Continuous Productivity

Darwin on the Internet

Very cool news coming out of Cambridge University: all of Charles Darwin's papers are now available online.  I don't profess to be a Darwin scholar, but am more fascinated with the disintermediation of knowledge.  What used to require a visit to Cambridge for examination is now available instantly. 

The Scary Part About Wikipedia

Former Novell chief scientist Jeffrey Merkey says he donated $5,000 to the Wikimedia Foundation in exchange for changes to his Wikipedia entry.

Mr Merkey says Mr Wales agreed to "use his influence" to remove libellous remarks in the entry.

The above is a great example of why many people question the veracity of Wikipedia entries.  Nevertheless, it is one of the most linked to and utilized sources of information on the internet.  Scary, indeed.

Wizards and Lawsuits

A very interesting lawsuit by JK Rowling and Warner Brothers: 

Harry Potter author JK Rowling said she would feel "exploited" if an unofficial reference book about the boy wizard was published, according to court papers.

The writer is taking legal action in New York against Steve Vander Ark and publisher RDR Books over their plans to release a Harry Potter encyclopaedia.

I can understand Rowling's frustration, but I wonder what the limits are when there already exists an entire secondary Harry Potter market.  As the article mentioned, the encyclopedia was just an extension of a web site that already offered a kind of Harry Potter encyclopedia.  I will be tuned in to see how this plays out.