One size fits all? Multiple intelligences and legal education

This article argues that teaching and learning methodologies used in undergraduate law degrees are gradually shifting. The traditional model relied on a largely standardised, “one size fits all” approach which assumed that developing legal reasoning through attendance at lectures and participation in tutorials and seminars would produce a successful lawyer. However, today’s law schools are adapting to a large and diverse body of law students, many of whom will move on to careers outside the legal profession. This is being recognised by an increasingly pluralistic approach within undergraduate legal education, aided in no small measure by a greater focus on skills. This article will discuss the theory of multiple intelligences, which rejects the idea of a single measure of intelligence and instead identifies a number of different intelligences with both biological and cultural underpinnings. It is argued that acknowledging these multiple intelligences and using them as an organising concept to vary and diversify teaching and learning methodologies could help to further avoid the “one size fits all” approach and enhance the student experience.     

Complicating the “holy grail”, simplifying the search: a critique of the conventional problematisation of social immobility in elite legal education and the profession

This article challenges the conventional problematisation of and response to insufficient socio-economic diversity in elite legal education and the legal profession. I contend that the entrenched socio-economic stratification of admissions, the undergraduate experience, final degree classification, and career trajectories turns on elite institutions’ failure to recognise that education and educational proxies neither explain the core of socio-economic inequality nor are they the linchpin for improving social mobility. I draw on a case study of an elite UK university’s undergraduate Law programme. My argument proceeds in three parts. Firstly, I contend that justifiable commitment to “meritocracy” continues to be unjustifiably implemented via the indeterminate critical values of “potential” and “talent”, which undermines the meritocratic aim. Secondly, I explain how the inadequacy of the educational proxies employed for socio-economic disadvantage undermines the ability of targeted responses to achieve real improvements, and I call for the adoption of poverty-based proxies. Thirdly, I suggest that the search for mechanisms to increase diversity proceeds on the mistaken assumption that complex problems require complex solutions, which overlooks the transformative potential of “micro-adjustments” or “nudges”. I propose both universal and targeted micro-adjustments, which focus on fostering a universal diversity of excellence; bringing disadvantaged students within the “community of practice” to become expert in critical learning methods and assessment criteria; and enhancing disadvantaged students’ social and cultural capital.     

The nature of innovation in emerging industries in China: an exploratory study

In China, traditional manufacturing industries have been world leaders in low-cost manufacturing for overseas multinationals. It is well-known that these “traditional industries” depend on overseas parent firms for innovation. In recent decades, China’s desire is to encourage and promote innovation-based emerging industries within its borders. By definition, “emerging industries” are composed of domestic Chinese firms without an overseas parent firm. We know very little about the innovation practices in these emerging Chinese industries; we hypothesize that the innovation practices in these firms are quite different from traditional Chinese industries with overseas parents. The Kunshan region in China has attracted both traditional and emerging industries that have contributed to unparalleled economic growth in the region. This is a significantly large region with a population of 1.65 million with a regional GDP of USD 32 billion (2010). In this study, we use survey data from companies in this thriving region to compare R&D and innovation practices of the firms in the traditional and emerging industries in this region. We do not know enough about the innovation practices of emerging industrial firms in China, who may have a profound influence on the industrial China of the future much like South Korean firms such as KIA, Hyundai, Samsung, etc. The findings of this exploratory study based on data collected from the Kunshan region enables us to recommend avenues for future research.     

Podcast as assessment: entanglement and affect in the law school

ABSTRACT

This article documents the “Orders in Decay” project, in which students taking the Law and Disorder module at the University of Warwick were required to produce a podcast as part of their assessment. The article situates the pedagogic benefits of student podcasting through the fields of legal storytelling, law and literature, and digital storytelling. It uses these to theorise three key moments in the podcasting process: the interview with an expert as an affective encounter with the ideas, the production of a complex and layered podcast that excites an affective response, and publication of the best of the podcasts to shift the students’ horizons of communication. Ultimately, the article suggests that the undergraduate is uniquely positioned between worlds – neither an expert nor a member of the public. As such, they are perfectly placed to mediate ideas and discussion in an affecting manner.     

Selling your organization on technology transfer: The metaphor of movement

Corporate technology transfer strategies often focus on the movement of tangible assets—products, processes, “off-the-shelf” technologies, and so on. We argue that the transfer of information- and knowledge-based assets are a critical element of successful competition in global markets, particularly for service industries. In this article we develop a model for (1) identifying a company's “information asset portfolio” and (2) managing the flow of these assets for commercial gain. The Technology Transfer Professional is at the center of this process of information movement and management.     

