4 - Tuesday, November 19, 2013
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
4 - uesay, oveber1, 213 Te Mchign Dily mihigadaiyco
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MELANIE KRUVELIS
and ADRIENNE ROBERTS MATT SLOVIN
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR
ANDREW WEINER
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
Fair use(ful)
Greenlighting Google Books keeps education open and accessible
After eight years of trial, U.S. Circuit Judge Denny Chin ruled Nov.
14 that Google did not infringe upon copyright laws when it began
scanning texts into Google Books, its massive, searchable online
library. The judge said Google acknowledges that it did not receive explicit
permission from authors to publish certain texts since receiving acceptance
from millions of authors would prove unfeasible. The company acted
within the "fair use" exception to copyright infringement. The ruling
has made it easier to legally obtain, share and use books for educational
information and creative stimulation - a major victory toward achieving
open, accessible education. Other courts in cases like this should accept
the broad definition of fair use in order to continue this trend of accessible
nare(
library,
science
who asked t,
have her nam
changed for pub
lication due t,
concerns abou
her academi
career here
shared a stor
with me that hi
close to home.
"(Majoring in
engineering wa
a very negativf
experience for
"From the very
completely ove
didn't have the s
to succeed."
She described
oncile what she
about college - t
to be the best fou
life - with her
which seemed t
from that expect
ment was beyond
I worked literally
little outcome. It
Is an engineering education
disconnected from reality?
cent night in the put in by their peers in business and shifting correspondingly: We have
a former computer social science programs. Although gone from building infrastructure
student, Claire, this workload might be necessary to building industries to building
o for students to master some of the information systems and social
e complex subjects they study, it con- improvements.
- tributes to the idea that engineer- The needs of both students and
o ing is an inaccessible field. companies have changed dras-
it Social standards within the field, tically in the past few decades.
c and perceptions of engineering on Today's engineering students
the outside, often reinforce this have never lived in a world with-
y idea. More than 85 percent of the out Internet access or cell phones;
t JULIA schools in the Princeton Review's today's employers value diverse
ZARINA 2012 ranking of schools with the backgrounds, global perspectives
) "least happy students" are engi- and socially conscious, engaged
s neering colleges. employees nearly as much as they
e" The stereotype of the ruthless value technical skills.
me," she disclosed, professor who designs their cur- Currently, there is still a degree
y beginning, I felt riculum as a kind of trial by fire to of mismatch at the education level
rwhelmed, like I weed out those who do not spend engaging students in this reality. A
kills or the support every waking moment studying is system that largely measures per-
commonly addressed both in popu- formance based on a few individu-
her inability to rec- lar culture and by students. Last ally taken exams each year might
had always heard year, a screenshot of an e-mail sent be a good indicator of how well stu-
:hat it was supposed out by the professor of an upper- dents can memorize information,
ar years of a person's level computer-programming class but large lecture halls alone do not
r own experiences, here at the University was widely foster the kinds of creative environ-
o be polar opposite circulated on Facebook. ments that will develop the skills
ation: "The environ- "Don't plan to have a social life today's engineering students need
d stressful. I felt that or engage in extracurricular activi- and demand.
:all thetime forvery ties until you've completed the first Many top-ranking schools like
t seemed like every- project," the e-mail read. "Until then the University recognize this fact
resources for the public good.
The fair use exception to copyright infringe-
ment has four requirements: First, it must pro-
duce creative stimulation while not using the
text for personal profit. Second, the text must
be published, not private. Third, the source
may only use a fraction of the whole text, and,
fourth, use of the text cannot harm the market
for purchasing a novel. Google Books fulfills
all of these requirements, as the judge rightly
decided. Potential readers are able to quickly
search, purchase or rent copies of books, so
people can easily find specific books while also
discovering recommendations for other texts.
Or, as Chin wrote, "Google Books digitizes
books and transforms expressive text into a
comprehensive word index that helps readers,
scholars, researchers and others find books."
opponents, notably the Author's Guild,
the organization that originally filed the suit
against Google, claim the search engine fails
under the fair use provision by providing too
many direct quotes from a book, allowing
Google Books users to read a text in its entirety
through its online previews. However, Chin
denied this, arguing, "Google Books does not
supersede or supplant books because it is not
a tool to be used to read books." Users can see
a only few pages of a novel per preview and a
portion of each novel is never scanned into the
system, proving that using Google Books to
read an entire work is seriously impractical, if
not impossible.
The innovative Google project is beneficial
to authors. After searching a book, users can
click on a link to purchase a copy from vari-
ous online sellers. Since the engine allows
easy access to find and purchase texts while
also allowing readers to find new texts based
on recommendations, authors actually have
the opportunity to generate a greater profit.
Additionally, many of the technical texts that
may be useful to students are not products
that were written with profitable intent.
