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STRANGER than SCIENCE


DISCLAIMER and FAIR USE


As most readers are basically familiar with the disclaimer concepts, legal, copy, free speech and the "philosophical dichotomy of content posting and loyalty issues surrounding disclaimers by in large.

There are some contradictions exist as a result where as editors and or authors post materials in a manner in which the reader may interpret that the editors may not stand behind the posted content or endorse certain facts and or elements the same editors are attempting to report to their audience.

Editors in their efforts to report a story may miss a point of validity often because facts of most accounts are gathered for second hand sources and after the story related accident occurs.

Therein as a result of this condition lies a disparity of nay editor creating a of a perfect account or perfect report of any situation.

There will always remain some question of absolute truthfulness or preciseness of any second and third hand accounts, stories, and headlines regardless of any professional authors, reporters and editors attempts to provide the public with a good story. It will always remain the readers to weigh in on any issue reported and to discern the integrity and factualness of any reported story or headline.

However in spite of the readers responsibility to perform there part in screening, filtering and sifting information most authors, reporters and editors are forced to protect themselves from public dissent concerning those editions, viewpoints, postings where the content may have been clearly intended to be set an a atmosphere of truthfulness and good taste and openness by all parties concerned. But wherein a segment of the reading public may become victims of certain content. A good example of this problem is the example of the radio broadcast in the 1930's by Orson Wells called 'War of the Worlds' where Mr. Wells had captivated his listening audience in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey to such a degree that many of these listening audience believed that a Invasion for Mars was actually taking place. A small public panic ensued in the tri-state area and some people even lost their lives as a direct result of the radio broadcast. This and some other media and major and minor news related events began to shape the significance and the role of what we know the contemporary disclaimer to be.

The heart of the heart of disclaimer problem exists wherein some form of content that was posted or reported by the website and that the a person, or individuals within general readership un-expectantly, wittingly or unwittingly took offense to the information posted.

As a result of the possible liability and risks involved revolving around the public reaction to a posting of a article, story, report or news story and or the possible criticisms by certain opponents, the only choice the authors, editors and reporters had to protect all parties involved and including the general public was to recite the the concept and condition of the "disclaimer".

So justly for the benefit of those readers of a opinion to be in disagreement of a posting at this site, there is a disclaimer provided for this class and all classes of readership. It is important to be aware that free speech and disclaimers work hand and glove in order to protect all readers and editors from any classes of dissent of public and private interests.

However in modern times disclaimers are a necessary and important part of the production and protections for any host (website) as a new media source intending to report and defend their viewpoints concerning the posting of any materials as well as to recite speech amendment, production and copy limitations and editorial rights.

The Editors and the Authors in creating this web site have in their efforts attempted to bring the reading audience a balanced new approach to the broader subject content in Stranger than Science with un-biasness and openness of mind and have attempted to apply the best means possible in its journalistic and editorial efforts to be factual in all matters of report to the best of their ability.

The Disclaimer: concerning all Stranger than Science content, concerning the interpretations and posting of it media and written content and web or other related links (embedded or otherwise) and the posting of stories, commentaries, reports, documents, video, film, images, media and forums presented on this site does not in any way, shape or form, implied or otherwise, necessarily express or suggest endorsement, recommendation or support all the views or completeness of content concerning that of the editors and the owners of this site whereas any of posted material or parts therein are in conflict with the opinions, beliefs or personal views of the general public.

The idea of a free press and free speech is a very unique privilege and although 'American' in it's concept is also in whole or in part utilized by only a handful of country's globally which are deemed as democracy's, where the citizens and residents of these democracy's indulge in free press and free speech to varying degrees as well as hold these privileges in the highest regard. This concept or notion of the idea of a free press and free speech is a example or exercise of freedom to all mankind.

We believe in bringing our site visitors the greatest possible array of information that comes to our attention. We have greatest of trust and respect our viewing audience, and our worldwide and believe them to be fully-capable of making their own decisions and discerning their own realities.

Among the articles posted here for the visitors consideration, there will doubtless be some content that you find useless, and possibly offensive and we trust that you will be perceptive enough to realize that those stories that you disagree with still have some value in terms of promoting your personal definitive insights. Our presents a variety of material. So take what you wish and click or scroll right past that which doesn't interest you.

We suggest you don't make your own 'assumptions' too quickly regarding our presentations and their related official positions on issues that are developed in our stories and postings. That is not the intent of our web site. We believe it is equally unwise to sweep controversy under the carpet entirely. We would hope that people should not only read material which they agree with only.

Many of our stories have required a very serious effort in their preparations. The compilers of the content posted as a story, report and or article are convinced in their professional circumstances of the sincerity and truthfulness of their reports. However these compilers in order to bring the story to the world wide web have carefully weighed in of the pros and cons of the certain negative effects that a disclaimer brings to any item concerning endorsements and validations concerning their story, report and or article. Unfortunately disclaimers are a very important part of the life cycle and editorial role of any story, report and or article that is to be posted on the world wide web these days.

The opinions expressed through the stories presented on this site do not necessarily represent those of the editors, authors and owners of this website, or it's webmaster.

