Immaterial Property Research Articles

Barriers to immaterial property rights development in research organizations: an explorative study from Finland

This study analyses immaterial property rights related organizational processes in public research organizations. The study investigates the structural barriers limiting intellectual property rights development and commercialization. In addition, the study focuses on how different types of public research organizations, namely universities, research and technology organizations, and polytechnics, differ in this respect. The study was implemented as a survey with 493 respondents. The study found that lack of awareness and questions around the impact IPR are the main barriers to immaterial property rights development. The study also found differences in organizational practices between RTOs and universities.

Health based animal and meat safety cooperative communities

The purposes of meat inspection have been formulated for more than 100 years as (a) protecting health of consumers, (b) maintain the reputation of the meats in home and export markets, and (c) detecting communicable diseases of animals before they have spread beyond easy control. Today, one would add to protect animal welfare, clarify that protecting consumer health includes both chemical and biological hazards, and add food fraud to the issues of reputation. To transform the scientific knowledge into modern meat safety assurance systems (MSAS), the risk managers need to understand the social capital in the meat value chain to align the behaviors of farmers, food business operators and competent authorities with technical knowledge. The meat value chain could be perceived as a commons – a material or immaterial property held jointly by the members of a community, whom may govern access to and use of the property through social structures, traditions, and/or formal rules i.e. social capital. The social capital and food safety culture amongst farmers and food business operators is a key driver for successful meat safety while information asymmetry increases risks for a tragedy of commons scenario. Ostrom's core design principles for stable commons could inform the design of MSASs. Tools for reducing the information asymmetry and building trust and social capital between all stakeholders within the meat value chain include the food safety culture, food chain information, use of health epidemiological indicators, sensors and block chains, industry/private standards, and the applying system approach from farm to fork.

Behavioural public policies for the social brain

Abstract Behavioural public policy is increasingly interested in scaling-up experimental insights to deliver systemic changes. Recent evidence shows some forms of individual behaviour change, such as nudging, are limited in scale. We argue that we can scale-up individual behaviour change by accounting for nuanced social complexities in which human responses to behavioural public policies are situated. We introduce the idea of the ‘social brain’, as a construct to help practitioners and policymakers facilitate a greater social transmission of welfare-improving behaviours. The social brain is a collection of individual human brains, who are connected to other human brains through ‘social cues’, and who are affected by the material and immaterial properties of the physical environment in which they are situated (‘social complex’). Ignoring these cues and the social complex runs the risk of fostering localised behavioural changes, through individual actors, which are neither scalable nor lasting. We identify pathways to facilitate changes in the social brain: either through path dependencies or critical mass shifts in individual behaviours, moderated by the brain's property of social cohesion and multiplicity of situational and dispositional factors. In this way, behavioural changes stimulated in one part of the social brain can reach other parts and evolve dynamically. We recommend designing public policies that engage different parts of the social brain.

Transforming a child's claim for loss of earning capacity

This article explores the possible constitutional transformation of a child's delictual claim for loss of earning capacity. As such, it is located at the intersection of the law of delict and child law. The current law on a child's claim for loss of earning capacity is explained first. It is shown that such a claim involves a concurrent violation of the constitutional rights to bodily integrity and property which common-law thinkers call a person's "personal immaterial property". A claim for loss of future earning capacity may be brought by or on behalf of a child in terms of the common law's rules for Aquilian liability. In this regard, it is noted that the assessment of future losses is a controversial legal issue because it necessarily involves speculation about future hypotheticals. While controversial, claims of this nature may be reasonably determined with reference to available evidence. In terms of the law, as it stands, factors that courts consider in quantifying a child's damages for loss of earning capacity include the average probable income, the child's schooling and familial context, wage statistics, and broad judicial discretion. It will be shown that these factors could be applied (and sometimes have been applied) in ways that perpetuate past patterns of exclusion and poverty that are often racially determined - ultimately resulting in some children's claims for loss of earning capacity being pitched below a liveable wage. Relying on the constitutional right to equality and the constitutional best interests of the child standard, it is argued that the common law ought to be developed in this regard to move our law of delict in the direction of distributive justice. In this regard, reference to "liveable wages" and "fairness" (as a consideration in exercising judicial discretion) may be appropriate guidelines used to quantify children's claims for loss of earning capacity in future.

