Null Findings Contest Rules

Contest Official Rules

PLEASE REVIEW THESE OFFICIAL RULES BEFORE ENTERING THE CONTEST. ENTRANTS WHO ARE MINORS: YOU MUST OBTAIN THE CONSENT OF YOUR PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN BEFORE ENTERING THE CONTEST.

ENTRY TO THE CONTEST IS FREE AND NO PAYMENT OR PURCHASE IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN, EXCEPT FOR THE STANDARD CHARGES OF YOUR INTERNET ACCESS PROVIDER. A PAYMENT OR PURCHASE WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

BY ENTERING THE CONTEST, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ AND AGREE TO THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES TERMS OF SERVICE AND PRIVACY STATEMENT

SECTION A - SPECIFIC TERMS FOR THIS CONTEST

Sponsor. The American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies Paper Contest (the "Contest") is an online contest with skill, ability and knowledge components that is sponsored by Future Science Ventures, Inc., a Delaware corporation having its principal office at 812 Sears St., Philadelphia, PA 19125, USA ("Sponsor"), in connection with the American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies service and website, www.americanjournals.org, (the "Sponsor Site"). The Contest is co-sponsored by the company or companies listed here, if any (each, a "Co-Sponsor").: The Contest is governed by these Official Rules (these "Rules"). For any questions regarding the Contest, the Sponsor may be contacted by email at [service@American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies.com] or by mail at the address identified in Section B.16 ("Winner's List; Mailing List") below.
Overview; Objective of the Contest. The objective of the Contest is to Submit an original research paper that meets the format, content and other requirements identified in Section A.5 ("How to Enter") below. All currency value references in these Official Rules are as indicated.
Eligibility. THE CONTEST IS OPEN ONLY TO NATURAL PERSONS WHO, AT THE TIME OF ENTRY, ARE REGISTERED MEMBERS OF THE SITE, WHO ARE AT LEAST THIRTEEN (13) YEARS OLD, AND NOT RESIDENTS OF ANY COUNTRY OR REGION SUBJECT TO A US TRADE EMBARGO (AS OF SEPTEMBER 2017 NORTH KOREA, SYRIA, SUDAN, CUBA, IRAN, RUSSIA, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, AND THE REGION OF CRIMEA) AS WELL AS: BRAZIL, ITALY, ARGENTINA, TURKEY, ROMANIA, POLAND, OR THE PROVINCE OF QUEBEC, CANADA. If on the Start Date you are a "minor," meaning that you are under the age of majority in your jurisdiction, you must obtain permission from your parent or legal guardian, and your parent or legal guardian must consent to be bound by these Rules as if he or she were an entrant, before you submit an entry. Sponsor reserves the right to require minors to submit proof of parental/guardian permission and consent to these Rules at any time, without which they may be immediately disqualified from the Contest. Certain individuals are excluded from eligibility to enter or win, as described in Section B below. No purchase or payment is necessary to enter the Contest or to become a registered member of the Sponsor Site, and no purchase or payment, including choosing to purchase any "American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies Pro" or other paid membership to the Sponsor Site will improve your chances of winning in any way.
Deadline. The Contest begins at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time (ET)/on April 24th, 2022(the "Start Date"). Entries for the Contest must be received by Sponsor by no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on October 1, 2023 /(the "Deadline").
How to Enter. All entries must comply with the entry requirements identified in these Rules (including in this Section and in Section B below), as well as with any specific formatting or content requirements identified in the author guidelines on the Sponsor Site. It is each entrant's responsibility to ensure compliance with those requirements.

Entry by submitting a new paper. To enter a new project in the Contest, you must first submit your paper to the American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies. Author guidelines are available here. Papers should be submitted through the submission portal. Select "yes" when asked whether you are submitting your article to our Null Findings contest, then finish your submission.

