Hardin – The Tragedy of the Commons

Hardin, Garrett.  “The Tragedy of the Commons.”  Science.   12/13/1968.  Print. Hardin’s essay centers around issues that have “no technical solution.”  In other words, he wants to address the commons as an issue that must be involved in human values or ideas of human morality. Hardin is pushing back against the “invisible hand” philosophy of Adam Smith in this piece asking whether individuals will – by acting in their own self-interest – also act on behalf... Read More

Barlow – The Next Economy of Ideas

Barlow, John Perry.  “The Next Economy of Ideas.”  Wired.  October 2000.  Print This piece is a reflection on the Napster case and its effects on the information economy. A core claim that Barlow makes here is that “The free proliferation of expression does not decrease its commercial value.  Free access increases it, and should be encouraged rather than stymied. The first use of “DotCommunism” appears in this article. Another chief claim “Noncommercial distribution... Read More

Barlow – The Economy of Ideas

Barlow, John Perry. “The Economy of Ideas.” Wired 1994. Print. Barlow is confronting the problem of digitized property:  “If our property can be infinitely reproduced and instantaneously distributed all over the planet without cost, without our knowledge, without its even leaving our possession, how can we protect it?  How are we going to get paid for the work we do with our minds?  And, if we can’t get paid, what will assure the continued creation and distribution... Read More

Lessig – The Architecture of Innovation

Lessig, Lawrence. “The Architecture of Innovation,” 51 Duke Law Journal 1783 (2002). Lessig is concerned in this piece with what happens when an idea “sticks it to society;” or becomes an object that society can’t change.  He wants to know if he can get people to believe that there might be something contestable about what seems unquestionable. The “thing” that is sticking it to society – according to Lessign – is property.  Specifically, Lessig wants... Read More

Koman – Remixing Culture: An Interview with Lessig

Koman, Richard.  “Remixing Culture:  An Interview with Lawrence Lessig.”  24 Feb. 2005.         O’Reilly Policy Development Center.  29 Apr. 2010.              <http://www.oreillynet.com/policy/2005/02/24/lessig.html>. Remix culture is made possible by “P2P, inexpensive digital input devices, open source software, easy editing tools, and reasonably affordable bandwidth.” Lessig notes that the Grokster case is about whether a company/subject... Read More