Meredith Schwartz , Library Journal; Don't Settle for Normal
"We all know this COVID moment is not normal. It can be hard, in the grip of nostalgia for simple pleasures such as meeting with our colleagues or greeting patrons at the door, to remember that second part. But it is vital. Normal wasn’t so great for our unhoused patrons. It wasn’t so great for the people who had to turn to the library for help navigating the health-care insurance exchanges, unemployment, or Social Security because the rest of the safety net had worn thin and too many agencies assumed a digital access and knowledge that is far from universal. Normal wasn’t so great for the kids who only get a square meal at school or the library, or the ones who can’t talk to their parents in prison unless a public library has stepped up with something like Telestory, because access to the phone—and the books and the soap—is being run as a for-profit business.
These may not sound like library issues. But they are, and that’s been driven home by the pressures many systems faced not to close libraries completely in spite of the danger to patrons and staff. If they are library issues when it comes to stepping into the gap, then they’re library issues when it comes to closing that gap for good.
Public library leaders have a place at the table in practically every city and county in America. They have unique insight into the broad spectrum of needs across the whole community, and a unique mandate to meet those needs. It’s clear that it will take extraordinary measures to get this country through the pandemic and back on its feet afterward, and that libraries will need to be an integral part of that. What’s less clear is what will happen next. If we give in to the desire to get back to normal, we are in grave danger of re-creating the conditions that led to so much suffering, and squandering the opportunity to build a better new normal for all. We must keep moving forward, and look to the latest crop of Movers & Shakers to inspire by example."
Saturday, May 9, 2020
Thursday, May 7, 2020
A judge transformed her courtroom into a reality TV show about domestic violence victims, says ethics probe; The Washington Post, May 7, 2020
, The Washington Post; A judge transformed her courtroom into a reality TV show about domestic violence victims, says ethics probe
"Despite the show’s professed dedication to serving victims, the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission accused Kelly of lying to produce the show while skirting her ethical obligations."
"Despite the show’s professed dedication to serving victims, the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission accused Kelly of lying to produce the show while skirting her ethical obligations."
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
'The Great Equalizer': Why Some Arizona Libraries Offer Curbside Service Amid COVID-19; KJZZ.com, May 6, 2020
Christina Estes, KJZZ.org; 'The Great Equalizer': Why Some Arizona Libraries Offer Curbside Service Amid COVID-19
[Kip Currier: Next week I launch a new required course -- The Information Professional in the Community -- in the MLIS degree program at the University of Pittsburgh. One of the topics we will be investigating and debating over the course of the term is the upshots and downsides of information professionals serving as "first responders" and "second responders" in various situations, like the Covid-19 pandemic.
This article and audio story provides a tale of two Arizona library systems' divergent approaches on whether To-Curbside-Or-Not-To-Curbside...]
"Maricopa County Library District
This article and audio story provides a tale of two Arizona library systems' divergent approaches on whether To-Curbside-Or-Not-To-Curbside...]
"Maricopa County Library District
About 40 miles southeast of downtown Phoenix, customers at Queen Creek Library get the curbside treatment.
Rob Scott, digital marketing officer for Maricopa County Library District, recorded audio last week at KJZZ’s request as a library employee directed a driver to a numbered space where the driver would pop open the vehicle’s trunk...
Phoenix Public Library
Sixteen libraries in the state’s most populous county offer curbside pickup but not libraries in the state’s most populous city.
“It has been a topic of discussion for Phoenix Public Library,” said Lee Franklin, community relations manager.
She said Phoenix is erring on the side of caution by not offering curbside service.
“We don’t see an ability for us to do that and still prioritize maintaining that safe environment for our staff, our customers and our visitors,” Franklin said."
To Protect Black Americans from the Worst Impacts of COVID-19, Release Comprehensive Racial Data; Scientific American, April 24, 2020
Joia Crear-Perry, Michael McAfee , Scientific American; To Protect Black Americans from the Worst Impacts of COVID-19, Release Comprehensive Racial Data
Properly reported information is crucial for black communities to recover from this crisis and transcend a history of exclusion
"History shows that when crises strike, Black Americans often experience the worst consequences. We mustn’t continue allowing this to happen. Our organizations—the National Birth Equity Collaborative and PolicyLink—recently joined a coalition called WeMustCount demanding the data. Once we have that data, we’re calling on policymakers to take immediate action to help.
The data on Black Americans and COVID-19 are shocking but not unexpected. Engrained racist structures prevent them from fully accessing health care, education, employment and more—all of which increases susceptibility to COVID-19 and its most devastating health consequences.
These issues trace back far before the current pandemic. It was baked into the nation’s founding and carries forward today. Black Americans have always suffered disproportionately from national crises...
Buried behind all of this is an underlying fear: Releasing the information would mean bringing attention to a problem that policy makers could otherwise easily ignore."
Properly reported information is crucial for black communities to recover from this crisis and transcend a history of exclusion
"History shows that when crises strike, Black Americans often experience the worst consequences. We mustn’t continue allowing this to happen. Our organizations—the National Birth Equity Collaborative and PolicyLink—recently joined a coalition called WeMustCount demanding the data. Once we have that data, we’re calling on policymakers to take immediate action to help.
The data on Black Americans and COVID-19 are shocking but not unexpected. Engrained racist structures prevent them from fully accessing health care, education, employment and more—all of which increases susceptibility to COVID-19 and its most devastating health consequences.
These issues trace back far before the current pandemic. It was baked into the nation’s founding and carries forward today. Black Americans have always suffered disproportionately from national crises...
Buried behind all of this is an underlying fear: Releasing the information would mean bringing attention to a problem that policy makers could otherwise easily ignore."
