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about patent wars |
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Patent wars on pharmaceuticals are an ongoing battle, one that affects the lives of a myriad of people around the world yet sorely lacking the awareness and recognition it merits. In the months preceding the annual International AIDS Conference at Bangkok, AIDS became a customary topic of deliberation in the media and interestingly enough, between Ammu and Nagi. In March 2004, a documentary on BBC East Anglia discussed AIDS drug patenting and profiting with a conscience. The plight AIDS and HIV patients face in certain countries with respect to accessibility, rather than availability, of AIDS drugs kindled Ammu's interest. With ThinkQuest in mind, she began to assemble a like minded team who shared her pursuit in promoting awareness of public health using ICT.
The manner in which the team was formed can be described as an assortment of wavering fortunes. Nidhish, Ammu's cousin from India accepted her invitation enthusiastically. Elise, whose web design competence can only be described as brilliant was already known to Ammu and her proficiency was sought after in mid June 04. Johnny was drafted in not just for his exceptional programming and flash skills, but also for his perseverance. The last fragment of the puzzle turned out to be Raghu, a diligent and talented writer, whom Ammu fortuitously bumped into in Arizona during a conference meet. The content, delivery, research, and team leadership are attributed to Ammu because of her persistence. Mrs. O'Connor, Ammu's Anatomy/Physiology teacher, was chosen to be the charioteer to reign in and direct the spirited team.
A multinational, multicultural team is always difficult to manage. The team was flung far across the globe but still managed to adhere to strictly laid out protocols. Neglecting time differences, mind you Sydney is GMT+8 while Boston is GMT-5, the team employed efficient methods to stay in regular contact. Instant messaging, e-mail, internet phones and a forum to post & retrieve are only but a few mentioned here. It wasn't always happy & dandy: there were numerous ups and downs. There were times when work advanced blindingly fast and also times when it was difficult to fight procrastination. Though it was summer and holidays for the most, Elise had to contend with winter and the 2nd half of the year in Australia. By self imposing strict and unattainable deadlines, the teams managed to complete the project with ample time left for testing and final touch ups.
This project is the culmination of unadulterated effort of five dedicated school children. We hope you will find the site enjoyable and informative, just as they did.
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about the team |
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name:ammu
age:14
School:Pinkerton Academy
location:New Hampshire, USA
intend to study:Medicine
role:team leader, research and content development, translation, intro, part spanish site
story:
Working on ‘Patent Wars on AIDS Drugs’ has been a remarkably positive experience for me as I am able to walk away with new knowledge about the topic, my team mates, and myself. AIDS is an issue that I’m passionate about, and ‘Patent Wars’ provides a new angle from which the pandemic must be tackled. By creating this site with the team, I hope to disseminate knowledge – knowledge which could ultimately help eliminate the problem altogether, and analyse the situation to develop creative solutions.
I’ve found more in our team than I had ever imagined. Far from simply working with four diligent and talented people who I’m proud to call my teammates, I encountered four lively and comradely allies who I’m glad to call my friends. While collaborating on the project, we learned about one another as well as about the topic. It seems as though we’ve known each other for much longer than the few months we spent working on this site.
name:jonathan
age:18
school:Teylingen College, sector Leeuwenhorst.
location:Netherlands
intend to study:Technical Informatics
role:game development(including most game graphics), most of the flash applications, javaScript, part spanish site
story:
I'm very interested in computers as my intended study suggests. It’s my hobby and I could mess around with my PC for hours at hours at a time. Schoolwork gets in the way most of the time as I have to graduate HAVO to secure admission into the Technical Informatics College. That's poses a dilemma: have fun now or have more fun later? Well, I try to get the best of both.
I got into this project for the tactical half of it. I didn’t know much about the subject when we started the project, but it was enormously interesting. I learned a lot about HIV/AIDS and patent wars. I also learned a lot about working as a team and that my teammates are nice and talented people.
name:elise
age:15
school:St Philip's Christian College
location:NSW, Australia
intend to study:Graphic Design / Visual Communication
role:web design/layout (english, text-only and part-spanish), graphics.
story:
Although having previous web development expertise, this was my first major project. It has proven to be a valuable learning experience, and I have discovered the rewards of working with a dedicated and committed team. I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting people from the other side of the world, sharing our experiences and culture.
