Lab 5: Copyrights

Brian wants to reintegrate this as a new lab one day (maybe an optional lab). --MF, 5/31/20

Software patents are controversial. In the US, software was generally not patentable until a 1981 Supreme Court decision. Students explore what it means to invent something, and why software might or might not be considered differently from machinery. The simultaneous invention of the telephone by several people is used as an example to debunk the apple-on-head, flash-of-insight myth.

The digital storage of information makes the marginal cost of a perfect copy zero. In principle, that shouldn't affect the rights of artists, but in practice, many people feel free to copy media both for their own use and to give to friends. When classes are polled on this topic, most or all hands go up for both "who thinks it's wrong to pirate music or movies" and for "who has pirated music or movies?" This is a springboard into a class discussion of how laws have changed, how artists should be supported, and the use of encryption to enforce copyright.

It's really important to understand that what's called "copyright" is not a right, like freedom of speech, or even like owning your house. On page 3 of this lab, students read the relevant paragraph from the US Constitution. which makes it clear that copyright has a limited duration, after which the work is supposed to enter the public domain, free for everyone to use. For this reason, we bend over backward not to use the tendentious term "intellectual property," which suggests a property right. like the right to keep your house or your car.

It's also really important not to turn this topic into a hectoring of students. "Stop downloading movies illegally!" We want students to feel empowered as moral agents, not just empowered as programmers.

Pacing

The 5 lab pages could be split across 2–3 days (50–100 minutes). Expected times to complete follow:

Prepare

Lab Pages

Solutions

There are no exercises for which solutions would be needed.

Correlation with 2020 AP CS Principles Framework 

Essential Knowledge: