Topic: If the human mind can do it you can't patent it . . .

[Nemesis]

Link to full article

It is clear that unpatentable mental processes are the subject matter of claim 3. All of claim 3’s method steps can be performed in the human mind, or by a human using a pen and paper. Claim 3 does not limit its scope to any particular fraud detection algorithm, and no algorithms are disclosed in the ’154 patent’s specification. Rather, the broad scope of claim 3 extends to essentially any method of detecting credit card fraud based on information relating past transactions to a particular “Internet address,” even methods that can be performed in the human mind.

This could kill a lot of software patents.

[Bonk]

Like, um all of them? Except for those involving differentials, and the thought of that scares me, a reinforced patent system that would make new solutions to differential equations patentable?

Did Newton patent Gravity? Did Einstein patent relativity? No. The answers to all the largest scientific questions lie in the solutions of differential equations, which the human mind cannot do. We can get intuitively lucky, design clever brute force algorithms... but our mind as we know it cannot solve them. Differentials are why we invented computers. The human mind can memorise and apply differentials but cannot derive them. The ones we had prior to computers were pure sh*thouse luck.

While many applications (games in particular) use differential solutions, the fact is most of these solutions existed prior to computers. Computers confirmed them and allow fast calculation (like fast enough for artillery firing solutions...).

Wait a minute... I wonder what a graph of major scientific breakthroughs vs the advent of the patent system would look like? Has anyone collected and crunched all the stats on this? Patents vs Breakthroughs... what does it look like?

[Nemesis]

Like, um all of them? Except for those involving differentials, and the thought of that scares me, a reinforced patent system that would make new solutions to differential equations patentable?

If I understand you right then you misunderstood me.  If a human mind COULD in theory perform it then it CAN'T be patented.  The judge did allow for using pencil and paper to write down your process and solve it mentally.  Even if it would take a million years to do it if a human can in theory do so with pencil and paper it should no longer be patentable (barring a higher court over turning this or a new law being passed).

Natural laws (Newton and Einstein theories) are not supposed to be patentable anyhow.

In software there are too many things where they seem to say "See other patent but do it on the Internet" or on a tablet and so forth.  Others are either obvious or were done long ago. 

[Bonk]

No, I got you right, I just used bad examples. How about Navier-Stokes or the other 20 or so standard differential solutions I could never remember (again, that's why we have computers!  ).  My point was that differential solutions are not in theory possible to be performed by the human mind. As far as I know the ones we have prior to computers were intuition, insight and luck (much like Relativity or Gravity... pretty sure there is no derivation of Newton's law of gravity - "a general physical law derived from empirical observations by what Newton called induction")

Shifting gears, what about "natural" algorithms? Genetics as software. Can all be done on paper so in theory patentable right? What about existing "natural" genetic algorithms (some of them pretty awesome) - are they a sort of "prior art"? Who was the artist?

I wonder if anyone has considered a high-level language for DNA yet? Something I could "compile" with a solid phase peptide synthesis setup.  I want to program me a virus, literally; but a good one, one that does something useful, then later more advanced life forms or "programs"! Muahaahahah! Where were we?

Ah yes, I think I just got the distinction straight in my head... one could patent an algorithm that produces a differential solution, but not the solution itself, correct?

Which is important, as it is the solution produced ultimately that has the greater value in widespread application.

[Sirgod]

Forget software, there goes calculators, computers, anything that uses math. Engineering tools for fine work, etc. etc.

Stephen

[Kreeargh]

 If the human mind can do it you can't patent it !
If Greed$ issues are not that is possable. But what is the real issue these days?  Say some those really have the tallent do you not think the Greed will take it over for $ ? They Kill a runner for Buzz drugs
 DONT tell me they dont kill a one to make a life saveing drug.  No one wants to cure anything unless they have that issue . That is life that is real. Change it NOW public must or end game it will be  $ will not fix the issues. $ did not stop the plauge ! DO or DIE with the rest the greed [/u] needs to see!