Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Why Patenting Genes Is Wrong?

When we talk about "gene patents" there are two broad categories. 1. Patents granted for naturally occurring genes. For example, patents can be obtained for gene sequence of virus, bacteria, certain gene mutation in human or other genes. Once patented, anyone who does research or uses the gene sequence containing organism in their product have to pay royalties to the patent holder. 2. Patents granted for artificially modified genes. Here it can be genetically modified cattle, crops or any other organism or even human genome. It is usually done to tone down unfavorable traits and to enhance or introduce favorable traits. Again, once patented, the company is granted an intellectual monopoly over the gene. Let us see how both cases are absurd and stupid. Only ruthless cut-throat capitalists can favor such unethical and immoral system at the cost of millions of lives.

First let me clear my opinion on genetic engineering. We need genetic engineering to survive as a species in this world.  Let me list out few of the critically important advancements in this field.

1. Human population is growing. To meet the growing demand for food, we cannot go on increasing land usage for agriculture. Land usage for agriculture is the major cause of deforestation and species extinction. Agriculture destroys entire ecosystems for growing food or other crops for us humans alone! So it is high time that we reduce and reverse land utilization. How can we do that? Genetically modified crops with better yield can help us. We can feed the growing population with lesser land if we rightly hit the genes that result in high yields.

2. Water is also a very scarce resource today. With GMO, we can have drought resistant crops which consume less water and hence better usage of water.

3. Reduction of pesticide is also a benefit of GMO crops. Crops designed to resist insects or infections need lesser pesticides and chemicals to grow and hence more eco-friendly.

4. Drug resistance of existing bacterial diseases and new infectious disease like Ebola, Zika are causing lot of deaths and disabilities around the world. Genetic Engineering can provide us with new anti-biotics and vaccines that can cure or prevent these diseases.

5. Diseases like diabetes, obesity, cancer, birth defects and lot more can be caused due to gene mutations. By identifying the specific genetic causes and working on a cure can save lot of lives.

These are few uses I can think now. But the list can be never ending. Organic farming or herbal remedies are no match to these advancements of science and hence we should support scientific advancements instead of pseudoscience mumbo-jumbos. Now let us see how patent system spoils this field with its unrealistic powers!

1. Patents on Naturally Occurring Genes

Did Isaac Newton invent gravity? Did Galileo invent heliocentricity? Did Robert Hooke invent cells? What about Vasco da Gama? Did he invent India? No! They all discovered. Discovery is finding or observing something already in existence. And nobody can claim a patent for a discovery. Genes of naturally occurring virus, bacteria and mutation that cause cancer or other diseases are not invented in any sense. They are just observed, may be for the first time. But how can people claim patents for things like SARS virus genome or mutation that causes breast cancer? Capitalist bots just repeat the same old blabber that "the company has invested money and effort to "find" the gene and anyone else who "uses" should pay them. Else without monetary benefits the system won't work!". Even Newton spent lot of time, effort and money to discover theory of gravity. Can he own a patent? Without any monetary benefit protected by patent system how people like Einstein worked further on Newtonian equations to arrive at more complicated theories like relativity? Things like getting soil from moon or catching a species from deep ocean require lot of money too. If none of them can be patented how can a naturally existing gene can be patented? We can't patent the pattern of seeds in a fruit. We can't patent the sequence of event in embryo development. Similarly no one should be allowed to patent a sequence of genetic material just because they have observed it first or filed for a patent first!

These type of patents cripple research and invention of drugs or solutions to common problems like eradication of mosquito, conservation of endangered species etc. A rich person can setup an R&D lab and mine for genomes of disease causing microbes and mutation, file for patents and act like a patent troll suing everyone who attempts to research on any of them. It is already happening today. We should not let this stay this way until a major epidemic like Ebola becomes pandemic and a corporate holding patent for the gene keeps the entire humanity for ransom!

2. Patents on Modified Genes

Genes are just sequence of organic molecules arranged in a particular pattern, just like an essay is a sequence of letter and a piece of music is a sequence of notes. So even if anyone "creates" a gene, it should not be allowed to be patented but it may be copyrighted (still it is wrong, I will come to that shortly). So if somebody claims that they have "created" a gene "from the scratch" then they can ONLY claim copyright not patent.