网络化社会的戏仿与公平竞争——关于著作权制度设计的比较分析

本文关于戏仿与著作权的讨论,侧重于数码网络化对法律秩序的深刻影响以及各种创新型制度设计。作者认为,对所谓公平使用原则的考量,必须以严格区分美国模式和欧洲模式为前提;中国现行著作权法极其强调对作者人格的保护,固然有其必然性和合理性,但也很可能在不同程度上阻碍信息流通以及文化产业的发展。因此也可以说,“馒头血案”与《无极》的碰撞,其实提出了一些涉及法与社会转型的根本问题:怎样才能避免通讯技术引起著作权的解体或贬值?人际互动与大批量的契约群以及民主决定的法律程序要件之间的关系究竟应该如何重构?解答这些问题的关键是对权利处理的不同方式进行比较。     

Some Themes Arising from the Last Edition of Family Court Review

In the last edition of the FRC, there are a number of articles which highlight ever‐present themes in the many dispute resolution industries. These themes are: The cyclical nature of family law and DR reform to and fro “faster, cheaper, less formal and more accessible”; Access barriers for the poor and middle class; Access barriers due to geography, distance, and cultural differences; Blossoming of a range of “abbreviated” (short and inexpensive) DR services; The essential, yet neglected, task of systematic diagnosis of possible causes of conflict, and of a possible range of helpful interventions: DR practitioners should aim to “at least do no harm”; If a DR practitioner exhibits care, and core communication skills, how much do different processes matter? The Hawthorne effect—all pilot projects tend to succeed?; There is a constant flow of stories, systematic and statistical knowledge in DR industries. Who is listening and translating this flow of information between the various DR silos and to the public?

Key Points for the Family Court Community:
• The repetitive and predictable cycles of family law reform.
• Access to DR services restricted by finances, geography and cultural differences.
• The old saying “at least do no harm” should find a prominent place in all family DR services and training.
• The Hawthorne effect—all pilot and new projects seem to “succeed” for awhile. What follows?
• In the many family DR silos, there are “truths” embodied in stories, systems and statistics. Who can translate helpfully from one silo to another?

     

The People and Populism

“What is and what is defined as populism?” In response to this question the best political theories and philosophies have put forward many different answers, that are taken into account in this article. The article affirms the constitutive ambiguity of the concept of “populism” and its ability to unify very different issues. After analyzing some of the implications that populism entails in practice (in particular the political use of fear and the emphasis on the role of the citizens' anxieties because of migratory flows, the spiral of fear and insecurity triggered by terrorism, the role of religions as symbolic repertoires), the article stresses the link between populism and the end of the logic of the principle of representation, specific of the liberal and democratic theories. The emphasis on the role of the “people” in opposition to the political elites is also a feature of populism, analyzed by the author in this article. In conclusion, the author focuses on the legal field: some of the contemporary constitutional theories, in particular the so‐called “popular constitutionalism”, are discussed. These theories, while polemicizing with those authors who overestimate the role of the Supreme Court, reassess the function of the average citizen in the life of constitutional culture, with the intent of favouring greater political participation and strengthening democratic life.     

Is There Touch in the Game of Twister®? The Effects of Innocuous Touch and Suggestive Questions on Children's Eyewitness Memory

Preschool children (ages 48–70 months, N = 48) experienced 2 to-be-remembered events (i.e., the games Twister^® and Shapes) that included either innocuous bodily touch or no touch. Participants were interviewed 7 days later and asked direct (“Did Amy kiss you?”) or suggestive “tag” questions (“Amy kissed you, didn't she?”) equated for content. Results indicated that children who were innocuously touched were no more likely to falsely assent to “abuse-related” touch questions (e.g., “Amy touched your bottom, didn't she?”) than were children who were not touched. However, children who were asked tag questions responded at chance levels, thereby making high errors of commission in response to abuse-touch questions relative to their no-tag counterparts who responded to “abuse questions” accurately 93% of the time. Children who were asked tag questions assented at a higher rate to general forensic questions (“Amy took your picture, didn't she?”) than did children asked direct questions, and children assented at higher rates to “abuse-touch” questions than to general forensic questions. Results are discussed in terms of prior research on interviewing techniques and adult influence on children's testimony.     

