\u3cem\u3eIn Terrorem\u3c/em\u3e Clauses: Broad, Narrow, or Both?

While the idea of the “carrot and stick” seems simple in theory, in terrorem clauses are governed by state law, with their application varying in large part by jurisdiction. Nevertheless, this Note seeks to identify some of the broad principles on which many in terrorem clauses rely, while also delineating several of the different state law approaches thereto. It does this by describing some of the potential problems with in terrorem clauses and posing potential solutions in the context of a variety of state law jurisprudence. This Note will first address what will be defined as the “puppet problem.” By drafting in terrorem provisions that purport to cut out only the contestant and not the contestant and his or her descendants, however, planners expose their clients to the puppet problem. There are many instances in which a testator or settlor will amend his plan, leaving his grandson with substantially less than in the previous plan, and omitting his son (the grandson’s father) from the amended plan completely. The son still has standing to contest the plan, but under the amended plan, nothing to lose. Consequently, the grandson can use the son as a “puppet” to contest the amended plan in hopes of getting the original plan’s distribution reinstated, while also avoiding forfeiture under the amended plan. By drafting and permitting provisions that preclude a distribution to the son and his descendants, planners and judges can not only prevent the “puppet problem” but also make the contestant think twice about a contest, even absent a substantial distribution. On the basis that in terrorem clauses be enforced against contestants and their descendants, this Note next argues that planners should take great care to draft in terrorem clauses to ensure compliance with jurisprudence in the state in which they practice. In those states where the law is favorable to the validity of in terrorem clauses, practitioners should offer them to their clients routinely. Even if there is no perceived “black sheep” who might contest the will, clients may well opt for the deterrence benefits of the clause as it affects all named beneficiaries. In today’s litigious society, adopting such precautions may appeal to many clients. In fact, they may choose to establish trusts in jurisdictions favorable to upholding in terrorem clauses, either through the use of a trustee situated in that state or by other means. In all cases, ensuring that a client’s in terrorem clause complies with state law will be of even greater importance as the clause purports to effectuate forfeiture of more than just the contestant. Finally, once planners and lawmakers have worked together to improve in terrorem clauses in these ways, this Note maintains that their utility will stretch to other nonprobate assets beyond wills and trusts. Indeed, because individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and insurance policies already purport to preclude a distribution to a beneficiary for reasons such as undue influence or fraud of the policymaker, there is no reason that the same should not apply for failed contests involving these assets. The use of in terrorem clauses with other nonprobate assets will consequently be a direct benefit of their improved utility. Part I of this Note thus describes the necessary background on which arguments for in terrorem clauses stand. Section II.A describes to whom in terrorem clauses should apply to avoid the “puppet problem” and maximize the effectiveness of the “carrot and stick” approach. Section II.B focuses on claims to which in terrorem clauses should apply in order to comport with modern state jurisprudence. Section II.C of this Note concludes with potential ways in which in terrorem clauses, when drafted effectively, can be useful to planners in novel contexts, such as life insurance policies and IRAs

Electoral Institutions, Ethnopolitical Cleavages, and Party Systems in Africa\u27s Emerging Democracies

Do electoral institutions and ethnopolitical cleavages shape the structure of party systems separately or jointly? We examine the independent, additive, and interactive effects on the number of electoral and legislative parties of two institutional variables (district magnitude and proximity of presidential and legislative elections), one intervening variable (effective number of presidential candidates), and two new measures of ethnopolitical cleavages based on constructivist specification of ethnopolitical groups (fragmentation and concentration). Ethnopolitical fragmentation independently reduces the number of parties but, interactively with ethnopolitical concentration, increases it. However, the additive and interactive combinations of both measures with electoral institutions explain the largest amount of variance in the number of parties. These results emphasize the importance of ethnopolitical cleavages in mediating the effects of electoral institutions on the structure of party systems, with important implications for the stability of Africa\u27s emerging democracies in which parties are weak and multiethnic coalitions are fluid

Arsenic in soils and waters around the Kori Kollo gold mine on the Bolivian Altiplano: redox-induced speciation and mobilization