Now let us see why copyrighting is also not valid in case of GMOs. All the GMOs in the market today are not original works but derivative works. So, the existing genes are just like songs or literature in public domain. Anyone can create a derivative work over it. But cannot restrict others from doing a similar derivative work. When Monsanto say that they created a particular type of corn, they have worked on existing corn. The corn which Native Americans already genetically modified through selective breeding. Without Native Americans shaping the genes of corn with the chisel of selective breeding, corn, in its current form, will not be here! The wild corn would be of no use for us. Not only corn. All food crops and cattle are product of genetic engineering through selective breeding and co-evolution. Lot of money, time and effort of people for generations are involved in genetically modifying these organisms. Monsanto or any other company cannot just take these organisms and edit a gene here and there to claim that it is their own "intellectual property". What percentage of original genes have been modified, how original is the modification? Is the work is mere compilation of two existing genes? Does it involve only a trivial change like removing a bad mutation? These are some of the questions need to be answered. Also if someone can build on the collective work of people for centuries, then why not others can do the same?

These type of patents prevent high yielding, drought resistant, pest resistant and more nutritious variants of crops from reaching everyone. Even if someone tries to arrive at organisms with similar traits they are threatened with lawsuits. This also applies to researches on new anti-biotics, gene therapies and vaccines.

Not Only Genes!

As we have seen, there is no logic in granting patent to genes. The US government refused to offer patents on gene for a long time. But due to corporate lobbies and coercion, US government surrendered to their demands. But later, US Supreme Court declared that naturally occurring genes cannot be patented. But Europe allows patenting naturally occurring genes, provided they are isolated! All capitalist-run governments accept patent on modified genes (irrespective of the size, nature, triviality of the modification). Now the same is forced on smaller nations through treaties and agreements and in some cases, even through war!

Patents are awarded even for chemicals and molecules. Patent as a system itself favors monopoly. Monopoly always result in accumulation of wealth in the hands of few at the cost of hardship of many. It is high time that governments stop helping these cut-throat corporates and stop appeasing them with unethical patent laws. Instead governments can fund universities, state sponsored labs and organizations to take up the research. Just by spending less on war and weapons, each nation can contribute towards a collective research fund and required technologies can be prioritized based on impact and outcome. By this we can also have some sanity in prioritizing researches. For example, in a capitalistic free market economy, a gel used in cosmetic surgery will be "voted up with wallet" than a search for new anti-biotic. So some level of state planning and state regulation is needed. We cannot allow blind and uncontrolled competition to decide things for us. Let us stand against patent and pseudoscience as both result in crippling of intellectual progress!

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

இ-நூல்களால் வரும் இன்னல்கள்

எழுதியவர்:  ரிச்சர்டு ஸ்டால்மேன் (Richard Stallman)

வணிகமயம் நம் அரசாங்கத்தின் மீது ஆதிக்கம் செலுத்தி நாட்டின் சட்டங்களை எழுதும் இந்தக் காலத்தில், ஒவ்வொரு தொழில்நுட்ப வளர்ச்சியும் வணிக நிறுவனங்கள் பொது மக்கள் மீது புதிய கட்டுப்பாடுகளை விதிக்க வாய்ப்பாக அமைகின்றன. நமக்கு அதிக ஆற்றல் அளித்திருக்க வேண்டிய தொழில்நுட்பங்கள், நம்மை அடிமைப்படுத்தப் பயன்படுகின்றன.

