When the Revolution Comes, They Won't Recognize It

Not quite sure what to make of the "Makers" movement. I have read this blog post several times, and it still does not all seem to be sinking in.

Just as the ease of copying music has wreaked havoc with IP there, the spread of cheap 3D printers and DNA sequencers will also wreak havoc. So many of the concepts of current Intellectual Property and patent law are so outrageous. Like corporations being granted patents for portions of the human genome. Or the ridiculous software patents out there, of which the big software companies file hundreds, which they then grant each other rights to use (or not), essentially freezing small players out or the market.

It will be interesting to see how big pharma, one of the most potent political forces in medicine, reacts when the 3rd world starts cranking out their drugs for pennies on the dollar. Particularly when the drugs are serious lifesavers.