Repair As Research: How Copyright Impedes Learning About Devices

Widespread computerization and ubiquitous smart devices have enabled software-based copyright governance to reach into new domains. Beyond their instrumental utility, these devices are also containers of vast amounts of information in the form of software and technical know-how. Through copyright and anti-circumvention rules, however, this information can be cordoned off and confined to exclusive distribution channels. This can have a significant impact on research. While copyright law traditionally conceives research as the use of expressive works within institutional settings, this paper proposes a broader conceptualization that includes device research, including informal inquiries and DIY activities. Whether for the purposes of modification, repair, user innovation, or testing, device research involves the analytical engagement with physical devices. With a particular focus on repair-related activities as a modality of device research, this paper refers to product teardowns, reverse engineering, security research, and testing analyses. It then looks to case studies that exemplify the ways in which copyright can impede this type of research. In highlighting the conceptual overlap between the Right to Repair and Right to Research movements, the authors propose that a broader concept of research in copyright that includes device research could normatively reinforce and bolster support for a Right to Research in international copyright law

The All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN) Light Curve Server v1.0

The All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN) is working towards imaging the entire visible sky every night to a depth of V~17 mag. The present data covers the sky and spans ~2-5~years with ~100-400 epochs of observation. The data should contain some ~1 million variable sources, and the ultimate goal is to have a database of these observations publicly accessible. We describe here a first step, a simple but unprecedented web interface https://asas-sn.osu.edu/ that provides an up to date aperture photometry light curve for any user-selected sky coordinate. Because the light curves are produced in real time, this web tool is relatively slow and can only be used for small samples of objects. However, it also imposes no selection bias on the part of the ASAS-SN team, allowing the user to obtain a light curve for any point on the celestial sphere. We present the tool, describe its capabilities, limitations, and known issues, and provide a few illustrative examples.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures, submitted to PAS

Time-based measurement of personal mite allergen bioaerosol exposure over 24 hour periods

© 2016 Tovey et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Allergic diseases such as asthma and rhinitis are common in many countries. Globally the most common allergen associated with symptoms is produced by house dust mites. Although the bed has often been cited as the main site of exposure to mite allergens, surprisingly this has not yet been directly established by measurement due to a lack of suitable methods. Here we report on the development of novel methods to determine the pattern of personal exposure to mite allergen bioaerosols over 24-hour periods and applied this in a small field study using 10 normal adults. Air was sampled using a miniature time-based air-sampler of in-house design located close to the breathing zone of the participants, colocated with a miniature time-lapse camera. Airborne particles, drawn into the sampler at 2L/min via a narrow slot, were impacted onto the peripheral surface of a disk mounted on the hour-hand of either a 12 or 24 hour clock motor. The impaction surface was either an electret cloth, or an adhesive film; both novel for these purposes. Following a review of the time-lapse images, disks were post-hoc cut into subsamples corresponding to eight predetermined categories of indoor or outdoor location, extracted and analysed for mite allergen Der p 1 by an amplified ELISA. Allergen was detected in 57.2% of the total of 353 subsamples collected during 20 days of sampling. Exposure patterns varied over time. Higher concentrations of airborne mite allergen were typically measured in samples collected from domestic locations in the day and evening. Indoor domestic Der p 1 exposures accounted for 59.5% of total exposure, whereas total in-bed-asleep exposure, which varied 80 fold between individuals, accounted overall for 9.85% of total exposure, suggesting beds are not often the main site of exposure. This study establishes the feasibility of novel methods for determining the time-geography of personal exposure to many bioaerosols and identifies new areas for future technical development and clinical applications

A Modern Copyright Framework for the Internet of Things (IoT): Intellectual Property Scholars\u27 Joint Submission to the Canadian Government Consultation

In response to the Canadian government consultation process on the modernization of the copyright framework launched in the summer 2021, we hereby present our analysis and recommendations concerning the interaction between copyright and the Internet of Things (IoT). The recommendations herein reflect the shared opinion of the intellectual property scholars who are signatories to this brief. They are informed by many combined decades of study, teaching, and practice in Canadian, US, and international intellectual property law.In what follows, we explain:•The importance of approaching the questions raised in the consultation with a firm commitment to maintaining the appropriate balance of rights and interests in Canada’s copyright system, within the broader framework of the Constitution;•That the modernization of the Copyright Act requires a careful examination of the copyright framework within larger observable trends of dominant positions in the marketplace and anti-competitive practices, of the extraction of big (personal) data, and of market and legal infrastructures’ heavy reliance on non-negotiated standard form contracts;-That the growing prevalence of the IoT shows more clearly than ever before why Technological Protection Measures (TPMs) need to be recalibrated in keeping with the objectives of copyright, the Constitution, property rights, and of promoting competitive markets.As such, we recommend:-To narrow the scope of the TPM prohibitions under the Copyright Act, whereby the circumvention of access controls or copy controls for non-copyright-infringing purposes would be lawful, with a non-exhaustive list of such purposes to provide greater legal certainty. The same treatment would apply to the dealing in TPM circumvention technology enabling the exercise of non-copyright-infringing purposes.In the alternative, the Copyright Act should be amended to:-Introduce a new exception that would confirm that the TPM provisions (and other relevant exclusive rights in the Copyright Act) do not apply to the right to repair, including for maintenance and diagnostics purposes.-Introduce a new exception to encourage follow-on innovation.-Additionally, just as copyright holders should not be allowed to contract out of exceptions to copyright infringement through non-negotiated standard form agreements, neither should they be allowed to opt out of exceptions to TPM prohibitions by contract

