Well, in fact, under most Western legal systems, there isn't "exclusive ownership" to ideas. Patents provide ownership rights for only a limited period of time. Somebody has to fund the incredibly expensive research done by pharmaceutical companies, and, given the risks of failure, if you don't hold out the prospect of rich returns, investors just aren't going to be attracted.
The alternative is state socialism; and just how many advances in pharmaceutical sciences were made in the Soviet Union?
Tony Saunders
----- Original Message -----
From: Brightline
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Wednesday, June 05, 2002 2:01 PM
Subject: Re: FWD: JAMA Table of Contents - June 5, 2002
Hi! Janet:
I agree with your satement:
" ..... i say 'our research' deliberately; the work being done
contributes to the body of human knowledge which is communal
imho, attempts to apply the concepts of capitalism and exclusive
ownership to it are misguided and doomed to failure
knowledge is us!"
However, capitalism appears to be the driving force in most of the
scientific advances especially with reference to clinical and therapeutic
aspects of it. For example, I am sitting on a discovery which was funded to
the extent of $ 2 million by capitalism. A considerable fraction of the
money was spent on protecting the interest of the investors by way of patent
applications and lawyer's fees. I cannot publish the data yet in order to
protect their interests! Without the investor's gamble my research would
not have progressed to where it is now. Most of my efforts would have been
a failure, since my findings are so revlutionary and I would not have the
resources even to atempt to prove my concept due to the scientific
etsablishment.
Right now, I need around $ 5-10 Million to take my project to the next step.
One cannot even imagine toget that kind of a grant from any public sources.
I know it is frustrating. But, it appears to be a necessary evil.
Raj
[log in to unmask]
PS: Don't forget Canadian Dollar used to be eqivalent to $ 1.13 of US
Dollar in the early 1970s!
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