Finally, we're getting the NFL v. NHL matchup we've always wanted, thanks to trademark law.
posted by matt in Wednesday, September 6, 2023
Players Coalition, NHL group at odds over trademark issue (theathletic.com)
Content about law
Slashdot (slashdot.org)
Basically what we're trying to do is amplify what's considered good behavior and then de-amplify what's considered bad behavior.
Sounds good. But, um, 'considered' by whom?
posted by matt in Sunday, April 30, 2023
US Supreme Court rejects computer scientist's lawsuit over AI-generated inventions (yahoo.com)
Thaler told the Supreme Court that AI is being used to innovate in fields ranging from medicine to energy, and that rejecting AI-generated patents "curtails our patent system's ability - and thwarts Congress's intent - to optimally stimulate innovation and technological progress."
Congress can change this at any time. I bet we'll have Congressional hearings on AI inventorship over the next few years, which will be fascinating. For me, at least.
tags: lawpatentsaisupremecourtcongress
posted by matt in Monday, April 24, 2023
Elderly Russian woman fined for calling Zelensky ‘handsome’ (independent.co.uk)
Ms Sleginam...was reported to police by three other visitors at the cafe.
To me, that quote is the scariest aspect of this story. Sure, the censorship laws are horrible and the willingness of the system to apply them to an elderly woman commenting on Zelensky's attractiveness, a completely subjective topic, is ridiculous. But, the fact that people were willing to "report" the situation to police in the first place is scary as hell. It shows that the law and enforcement system have a foothold, regardless of how horrible and ridiculous it is.
That is scary.
tags: lawrussiafreespeach
posted by matt in Thursday, April 20, 2023
Michael Schumacher's family taking legal action over A.I. interview (cnbc.com)
A strapline added: "it sounded deceptively real”. Inside, it emerged the quotes had been produced by AI."
This is interesting. Sounds like the magazine didn't hide the fact that the interview was AI generated (although they likely deemphasized it). The magazine essentially used Schumacher's name and his likeness without his permission. I suspect they'll regret the "deceptively real" descriptor.
posted by matt in Thursday, April 20, 2023
Wozniak, Musk & more call for 'out-of-control' AI development pause | AppleInsider (appleinsider.com)
"AI labs and independent experts should use this pause to jointly develop and implement a set of shared safety protocols for advanced AI design and development that are rigorously audited and overseen by independent outside experts," it continues. "These protocols should ensure that systems adhering to them are safe beyond a reasonable doubt."
We need Asimov's Laws of Robotics for AI. Frankly, I'd feel better if that came in the form an actual law, not an agreement among companies. An international treaty would be best.
posted by matt in Wednesday, March 29, 2023
The legal reality is that Roe v. Wade never rested on the soundest of constitutional grounds. The Court didn't have the votes for an equal protection footing, so the majority opinion relied on a newfound fundamental right to privacy. That is, and always was, the Achilles heel of the decision. The late Justice Ginsburg criticized the decision, and questioned its long term viability, for this very reason.
At some point, you expect stare decisis to strengthen all but the shakiest of legal grounds for a Supreme Court decision, but it just wasn't there this time.
So the optimistic view following yesterday's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which I'm choosing to take, is that we've been given an opportunity to present the issue in a way that lets a future Supreme Court base a rights-affirming decision on a more stable legal footing.
postposted by matt in Saturday, June 25, 2022
Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade; states can ban abortion (apnews.com)
U.S. history is staked with milestones relating to the attainment of rights–freedom, suffrage, privacy, equality. I've always viewed our system as a process that moves toward more rights for its people. Progress is achieved in fits and starts, of course, but our history has always moved in the same direction–more rights for the people.
That all changed today when the Supreme Court actually eliminated an existing, federally protected right of all women of the United States by overturning its decision in Roe v. Wade.
The country I know and love is suddenly a country that takes rights away from its people.
That's backwards. And disgusting. And horrific.
posted by matt in Friday, June 24, 2022
United States Patent: 8278036 (uspto.gov)
Oh, and applications of the mRNA technology in the Kariko paper were patented in 2012. The patents describe the process for practicing the technology in painstaking detail, as the law requires. And they expire in five years - in 2026, opening up incredible opportunities for new applications of the technology.
tags: patentssciencelawcovid19vaccine
posted by matt in Wednesday, March 3, 2021
Judge approves $650 million Facebook privacy settlement over facial recognition feature (theverge.com)
Meanwhile, in other Facebook face recognition news....
posted by matt in Saturday, February 27, 2021