2d Geoelectric Evaluation and Imaging of Aquifer Vulnerability of Dump Site at Ozoro Isoko South Lga of Delta State

The Electrical resistivity survey was carried out to evaluate the aquifer vulnerability of a dumpsite in Ozoro Isoko South LGA of Delta State. Four Schlumberger vertical electrical soundings with maximum electrode separation of 350m and four dipole-dipole were carried out at a dumpsite. The data were presented as VES curves interpreted quantitatively by computer iteration using the Resist Software to obtain the first order geoelectric parameters. The vertical electrical sounding data were presented as VES curves interpreted quantitatively by computer iteration using the Resist Software to obtain the first order geoelectric parameters. The dipole-dipole data were present as Inverted 2D resistivity structure by computer inversion using DIPROfWin Software. The results of the geoelectric investigation have revealed five geoelectric layers namely the lateralitic topsoil, sandy clay soil, fine coarse sand, medium coarse sand and coarse sand that are in agreement with the actual lithology encountered from the hand dug well logs close to the dumpsite. The overburden protective capacity in an area was evaluated using the total longitudinal unit conductance values. The generated longitudinal conductance showed poor protective capacity (<0.1mhos) in all parts of the study area. The inverted 2D resistivity structure shows movements of leachate down toward the aquifer indicating that the aquifer is not protected. The low value of the protective capacity makes the aquifer in the study area vulnerable to contamination from the dumpsite. Keywords: Aquifer vulnerability, Ozoro, 2D imaging, dumpsite, litholog

Reverse Engineering and the Rise of Electronic Vigilantism: Intellectual Property Implications of Lock-Out Programs

Over the past few years, there has been an abundance of scholarship dealing with the appropriate scope of copyright and patent protection for computer programs. This Article approaches those problems from a slightly different perspective, focusing on the discrete problem of lock-out programs. The choice of lock-out as a paradigm for exploring the interoperability question and the contours of copyright and patent protection of computer programs is informed by two considerations. First, for purposes of the interoperability inquiry, lock-out programs represent an extreme; they are discrete, self-contained modules that are highly innovative in design, yet that serve no purpose other than to regulate access to a computer or computer operating system. Copyright and patent analyses of the lockout problem highlight a fundamental tension between intellectual property rights and considerations of public access, and so afford a useful vehicle for examining the scope of copyright and patent protection for computer programs generally. Second, lock-out may well become a defining technology of the coming “Information Age.” Pundits have prophesied a “set-top box” in every home that affords a gateway to an “information superhighway” where goods and services may be purchased and information accessed. Whether or not the manufacturer of the set-top box will be able to exclude unauthorized purveyors of goods, services, and information will significantly affect both the structure of the emerging market in information services and the nature of individual participation in that market. The purpose of this Article is twofold. First, the author argues that neither the copyright laws nor the patent laws preclude duplication of protected program features, including “lock” and “key” features, to whatever extent necessary to achieve full compatibility with an unpatented computer system. Second, and more generally, she addresses inconsistencies and conceptual flaws in the current understanding of copyright and patent protection for computer programs that emerge during the first inquiry, and propose doctrinal modifications to resolve them. Although computer programs have been protected by both copyright and patent regimes for years, the precise contours of the protection these regimes afford remain unsettled. For that reason, some scholars, computer lawyers, and computer industry professionals have urged the adoption of sui generi protection for computer programs, but the question of sui generis protection may have become largely irrelevant. The United States has convinced many other countries to follow its lead in “tending both copyright and patent protection to computer programs and is unlikely to change course. For better or worse, it seems we are stuck with the existing modes of intellectual property protection for computer programs. However, this Article argues that certain adjustments to the copyright and patent doctrines governing the protection of computer programs are necessary if the intellectual property laws are to continue to serve both their new and their traditional functions. Part I of this Article describes the facts and outcomes of two recent cases: Sega Enterprises Ltd. v. Accolade, Inc. and Atari Games Corp. v. Nintendo of America, Inc., both of which involved attempts to enforce intellectual property rights in lock-out programs. The remainder of the Article takes those cases as a starting point for discussion of the interoperability question and what it reveals about the scope and structure of copyright and patent protection for computer programs. Parts II and III explore the copyright implications of reverse engineering interface specifications and lock-out programs and of using the information gained thereby to create and market a compatible program. Part II focuses on the copyright issues resulting from intermediate copying during the reverse engineering process. Part III considers whether the reverse engineer may create a program that duplicates the “key” to the “lock” and other functional features of interoperability-related routines. Part IV addresses issues bearing on the validity of a lock-out patent. Finally, Part V considers whether, in light of the analyses in Parts II, III, and IV, attempts to enforce patents and copyrights against competitors who crack the code for a lockout program constitute patent or copyright misuse. The Article concludes with some general reflections on the efficacy and viability of the copyright and patent models for intellectual property protection of computer programs

Computer Programs, User Interfaces, and Section 102(b) of the Copyright Act of 1976: A Critique of Lotus v. Paperback

The Supreme Court\u27s landmark ruling Lotus Development Corp vs Paperback Software International is critiqued. The ruling did not resolve the issue of whether copyright law protects user interfaces

The Duty to license software in a dominant market position : the essential facility doctrine

