Measuring Malapportionment

1964 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 302-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glendon Schubert ◽  
Charles Press
Keyword(s):  
Technical Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Majority Opinion ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Judicial Intervention ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Rational Consideration

In addition to the legal and political implications of the case, the United States Supreme Court's decision in Baker v. Carr brought sharply into public focus the technical problem of how to measure legislative malapportionment. The case itself exemplifies these various dimensions of the issue, for the majority opinion of Mr. Justice Clark and the dissenting opinion of Mr. Justice Harlan disagree not only regarding the law and the public policy of judicial intervention; they are also in manifest disagreement concerning “the facts” of malapportionment in Tennessee as of the time of the decision in March 1962. Our survey of the scholarly literature on the subject of apportionment, during the past decade, convinces us that the contributions of political scientists (and other commentators on the question) have made less than satisfactory progress thus far in the direction of devising an adequate metric to assist in the evaluation of what all concede is today a major problem in the theory and practice of democratic politics. In the absence of a reliable and valid method for measuring differences in apportionment along a common dimension, it is difficult to see how rational consideration of the normative aspects of the issue may be possible.

Public Interest Environmental Groups in the United States and Britain

1979 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy O'Riordan
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Environmental Groups ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
The Public ◽  
Pressure Groups ◽  
The Past ◽  
Political Function ◽  
The Subject

In a democratic political system policymaking takes place as a consequence of the clash of competing interests promoted in part by pressure groups. In the past many pressure groups operated in the shadows between the spotlight of intense publicity and the dark spaces where decision-takers and their advisers are to be found. More recently, especially in the case of the “ cause ” groups that form the subject of this analysis, pressure groups are working more consciously in the public arena both to arouse support and to widen the general understanding of the causes they espouse. Broadly speaking the political function of a pressure group is to recognize and publicize deficiencies in governmental activity; to try to influence in their favour governmental decisions; to provide information about events or problems that otherwise might not be available for decision-takers to consider; and, in some instances, to focus public attention on and increase public understanding of particular issues of wide social and moral significance.

scholarly journals Teaching Science in Today’s Society: The Case of Particle Physics for Primary Schools

Universe ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 169
Author(s):  
Cristina Lazzeroni ◽  
Sandra Malvezzi ◽  
Andrea Quadri
Keyword(s):  
Particle Physics ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Scientific Information ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Rapid Changes ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Ongoing Project

The rapid changes in science and technology witnessed in recent decades have significantly contributed to the arousal of the awareness by decision-makers and the public as a whole of the need to strengthen the connection between outreach activities of universities and research institutes and the activities of educational institutions, with a central role played by schools. While the relevance of the problem is nowadays unquestioned, no unique and fully satisfactory solution has been identified. In the present paper we would like to contribute to the discussion on the subject by reporting on an ongoing project aimed to teach Particle Physics in primary schools. We will start from the past and currently planned activities in this project in order to establish a broader framework to describe the conditions for the fruitful interplay between researchers and teachers. We will also emphasize some aspects related to the dissemination of outreach materials by research institutions, in order to promote the access and distribution of scientific information in a way suited to the different age of the target students.

scholarly journals United States response to the COVID-19 pandemic, January–November 2020

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Mathew Alexander ◽  
Lynn Unruh ◽  
Andriy Koval ◽  
William Belanger
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Health Response ◽  
Physical Infrastructure ◽  
Key Policy ◽  
United States Healthcare

Abstract As of November 2020, the United States leads the world in confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases and deaths. Over the past 10 months, the United States has experienced three peaks in new cases, with the most recent spike in November setting new records. Inaction and the lack of a scientifically informed, unified response have contributed to the sustained spread of COVID-19 in the United States. This paper describes major events and findings from the domestic response to COVID-19 from January to November 2020, including on preventing transmission, COVID-19 testing and contact tracing, ensuring sufficient physical infrastructure and healthcare workforce, paying for services, and governance. We further reflect on the public health response to-date and analyse the link between key policy decisions (e.g. closing, reopening) and COVID-19 cases in three states that are representative of the broader regions that have experienced spikes in cases. Finally, as we approach the winter months and undergo a change in national leadership, we highlight some considerations for the ongoing COVID-19 response and the broader United States healthcare system. These findings describe why the United States has failed to contain COVID-19 effectively to-date and can serve as a reference in the continued response to COVID-19 and future pandemics.

