If you keep up with intellectual property and patent news, you’ve likely seen the words “35 USC 101” or “Section 101.” Set among a myriad of complex abbreviations, acronyms, and terms, you’d be forgiven for not fully understanding what 35 USC 101 is or why it matters to patent holders and inventors in the United States.
Let’s take a few moments to cover the basics of this term so you can be better informed about the patent system in 2017.
If it weren’t for inventors, life would be much more difficult and certainly a lot less interesting. Whether it’s a cell phone, can opener, or the assembly line your car was built on, we owe inventors a huge debt of gratitude.
One way to say “thank you” is by celebrating National Inventors’ Day.
Laurie Self knows patents. As an attorney working in intellectual property for almost 30 years, Self has gained a wealth of experience and a deep appreciation for the financial incentives that patents bring to both inventors and the U.S. economy.
She believes in the impact of the inventive spirit so much that she put her two children through the USPTO’s “Camp Invention”. You could say that intellectual property has become a lifestyle for her.
Intellectual property and honeybees. At first you may think they don’t have much in common. But, as you’ll learn below, the impact of IP-intensive industries on America’s economy is very similar to the critical role the honeybee plays in pollinating agriculture around the world.
Simply put, if you remove either one, you take away all the good things they create.
A recent report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research brought to light that despite increasing attention towards eliminating the gender wage gap, there is still a large disparity between men and women when it comes to holding patents.
After the IWPR brief rekindled the discussion, many notable publications and experts weighed in with their take on what caused the gap.
We’ve rounded up 4 great articles to get you up to speed.
Stop what you’re doing right now. This is your chance to learn something truly amazing: this blog post will [hopefully] help you to appreciate the history of the patent system and better understand the part it has played in building the America we know today.
Strong patents make wealthy nations. That is the conclusion of a new paper by Stanford University Professor and intellectual property expert Stephen Haber. Haber presents data from his economic and historical analysis demonstrating a clear relationship between the strength of enforceable patent rights and the level of economic development across countries. He writes simply:
