Monday morning roundup

No love for the Blackberry among Persian Gulf autocrats.

Are Arab states apathetic to the fate of actual Palestinians?

In the Information Age, some students struggle with the concept of intellectual property and the associated sin of plagiarism. In its last paragraph, the article invokes some recurring themes on this blog:

At the University of California, Davis, of the 196 plagiarism cases referred to the disciplinary office last year, a majority did not involve students ignorant of the need to credit the writing of others.

Many times, said Donald J. Dudley, who oversees the discipline office on the campus of 32,000, it was students who intentionally copied — knowing it was wrong — who were “unwilling to engage the writing process.”

“Writing is difficult, and doing it well takes time and practice,” he said.

And then there was a case that had nothing to do with a younger generation’s evolving view of authorship. A student accused of plagiarism came to Mr. Dudley’s office with her parents, and the father admitted that he was the one responsible for the plagiarism. The wife assured Mr. Dudley that it would not happen again.

Speaking of younger generations, the Snowpocalypse and Snowmageddon babies are coming.