Work in progress - a new course on Intellectual Property, innovation, and ethics

This paper describes a new course at Lafayette College that introduces students to intellectual property (IP) concepts, explores the impact of current IP laws and policy on technological innovations, and examines the ethical aspects of IP in engineering design and practice. Students consider both the details of IP (patents, copyright, trademark, and trade secret) and the interactions between new technology, IP owners, society, and law. Coverage of moral theories and ethics early in the course provides a basis for evaluating arguments about these interactions.