Sci-Hub Controversy Triggers Publishers’ Critique of Librarian; Library Journal, 8/25/16

Lisa Peet, Library Journal; Sci-Hub Controversy Triggers Publishers’ Critique of Librarian:

"“I was surprised that AAP would take the tactic of trying to say ‘don’t talk about Sci-Hub,’ as if ignoring the problem, or not shining light on it, would make it go away,” Joseph told LJ. “That seems kind of a backwards way to approach this issue to me, because what we’re seeing, frankly, is Sci-Hub really growing in popularity.”

Sci-Hub’s various clashes with the world of scholarly publishing, Joseph noted, is helping to raise awareness of the issues surrounding journal access outside the library walls. “It’s not just a library problem…. When researchers are going to the lengths of using an illegal resource to get access, I think it’s really showing institutions that it’s not a departmental problem. It’s an institutional problem.”

And the problem doesn’t only lie within academia, Gardner added. As a member of ALA, he said, it would be unethical for him to promote Sci-Hub’s use given the constraints of the legal system. “But I do think that copyright is far too strong, and that the system is in need of reform. The reason why services like Sci-Hub exist is because we have a copyright system which is too draconian.”

“This is an area where tempers run high, and I think that reasonable people can disagree,” he said. “There are a lot of people, scholars and librarians, who think that using Sci-Hub is civil disobedience and I’m personally very sympathetic to that argument. But it’s also obvious to me that under the current legal system, this is totally illegal.”

Gardner is working on research that he will present at ACRL’s 2017 conference, again using data from the Science survey to examine Sci-Hub’s potential impact on inter-library loan practices."

Oakland Raiders File Trademark Applications For Las Vegas Raiders; Forbes, 8/25/16

Darren Heitner, Forbes; Oakland Raiders File Trademark Applications For Las Vegas Raiders:

"The Oakland Raiders have not officially made the move to Las Vegas, but a few trademark filings may serve as a sign for what is to come. On August 20, 2016, the Raiders filed trademark applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for the mark “Las Vegas Raiders.” All of the filings, which span a variety of goods and service classifications, were filed with an intent to use the mark in commerce in the future...

The Raiders filed for “Las Vegas Raiders” protection in multiple distinct classes. They cover education and entertainment services, clothing, mobile applications, football helmets, trading cards, jewelry and play figures."

Who is to blame for the EpiPen hike? Drug monopolies – not evil CEOs; Guardian, 8/29/16

Colin Holtz, Guardian; Who is to blame for the EpiPen hike? Drug monopolies – not evil CEOs:

"Instead of playing whack-a-mole, we need to break the monopolies themselves.

Many companies have effectively outsourced their R&D to federally funded academic research. Under existing law, federal funding of R&D requires companies to offer the medicine on “reasonable terms”. If they do not, we can demand generic versions for federal programs like VA hospitals, and pay a royalty in return. Or, we can simply break the patent for everyone.

In fact, we may not be limited to publicly funded pharmaceuticals. The federal government technically has the power to suspend a patent altogether. In 2003, the Bush administration threatened the maker of anthrax medicine Cipro with exactly that power.

Moving forward, all new patents could include far-stricter cost protections that link prices to median income. Or, if you prefer a more flexible system, you could incentivize innovation with hefty cash prizes, but place the resulting drugs in the public domain."

Col. Sanders’ Secret KFC Recipe For Fried Chicken May Have Just Been Revealed Online; Huffington Post, 8/26/16

Ed Mazza, Huffington Post; Col. Sanders’ Secret KFC Recipe For Fried Chicken May Have Just Been Revealed Online:

"Call it ChikiLeaks.

One of the most famous “secret recipes” in the world may have just been revealed online.

A relative of Col. Harland Sanders, the late founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken, appears to have shown off a copy of his blend of 11 herbs and spices to the Chicago Tribune."

Now anyone can access NASA-funded research; Quartz, 8/20/16

Ian Kar, Quartz; Now anyone can access NASA-funded research:

"The US space agency has announced that it will be archiving research data at a web portal open to the public. Beginning this year, all NASA-funded authors of peer-reviewed papers will be required to provide copies of their science journal articles and the accompanying data. The research will be made available on the public portal, for free, within a year of publication...

While the portal, called PubSpace, doesn’t have the most gorgeous interface, it’s a step toward meeting a 2013 request from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, seeking increased public access to the results of federally funded research."

Patent office launches Cancer Moonshot challenge; FedScoop, 8/22/16

Whitney Blair Wyckoff, FedScoop; Patent office launches Cancer Moonshot challenge:

"The Patent and Trademark Office launched a contest Monday that encourages the public to glean new insights about cancer research from the agency’s intellectual property data.

As part of the USPTO Cancer Moonshot Challenge, participants will be tasked with finding ways to link data from the agency’s new Developer Hub portal to other data sets related to research grants and the economy. Organizers hope participants will illuminate trends that will help the federal government make better funding and policy decisions to develop more effective cancer treatments...

The contest is part of a sweeping White House initiative to find new, innovative ways to treat cancer. The USPTO blog post notes the agency “is playing an important role” in the program: Last month, it launched its Patent 4 Patients program to halve the time it takes to evaluate patent applications for cancer therapies.

For the new contest, the patent office will offer an information session on Thursday for those interested in participating."

U.S. lawmakers demand investigation of $100 price hike of lifesaving EpiPens; Washington Post, 8/23/16

Ariana Eunjung Cha, Washington Post; U.S. lawmakers demand investigation of $100 price hike of lifesaving EpiPens:

"The medication itself isn’t expensive. Analysts calculate that the dosage contained in a single pen is worth about $1. It’s the company’s proprietary pen injector that makes up the bulk of the cost...

A profile in Fortune in 2015 described her rise in colorful terms:

Bresch, a 46-year-old who’s spent more than half her life at Mylan, has steered the company’s transformation from a quirky outfit run out of a West Virginia trailer to a global operator with 30,000 employees in 145 countries. Born into politics—her father, Joe Manchin, is a longtime West Virginia Democratic stalwart who’s now a U.S. senator—Bresch has mastered the regulatory world. Since becoming CEO in 2012, she’s overseen a major revenue increase; Mylan projects sales of up to $10.1 billion this year, up from $6.1 billion in 2011…

Under Bresch’s leadership, Mylan has also stumbled through a series of ethically messy mishaps and public relations gaffes. Mylan’s inversion took place just as uproar over the tactic reached a fever pitch on Capitol Hill. (Among the politicians who denounced the move was Bresch’s own father, though he later changed his mind.) Critics have called out the company for unusually high executive pay packages, questionable use of company jets, and murky relationships with board members. Then there’s “the Heather Bresch situation,” as she herself calls it, a scandal surrounding her executive MBA credentials—when you Google her name, the episode still ranks even higher than her official Mylan bio."