Seeking Ethics Through Narrative During COVID-19; PittWire, April 16, 2020
Amerigo Allegretto, PittWire; Seeking Ethics Through Narrative During COVID-19
"In her redesigned Literature and Medicine course, Uma Satyavolu challenges students to study both past and current writings to deal ethically with pandemics such as COVID-19.
“The moment I heard of this pandemic, I reached for Albert Camus’ ‘The Plague’ and Daniel Defoe’s ‘A Journal of the Plague Year,’” said Satyavolu, a lecturer in the University of Pittsburgh Department of English in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. “I often teach the latter in my Essay and Memoir class. These books help people understand how people dealt with disruptions and being isolated due to epidemics in previous generations, like we relatively are today,” with stay-at-home orders in place in much of the U.S.
The course has pivoted to having students analyze narratives surrounding COVID-19 to tracehow medical knowledge is or is not transmitted during the pandemic, with particular attention to how some narratives gain authority and the status of “truth.” Their analyses will be posted in April on the Center for Bioethics and Health Law’s website, COVID-19 Narratives.
“What I want students to take away from this course is that we’re not just reading a few books. This is a form of important public engagement,” she said. “The course is based upon the idea of literature and the humanities serve as a bridge between ‘expert’ knowledge and the general public.”...
But Satyavolu isn’t stopping with the course; she also recently led the gathering of medical humanities materials to create COVID-19 Medical Humanities Resources, a webpage that went live in late March. The resource page contains suggested novels, essays, podcasts and films to analyze how stories taking place during epidemics and pandemics are told...
People interested in the ethical issues raised by the pandemic can visit the Center’s COVID-19 Ethics Resources webpage."
"In her redesigned Literature and Medicine course, Uma Satyavolu challenges students to study both past and current writings to deal ethically with pandemics such as COVID-19.
“The moment I heard of this pandemic, I reached for Albert Camus’ ‘The Plague’ and Daniel Defoe’s ‘A Journal of the Plague Year,’” said Satyavolu, a lecturer in the University of Pittsburgh Department of English in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. “I often teach the latter in my Essay and Memoir class. These books help people understand how people dealt with disruptions and being isolated due to epidemics in previous generations, like we relatively are today,” with stay-at-home orders in place in much of the U.S.
The course has pivoted to having students analyze narratives surrounding COVID-19 to tracehow medical knowledge is or is not transmitted during the pandemic, with particular attention to how some narratives gain authority and the status of “truth.” Their analyses will be posted in April on the Center for Bioethics and Health Law’s website, COVID-19 Narratives.
“What I want students to take away from this course is that we’re not just reading a few books. This is a form of important public engagement,” she said. “The course is based upon the idea of literature and the humanities serve as a bridge between ‘expert’ knowledge and the general public.”...
But Satyavolu isn’t stopping with the course; she also recently led the gathering of medical humanities materials to create COVID-19 Medical Humanities Resources, a webpage that went live in late March. The resource page contains suggested novels, essays, podcasts and films to analyze how stories taking place during epidemics and pandemics are told...
People interested in the ethical issues raised by the pandemic can visit the Center’s COVID-19 Ethics Resources webpage."
For Jeffrey Epstein, MIT Was Just a Safety School; Wired, May 4, 2020
Noam Cohen, Wired; For Jeffrey Epstein, MIT Was Just a Safety School
"The MIT and Harvard reports are most illuminating when read together. They overlap in revealing ways and share certain observations...
In part, we can chalk up the difference to bad timing. Harvard came first in Epstein’s mind, which, I suppose, says something about its reputation among status-obsessed faux-intellectuals. When Harvard was accepting Esptein’s donations, it was dealing with a disreputable character; MIT, by contrast, was dealing with a convicted sex offender...
What remains is the hard-baked irony that MIT, which got relatively little from Epstein, drew the bad headlines; whereas Harvard, which took 10 times as much of Epstein’s money, could almost claim its hands were clean. MIT announced last year that it would be donating to a charity benefiting sexual-abuse survivors all of its Epstein monies ($850,000 collected before and after his conviction). Harvard on Friday announced that it would be donating to organizations that support victims of human trafficking and sexual assault exactly what was left over from Epstein’s multimillion-dollar donations: $200,937."
"The MIT and Harvard reports are most illuminating when read together. They overlap in revealing ways and share certain observations...
In part, we can chalk up the difference to bad timing. Harvard came first in Epstein’s mind, which, I suppose, says something about its reputation among status-obsessed faux-intellectuals. When Harvard was accepting Esptein’s donations, it was dealing with a disreputable character; MIT, by contrast, was dealing with a convicted sex offender...
What remains is the hard-baked irony that MIT, which got relatively little from Epstein, drew the bad headlines; whereas Harvard, which took 10 times as much of Epstein’s money, could almost claim its hands were clean. MIT announced last year that it would be donating to a charity benefiting sexual-abuse survivors all of its Epstein monies ($850,000 collected before and after his conviction). Harvard on Friday announced that it would be donating to organizations that support victims of human trafficking and sexual assault exactly what was left over from Epstein’s multimillion-dollar donations: $200,937."
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Harvard’s Epstein corruption deserves a full airing — even amid a pandemic; The Washington Post, May 4, 2020
Charles Lane, The Washington Post; Harvard’s Epstein corruption deserves a full airing — even amid a pandemic
[Kip Currier: Fortuitous to see this story -- and the call for this "cautionary" real world case study to be investigated -- as I’ve included this as a case study in the syllabus for my new graduate course, The Information Professional in the Community, launching next week.
In one of the course’s weekly units, we'll be exploring Harvard's deeply concerning ties to the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and, in columnist Charles Lane's parlance, "the cutting of ethical corners", within the broader context of critically examining Fiscal Considerations, Legal/Ethical/Policy Issues, and Risk Management in Collaborations and Partnerships.]
