Follow up to previous postings on Aaron Swartz, via the Boston Globe – More than a year after Swartz killed himself rather than face prosecution, questions about MIT’s handling of the hacking case persist, By Marcella Bombardieri. “..MIT is a cradle of world-class scientific research with unpublished data and unpatented inventions on its network, and its leaders felt… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
Pew – Shrinking Majority of Americans Support Death Penalty
“According to a 2013 Pew Research Center survey, 55% of U.S. adults say they favor the death penalty for persons convicted of murder. A significant minority (37%) oppose the practice. While a majority of U.S. adults still support the death penalty, public opinion in favor of capital punishment has seen a modest decline since November 2011,… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – American Samoa, Defense Acquisitions, National Preparedness, Puerto Rico – Statehood
AMERICAN SAMOA AND THE COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS: Economic Indicators Since Minimum Wage Increases Began, GAO-14-381: Published: Mar 31, 2014. Publicly Released: Mar 31, 2014. DEFENSE ACQUISITIONS: Assessments of Selected Weapon Programs, GAO-14-340SP: Published: Mar 31, 2014. Publicly Released: Mar 31, 2014. NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS: HHS Has Funded Flexible Manufacturing Activities for Medical Countermeasures, but It Is Too Soon to… Continue Reading
Law Firms Are Pressed on Security for Data
Matthew Goldstein, New York Times: “A growing number of big corporate clients are demanding that their law firms take more steps to guard against online intrusions that could compromise sensitive information as global concerns about hacker threats mount. Wall Street banks are pressing outside law firms to demonstrate that their computer systems are employing top-tier technologies to… Continue Reading
Taken by Storm: Business Survival in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
Basker, Emek and Miranda, Javier, Taken by Storm: Business Survival in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (March 30, 2014). Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2417911 “We use Hurricane Katrina’s damage to the Mississippi coast in 2005 as a natural experiment to study business survival in the aftermath of a cost shock. We find that damaged establishments that… Continue Reading
Federal Employees’ Retirement System: Budget and Trust Fund Issues
Federal Employees’ Retirement System: Budget and Trust Fund Issues, Katelin P. Isaacs, Analyst in Income Security, March 24, 2014 “Most of the civilian federal workforce is covered by one of two retirement systems: (1) the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) for individuals hired before 1984 or (2) the Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS) for individuals hired in 1984 or… Continue Reading
Commentary – How Copyright Laws Keep E-Books Locked Up
The Digital Paradox: How Copyright Laws Keep E-Books Locked Up By Hilmar Schmundt “…In many cases, it is the readers themselves who, through their taxes, pay the university authors whose studies they are then unable to access. It is also likely that many professors themselves cannot even afford a subscription to the journal in which their work… Continue Reading
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Issues Fifth Report
“The Working Group II contribution to the Fifth Assessment Report considers the vulnerability and exposure of human and natural systems, the observed impacts and future risks of climate change, and the potential for and limits to adaptation. The chapters of the report assess risks and opportunities for societies, economies, and ecosystems around the world. Climate… Continue Reading
New on LLRX – 3D Printing: The Manufactory of Knowledge
Via LLRX.com – 3D Printing: The Manufactory of Knowledge – Ken Strutin’s article addresses the increasing use and impact, social and legal, of the emerging and high visibility technology known as 3D printing. The technology’s use in a wide range of sectors – including education, manufacturing, firearms, robotics and medical devices, as well as in the home – is… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – DHS Asset Forfeiture, Spectrum Management
DHS ASSET FORFEITURE: Additional Actions Could Help Strengthen Controls over Equitable Sharing, GAO-14-318:Published: Mar 28, 2014. Publicly Released: Mar 28, 2014: “From fiscal years 2003 through 2013, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) components that participate in the Treasury Forfeiture Fund—U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Secret Service (USSS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and… Continue Reading
CoreBrand’s Top 100 Most Powerful Brands 2014
“The CoreBrand Top 100 Most Powerful Brands Rankings is a showcase for the brand image data we have been continuously collecting for decades in our Corporate Branding Index® (CBI). The Top 100 Most Powerful Brands Rankings provide a market-view evaluation of brand strength regardless of industry affiliation. They allow us to use a single measure to compare… Continue Reading
EFF – Reforming Terms of Service: Microsoft Changes Its Policy on Access to User Data
News release: “Last week we wrote about initial news reports that Microsoft had searched and disclosed the contents of a blogger’s Hotmail account as part of an internal investigation into the alleged theft of Microsoft source code and other trade secrets. Since then, EFF has been in touch with Microsoft to discuss our objections to the company’s… Continue Reading
