Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Wednesday, March 07, 2012
The Creation of the Congressional Record
Monday, March 5 marked the anniversary of the creation of the Congressional Record! Click here to read more about this historical highlight.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
New Book Spotlight
I Know Who You Are and I Saw What You Did: Social Networks and the Death of Privacy by Lori Andrews
Lori Andrews tackles a dificult and controversial topic in her new book. Before social networks and media, privacy and information was a much more defined issue, with legislation and ideologies that many, if not all, could agree on. At the very least, most could agree on what the problem was, what possible barriers could be erected to keep information private and the scope of available remedies that could try to make a person whose privacy has been invaded whole in the eyes of the law, if not in the eyes of their community or their family.
"Social networks are the defining cultural movement of our time, empowering us in constantly evolving ways. We can all now be reporters, altering the world to breaking news of a natural disaster; we can participate in crowd-sourced scientific research; and we can become investigators, helping the police solve crimes. Social networks have even helped to bring down governments. But they have also greatly accelerated the erosion of our personal privacy rights, and any one of us could become the victim of shocking violations at any time.....The same power of information that can topple governments can destroy a person's career or marriage." (Book jacket excerpt, para. 1)
The New York Times Book Review begins its review by noting, "It may surprise anyone under 16, but even before the advent of social networking we faced threats to our privacy. A hospital accidentally releasing patient records or a shady marketing firm engaging in Stasi-like data collection — such violations were substantial enough and disturbing enough to make the evening news. Today, however, the “death of privacy” is more like death by a thousand cuts: information leaks out slowly and invisibly, and so routinely that we’re hardly shocked when it does [emphasis added]. Internet companies, which use the word “sharing” almost as a euphemism for “oops,” like to pretend these lapses are normal, even natural. If Mark Zuckerberg’s private photos are up for grabs (as when a recent glitch exposed his Facebook account), what can the rest of us expect?" New York Times Book Review Link
The New York Times Review has both praise and criticism for Andrews' book, especially noting some difficulty with her proposed solutions to the threat of the death of privacy at the hands of social networking. It is worth the time to read the book for yourself to evaluate this important legal issue to make up your own mind on this issue. Some of the relevlations will shock you and some will not impact your personal views of social media and privacy as much as others, but you can be assured of one thing...as a societal and legal issue...this is a problem that is not going away on its own.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Lori Andrews tackles a dificult and controversial topic in her new book. Before social networks and media, privacy and information was a much more defined issue, with legislation and ideologies that many, if not all, could agree on. At the very least, most could agree on what the problem was, what possible barriers could be erected to keep information private and the scope of available remedies that could try to make a person whose privacy has been invaded whole in the eyes of the law, if not in the eyes of their community or their family.
"Social networks are the defining cultural movement of our time, empowering us in constantly evolving ways. We can all now be reporters, altering the world to breaking news of a natural disaster; we can participate in crowd-sourced scientific research; and we can become investigators, helping the police solve crimes. Social networks have even helped to bring down governments. But they have also greatly accelerated the erosion of our personal privacy rights, and any one of us could become the victim of shocking violations at any time.....The same power of information that can topple governments can destroy a person's career or marriage." (Book jacket excerpt, para. 1)
The New York Times Book Review begins its review by noting, "It may surprise anyone under 16, but even before the advent of social networking we faced threats to our privacy. A hospital accidentally releasing patient records or a shady marketing firm engaging in Stasi-like data collection — such violations were substantial enough and disturbing enough to make the evening news. Today, however, the “death of privacy” is more like death by a thousand cuts: information leaks out slowly and invisibly, and so routinely that we’re hardly shocked when it does [emphasis added]. Internet companies, which use the word “sharing” almost as a euphemism for “oops,” like to pretend these lapses are normal, even natural. If Mark Zuckerberg’s private photos are up for grabs (as when a recent glitch exposed his Facebook account), what can the rest of us expect?" New York Times Book Review Link
The New York Times Review has both praise and criticism for Andrews' book, especially noting some difficulty with her proposed solutions to the threat of the death of privacy at the hands of social networking. It is worth the time to read the book for yourself to evaluate this important legal issue to make up your own mind on this issue. Some of the relevlations will shock you and some will not impact your personal views of social media and privacy as much as others, but you can be assured of one thing...as a societal and legal issue...this is a problem that is not going away on its own.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Monday, March 05, 2012
Universal Human Rights Index
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) at the United Nations has created a database of country reports emanating from the United Nations human rights protection system. The Universal Human Rights Index (Index) is designed primarily to
facilitate access to human rights recommendations issued by three key
pillars of the
UN human rights protection system: the Treaty Bodies established under
international human rights treaties as well as the Special Procedures,
and the
Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the Human Rights Council.
