Tuesday, April 2, 2013, by Cara Richards Twenty-eight states and the federal government have enacted laws that provide for automatic DNA collection when an individual is arrested. The issue that arises with these types of laws is whether it is constitutional to collect DNA samples without a warrant, if the entire purpose is to compare …
Thursday, March 28, 2013, by Kaitlin Powers National groups advocating for disabilities rights assert that online websites should fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and that websites should be accessible to disabled persons in an equivalent manner to physical retail locations. While several jurisdictions have rejected the notion that websites fall within the …
Friday, March 8, 2013, by Justin Mann If a manufacturer wants to change the color of its implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, finding that patients like blue more during product demonstrations, what kind of change is this considered? What needs to be reported to the FDA? To the public? What if that same manufacturer finds a supplier with …
Wednesday, March 27, 2013, by Catherine Clodfelter Apple is now proudly announcing that its data center in Maiden, North Carolina, is running off of 100% renewable energy. Apple has an energy goal that does not stop in Maiden, but extends to every data center and every Apple facility. Accounting for all facilities worldwide, Apple says …
Wednesday, March 27, 2013, by Seiko Okada The United States Copyright Office is seeking public comments as to whether the U. S. should establish a copyright small claims adjudication system. Concurrently, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) is seeking public comments as to creating a small claims proceeding for patent enforcement. Ideas behind …
Sunday, March 24, 2013, by Neil M. Barnes Traditionally, the US government has taken a serious interest in protecting the correspondences of its citizens. Opening mail addressed to another before the other person has had a chance to receive the mail carries heavy penalties. Even the government does not have limitless access to mail. Typically, …
Saturday, March 23, 2013, by Ashley McAlarney Three lawmakers re-introduced legislation on Thursday, March 21 that “require[s] police to get a warrant before using GPS to actively track suspects’ whereabouts.” The Geolocation Privacy Surveillance Act, known as the GPS Act, directs police to obtain a warrant before they can acquire a person’s location history from …
Friday, March 22, 2013, by Virginia Wooten Automatically skipping over advertisements may sound like heaven to many television viewers, but for the major television networks this ad-skipping technology seems like a potential nightmare. As of February 2013, Fox Broadcasting Company is seeking a preliminary injunction against the second-generation of Dish Network’s Hopper technology. It is …
Wednesday, March 20, 2013, by Dylan Novak In 1996, animal cloning became a prominent topic throughout the world when Dolly the sheep was successfully cloned. While Dolly was not the first cloned animals, she was the first animal cloned from an adult cell, not an embryo. Since Dolly, many more animals have been successfully cloned …
Tuesday, March 19, 2013, by Holly Bannerman Although Senate Bill 820 legalized fracking in North Carolina, the State has placed a moratorium on the issuance of permits for drilling until adequate environmental and public health safeguards are established. Impatient, some state legislators are now pushing to drill before these important protections are in place. Just …