அச்சிடப்பட்ட நூல்களை வாங்கும்போது,
  • நீங்கள் பணம் கொடுத்து "முகம் தெரியாமல்"(anonymous) வாங்க இயலும். [சில புத்தகங்கள் தங்கள் மன உணர்வைப் புண்படுத்துவதாகக் கூறி, அவற்றை எழுதியவர்கள், மொழிபெயர்த்தவர்கள் மற்றும் வெளியிடுபவர்கள் மீது தாக்குதல்களும், மிரட்டல்களும் பெருகியுள்ள இந்தக்காலத்தில், கடன்-அட்டை, இணைய வணிகம் போன்ற வழிகளில் நீங்கள் ஒரு புத்தகத்தை வாங்கினால், உங்களை அடையாளம் காண்பது எளிதாகிவிடும். மேலும், நீங்கள் என்னென்ன புத்தகங்காளை எவ்வெப்போது வாங்கினீர்கள் என்று  சிறிது முயற்சித்தால் அறிந்துகொள்ளலாம். இது விளம்பரம் செய்வது முதல், தணிக்கை செய்வதுவரை எல்லாவற்றுக்கும் பயன்படும்!]
  • அது உங்கள் உடைமையாகிறது.
  • அதை எவ்வாறு பயன்படுத்த வேண்டும் என்று உங்களை நிர்பந்திக்கும் எந்த ஒரு ஒப்பந்தத்திலும் கையெழுத்திட வேண்டியதில்லை.
  • அதன் வடிவம் அனைவர்க்கும் புரியும்படியானது. அதை வாசிக்க எந்த ஒரு காப்புரிமை பெறப்பட்ட தொழில்நுட்பமும் தேவையில்லை.
  • இரவல் கொடுக்கவோ, வேறு ஒருவருக்கு விற்கவோ உங்களுக்கு உரிமை உண்டு.
  • நீங்கள் அந்த நூலை திடப் பிரதி(physical copy) எடுக்க முடியும். சிலநேரங்களில் அது பதிப்புரிமைச் சட்டப்படி செல்லும்.
  • உங்கள் புத்தகத்தை யாராலும் தொலைவில் இருந்துகொண்டே அளிக்க முடியாது.
அமேசான் இ-நூல்களுடன்(பொதுவான எடுத்துக்காட்டாக) ஒப்பிடல்
  • ஒரு இ-நூலை வாங்க நீங்கள் உங்கள் முழு அடையாளத்தை அமேசானுக்குக் கொடுக்கவேண்டும்.
  • அமெரிக்க ஐக்கியம் உட்பட சில நாடுகளில் நீங்கள் இ-நூல்களை உடைமையாக்கிக்கொள்ள முடியாது.
  • பயனர்கள் கட்டுப்பாடுகள் நிறைந்த ஒப்பந்தத்தை ஏற்க அமேசான் நிர்பந்திக்கிறது.
  • அதன் வடிவம் வெளிப்படைத்தன்மையற்றது. காப்புரிமைக்குட்பட்ட பயனர்களைக் கட்டுப்படுத்தும் மென்பொருள்களால் மட்டுமே அவற்றை சட்டப்பூர்வமாக வாசிக்க முடியும். [வேறு மென்பொருள்கள் கொண்டு இ-நூல்களை வாசிப்பது சட்டவிரோதம்]
  • பயனர் எந்தப் பக்கத்தை வாசிக்கிறார், அதில் என்ன குறிப்பு எழுதுகிறார் என்று கிண்டில்(Kindle) அமேசானுக்குத் தெரிவித்துக்கொண்டே இருக்கும்.
  • இரவல் கொடுப்பதை ஒத்த முறை மூலம் நீங்கள் இ-நூல்களை இரவல் கொடுக்கலாம். ஆனால் ஒரு குறிப்பிட்ட காலத்துக்கு மட்டுமே. அதுவும் அந்த நபரும் அதே நிறுவனத்தின் வாடிக்கையாளராக இருக்கவேண்டும் அவருடைய பெயரை அந்நிறுவனத்திடம் தெரிவிக்க வேண்டும்.[நீங்கள் யாருக்கு எப்போது என்னென்ன புத்தகங்களை இரவல் தருகிறீர்கள் என்று அந்நிறுவனத்தால் அறிய முடியும்] நிரந்தரமாகக் கொடுப்பதோ விற்பதோ முடியாது.
  • அமேசானால் தொலைவிலிருந்தே உங்கள் கருவியில் உள்ள புத்தகங்களை அழிக்க முடியும். 2009-ல் ஜார்ஜ் ஆர்வெல் எழுதிய "1984" நூலின் ஆயிரக்கணக்கான பிரதிகளை அமேசான் இப்படி அழித்தது.
  • அமேசான் கிண்டிலில் உள்ள ஒரு தொழில்நுட்ப ஓட்டை வழியாக அந்நிறுவனம் என்ன வேண்டுமானாலும் செய்யலாம்.
இந்த ஒவ்வொரு உரிமைமீறல்களும் இ-நூல்களை அச்சு நூல்களைக்காட்டிலும் கீழானவைகளாக்குகின்றன. இ-நூல்கள் அச்சு நூல்கள் வழங்கும் ஒவ்வொரு உரிமையையும் இம்மி அளவுகூடக் குறையாமல் வழங்க நாம் நிர்பந்திக்க வேண்டும்.