We are not going to censor the news and information presented on this site. That is for you to do.

We strongly recommend not 'assuming' anything. Read, consider, and make your own informed decisions. People 'assumed' the Warren Commission report was accurate. It was not. by the score. People 'assumed' the world was once flat.

One more time...

Neither the Authors, Editors and or Owners, Stranger than Science, nor strangerthan science.com necessarily adhere to, or endorse, any or all of the links, stories, articles, editorials found on this site.

All of the materials and data offered on this site are for informational and educational purposes only.

And remember: it's all free for you, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

We at Stranger than Science., Thank you for visiting.

Please remember above all. . . Enjoy the site. . .

The materials comprising the strangerthanscience.com posting service (the "Website") are provided by strangerthanscience.com as a service to its readers on an "as-is, as-available" basis for informational purposes only. strangerthanscience.com assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions in these materials. strangerthanscience.com makes no commitment to update the information contained herein. Further, strangerthanscience.com cannot edit, control, review for truth or accuracy, or screen for defamation or obscenity any content provided to the Website by a third party through postings, uploaded files, or any other form of communication, nor can the strangerthanscience.com ensure prompt removal of defamatory, obscene, inappropriate or unlawful content after transmission. Any such third party postings, files or other communications do not necessarily represent the opinions, beliefs, or positions of the strangerthanscience.com , its owner, employees or sponsors.

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Fair Use

FAIR USE NOTICE. (a.) Many of the stories on this site contain copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making this material available in its efforts to advance the understanding of environmental issues and sustainability, human rights, economic and political democracy, and issues of social justice. etc.. etc.. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in Section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use such copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use'. . . you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

FAIR USE NOTICE. (b.) This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, politico, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.. etc.. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
United States Code: Title 17, Section 107
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/unframed/17/107.html

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include - (1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; (2) the nature of the copyrighted work; (3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and (4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.

United States Code: Title 17, Section 106 Chapter 1 - Subject Matter And Scope of Copyright
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/unframed/17/106.html
Subject to sections 107 through 120, the owner of copyright under this title has the exclusive rights to do and to authorize any of the following: (1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; (2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; (3) to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; (4) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works, to perform the copyrighted work publicly; (5) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, to display the copyrighted work publicly; and (6) in the case of sound recordings, to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

FAIR USE NOTICE. Many of the stories on this site contain copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making this material available in its efforts to advance the understanding of environmental issues and sustainability, human rights, economic and political democracy, and issues of social justice. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in Section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use such copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use'...you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

FAIR USE NOTICE. This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, politica, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

United States Code: Title 17, Section 107
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/unframed/17/107.html

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include - (1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; (2) the nature of the copyrighted work; (3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and (4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.

United States Code: Title 17, Section 106 Chapter 1 - Subject Matter And Scope of Copyright
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/unframed/17/106.html

Subject to sections 107 through 120, the owner of copyright under this title has the exclusive rights to do and to authorize any of the following: (1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; (2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; (3) to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; (4) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works, to perform the copyrighted work publicly; (5) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, to display the copyrighted work publicly; and (6) in the case of sound recordings, to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

TO: Members of the Faculty, Hoover Institution Fellows, Academic Staff, and Library Directors

FROM: Condoleezza Rice, Provost

RE: Copyright Reminder

October 30, 1998

This memorandum provides a general description of the applicability of the copyright law and the so-called "fair use" exemptions to the copyright law's general prohibition on copying. It also describes "safe harbor" guidelines applicable to classroom copying.

The federal copyright statute governs the reproduction of works of authorship. In general, works governed by copyright law include such traditional works of authorship as books, photographs, music, drama, video and sculpture, and also software, multimedia, and databases. Copyrighted works are protected regardless of the medium in which they are created or reproduced; thus, copyright extends to digital works and works transformed into a digital format. Copyrighted works are not limited to those that bear a copyright notice. As a result of changes in copyright law, works published since March 1, 1989 need not bear a copyright notice to be protected under the statute.

Two provisions of the copyright statute are of particular importance to teachers and researchers:

* a provision that codifies the doctrine of "fair use," under which limited copying of copyrighted works without the permission of the owner is allowed for certain teaching and research purposes; and

* a provision that establishes special limitations and exemptions for the reproduction of copyrighted works by libraries and archives.

The concept of fair use is necessarily somewhat vague when discussed in the abstract. Its application depends critically on the particular facts of the individual situation. Neither the case law nor the statutory law provides bright lines concerning which uses are fair and which are not. However, you may find it helpful to refer to certain third party source materials. Guidelines for classroom copying by not-for-profit educational institutions have been prepared by a group consisting of the Authors League of America, the Association of American Publishers, and an ad hoc committee of educational institutions and organizations. In addition, fair use guidelines for educational multimedia have been prepared by a group coordinated by the consortium of College and University Multimedia Centers (CCUMC). These guidelines describe safe harbor conditions, but do not purport to define the full extent of "fair use."

