“In China, Objections to Google’s Book Scans”

As major Internet-based companies continue to increase the availability of online media, various privacy, security and copyright issues begin to surface, especially when crossing international borders. Although further activating its mission “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful,” Google’s efforts to digitize books have caused controversy in China where authors have responded by coming together to defend their rights and demand protection from Google’s “unauthorized copying.”

According to the article, Google’s goal of digitizing millions of books has not only been a recurring problem overseas, but also in the United States as the company does not obtain permission from publishers or authors. The Chinese were only recently informed of Google’s efforts through potential class-action settlements between American authors. When looking into the issue, it was discovered that Google was obtaining Chinese works from American libraries and scanning them into a database. Chinese writer’s groups have accused Google of violating international copyright laws by scanning Chinese works into this database without permission. One group, the China Writers’ Association, representing about 9,000 writers, believes “Google has seriously violated the copyrights of Chinese writers.” Google, on the other hand, insists the company has complied with all necessary regulations. It argues that their efforts are legal since the excerpt that appears online in the Book Search service is small and for informational purposes only. Chinese authors have taken a strong position against the works of Google and have further suggested that the company has published selections online without permission; however, no evidence has confirmed additional charges. Proposed settlements have been rejected by the Chinese and are currently being rewritten.

I thought it was interesting that a representative from Google claimed that it is impossible to identify who holds the rights to the millions of books in the library and waiting for them to surface would inhibit the creation of a comprehensive index. Although I do not know what the exact copyright laws are, I’m surprised that such a huge corporation is willing to overlook copyrights instead of carrying out the necessary process to obtain permission.

This controversy highlights the idea that privacy and security are some of the most important issues when creating databases of information. Rules regarding these issues and the fine lines within each situation keep resurfacing as more databases are expanded and created. From Facebook to online stores to Google, any data that is stored in a database must always be obtained and stored with proper permission and security. This article shows that with the motivation of making knowledge more accessible, certain information requires a more detailed process. While the organization and global access that stems from database use is beneficial, if not done properly, it can create domestic and international problems on both legal and political levels. It exposes a complication in the continuously advancing IT field.

Blog 2-Kelly Thomas

The article I read, “Doctor on-call? Cell-Phone Camera Can Diagnose Disease”, talks about new technologies enabling small third world countries to have access to medical doctors. Doctors at California-Berkley have designed a device called, Cellscope which is a microscope that attaches to a camera-equipped cell phone and produces two kinds of imaging, called brightfield and fluorescence microscopy. The cellscope can take pictures and send them to medical laboratories all over the world. These advancements can help places around the world that lack the technological advancements that places like the United States have. The CellScope tests were carried out by using a 3.2 megapixel cell phone. However, the scope that is attached is not the smallest of devices. Researchers and developers will need to do a lot of work to shrink it down to a good size to be able to use in remote areas. In the article they discuss how different LED lights are used depending on the disease being looked at, for example, when testing for the presence of TB bacilli researchers use a high-power blue LED to illuminate the sample.

I believe that this new technology is an excellent advancement that the whole world can benefit from. There are so many people in third world countries that are dying of diseases that are undiagnosed. With the help of this new innovation, they are able to have access to doctors around the world. Developing countries are now able to get help in places that are unreachable by a doctor. This is advancement in technology can really allow the world to take a step in the right direction. At times, I feel that technology has made our world very lazy, but this is an excellent advancement that so many people can benefit from.

When I was a senior in high school I traveled to El Salvador with my Church and I came to realize how many people are sick and do not have a doctor at their fingertips to help them. In the United States we do not realize how lucky we are and how we have become so used to having everything we could ever want at our finger tips. Something as simple as a camera that can send pictures to a medical laboratory could potentially change a person’s life in a positive way. Allowing a child or adult, in a third world country, to be diagnosed with a disease and helped would be an awesome technological advancement in our world. However, this great advancement would help with the diagnosis of a disease, but it does not guarantee that their disease will be treated and helped. Third world countries lack money, which we are lucky enough to have. Overall, I really think this is an excellent invention that many people could benefit from in the end.

Dana Cullen: Article #2

I found a very interesting article concerning information technology’s affect on the healthcare industry. The article stated that one of the largest organizations in Medicaid managed health plans, AmeriHealth Mercy Family, recently started to use a new program NaviNet clinical messaging, in addition to their already use of NaviNet. NaviNet allowed healthcare providers to check a patient’s insurance eligibility before they arrived for their appointment. Now with the addition of NaviNet Clinical Messaging, doctors are able to see not only the patient’s insurance eligibility, but they can see in real time the unmet medical needs of their patients before the patient’s appointment. This new information technology allows doctors to have the information about their patients at the point of care.

The implementation of this information technology is crucial in providing better care for patients. Since doctors are able to see unmet medical needs of their patients, they are able to know for instance in a patient missed a routine test. Sometimes a missed test can be the difference between life or death for a patient, so having an automated electronic program that can correct such human error is extremely useful and practical. I think all health plans need to start to implement this technology, because providing better care should be the goal of all medical institutions.

In addition to just providing information about unmet medical needs for individual patients, NaviNet Clinical Messaging also can allow doctors to view their patient’s from a larger scale perspective. For example, doctors can have access electronically and in physical form to all the patients they treat with a specific condition or illness. This type of information is as vital to providing good health care as is being able to see unmet medical needs, because now doctors have a good source of internal information. Having good internal information will inevitable benefit patients, because doctors will be able to cut costs, and reduce errors.

It also is a great idea that doctors have access to the number of patients with certain illnesses, because it can alert them to a possible epidemic of a certain disorder or infection. If doctors know that there is a large concentrated area of a certain disease they will be able to act more preventatively, and share the information to help stop further outbreaks.

I think advancements in these areas are the future of health care. Forgetting routine tests are very easy human errors to make, and by having electronic records that inform doctors, mishaps like such will dramatically decrease. Also, people will save money in co-pays and time, by only having to go to one doctor’s appointment versus maybe two or three to get the tests they forgot to inform their doctors about preformed. Doctors will save time as well, and have more appointments available for other patients, making the system work smoothly.

NaviNet Clinical Messaging is a very useful implementation of information technology that not only creates more organized health care, but more affordable and effective health care that all patients deserve.

Source:http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS168461+30-Apr-2009+BW20090430