Shirky writes about how to save local bookstores

DOJ as OPEC for ink:-)))

"All of which is to say that trying to save local bookstores from otherwise predictably fatal competition by turning some customers into members, patrons, or donors is an observably crazy idea. However, if the sober-minded alternative is waiting for the Justice Department to anoint the American Booksellers Association as a kind of OPEC for ink, even crazy ideas may be worth a try."

http://www.shirky.com/weblog/2009/11/local-bookstores-social-hubs-and-mutualization/

Open source science the future

Now the genious is out of the bottle in scientific discovery, and this article gives an good introduction to something that is going on. Here is an excerpt:

"Our project was designed so that researchers willing to conduct open research would be protected from this form of theft by their ability to maintain an openly available paper trail from the time they submit their project proposal until the time they publish their final report," Priyan Weerappuli, executive director of The Open Source Science Project, told Linux Insider. "It's worth noting that while the risk of intellectual theft is real, the ability for researchers to work off of one another is an invaluable tool for furthering any given field of study. We seek to ensure is that researchers are properly credited for any such property they produce."

http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/Open-Source-Science-A-Revolution-From-Within-68701.html?wlc=1258720450

IMPORTANT: http://www.copyright-watch.org/

This is a significant and important effort done by Electronic Frontier Foundation:

"Balanced and well-calibrated copyright laws are extremely important in our global information society. The smallest shift in the legal balance between the rights of copyright owners and users of copyrighted knowledge can destroy or enable business models, criminalize or liberate everyday behaviour, and transform or eradicate new technology. A law that is passed in one nation can quickly be taken up by others, through bilateral trade agreements, regional policy initiatives or international treaties. We all need to keep watch."

http://www.copyright-watch.org/home

I also heartly recommend "Intellectual Property Watch" (a lot of free articles)

http://www.ip-watch.org/weblog/

and Knowledge Ecology International (the people that revealed the ACTA secret treaty!)

http://www.keionline.org/

Three organizations with a bunch of smart people!

ACTA

Goog blog post in Washington Post:

"How do you spin a situation in which the government -- that is, our hired employees -- won't specify the goals of a negotiation done in our name and concerning our rights?

"Absurd" is the right word for this."
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fasterforward/2009/11/acta.html

Department of Defence with strong open source guidelines

It is significant when the DoD, with a budget almost 4 times the Norwegian states total budget for 2008 issues such strong recommandations for open source.

http://blogs.ingres.com/debwoods/

www.whitehouse.gov are also going open source by the way, and it has now become mainstream business practice to consider open source. Things are happening.

Open standards in Learning management systems are going forward

"Learning Application Interoperability Standards Get Vendor Boost"

http://campustechnology.com/articles/2009/11/09/learning-application-interoperability-standards-get-vendor-boost.aspx

Pixel qi in E-readers From Aztak, Cool-er?

Interesting initiatives on wireless ebook readers.

"Such a dual-purpose screen will be available by year's end from Pixel Qi with whom Aztak said it has "held extensive in-person discussions," according to Barry."

http://www.twice.com/article/366162-Wireless_E_readers_Due_From_Aztak_Cool_er.php

Perhaps this screen technology will make the smartphones to serious reading devices too?

New book: The Laws of Disruption

http://www.amazon.com/Laws-Disruption-Harnessing-Business-Digital/dp/0465018645/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257194340&sr=8-1

Patens don't help drug development for poor countries

Investments in Pharmaceuticals Before and After TRIPS by Margaret Kyle, Anita McGahan - #15468 (HE ITI PR)

Abstract:

We examine the relationship between patent protection for pharmaceuticals and investment in development of new drugs. Patent protection has increased around the world as a consequence of the TRIPS Agreement, which specifies minimum levels of intellectual property protection for members of the World Trade Organization. It is generally argued that patents are critical for pharmaceutical research efforts, and so greater patent protection in developing and least-developed countries might result in greater effort by pharmaceutical firms to develop drugs that are especially needed in those countries. Since patents also have the potential to reduce access to treatments through higher prices, it is imperative to assess whether the benefits of increased incentives have materialized in research on diseases that particularly affect the poor. We find that patent protection is associated with increases in research and development (R and D) effort when adopted in high income countries. However, the introduction of patents in developing countries has not been followed by greater investment. Particularly for diseases that primarily affect the poorest countries, our results suggest that alternative mechanisms for inducing R and D may be more appropriate than patents.

http://papers.nber.org/papers/W15468