Mining activities in the Bolivian Altiplano have caused considerable negative environmental consequences on the water, soils, vegetation resources, biodiversity, and the atmosphere over the years. In this study, samples of soils, sediments, river water, water from drinking pools, and groundwater were collected from the area around the Kori Kollo gold mine, located near the city of Oruro on the Bolivian Altiplano to investigate the concentrations of arsenic (As) as an important contaminant associated with the mining activities in this area. Moreover, the redox-induced speciation, mobilization, and release dynamics, of As in soil/sediment samples was studied under controlled reducing and oxidizing conditions using an automated biogeochemical microcosm apparatus. The total As concentrations in the soils ranged between 10 and 81 mg kg-1 and exceeded the international trigger action values (10-65 mg kg-1) of As in agricultural soils. Arsenic concentrations (µg L-1) reached values up to 2,688, 952, and 300 in the groundwater, drinking pools, and surface water, respectively and exceeded the current WHO provisional guideline value of 10 µg L-1. The total dissolved concentrations of As varied from 368 to 3,130 µg L-1. The dissolved concentrations of As increased under oxidizing conditions and decreased under reducing conditions. Data of As speciation showed that the As (III) accounted from 0.0 to 79% of the total dissolved As and increased under reducing conditions, while the As (V) accounted from 21-100% of the total dissolved As and increased under oxidizing conditions. The results conclude that i) although the total concentrations of As in the soils around the mine are not very high, the concentrations of As in the waters were very high, 2) the concentrations of total dissolved As were very high which might indicate the high mobilization of As and support the anthropogenic source of As in theses soils, 3) the release and mobilization of As increased under oxidizing conditions as compared to the reducing conditions, and 4) the As (III) accounted values up to 79% of total dissolved As, which might increase the toxicity and risk of As in the soils and waters especially under reducing conditions. These results highlight the environment risk of As which might be a main reason for the gradual death of goats and cows, the biodiversity and the decline of fishing and agricultural sources in this area

Personal vehicle sharing services in North America

Over the past three decades, carsharing has grown from a collection of local grassroots organizations into a worldwide industry. Traditional carsharing, though expanding, has a limited network of vehicles and locations. The next generation of shared-use vehicle services could overcome such expansion barriers as capital costs and land use by incorporating new concepts like personal vehicle sharing.Personal vehicle sharing provides short-term access to privately-owned vehicles. As of May 2012, there were 33 personal vehicle sharing operators worldwide, with 10 active or in pilot phase, three planned, and four defunct in North America. Due to operator non-disclosure, personal vehicle sharing member numbers are currently unknown. The authors investigated personal vehicle sharing in North America by conducting 34 expert interviews. This research explores the development of personal vehicle sharing including business models, market opportunities, and service barriers to assess its early viability as a sustainable transportation mode and to provide a foundation for future research on the topic. Personal vehicle sharing has the potential to impact the transportation sector by increasing the availability and interconnectivity among modes and providing greater alternatives to vehicle ownership in more geographic locations

Smoothing of pipe system completion processes in a shipyard environment/

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering; and, (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; in conjunction with the Leaders for Manufacturing Program at MIT, 2004.Includes bibliographical references (p. 63).Due to a number of different production issues, the manufacture of template pipes is often delayed. These delays hold up pipe system completion on board the ships in production and can delay payments from the Ministry of Defense. In order to improve the production of template pipes, a number of changes are recommended to the pipe production processes overall. These include improvements in production planning, along with changes in procurement and scheduling methods. These changes in production methods will result in more material available when it is needed and will therefore improve the manufacture of template pipes. Additionally, they will improve the overall availability of pipes when needed as well as reducing inventory of finished pipes and decreasing the amount of rework. A number of other recommendations to improve the overall pipe manufacture process are also identified, including changes in performance measures, production planning, and other potential areas of improvement.by Shaheen J. Zojwalla.M.B.A.S.M

It’s the Methodology For Me: A Systematic Review of Early Approaches to Studying TikTok

Research on TikTok has grown along with the app’s rapidly rising global popularity. In this systematic review, we investigate 58 articles examining TikTok, its users, and its content. Focusing on articles published in journals and proceedings across the domains of human-computer interaction, communication, and other related disciplines, we analyze the methods being used to study TikTok, as well as ethical considerations. Based on our analysis, we found that research on TikTok tends to use content analysis as their primary method and mainly focus on user behavior and culture, effects of use, the platform’s policies and governance, and very few articles discuss the ethical implications of collecting and analyzing such data. Additionally, most studies employ traditional forms of data collection when the affordances of TikTok tend to differ from other social media platforms. We conclude with a discussion about possible future directions and contribute to ongoing conversations about ethics and social media data

Perinatal paracetamol exposure in mice does not affect the development of allergic airways disease in early life

Background Current data concerning maternal paracetamol intake during pregnancy, or intake during infancy and risk of wheezing or asthma in childhood is inconclusive based on epidemiological studies. We have investigated whether there is a causal link between maternal paracetamol intake during pregnancy and lactation and the development of house dust mite (HDM) induced allergic airways disease (AAD) in offspring using a neonatal mouse model. Methods Pregnant mice were administered paracetamol or saline by oral gavage from the day of mating throughout pregnancy and/or lactation. Subsequently, their pups were exposed to intranasal HDM or saline from day 3 of life for up to 6 weeks. Assessments of airway hyper-responsiveness, inflammation and remodelling were made at weaning (3 weeks) and 6 weeks of age. Results Maternal paracetamol exposure either during pregnancy and/or lactation did not affect development of AAD in offspring at weaning or at 6 weeks. There were no effects of maternal paracetamol at any time point on airway remodelling or IgE levels. Conclusions Maternal paracetamol did not enhance HDM induced AAD in offspring. Our mechanistic data do not support the hypothesis that prenatal paracetamol exposure increases the risk of childhood asthma