Patents for Critical Pharmaceuticals: The AZT Case

1991 ◽  
Vol 17 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 145-180
Author(s):  
Evan Ackiron
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Incentive System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Incentive Programs ◽  
The Past ◽  
Research And Innovation ◽  
Monopoly Pricing ◽  
Conflicting Interests ◽  
Necessary Evil ◽  
Near Future

Patents and other statutory types of market protections are used in the United States to promote scientific research and innovation. This incentive is especially important in research intensive fields such as the pharmaceutical industry. Unfortunately, these same protections often result in higher monopoly pricing once a successful product is brought to market. Usually this consequence is viewed as the necessary evil of an incentive system that encourages costly research and development by promising large rewards to the successful inventor. However, in the case of the AIDS drug Zidovudine (AZT), the high prices charged by the pharmaceutical company owning the drug have led to public outcry and a re-examination of government incentive systems.This Note traces the evolution of these incentive programs — the patent system, and, to a lesser extent, the orphan drug program — and details the conflicting interests involved in their development. It then demonstrates how the AZT problem brings the interest of providing inventors with incentives for risky innovative efforts into a sharp collision with the ultimate goal of such systems: ensuring that the public has access to the resulting products at a reasonable price. Finally, the Note describes how Congress and the courts have attempted to resolve these problems in the past, and how they might best try to solve the AZT problem in the near future.

Newsmaking criminology in Australia and New Zealand: Results from a mixed methods study of criminologists’ media engagement

2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Iliadis ◽  
Imogen Richards ◽  
Mark A Wood
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
News Media ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
The Past ◽  
Professional Duty ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Newsmaking Criminology

‘Newsmaking criminology’, as described by Barak, is the process by which criminologists contribute to the generation of ‘newsworthy’ media content about crime and justice, often through their engagement with broadcast and other news media. While newsmaking criminological practices have been the subject of detailed practitioner testimonials and theoretical treatise, there has been scarce empirical research on newsmaking criminology, particularly in relation to countries outside of the United States and United Kingdom. To illuminate the state of play of newsmaking criminology in Australia and New Zealand, in this paper we analyse findings from 116 survey responses and nine interviews with criminologists working in universities in these two countries, which provide insight into the extent and nature of their news media engagement, and their related perceptions. Our findings indicate that most criminologists working in Australia or New Zealand have made at least one news media appearance in the past two years, and the majority of respondents view news media engagement as a professional ‘duty’. Participants also identified key political, ethical, and logistical issues relevant to their news media engagement, with several expressing a view that radio and television interviewers can influence criminologists to say things that they deem ‘newsworthy’.

Aquatic Stewardship Education in Theory and Practice

2007 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Conservation Education ◽  
Federal Aid ◽  
Aquatic Resources ◽  
The Public ◽  
Excise Taxes ◽  
The Face ◽  
Fisheries Conservation ◽  
Sport Fish

<i>Abstract.</i>— In 1950, Congressman John Dingell (Michigan) and Senator Edwin Johnson cosponsored a piece of legislation that changed the face of fisheries conservation. The Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act (Public Law 81-681), also known as the Dingell- Johnson Act, allowed excise taxes collected on rods, reels, creels, and artificial baits to be placed into a special account for apportionment to the states. In 1984, the Sport Fish Restoration Act was further strengthened by additional legislation that increased available funds and formed the new Aquatic Resources trust fund. The Wallop-Breaux Amendment, in addition to increasing funds for conservation programs and boating access, allowed states to use up to 10% of the states’ annual apportionment on Aquatic Resources Education. Since 1984, states, nongovernmental organizations and industry have developed numerous programs that engage and educate the public on sound conservation issues that protect and enhance the environment for the next generation. This chapter provides an overview of successful, research-based conservation education programs that augment the overall effort to sustain the fisheries of the United States.

Playing the Past: Approaches to English Historical Drama, 1385–1600. By Benjamin Griffin. Woodbridge, Suffolk: D. S. Brewer, 2001; pp. xiii + 193. $70 cloth.