"Such grotesque money-grubbing at the pinnacle of U.S. academia — a school, to be sure, that has positioned itself an ethical leader, especially in the movement against sexual assault and gender bias on campus — deserves a full airing, even amid the novel coronavirus pandemic...
It joins a lengthening list of cautionary tales of fundraising excess, such as the admissions-for-cash episode involving athletic teams at Yale, Stanford, the University of California at Los Angeles, the University of Southern California and Georgetown, among others...
The need for cash is probably at or near an all-time high, and so is the risk, reputational and otherwise, of cutting ethical corners to raise it.
Professors and administrators can ill afford the moral arrogance that characterized the dealings of some at Harvard with Epstein, or their sloppiness, or their cluelessness...
Not everyone at Harvard — much less everyone in higher ed — is to blame for this sorry episode. Every college and university can learn from it."
Monday, May 4, 2020
Has COVID-19 changed the face of tech ethics forever?; IDG, April 23, 2020
Pat Martlew, IDG; Has COVID-19 changed the face of tech ethics forever?
"So, are the more heavy-handed approaches worth implementing if it leads to lives being saved? Prominent technologist and tech ethics expert Anne Currie says that while she wouldn't necessarily advocate for China's approach, there is a degree to which ethical considerations must be eased if we are to save a considerable number of lives.
"Tech ethics in the good times and tech ethics in the bad times are extremely different. When you've got hundreds of thousands of lives on the line, we all do occasionally need to suspend some of our privileges. That is just the reality of the situation," she says
"Right now, we are in a battle. We're in a battle with an implacable other. We're not battling with a competitor at work and we're not battling with another country, as difficult as that may be. We are battling with a virus that doesn't care at all about us. It doesn't care about fairness, diversity, privacy, or any of the good things that we generally value. It will just kill us if we don't act and that has changed where our priorities lie, which is the right thing to happen."
"So, are the more heavy-handed approaches worth implementing if it leads to lives being saved? Prominent technologist and tech ethics expert Anne Currie says that while she wouldn't necessarily advocate for China's approach, there is a degree to which ethical considerations must be eased if we are to save a considerable number of lives.
"Tech ethics in the good times and tech ethics in the bad times are extremely different. When you've got hundreds of thousands of lives on the line, we all do occasionally need to suspend some of our privileges. That is just the reality of the situation," she says
"Right now, we are in a battle. We're in a battle with an implacable other. We're not battling with a competitor at work and we're not battling with another country, as difficult as that may be. We are battling with a virus that doesn't care at all about us. It doesn't care about fairness, diversity, privacy, or any of the good things that we generally value. It will just kill us if we don't act and that has changed where our priorities lie, which is the right thing to happen."
Saturday, May 2, 2020
Open Access, Open Source, and the Battle to Defeat COVID-19; JD Supra, April 22, 2020
PerkinsCoie, JD Supra; Open Access, Open Source, and the Battle to Defeat COVID-19
"No legal development over the past decades has had a greater impact on the free flow of information and technology than the rise of the open access and open source movements. We recently looked at how AI, machine learning, blockchain, 3D printing, and other disruptive technologies are being employed in response to the coronavirus pandemic; we now turn to how two disruptive legal innovations, open access and open source, are being used to fight COVID-19. Although the pandemic is far from over, there are already promising signs that open access and open source solutions are allowing large groups of scientists, healthcare professionals, software developers, and innovators across many countries to mobilize quickly and effectively to combat and, hopefully, mitigate the impact of the coronavirus."
"No legal development over the past decades has had a greater impact on the free flow of information and technology than the rise of the open access and open source movements. We recently looked at how AI, machine learning, blockchain, 3D printing, and other disruptive technologies are being employed in response to the coronavirus pandemic; we now turn to how two disruptive legal innovations, open access and open source, are being used to fight COVID-19. Although the pandemic is far from over, there are already promising signs that open access and open source solutions are allowing large groups of scientists, healthcare professionals, software developers, and innovators across many countries to mobilize quickly and effectively to combat and, hopefully, mitigate the impact of the coronavirus."
Friday, May 1, 2020
How to find copyright-free images (and avoiding a stock photo subscription); TNW, April 29, 2020
MIX , TNW; How to find copyright-free images (and avoiding a stock photo subscription)
"If you search for any term and head to the Images section in Google, you’ll instantly find thousands of images. There’s one issue, though: Some of them might be copyrighted and you might be putting yourself (or your employer) at risk. Fortunately, you can filter images by usage rights, which will help you avoid that...
"If you search for any term and head to the Images section in Google, you’ll instantly find thousands of images. There’s one issue, though: Some of them might be copyrighted and you might be putting yourself (or your employer) at risk. Fortunately, you can filter images by usage rights, which will help you avoid that...
Here are a couple of our favorite free stock photo sites:
Even though a lot of these images are free to use without any attribution, you can support the creators by giving them credit, which in turn gives their work more exposure. You might not have the resources to purchase their images, but someone else might be interested in hiring them. Crediting them for their work helps with that.
You get to save some money by avoiding buying a Shutterstock subscription, they get free exposure. It’s a win-win."
San Francisco recruits army of social workers, librarians and investigators to track Covid-19; The Guardian, May 1, 2020
Maanvi Singh , The Guardian; San Francisco recruits army of social workers, librarians and investigators to track Covid-19
"San Francisco has assembled an army of librarians, social workers, attorneys, investigators and medical students to find and warn anyone and everyone who may have been exposed to Covid-19...
Immigrant communities are justifiably worried that each time they share information about their status and location, “it will come back to haunt them,” Hayes-Bautista said. “It makes sense that people are scared.”...