NOT ALL SUBMISSIONS ARE ELIGIBLE. Papers submitted for this contest must be academic research papers. As such, they must pass initial screening by the Sponsor and peer review by other academics in the field. Initial screening includes ensuring that the submission is a scholarly article. Further, submitted papers must propose at least one hypothesis, test that hypothesis and report a null finding (that is, they must fail to reject the null hypothesis). If the submission passes Sponsor's editorial check, it will be sent out for peer review. The peer review process is outlined in the author guidelines.

Only those articles that pass both the initial screening and peer review will be eligible for the contest. If you receive a rejection, you will be eliminated from the contest.
When your project is ready to be published (meaning it has passed the peer review process outlined in the Terms of Service/How to Submit) to the Sponsor Site, your paper will be eligible for participation in the Contest. Please note: the publication of your paper on the Sponsor Site requires you to cede copyright to the Sponsor in perpetuity.
When you publish your paper to the Sponsor Site, your paper will be entered into the Contest.
Winner Selection. There will be 4 total winner(s) for the Contest. The winner(s) will be selected on or around Janury 31, 2024, and Sponsor will announce the winner(s) on or around February 5th, 2024. If no winner is agreed upon, the selection date will be delayed until a winner can be selected. Each winner will be awarded only the prize(s) for which that winner was selected, as described below. If a winning paper has multiple authors, the entrant is solely responsible for the disbursement of prize among their co-authors.
Prize(s). IF THE WINNER IS A RESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, the prize(s) to be awarded in the Contest is/are as follows:
First Prize (1 winner): One Grand Prize Winner will receive:
$2,500 Cashier’s Check
Second Prize (1 winner): Three First Prize Winners will receive:
$1,500 Cashier’s Check
Third Prize (2 winners): Five Second Prize Winners will receive:
$500 Cashier’s Check
IF THE WINNER IS A RESIDENT OF ANY OTHER ELIGIBLE COUNTRY, then the winner will receive a gift card that can be used in their country of residence (e.g., a Tango card or international Visa ) which can be converted from the estimated value for the applicable prize in USD into the local currency of the winner’s country of residence at the time of issuance. Tango Cards are subject to the third-party terms applicable to such card. You can find additional information at https://www.tangocard.com/
If a stated prize is unavailable, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion, Sponsor has the right to substitute one or more items of equal or greater value, in its discretion.
The total estimated retail value of all prizes to be awarded in the Contest is: $5000 USD. (CURRENCY CONVERTER)
Judging. All entries that are in compliance with all terms and conditions of these Rules will be judged on the basis of the following criteria (the "Criteria"): clarity, ingenuity, and quality of presentation of research paper. Sponsor will establish a panel of at least four (4) individuals (each, a "Judge"), including at least the following: Editor of Pertinent Category and associate editors. Two Judges from Sponsor's editorial staff will choose 10 finalists from the pool of all eligible entries as specified below. Finalists will be judged by the full panel of Judges. In choosing the winner(s), the Judges will judge each finalist on the Criteria and the Judging Process as described in Section B below. THE DECISIONS OF SPONSOR AND THE JUDGES WILL BE FINAL. SPONSOR WILL NOT CORRESPOND WITH ENTRANTS ABOUT THE DECISIONS OF THE JUDGES OR THE DETERMINATION OF THE WINNERS OTHER THAN AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED IN THE RULES.
Judging Process. The winner(s) will be determined through two (2) rounds of judging, as described below:
Selection of Finalists: In the first round, after the Voting Period closes, Judges from the Sponsor's staff will rank each eligible entry on the basis of a composite score based on the Criteria, assigning equal weight to each of the Criteria. The entries with the highest scores will qualify as finalists, and the number of finalists selected will be as identified in Section A above.
Selection of Winner(s): In the second round, the Judges will apply the Criteria to evaluate the finalists, using a range voting method, assigning a value between 0-9 to each finalist. The finalist(s) with the highest score(s) will be selected as the winner(s), and the number and type of winners will be as identified in Section A above. Any ties will be broken using the median ballot rating approach (the entry with the highest median score wins).
Disqualification: The Judges have the right to disqualify any entry that is not in compliance with these Rules. In the event that a winning entry is disqualified, the next-highest scoring entry will be selected as the alternate winner. In the event that one or more of the identified Judges is unavailable, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute Judges of comparable qualification, to be determined by Sponsor in its discretion.