The Index is the only on-line tool compiling recommendations from the treaty bodies, the special procedures and the Universal Periodic Review. A unique feature of the Index is to enable the user to access and search treaty body, special procedures and UPR recommendations through several categories: State, right, body, affected person and, for the UPR, the State(s) that made the recommendation, the position of the State under Review, and the session.
Hat Tip to Library Boy
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
The Index is the only on-line tool compiling recommendations from the treaty bodies, the special procedures and the Universal Periodic Review. A unique feature of the Index is to enable the user to access and search treaty body, special procedures and UPR recommendations through several categories: State, right, body, affected person and, for the UPR, the State(s) that made the recommendation, the position of the State under Review, and the session.
Hat Tip to Library Boy
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Sunday, March 04, 2012
BNA Internet Law Resource Center
If you are interested in legal issues concerning cyberlaw topics
such as online defamation, computer crimes, workplace privacy, internet patents and more take a look at BNA's Internet Law Resource Center. This resource provides full text case law, statutes & regulations, pleadings, motions, expert insight and more.
To access BNA Internet Law Resource Center:
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
To access BNA Internet Law Resource Center:
- Go to the Library's home page, click "Online Resources"
- Click the "Commercial and Corporate Law" link
- Scroll down to "Internet Law Resource Center"
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Friday, March 02, 2012
Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss
In honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday, I will share some of his wisdom, much of which has great relevance for law students and attorneys.
On logical reasoning: "The storm starts, when the drops start dropping. When the drops stop dropping then the storm starts stopping.”
On education: “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
On civil rights: “A person's a person, no matter how small.”
On keeping perspective: “From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere!”
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
On logical reasoning: "The storm starts, when the drops start dropping. When the drops stop dropping then the storm starts stopping.”
On education: “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
On civil rights: “A person's a person, no matter how small.”
On keeping perspective: “From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere!”
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Thursday, March 01, 2012
Economic Report of the President, 2012
The Economic Report of the President, 2012 is
now available from the U.S. Government Printing Office. It is issued by the
Executive Office of the President and the Council of Economic Advisers, and
transmitted to the Congress no later than ten days after the submission of the
Budget of the United States Government. The Economic Report of the President is
available on FDsys.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
New HeinOnline Training Guides
Nearly all law students use HeinOnline, but it's not always clear how to construct a search and use many of the features in the HeinOnline libraries. The good news is that HeinOnline has some new, free and downloadable training guides, all available here. For search tips, a guide to the HeinOnline app for iPhone or iPad, the Quick Reference Guide to the HeinOnline Law Journal Library, and more, be sure to check out these brief, useful guides to more effective HeinOnline research.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Research Resources: Making of Modern Law (MOML) Legal Treatises 1800-1926
The Making of Modern Law is a fully searchable database that provides access to a historical collection of American and British legal treatises and other law-related works from the 19th to the early 20th century.
To access The Making of Modern Law:
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
To access The Making of Modern Law:
- Go to the Library's home page, click "Online Resources"
- Click the "History/Legal History" link
- Scroll down to "Making of Modern Law - Legal Treatises"
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Monday, February 27, 2012
Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law Online
The Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law Online is a comprehensive resource of scholarly essays on every aspect of public international law. New articles are added on a regular basis and older articles are updated. Browse articles by subject or conduct a search either basic or advanced.
This is a wonderful resource for those who need a concise and scholarly explanation of public international law concepts. Articles selected for publication within the Encyclopedia has been chosen to reflect not only the history of public international law, but also recent growth areas such as criminal law, human rights law, economic law, and environmental law.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
This is a wonderful resource for those who need a concise and scholarly explanation of public international law concepts. Articles selected for publication within the Encyclopedia has been chosen to reflect not only the history of public international law, but also recent growth areas such as criminal law, human rights law, economic law, and environmental law.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Sunday, February 26, 2012
The 25 Greatest Television and Film Lawyers
In the spirit of the Academy Awards, the ABA Journal has compiled a
list of the 25 greatest fictional lawyers in television and film. The journal compiled the list by surveying lawyers on their favorite picks. Some of the fictional lawyers include Charles W. Kingsfield Jr., The Paper Chase; Vincent "Vinny" Gambini, My Cousin Vinny; Henry Drummond, Inherit the Wind and more. See the complete article and list of the greatest fictional lawyers here.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat
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