Citation

Raven WA. J. High Technol. Law 2021; 21(1): 70-121.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, https://sites.suffolk.edu/jhtl/, Publisher Suffolk University Law School)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

"No online database will replace your daily newspaper, no CD-ROM can take the place of a competent teacher and no computer network will change the way the government works" exclaimed Clifford Stoll in a 1995 editorial belittling a newfangled device called the internet. Today, more than twenty years removed from Stoll's ill-fated prophecy where the internet permeates seemingly every aspect of daily life, it is easy to scoff at the idea of the internet's subjugation, labelling the oracle hailing from that seemingly primitive age of 1995 as ill-informed or even crazy. Another frontier technological development susceptible to doubt, reminiscent of that which fueled the critique of the internet in its infancy, is the proliferation of 3D printing technology.3 This innovation may sound alien, and indeed evokes imagery of the Star Trek replicator, which was able to create a seemingly unlimited myriad of tangible objects from digital patterns for the officers of Starfleet Command.

However, this technology is not confined to the realm of fantasy interplanetary exploration and conquest, but may be purchased by citizens of earth for as little as three hundred dollars-or less than the price of a model U.S.S. Enterprise.

3D printing is heralded for its ability to produce complex parts with less human supervision, less waste, and more efficiency than traditional manufacturing.6 While currently not far removed from this technology's inception, the ability to create afforded by this innovation has shown that 3D printing technology has the potential to revolutionize personal manufacturing on a scale reminiscent of the internet's monumental impact on the spread of information.7 Nevertheless, the efficiency of this technology coupled with its widespread use makes it the perfect tool for those engaged in illegal activity and criminal enterprise.8 The regulation of 3D printed...


Available: https://sites.suffolk.edu/jhtl/files/2021/01/Raven.pdf

Language: en