Computers and Robots Can Copy Your Work, and Get Away With It

So Long as Computers Don’t Understand the Copied Content, Copyright Law Will Stay Focused on People

Copyright has a weird relationship with computers. Sometimes it completely freaks out about them; sometimes it pretends it can’t see them at all. The contrast tells us a lot about copyright—and even more about how we relate to new technologies.

Start with the freak-out. One thing that computers are good for is making copies—lots of copies. Drag your music folder from your hard drive to your backup Dropbox and congratulations, you’ve just duplicated thousands of copyrighted songs. If you look up the section of the Copyright Act that sets out what …

By James Grimmelmann | August 30, 2016

Take It From a Poll Worker, the System Isn’t Rigged

The People Who Staff Voting Precincts Put Aside Their Opinions So That You Can Express Yours

By Sara Harrison | August 19, 2016

Recently, Donald Trump issued a typically bombastic call for supporters to go to polling stations and watch for voter fraud, strongly suggesting that the only way he would lose the …

Why Is It So Hard to Stop Rave Overdoses?

Heavy-Handed Calls to Ban the Music Events Have Done Little to Curb Their Drug-Related Deaths

By Louis Patterson | August 17, 2016

When the music comes on at a rave, a synergetic feeling of mass escape and euphoria runs through the crowd. But this unparalleled collective high has come at a cost. …

With Mass Murderers the Tragedy May Be Heinous, But It’s Rarely Senseless

Many Rampage Killers Have Strikingly Similar Motives

By James L. Knoll IV | August 17, 2016

When the news of a mass shooting breaks, there are often three questions that come to mind: How many people are dead? Who was the shooter? What was their motive? …

Linoleum’s Luxurious History and Creative Renaissance

From Titanic Tiles to Picasso’s Putty, the Practical Flooring Has a Surprisingly Enchanting Backstory

by Hattie Jean Hayes | August 12, 2016

Zócalo’s editors are highlighting some of our favorite pieces from the archive. This week, we’re revisiting writer Hattie Jean Hayes’ history of the once-ubiquitous, …

Will Environmental Crises Segregate Sports?

Snowless Mountains and Poisoned Beaches Will Drive a Wedge Between Athletes of Different Classes

By Andrew Dana Hudson | August 10, 2016

In Brazil, Olympic rowers and sailors will chase gold through dying rivers and poisoned lagoons. Even amid all the crises piling up on this year’s games—unfinished infrastructure, political drama, financial …

nexus

Computers and Robots Can Copy Your Work, and Get Away With It

So Long as Computers Don’t Understand the Copied Content, Copyright Law Will Stay Focused on People

Take It From a Poll Worker, the System Isn’t Rigged

The People Who Staff Voting Precincts Put Aside Their Opinions So That You Can Express Yours

Why Is It So Hard to Stop Rave Overdoses?

Heavy-Handed Calls to Ban the Music Events Have Done Little to Curb Their Drug-Related Deaths

With Mass Murderers the Tragedy May Be Heinous, But It’s Rarely Senseless

Many Rampage Killers Have Strikingly Similar Motives

Linoleum’s Luxurious History and Creative Renaissance

From Titanic Tiles to Picasso’s Putty, the Practical Flooring Has a Surprisingly Enchanting Backstory

Will Environmental Crises Segregate Sports?

Snowless Mountains and Poisoned Beaches Will Drive a Wedge Between Athletes of Different Classes

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Why We Should Fear Emotionally Manipulative Robots

Artificial Intelligence Is Learning How to Exploit Human Psychology for Profit

How ‘Automation’ Made America Work Harder

Computers Were Supposed to Reduce Office Labor. They Accomplished the Opposite

Go Ahead: Steal This Headline

Kal Raustiala of UCLA Says Imitation Breeds Innovation

Did Moore’s Law Really Inspire the Computer Age?

A Half Century Ago, Chemist Gordon Moore Made a Prediction—Or Was It a Challenge?—That Became a Narrative for Our Time

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