Through developing this website, I have come to realise how fortunate I am to live in a wealthy country. I hope this project helps to increase global awareness and understanding amongst people, especially youth from all cultures. Together, I believe we can bridge the divide between countries, and combat HIV/AIDS.
name:raghu
age:16
school:Bellaire Senior High School
location:Texas, United States
intend to study:Biochemistry / Bioengineering
role:research and content development
story:
The creation of “Patent Wars” has been an enjoyable experience. Initially, I researched merely to meet a deadline, fill a quota, but as time progressed, I engrossed myself in the subject matter. It was not enough to know the opinion of one professor-in order to place myself in the position enough to write a complete and thorough analysis, many perspectives had to be considered. It boggled my mind that despite the magnitude of the crisis, only minimal changes and plans were being employed. I failed to grasp how pharmaceuticals could engage themselves in litigious activities, all the while knowing that their inaction resulted in the lives of millions more. These questions intensified my desire to fully comprehend the situation. Books were bought, journals were borrowed and I wrote.
The manner in which our venture was fulfilled was undergone so professionally, that at times I was in awe. To ask for better partners would be an impossible wish; this current group is without a doubt, the best I’ve ever been a part of.
name:nidheesh
age:14
school:Government Boys’ High School, Nandikotkur
location:Andhra Pradesh, India
intend to study:Education, literature.
role:research and content development.
story:
Someday when I grow up, I want to become an educator. Growing up in India, I have encountered a lot of illiterate and poor people. One of the main reasons for poverty is lack of education in the masses. Lack of education also makes people ignorant of pandemics such as HIV and AIDS. An educator can play an important role in enlightening the masses about the dangers and misery pandemics such as AIDS can bring to humanity. So I got interested in this topic mainly because it deals with the supply of AIDS drugs to “not so fortunate” nations.
The more I work with this group, the more I realise that the group is very talented. I am really happy working on this topic because I get to learn a lot of new things everyday. All this experience and information will be really useful for me when I do become an educator in future.
name:Deborah O'Connor
location:Derry, NH
e-mail:deboco@patentbattles.com
educational qualifications:BA Biology, Merrimack College, M.Ed Curriculum & Instruction, University of Massachusetts
role:primary coach, project management, conflict resolution, progress monitoring, risk management.
work experience:
I have been a science educator for over 23 years, and have been teaching biology for the past 14 years at Pinkerton Academy in Derry, New Hampshire, USA.
reason behind involvement:
Ammu is a student of mine and asked me to be a coach of this team. I am so impressed with the expertise and contributions of all of the team members. My role has been primarily to provide editorial support and ensure that everyone remained on task. I am very impressed with how this international team was able to coordinate and delegate responsibilities to produce a professional and educational website on the topic of AIDS from a unique and provocative viewpoint. Their technical abilities far surpass mine, and I have learned so much from this experience.
name:Nagi Mahalingam
location:Cambridge, UK
e-mail:jmnagi@patentbattles.com
educational qualifications:BS (Electronics Eng), Michigan Tech (USA) M.Eng (Telecommunications Eng) and Ph.D (Biomedical Eng), Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (Australia)
role:assistant coach, technical consultant, content advisor.
work experience:
I have been involved in various R&D projects in diverse roles such as Software engineer, Technical architect and Technical leader involving Internet Banking, Cryptography, VPN, GPRS and 3G mobile communications. I am at present occupied with designing solutions for lower layers of 3G mobile phones.
reason behind involvement:
The more I examine AIDS, the more I suppose this dreadful disease can be confined. When Ammu approached me to be a consultant, I had from the first opportunity suggested that she confront this tricky topic from the drug manufacturers’ perspective. Once I learned about the team, I realised this was no ordinary venture aiming towards some glory but an earnest attempt by enormously inspired school children in addressing core issues of HIV and AIDS. Addressing the issues is just one side of the coin, suggesting a solution is righteous and this is what the team has done.
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