Legal Research

FederalRegister.gov

Posted on July 27, 2010
A new way to use and search the Federal Register is now available for free at FederalRegister.gov. It has the appearance of a news source. The current issue (previous day's activities) is the front page and there is a browse by date. Content may be browsed by notices, proposed rules, final rules, presidential documents, subject, agency or "What's Hot"...

Practical Law Company

Posted on July 25, 2010
Practical Law Company is currently offering free accounts to law students. PLC offers useful practice commentaries, checklists, and forms for attorneys. PLC is well-known in the UK, but they have just started to offer content for U.S. attorneys. Their U...

New York Bar Exam Stories

Posted on July 24, 2010
It's cool and comfortable here in the library, but even a virtual feline can't help noticing that the stress-filled final days before the New York Bar Exam are here. Bar exam stories (great for a quick study break) are all over the web, but there's a particularly interesting blog post about some "legendary screw-ups" made in past years--not by those taking the New York exam, but by the system examining them...

From Unearthly Landscapes On Earth, To The Truly Unearthly

Posted on July 22, 2010
Escaping from the Earth is the ultimate Summer vacation. Do so vicariously by having a look at some of the superb images taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

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Privacy or the Lack thereof on the Internet

Posted on July 20, 2010
You may or may not be concerned about your privacy or lack of privacy on the web. Social networking such as Facebook, twitter and LinkedIn have their issues; and the way your use of the web is tracked raises other issues. Should you be concerned about privacy? Check out:Social Networking Privacy: Something to Tweet About; and,E-Monitoring and the First Amendment: What Can Tech Do?Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

People's Court Testimony Not Good Enough for Brooklyn Supreme Court

Posted on July 18, 2010
It turns out that The People's Court isn't quite the same as a real state court. Last week, a judge in Brooklyn found that testimony from the show could not be relied on in NY Supreme Court. However, the city might appeal the decision, which probably also affects testimony given before Judge Judy and Judge Joe Brown...

West Research Attorneys Blog

Posted on July 17, 2010
It's midsummer, and many law students are under pressure at summer associate and internship positions to quickly produce documents and research. This year help is available from one more source--the West Research Attorneys Summer Associate Blog. Twenty West research attorneys (those folks who answer phone and Live Help questions for Westlaw users) contribute and edit the frequent posts with great tips and "where to find it" citations...

The Most Alien-Looking Place On Earth?

Posted on July 15, 2010
Look at these photos of Socotra Island, in the Indian Ocean, and decide for yourself.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

George Steinbrenner

Posted on July 13, 2010
The end of an era: the Yankee's owner George Steinbrenner has died from a heart attack. Steinbrenner has owned the Yankees since 1973 and during that time they earned 11 pennants and 7 World Series titles. Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Independence Day!

Posted on July 06, 2010
Hope everyone had a fun and safe Independence Day. An interesting side note: scientists at the Library of Congress recently discovered that when Thomas Jefferson was working on a draft of the Declaration of Indepedence, he first wrote the word "subjects", wiped it out, and replaced with the word "citizens"...

Do You REALLY Want To Get Away From It All?

Posted on July 01, 2010
If so, then have a look at some striking photos and descriptions of a few of the most isolated places on Earth.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Books about the Credit Crisis

Posted on June 30, 2010
Are you looking for books about the credit crisis? This New York Times article reviews books about the collapse of Bear Stearns and Goldman Sachs. Enjoy!Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Right Brain vs Left Brain test

Posted on June 29, 2010
Just for fun, check out the Right Brain vs Left Brain test. Do you see the dancer turning clockwise or counter-clockwise? And can you get her to change direction? Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Friday's Feline Filosophy

Posted on June 25, 2010
As Albert Schweitzer said, "there are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats." You know where to find the cat, but did you know that all Hofstra students also have access to music online . . . for free???If not, then check out the Naxos Music Library available through Axinn Library's Research Databases (you will be prompted to log into the portal...

More On Visual Illusions

Posted on June 24, 2010
Those who enjoyed last week's post on optical illusions may also find this brief but illuminating explanation of visual illusions, and what they reveal about the brain?s assumptions, to be of interest.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Word as Web App. v. Google Docs v. Word

Posted on June 22, 2010
Microsoft recently released a version of Word as a web application and Google has updated Google docs. How do these compare with the desktop version of Word? Checkout the Affinity Consulting Group article Microsoft Office Word Web App v. Google Docs...