High body mass index is not associated with atopy in schoolchildren living in rural and urban areas of Ghana

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Factors which determine the development of atopy and the observed rural-urban gradient in its prevalence are not fully understood. High body mass index (BMI) has been associated with asthma and potentially atopy in industrialized countries. In developing countries, the transition from rural to urban areas has been associated with lifestyle changes and an increased prevalence of high BMI; however, the effect of high BMI on atopy remains unknown in this population. We therefore investigated the association between high BMI and atopy among schoolchildren living in rural and urban areas of Ghana.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data on skin prick testing, anthropometric, parasitological, demographic and lifestyle information for 1,482 schoolchildren aged 6-15 years was collected. Atopy was defined as sensitization to at least one tested allergen whilst the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, Atlanta) growth reference charts were used in defining high BMI as BMI ≥ the 85^thpercentile. Logistic regression was performed to investigate the association between high BMI and atopy whilst adjusting for potential confounding factors.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The following prevalences were observed for high BMI [Rural: 16%, Urban: 10.8%, p < 0.001] and atopy [Rural: 25.1%, Urban: 17.8%, p < 0.001]. High BMI was not associated with atopy; but an inverse association was observed between underweight and atopy [OR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.33-0.99]. Significant associations were also observed with male sex [Rural: OR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.06-2.08; Urban: OR: 1.90, 95% CI: 1.30-2.79], and in the urban site with older age [OR: 1.76, 95% CI: 1.00-3.07], family history of asthma [OR: 1.58, 95% CI: 1.01-2.47] and occupational status of parent [OR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.12-0.93]; whilst co-infection with intestinal parasites [OR: 2.47, 95% CI: 1.01-6.04] was associated with atopy in the rural site. After multivariate adjustment, male sex, older age and family history of asthma remained significant.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In Ghanaian schoolchildren, high BMI was not associated with atopy. Further studies are warranted to clarify the relationship between body weight and atopy in children subjected to rapid life-style changes associated with urbanization of their environments.</p

Air Pollution, Urgent Asthma Medical Visits and the Modifying Effect of Neighborhood Asthma Prevalence

Background: Social and environmental stressors, may modify associations between environmental pollutants and asthma symptoms. We examined if neighborhood asthma prevalence (higher: HAPN vs. lower: LAPN), a surrogate for underlying risk factors for asthma, modified the relationship between pollutants and urgent asthma visits. Methods: Through zip code, home addresses were linked to New York City Community Air Survey’s land use regression model for street-level, annual average nitrogen dioxide (NO2), particulate matter (PM2.5), elemental carbon (EC); summer average ozone (O3); winter average sulfur dioxide (SO2) concentrations. Poisson regression models were fit to estimate the association (prevalence ratio, PR) between pollutant exposures and seeking urgent asthma care. Results: All pollutants, except O3 were higher in HAPN than LAPN (P0.05). Conclusions: Relationships between modeled street-level pollutants and urgent asthma were stronger in LAPN compared to HAPN. Social stressors that may be more prevalent in HAPN than LAPN, could play a greater role in asthma exacerbations in HAPN versus pollutant exposure alone

Poverty, dirt, infections and non-atopic wheezing in children from a Brazilian urban center

BACKGROUND: The causation of asthma is poorly understood. Risk factors for atopic and non-atopic asthma may be different. This study aimed to analyze the associations between markers of poverty, dirt and infections and wheezing in atopic and non-atopic children. METHODS: 1445 children were recruited from a population-based cohort in Salvador, Brazil. Wheezing was assessed using the ISAAC questionnaire and atopy defined as allergen-specific IgE ≥ 0.70 kU/L. Relevant social factors, environmental exposures and serological markers for childhood infections were investigated as risk factors using multivariate multinomial logistic regression. RESULTS: Common risk factors for wheezing in atopic and non-atopic children, respectively, were parental asthma and respiratory infection in early childhood. No other factor was associated with wheezing in atopic children. Factors associated with wheezing in non-atopics were low maternal educational level (OR 1.49, 95% CI 0.98-2.38), low frequency of room cleaning (OR 2.49, 95% CI 1.27-4.90), presence of rodents in the house (OR 1.48, 95% CI 1.06-2.09), and day care attendance (OR 1.52, 95% CI 1.01-2.29). CONCLUSIONS: Non-atopic wheezing was associated with risk factors indicative of poverty, dirt and infections. Further research is required to more precisely define the mediating exposures and the mechanisms by which they may cause non-atopic wheeze