The Contest is entirely skill-based and contains no elements based on chance. The standards applied during the judging process focuses on assessing each entry's properties. By the mere submission of an entry, an entrant acquires no automatic right to be awarded a prize, nor any other right except for the right to have such entry reviewed and evaluated subject to these Rules.
Size of Entry Pool. Winning entries will be selected by the Judges in accordance with the Criteria as described in these Rules. The chances of any entry winning a prize depends on the number of eligible entries received between the Start Date and the Deadline and the quality of that entry as compared to the other eligible entries, as evaluated by the Judges in the manner described above. Sponsor does not know in advance the number of eligible entries that will be received.

SECTION B - ADDITIONAL TERMS FOR THIS CONTEST

General Conditions. By entering the Contest, each entrant agrees to abide by the terms of these Rules and by the decisions of Sponsor and the Judges, which shall be made in all cases in their sole and absolute discretion and are final and binding on all matters relating to the Contest. These Rules are a legally binding contract, with equivalent effect to a private contract between each entrant and Sponsor. The Contest is void where prohibited by law. The Contest is governed by Sponsor's Terms of Service and Privacy Statement and other policies (collectively, the "Policies") pertaining to the Sponsor Site, although the Rules will govern any conflict between the Rules and the Sponsor's Terms or the Rules and the Privacy Statement.
Exclusions from Eligibility. The following parties may submit entries in the Contest, but any such entries are for information and entertainment purposes only and are not eligible to be considered for the purpose of selecting finalists or winners: (A) Employees of Sponsor, any Co-Sponsor, or their respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, suppliers, or advertising or promotional agencies (including without limitation any Judges who are employees of Sponsor, any Co-Sponsor or any of their respective parents, subsidiaries, or affiliates), as well as members of their households or their immediate families (i.e., spouses, parents and children), and (B) any individual who has been employed by Sponsor or any Co-Sponsor at any time during the five year period prior to the Deadline, as well as members of their households or their immediate families (i.e., spouses, parents and children). Judges who are not employees of Sponsor, any Co-Sponsor or any of their respective parents, subsidiaries, or affiliates, are not eligible to enter or win, nor are members of their households or their immediate families (i.e., spouses, parents and children). Notwithstanding the foregoing, Sponsor shall have no liability to any entrant or any other person in the event that Sponsor inadvertently awards a prize to any non-eligible person(s). In addition, Sponsor has no obligation to permit entry or award a prize if doing so would violate the Policies or is prohibited by United States or other applicable Laws, including but not limited to Laws regarding (a) trade embargoes, (b) government sanctions or export restrictions against countries, entities, or individuals, or (c) dealings with officials or representatives of non-U.S. governments. Sponsor’s determination that an entrant is (or is not) legally prohibited from entering or receiving a prize will be conclusive, and Sponsor shall have no liability to any entrant or any other person in connection with such determination.
Entry. An entrant is the submitting author on a paper. Multiple entries are permitted, but only one entry per entrant can win a prize in the Contest. Entrants must be registered members of the Sponsor Site to enter the Contest. Registering for a Sponsor Site membership account for purposes of entering the Contest is free of charge. Entries can be the work of more than one person, but for purposes of the Contest, each entry will belong to the "Primary Author" named in the entry, regardless of the number of contributors to that entry. For winning entries, Sponsor will award the applicable prize to the named entrant only, except in the case of a minor, to such minor's named parent or legal guardian only unless specific consent from such parent or legal guardian to award the prize to such minor in accordance has been obtained by way of a duly signed Winner's Declaration and Release (See Section A.7 above), and will not be responsible or liable for apportioning any prize among contributors to a winning entry. Upon submission, all entries become subject to the Policies (including without limitation the provisions regarding ownership and use of user submissions as stated in Sponsor's Terms of Service and further described in Section B.13 ("Advertising and Marketing"). Notwithstanding the foregoing, entries to the Contest shall only be valid after the entry is accepted by Sponsor, and its acceptance occurs at Sponsor's location in the United States. Entries will not be acknowledged or returned. Entrants are permitted to modify or update an entry after submission, but are not permitted to do so after the Deadline. Entries may remain posted on the Contest page of the Sponsor Site indefinitely following the Deadline, but Sponsor reserves the right to delete entries from the Contest page after the Contest ends, in its discretion, and Sponsor reserves the right to delete entries from the Contest page and other pages of the Sponsor Site, at any time in its discretion, if such entries infringe or may infringe any third party's rights. Entries may not be created or submitted through any software-generated, robotic, programmed, script, macro, or other automated method. Sponsor and Co-Sponsor will have no responsibility for, and will have the right to refuse in its discretion, any entries that have been tampered with, or entries that are misdirected, incomplete, non-conforming, corrupt, lost, late, or ineligible, whether due to Internet or e-mail server failure or otherwise. Proof of transmission of an entry shall not constitute proof of receipt. It is each entrant's responsibility to keep Sponsor informed of any changes to entrant's contact or other information during the Contest.