Tutkielma käsittelee tietokoneohjelmistojen pakkolisensiointia määräävässä markkina-asemassa. Tutkielman erityisenä näkökulmana aiheeseen on se, onko Euroopan unionin oikeuden mukaan tietokoneohjelmistojen pakkolisensiointi määräävässä markkina-asemassa mahdollista ja jos on, niin mitkä tekijät vaikuttavat immateriaalioikeuksien pakkolisensiointivelvoitteeseen. Tutkielma jakautuu viiteen pääjaksoon, joista ensimmäisessä esitellään tutkimusongelma sekä tutkielman rakenne tarkemmin. Toisessa pääjaksossa kuvataan yleisellä tasolla tekijänoikeuden pääperiaatteita, tietokoneohjelmistojen tekijänoikeussuojaa sekä tietokoneohjelmistoihin liittyviä erityispiirteitä että ilmiöitä. Kolmas jakso sisältää kuvauksen määräävän markkina-aseman väärinkäytöstä Euroopan unionin toiminnasta tehdyn sopimuksen 102 artiklan mukaan. Neljäs pääjakso käsittelee pakkolisensiointia määräävässä markkina-asemassa. Jakso jakaantuu neljään alajaksoon, joista ensimmäisessä alajaksossa tarkastellaan immateriaalioikeuden ja kilpailuoikeuden vastakkainasettelua. Toinen alajakso sisältää kuvauksen niin sanotusta olennainen toimintaedellytys-opista (”the essential facility doctrine”) sekä siitä, kuinka immateriaalioikeuteen liittyvät tapaukset tulisi tulkita tämän opin mukaan. Kolmannessa alajaksossa tarkastellaan Euroopan unionin oikeuskäytäntöä ja sitä kuinka olennainen toimintaedellytys-oppi on kehittynyt oikeuskäytännössä immateriaalioikeuksien osalta. Neljäs alajakso sisältää erityisiä huomioita pakkolisensioinnista, kun kyseessä ovat immateriaalioikeudet. Tutkielman viides ja viimeinen pääjakso sisältää johtopäätelmän siitä, voidaanko määräävässä markkina-asemassa oleva yhtiö velvoittaa myöntämään lisenssi tietokoneohjelmistoonsa sekä esitetään joitakin aiheeseen liittyviä avoimia kysymyksiä jatkotutkimusten kannalta. Tutkimuksessa käydään läpi aiheeseen liittyvää lainsäädäntöä ja oikeuskäytäntöä sekä aiheesta tuotettua oikeustieteellistä kirjallisuutta, joiden perusteella pyritään tulkitsemaan millä edellytyksin immateriaalioikeuksia voidaan pakkolisensioida. Tutkimuksen mukaan olemassa olevan oikeuskäytännön valossa määräävässä markkina-asemassa oleva yhtiö voidaan velvoittaa lisensioimaan tietokoneohjelmistoja tiettyjen edellytysten täyttyessä

A Logical Method for Policy Enforcement over Evolving Audit Logs

We present an iterative algorithm for enforcing policies represented in a first-order logic, which can, in particular, express all transmission-related clauses in the HIPAA Privacy Rule. The logic has three features that raise challenges for enforcement --- uninterpreted predicates (used to model subjective concepts in privacy policies), real-time temporal properties, and quantification over infinite domains (such as the set of messages containing personal information). The algorithm operates over audit logs that are inherently incomplete and evolve over time. In each iteration, the algorithm provably checks as much of the policy as possible over the current log and outputs a residual policy that can only be checked when the log is extended with additional information. We prove correctness and termination properties of the algorithm. While these results are developed in a general form, accounting for many different sources of incompleteness in audit logs, we also prove that for the special case of logs that maintain a complete record of all relevant actions, the algorithm effectively enforces all safety and co-safety properties. The algorithm can significantly help automate enforcement of policies derived from the HIPAA Privacy Rule.Comment: Carnegie Mellon University CyLab Technical Report. 51 page

SoK: Cryptographically Protected Database Search

Protected database search systems cryptographically isolate the roles of reading from, writing to, and administering the database. This separation limits unnecessary administrator access and protects data in the case of system breaches. Since protected search was introduced in 2000, the area has grown rapidly; systems are offered by academia, start-ups, and established companies. However, there is no best protected search system or set of techniques. Design of such systems is a balancing act between security, functionality, performance, and usability. This challenge is made more difficult by ongoing database specialization, as some users will want the functionality of SQL, NoSQL, or NewSQL databases. This database evolution will continue, and the protected search community should be able to quickly provide functionality consistent with newly invented databases. At the same time, the community must accurately and clearly characterize the tradeoffs between different approaches. To address these challenges, we provide the following contributions: 1) An identification of the important primitive operations across database paradigms. We find there are a small number of base operations that can be used and combined to support a large number of database paradigms. 2) An evaluation of the current state of protected search systems in implementing these base operations. This evaluation describes the main approaches and tradeoffs for each base operation. Furthermore, it puts protected search in the context of unprotected search, identifying key gaps in functionality. 3) An analysis of attacks against protected search for different base queries. 4) A roadmap and tools for transforming a protected search system into a protected database, including an open-source performance evaluation platform and initial user opinions of protected search.Comment: 20 pages, to appear to IEEE Security and Privac

Implementing atomic actions in Ada 95

Atomic actions are an important dynamic structuring technique that aid the construction of fault-tolerant concurrent systems. Although they were developed some years ago, none of the well-known commercially-available programming languages directly support their use. This paper summarizes software fault tolerance techniques for concurrent systems, evaluates the Ada 95 programming language from the perspective of its support for software fault tolerance, and shows how Ada 95 can be used to implement software fault tolerance techniques. In particular, it shows how packages, protected objects, requeue, exceptions, asynchronous transfer of control, tagged types, and controlled types can be used as building blocks from which to construct atomic actions with forward and backward error recovery, which are resilient to deserter tasks and task abortion