Association of IL-4RA single nucleotide polymorphisms, HLA-DR and HLA-DQ in children with Alternaria-sensitive moderate-severe asthma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Asthma afflicts 6% to 8% of the United States population, and severe asthma represents approximately 10% of asthmatic patients. Several epidemiologic studies in the United States and Europe have linked <it>Alternaria </it>sensitivity to both persistence and severity of asthma. In order to begin to understand genetic risk factors underlying <it>Alternaria </it>sensitivity and asthma, in these studies we examined T cell responses to <it>Alternaria </it>antigens, HLA Class II restriction and HLA-DQ protection in children with severe asthma.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Sixty children with <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate-severe asthma were compared to 49 children with <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive mild asthma. We examined HLA-DR and HLA-DQ frequencies in <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive asthmatic by HLA typing. To determine ratios of Th1/Th2 <it>Alternaria</it>-specific T-cells, cultures were stimulated in media alone, <it>Alternaria alternata </it>extract and Alt a1. Sensitivity to IL-4 stimulation was measured by up-regulation of CD23 on B cells.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Children with <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate-severe asthma trended to have increased sensitivities to <it>Cladosporium </it>(46% versus 35%), to <it>Aspergillus </it>(43% versus 28%), and significantly increased sensitivities to trees (78% versus 57%) and to weeds (68% versus 48%). The IL-4RA ile75val polymorphism was significantly increased in <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate-severe asthmatics, 83% (0.627 allele frequency) compared to <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive mild asthmatics, 57% (0.388 allele frequency). This was associated with increased sensitivity to IL-4 stimulation measured by significantly increased IL-4 stimulated CD23 expression on CD19+ and CD86+CD19+ B cells of <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate-severe asthmatics. IL-5 and IL-13 synthesis was significantly increased in <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate-severe asthmatics compared to mild asthmatics to <it>Alternaria </it>extract and Alt a1 stimulation. The frequency of HLA-DQB1*03 allele was significantly decreased in <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate-severe asthmatics compared to mild asthmatics, 39% versus 63%, with significantly decreased allele frequency, 0.220 versus 0.398.</p> <p>Summary</p> <p>In children with <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate severe asthma, there was an increased Th2 response to <it>Alternaria </it>stimulation and increased sensitivity to IL-4 stimulation. This skewing towards a Th2 response was associated with an increased frequency of the IL-4RA ile75val polymorphism. In evaluating the HLA association, there was a decreased frequency of HLA-DQB1*03 in <it>Alternaria</it>-sensitive moderate severe asthmatic children consistent with previous studies suggest that HLA-DQB1*03 may be protective against the development of mold-sensitive severe asthma.</p

Relation of DNA Methylation of 5′-CpG Island of ACSL3 to Transplacental Exposure to Airborne Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Childhood Asthma

In a longitudinal cohort of ∼700 children in New York City, the prevalence of asthma (>25%) is among the highest in the US. This high risk may in part be caused by transplacental exposure to traffic-related polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) but biomarkers informative of PAH-asthma relationships is lacking. We here hypothesized that epigenetic marks associated with transplacental PAH exposure and/or childhood asthma risk could be identified in fetal tissues. Mothers completed personal prenatal air monitoring for PAH exposure determination. Methylation sensitive restriction fingerprinting was used to analyze umbilical cord white blood cell (UCWBC) DNA of 20 cohort children. Over 30 DNA sequences were identified whose methylation status was dependent on the level of maternal PAH exposure. Six sequences were found to be homologous to known genes having one or more 5′-CpG island(s) (5′-CGI). Of these, acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 3 (ACSL3) exhibited the highest concordance between the extent of methylation of its 5′-CGI in UCWBCs and the level of gene expression in matched fetal placental tissues in the initial 20 cohort children. ACSL3 was therefore chosen for further investigation in a larger sample of 56 cohort children. Methylation of the ACSL3 5′-CGI was found to be significantly associated with maternal airborne PAH exposure exceeding 2.41 ng/m3 (OR = 13.8; p<0.001; sensitivity = 75%; specificity = 82%) and with a parental report of asthma symptoms in children prior to age 5 (OR = 3.9; p<0.05). Thus, if validated, methylated ACSL3 5′CGI in UCWBC DNA may be a surrogate endpoint for transplacental PAH exposure and/or a potential biomarker for environmentally-related asthma. This exploratory report provides a new blueprint for the discovery of epigenetic biomarkers relevant to other exposure assessments and/or investigations of exposure-disease relationships in birth cohorts. The results support the emerging theory of early origins of later life disease development