Resolving the Crisis in U.S. Merger Regulation: A Transatlantic Alternative to the Perpetual Litigation Machine

Regulation by litigation has driven U.S. merger regulation to crisis. The reliance on private lawsuits to police disclosures and potential conflicts of interest in mergers, takeovers, and other control transactions has resulted in the filing of claims after every major transaction. However, it has failed to achieve meaningful benefits for shareholders and has instead deprived them of potentially valuable rights. Regulation by litigation has devolved into attorney rent-seeking, and the raft of substantive and procedural reforms aimed at resolving the crisis has failed. There is an alternative to regulation by litigation. Drawing upon the code and panel-based models of merger regulation in the United Kingdom and Ireland, this Article explores whether a regulatory model might be better at protecting shareholder interests in merger transactions. A regulatory alternative holds a number of significant advantages, including greater speed, responsiveness, certainty, and lower administrative costs. In light of these potential advantages, it is remarkable that no U.S. state has experimented with a code and panel-based model of merger regulation. We explain the persistent difference between the U.S. and Anglo-Irish models by reference to interest group politics and, in particular, the power of the bar to influence corporate law reforms in the United States

Interview: Ken Clarke on Western democracy, the press, and the longevity of our political leaders

In advance of a talk to the LSE Alumni Society, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer and current Minister without Portfolio Ken Clarke spoke to Democratic Audit’s Sean Kippin about where democracy, the press, and our public discourse have gone wrong

Assessing the Determinants of Cross-Border Traveler Flows between Canada and the United States

Canada and the US border accommodate the greatest portion of international cross-border traffic. Given its magnitude, the cross-border traffic is important for the national economies of both countries. There are, however, a number of factors that determine the volume of cross-border traffic. This paper examines a number of economic, socioeconomic, and geopolitical determinants and their impact on the Canada-US car traffic between 2000 and 2017. Data are drawn from Frontier Counts. This is a database built by Statistics Canada from an extraction of administrative files comprising same-day and overnight car trips collected by Canadian Border Service Agency (CBSA). To explain the variations in cross-border travel, Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) models with economic variables such as the exchange rate, the gasoline prices, unemployment, and income were used. In addition to economic conditions, events such as 9/11 and the initiatives for increased border safety and security are taken into account. While the relationship between examined variables and the cross-border travel is complex and intertwined, a number of key conclusions can be drawn

Educators’ perceptions of the development of clinical judgment of direct-entry students and experienced RNs enrolled in NP programs

Background : Nurse practitioner (NP) education was originally reserved for experienced nurses, but it has gradually opened to nurses with little to no clinical experience at the registered nurse (RN) level as well as to non-nurses. The existence of multiple paths to NP training and practice raises questions about the role of generalist RN experience in learning clinical decision-making and other aspects of the NP role. Purpose : To describe educators’ perceptions of the role of prior nursing experience in the development of clinical judgment during NP graduate education. Methods : In this qualitative descriptive study, 27 NP faculty from four universities participated in individual interviews. Transcripts were analyzed using a thematic approach. Results : According to participants, previous nursing experience—or any relevant experience—can either be helpful or detrimental in the development of NP students’ clinical judgment. Three themes were generated: variations in students’ baseline knowledge and skills, different frames of reference to grasp new content and skills, and challenges related to professional identity. In addition, participants described factors that they believe can affect the impact of different types of experience. Conclusion : Students with and without prior nursing experience face distinct challenges in learning NP-level clinical decision-making and judgment, but they reach similar end-of-program competence. Educators are confronted with contradictions between generally held wisdom, their professional socialization, and first-hand observations regarding the role of experience (inside and outside nursing) in preparing students to become NPs

Simulation in nursing education

Part of becoming a working professional always involves applying knowledge and trying out skills in carefully controlled and monitored settings to get feedback on our first attempts at practice. For many years, nurses have practiced taking BP readings on each other, learned to provide certain kinds of physical care on manikins, and rehearsed giving injections with oranges. With advances in technology, learning labs in nursing schools now include standardized patients (actors), various kinds of lifelike models, and full-scale simulators (manikins that manifest symptoms and respond to treatment decisions and other actions). The use of simulation in nursing education has grown to the point where it's now a common element in the preparation for practice. We review what should you know about simulation and how it's shaping the education of nursing students and graduate nurses coming to your units and settings

The influence of helmet size and shape on peak linear decelerations when impacting crash pads

AbstractDuring training and competition in short track speed skating, skaters commonly fall on the ice and slide into crash pads that line the boards of the rink. Skaters wear helmets to protect their heads from such impacts. Nevertheless, concussion injuries are not uncommon, especially from impacts into the crash pads. Basic mechanical principles suggest that, all other things being equal, smaller sized and rounder shaped helmets should reduce peak impact forces when hitting relatively soft crash pads. This study validates these assumptions and determines the magnitude of these effects using drop tests and a 3D accelerometer. Hemispherical head forms of various radii, each weighing approx. 4.5kg, were dropped from four heights (0.3-4.0 m) onto a crash pad. Peak linear decelerations were recorded. In one set of tests, complete hemispheres were used, highlighting the effect of helmet size (radius). In a second set of tests, another set of hemispheres of various radii were sliced to produce caps each with a diameter of 8” but each with a different radius of curvature. Impact tests at four drop heights using these caps revealed the effect of helmet shape. Size was found to be more important than shape, with the greatest effects being in the 10-20cm radius range, a range which is relevant to helmets used in the sport today

