Ed Felten:
“Recently I met a promising young computer scientist, whose name I will
withhold for reasons that will soon be evident. He has developed a very
interesting network software system that would be useful for a great
many legitimate applications. The problem, he told me, is that if too
many people find out what he has done and realize its value, some of
them may start using it for illegal purposes. He doesn't want that kind
of trouble, so he is avoiding bringing his work to the attention of the
broader public, publishing it in research venues where a small
community of experts will see it, but avoiding any further disclosure.”
From my perspective, that's indistinguishable from the legions of grad
students who simply don't ship. (Granted, shipping is not their job.)
But what's the point of doing research if you're going to be
risk-averse to the point of paranoia? Speaking of Bram Cohen, maybe
this guy should talk to him; I know Bram isn't losing any sleep over
potential lawsuits. [Hack the Planet]