Meta-analysis and the rehabilitation of punishment

Do we know what “works” in the way of rehabilitative treatment in corrections? Not yet. Has the old “nothing works” literature been invalidated by new reviews of research claiming to show, through meta-analysis, that treatment really does work, at least when it is “appropriate?” Not likely. Would production of this knowledge enhance the ability of prison officials to do their job? Not ever. Their job, and their highest duty, is to administer justice, not treatment. Individualized treatment muddles the message of punishment, making it less principled and not necessarily more humane. A “confinement model” of imprisonment is proposed, which rejects rehabilitation as an official goal and yet allows for programs of work, education, and other activities within the mission of a prison.     

Public Digital Libraries: Observations and Prospects from the Chinese Experience

In recent years, the digital revolution has created both challenges and opportunities for cultural industries. The ever-increasing production and diffusion of culture through new media via the Internet have profoundly challenged the basic infrastructure and modes of operation in many sectors of the cultural industries. This has been most evident in the case of heritage organizations—including public libraries—where the digital revolution has brought with it a number of significant challenges with respect to courting visitors/users and remaining relevant in the context of evolving digital technologies. This article discusses the rise and evolution of public digital libraries in the 1990s as a response to these new challenges. After formulating some observations about this global trend, which is now more than two decades old, this article discusses the case of public digital libraries in China. In particular, this article points to the importance of cultural policy for the development of this new form of cultural institution. Finally, after reviewing some of the challenges faced by most of these new digital libraries, this article discusses the importance of professional culture in addressing the changing needs of users.     

Copy Me Happy: The Metaphoric Expansion of Copyright in a Digital Society

The article uses conceptual metaphor theory to analyse how the concept of “copy” in copyright law is expanding in a digital society to cover more phenomena than originally intended. For this purpose, the legally accepted model for valuing media files in the case against The Pirate Bay (TPB) is used in the analysis. When four men behind TPB were convicted in the District Court of Stockholm, Sweden, on 17 April 2009, to many, it marked a victory over online piracy for the American and Swedish media corporations. The convicted men were jointly liable for the damages of roughly EUR 3.5 million. But how do you calculate damages of file sharing? For example, what is the value of a copy? The article uses a model for valuating files in monetary numbers, suggested by the American plaintiffs and sanctioned by the District Court in the case against the BitTorrent site TPB, in order to calculate the total value of an entire, and in this anonymous other, BitTorrent site. These calculated hypothetical figures are huge—EUR 53 billion—and grow click by click which, on its face, questions some of the key assumptions in the copy-by-copy valuation that are sprung from analogue conceptions of reality, and transferred into a digital context. This signals a (legal) conceptual expansion of the meaning of “copy” in copyright that does not seem to fit with how the phenomenon is conceptualised by the younger generation of media consumers.     

General Deterrence and Corporate Environmental Behavior*

This research addresses the assumption that “general deterrence” is an important key to enhanced compliance with regulatory laws. Through a survey of 233 firms in several industries in the United States, we sought to answer the following questions: (1) When severe legal penalties are imposed against a violator of environmental laws, do other companies in the same industry actually learn about such “signal cases”? (2) Does knowing about “signal cases” change firms’ compliance‐related behavior? It was found that only 42 percent of respondents could identify the “signal case,” but 89 percent could identify some enforcement actions against other firms, and 63 percent of firms reported having taken some compliance‐related actions in response to learning about such cases. Overall, it is concluded that because most firms are in compliance already (for a variety of other reasons), this form of “explicit general deterrence” knowledge usually serves not to enhance the perceived threat of legal punishment, but as reassurance that compliance is not foolish and as a reminder to check on the reliability of existing compliance routines.     

论侵犯商业秘密罪的认定

1997年修订的刑法新增设侵犯商业秘密罪,该罪在适用过程中遇到了诸多问题和争议,甚至连什么是“商业秘密”这一最基本的概念都未能达成共识,更遑论其他方面:如主观方面是直接故意,还是包括间接故意,过失能否构成犯罪?如果能够构成,那么使疏忽大意的过失还是过于自信的过失?“不正当手段”在本罪中应如何界定?“造成重大损失”是本罪的既遂标志还是成立标志?可见侵犯商业秘密罪中存在的问题不是细枝末节的问题,而是最基本、最关键的问题,直接关系到能否准确定罪量刑。本文对存在的争议进行了归纳评析,并阐释了自己的见解。     