Use of Personal Information. Registering for an account with the Sponsor Site, which is required to enter the Contest, may require each entrant to submit entrant's name, email address, age or date of birth, and other contact details, and in the case of a minor, contact details for a parent or legal guardian for purposes of obtaining proof of parental consent, if Sponsor elects to do so. For further information concerning how Sponsor handles personal information, as well as provisions on confidentiality and the cases in which Sponsor may be entitled to disclose entrant's information to third parties or upon request of an authority, consult Sponsor's Privacy Statement, which is incorporated herein.
Additional Entry Requirements. Each entry must comply in all respects with the Policies, including without limitation all requirements for user submissions, as stated in the Terms of Service for the Sponsor Site. Without limiting that requirement, each entry also must comply with the following:
Each entry must be entirely the original work of the persons identified in the entry;
If persons other than the entrant have contributed to an entry, the entrant must have the written permission from each contributor prior to submitting the entry;
Unless otherwise specified on the "How to Enter" page for the Contest on the Sponsor Site, entries must not have been published prior to the Start Date;
Entries must not contain anything that is or may be: (i) threatening, harassing, degrading or hateful; (ii) defamatory; (iii) fraudulent or tortious; (iv) obscene, indecent or otherwise objectionable; (v) deemed to cause feelings of disharmony, enmity, hatred or hostility between different religious or racial groups; (vi) protected by copyright, trademark, patents, utility models, design patents or other proprietary right without the express prior written consent of the owner of such right; or (vii) dangerous or potentially dangerous, or that would encourage dangerous behavior from viewers, such as use of explosives and/or harmful substances; or (vii) contrary to governmental policies of any country whose residents are eligible to enter the Contest.
Entries must not contain any material that (a) would give rise to criminal or civil liability or that encourages conduct that constitutes a criminal offense or (b) that violate any applicable statute, regulation, order, rule, treaty, or other ("Law(s)").
Prize Terms. All values are stated in United States Dollars (USD) as indicated, or as converted [currency converter] to local currency. If a stated prize is unavailable, Sponsor has the right to substitute one or more items of equal or greater value, in its discretion. No prize is, and the winner(s) have no right to claim that any prize is, exchangeable, transferable, or redeemable for cash. The winner(s) will be solely responsible for all expenses related to the receipt and use of all prize(s) other than those expenses expressly included in the description of the prize(s) in Section A above. The winner(s) will be solely responsible for complying with any and all applicable statutes, laws (including, without limitation, common law, if applicable), rules and regulations and for bearing any personal income tax, VAT, withholding taxes, customs duties, or other taxes, fees, insurance, surcharges or other costs relating to receiving, claiming or collecting any prize.
