Editor’s note: This marks the second and final installment of a unique profile—a detective story, really—of a Boston-area entrepreneur and his famous invention. The story was excerpted from Xconomy contributing writer Seth Shulman’s The Telephone Gambit: Chasing Alexander Graham Bell’s Secret (W. W. Norton 2008), which will be officially released on Monday. The first installment … Continue reading “The Telephone Gambit: Did Bell Steal His Legendary Invention? (Part Two)”
Author: Seth Shulman
Seth is a journalist and author with 25 years of experience covering issues in science, technology and innovation. He is the author of five books and hundreds of articles for magazines including, The Atlantic, Discover, Nature, Parade, Rolling Stone, The Progressive, Smithsonian and Time, among many others. From 2001-2003, he also wrote a monthly column about innovation and intellectual property for Technology Review magazine and has made numerous radio and television appearances on shows including NPR's "All Things Considered," "Weekend Edition," "Fresh Air," and "Talk of the Nation, Science Friday."
Among his many accolades, Seth was the first-ever Science Writing Fellow at the Dibner Institute for the History of Science and Technology at MIT for the 2004-2005 academic year, the recipient of a research and writing grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur foundation, and has received numerous awards for his writing; in 2001, his work was selected a finalist for a 2001 National Magazine Award in the public interest category. His 2006 book, Undermining Science: Suppression and Distortion in the Bush Administration (University of California Press) is based upon a series of investigative reports he wrote under contract with the Union of Concerned Scientists. A campaign related to the evidence he uncovered has drawn the support of more than 11,000 U.S. scientists, including 52 Nobel Laureates and 63 National Medal of Science winners. His latest book, The Telephone Gambit: Chasing Alexander Graham Bell's Secret is forthcoming this winter from W.W. Norton. He holds a B.A. from Harvard University.
The Telephone Gambit: Did Bell Steal His Legendary Invention?
Editor’s note: Just about everyone knows the story of Alexander Graham Bell and his invention of the telephone—and those famous words uttered in the inventor’s Boston workshop to his assistant, Thomas Watson. But what if the whole history of the telephone was rooted in a lie? A few years ago, when I walked into the … Continue reading “The Telephone Gambit: Did Bell Steal His Legendary Invention?”
Class-Action Lawsuit Unfolding in Boston Against Webloyalty, Fandango, Priceline, and Various Web Retailers Alleges Widespread “Coupon Click Fraud”
Updated and corrected, December 21, 2007. For details on the revisions, click here. It is every online shopper’s nightmare (that is, if you awake to know it has even happened). You’re at the computer buying movie tickets, flowers, or pet food and, after completing your purchase, an enticing pop-up comes on the screen offering a … Continue reading “Class-Action Lawsuit Unfolding in Boston Against Webloyalty, Fandango, Priceline, and Various Web Retailers Alleges Widespread “Coupon Click Fraud””
Myomo: FDA Approval, Press Recognition, New CEO-Now, Customers?
Myomo, the privately held Boston-based startup, has a lot to be thankful for this holiday season. The company won FDA approval in July for its first product: the “e100 NeuroRobotic System,” an elbow brace that helps stroke victims recover use of their arms by detecting tiny electric signals from the skin’s surface. Earlier this month, … Continue reading “Myomo: FDA Approval, Press Recognition, New CEO-Now, Customers?”
Massachusetts Scores High in the Patent Sweepstakes (and Other Fun Insights From New Patent Office Stats)
Among the many interesting tables published in the U.S. Patent Office’s annual performance report issued on Thursday are a state-by-state breakdown of patents issued in 2007, as well as listings of patent applications filed between 2003 and 2006 (this year’s figures on patent applications won’t be published until next month). Almost any way you parse … Continue reading “Massachusetts Scores High in the Patent Sweepstakes (and Other Fun Insights From New Patent Office Stats)”
Annual Patent Report Shows Growing Backlog in Key Technology Areas
The big news in the annual report from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office out today: it takes longer than ever to get a patent these days, and the backlog in patent applications continues to grow at an alarming rate. Average “pendency”—as the patent office calls the waiting period from application to issued patent—is now … Continue reading “Annual Patent Report Shows Growing Backlog in Key Technology Areas”
Glaxo Wins Round One in Lawsuit Against the U.S. Patent Office—Early Victory for Biotech and Pharma
Talk about the eleventh hour. At the last possible moment, a federal district court in Alexandria, VA, handed down a ruling yesterday evening that—at least for now—blocks new U.S. Patent Office rules that had been scheduled to take effect today: November 1, 2007. The new rules would have, among other things, made it harder for … Continue reading “Glaxo Wins Round One in Lawsuit Against the U.S. Patent Office—Early Victory for Biotech and Pharma”
Think “Local”—New MIT Media Center To Build Tools to Foster Civic Engagement
You don’t have to look far to find signs that participation in local communities is on the decline in the United States. In one obvious example, overall voter turnout in local elections is at a low ebb: according to a recent Pew Charitable Trusts survey only 26 percent of Americans aged 18 to 25 claim … Continue reading “Think “Local”—New MIT Media Center To Build Tools to Foster Civic Engagement”
Finding That Nuclear Needle in a Vast Cargo Haystack
The next time you are waiting for your luggage at the airport baggage carousel and marveling at the security challenge posed by those hundreds of bags, consider this: somewhere between 9 and 11 million cargo containers come into the United States through its 361 seaports annually, according to the Department of Homeland Security. That’s roughly … Continue reading “Finding That Nuclear Needle in a Vast Cargo Haystack”
Tiny Massachusetts Agency Seeks to Leverage State’s $5.5 Billion in Federal Research Funds-Can it Succeed?
With its bevy of top-flight universities and hospitals, Massachusetts boasts a fire-hydrant-like flow of some $5.5 billion in federal research dollars pumping into the state annually. How can the state best help commercialize some of that research to further boost the Bay State economy? That’s the daunting mission of the three-year-old Massachusetts Technology Transfer Center … Continue reading “Tiny Massachusetts Agency Seeks to Leverage State’s $5.5 Billion in Federal Research Funds-Can it Succeed?”
Two Patent-Related Scourges Addressed
After years of relative neglect, the courts, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and even Congress have taken important steps over the past several months to correct some of the patent system’s most glaring problems. (For one example, see this post from July.) The latest changes attempt to deal with dreaded “submarine patents” and the … Continue reading “Two Patent-Related Scourges Addressed”
Can Harvard Match MIT at Tech Transfer?
Change is afoot at Harvard University’s technology transfer operation. As Harvard spokesperson B.D. Colen puts it: “There’s no question that there is a new emphasis here on getting out into the world technologies that can benefit the public and that have too often been languishing on the shelf.” Most recently, a faculty committee studying the … Continue reading “Can Harvard Match MIT at Tech Transfer?”
High-Court “Common Sense” Decision Portends Big Changes for High-Tech Patenting; Many Existing Patents at Risk
High-tech patent holders take note: legal experts are calling the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in KSR v. Teleflex the most important patent ruling in decades, throwing into question the validity of many existing patents, especially in the e-commerce and biotech fields. Some IP watchers, like Audrey Millemann, a patent attorney at Sacramento-based firm of … Continue reading “High-Court “Common Sense” Decision Portends Big Changes for High-Tech Patenting; Many Existing Patents at Risk”