Prime-time animation is a television genre that frequently reflects on issues that are significant in contemporary society, including aging issues. Using such programs to present aging-related content can be a constructive pedagogical device, offering a means of actively engaging students. This article provides a brief overview of the use of…

This article reports on a digital ethnography that examines writing, authorship, and self-publication in an online niche market. Drawing on interview and web data collected over 3 years, it focuses on the writing practices that have supported the production, distribution, and sanction of 13 ebooks self-published by online poker players. The…

In this article, the authors share two stories about copyright violation and fraud: first, the story of a book whose author did not bother to secure permission to use many of the images it contained; and second, a candidate for a faculty position who was found to have created a fraudulent CV. Taken together, the authors say, these stories raise…

Several Web sites have emerged in recent years that encourage students to upload old exams to build a bank of test questions and answers that can be consulted by other students. This article reports that some professors have raised concerns about these sites, arguing that these could be used to cheat, especially if professors reuse old tests.…

Educational institutions today face budgetary restraints and scarce resources, complicating the decision of how to allot bandwidth for campus network users. Additionally, campus concerns over peer-to-peer networking (specifically outbound Internet traffic) have increased because of bandwidth and copyright issues. In this article, the authors…

Evidence for open access as an emergent, global state of mind is everywhere. The "New York Times" went "open" last September, and the "Wall Street Journal" is slated to follow. Increasingly, scholarly communities are breaking with tradition and calling for the open sharing of research, software, and data. Amongst these global initiatives is the…

Because so much information exists only in video format--from documentaries to instructional videos to entertainment films that create a significant amount of the popular culture--libraries have increased their collections of these materials. Nevertheless, no library could possibly afford to collect every item its patrons might one day request.…

Discusses copyright and fair use on the Internet and describes how to investigate library Web sites that have been copied without permission. Highlights include the importance of using META tags to help prove authorship; the need to document with printed copies; how to register a Web site; and image watermarks. (LRW)

This report addresses the question of what libraries and archives are legally empowered to do to preserve and make accessible for research their holdings of unpublished pre-1972 sound recordings. The report's author, June M. Besek, is executive director of the Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts at Columbia Law School. Unpublished sound…

This is the third of three studies of copyright and sound recordings commissioned by the National Recording Preservation Board (NRPB) in support of the congressionally mandated study of the state of audio preservation in the United States. All three studies have focused on how laws pertaining to sound recordings made before 1972 affect…

Copyright owners have an exclusive right to reproduce their work. However, infringement on those rights may be excused under the fair use doctrine that allows copying by educators and others providing guidelines are followed. (JOW)

A life-and-death battle is going on over public access to federally financed research--life for taxpayers and many scientists, and death for publishers. Or so each side claims. That battle, whose outcome will affect many university researchers, kicked into high gear on Capitol Hill on September 11, as the combatants debated the merits of a bill…

To support European Commission activities, the Eurydice network carried out a study regarding the Education on Online Safety in schools. The data collection was coordinated by the Eurydice Unit of the EU Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) with the collaboration of the National Eurydice Units. Participation in this study by…

Humorist Josh Billings quipped, "About the most originality that any writer can hope to achieve honestly is to steal with good judgment." Billings was harsh in his view of originality, but his critique reveals a tension faced by students every time they write a history paper. Research is the essence of any history paper. Especially in high school,…

This monograph examines in great detail two kinds of intellectual property: copyrights and patents. Though the authors recognize the significance of trademarks and trade secrets, they focus primarily on copyrights and patents in this monograph because they represent the most significant issues in higher education in the information age.…