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Author Archives: Gerald Barnett
A personal update and musing on certain failures of statistics in medicine
Just a note here about my health and the direction for this blog. First, it’s great to see that people are still coming to read articles about technology transfer and cockroach living. Maybe there’s hope out there, or at least … Continue reading
Posted in Bad Science
Tagged cardiac arrest, clinical trials, Moloch, random, statins
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Devoted to Ms. Bells
Some time in the run up to Christmas, my daughter and her family were visiting. For the grandkids, I hook up an intercom system consisting of an old corded Princess handset and an only slightly less old cordless phone with … Continue reading
University patents under federal scrutiny
At the most recent cabinet meeting, the Secretary of Commerce said some words about university patents to the effect that the billions of dollars of federal research sent to universities has resulted in universities owning a bunch of patents and … Continue reading
Dream on
I had a dream last night that I was in a city–don’t know where–in which one had to get a license to purchase food. And not only that, but one also had to get a license at the same time … Continue reading
A response to a Quora question on “key principles” to consider in creating an IP policy
I got a Quora request for an answer. Just posted this. Let’s start with some basics regarding policy. Since the early 15th century, policy has been a creature of government, and of organizations with the idea of behaving as if … Continue reading
On becoming Dublin again
Adrian Johns, in Piracy: The Intellectual Property Wars From Gutenberg to Gates, describes the difference in approach to literary property between the rival cities London and Dublin. For London publishers, literary property was held to be perpetual. For Dublin publishers, … Continue reading
Research administrators protest indirect cost changes
The NIH has proposed to set the indirect cost rate for its grants at 15%. There’s the usual outrage. I don’t feel that outrage, however. I don’t even feel a desire to preserve the present approach to federally supported research. … Continue reading
Posted in Bad Science, Sponsored Research
Tagged indirect costs, outrage, research
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NIH’s change to indirect costs as an opening for research enterprise change
A few days ago, Chris Newfield published an article on his Remaking blog on the proposed NIH cuts to university indirect costs. Now, Chris is the most knowledgeable person on university financing who is willing to speak openly about how … Continue reading
End the disaster of university patenting for exclusive licensing
While there is a place for exclusive patent licensing (but why not just assign?), the university screws over its public mission by involving itself in exclusive deals. Just because those deals aren’t obvious to the public unless they make big … Continue reading
Stop being Moloch
Here is a short form of the argument that nothing is a better way than the approach to technology transfer, IP, licensing that universities have at present. The present approach universities take to IP management/technology transfer does not work, has … Continue reading
Posted in Patents, Policy, Technology Transfer
Tagged Moloch, policy
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