Stephen H. Miles, U.S. Blockade of a Conference in Cuba, Science 304(5668), 207 (9 April 2004). (Access restricted to subscribers.) About a month ago, the U.S. Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control allegedly discouraged U.S. scientists from attending a conference in Cuba (see earlier postings.) Miles attended the conference anyhow, and comments:
The interdiction of U.S. academic participation in this conference harms U.S. interests. Few scientific meetings foster dialogue between developing countries, such as Brazil and Chile, and wealthy countries, such as Sweden and Germany. Experiences with SARS and antiretroviral therapies show that it is a myth that the medical problems or technologies of richer and poorer countries can be separated. Furthermore, the United States is a multicultural society, and encounters between health professionals from around the globe are critical to improving multicultural health care and to decreasing U.S. health care disparities. Miles also refers to the now moot OFAC ruling on editing scientific publications from embargoed countries.
Posted by
Garrett at 4/08/2004 05:05:00 PM.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