San Francisco has similarly publicized that the contact tracing is “voluntary, confidential, and culturally and linguistically appropriate. Immigration status will have no bearing on these conversations.”"
"San Francisco has assembled an army of librarians, social workers, attorneys, investigators and medical students to find and warn anyone and everyone who may have been exposed to Covid-19...
Immigrant communities are justifiably worried that each time they share information about their status and location, “it will come back to haunt them,” Hayes-Bautista said. “It makes sense that people are scared.”...
San Francisco has similarly publicized that the contact tracing is “voluntary, confidential, and culturally and linguistically appropriate. Immigration status will have no bearing on these conversations.”"
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Life during lockdown might be much better if technophobia hadn’t held back innovation; The Washington Post, April 30, 2020
, The Washington Post; Life during lockdown might be much better if technophobia hadn’t held back innovation
"Now that much of the world is in lockdown, relying on technology that many viewed with worry and suspicion mere months ago, the consequences of that fearfulness are coming into focus...
Too bad so many bosses once resisted allowing employees to work from home — even though research has found that remote workers are more productive, take shorter breaks, take less time off and stay with their companies longer. That resistance inevitably limited the marketplace for video tools, leaving only a few options available when the pandemic crisis struck.
Unfortunately, that’s how things tend to go with new technologies. Fear leads to smaller markets, reducing investment by innovators.
This story has repeated itself across time and culture...
How will we handle the next wave of innovation? That will be our greatest collective challenge. The pessimists will surely have something to say. It would be good to think back to this moment, recalling the many ways that feared technologies came to be seen as a blessing. Then we can encourage something that really does improve lives. It isn’t resistance to change. It’s change."
"Now that much of the world is in lockdown, relying on technology that many viewed with worry and suspicion mere months ago, the consequences of that fearfulness are coming into focus...
Too bad so many bosses once resisted allowing employees to work from home — even though research has found that remote workers are more productive, take shorter breaks, take less time off and stay with their companies longer. That resistance inevitably limited the marketplace for video tools, leaving only a few options available when the pandemic crisis struck.
Unfortunately, that’s how things tend to go with new technologies. Fear leads to smaller markets, reducing investment by innovators.
This story has repeated itself across time and culture...
How will we handle the next wave of innovation? That will be our greatest collective challenge. The pessimists will surely have something to say. It would be good to think back to this moment, recalling the many ways that feared technologies came to be seen as a blessing. Then we can encourage something that really does improve lives. It isn’t resistance to change. It’s change."
Ethical practice in isolation, quarantine & contact tracing; American Medical Association (AMA), April 28, 2020
American Medical Association (AMA); Ethical practice in isolation, quarantine & contact tracing
"Contact tracing and isolation or quarantine of sick or exposed individuals are among the most effective tools to reduce transmission of infectious disease. Yet like many public health activities it raises concerns about appropriately balancing individual rights, notably privacy and confidentiality, with protecting the health of the community. The AMA Code of Medical Ethics provides guidance to help physicians strike this balance when they act in a public health capacity.
Opinion 8.11, “Health promotion and preventive care,” provides that “physicians who work solely or primarily in a public health capacity should uphold accepted standards of medical professionalism by implementing policies that appropriately balance individual liberties with the social goals of public health policies.” That includes notifying public health authorities when physicians “notice patterns in patient health that may indicate a health risk for others.”
In keeping with Opinion 8.4, “Ethical use of quarantine & isolation,” physicians should also educate patients and the public about public health threats, potential harm to others and the benefits of quarantine and isolation, and should encourage voluntary adherence. Physicians should support mandatory measures when patients fail to adhere voluntarily."
"Contact tracing and isolation or quarantine of sick or exposed individuals are among the most effective tools to reduce transmission of infectious disease. Yet like many public health activities it raises concerns about appropriately balancing individual rights, notably privacy and confidentiality, with protecting the health of the community. The AMA Code of Medical Ethics provides guidance to help physicians strike this balance when they act in a public health capacity.
Opinion 8.11, “Health promotion and preventive care,” provides that “physicians who work solely or primarily in a public health capacity should uphold accepted standards of medical professionalism by implementing policies that appropriately balance individual liberties with the social goals of public health policies.” That includes notifying public health authorities when physicians “notice patterns in patient health that may indicate a health risk for others.”
In keeping with Opinion 8.4, “Ethical use of quarantine & isolation,” physicians should also educate patients and the public about public health threats, potential harm to others and the benefits of quarantine and isolation, and should encourage voluntary adherence. Physicians should support mandatory measures when patients fail to adhere voluntarily."
AI researchers propose ‘bias bounties’ to put ethics principles into practice; VentureBeat, April 17, 2020
Khari Johnson, VentureBeat; AI researchers propose ‘bias bounties’ to put ethics principles into practice
"Researchers from Google Brain, Intel, OpenAI, and top research labs in the U.S. and Europe joined forces this week to release what the group calls a toolbox for turning AI ethics principles into practice. The kit for organizations creating AI models includes the idea of paying developers for finding bias in AI, akin to the bug bounties offered in security software.
This recommendation and other ideas for ensuring AI is made with public trust and societal well-being in mind were detailed in a preprint paper published this week. The bug bounty hunting community might be too small to create strong assurances, but developers could still unearth more bias than is revealed by measures in place today, the authors say."
"Researchers from Google Brain, Intel, OpenAI, and top research labs in the U.S. and Europe joined forces this week to release what the group calls a toolbox for turning AI ethics principles into practice. The kit for organizations creating AI models includes the idea of paying developers for finding bias in AI, akin to the bug bounties offered in security software.
