Dr. Ronald B. Standler
personal website
Who is Dr. Standler?
By way of introduction, here is a terse synopsis of my career:
- programmed computers since 1968
(mostly numerical models of physical phenomena,
automatic collection of data from scientific instruments,
statistical analysis of data, and
design of numerical algorithms),
- earned a Ph.D. in physics in 1977,
- was a professor of electrical engineering for ten years,
- designed electronic circuits and instrumentation 1973-1989,
- wrote more than 35 archival technical papers and one book,
- consulted to litigators since 1981 on scientific evidence,
- and – since December 1998 – is an
attorney in Massachusetts, who concentrates in computer law, higher-education law, and
copyright law. I also consult nationwide with litigators on scientific evidence
in torts involving technology.
On a personal note, my principal hobbies are writing parodies or satires, and
arranging baroque or classical keyboard music for small wind/string ensembles.
I also spend hundreds of hours each year writing and revising
essays at my websites.
go to my professional website
If you are seeking either my essays on:
- computer law, law & technology,
- higher-education law,
- copyright law,
- privacy law,
- freedom of speech, and other topics in constitutional law,
- damage by lightning or electrical surges,
- fire hazards of surge suppressors,
or information on my services as an attorney or consultant, then please go to my
professional website.
My curriculum vitae
gives full details of my credentials,
including a bibliography of my publications.
How to contact me.
terms of service
I have posted my essays and humor here for people to enjoy,
but for neither copying nor distribution.
It is a violation of copyright law to make or to distribute
copies of any material here without my written permission.
Terms of Service
My disclaimer for errors and disclosure
that I have no financial interest in any suggestions or links that I make in
these pages.
My Essays
My annotated list of my favorite bookstores and sources for sheet music,
links to information about my favorite baroque and classical instrumental music,
my collections of links to my favorite websites, and
my comments and suggestions on computers and software that use Microsoft Windows.
My favorite software and hardware for the Apple
Mac OS 9, with emphasis on
wordprocessing, music notation software, and utility programs.
I have a separate webpage on Apple OS X.
My hints for writing webpages in HTML.
Some personal recollections on the
history of computers and computing since 1968.
My personal testimonial about Prof. Mario Iona, who greatly influenced me
during 1967-71, and my memory of him continues to inspire me.
People who live in northern climates often complain about snow in winter.
I posted a webpage about the snow in Concord, New Hampshire
during Dec 2007 to April 2008.
My Essays/Handouts on Education
My essay about creativity
in science and engineering, with emphasis on personality attributes
in highly creative people, and suggestions for education and
management of creative people.
In 1988, I wrote a discussion of essential
mathematical skills
that are needed by physics and electrical engineering students,
as a guide to the development of curriculum in mathematics departments
in high schools, two-year colleges, and four-year colleges.
My handout, Technical Writing,
contains style that physicists and electrical engineers
need to know (e.g., use of numbers in sentences, scientific units,
equations in text) for technical writing.
This handout also includes general material that all writers need to know
(e.g., common misuse of words in American English,
use of hyphens). I wrote the first draft of this handout in 1978,
when my engineering students needed help with writing style.
I have also posted
More About Writing
that contains links to other websites on writing style,
my recommendation of books about grammar and style,
some comments on differences between American and British English,
the use of the subjunctive mood in English, and other topics.
My essay on
Technical Babble discusses the misuse
of scientific or engineering terms by laymen, with examples from
judicial opinions in the USA.
My terse guide to legal research, format of citations, and style in
legal writing in the USA.
As a resource for students, I have posted at my professional website
my collection of
links to
legal resources in the USA.
My brief essay on Why Attend College?
in which I urge broader goals than merely acquiring vocational skills or
increasing one's earning potential. Earlier, I wrote a separate essay
on the value of a liberal arts education
for someone intending to earn a doctoral degree in science.
I have also posted lessons that I learned
from experience, as advice for students.
My essay,
Evaluating Credibility of Information on the Internet,
discusses how readers can make their own evaluation of credibility of
sources of information, instead of blindly relying on peer review, or
instead of ignoring non-peer-reviewed sources.
My personal comments on Prof. Al-Arian,
a tenured professor at the University of South Florida (USF),
whose employment was terminated by USF.
This case involves political speech, allegations of terrorism, and
allegations of violations of academic freedom.
As a resource for journalism students and law students,
I have posted at my professional website
examples of prejudicial pretrial publicity in newspapers for both
(1) the 1954 trial of
Sam Sheppard and
(2) the contemporary trial of
Joseph Smith,
who is accused in Florida of kidnapping, raping, and murdering a girl.
These two sets of examples support my long, technical legal essay
Pretrial Publicity Prevents a Fair Trial in the USA.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the U.S. Government gave generous financial
support to physics professors for scientific research and encouraged young
people to become scientists and engineers. However, during the 1970s and
1980s, the U.S. Government annihilated research funding in physics and
electrical engineering, leaving many scientists and engineers
unemployed. I have posted an essay
that sketches the history of funding for science and
suggests reasons for the drastic change in U.S. Government policy.
