The PBS Newshour last night had a interesting take on medical research: that the problem slowing medical progress is the failure to coordinate research and development, producing lots of research to very little effect. To many of us, the problem is more likely with the IP laws and the commercial advantage that exclusive IP rights give. The program did not examine those issues and had it done so, its point would have been greatly reduced. As things are, drug firms have a strong motive to slow innovation. You can see the video and read the transcipt here.

Read the details and context of his statement over at BoingBoing.net here:

http://www.boingboing.net/2010/09/13/jean-luc-godard-dona.html

The Economist takes a bleak look at the internet's prospects, seeing it fracturing because of national and language differences, and anti-competitive forces among service providers link here. It seems that there is little individual users can do about the first two, as the likes of China puts up barriers in the national defense interest or to reflect national differences in cultural norms on pornography, for example.

But we can do something about the drive to carve up the internet by patented technology or by rules that cement the powerful ISPs in place against possible competition by not mandating net neutrality or not mandating that big ISPs offer small ones open access to their networks at wholesale rates to restore competition. Indeed, based on the experience of other countries with the latter rule, it would be the best alternative.

In the end, the bleak look is softened by The Economist's usual on-the-one-hand-and-on-the-other outlook such as, 'Yet predictions are hazardous, particularly in IT." I wouldn't hold my breath unless the consumer is heard and is listened to.

Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated is a mass collaborative artistic re-envisioning of George A. Romero's 1968 cult classic, Night of the Living Dead.

International artists and animators were invited to select scenes from the film and reinvent them through their artwork.

The full and complete re-imagined work is currently available:

http://www.notldr.com/next/main.html

http://www.amazon.com/Night-Living-Dead-Duane-Jones/dp/B003GUGB8G

A similar artistic endeavor was performed with Star Wars, but the Star Wars Uncut website lists a message which states: "We have a fully edited version of the movie produced, but we are working through the legal issues in order to bring that to everyone as soon as possible."

Why is this? Simple - One film is in the public domain, and the other isn't.

Conor Friedersdorf over at Andrew Sullivan's much-trafficked blog points to "an interesting post about craft cocktails and the impulse to protect certain recipes as intellectual property" as well as the reaction to the concept from a third blogger.

Read all about it and get the discussing links here:

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/09/keeping-government-out-of-cocktails.html

The NY Times has a review of the latest book arguing for less restrictive copyright regimes.

Read it (the review) here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/books/review/Darnton-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&ref=science