The ruling also helps the University in its
contribution to HathiTrust, an innovative
project that connects the online libraries
of the University and other major academic
institutions. Because the University was
an original contributor to the online data-
base, this case establishes a precedent for
the HathiTrust project. The decision also
encourages the University to continue digi-
tizing texts, furthering opportunities for
public knowledge.
In making this ruling, Chin encourages
public learning. By definition, fair use allows
the use of copyrighted text if it mutually ben-
efits every party, and in this case, it does.
Allowing Google Books to continue use cre-
ates a legal precedent that will encourage
one around me was unhappy and
worried about failing."
And when it comes to the rigor
of the curriculum, Claire said the
attitude among some of the pro-
fessors was, " 'Well, we did it this
way when we were in school, so you
should have to as well.'"
"I was miserable."
Claire has since switched her
degree program and although her
story is just one of many, statistics
indicate that her experiences may
unfortunately not be unique or even
uncommon. At the University, 20
percent of the entering class of engi-
neers will transfer or not complete
their degree - a number that, while
much lower than the national aver-
age, is still 10-percent higher than
the drop-out rate of the University
as a whole. Nationally, fewer than
half of students who enter science,
technology, engineering and math
fields complete their degrees within
six years.
These statistics enforce the idea
that many elements of our current
standard of engineering education
are outdated and in need of overhaul.
It's no secret that engineering
is difficult. Recent studies have
shown that engineering majors
study on average 19 hours per week
compared to the 14 hours per week
you won't really and actively
know how much support pro-
time this course STEM fields will grams that are
requires of you." interdisciplin-
Fortunately, continue to succeed ary, modular
e-mails like and global,
that are not the only if their leaders and they value
norm, but many entrepreneur-
students, and can adapt. ism and col-
nearly 40 per- laboration. This
cent of those needs to be the
from minority backgrounds across standard across the board, how-
the United States, report feeling ever. There are still far too many
unsupported in STEM programs departments and institutions
and discouraged from pursuing that are teaching to the needs of a
them. Besides being socially out- bygone era, and although they may
dated, the current perceptions in have long track records of success,
engineering are holding the field it is not enough to rest on past or
back in many other ways as well. current accomplishments.
In a 2009 report commissioned We as an engineering commu-
by the University analyzing trends nity will continue to succeed - to
in engineering education, profes- attract the best, brightest and most
sors and faculty argued a point unconventional thinkers - only if
that appears to be a serious issue we can adapt. Technology is both
for STEM fields: The foundation of self-destructive and self-perpet-
engineering instruction is tailored uating. It's a cycle of evolution;
to meet the needs of a "post-World the products and systems that we
War II industrial manufacturing create demand better and more
economy." efficient creators, users and devel-
The obvious problem with this opers. Why should we waste any
standard in the United States is time in creating an education sys-
that we no longer have an economy tem to match those needs?
reliant on industrial manufactur-
ing. Economists and educators -Julia Zarina can be reached
describe our engineering focus as at julmilton@umich.edu.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Kaan Avdan, Shank Bashir, Barry Belmont, James Brennan,
Eric Ferguson, Jordyn Kay, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis,
Maura Levine, Aarica Marsh, Megan McDonald, Victoria Noble,
Adrienne Roberts, Paul Sherman, Daniel Wang, Derek Wolfe
Campus is no place for hatred
Keeping the movement inclusive
At the Victors for Michigan launch event
Nov. 8, a T-shirt was sighted with the mes-
sage "Victors for Moral Antigayism," along-
side an image of a cross. While we don't know
the individual who chose to make and wear
this message, nor his motivations, we invite
him to meet with us as leaders of our respec-
tive faith-based groups. We welcome the
opportunity to share with him why we feel
there's no place at the University of Michigan
- or anywhere - for hatred or anti-gay activ-
ism, especially associated with a religious
symbol. As faith leaders on this campus, we
seek to create positive spaces for students to
deepen their religious and spiritual beliefs,
while also respecting the diversity of views
and identities that exist on this campus.
Messages like this serve to intimidate and
alienate other students, at an event that was
intended to bring our victors together in a
positive, affirming space.
We support and reinforce this student's
right to hold strong religious beliefs that
guide his morals, ethics, values and actions.
Associating a cross, however, with an anti-
gay message does not represent the values of
many of our Christian and other faith-based
groups on campus. Many of our organiza-
tions are actively inclusive of the LGBTQ
community, and several are certified allies
through the Spectrum Center's Ally Devel-
opment Training program. The Victors
event was about showcasing "the Leaders
and the Best" that this campus offers. The
presence of an anti-gay message had no
place at the event or on this campus. We
look forward to continuing to work in part-
nership with Student Life and the Office of
Development to ensure our motto of Expect
Respect is upheld on our campus.