This recommendation and other ideas for ensuring AI is made with public trust and societal well-being in mind were detailed in a preprint paper published this week. The bug bounty hunting community might be too small to create strong assurances, but developers could still unearth more bias than is revealed by measures in place today, the authors say."
Do I sound sick to you? Researchers are building AI that would diagnose COVID-19 by listening to people talk.; Business Insider, April 30, 2020
Aaron Holmes, Business Insider; Do I sound sick to you? Researchers are building AI that would diagnose COVID-19 by listening to people talk.
"Analyzing people's speech, coughing, and breathing patterns as a diagnostic tool isn't new — tussiphonography, or the study of cough sounds, has been around for decades. Now, AI researchers are emboldened by early reports from doctors that COVID-19 appears to have unique effects on patients' coughing and speech...
To give people an incentive to donate voice audio, Singh's lab initially published a rough AI tool online that would predict whether people have a higher chance of being COVID-19 positive using voice samples, along with a disclaimer that the tool wasn't giving real medical advice. But within 48 hours, Carnegie Mellon forced the lab to take down the online test, which could have run afoul of FDA guidelines and be misinterpreted by people regardless of the disclaimer.
"It's a perfectly valid concern, and my whole team had not thought of that ethical side of things," Singh said. "The other side is that hopefully the COVID pandemic will pass, and once it passes, hopefully it will never come back. So if we don't get the data now, we're never going to have data for research.""
"Analyzing people's speech, coughing, and breathing patterns as a diagnostic tool isn't new — tussiphonography, or the study of cough sounds, has been around for decades. Now, AI researchers are emboldened by early reports from doctors that COVID-19 appears to have unique effects on patients' coughing and speech...
To give people an incentive to donate voice audio, Singh's lab initially published a rough AI tool online that would predict whether people have a higher chance of being COVID-19 positive using voice samples, along with a disclaimer that the tool wasn't giving real medical advice. But within 48 hours, Carnegie Mellon forced the lab to take down the online test, which could have run afoul of FDA guidelines and be misinterpreted by people regardless of the disclaimer.
"It's a perfectly valid concern, and my whole team had not thought of that ethical side of things," Singh said. "The other side is that hopefully the COVID pandemic will pass, and once it passes, hopefully it will never come back. So if we don't get the data now, we're never going to have data for research.""
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Supreme Court Copyright Ruling Could Shake Up Legal Publishing; Publishers weekly, April 27, 2020
Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly; Supreme Court Copyright Ruling Could Shake Up Legal Publishing
"In upholding the appeals court reversal, the Supreme Court held that the annotations amended to the state of Georgia’s legal code were “ineligible for copyright protection” under the “government edicts doctrine,” a legal regime developed from a trio of 19th-century Supreme Court decisions.
“The animating principle behind the government edicts doctrine is that no one can own the law,” Roberts wrote. “Over a century ago, we recognized a limitation on copyright protection for certain government work product, rooted in the Copyright Act’s ‘authorship’ requirement. Under what has been dubbed the government edicts doctrine, officials empowered to speak with the force of law cannot be the authors of—and therefore cannot copyright—the works they create in the course of their official duties.”"
In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court this week held that legislators "cannot be the authors of—and therefore cannot copyright—the works they create in the course of their official duties."
"In upholding the appeals court reversal, the Supreme Court held that the annotations amended to the state of Georgia’s legal code were “ineligible for copyright protection” under the “government edicts doctrine,” a legal regime developed from a trio of 19th-century Supreme Court decisions.
“The animating principle behind the government edicts doctrine is that no one can own the law,” Roberts wrote. “Over a century ago, we recognized a limitation on copyright protection for certain government work product, rooted in the Copyright Act’s ‘authorship’ requirement. Under what has been dubbed the government edicts doctrine, officials empowered to speak with the force of law cannot be the authors of—and therefore cannot copyright—the works they create in the course of their official duties.”"
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Georgia Can’t Copyright Its Entire State Code, the Supreme Court Rules; The New York Times, April 27, 2020
; Georgia Can’t Copyright Its Entire State Code, the Supreme Court Rules
In a 5-to-4 ruling with unusual alliances, the court said that annotations cannot be copyrighted if they are the official work of state lawmakers.
"Georgia may not copyright its entire official code, which includes both the state’s laws and annotations interpreting them, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday. The 5-to-4 decision featured unusual alliances and would most likely be widely felt, as about 20 other states have claimed that parts of similar annotated codes are copyrighted."
In a 5-to-4 ruling with unusual alliances, the court said that annotations cannot be copyrighted if they are the official work of state lawmakers.
"Georgia may not copyright its entire official code, which includes both the state’s laws and annotations interpreting them, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday. The 5-to-4 decision featured unusual alliances and would most likely be widely felt, as about 20 other states have claimed that parts of similar annotated codes are copyrighted."
Silicon Valley needs a new approach to studying ethics now more than ever; TechCrunch, April 24, 2020
Lisa Wehden, TechCrunch; Silicon Valley needs a new approach to studying ethics now more than ever
"These are fresh concerns in familiar debates about tech’s ethics. How should technologists think about the trade-off between the immediate need for public health surveillance and individual privacy? And misformation and free speech? Facebook and other platforms are playing a much more active role than ever in assessing the quality of information: promoting official information sources prominently and removing some posts from users defying social distancing.
As the pandemic spreads and, along with it, the race to develop new technologies accelerates, it’s more critical than ever that technology finds a way to fully examine these questions. Technologists today are ill-equipped for this challenge: striking healthy balances between competing concerns — like privacy and safety — while explaining their approach to the public...
If the only students are future technologists, though, solutions will lag. If we want a more ethically knowledgeable tech industry today, we need ethical study for tech practitioners, not just university students...
