance is required by July 21, 2015, subject to the possibility that further extensions may be provided by the regulators. In the case of investments involving “illiquid funds” subject to contractual provisions seriously impacting their marketability or sale, full divestiture might not be required until July 21, 2022

Evidence Issues in Domestic Violence Civil Cases

This article is intended to assist practitioners in anticipating and responding to some of the evidentiary challenges in civil cases in which relief is sought for the victims of domestic violence. First, expert testimony is often necessary to dispel common myths about battered women and to educate judges and juries about the dynamics of domestic violence. Recent case law, however, has limited the admissibility of non-scientific expert testimony and may make it difficult for practitioners to use experts in their cases. In addition, particular evidentiary issues arise when victims are pursuing both criminal and civil remedies against the batterer. This article will explore the ways in which evidence issues may benefit and inhibit civil actions arising from the domestic violence. Finally, we will discuss the difficulties in using prior bad acts evidence. Because batterers tend to engage in repeated acts of abuse, evidence of prior acts may be particularly relevant in proving the extent of harm and predicting the likelihood of future abuse. Traditional principles of evidence law, however, often prohibit the admission of other crimes, wrongs and acts

Virginia Earth Science Collaborative Astronomy Course for Teachers

We describe the development and implementation of a professional development course for teachers of grades 4-12 designed to increase their content knowledge in astronomy, space science, and the nature of science using interactive presentations, and hands-on and inquiry-based lessons. The course, Space Science for Teachers, encompasses the astronomy and nature of science components of the Virginia Standards of Learning for grades 4-12 [1]. In addition to increasing their content knowledge, teachers gain experience using innovative teaching technologies, such as an inflatable planetarium, planetarium computer software, and computer controlled telescopes. The courses included evening laboratory sessions where teachers learned the constellations, how to find specific celestial objects, and how to use a variety of small telescopes. Participants received three graduate credit hours in science after completing the course requirements. Space Science for Teachers was taught at the University of Virginia in Summer 2005 and 2006, at George Mason University in Summer 2006 and 2007, at the University of Virginia Southwest Center in Abingdon, Virginia in Fall 2006, and at the MathScience Innovation Center in Richmond during Summer 2005 and 2007. A total of 135 teachers participated in the courses

Lost Oscillations: Exploring a City’s Space and Time With an Interactive Auditory Art Installation

Presented at the 22nd International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD-2016)Lost Oscillations is a spatio-temporal sound art installation that allows users to explore the past and present of a city's soundscape. Participants are positioned in the center of an octophonic speaker array; situated in the middle of the array is a touch-sensitive user interface. The user interface is a stylized representation of a map of Christchurch, New Zealand, with electrodes placed throughout the map. Upon touching an electrode, one of many sound recordings made at the electrode's real-world location is chosen and played; users must stay in contact with the electrodes in order for the sounds to continue playing, requiring commitment from users in order to explore the soundscape. The sound recordings have been chosen to represent Christchurch's development throughout its history, allowing participants to explore the evolution of the city from the early 20th Century through to its post-earthquake reconstruction. This paper discusses the motivations for Lost Oscillations before presenting the installation's design, development, and presentation

Stigma in youth with Tourette's syndrome: a systematic review and synthesis

Tourette's syndrome (TS) is a childhood onset neurodevelopmental disorder, characterised by tics. To our knowledge, no systematic reviews exist which focus on examining the body of literature on stigma in association with children and adolescents with TS. The aim of the article is to provide a review of the existing research on (1) social stigma in relation to children and adolescents with TS, (2) self-stigma and (3) courtesy stigma in family members of youth with TS. Three electronic databases were searched: PsycINFO, PubMed and Web of Science. Seventeen empirical studies met the inclusion criteria. In relation to social stigma in rating their own beliefs and behavioural intentions, youth who did not have TS showed an unfavourable attitude towards individuals with TS in comparison to typically developing peers. Meanwhile, in their own narratives about their lives, young people with TS themselves described some form of devaluation from others as a response to their disorder. Self-degrading comments were denoted in a number of studies in which the children pointed out stereotypical views that they had adopted about themselves. Finally, as regards courtesy stigma, parents expressed guilt in relation to their children's condition and social alienation as a result of the disorder. Surprisingly, however, there is not one study that focuses primarily on stigma in relation to TS and further studies that examine the subject from the perspective of both the 'stigmatiser' and the recipient of stigma are warranted

Sports Marketing Ethics in Today\u27s Marketplace

Sports marketing is a fast-growing business endeavor. However, certain aspects of it have drawn criticisms from several corners (e.g., media, government, coaches, and fans). This paper raises a number of ethical questions about various dimensions of sports marketing. Advice for addressing some of the ethical problems that occur is provided. The paper specifically asks if organizations using professional sports associations as a promotional lever for increasing sales can be hurt by a lack of ethics on the part of the leagues, teams, or players. It also implies that sport organizations, regardless of economic benefits derived or strong player unions, have an obligation to create a positive and sustainable ethical climate and deliver an enforceable ethical code

A piezo-bar pressure probe

Piezo-bar pressure type probe measures the impact velocity or pressure of a moving debris cloud. It measures pressures up to 200,000 psi and peak pressures may be recorded with a total pulse duration between 5 and 65 musec

Contingent Valuation, Hypothetical Bias, and Experimental Economics

Although the contingent valuation method has been widely used to value a diverse array of nonmarket environmental and natural resource commodities, recent empirical evidence suggests it may not accurately estimate real economic values. The hypothetical nature of environmental valuation surveys typically results in responses that are significantly greater than actual payments. Economists have had mixed success in developing techniques designed to control for this "hypothetical bias." This paper highlights the role of experimental economics in addressing hypothetical bias, and identifies a gap in the existing literature by focusing on the underlying causes of this bias. Most of the calibration techniques used today lack a theoretical justification, and therefore these procedures need to be used with caution. We argue that future experimental research should investigate the reasons hypothetical bias persists. A better understanding of the causes should enhance the effectiveness of calibration techniques.Environmental Economics and Policy,