Some Legal Aspects of Civil Law According to German Civil Law (Comparative Analysis)

  This article reviews the understanding  of civil law relations according to German civil law, its elements and the opinions of individual scientists. The significance of the categories of legal requirements in Civil law relations are specified in accordance with the German law.  In particular, like the science of German law, there are absolute (common actions) and relative legal relations in Georgian jurisprudence. Both in Germany and in Georgia, first of all, material legal relations are attributed to absolute legal relations. In particular, the field of universal rights of the person (Personlichkeitsrechte), the field of personal family rights (personlichefamilienrechte), the immaterial properties (Immaterialguterrechte), the right of possession of ownerless thing (aneigungsrech), the law of property rights (Rechte an dinglichen Rechte) and so on. Claim rights (Forderungsrechte), constitutional rights (Gestaltungsrechte) and "Dispute" against legal relations (einredengegenanspruche) are attributed to Relative. The "rights of expectation" (Anwartschaftsrechte) and the "right to a right" are relative rights that are directed towards acquisition. In other cases, these rights give rise to absolute legal relations. Separation of absolute and relative legal relations is important for choosing the proper protection of the legal scheme, etc.

비(非)물질적 표현이 도입된 집합주거의 외피 연구

Modern architecture and design presents a variety of heterogeneous, multifarious expressions, reinterpreting and expressing the performance of materials or the function of Spaces, the processes contained therein. This mode of series is interpreted as immaterial rather than reductive. On the basis of the investigation of the immateriality of explicit space, the meaning of spatial design and immateriality is redefined. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to understand the concept of immaterial in space and the immaterial characteristics and types in modern space design, and to analyze the immaterial characteristics in domestic residential space. First, The background, purpose, scope and method of the research are presented. Secondly, through literature investigation, the concept of spatial immateriality, the development trend of immaterialization and the structural form of immaterialization are understood, and the theoretical background of the characteristics and types of immaterialization is investigated. Third, to grasp the immaterial properties of the living shell, which is closely related to the daily behavior of human beings, and select the works of writers related to the immaterial performance. Fourthly, it combines the immaterial performance characteristics generated from the skin with the discovery, deformation, distortion, fusion and progress of the components through the construction of the immaterial outer skin. To study and understand the concept of immateriality, secondly, to classify the immateriality characteristics and types in space design, and to master the immateriality characteristics in settlement.

