Brains working towards machine consciousness

Data Protection

It seems to me that the Data Protection Act is often overlooked. As a result of having been given responsibility for auditing our DPA related activity whilst at Thames Water, I have a reasonable awareness of the legislation and its implications. I drafted the DPA statement for the MUVENation project, and the privacy statement for the This Is Me project.

Display Screen Equipment health and safety legislation

Whilst at Thames Water, I was responsible for auditing user workstations for compatibility with the DSE regulations. Whilst students are not employees, I do urge developers to consider the regulations when designing software, especially with regard to the ability to modify font size and to be compatible with screen readers. However, without designing the underlying systems oneself, it can be challenging to make sure that this works in all cases (and this site is no exception, sadly).

Adhering to policy

The University of Reading has a "Reading plus one" policy regarding naming things, hence the URL of the This Is Me project website (http://thisisme.reading.ac.uk). I also take care to adhere to policy on use of branding where possible.

Copyright and IPR

I am keenly aware of the potential for copyright and IPR abuse when people are using online systems. I recommend HE people to be aware of the Web2Rights project outputs. I am a strong advocate of MIT style licenses and Creative Commons, which allow for a range of levels of protection of work. The MeAggregator^TM project has the capacity to allow people to flout copyright as with any other Web2.0 style application, and this is an issue which I am keen to address.