This study of the feasibility of conducting a cost-benefit analysis in the complex environment of the formalities used in the United States as part of its administration of the copyright law focused on the formalities of copyright notice, deposit, registration, and recordation. The U.S. system is also compared with the less centralized copyright…

This discussion of bibliographies in scholarly journals focuses on the need for improvement in citing relevant prior work, and highlights the design of expert systems to improve document retrieval when checking citations. A survey of university faculty is described which confirms this need. (Author/LRW)

This paper is the eighth in the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB) biennial series summarizing federal and state public-policy issues affecting higher education. This document's list of top public-policy issues comprises a daunting inventory for boards and chief executives to consider. Security demands of the…

Written in English and French, this paper outlines current Canadian intellectual property legislation as it relates to Aboriginal people in Canada, and provides a general review of the implications and limitations of this legislation for protecting the traditional knowledge of Aboriginal people. An initial discussion of Aboriginal perspectives…

The issue of who owns courseware is of great concern to faculty and universities. Until recently, when technology entered the picture, the issue was straightforward: faculty typically held copyright with everything except patents. One of the most interesting and complex issues of intellectual property in the digital environment is faculty…

As distance learning expands, so do copyright issues. Law provides little guidance on how use of distance learning materials may violate copyright laws. A year after a White House task force called for redefinition of intellectual property rights, no legislation has been filed to clarify the widely ranging issues. Several New England states have…

Discusses (1) the history of document delivery; (2) the delivery process--end-user request, intermediary request, vendor reference, citation verification, obtaining document and source relations, quality control, transferring document to client, customer service and status, invoicing and billing, research and development, and copyright; and (3)…

Although digital distribution via the Internet offers enormous potential for profits for artists, writers, and developers, pirates can also distribute perfect copies. Examines methods of protecting intellectual property: "superdistribution," watermarking, securing sound, managing multimedia, digital envelopes or secure containers,…

Discusses three issues: (1) copyright and the effects of technological change and the trend to commodify information; (2) the interests involved; and (3) the "Green Paper," a proposal by the European Commission to address copyright issues arising from digitization of protected works. Safeguarding free information access can be achieved…

Rather than a public good that is freely shared, Canadian university research is increasingly privatized and commercialized and thus rendered accessible only to those who can pay for it. The effects include erosion of collegiality, institutional democracy, curiosity-driven basic research, objectivity, and consideration of disadvantaged groups. All…

Discusses a research project examining the integration of computers into seventh and eighth grade language arts classrooms. Focuses on the ways in the researchers' observations tend to conform to what has been shown by existing research. Discusses their results in terms of four themes that emerged in their analysis. (MG)

Issues concerning intellectual property are reviewed from the faculty perspective. General issues discussed include patents and the reason for their pursuit, important dates, patent literature, and handling inventions. Faculty issues include sources of research support, publication, the responsibility of students in research, recordkeeping, and…

Nearly every academic practice is being transformed by information technology. The concept of "piracy," or "theft," presumes that ideas can still be treated as if they are property, and if so, that the rules controlling the movement of idea-properties can be enforced. (MLW)

Instances in which federal patent or copyright law may be too rigid or limited to protect university research are discussed, and the applicability of trade-secrets law is assessed, particularly under the Freedom of Information Act. Differential treatment of trade secrets under state laws is considered. (MSE)

Discusses the National Information Infrastructure and the role of the government. Topics include private sector investment; universal service; technological innovation; user orientation; information security and network reliability; management of the radio frequency spectrum; intellectual property rights; coordination with other levels of…