Over half of the class came from a STEM background and had missed much explicit education in ethical frameworks. Our class discussed principles from other fields, like medical ethics, including the physician’s guiding maxim (“first, do no harm”) in the context of designing new algorithms. Texts from the world of science fiction, like “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” by Ursula K. Le Guin, also offered ways to grapple with issues, leading students to evaluate how to collect and use data responsibly."
"These are fresh concerns in familiar debates about tech’s ethics. How should technologists think about the trade-off between the immediate need for public health surveillance and individual privacy? And misformation and free speech? Facebook and other platforms are playing a much more active role than ever in assessing the quality of information: promoting official information sources prominently and removing some posts from users defying social distancing.
As the pandemic spreads and, along with it, the race to develop new technologies accelerates, it’s more critical than ever that technology finds a way to fully examine these questions. Technologists today are ill-equipped for this challenge: striking healthy balances between competing concerns — like privacy and safety — while explaining their approach to the public...
If the only students are future technologists, though, solutions will lag. If we want a more ethically knowledgeable tech industry today, we need ethical study for tech practitioners, not just university students...
Over half of the class came from a STEM background and had missed much explicit education in ethical frameworks. Our class discussed principles from other fields, like medical ethics, including the physician’s guiding maxim (“first, do no harm”) in the context of designing new algorithms. Texts from the world of science fiction, like “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” by Ursula K. Le Guin, also offered ways to grapple with issues, leading students to evaluate how to collect and use data responsibly."
Friday, April 24, 2020
Trump says his comments on injecting disinfectants were “sarcastic.” Let’s review the tape.; Vox, April 24, 2020
Aaron Rupar, Vox; Trump says his comments on injecting disinfectants were “sarcastic.” Let’s review the tape.
"President Donald Trump now claims he was being “sarcastic” when he mused on Thursday about disinfectant injections being a possible miracle cure for the coronavirus.
Unfortunately for him, there’s video.
Asked during a White House bill-signing ceremony on Friday to explain his comments — which were widely mocked for being ridiculous and more than a little irresponsible, became the top trending topic on Twitter, and prompted warnings from health agencies that it’s actually a bad idea to inject or consume bleach — Trump tried to rewrite history.
“I was asking a sarcastic, and a very sarcastic question, to the reporters in the room about disinfectant on the inside,” Trump lied. In reality, he was looking at White House officialswhen he earnestly asked them to investigate whether there’s “a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning. Because you see it gets in the lungs, and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that.”
Notably, even as he tried to distance himself from his remarks, Trump illustrated his fundamental inability to ever admit a mistake by continuing to defend his premise.
Disinfectant “does kill it, and it would kill it on the hands, and that would make things much better,” Trump said.
Watch the two clips back to back for yourself:"
Spoiler alert: He’s lying.
"President Donald Trump now claims he was being “sarcastic” when he mused on Thursday about disinfectant injections being a possible miracle cure for the coronavirus.
Unfortunately for him, there’s video.
Asked during a White House bill-signing ceremony on Friday to explain his comments — which were widely mocked for being ridiculous and more than a little irresponsible, became the top trending topic on Twitter, and prompted warnings from health agencies that it’s actually a bad idea to inject or consume bleach — Trump tried to rewrite history.
“I was asking a sarcastic, and a very sarcastic question, to the reporters in the room about disinfectant on the inside,” Trump lied. In reality, he was looking at White House officialswhen he earnestly asked them to investigate whether there’s “a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning. Because you see it gets in the lungs, and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that.”
Notably, even as he tried to distance himself from his remarks, Trump illustrated his fundamental inability to ever admit a mistake by continuing to defend his premise.
Disinfectant “does kill it, and it would kill it on the hands, and that would make things much better,” Trump said.
Watch the two clips back to back for yourself:"
‘Stable genius’ or dangerous ignoramus?'; The Washington Post, April 24, 2020
, The Washington Post; ‘Stable genius’ or dangerous ignoramus?
"We can laugh (uproariously) about Trump’s ignorance and inanity, but like his hawking of hydroxychloroquine — which induced hoarding of medication needed by patients with other diseases (and perhaps others to harm themselves) — this is one more instance in which concern for public safety should spur news networks to discontinue live coverage of the daily briefings. Like a con man peddling patent medicine, Trump dispenses false hope and crackpot remedies, thereby promoting disdain for scientific inquiry and valid research. Once more, one is compelled not only to shudder that such an intellectually unfit man could be president but that legions of right-wing hucksters and sycophants could regularly contort themselves not merely to defend his blabbering but also to lionize him.
It is little wonder that only 23 percent of Americans, according to the latest Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, have a high level of trust in what Trump says. (Some of us find it disturbing the number is that high, although the poll was taken before his latest quackery.)"
"We can laugh (uproariously) about Trump’s ignorance and inanity, but like his hawking of hydroxychloroquine — which induced hoarding of medication needed by patients with other diseases (and perhaps others to harm themselves) — this is one more instance in which concern for public safety should spur news networks to discontinue live coverage of the daily briefings. Like a con man peddling patent medicine, Trump dispenses false hope and crackpot remedies, thereby promoting disdain for scientific inquiry and valid research. Once more, one is compelled not only to shudder that such an intellectually unfit man could be president but that legions of right-wing hucksters and sycophants could regularly contort themselves not merely to defend his blabbering but also to lionize him.
It is little wonder that only 23 percent of Americans, according to the latest Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, have a high level of trust in what Trump says. (Some of us find it disturbing the number is that high, although the poll was taken before his latest quackery.)"
Adler astronomer files trademark lawsuit against American Girl; Associated Press via Chicago SunTimes, April 24, 2020
Associated Press via Chicago SunTimes; Adler astronomer files trademark lawsuit against American Girl
"The lawsuit notes the doll has a purple streak in her hair and wears holographic shoes, just as Walkowicz does.
