Preferably data gained using human subjects and social data fields, reaching back to the long history of human drug interfacing, not results from tests on Rats and a small groups of test-subjects from Oxford and Cambridge breeding programs.
The Digital Economy Bill has defined another 'war' with the culture of 'self owning ones' by threatening to punish shared digitalis.
My major preoccupation is the question, 'What is reality?' Many of my stories and novels deal with psychotic states or drug-induced states by which I can present the concept of a multiverse rather than a universe. Music and sociology are themes in my novels, also radical political trends; in particular I've written about fascism and my fear of it.
- Statement of 1975 quoted in the Dictionary of Literary Biography (1981) vol. 8, part 1
"Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist whose published work during his lifetime was almost entirely in the science fiction genre. Dick explored sociological, political and metaphysical themes in novels dominated by monopolistic corporations, authoritarian governments, and altered states. In his later works, Dick's thematic focus strongly reflected his personal interest in metaphysics and theology. He often drew upon his own life experiences and addressed the nature of drug abuse, paranoia and schizophrenia, and transcendental experiences in novels such as A Scanner Darkly and VALIS.[4]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_K._Dick
New rules on illegal filesharing: three strikes and you're blacklisted
Persistant filesharers now run the risk of being added to a 'copyright infringement' blacklist, under new rules being put into place by Ofcom following the Digital Economy Act.
Now that the Digital Economy Bill (as was) has passed into law, and the new coalition government has announced that it has no plans to repeal it, the responsibility rests with Ofcom to draft a code of practice enforcing it. The code of practice will be subject to consultation before being finalised, but at present Ofcom is working on a proposal which would force ISPs to keep records of people accused of illegal filesharing. After three such accusations, details of that user will be placed on a blacklist. Once blacklisted, user identities can then be applied for via court order by any copyright holder making a piracy allegation; allowing legal proceedings to be launched against the accused.
Each accusation of filesharing will result in a warning letter being sent out, and Ofcom is hoping that these letters will be sufficient to 'significantly reduce' copyright infringement; although if after a year no significant reduction is seen the regulator will consider more stringent measures such as temporary disconnection.
ISPs will have to keep details of filesharing accusations for a period of one year from the time that they are made, so that three accusations in a twelve month period will trigger the blacklisting. There is also a procedure for anyone believing they have been falsely accused to contest the accusation anonymously via a tribunal; which could result in rights holders and ISPs being forced to pay damages.
At present the requirement to keep tabs on filesharing accusations won't apply to ISPs with fewer than 400,000 customers, or mobile broadband providers.