Kelly Dunlop is the associate director of
Campus Catholic Ministry. Ernestine Griffin
is the minister for Unity On Campus Ministry.
Reid Hamilton is the chaplain of Canterbury
House. Dr. Bruce D. Martin is the executive
director of the Ecumenical Center & International
Residence. Bob Roth is the Chaplain and
Director of the Wesley Foundation. Mohammed
Tayssir Safi is the chaplain and director of
The Felicity Foundation. Tilly Shames is the
executive director of Hillel. Paul and Stacey
Simpson Duke are campus ministers at
The Gathering (American Baptist Campus
Foundation). Sue Sprowls is the campus pastor
for Lord of Light Lutheran Campus Ministry.
Recently, there has been a
great deal of discussion
on campus about diver-
sity. with the
vast majority of
students hail-
ing from white,
upper-class
backgrounds,
the University of
Michigan, one of _
the top universi- KATE
ties in the coun- LARAMIE
try, is severely
lacking in a
diverse student body. Our Universi-
ty's failure to create a more inclusive,
diverse campus has been the source
of understandable concern and con-
tention among minority and low-
income students, and their allies.
Student groups have taken it upon
themselves to educate and fight for
the creation of a future University
that's not so obviously dominated by
one student demographic.
I've seen many parallels between
the fight to diversify our campus
and the push of the environmental
movement to build a more inclusive
atmosphere toward one no longer
dominated by white individuals of
privileged backgrounds. Since the
inception of mainstream environ-
mentalism in the 1960s, the move-
ment has become stamped as a
crusade of the upper-middle class
- those who have both the time
and money needed to support envi-
ronmental lobbying, campaigns and
protection. While the hippie cul-
ture of the 60s and 70s instigated
a societal shift that emphasized a
greater appreciation and concern
for the preservation and protection
of the natural world, the movement
also brought a stereotyped por-
trayal of the environmentalist as a
white, liberal college student of the
Woodstock era.
But this established rhetoric
overlooks the fun
ence between "en
and "environment:
environmentalism
images of conser
parks and protect
species, environm
increasingly associ:
Communities on t
the fight against pr
mental agencies tho
the catastrophic i:
tion, mining, indust
other environmen
For years the two]
Environmentalism
media as a campai
warming and save
environmental just
attention from the
is typical of covera
and minority comm
However, much
tance many Uni'
have placed on
and diversity ofc
mainstream
environmental
movement is
making strides
to more accu-
rately represent
the actual indi-
viduals who are
most impacted
by environmen-
tal degradation.
As the realities of
become ever mor
the destruction of
sil fuel use contL
toll, the communit
drastically affecte
low-income and m
the very groups t
pushed aside whe
ronmental initiativ
Environmental
cial part of the
movement. Saving
just about protect
damental differ- and preventing the ice caps from
vironmentalism" melting - it's also about preserv-
al justice." while ing the viability and longevity of
brings forth our own societies. Those who are
vation, national most affected by the realities of
ting endangered environmental destruction need a
ental justice is voice the most because, while the
ated with people: environmental movement has long
:he frontlines of been portrayed as one solely valued
ivate and govern- by the privileged upper-class, it's
at do little to ease members of the frontline commu-
mpacts of pollu- nities whose lives are most at risk
rial disasters and by our failure to protect the natu-
ital degradation. ral world. It is these people who've
have stood apart: been least represented throughout
dominated the the environmental movement.
gn to halt global Ilook around our campus and I see
the planet, while many white faces - I myself am one
ice received little of them. Most students that attend
mainstream, as our institution have never known
ge of low-income poverty or hunger. Like the face of
unities. the environmental movement, the
like the impor- face of University is one of privilege.
versity students But the growing push for change in
the inclusivity both institutions is encouraging.
our campus, the While I fulfillthe stereotype of being
both a Univer-
sity student and
Minorities are an environmen-
talist, I truly
underrepresented believe that it's
. . of utmost impor-
in environmental tance that both
our college and
dscussions. the environmen-
tal movement
incorporate all
f climate change peoples of all backgrounds and sta-
e apparent and tunes.
a century of fos- A society cannot be strong - it
nues to take its cannot protect its people, resources
ies that are most or natural spaces - when it is led by
:d are those of only a few. The society of tomorrow
inority status - is diverse, and the representation of
hat are so often our institutions and our movements,
n debating envi- whether they be higher education or
'es. environmental justice, should reflect +
justice is a cru- this reality.
There's been some level of information
available, but it's clear we didn't
communicate enough info early enough
to include people in the process."
- University spokesperson Rick Fitzgerald said to The Michigan Daily in response to
concerns regarding the shared service transition.
environmental
the planet isn't
ting biodiversity
- Kate Laramie can be reached
at laramiek@umich.edu.
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