A number of interesting posts concerning privacy showed up today, which made good reading together. In particular, these articles concern privacy, in this case, the control that people have about data concerning themselves.
One of the predicted consequences of the global village was the fading importance of place. After all, if everyone can talk to and look in on everyone else regardless of location, through the miracle of telephones and TV and Internet, then location would become irrelevant.
We do not yet live in that world. Many people continue to commute to work, for example, to be in the same building with their colleagues.
Science writer David Berreby has posted an interesting piece in Psychology Today about the relationship between privacy and productivity in the workplace.
In their article, "Biohistorical materials and contemporary privacy concerns-the forensic case of King Albert I", Larmuseau et al.
With election day approaching in the US, issues around the mechanics of the voting itself have returned to the limelight. Voters in many states will use a variety of electronic machines—many connected to the Internet—to cast their ballots. In this day when government and private information have been leaking (or leaked) like sieves, this fact gives rise to some trepidation.
One important means for enforcing rules of conduct is to allow police to search for evidence of violations. Search can take many forms, as recent examples illustrate.
In the upcoming Rio Summer Olympics, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will be searching for evidence of gene doping. Gene doping is the insertion of genes into a body's cells in order to modify their behavior for the purpose of enhancement (as opposed to gene therapy, which is done to restore health).
Myriad Genetics is perhaps best known for its ultimately failed defence of its patents on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes associated with elevated risk of breast cancer.
A new article describes another way in which the company has offended some cancer patients, namely by keeping details of their test results a proprietary secret.