“Here, the defendants used the name and likeness of Lucianne, a well-known figure in astronomy, space and STEM, who particularly studied the star Vega, in conjunction with the American Girl doll Luciana Vega without obtaining her authorization,” the lawsuit states. “In fact, the defendants incorporated the same color hair streak, shoes and style of Lucianne in the Luciana Vega doll.”"
"The lawsuit notes the doll has a purple streak in her hair and wears holographic shoes, just as Walkowicz does.
“Here, the defendants used the name and likeness of Lucianne, a well-known figure in astronomy, space and STEM, who particularly studied the star Vega, in conjunction with the American Girl doll Luciana Vega without obtaining her authorization,” the lawsuit states. “In fact, the defendants incorporated the same color hair streak, shoes and style of Lucianne in the Luciana Vega doll.”"
OSU making intellectual property available to help fight COVID-19; KTVZ.com, April 22, 2020
KTVZ.com; OSU making intellectual property available to help fight COVID-19
"Oregon State University is joining universities and academic health centers nationally in making licensing agreements for its intellectual property quickly executable to speed up the development of technologies that can be used to diagnose, treat and prevent COVID-19.
The COVID-19 Technology Development Framework, spearheaded by Stanford, Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was introduced earlier this month and includes 14 other research institutions across the United States as of April 20.
Researchers at Oregon State and throughout the U.S. will be able to build on concepts generated by other scientists, making the path easier for companies trying to develop new technologies to detect, monitor, prevent and treat the sickness caused by the novel coronavirus...
Below is the full text of the COVID-19 Technology Development Framework:"
"Oregon State University is joining universities and academic health centers nationally in making licensing agreements for its intellectual property quickly executable to speed up the development of technologies that can be used to diagnose, treat and prevent COVID-19.
The COVID-19 Technology Development Framework, spearheaded by Stanford, Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was introduced earlier this month and includes 14 other research institutions across the United States as of April 20.
Researchers at Oregon State and throughout the U.S. will be able to build on concepts generated by other scientists, making the path easier for companies trying to develop new technologies to detect, monitor, prevent and treat the sickness caused by the novel coronavirus...
Below is the full text of the COVID-19 Technology Development Framework:"
Connecticut town tests 'pandemic drone' to find fevers. Experts question if it would work.; NBC News, April 22, 2020
Minyvonne Burke, NBC News; Connecticut town tests 'pandemic drone' to find fevers. Experts question if it would work.
"A Connecticut police department said it plans to begin testing a "pandemic drone" that could detect whether a person 190 feet away has a fever or is coughing.
But an expert on viruses and a privacy advocate question whether such technology can work and, if it does, whether it would help in controlling the spread of the coronavirus."
"A Connecticut police department said it plans to begin testing a "pandemic drone" that could detect whether a person 190 feet away has a fever or is coughing.
But an expert on viruses and a privacy advocate question whether such technology can work and, if it does, whether it would help in controlling the spread of the coronavirus."
Philosophy Professor Helps To Solve Ethical Problems During Lockdown; NPR, April 21, 2020
NPR; Philosophy Professor Helps To Solve Ethical Problems During Lockdown
"David Chan, a philosophy professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, puzzles over the moral quandaries listeners face during the coronavirus outbreak."
Can the coronavirus make society more ethical?; The Times of Israel, April 24, 2020
Simona Weinglass, The Times of Israel; Can the coronavirus make society more ethical?
"Arizona State University Jewish Studies professor Hava Tirosh-Samuelson, by contrast, was optimistic, expressing hope that the coronavirus could usher in a new global spirit of generosity.
“We used to think that globalization would solve all our problems but now we see its ugly side. We realize that resources are ultimately distributed at the state level. Still, I’m going to quote none other than the singer Lady Gaga, who hosted this lovely Global Citizen Music Festival recently. She said ‘kindness is currency of the new world.’
Samuelson expressed the hope that we might see a greater worldwide emphasis on caring and ethical behavior after the coronavirus, as well as more urgent attention to climate change.
“Previously only profits were important. I don’t want to sound naive, but maybe now it will be different.”"
"Arizona State University Jewish Studies professor Hava Tirosh-Samuelson, by contrast, was optimistic, expressing hope that the coronavirus could usher in a new global spirit of generosity.
“We used to think that globalization would solve all our problems but now we see its ugly side. We realize that resources are ultimately distributed at the state level. Still, I’m going to quote none other than the singer Lady Gaga, who hosted this lovely Global Citizen Music Festival recently. She said ‘kindness is currency of the new world.’
Samuelson expressed the hope that we might see a greater worldwide emphasis on caring and ethical behavior after the coronavirus, as well as more urgent attention to climate change.
“Previously only profits were important. I don’t want to sound naive, but maybe now it will be different.”"
COVID-19 and the Ethical Questions It Poses; University of Nevada, Las Vegas, April 22, 2020
University of Nevada, Las Vegas; COVID-19 and the Ethical Questions It Poses
UNLV business ethics expert Wonyong Oh on the coronavirus pandemic and the ethical dilemmas facing health care workers, corporations, and government
"What are some ethical questions that businesses are wrestling with in light of COVID-19?
UNLV business ethics expert Wonyong Oh on the coronavirus pandemic and the ethical dilemmas facing health care workers, corporations, and government
"What are some ethical questions that businesses are wrestling with in light of COVID-19?
Let’s think about one controversial example. Real-time personal location information to track and manage the path of infection has been tried all over the world, especially actively in Asian countries like China, Korea, and Hong Kong. IT companies can track location information using smartphones to prevent virus spread. This raises ethical and legal issues surrounding access to personal information.