The Image of the Hyper City

Since the nineteenth and twentieth century, information has been pivotal both in the cultural tradition and then in the economic tradition. While the Fordism economic model and its specialisation requirements originated a simplistic zoning and single-use development approach to the design of a city. It, however, determined a fragmented growth of cities. Inevitably, the zoning as an urban strategy affected the architectural scale. Nevertheless, the idea of information, commercial goods and thereby people freely able to flow through the city allowed architects and urban designer to conceive new types of urban infrastructures. For example, trains, which were designed on the model of urban “arteries and veins.” Over time, the persistence of urban and architectural segmentation has strengthened social and economic inequalities among urban society. In addition, information has played a more vital role in this strengthening process. The technological achievements of the twenty-first century such as information technologies have significantly affected cities. The new informational patterns have provided new ways of designing, and in turn how societies experience cities. These “quantified cities” consist of digital data that dynamically interacts with “quantified human beings.” Consequently, a renewed urban semiotics is established, which is built around an alternate sociological comprehension. Is this new urban semiotics able to heal an ill and divided urban body? The paper will investigate a new concept of “quantified city” based on the notion of “Hyper-Reality,” and its inhabitants who are entering in a “post-human” condition while living in a dynamic urban environment. In particular, the critical analysis will be used as a “tool” for redefining the perception of the city (i.e., the image of the Hyper City) through inhabitants’ (post-humans’) relational patterns which are technologically mediated (i.e., Google Maps, Uber, Instagram, etc.). The more traditional notion of urbanisation is questioned with a focus on how the an urban society is embedded within the digital condition and the notion of a city.

     

Challenges for teaching interaction skills for law students

Abstract

Are lawyers witty courtroom heroes or professionals working with and for people? Is law only universal judgements and afterthoughts or could it also be preventive and proactive individual planning and dialogue? The traditional legal education could be seen to have been based on the first assumptions. The course “Interaction skills for lawyers”, in the Faculty of Law at the University of Helsinki (Finland), evolves instead from the latter assumptions. In this article we relate our starting points in planning the course and evaluate our challenges and experiences in developing it.     

If Brain Scans Really Detected Deception,Who Would Volunteer to be Scanned?

Abstract: Recent neuroimaging studies investigating the neural correlates of deception among healthy people, have raised the possibility that such methods may eventually be applied during legal proceedings. Were this so, who would volunteer to be scanned? We report a “natural experiment” casting some light upon this question. Following broadcast of a television series describing our team’s investigative neuroimaging of deception in 2007, we received unsolicited (public) correspondence for 12 months. Using a customized template to examine this material, three independent assessors unanimously rated 30 of an initial 56 communications as unequivocally constituting requests for a “scan” (to demonstrate their author’s “innocence”). Compared with the rest, these index communications were more likely to originate from incarcerated males, who were also more likely to engage in further correspondence. Hence, in conclusion, if neuroimaging were to become an acceptable means of demonstrating innocence then incarcerated males may well constitute those volunteering for such investigation.     

Demand Pull Technology Transfer Applied to the Field of Assistive Technology

Technology transfer has generally had little impact on the assistive technology industries serving small, highly fragmented “disability markets.” Persons with disabilities often require specialized, relatively sophisticated technology. Third-party payer reimbursement rates and the low levels of disposable income among disability populations often cap product pricing. Transferring technology to these industry segments therefore poses special challenges. In October 1998, the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Technology Transfer initiated the “Demand-Pull Project on Wheeled Mobility.” Successful transfers resulting from this project demonstrate that a systematic technology transfer process can be successfully applied to industries serving specialized and underserved niche markets.     

How Employers Profit from Digital Wage Theft Under the FLSA

This study describes three types of digital wage theft, as depicted in 330 cases litigated in federal and state court. The first, known as “rounding,” occurs when employers set their timekeeping software to alter employee punch time in a preset increment (typically moving punches to the nearest quarter hour). The second, “automatic break deductions,” involves subtracting a preset increment of time (usually thirty minutes) from employee hours to reflect their scheduled meal break, regardless of whether the break is taken. Both such practices occupy a legal gray zone under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The third, known as “time shaving,” occurs when supervisors alter employee time records to reduce recorded hours. Although more clearly prohibited under existing rules, time shaving cases can be difficult to certify as collective actions beyond a single worksite. Plaintiffs seeking to recover lost wages in these cases face highly uncertain prospects in litigation. Outcomes depend on complex questions of fact and unpredictable judicial rulings that turn on implied notions of fairness. Even in successful cases, employers keep most of the lost wages because damages are only awarded to the small fraction of employees who opted in to the litigation. In sum, this article illustrates how federal rules fail to deter employers from adopting these practices. It concludes by recommending several changes to federal law.