இந்தக் கட்டுப்பாடுகளும் [உரிமைகள் மீதான] தாக்குதல்களும் எழுத்தாளர்களுக்குப் பலனளிக்கத் தேவை என்று இ-நூல் நிறுவனங்கள் கூறுகின்றன. அனால் தற்போதைய பதிப்புரிமைச் முறை இந்நிறுவனங்களுக்குக் கணிசமான ஆதரவு அளிப்பதாகவும் எழுத்தாளர்களுக்கு உதவாததாகவும் உள்ளது. நம் உரிமைகள் பறிபோகாமல் இதைவிட அதிகமாக எழுத்தாளர்களைத் தாங்க வழிகள் உள்ளன. பகிர்வதைக்கூடச் சட்டப்பூர்வமாக்கலாம். நான்(ரிச்சர்டு ஸ்டால்மேன்) பரிந்துரைக்கும் இரு முறைகள்:
  • ஒவ்வொரு எழுத்தாளருக்கு இருக்கும் வரவேர்ப்பின் கனமூலத்தின் அடிப்படையில் வரி நிதியைப் பகிர்ந்தளிக்கலாம். (மேலும் படிக்க: http://stallman.org/articles/internet-sharing-license.en.html)
  • இ-நூல் கருவிகளின் மூலம் எழுத்தாளர்களுக்கு வாசகர்கள் தாமாக முன்வந்து  "முகம் தெரியாமல்"(anonymous) பண-அன்பளிப்பு செலுத்தும் முறையைக் கொண்டுவரலாம்.
இ-நூல்கள் நம் உரிமைகளைப் பறிப்பதாகத்தான் இருக்கவேண்டும் என்று அவசியம் இல்லை (ப்ராஜெக்ட் குட்டென்பெர்க் இ-நூல்கள் அப்படிப் பறிப்பதில்லை). ஆனால் நிறுவனங்களின் முடிவுகளால் இ-நூல்கள் நம் உரிமைகளைப் பறிக்கின்றன. அதைத் தடுப்பது நம் வேலை.

இந்த இயக்கத்தில் எங்களுடன் இணையுங்கள்: http://DefectiveByDesign.org/ebooks.html
இந்தக் கட்டுரையின் ஆங்கில மூலம்: http://stallman.org/articles/ebooks.pdf
பதிப்புரிமை: 2011, 12, 14, 15 ரிச்சர்டு ஸ்டால்மேன், க்ரியேடிவ் காமன்ஸ் அட்ரிப்யுஷன் 3.0 உரிமம் (Creative Commons  Attribution 3.0 License).
ஆங்கிலத்தில் இருந்து தமிழில் மொழிபெயர்ப்பு: 2016 டேவிட். எஸ். (க்ரியேடிவ் காமன்ஸ் அட்ரிப்யுஷன் 3.0 உரிமம்)
*சதுர அடைப்புக்குறிகளுக்குள் [ ] இருப்பவை என் சொந்தக் கருத்துக்கள்.

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

A Story of Innovations

Image Credit: WikiMedia
FloraPiss is a large corporate that manufactures and sells fruit juice in United Fates of Antarctica(UFA). One day while researching a method to preserve juices, one of their employer finds a way to carbonate water. Now from here let us see how our FloraPiss becomes the number one innovator using the fair and just patent system. As the great patent system is designed to provide incentive to innovator, to protect their financial interests and to encourage competition to innovate more, we can see how deep the altruistic and progressive system goes to save humanity!

