"Freedom to Tinker" is the freedom to understand, repair, and improve the technological devices you own. This freedom, which has been eroded by recent changes in markets and the law, is the organizing principle behind an increasing political and legal awareness among technologists. In this talk, Professor Felten will outline the ideas behind the freedom to tinker movement, using examples drawn from the current battles over copy protection.
Missed the talk? Listen in RealAudio format.Tuesday, April 2, 2002
12:30-1:30 p.m.
Room 80 (Moot Courtroom)
Stanford Law School
All welcome. Lunch will be provided.
Edward Felten is on sabbatical leave from Princeton University, where he is an Associate Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Secure Internet Programming Laboratory. Professor Felten challenged the constitutionality of provisions of the DMCA that would prevent him from publishing his research. Professor Felten was the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit asking for First Amendment protection for an academic paper he wrote on research into SDMI, a technological copyright protection scheme contemplated by the Recording Industry Association of America, and shielded under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. For more informatin, please visit the EFF's page. Felten?s presence at CIS promoted the interdisciplinary study of the DMCA?s effect on computer science research and scientific inquiry.