Colonialism and Peace and Conflict Studies

The nature of colonialism is examined in this comparison of British colonial policy in Ireland and Canada toward Indigenous people. The histories and realities of Indigenous peoples’ experiences of colonizing violence are not adequately addressed by the dominant approaches of the democratic peace theory’s universalist neoliberal technocratic values, expectations, and assumptions (see Mac Ginty, 2013). PACS scholars and practitioners need new interpretive frames to make sense of the impact and consequences of colonialism and the intent of genocidal destruction across different colonial contexts in order to understand the deep roots of conflict (economic exploitation, internalization of oppression, racist ideology), and how we should go about critical and emancipatory peace building, theory building, and practice. The study of colonialism is required to understand conflict milieus characterized by structural violence in order to create a justpeace (see Lederach, 1997) that includes restorative and reconciliatory processes, and recognition of local people’s resilience and resistance to structural violence and social injustice (see Chandler, 2017)

Resolving the Crisis in U.S. Merger Regulation: A Transatlantic Alternative to the Perpetual Litigation Machine

Regulation by litigation has driven U.S. merger regulation to crisis. The reliance on private lawsuits to police disclosures and potential conflicts of interest in mergers, takeovers, and other control transactions has resulted in the filing of claims after every major transaction. However, it has failed to achieve meaningful benefits for shareholders and has instead deprived them of potentially valuable rights. Regulation by litigation has devolved into attorney rent-seeking, and the raft of substantive and procedural reforms aimed at resolving the crisis has failed

Formal function and phrase structure in contemporary music : Pierre Boulez’s late solo works and Sean Clarke’s "Lucretia Overture" and "4 Impromptus"

Cette thèse présente une théorie de la fonction formelle et de la structure des phrases dans la musique contemporaine, théorie qui peut être utilisée aussi bien comme outil analytique que pour créer de nouvelles œuvres. Deux concepts théoriques actuels aident à clarifier la structure des phrases : les projections temporelles de Christopher Hasty et la théorie des fonctions formelles de William Caplin, qui inclut le concept de l’organisation formelle soudée versus lâche (tight-knit vs. loose). Les projections temporelles sont perceptibles grâce à l’accent mis sur les paramètres secondaires, comme le style du jeu, l’articulation et le timbre. Des sections avec une organisation formelle soudée ont des projections temporelles claires, qui sont créées par la juxtaposition des motifs distincts, généralement sous la forme d'une idée de base en deux parties. Ces projections organisent la musique en phrases de présentation, en phrases de continuité et finalement, à des moments formels charnières, en phrases cadentielles. Les sections pourvues d’une organisation plus lâche tendent à présenter des projections et mouvements harmoniques moins clairs et moins d’uniformité motivique. La structure des phrases de trois pièces tardives pour instrument soliste de Pierre Boulez est analysée : Anthèmes I pour violon (1991-1992) et deux pièces pour piano, Incises (2001) et une page d’éphéméride (2005). Les idées proposées dans le présent document font suite à une analyse de ces œuvres et ont eu une forte influence sur mes propres compositions, en particulier Lucretia Overture pour orchestre et 4 Impromptus pour flûte, saxophone soprano et piano, qui sont également analysés en détail. Plusieurs techniques de composition supplémentaires peuvent être discernés dans ces deux œuvres, y compris l'utilisation de séquence mélodiques pour contrôler le rythme harmonique; des passages composés de plusieurs couches musicales chacun avec un structure de phrase distinct; et le relâchement de l'organisation formelle de matériels récurrents. Enfin, la composition de plusieurs autres travaux antérieurs a donné lieu à des techniques utilisées dans ces deux œuvres et ils sont brièvement abordés dans la section finale.This thesis will outline a theory of formal function and phrase structure in contemporary music, which can be used as both an analytical tool and applied to create new works. The theory builds on the work of two contemporary theorists: Christopher Hasty’s concept of durational projections and William Caplin’s theories of formal function and tight-knit vs. loose formal organization. Durational projections are made perceptible through an emphasis on secondary parameters such as playing style, articulation, and timbre. Tight-knit sections feature clear projections that are created by regularly switching between contrasting motives, usually in the form of a two-part basic idea. These projections help shape entire sections into presentation, continuation and cadential phrases, giving them a sense of coherence and structure independent of traditional formal types. Sections with looser organization lack the clear projections, motivic uniformity and cogent harmonic motion that more tight-knit passages display. The phrase structure of three late solo works by Pierre Boulez are analyzed: Anthèmes I for violin (1991-1992) and two piano works, Incises (2001) and une page d’éphéméride (2005). The ideas put forth in this paper arose out of an analysis of these works and consequently had a strong influence on my own compositions, particularly Lucretia Overture for orchestra and 4 Impromptus for flute, soprano saxophone and piano, which are also analyzed in detail. Several additional compositional techniques can be discerned in these two works, including the use of melodic threads to control the harmonic rhythm; sections with multiple musical layers, each with a distinct phrase structure; and loosening the formal organization of recurring material. Finally, the composition of several other earlier works gave rise to the techniques used in these two works and are succinctly discussed in the final section