If you follow utilitarian ethics, tracking this kind of personal information can be allowed with the “maximum benefits for the greatest number” principle. It’s for keeping society safe from infection by sacrificing personal privacy. It seems that, recently, the views on tracking personal information in the U.S. and Europe began to change. In a few European countries, telecommunication companies began to use mobile phone data to fight COVID-19. In the U.S., Apple and Google are working together to track COVID-19 with Bluetooth. IT companies can help governments reduce the spread of the virus with their technologies. At the same time, high-tech companies need to balance that with protecting individual privacy, which is a new challenge.
Everything about the coronavirus pandemic, however, is unprecedented. The reality is that the virus threatens even ordinary freedoms, like the freedom of movement, with stay-at-home orders."
Thursday, April 23, 2020
The Ethics of NOW from Home: “Privacy versus Public Health in a Pandemic: What are the ethical tradeoffs?”; The Kenan Institute For Ethics at Duke University, April 23, 2020 at 7 PM
The Kenan Institute For Ethics at Duke University; The Ethics of NOW from Home: “Privacy versus Public Health in a Pandemic: What are the ethical tradeoffs?”
"The Ethics of Now with Adriane Lentz-Smith continues from home with a series of brief, thoughtful and timely conversations about the ethical dilemmas of this historic moment.
This week, join Professor Lentz-Smith and Washington and Lee law and cyber ethics expert, Margaret Hu for a conversation about the ethical challenges of privacy during a pandemic: “Privacy versus Public Health in a Pandemic: What are the ethical tradeoffs?” 7:00pm Thursday, April 23, 2020."
"The Ethics of Now with Adriane Lentz-Smith continues from home with a series of brief, thoughtful and timely conversations about the ethical dilemmas of this historic moment.
This week, join Professor Lentz-Smith and Washington and Lee law and cyber ethics expert, Margaret Hu for a conversation about the ethical challenges of privacy during a pandemic: “Privacy versus Public Health in a Pandemic: What are the ethical tradeoffs?” 7:00pm Thursday, April 23, 2020."
The dangerous morality behind the 'Open it Up' movement; CNN, April 23, 2020
Daniel Burke, CNN Religion Editor, CNN; The dangerous morality behind the 'Open it Up' movement
"This kind of moral calculus reflects an unpleasant truth about utilitarianism."
"This kind of moral calculus reflects an unpleasant truth about utilitarianism."
Fair and unfair algorithms: What to take into account when developing AI systems to fight COVID-19; JD Supra, April 17, 2020
Fabia Cairoli and Giangiacomo Olivi, JD Supra; Fair and unfair algorithms: What to take into account when developing AI systems to fight COVID-19
"The regulatory framework includes a number of sources from which to draw inspiration when developing AI technology. One of the most recent ones, the White Paper on Artificial Intelligence of the European Commission, is aimed at defining the risks associated with the implementation of AI systems, as well as determining the key features that should be implemented to ensure that data subjects’ rights are complied with (please see our articles The EU White Paper on Artificial Intelligence: the five requirements and Shaping EU regulations on Artificial Intelligence: the five improvements for a more detailed analysis).
It is worth noting that, particularly in relation to the development of AI technologies to fight the pandemic, the legislator is required to pay great attention to the principles and security systems. Risks associated to AI relate both to rights and technical functionalities. EU member states intending to use AI against COVID-19 will also need to ensure that any AI technology is ethical and is construed and operates in a safe way.
With regards to ethics, it is worth noting that the European Commission issued Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI in April 2019. Those guidelines stressed the need for AI systems to be lawful, ethical and robust (more particularly, AI should comply with all applicable laws and regulations, as well as ensure adherence to ethical principles / values and be designed in a way that does not cause unintentional harm).
With the aim of ensuring that fundamental rights are complied with, the legislator should consider whether an AI system will maintain respect for human dignity, equality, non-discrimination and solidarity. Some of these rights may be restricted for extraordinary and overriding reasons – such as fighting against a pandemic – but this should take place under specific legal provisions and only so far as is necessary to achieve the main purpose. Indeed, the use of tracking apps and systems that profile citizens in order to determine which ones may suffer from COVID-19 entails the risk that an individual’s freedom and democratic rights could be seriously restricted."
"The regulatory framework includes a number of sources from which to draw inspiration when developing AI technology. One of the most recent ones, the White Paper on Artificial Intelligence of the European Commission, is aimed at defining the risks associated with the implementation of AI systems, as well as determining the key features that should be implemented to ensure that data subjects’ rights are complied with (please see our articles The EU White Paper on Artificial Intelligence: the five requirements and Shaping EU regulations on Artificial Intelligence: the five improvements for a more detailed analysis).
It is worth noting that, particularly in relation to the development of AI technologies to fight the pandemic, the legislator is required to pay great attention to the principles and security systems. Risks associated to AI relate both to rights and technical functionalities. EU member states intending to use AI against COVID-19 will also need to ensure that any AI technology is ethical and is construed and operates in a safe way.
With regards to ethics, it is worth noting that the European Commission issued Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI in April 2019. Those guidelines stressed the need for AI systems to be lawful, ethical and robust (more particularly, AI should comply with all applicable laws and regulations, as well as ensure adherence to ethical principles / values and be designed in a way that does not cause unintentional harm).
With the aim of ensuring that fundamental rights are complied with, the legislator should consider whether an AI system will maintain respect for human dignity, equality, non-discrimination and solidarity. Some of these rights may be restricted for extraordinary and overriding reasons – such as fighting against a pandemic – but this should take place under specific legal provisions and only so far as is necessary to achieve the main purpose. Indeed, the use of tracking apps and systems that profile citizens in order to determine which ones may suffer from COVID-19 entails the risk that an individual’s freedom and democratic rights could be seriously restricted."
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