FloraPiss files patent for "dissolving carbon-dioxide in water". So for next 20 years no other company can manufacture soda. FloraPiss starts to sell plain soda water (no sugar or flavor). A soda bottle costs 20 paise to produce but is sold for 20 rupees. It is completely legal and as there is no competition, FloraPiss gets its fair share of profit for the innovation.

There was a problem with packaging as the new drink blew up the existing cans and tetra packs, FloraPiss team innovated a tightly sealed bottle. Though they are already in use in paints and solvent industry, FloraPiss' unique innovation lies in the application of packaging soda. So another patent has been files for "using an air tight bottle with sealable caps to package edible items". WOW! Now nobody can use this innovation for another 20 years.

The employment agreement clearly says that "all inventions, improvements, innovations, discoveries etc during the tenure with the company, during or after office hours, inside or outside the office premises, belongs to the company". So in no way FloraPiss is supposed to give anything to the employee who accidentally carbonated water. But he was given a promotion, a bonus of one years salary and an appreciation mail from the VP and CEO with everyone in CC.

As the packaging patent was a team work, everyone in the team was given a salary increment and an appreciation mail from VP(that's all!).

The company demonstrated its love for the employees by this and there is no need to do anything further. Because it is the company that actually funded their recruitment, training, chairs they sat while inventing, table they placed the carbon-dioxide cylinder, the water, electricity etc. Without all these they would be beggars in the street or pizza delivery boys. So as the rightful owner of the "research" and investor of the "project" FloraPiss has no guilt attached to it like robbing them of their "inventions".

After 3 years, RedSquirt, a middle sized ketchup company uses air tight bottles to package their ketchup! How dare they are to infringe FloraPiss' patent? FloraPiss sues RedSquirt and the case drags for 4 years. RedSquirt goes bankrupt and FloraPiss gives it life by acquisition. A merger, "RedPiss" is born! FloraPiss acquires a new patent in this merger, "Twist to open". This innovation by an employee who worked for RedSquirt allowed sealable caps to be reused. FloraPiss forces him to sign an NDA and fires him after merger! They are the rightful owner of the IP now. How can a third-class employee claim ownership for it?

After 15 years, FloraPiss research team stumbles upon a way to add sugar to the soda. "Lot of R&D efforts and investments" were involved in the process as addition of sugar sometimes made the soda solution unstable and blew away the caps of the bottles. So FloraPiss also invest a lot in designing a good bottle design. They find a lighter, cheaper and more stronger alternate for the glass bottles. They use the plastic bottles which are already used in chemical industries with their acquired "twist to open" cap design. With this new innovative design, FloraPiss stars producing larger bottles. the cap can be reused and customers can pour some sweet soda, seal back the bottle air tight and keep it in their fridge! What an innovation. FloraPiss files a patent for "adding sweetener to soda water".

5 more years later, patent for soda water expires. DewyDrool, a competition adds aspartame to the soda water and starts to sell. As it infringes "adding sweetener to soda water" patent, FloraPiss sues them. But DewyDrool is also a large player like FloraPiss. They settle the case outside the court by cross-licensing. Now, FloraPiss can also produce "diet" soda and market them as "healthy" alternate to the sugary drinks. While DewyDrool can sell sugary soda as "energy drink". What a great leap!

FloraPiss and DewyDrool setup a non-profit independent body in to which other companies can join and get licenses. But there is a catch. They have to give some money to FloraPiss and DewyDrool, or give some of their patents to them in exchange. The patent will be evaluated for its worthiness by the "independent" body and any extra payment is settled. By this way, FloraPiss and DewyDrool has opened up their technology to fasten the progress in cool drink revolution!


Due to all the licensing fee, increase in shares due to near monopoly, law suits and greater profit margin, FloraPiss becomes a market leader and buys lot of companies. It even sets up some small proxy companies which hold patents acquired in due course and sue competitions without backlash. It is perfectly legal and within the limits of law! MBA students are inspired by FloraPiss CEO's BED-Talks and biography. FloraPiss becomes a ready-made theme for lot of inspirational stories and self-help books.

Meanwhile FloraPiss sues Floor-a-Piss, a chain of paid urinals where people pee directly on the floor, for trademark violation. Floor-a-Piss changes its name and settles the case outside the court.

