Comments on: Mathematical non-games http://www.hrsfans.org/2010/02/10/mathematical-non-games/ misce stultitiam consiliis brevem Fri, 23 Jul 2010 00:57:13 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Jinnayah http://www.hrsfans.org/2010/02/10/mathematical-non-games/comment-page-1/#comment-6647 Jinnayah Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:58:10 +0000 http://www.hrsfans.org/?p=493#comment-6647 Quirk, actually, hard copies do go somewhere: specifically, the way of all flesh. What if the originals were not printed on acid-free paper? I've worked in library conservation (although it's my husband who brought up this particular keep-you-up-at-night scenario) and I have seen 20-year-old books crumble. 200-year-old books (if they survived this far) are generally fine, since it was only in the late-19th century that papermaking got cheap, but it's far from unthinkable that these hard copies were not made to last. You seem also to have heard that Grothendieck has copyright to not just his unpublished works, but also his published ones, so that he can block (and has blocked) reprinting. Ed, thanks for the link. I have so far resisted going to Wikipedia over this and, as I am not a member of any mathematical community, the letters to which you link are the first other compositions of Grothendieck's I've read. Said letters make it all the more tempting to go out and look for sources on the man, despite that that seems to be exactly what he's asked everyone NOT to do! I also want to tell some author friends or idols of mine about the situation, partially for inspiration to them, but also because this tempest's existence at all has a lot to do with the connection of readers to authors. What do we owe them? What do they owe us? What do they owe the world? Quirk, actually, hard copies do go somewhere: specifically, the way of all flesh. What if the originals were not printed on acid-free paper? I’ve worked in library conservation (although it’s my husband who brought up this particular keep-you-up-at-night scenario) and I have seen 20-year-old books crumble. 200-year-old books (if they survived this far) are generally fine, since it was only in the late-19th century that papermaking got cheap, but it’s far from unthinkable that these hard copies were not made to last. You seem also to have heard that Grothendieck has copyright to not just his unpublished works, but also his published ones, so that he can block (and has blocked) reprinting.

Ed, thanks for the link. I have so far resisted going to Wikipedia over this and, as I am not a member of any mathematical community, the letters to which you link are the first other compositions of Grothendieck’s I’ve read. Said letters make it all the more tempting to go out and look for sources on the man, despite that that seems to be exactly what he’s asked everyone NOT to do!

I also want to tell some author friends or idols of mine about the situation, partially for inspiration to them, but also because this tempest’s existence at all has a lot to do with the connection of readers to authors. What do we owe them? What do they owe us? What do they owe the world?

]]> By: Ed http://www.hrsfans.org/2010/02/10/mathematical-non-games/comment-page-1/#comment-6646 Ed Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:25:13 +0000 http://www.hrsfans.org/?p=493#comment-6646 Hah. I was actually in the process of writing a story involving a mathematician who spends time wandering around in France looking for Grothendieck. I think the "unlawful in my eyes" is part of a general attempt on his part to separate himself from institutions. I imagine that, insofar as his intent is cogent, it is not particularly legalistic. http://matematicas.unex.es/~navarro/res/prizes.pdf Hah. I was actually in the process of writing a story involving a mathematician who spends time wandering around in France looking for Grothendieck.

I think the “unlawful in my eyes” is part of a general attempt on his part to separate himself from institutions. I imagine that, insofar as his intent is cogent, it is not particularly legalistic.

http://matematicas.unex.es/~navarro/res/prizes.pdf

]]> By: Kevin http://www.hrsfans.org/2010/02/10/mathematical-non-games/comment-page-1/#comment-6641 Kevin Thu, 11 Feb 2010 07:00:21 +0000 http://www.hrsfans.org/?p=493#comment-6641 I found the ethical argument in the SBseminar comment thread so interesting that I jumped in. :) I found the ethical argument in the SBseminar comment thread so interesting that I jumped in. :)

]]> By: Quirk http://www.hrsfans.org/2010/02/10/mathematical-non-games/comment-page-1/#comment-6639 Quirk Thu, 11 Feb 2010 06:26:25 +0000 http://www.hrsfans.org/?p=493#comment-6639 According to my local algebraic geometers who've been talking about this, Grothendieck really does have copyright, as it reverts to the authors after some years. He also didn't try to pull all of his works, only the ones that he hadn't already published himself, which are the ones he now has copyright to. Not only that, but there's some question as to what happens to his estate when he dies; if he dies without passing it on, then it's presumed his restriction holds until the work passes out of copyright into the public domain. So then they're speculating about which country enforces copyright laws in which ways. There are still hard copies of SGA; it seems they're not going anywhere, and will still be cited. I'm not an algebraic geometer myself, though, so this is just passed on because it's the talk of part of the department. :) According to my local algebraic geometers who’ve been talking about this, Grothendieck really does have copyright, as it reverts to the authors after some years. He also didn’t try to pull all of his works, only the ones that he hadn’t already published himself, which are the ones he now has copyright to. Not only that, but there’s some question as to what happens to his estate when he dies; if he dies without passing it on, then it’s presumed his restriction holds until the work passes out of copyright into the public domain. So then they’re speculating about which country enforces copyright laws in which ways.

There are still hard copies of SGA; it seems they’re not going anywhere, and will still be cited. I’m not an algebraic geometer myself, though, so this is just passed on because it’s the talk of part of the department. :)

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