End of term

Posted on June 18, 2010
Follow the wrap of the Supreme Court's 09-10 term on SCOTUSBLOG . You can also keep up-to-date with any developments on Elena Kagan's confirmation. Check out the sister site - SCOTUS WIKI for stats on the Supreme Court. These stats rival those kept by baseball...

Optical Illusions And Visual Phenomena

Posted on June 17, 2010
Do those phosphenes that arise from looking too long into the Sun while you are on the beach puzzle you? If so, then here are some more straightforward, man-made optical illusions that offer interesting insight into, and raise intriguing questions about, human visual perception...

Human Rights Watch Film Festival

Posted on June 16, 2010
There is still time to catch a film at the New York Human Rights Watch Film Festival. The line-up includes a film about immigration reform, genocide in Cambodia and the Mexican criminal justice system.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Elena Kagan's Documents

Posted on June 12, 2010
Senate confirmation hearings for former Harvard Law School Dean Elena Kagan, U.S. Supreme Court nominee, are scheduled to begin June 28. While the media has featured and critiqued a small number of the documents released this month from Kagan's time working in the Clinton administration and as law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, the best way to discover and assess the nominee as attorney and thinker is to read some of her writings for yourself...

Google Voice for Students

Posted on June 11, 2010
Do you have too many phone numbers? Google Voice has a nifty solution and is now available to anyone with a .edu email address without knowing anyone with an invite. Some of the cool features include getting voice mail sent to e-mail, sending free text messages, and reading voice-mail transcriptions...

Unusual And Marvelous Maps

Posted on June 10, 2010
While we would not recommend them as current guides to Summer travel, these antique maps, which show sea serpents and other monsters devouring ships over huge expanses of the ocean, fascinatingly reflect to us how the world appeared to our forebears.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Your Brain on Computers

Posted on June 08, 2010
The New York Times recently published a series of articles (Your Brain on Computers) discussing the effect computers appear to have on our brains. The comments "highlights" are worth reading for the different perspectives.It is food for thought. Technology is a wonderful tool, but it is worth a moment to think about how and why we use the technology that we do...

Legal Twitter

Posted on June 06, 2010
This is a list of the top 100 legal Twitter feeds, some of which are very useful and informative. Depending on your interests, you may choose to follow one or two of the people listed here on Twitter.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

the Kindle in Colleges

Posted on June 04, 2010
Think it would be great to have all your textbooks in Kindle format? It seems like a great idea, but apparently, the Kindle has not yet gained favor in college campuses. Read this for an interesting discussion.Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

You have the right to remain silent

Posted on June 01, 2010
We are all familiar with the Miranda Warning from television. Today the U.S. Supreme Court handed down an opinion (Berguis v. Thompkins) that tilted the warnings procedure towards the police. Criminal suspects must explicitly invoke their right to remain silent...

The Environmental Impact of Google Searches

Posted on May 30, 2010
Although internet searches may not appear to have any environmental impact, they require servers, which require electricity. You may have even heard the rumor that every Google search uses as much energy as a 100 watt light bulb uses in one hour. This is not true...

Global News on the Go

Posted on May 29, 2010
Summer is here, and unless you are taking the Bar exam, study or travel abroad may be in your immediate future. Take a few minutes to become familiar with two very different, but complementary, online news sources before you take off on international adventures...

Enjoy the weekend!!!

Posted on May 28, 2010
I for one am looking forward to a nice long weekend and many cat naps. We will be open Saturday and Sunday but will be closed on Monday.For a little fun over the weekend, check out wackyuses.com . You can great tips here like using plain yogurt to sooth the sunburn you get if you plan to get to the beach on this unofficial start of summer...

New Spider Species Discovered In Sand Dune

Posted on May 27, 2010
Last week, we alerted Summer sojourners to the beginning of the common ?creepy-crawly? season with some interesting insect macro-photography. This week, take a look at a very uncommon creeper, a prettily-colored new species of spider that was recently discovered in the Sands of Samar in Israel...

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