The florida jury technical evidence and bias

The recent societal development of highly specialized evidence has brought new problems to the forefront of the jury system. Because of the constitutional right to jury trials citizens of the United States and Florida have, it is imperative that the problems facing juries be discussed and explored. The question of whether or not juries can be trusted to comprehend highly technical evidence must be answered for the Florida jury to move forward into modern era. The subsequent question of what biases regarding highly specialized evidence have arisen must also be examined and addressed. Furthermore, solutions designed to increase a jury\u27s comprehension and decrease their bias must be discussed and propagated. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the answers to those questions and provide potential solutions to the issues facing the modern Florida jury. Law journals, statutes, and case law all suggest that juror comprehension decreases substantially when faced with highly complex evidence. Biases are also commonly associated with these forms of evidence and are leading towards unfair verdicts. Despite these problems, there are solutions that are readily available in the areas of alternative dispute resolution. Further solutions may be created through a revision of the jury instruction process. This thesis seeks to raise awareness of the problems facing the Florida jury and contribute solutions that are practical and easily used

Habitat Comparison of Pseudacris f. feriarum and Pseudacris c. crucifer with Emphasis on Associated Plant Communities and Distribution of Clemmys guttata and Pseudacris f. feriarum in West Virginia

Upland Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris f. feriarum) are a rare species in West Virginia. They occur in aquatic habitats across parts of the eastern and southern U.S. Pseudacris f. feriarum collection records in West Virginia suggest that their distribution is limited to the eastern panhandle and Ridge and Valley region where they are very rare and imperiled. Distribution information is needed for future management strategies. To help conserve this rare species, key life history habits were identified through the investigation of plant communities that are associated with them. Data on Pseudacris f. feriarum distribution in West Virginia was determined by conducting auditory surveys at historic sites as well as potential new sites in order to gain a better idea of where populations exist in the state. Vegetation analysis and water quality tests were conducted wherever Pseudacris f. feriarum were found. Similar data were also gathered from areas where Pseudacris c. crucifer (Northern Spring Peeper) were found so that these wetlands can be compared to wetlands where the Pseudacris f. feriarum were located. This comparison has shown the importance of plants associated with each Pseudacris species in its aquatic habitats. The result of this undertaking has been a clearer understanding of the distribution of Pseudacris f. feriarum and its association with wetland plants and Pseudacris c. crucifer. Spotted Turtles (Clemmys guttata) are a species of special concern in West Virginia. Trapping and haphazard searches were conducted during spring of 2007 and 2008 in order to learn more about the species distribution so that successful management strategies could be implemented. During this project historical sites were searched, as well as new potential habitat where found. The results were that only two turtles were found, both at Altona Marsh. It is very possible that this species now resides at only two or three locations in West Virginia

A current analysis of retail provision within metropolitan areas of the southeastern United States

The purpose of this thesis was to ascertain the factors governing a metropolitan area\u27s (MSA\u27s) retail provision and to determine the degree of influence these factors imposed upon the particular metropolitan area. This thesis was an extension of earlier research performed on randomly selected cities throughout the United States. For this analysis, I selected 78 metropolitan areas, comprising all census-designated Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MS As) in the Southeastern states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. I utilized the National Research Bureau\u27s 2003 Shopping Center Directory as the predominant source of data to determine each MSA\u27 s aggregate retail shopping center square footage. The total area of an MSA devoted to retailing is not available in a comprehensive and consistent format. Using central place theory and marketing principles as guidelines, I first hypothesized that the total amount of retail square footage in a city is an approximate function of that city\u27s population. I performed a simple ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis with 2000 MSA Population as the independent variable and MSA Total Retail Square Footage as the dependent variable to test this initial hypothesis. This regression yielded an extremely high coefficient of determination of 0.95 between the two variables. Larger cities obviously have more retail selection than smaller ones. The amount of retail space per person, however, will not necessarily be higher in the larger metropolises. I then focused the remainder of my study on retail square footage per capita in order to understand what dynamic forces other than population affected the number of square feet of retail space allotted to the average resident within an MSA. Using descriptive statistics, I sorted the MSAs on the basis of each area\u27s Gross Leasable Area (GLA) per capita and selected those areas deviating by more or less than two standard deviations from the aggregate Southeastern MSA mean of 20.26 square feet per capita for further in-depth analysis. Before investigating the individual MSAs that were categorized as outliers, I attempted to understand the underlying trends within the aggregate data. Performing more single regression analyses with MSA Population, 1990-2000 Population Change, and Median Household Income as the independent variables and MSA GLA per capita as the dependent variable yielded few conclusive correlations. I next entered the three independent variables simultaneously in a multiple regression analysis to explain statistically variation in the dependent variable GLA per capita. This analysis yielded a multiple coefficient of determination of 0.45. More qualitative factors, such as tourism influences, proximity to larger markets, presence of major employers or universities, transportation infrastructure, and governmental policies and restrictions, were then used to understand the remaining 55% of variation left unaccounted for by the three independent variables. These catalysts or inhibitors, along with other non-quantifiable ones, occurred, to some extent, in every MSA and were not well-predicted by the multiple regression analysis. Certain overall trends were evident. Median household income, growth rate, and the effects of outside tourism contributed the most in explicating an individual area\u27s retail dearth or excess. These trends translated into major causes for retail growth or contraction on the individual level. I detected the presence of one or more of these previously unmeasured factors in all eleven MSAs that were deemed to be vastly under or over-performing on the initial GLA per capita analysis. The five true overperforming MSAs (Myrtle Beach, SC; Fort Myers-Cape Coral, FL; Naples, FL; Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC; and Atlanta, GA) have all enjoyed high growth rates, continuous inflow of outside tourism-based revenues, and overall higher-than-average income levels, thus allowing the retail stock within their MSAs to thrive and expand. The other slightly overperforming MSA (Knoxville, TN) conquered the hindrance of a linear spatial configuration, which would normally bring a city\u27s GLA per capita score down, by having high levels of tourism (e.g., Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Dollywood) and the lack of viable retail alternatives within reasonable driving distances. Those MSAs displaying below average GLA per capita (Anniston, AL; Sumter, SC; Johnson City, Kingsport, Bristol, TN-VA; Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers, AR; New Orleans, LA) were also influenced by many of the same factors as the high-scoring ones, but these factors acted as inhibitors rather than catalysts. These areas lacked most of the GLA per capita-raising factors such as elevated household income or a large tourist base and, thus, were kept from sufficiently expanding their respective trade areas and retail bases. The final chapter of the thesis focuses on the shopping center and its place in contemporary and future United States society. The construction of smaller open-air centers, referred to as lifestyle centers, and larger, but also unenclosed, power centers continues as Americans seem to have tired of cookie-cutter antiquated indoor malls. The fates of many smaller regional and inner city malls appear uncertain, and possibly sealed as they become renovated as office buildings or erode into vacant, uninhabited structures, while most suburban super-regional centers will continue to thrive. The overall number of these sometimes-overwhelming giants, however, is expected to increase only marginally. There is no territory left for them to conquer

Golden Rice: Effectiveness and Safety, A Literature Review

This literature review begins by introducing GMOs, then moving on to golden rice and its background and development, including The Golden Rice Project. The literature review portion discusses the effectiveness and health and safety issues surrounding golden rice. Methodology for this paper includes agriculture and food science databases in addition to keyword searches