This land is my land

The concept of Intellectual Property is a bit abstract. How can someone actually own something that doesn't exist in real time and space. I mean you can't really hold an idea in your hands and you can't see a thought, so how can someone own them. Well its been done. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, intellectual property is, "It is imagination made real. It is the ownership of dream, an idea, an improvement, an emotion that we can touch, see, hear, and feel. It is an asset just like your home, your car, or your bank account. Just like other kinds of property, intellectual property needs to be protected from unauthorized use."


This idea makes since for those types of jobs that involve innovation and constantly trying to come up with new things, such as an inventor or author. I mean what if someone had stolen J.K. Rowling's idea, they would now be the richest person in England. I think the part that troubles me is how someone proves that it was their idea originally, or is it just based on who patents the idea first? It is just a scary thought that it would be that easy to loose an idea, or I suppose i should say have an idea stolen from you. It almost discourages me from even considering a career choice that would have that possibility. 

Is the power of creativity worth the risk of victimization?

The internet is one of the most remarkable inventions to date. It allows any average joe the potential to make whatever he wants from the ease and comfort of his own living room. With this great gift of creative freedom also comes an equally powerful counterpart. All of these potentially powerful ideas are flying around at such speeds and frequency that it is easy for someone to abuse this freedom the wrong way and steel ideas, property, or even identity from another person.

With people today logging so much of their lives on the computer, they have invested a great deal of themselves for many others to see. These relationships, figures, and ideas that they have poured into their computers is a part of them and is considered their own "property". Like any other tangible thing in this world, intellectual property is susceptible to theft and many people have quite a bit at stake to loose.

I choose to write about the issues of Creativity, Piracy, and Intellectual Property because they most interest me and I feel as though these principals are most applicable to my technological endeavors. With technology becoming more and more prevalent it is important to analyze it for its potential to exponentially grow our world in multiple aspects (be it socially, economically, or anywhere in between), but it is also vital to counterbalance this with its potential for harm and evaluate the pros and cons, or at the very least be cognizant of them.