The guidelines, as well as other source material, are available through a variety of resources, including through the world wide web site http://fairuse.stanford.edu. Stanford University Libraries & Academic Information Resources, in collaboration with the Council on Library Resources and FindLaw Internet Legal Resources, are sponsors of this web site. The site assembles a wide range of materials related to the use of copyrighted material by individuals, libraries, and educational institutions.

I hope that the discussion below helps to clarify further the nature of "fair use."

I. Fair Use for Teaching and Research

The "fair use" doctrine allows limited reproduction of copyrighted works for educational and research purposes. The relevant portion of the copyright statue provides that the "fair use" of a copyrighted work, including reproduction "for purposes such as criticism, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research" is not an infringement of copyright. The law lists the following factors as the ones to be evaluated in determining whether a particular use of a copyrighted work is a permitted "fair use," rather than an infringement of the copyright:

* the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;

* the nature of the copyrighted work;

* the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole, and

* the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

Although all of these factors will be considered, the last factor is the most important in determining whether a particular use is "fair." Where a work is available for purchase or license from the copyright owner in the medium or format desired, copying of all or a significant portion of the work in lieu of purchasing or licensing a sufficient number of "authorized" copies would be presumptively unfair. Where only a small portion of a work is to be copied and the work would not be used if purchase or licensing of a sufficient number of authorized copies were required, the intended use is more likely to be found to be fair.

A federal appeals court recently decided an important copyright fair use case involving coursepacks. In Princeton University Press, et.al. v. Michigan Document Services, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit concluded that the copying of excerpts from books and other publications by a commercial copy service without the payment of fees to the copyright holders to create coursepacks for university students was not fair use. The size of the offending excerpts varied from 30 percent to as little as 5 percent of the original publications. Although the opinion in this case is not binding in California, it is consistent with prior cases from other courts, and there is a reasonable likelihood that the California federal courts would reach a similar conclusion on similar facts.

Where questions arise, we suggest that you consult the guidelines for classroom copying and other available source material available on the fair use web site, cited above. Please note that the guidelines are intended to state the minimum, not the maximum, extent of the fair use doctrine. Thus, just because your use is not within the guidelines, it is it not necessarily outside the scope of fair use. In the absence of a definitive conclusion, however, if the proposed use deviates from the guidelines, you should consider obtaining permission to use the work from the copyright owner. In instances where the fair use question is important and permission would be difficult or expensive to obtain, a member of the Fair Use Advisory Group (described below) or the Legal Office can assist in analyzing whether a particular proposed use would constitute "fair use."

Some photocopying services will obtain copyright permission and add the price of the royalties, if any, to the price of the materials. A request to copy a copyrighted work should generally be sent to the permission department of the publisher of the work. Permission requests should contain the following:

* Title, author, and/or editor, and edition

* Exact material to be used, giving page numbers or chapters

* Number of copies to be made

* Use to be made of the copied materials

* Form of distribution (classroom, newsletter, etc.)

* Whether the material is to be sold

Draft form letters can be obtained from or reviewed by a member of the Fair Use Advisory Group or the Legal Office.

For certain works, permission may also be sought from the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) which will quote a charge for works for which they are able to give permission. The Copyright Clearance Center can be contacted at www.copyright.com or (978) 750-8400, but it may be easier to go through a copying service that deals regularly with the CCC.

II. Course Reserves

Some libraries at Stanford will refuse to accept multiple photocopies or to make photocopies of copyrighted materials needed for course reserves without first having permission from the copyright holder. Other libraries on campus will accept a limited number of photocopies for course reserves. Consult individual libraries for clarification of their policies.

While the libraries have blanket permission from dozens of journals, obtaining permission sometimes takes a good deal of time. Experience in obtaining permission has shown that an inquiry addressed to a journal publisher frequently produces information that the copyright is actually held by the author, and four weeks is often inadequate to obtain such permission. Four to six weeks is considered the norm.

Permission may be obtained in a number of ways:

* Upon request, some libraries on campus will obtain materials for course reserve. In these cases, the librarian will write to obtain permission to photocopy or to purchase reprints. However, most libraries do not provide this service.

* Written permission may be obtained by the academic department.

* Oral permission may be obtained by faculty members, departmental secretaries, or library staff, in which case a written record is needed of that action.

Note that filling course reserve requirements may require two to three months before the quarter begins if the library does not already have a copy of the publication, if the publication is out of print, or if the copyright holder is not readily available.

III. Resources

Additional information on copyright issues may be found on the world wide web site http://fairuse.stanford.edu.

Questions about the copyright law as it affects faculty and staff in their University capacities should be directed to a member of the Fair Use Advisory Group (see attachment) or to Linda Woodward in the Legal Office (3-9751), who can put you in touch with the appropriate lawyer to respond to your specific question. Questions about library policy and course reserves should be addressed to Assunta Pisani, Associate Director, University Libraries (apisani@sulmail or 3-5553). Information concerning the application of copyright law to computer software can be found in the memorandum "Copying of Computer Software" distributed by the Library and Information Resources and in Administrative Guide Memorandum 62.

Thank you for your cooperation in ensuring the observation of these guidelines.

If you whish to read more concerning the Disclaimer details in depth concerning all Stranger than Science and it's posting viewpoints.
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