Locke's Ideas of Mind and Body by Han-Kyul Kim

Reviewed by: Locke's Ideas of Mind and Body by Han-Kyul Kim Shelley Weinberg Han-Kyul Kim. Locke's Ideas of Mind and Body. New York: Routledge, 2019. Pp. xiv + 166. Cloth, $112.00. In the brief space I have, I can provide only a quick taste of what the reader is in for with Han-Kyul Kim's Locke's Ideas of Mind and Body. Kim argues that his account of Locke's metaphysics of substance in terms of ideas of mind and body (nominal essences) makes sense of the relation between four crucial and often overlooked topics in Locke's philosophy: "(1) Locke's mind-body nominalism, (2) his epistemic humility, (3) his functionalist account of substrata, and (4) his naturalist approach to the human mind" (4). Kim opens in chapter 1 with a survey of various ontological doctrines (materialism, substance dualism, and property dualism) that have been associated with Locke and provides arguments that none are correct. Instead, Kim puts forward a novel argument that Locke's metaphysics of substance should be understood in functional terms. Qualities are explained and known, insofar as we know them, in terms of their causal/functional roles: any intrinsic natures should be understood simply as possibly multi-realizable bearers of those causal roles. This dovetails with Kim's understanding of Locke's "substance nominalism" (chapter 2), the view that the distinction between the mental and the material (mind and body) is only a nominal (ideational) one reflecting our two different perspectives on the world given in sensation and reflection. So, "the two nominal entities [mind and body] are differentiated only by reference to their functional roles in our psychological and physical theories," both of which should be understood in a naturalistic framework (131). Consistent also with Locke's "epistemic humility," the subject of chapter 3, any claim about the fundamental stuff of the universe—that it is either material, immaterial, or something with both material and immaterial properties—confuses "ideas with reality" (9). Shedding light on this confusion between ideas and reality allows Kim to see in Locke a kind of naturalism consistent with an "emergentist" interpretation of superaddition (chapter 4): everything from motion to thinking emerges as something more than the material particles so organized and "made fit" by God for that emergence. Higher-level beings "may thus appear to be entirely distinct from and over and above the solid particles of which they are composed, but are nevertheless described as 'superadded' only in the sense that they are not contained in the idea of matter" (89). Such confusion between what belongs to the realm of ideas and what belongs to reality also leads to the perennial "mind-body problem" for which a solution is offered in chapter 5. Following Colin McGinn, Consciousness and Its Objects (Clarendon Press, 2004), Kim argues that once we realize that all Lockean talk about material or immaterial substance is really only about our ideas (nominal essences) and that it takes a being far superior to us to organize the fundamental stuff in such a way [End Page 818] that it exhibits the causal order it does, part of which results in the nominal essences (ideas) of matter and thinking, we should realize that mind-body interaction as problematic is due simply to the way we think about the mind and the body. A superior understanding of the natural world would reveal some property, in terms of its functional role, that would "enable us to see a priori how the phenomena we call 'mental' and 'physical' are related to each other" (112). In crafting his functionalist and "substance nominalist" interpretation of Locke, Kim has provided interesting links to various historical (William Carroll, Richard Burthogge) and contemporary (Colin McGinn) "Spinozist" readings of Locke as well as a historical naturalist reading (Joseph Priestley) that have not been in the foreground for some time. He also appeals to twentieth- and twenty-first-century metaphysics of the mind (Frank Ramsey, Jaegwon Kim, Donald Davidson, Colin McGinn) to shed more light on various arguments. Some may object to doing the history of philosophy by appeal to contemporary thinking. I think Kim has done a good job of allowing Locke...

Strangers at home: narratives of northern Muslim returnees in post-war Sri Lanka

This article focuses on the experiences, aspirations and challenges of Sri Lankan Muslim returnees to northern part of Sri Lanka in Jaffna and analyses their strategies to cope with the ambivalent situation thereafter. The empirical point of departure is drawn from the stories of three Muslim returnees in Jaffna who returned from different parts of Sri Lanka. The article finds that the Muslim returnees conceptualise home as a place where they can have a “better future” than the displaced location where they stayed for so long. The authors argue that this unveils the different kinds of attachment they have to their homes through memories, emotions and material and immaterial properties. There exists feelings of alienation and detachment from their homes among some. Furthermore, their aspirations of a good life seem to be decaying in their homes after their return.

How Real is Too Real for the Law? Realism versus Right of Publicity in Video Game Design

Realistic elements in video game design can inspire an appropriation claim, trademark dispute, or similar lawsuits, even when the underlying immaterial property from the real world was licensed. Video games can be First Amendment-protected expression, however, as in other media, there’s tension between the speech rights of creators and the personal rights of subjects. Furthermore, there’s disagreement from one jurisdiction to another regarding how much mimicry loses protection and how many dissimilarities are transformative enough to be lawful. Analysis of case law reveals a balancing act between protecting video games as expressive works and protecting individuals’ right of publicity.

Introduction to Virtual Property: Lex Virtualis Ipsa Loquitur

This article serves as an introduction to the concept of virtual property and also to very briefly note the relevance of virtual property in modern society. A universally accepted definition of virtual property is hard to come by, but the paper will aim to provide some clarity on the issue. Virtual property is still property, and it still exists even though it is intangible. It includes (amongst other things) website addresses and email addresses as well as certain other accepted immaterial property objects such as bank accounts, stocks, options and derivatives. Indeed, one can go so far as to include digital goods, such as digital versions of books (e-books), computer or smartphone programmes or apps, television series and movies as well as digital music (albums and tracks) as objects of virtual property. However, the focus in this paper is on the type of virtual property found inside virtual worlds. The discussion of virtual property will be facilitated by reference to some of the ancillary and more complicated areas of the field to serve as a point of reference leading to an understanding of the concept of virtual property in general.

