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Academic Year 2005/2006

Intellectual Property, the Constitution, and Higher Education
GOVT 377 SP

A vibrant, healthy academic community rests upon certain preconditions. One of the most important of these preconditions is that the production and dissemination of knowledge must be a fundamentally public and democratic affair. Excessive restrictions upon either threaten the academic enterprise in several ways. Explosive and rapid changes in information technologies, for example, have led to profound and important changes n the legal framework that govern institutions of higher education. In this course, we will consider how the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), and the Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH), among others, have dramatically altered the legal rights and responsibilities of publishers, faculty and librarians, IT personnel, and students with regard to a wide array of issues, including the use and abuse of copyright, digitization, course packs, peer to peer file sharing, and so on.

MAJOR READINGS

Koepsell, THE ONTOLOGY OF CYBERSPACE: PHILOSPHY, LAW, AND THE FUTURE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.
Radin et al., INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND THE INTERNET
Other readings TBA

EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS

Several short papers and a longer research paper or project.

COURSE FORMAT: Seminar

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Level: UGRD    Credit: 1    Gen Ed Area Dept: SBS GOVT    Grading Mode: Graded   

Prerequisites: NONE Links to Web Resources For This Course.

Last Updated on MAR-30-2006

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