Novalawcity

CHEAP GAS!

Now that I have your attention, I'd like to give a shout out to Grace York, Political Science Librarian and Coordinator of the Documents Center at the University of Michigan Library, and her talented library staff who continue rocking the government documents world with the unveiling of their latest Internet creation.  The Gasoline Prices web page is now available at http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/dn08/dn08gas.html.   

Chockful of information, the Gasoline Prices web page provides ample statistics regarding pump and crude oil prices, exchange rates, and oil reserves.  The site also addresses potential solutions to high prices due to supply and demand on the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the impact of gas tax holidays, and regulating commodity exchanges.

Fabulous features include the GasBuddy at http://www.gasbuddy.com.  This network permits users to search for the cheapest gas prices across the country and to add local fuel prices by state, county, and zip code.

UN Pulse: Audiovisual Library of International Law

Videos and audios of historic UN sessions and numerous lectures on International Law Topics are offered at this site from the United Nations. UNPulse

Where the Bill of Rights and Nigerian spam overlap

Click through to the Indexed blog to find out!

Florida food and lodging inspection reports

Courtesy of State Agency Database Highlights, here's a useful site to check before you travel around Florida.  The Florida Department of Business and Professional  Regulation has a database of Florida food and lodging inspection records that is searchable by name, license number, and city or county.

Mac law students: a resource for you

If you're a law student who uses a Mac, the Mac Law Students blog, written by 11 Mac-using law students from around the world, is a resource you may find useful. 

The most recent post there reviews eight Mac web browsers, paying particular attention to how they affect certain features in Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

Other recent posts include the iPhone's future for law students and lawyers; news about the California bar allowing use of Macs; advice on fixing a wi-fi connectivity glitch in a recent Leopard update;and reviews of applications for creating clippings files and visual timelines.

New Supreme Court wiki

From the authors of SCOTUS Blog comes another tool for keeping up with the Supreme Court, SCOTUS Wiki.

To learn more about the goals of the project and why the creators of the site chose the wiki format, read the About SCOTUS Wiki page.

Thanks to the University of Baltimore Law Library Blog for the tip.

YouTube gangster arrested

Miami police have arrested a local gang leader who taunted police in a YouTube video.  According to the Miami Herald:

In the clip -- filmed by Villanueva's girlfriend at Logan's apartment in December -- the two point rifles and handguns at the camera in a message apparently directed at the Miami-Dade police street gang unit.
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Agents found weapons and more than 800 rounds of ammunition at Logan's apartment, according to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday.
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Villanueva told investigators the video was meant to 'instill fear in people who will `roll up on me,' '' according to the criminal complaint. But the law enforcement community, which has seen four officers killed in the past six months, didn't take the video lightly.

View the video at the link.

Thanks to the Southern District of Florida Blog for the tip.

Charitable giving in Florida

State Agency Database Highlights features a website useful for Floridians making charitable donations: Gift Givers' Guide: A Guide to Charitable Giving in Florida, from the Florida Division of Consumer Services.  It provides data including the charity's license number, revenue, and what portion of funds goes toward program services, and what portion goes toward administrative and fundraising costs. In addition to many local results, sample searches turned up some national organizations.

Digital Federalist Papers

The Federalist Papers have been put online in a thoughtful and beautiful digital edition.  Read them here.

Edward O'Connor, the web developer who created this edition, has some interesting stats about which of the papers have received the most hits.  Read his thoughts here.

Thanks to the University of Baltimore Law Library Blog for the tip.

Need info on a future employer?

The NALP Directory of Legal Employers is a great resource for researching law firms.  It provides a vast array of useful data for job seekers.  Employer demographics and diversity, recruiting contacts, partnership track info, whether pro bono work is encouraged, whether and when part-time employment is allowed, billable hours required, where the employers interview, firm histories...and much more.  Bookmark it, and be prepared for your next interview!