US 11th Circuit rules that a mark must be likely to be seen to cause confusion

The 11th Circuit upheld the District Court's ruling that therewas no likelihood of confusion when a company's trade name wasimproperly used on component parts in a water-meter readingsystem, manufactured and sold by other companies. The 11th Circuitfound that the plaintiff had not shown that it was likely thatrelevant consumers would ever see its trade name used on componentparts within the larger meter system. Where relevant consumerswere not likely to encounter the use of the plaintiff's tradename, there could be no likelihood of confusion.     

The prevalence of violence and relation to depression and illicit drug use among incarcerated women in Recife, Brazil

PurposeTo assess the prevalence and different types of violence experienced by women prisoners in Brazil and the effects of violence on women's depression and illicit drug use.MethodsParticipants (N = 377) were incarcerated women from a state prison in a northeastern city of Brazil. Multivariate logistic regression models (adjusted for age, education, partner status, prison history, drug related offense, and sentencing status) were used to assess associations between each type of violence (physical abuse, sexual abuse, and life threats) and each outcome variable: recent depression and illicit drug use.ResultsThe majority of participants (87%) reported experiencing some type of violence in their lifetime, including physical violence (83%), sexual victimization (36%), and threats on their life (29%.) Sexual violence was significantly related to both recent depression (Odds Ratio (OR) = 2.8; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 1.4–5.3) and recent substance use (OR = 2.7; 95% CI = 1.6–4.4) in adjusted models. Experiences of life threats were also significantly associated with illicit drug use (OR = 2.2; 95% CI: 1.3–3.7), as was physical violence (OR = 2.4; 95% CI: 1.2–4.9); however, neither of these latter two violence variables were significantly associated with depression.ConclusionReports of lifetime violence victimization among this incarcerated sample of women were extremely prevalent and relevant to women's depression and illicit drug use. Prison efforts to address women's depression and illicit drug use may be most effective by incorporating aspects related to women's history of victimization, especially given the high rates of violence experienced by women in this sample.     

Bureaucrats and Indians in a Contemporary Colonial Encounter

This article investigates the effects of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 in structuring an encounter over a decision about building a dam in central Arizona. From the vantage point of three groups with deepinvestments in the outcome of this decision, it analyzes how the interests and identities of these parties were transformed as a result of this encounter. In defining standing and the terms of relevance, in providing a political forum, and in requiring these groups to explain themselves to others, this law powerfully mediated the politics surrounding this controversial decision.     

Fear of crime and criminal victimization: Gender-based contrasts

Extant research on the fear of crime and criminal victimization had generally found that women express greater levels of fear than men. Using survey data, this study contrasted perceptions of safety and the fear of personal and property victimization among male and female respondents. Specifically considered was the relationship between demographic characteristics, fear facilitators, fear inhibitors, neighborhood context, and crime-related fear. Results indicated some gender differences in the influence explanatory variables had on fear, although not all achieved statistical significance. For both gender groups, respondents' perceptions of their neighborhood as orderly and satisfactory had the largest effect on perceptions. Gender-based differences in the outcome of the analyses further supported that males and females experienced fear based upon different factors.     

Incidental findings in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain research

The use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to investigate brain structure ("structural MRI") and function (so-called "functional MRI") has become increasingly common among neuroscientists, psychologists, and even economists in recent years. Yet, despite this increase in use, relatively little attention has been paid to the issue of incidental findings. The current paper discusses these issues, and anticipates the future of incidental findings in the context of other neuroimaging tools currently being used to investigate the living brain.     

Integration of Pre-Employment Polygraph Screening into the Police Selection Process

The authors provide a polygraph primer for police psychologists involved in law enforcement personnel selection. Law-enforcement pre-employment polygraph examinations are a decision-support tool intended to add incremental validity to the personnel selection process. Problems stemming from the use of the polygraph may be related to misunderstanding of the polygraph test and to field practices surrounding the use of polygraphy in the police selection process. Potential problems can result from ineffective selection of test issues, poorly constructed test questions and misguided policies surrounding the use of the polygraph. The authors review the history of polygraph screening, research, and field practices, and suggest that using polygraph results alone to disqualify a candidate from employment is a misguided field practice. Suggestions are offered for maximizing the decision-support value of the polygraph. Polygraph examination targets are discussed, with emphasis on selecting actuarially derived predictors associated with increased success in law enforcement training and job performance. The authors provide recommendations for field practice, and propose that police psychologists may be most suited to effectively integrate the polygraph results and information into the hiring recommendation process.     

THE INEQUITY AND INAPPROPRIATENESS OF APPLYING STATUTES OF LIMITATIONS TO CIVIL ACTIONS ARISING FROM CHILDHOOD SEXUAL ABUSE

This research examines the long-term consequences of childhood sexual abuse, the unique circumstances surrounding such abuse, and how these circumstances lead to victims being unable to expeditiously initiate civil action against their abusers. The unfairness and the inappropriateness of applying traditional time limitation principals to plaintiff victims of childhood sexual abuse are then discussed. Finally, a more equitable test to be applied to cases involving actions by adult victims of childhood sexual abuse against their abusers is proposed.     

Forensic applications of chemical imaging: latent fingerprint detection using visible absorption and luminescence

Chemical imaging technology is a rapid examination technique that combines molecular spectroscopy and digital imaging, providing information on morphology, composition, structure, and concentration of a material. Among many other applications, chemical imaging offers an array of novel analytical testing methods, which limits sample preparation and provides high-quality imaging data essential in the detection of latent fingerprints. Luminescence chemical imaging and visible absorbance chemical imaging have been successfully applied to ninhydrin, DFO, cyanoacrylate, and luminescent dye-treated latent fingerprints, demonstrating the potential of this technology to aid forensic investigations. In addition, visible absorption chemical imaging has been applied successfully to visualize untreated latent fingerprints.