Winner(s) are hereby informed of the liability to pay all taxes on the prize(s) received; such taxes shall be paid by the winner(s). Each winner shall be responsible for reporting his or her individual income tax generated from the prize to relevant tax authorities on his or her own and, for residents subject to tax obligations on the prize by any country, shall promptly submit to Sponsor a tax payment proof showing that such tax has been fully paid. If the winner fails to submit such proof within a reasonable period of time as required by Sponsor, Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify the winner from entitlement to the prize and the winner shall be deemed to have waived his or her right to claim the prize and shall be further obligated, upon Sponsor's request, to return the prize to Sponsor at his or her own cost. In addition, for winners who are residents of the Netherlands, if the estimated retail value of a prize is more than 454 Euros, each winner is responsible for payment of the applicable Dutch 'lottery tax' (29% of the prize value) and declaration thereof to the Dutch tax authorities. THE PRIZE(S) WILL BE GIVEN AWAY BY SPONSOR AND ANY CO-SPONSOR(S) "AS IS." SPONSOR AND ANY CO-SPONSORS DO NOT MAKE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM, ANY WARRANTY, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, REGARDING ANY PRIZE OR PORTION THEREOF, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY IMPLIED OR STATUTORY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, CONSUMER GUARANTEES AND SIMILAR RIGHTS, IN WHICH CASE SUCH EXCLUSION SHALL APPLY ONLY TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW IN THE RELEVANT JURISDICTION. WITHOUT LIMITATION, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ALL WARRANTIES AND REPRESENTATIONS, IN RELATION TO THE PRIZES, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED BY STATUTE, LAW (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, COMMON LAW, IF APPLICABLE), RULE, REGULATION, OR OTHERWISE, ARE HEREBY EXCLUDED.
Announcement; Award of Prize(s). The winner(s) will be notified by e-mail within seven (7) days of selection. The winner(s) (and, if a winner is a minor, the Winner's parent or legal guardian) may be required to sign a Winner's Declaration and Release which includes a declaration of eligibility, grant of publicity rights and a liability release, to the extent not prohibited by law, prior to receipt of a prize. The prize(s) will be awarded by way of delivery to Winner's designated valid delivery address set forth on the Winner's Declaration and Release. Unless otherwise specified in Section A, and provided that direct shipment costs by mail or parcel post (expressly excluding import duties and other duties or taxes, which are the Winner's sole responsibility) to Winner's designated valid delivery address shall be borne by Sponsor, provided, however, if delivery is declined or fails by reason of Winner's failure to timely accept receipt or pay appropriate import duties and other duties or taxes) then the winner will be deemed to have declined acceptance of the prize and Sponsor reserves the right to reclaim the prize whereupon the prize will be returned to Sponsor and winner will no longer be eligible to receive the prize. The winner(s) may be required to provide Sponsor with a social security number, taxpayer identification or identification card number, or other identification or account number (if applicable) (a Permanent Account Number for residents of India) for tax purposes, and will provide Sponsor with all other information as may be required for Sponsor to comply with all applicable laws in connection with the award of any prize(s) to the winner(s). The winner(s) also may be required to provide Sponsor with proof that he or she is the Authorized Account Holder of the e-mail address associated with the winning entry. An "Authorized Account Holder" is the natural person who is assigned to an e-mail address by an Internet access provider or other organization responsible for assigning e-mail addresses to the domain associated with an e-mail address. In the event of a dispute, an entry will be deemed to have been submitted by the Authorized Account Holder of the e-mail address submitted at the time of entry. Failure to respond to a winner announcement, or return any required declarations or releases within fourteen (14) days (or any longer time specified by Sponsor in the applicable winner announcement) or to comply with any of the foregoing may result in disqualification and the selection of an alternate winner. It is Sponsor's policy to assist U.S. government employees in meeting their obligations under their standards of ethical conduct; any prize(s) won in violation of those Standards should not be accepted and should be returned at Sponsor's expense or destroyed. Without limitation, Sponsor shall not be liable for any failure to deliver any prizes due to any Winner's failure to accept delivery, to meet any of his or her obligations hereunder or due to the submission of any false, inaccurate or misleading information.
Representations. By entering the Contest, each entrant represents and warrants that: (a) the entrant meets all eligibility requirements of the Contest; (b) in entering and participating in the Contest, the entrant has complied and will comply in all respects with these Rules, the Policies, and all applicable statutes, laws (including, without limitation, common law, if applicable), rules and regulations; and (c) the information provided in the entrant's entry, including without limitation all contact information, is true, accurate, and complete in all respects.