Describing urban soils through a faceted system ensures more informed decision-making

Urban areas are increasing worldwide at a dramatic rate and their soils definitely deserve more attention than they have received in the past. In urban environments, soils potentially provide the same ecosystem services as in rural and wild environments, although in some cases they are depleted of their basic functions, such as when they lose their productive and filtering capacities because of sealing, and become mere supports for infrastructures. In other cases, soils of urban areas acquire new functions that are unique to these environments. Current soil classifications fail to effectively account for the complexity of urban soils and the information that is required for their management. Additionally, the survey of urban soils is difficult, due to fragmentation and rapid land use change and the fact that due to human pressure their properties seldom vary linearly and predictably according to landforms, which hinders the effectiveness of geostatistics. The conventional practice of grouping similar soils and transferring their information in a concise manner is not viable for urban soils. We advocate the introduction of a faceted system – i.e., a scheme using semantic categories, either general or subject-specific, that are combined to create the full classification entry – to organize the information on urban soils to support decision-making. The facets that such a system should be based on are not only the intrinsic physical and chemical properties that are usually used to describe any soil, but also other tangible or even immaterial properties that are particularly meaningful in an urban context, such as landscape metrics, or aesthetic, social and historical values. As well as providing more adequately the information of the type requested by urban planners and policymakers, a faceted system of classification of urban soil resources would have the flexibility to accommodate all available or future scattered, rapidly changing, or incomplete data.

A Gibbs energy minimization method for constrained and partial equilibria

The conventional Gibbs energy minimization methods apply elemental amounts of system components as conservation constraints in the form of a stoichiometric conservation matrix. The linear constraints designate the limitations set on the components described by the system constituents. The equilibrium chemical potentials of the constituents are obtained as a linear combination of the component-specific contributions, which are solved with the Lagrange method of undetermined multipliers. When the Gibbs energy of a multiphase system is also affected by conditions due to immaterial properties, the constraints must be adjusted by the respective entities. The constrained free energy (CFE) minimization method includes such conditions and incorporates every immaterial constraint accompanied with its conjugate potential. The respective work or affinity-related condition is introduced to the Gibbs energy calculation as an additional Lagrange multiplier. Thus, the minimization procedure can include systemic or external potential variables with their conjugate coefficients as well as non-equilibrium affinities. Their implementation extends the scope of Gibbs energy calculations to a number of new fields, including surface and interface systems, multi-phase fiber suspensions with Donnan partitioning, kinetically controlled partial equilibria, and pathway analysis of reaction networks.

Enhancement of National Collaboration Between Defence Establishment and Industry by Systems Approach

Abstract The objective of this paper is to discuss current challenges of specific collaboration mechanisms between the defence establishment and national defence industry and to present a holistic, conceptual co-operation model of systems approach, based on discussion to enhance that cooperation. This survey focuses mainly on problems that are related to defence technology and industrial strategies. A special emphasis is placed on collaboration activities and mechanisms between the above mentioned partners; technology programmes, industrial participation, defence centres of excellence and immaterial property rights to reveal collaboration dilemmas from various aspects. The conceptual model of systems approach pursues to manage cooperation activities and mechanisms comprehensively and so fulfil expectations placed for the collaboration both by the defence establishment and the industry. Applicability and value of the model is verified by risk analysis. The paper has a Finnish focus and it delineates the challenges identified with Finnish examples. However, the model that it represents is of universal application, especially for countries that do not have a comprehensive defence industry but import the major part of their materiel from abroad.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY: PARALLEL CHOICE OF LAW RULES

IN a previous article it was contended that for the purpose of the conflict of laws the structure of immaterial property law (which term is used here to include patents and the like) is exceptional. Due to its privileged character accorded by the sovereign local authority it is territorial in the dual sense that such laws are strictly confined in their operation to their country of origin and that within that territory the application of foreign immaterial property law is excluded by its inherent limitation. In English and Commonwealth law this insight was concealed until recently by the assertion that the courts could only exercise jurisdiction in respect of claims based on their own national intellectual property law. Jurisdiction was thus functionally linked to the exclusive sphere of the applicable law.