Freemanistan is a nearby third world country where there are no patent laws to protect the "intellectual property rights". So FloraPiss is reluctant to start its business there! But new government in Freemanistan tries to establish trade contact with UFA. The problem is, there is already a market of soda water, sugary soda water, colored soda water, flavored soda water etc in Freemanistan. Actually soda water was in use in Freemanistan for last 200 years! So FloraPiss is afraid that once the trade opens, cheap import from Freemanistan will spoil its market share.

So FloraPiss and other such companies in UFA lobby their government to press Freemanistan government to sign trade treaties which enforces IP laws so that none of the UFA's corporates suffer due to the inhuman stone age laws of Freemanistan. UFA tries to do that but Freemanistan government refuses. So UFA enforces economic sanctions and trade embargo towards Freemanistan, which forces the Freemanistan government to involve in black market. Soon UFA backed "liberation army" start a "pro-democratic" revolution in Freemanistan and the government falls. The new "pro-democracy government" signs all treaties and agreements which opens room for patent laws in Freemanistan. FloraPiss buys most of the existing companies in Freemanistan and automates production, resulting in lot of job cuts. FloraPiss also acquires patents for sparkling wine, fizzy fruit juices etc in the process.

Later in Freemanistan, a new breed of companies headed by natives surface. Their tactics are no different than FloraPiss, yet the people worship them as their own innovators and an answer to UFA's aggression. Facebook posts and Tweets supporting domestic businesses and exposing foreign conspiracies are setup. Freemanistan companies also amass lot of wealth and goes exactly the same way as UFA companies from buying out smaller companies to lobbying the government to amend labor laws. Those who oppose Freemanistan businessmen are labeled anti-nationals.

There is really no way to tell the difference between the following:
  • Pages by FloraPiss like companies that claim their products and activities are safe and legal
  • Pages by NGOs like BlueCheese that claim soda causes cancer and autism and their factories caused tsunamis. (Soon FloraPiss will be certified as non-polluter by BlueCheese, while locals are labeled harmful)
  • Pages by very few university professors, claiming FloraPiss factories discharge untreated water to rivers and their economic model resulted in unemployment and stagnation in cool-drinks industry.
  • Pages by Freemanistan nationalists claiming that FloraPiss is backed by religious groups of UFA and they in turn fund conversion activities in Freemanistan. They also claim that soda causes fertility problems.
  • Pages advocating the cholesterol-free organic soda, produced as per ancient sacred texts and that has unicorn amniotic fluid. They claim that it can cure all known diseases.
FloraPiss' production methods vary a lot in Freemanistan compared to UFA and causes lot of environmental problems. Some "pro-science accounts" in Facebook and Twitter expose the "stupidity" behind opposition to FloraPiss practices. They sacrifice some straw-men like BlueCheese and ultra organic soda movement on the altar of rationalism to silence these anti-science retards.

Whenever FloraPiss' tactics of forcing countries to sign trade treaties and deals using bribes, coercion and lobby is exposed, "notable economists" and "concerned citizens" bash anti-patent and anti-corporate voices, accusing them of copying and violation of intellectual property rights! How stupid and greedy these bastards trying to steal ideas and hard work of years!

People from UFA and Freemanistan like and share every post they "feel" true through their "personal experience" while enjoying a can of FloraPiss or PolarPee (Freemanistan's National Soda!). FloraPiss announces that Chandra Bai, Freemanistan woman (but UFA citizen!) as their new CEO. Freemanistan Social media celebrates it with posts narrating the greatness of Freemanistani people.

Meanwhile FloraPiss and PolarPee patent "organic soda" formulas and sue each other. Share prices fluctuate for both companies during every trail and judgement after which it will be taken to the next level of courts. Wolves of Ceiling Street make lot of money by speculating the market. Patent lawyers buy private islands.

A leak from Banana (a small nation in Indian ocean) reveals that many of the UFA and Freemanistan businessmen have hidden money in tax havens. Yet the governments come for their rescue saying that taking action against them will result in economic crash. As everything from savings to pension fund are linked to market, people "forget" the incident and move ahead with new movies and football matches.

Innovation continues not only in cool-drinks industry but also in every other industry from medicine to agriculture.