I have posted two provocative essays, one suggesting that the
recession of 2009
is partly caused by the lack of funding for scientific research, the other explaining reasons
for colleges' financial problems
in the USA.
In considering many examples of criminal or unethical conduct by
educated people and their subsequent specious excuses, I wondered if
more education makes people less moral.
My essay reviews some examples, discusses
the issues, and concludes that education has no effect on moral behavior.
In particular, I am skeptical that teaching ethics will affect behavior.
My essay on propaganda and how to recognize it.
My Essays on Politics and Law
During the security hysteria after 11 Sep 2001, I wrote a brief essay on the
Value of Dissent in a democracy.
In September 2005, during the confirmation of Chief Justice Roberts
to the U.S. Supreme Court, I wrote an essay,
Is "Judicial Activism" Bad?, that argues
that interpreting the U.S. Constitution according to the original meaning
of its authors in the year 1790 is undesirable.
My brief essay on How to
Select a Justice for the U.S. Supreme Court
reviews some history and gives my opinion.
My Essays on Legal History
As a resource for students, and other people interested in legal history,
I have posted:
- Quotations from Judge Wright finding Bill Clinton
in contempt in Jones v. Clinton, 36 F.Supp.2d 1118 (E.D.Ark. 1999),
and Bill Clinton's subsequent suspension from the practice of law in
Arkansas.
- A collection of links
to the Whitewater investigation, the Jones v. Clinton case,
and the impeachment of Bill Clinton.
- A history of the Oct 2005 confirmation of
Harriet Miers
to the U.S. Supreme Court, as a case study in how not to
select a nominee.
- A history of the confirmation of
Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court.
- HTML version of Alito's memorandum
to the Solicitor General about Thornburgh,
a case at the U.S. Supreme Court
involving a state statute on restrictions on abortion.
- Current! My history
of the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor
to the U.S. Supreme Court contains a detailed discussion of:
- the legal requirement that a judge be impartial — quotes the judicial oath,
federal statute, U.S. Supreme Court cases that hold that an impartial judge is a
constitutional requirement of due process, and the federal judicial code of conduct.
- the selection process, which is purely political and not based on objective merit,
- her statements that a "wise Latina" would be a better judge than a white male,
- how and why she was nominated,
- her membership in the Belizean Grove, an all-female organization,
and collects quotations of contemporary commentary with more than 200 links
to newspaper articles, blogs, and government documents.
- Nicely formatted, printable Adobe PDF version of Ricci v. DeStefano,
a case in which Judge Sotomayor was a member of a three-judge panel that
wrote an inadequate appellate opinion. I have included the pagination from the West Reporter.
- My terse history of the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001,
explaining why Congress hastily passed this unconstitutional Act in Oct 2001,
including quotations from senators and newspapers to capture the mood at that time, and
including links to other websites.
- My technical legal essay on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)
in the USA.
- A history of the illegal Terrorist Surveillance Program
in the USA during the years 2002-2006, including quotations and links.
- A history of National Security Letters (NSLs) in the USA,
a type of administrative subpoena, including quotations and links. I explain why some
NSLs are unconstitutional.
- A history of attempts to modify
the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act after July 2007,
including the hasty "Protect America Act of 2007" and the
"FISA Amendments Act of 2008".
This essay chronicles how Americans lost some privacy rights.
Seeking Employment
I am currently seeking employment in a university, nonprofit research
institute, or a high-technology company.
My resume is posted here.
Candidates for a new faculty position,
as well as professors who seek promotion or tenure, in
universities in the USA prepare a statement that explains their
teaching style and
their commitment to teaching.
My Humor
Note:
I have posted my essays and humor here for people to enjoy,
but for neither copying nor distribution.
It is a violation of copyright law to make or to distribute
copies of any material here without my written permission.
Terms of Service
My annotation of Der Froschkönig,
a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, to show the underlying
lesson in law. There are both serious and
humorous points in my annotation. There is another fairy tale about
The Elves and the Shoemaker, to which I have
added an algebra problem. <giggle>
Here is my parody
of the Millennium celebrations planned for 1 Jan 2000.
Thinking of attending school for a year to earn a MBA degree?
Save your time and money — instead, read my two pages of
Rules of Management!
My favorite Christmas card was drawn by
Sandra Boynton in 1980.
My favorite comic strips in American newspapers.
Formal writing by attorneys is often pompous and pretentious, which makes
an attractive target for parodies and satires. <grin>
Here are some of my legal parodies:
- An agreement between the Easter Bunny and me
for the distribution of candy to women in blighted areas, such as the
law school.
- The Statute of Trolls, which regulates the
placement of Trolls beneath bridges, complete with annotations to
court cases and a legislative history.
Copyright 1997-2009 by Ronald B. Standler
This document is at
http://www.rbs0.com/index.htm
revised 26 June 2009
Terms of Service
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