Assumption of Risk. By taking any action to create an entry for the Contest, each entrant, on his or her own behalf and on behalf of his or her personal representatives, heirs, executors, and assigns, acknowledges and agrees that: (a) ENTRANT AND HIS OR HER PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES, HEIRS, EXECUTORS, AND ASSIGNS HAVE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CREATION OF THE ENTRY, WHICH IS DESIGNED AND CREATED BY THE ENTRANT FOLLOWING HIS OR HER OWN DECISION AND INITIATIVE DEPENDING ON THE WAY, IN HIS OR HER SOLE DISCRETION ENTRANT DECIDES TO CREATE SUCH ENTRY, AND EVEN THOUGH THE CONTEST DOES NOT REQUIRE OR OTHERWISE ENCOURAGE DANGEROUS BEHAVIOR, THERE MAY BE DANGER AND RISK OF BODILY INJURY, DEATH, OR PROPERTY DAMAGE INVOLVED IN CREATING AN ENTRY; (b) THESE RISKS AND DANGERS MAY ARISE FROM FORESEEABLE OR UNFORESEEABLE CAUSES; (c) SUCH ENTRANT AND HIS OR HER PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES, HEIRS, EXECUTORS, AND ASSIGNS ASSUME ALL RISKS AND RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY PERSONAL INJURY, DEATH, PROPERTY DAMAGE, OR OTHER LOSS ARISING OUT OF THE CREATION OF ANY ENTRY, WHETHER CAUSED BY NEGLIGENCE OR ANY OTHER CAUSE; and (d) Subject to applicable law, such entrant and his or her personal representatives, heirs, executors, and assigns are relinquishing any and all rights he, she, or they now have or may have in the future to sue or take any other action against Sponsor, any Co-Sponsor, the prize manufacturers, any other entities involved in the administration of the Contest, each of their respective parents, subsidiaries, and affiliates, and each of their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, and representatives (the "Sponsor Parties") on the basis of any injury, death, damage, or other loss that may be suffered arising from any action taken in the creation of any entry, including but not limited to claims based on allegations of negligence by any of the Sponsor Parties or use of any machinery or materials. Without limitation, Sponsor Parties shall have no liability to any entrant or any other person in the event the entry or any acts or omissions of the entrant violates any of these Rules.
Release. To the maximum extent permitted by law, by entering the Contest, each entrant releases and holds harmless the Sponsor Parties from any and all responsibility, liability, damages (including, without limitation, direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, punitive, statutory, and other damages), losses, costs, or expenses of any kind arising out of or relating to: (a) entry or participation in the Contest, including but not limited to disputes among individuals claiming to have contributed to any winning entry; (b) any violation by the entrant of these Rules, the Policies, or applicable laws; (c) misappropriation, infringement, or other violation of any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, right of publicity, privacy, or other legal or contractual right of any person attributable to entrant or any entry submitted by entrant; (d) the acceptance, possession, receipt, or use of any prize or any item purchased with any prize (e.g., if the prize includes a gift card); (e) any entries or votes that have been tampered with or that are misdirected, incomplete, non-conforming, corrupt, lost, late, or ineligible; (f) any problems or technical malfunctions (including but not limited to errors, omissions, interruptions, deletions, defects, or delays in operation or transmission) of any computer, telephone, modem, cable, satellite, network, hardware, online system, server, software, or other equipment or provider, including any incorrect, incomplete, garbled or jumbled information resulting therefrom; (g) any Internet traffic congestion or website accessibility or delays; (h) printing or typographical errors in any Contest-related materials; or (i) any other technical or human error that may occur in connection with the Contest (the "Causes"). If anyone makes any claim against any of the Sponsor Parties arising out of or relating to any of the Causes attributable to the entrant, the entrant will pay for any damages, losses, liabilities, costs, penalties, and expenses, including without limitation attorneys' and experts' fees and costs, incurred in connection with such claim. WITHOUT LIMITING THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING, THE SPONSOR PARTIES SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOST PROFITS OR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE CONTEST, HOWSOEVER CAUSED, WHETHER ARISING IN STATUTE, TORT (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, NEGLIGENCE) CONTRACT, OTHER LEGAL THEORY OR OTHERWISE, AND ALL SUCH DAMAGES ARE HEREBY DISCLAIMED AND EXCLUDED. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES AND OTHER LIABILITY (INCLUDING INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES) IN WHICH CASE SUCH LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION SHALL APPLY ONLY TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, RULE, STATUTE OR REGULATION IN THE RELEVANT JURISDICTION. NOTHING IN THESE TERMS EXCLUDE LIABILITY FOR FRAUD, OR FOR PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH CAUSED BY NEGLIGENCE TO THE EXTENT SUCH EXCLUSION IS PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW
Misconduct. Sponsor reserves the right, in its discretion, to disqualify any entrant who: (a) tampers with the entry or voting process, the operation of the Contest, the Sponsor Site, or affiliated websites; (b) acts in an unsporting or disruptive manner, or with intent to annoy or harass another person; or (c) is otherwise in violation of these Rules, the Policies, or any applicable laws.
Termination. Sponsor reserves the right to suspend, modify, or terminate the Contest at any time for any reason, in its discretion, including without limitation in the event of fraud, abuse, tampering, technical, administrative, financial, or other difficulties. In such cases, Sponsor will post a notice on the Contest page of the Sponsor Site. Should the Contest terminate prior to selection of the winner, Sponsor will announce an alternate means of awarding the prize on the Contest page of the Sponsor Site. Any entrant may withdraw from the Contest at any time by contacting Sponsor by email at [service@American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies.com].
Advertising and Marketing. By entering the Contest, and in consideration of Sponsor's potential review and evaluation of his or her entry, each entrant grants to Sponsor the non-exclusive right to use his or her entry as provided in the Policies, including without limitation the provisions of the Terms of Service regarding ownership and use of user submissions. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, BY ENTERING THE CONTEST, EACH ENTRANT CONSENTS, AND WARRANTS THAT IT HAS OBTAINED THE LEGALLY-BINDING WRITTEN CONSENT OR OTHER LEGALLY BINDING AUTHORIZATION (INCLUDING WITH REGARD TO THE USE AND MANAGEMENT OF COPYRIGHTS IN ALL CREATED CONTENT) OF EVERY CONTRIBUTOR TO THE ENTRY (INDIVIDUALS WHOSE NAME, LIKENESS, PROPERTY, RESULTS AND PROCEEDS APPEAR IN THE ENTRY), TO THE USE BY SPONSOR, ANY CO-SPONSOR, OR ANY THIRD PARTY CHOSEN BY SPONSOR OR ANY CO-SPONSOR, OF ANY AND ALL INFORMATION (INCLUDING PERSONAL INFORMATION), DRAWINGS, TEXT, PHOTOS, IMAGES, VOICES, VIDEOS, OR OTHER MATERIAL CONTAINED IN AN ENTRY OR OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY SUCH ENTRANT RELATED TO THE CONTEST FOR ADVERTISING AND MARKETING PURPOSES. Otherwise, each entrant retains whatever rights it may have in each entry to the extent provided in the Policies. The Sponsor, at its discretion, may require entrants to provide evidence of such written consents or other legally binding authorization. To the maximum extent permitted by law, by accepting a prize, a winner consents on his or her own behalf, to the print and online publication of the Winner's user name, stated country of residence and winning entry as part of the official Winner's list on the American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies Site (and to submit this information, along with the Winner's first and last name, address, phone, email or other contact information to governmental agencies if required by applicable laws) without additional compensation other than the consideration specified in this Section B.13 (Advertising and Marketing) for the entire protection term of the rights concerned and for all methods and means of exploitation. Each entrant and any other contributor whose personal information is being so used by Sponsor may request access to his or her personal information held by Sponsor and that Sponsor correct the data if it is inaccurate or delete the data if Sponsor is not required to retain it by law or for legitimate business purposes. Access, correction, deletion requests or withdrawal of consents can be made by contacting Sponsor by email at [service@American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies.com] or by phone at (01-510-473-7626) or by mail at the address identified in Section B.16 ("Winner's List; Mailing List"), however, no consents will apply retroactively to any entrant's personal information used prior to Sponsor's receipt of any consent withdrawal. Other than as set forth herein, Sponsor will treat any personal information supplied by entrants in connection with the Contest in accordance with Sponsor's Privacy Statement, as modified by these Rules.