2004 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 307-309
Author(s):  
Paulette Marty
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Early Modern England ◽  
History Plays ◽  
Historical Drama ◽  
The Past ◽  
Dramatic Structure ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject ◽  
History Play

Benjamin Griffin takes an innovative approach to studying the history-play genre in early modern England. Rather than comparing history plays to their chronicle sources or interrogating their political implications, Griffin studies their relationships with other early modern English dramas, contextualizing them for “those who wish . . . to understand the history play by way of the history of plays” (xiii). He seeks to identify the genre's distinct characteristics by selecting a relatively broad spectrum of plays and examining their dramatic structure, their historical content, and their audiences' relationship to the subject matter.

scholarly journals Vulnerability due to Nocturnal Tornadoes

2008 ◽  
Vol 23 (5) ◽  
pp. 795-807 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walker S. Ashley ◽  
Andrew J. Krmenec ◽  
Rick Schwantes
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Building Structures ◽  
The Public ◽  
Mobile Homes ◽  
The Past ◽  
High Fatality Rate ◽  
Potential Break ◽  
Tornado Warning ◽  
Dissemination System

Abstract This study investigates the human vulnerability caused by tornadoes that occurred between sunset and sunrise from 1880 to 2007. Nocturnal tornadoes are theorized to enhance vulnerability because they are difficult to spot and occur when the public tends to be asleep and in weak building structures. Results illustrate that the nocturnal tornado death rate over the past century has not shared the same pace of decline as those events transpiring during the daytime. From 1950 to 2005, a mere 27.3% of tornadoes were nocturnal, yet 39.3% of tornado fatalities and 42.1% of killer tornado events occurred at night. Tornadoes during the overnight period (local midnight to sunrise) are 2.5 times as likely to kill as those occurring during the daytime hours. It is argued that a core reason why the national tornado fatality toll has not continued to decrease in the past few decades is due to the vulnerability to these nocturnal events. This vulnerability is magnified when other factors such as escalating mobile (or “manufactured”) home stock and an increasing and spreading population are realized. Unlike other structure types that show no robust demarcation between nocturnal and daytime fatalities, nearly 61% of fatalities in mobile homes take place at night revealing this housing stock’s distinct nocturnal tornado vulnerability. Further, spatial analysis illustrates that the American South’s high nocturnal tornado risk is an important factor leading to the region’s high fatality rate. The investigation emphasizes a potential break in the tornado warning dissemination system utilized currently in the United States.

An Introduction to Dynamic Programming

1961 ◽  
Vol 16 (04) ◽  
pp. 261-274
Author(s):  
Brian Gluss
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Programming ◽  
Small Body ◽  
Decision Processes ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Rand Corporation ◽  
The Past ◽  
Multi Stage ◽  
The Subject ◽  
New Research ◽  
General Mathematical Theory

Dynamic programming, a mathematical field that has grown up in the past few years, is recognized in the U.S.A. as an important new research tool. However, in other countries, little interest has as yet been taken in the subject, nor has much research been performed. The objective of this paper is to give an expository introduction to the field, and give an indication of the variety of actual and possible areas of application, including actuarial theory.In the last decade a large amount of research has been performed by a small body of mathematicians, most of them members of the staff of the RAND Corporation, in the field of multi-stage decision processes, and during this time the theory and practice of the art have experienced great advances. The leading force in these advances has been Richard Bellman, whose contributions to the subject, which he has entitledDynamic Programming[1], have had effects not only in immediate fields of application but also in general mathematical theory; for example, the calculus of variations (see chapter IX of [1]), and linear programming (chapter VI).

Transgender and Nonbinary Gender Policy in the Public Sector

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole M. Elias
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Public Agencies ◽  
Transgender People ◽  
The Public ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
The Past ◽  
Government Documents ◽  
Nonbinary Gender ◽  
And Gender

Our understanding and treatment of gender in the United States has evolved significantly over the past four decades. Transgender individuals in the current U.S. context enjoy more rights and protections than they have in the past; yet, room for progress remains. Moving beyond the traditional male–female binary, an unprecedented number of people now identify as transgender and nonbinary. Transgender identities are at the forefront of gender policy, prompting responses from public agencies at the local, state, and federal levels. Because transgender individuals face increased rates of discrimination, violence, and physical and mental health challenges, compared to their cisgender counterparts, new gender policy often affords legal protections as well as identity-affirming practices such as legal name and gender marker changes on government documents. These rights come from legal decisions, legislation, and administrative agency policies. Despite these victories, recent government action targeting the transgender population threatens the progress that has been made. This underscores the importance of comprehensive policies and education about transgender identities to protect the rights of transgender people.

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