Governing Law; Dispute Resolution. By entering the Contest, entrants agree that these Rules will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of (a) Switzerland if the entrant's principal place of residence is in a country in Europe, Africa or the Middle East, (b) Singapore if the entrant's principal place of residence is in a country in Asia, Oceania or the Asia-Pacific region, (c) Brazil if the entrant's principal place of residence is in Brazil, or (d) the State of California (and, to the extent controlling, the federal laws of the United States) if the entrant's principal place of residence is in a country in the Americas (including the Caribbean) or any other country not specified in this Section 14 (Governing Law; Dispute Resolution); provided, however, that in respect of all claims, actions and disputes brought by any of the Sponsor Parties, these Rules and shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California (and, to the extent controlling, the federal laws of the United States). The laws of such jurisdictions shall govern without reference to the conflicts-of-laws rules thereof. The UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and the Uniform Computer Information Transaction Act shall not apply to (and are excluded from the laws governing) these Rules. In addition, by entering the Contest, entrants agree that any claim, action or dispute arising under or relating to this Agreement will be brought exclusively in (and the parties will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of) the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Marin, or the United States District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco, except that (other than with respect to claims, actions or disputes brought by any of the Sponsor Parties) if the entrant's principal place of residence is in (a) a country in Europe, Africa or the Middle East, any such claim or dispute will be brought exclusively in (and the parties will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of) the courts of Switzerland, or (b) a country in Asia, Oceania or the Asia-Pacific region, any such claim or dispute will be brought exclusively in (and the parties will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of) the courts of Singapore. By entering the Contest, each entrant submits to the jurisdiction of those courts and waives any objection to those courts, whether on the basis of jurisdiction, venue, inconvenience of the forum, or otherwise. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, nothing will prevent any of the Sponsor Parties from bringing an action for infringement of intellectual property rights in any country where such infringement is alleged to occur.
These Rules are in the English language only. Each entrant hereby confirms his or her express wish that these Rules and any related documents be written in the English language. Les parties ci-dessus confirment leur désir que cet regles officiel ainsi que tous les documents, y compris tous avis qui s'y rattachent, soient rédigés en langue anglaise.
Miscellaneous. If any part of these Rules is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or otherwise unenforceable, such part will be modified by such court to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable while preserving to the maximum extent possible the original intent of and the remaining parts of these Rules will remain in full force and effect. Nothing contained herein or in any of the Contest related materials should be construed as an endorsement by Sponsor of any Co-Sponsor, or of Sponsor or any Co-Sponsor of any third party, product, or service. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, Sponsor may decline to process requests that are unreasonable or unreasonably repetitive.
All such requests must be received within six (6) months of the Deadline. Sponsor must be contacted by email at [service@American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies.com] or by mail at the address identified in Section B.16 ("Winner's List; Mailing List"), Entrants who opt to join Sponsor's electronic mailing list agree to be contacted by email by Sponsor. Requests for removal from Sponsor's mailing list may be made as instructed in any such email, or by sending a written request and a self-addressed, stamped envelope to "American Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies Mailing List" at the above address, or as otherwise indicated on the Sponsor Site. Residents of Vermont may omit return postage on Winner's list and mailing list requests.
If the Contest is promoted on social media, the following shall apply: The Contest may be advertised on or accessed or entered through one or more social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest. However, the Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed, or administered by, or associated with, any such platforms. Each entrant agrees to comply with all terms and policies governing such platforms in connection with the Contest.