The United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO or USPTO) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides patent and trademark protection to inventors and businesses for their inventions and corporate and product identification. The PTO is currently based in Alexandria, Virginia, after a recent move from the Crystal City area of Arlington, Virginia. Since 1991, the office has been fully funded by fees charged for processing patents and trademarks. The current head of the USPTO is Under Secretary ...

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• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Mission
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Fee diversion
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patents
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Representation
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patent attorney agent registration
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Filing a patent yourself
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Criticisms
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Controversial patents
• United States Patent and Trademark Office - Slow patent examination

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United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patent attorney agent registration. The PTO only allows certain qualified persons to practice before the PTO, which includes the filing of patent applications on behalf of inventors, the prosecuting patent applications on behalf of inventors, and participating in administrative appeals and other proceedings before the PTO examiners and boards. The PTO sets its own standards for who may practice and requires that any person who practices become registered. An USPTO-registered non-attorney professional is called ...

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United States Patent and Trademark Office, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Mission, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Fee diversion, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patents, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Representation, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patent attorney agent registration, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Filing a patent yourself, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Criticisms, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Controversial patents, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Slow patent examination

Read more here: » United States Patent and Trademark Office: Encyclopedia II - United States Patent and Trademark Office - Representation

The United States Government classifies information according to the degree which the unauthorized disclosure would damage national security: Classified information in the United States - Top secret. This is the highest security level (Level 5) that is publicly disclosed, and is defined as information which would cause "exceptionally grave damage" to national security if disclosed to the public. Despite public mystique, little information is classified at "Top Secret" when compared to the other leve ...

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Classified information in the United States, Classified information in the United States - Accessing Classified Information, Classified information in the United States - Classified Vs. Unclassified Information, Classified information in the United States - Levels of Classification used by the U.S. Government, Classified information in the United States - Top secret, Classified information in the United States - Secret, Classified information in the United States - Confidential, Classified information in the United States - Unclassified, Classified information in the United States - Restricted, Classified information in the United States - Above Top Secret?, Classified information in the United States - Proper procedure for classifying U.S. government documents, Classified information in the United States - Protecting classified information, Classified information in the United States - Classifications and clearances between U.S. government agencies, Classified information in the United States - Categories that are not classifications, Classified information in the United States - Restricted data, Classified information in the United States - Critical Nuclear Weapon Design Information, Classified information in the United States - Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information, Classified information in the United States - Yankee White Clearance, Classified information in the United States - Sharing of classified with other countries, Classified information in the United States - Claims of U.S. government misuse of the classification system

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There are also compartments, or "code words", which pertain to specific projects, and are used to more easily manage which individuals require certain information. Code words are not levels of classification themselves, but a person working on project X may have the code word for that project added to his file, and then will be given access to the relevant documents. Code words may also label the sources of various documents; for example, there are code words used to indicate that a document may break the cover of intelligence operati ...

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Classified information in the United States, Classified information in the United States - Accessing Classified Information, Classified information in the United States - Classified Vs. Unclassified Information, Classified information in the United States - Levels of Classification used by the U.S. Government, Classified information in the United States - Top secret, Classified information in the United States - Secret, Classified information in the United States - Confidential, Classified information in the United States - Unclassified, Classified information in the United States - Restricted, Classified information in the United States - Above Top Secret?, Classified information in the United States - Proper procedure for classifying U.S. government documents, Classified information in the United States - Protecting classified information, Classified information in the United States - Classifications and clearances between U.S. government agencies, Classified information in the United States - Categories that are not classifications, Classified information in the United States - Restricted data, Classified information in the United States - Critical Nuclear Weapon Design Information, Classified information in the United States - Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information, Classified information in the United States - Yankee White Clearance, Classified information in the United States - Sharing of classified with other countries, Classified information in the United States - Claims of U.S. government misuse of the classification system

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Please remove this notice after the article has been expanded. Details are on this talk page or at Wikipedia:Requests for expansion. History of patent law Economics and patents Patent prosecution Patentability Patent infringement Licensing European patent law Japanese paten ...

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• United States patent law - Related topics
• United States patent law - Concepts
• United States patent law - Legislations
• United States patent law - Patent-related decisions
• United States patent law - Other

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While the classification of information by the government is not supposed to be used to prevent information from being made public that would be simply embarrassing or reveal criminal acts, it has been alleged that the government routinely misuses the classification system to coverup misdeeds. See, for example, The Pentagon Papers. Many conspiracy theories such as the JFK assassination theories s ...

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Classified information in the United States, Classified information in the United States - Accessing Classified Information, Classified information in the United States - Classified Vs. Unclassified Information, Classified information in the United States - Levels of Classification used by the U.S. Government, Classified information in the United States - Top secret, Classified information in the United States - Secret, Classified information in the United States - Confidential, Classified information in the United States - Unclassified, Classified information in the United States - Restricted, Classified information in the United States - Above Top Secret?, Classified information in the United States - Proper procedure for classifying U.S. government documents, Classified information in the United States - Protecting classified information, Classified information in the United States - Classifications and clearances between U.S. government agencies, Classified information in the United States - Categories that are not classifications, Classified information in the United States - Restricted data, Classified information in the United States - Critical Nuclear Weapon Design Information, Classified information in the United States - Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information, Classified information in the United States - Yankee White Clearance, Classified information in the United States - Sharing of classified with other countries, Classified information in the United States - Claims of U.S. government misuse of the classification system

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One of the reasons for classifying state secrets into sensitivity levels is to allow the level of protection to be tailored to risk. The U.S. government specifies in some detail the procedures for protecting classified information. The rooms or buildings where classified material is stored or handled must have a facility clearance at the same level as the most sensitive material to be handled. Good quality commercial physical security standards generally suffice for lower levels of classification; at the highest levels, people sometim ...

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Classified information in the United States, Classified information in the United States - Accessing Classified Information, Classified information in the United States - Classified Vs. Unclassified Information, Classified information in the United States - Levels of Classification used by the U.S. Government, Classified information in the United States - Top secret, Classified information in the United States - Secret, Classified information in the United States - Confidential, Classified information in the United States - Unclassified, Classified information in the United States - Restricted, Classified information in the United States - Above Top Secret?, Classified information in the United States - Proper procedure for classifying U.S. government documents, Classified information in the United States - Protecting classified information, Classified information in the United States - Classifications and clearances between U.S. government agencies, Classified information in the United States - Categories that are not classifications, Classified information in the United States - Restricted data, Classified information in the United States - Critical Nuclear Weapon Design Information, Classified information in the United States - Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information, Classified information in the United States - Yankee White Clearance, Classified information in the United States - Sharing of classified with other countries, Classified information in the United States - Claims of U.S. government misuse of the classification system

Read more here: » Classified information in the United States: Encyclopedia II - Classified information in the United States - Protecting classified information

United States Patent and Trademark Office - Controversial patents. In November 2005, the USPTO was criticized by physicists for granting U.S. Patent 6,960,975 for an anti-gravity device. The journal Nature first highlighted this patent issued for a device that presumably amounts to a perpetual motion machine, defying the laws of physics [4] [5] [6] [7]. The device comprises a particular electrically superconducting shield and elecromagnetic generating device. The examiner allowed the claims because the design of the shield and devic ...

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United States Patent and Trademark Office, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Mission, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Fee diversion, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patents, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Representation, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Patent attorney agent registration, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Filing a patent yourself, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Criticisms, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Controversial patents, United States Patent and Trademark Office - Slow patent examination

Read more here: » United States Patent and Trademark Office: Encyclopedia II - United States Patent and Trademark Office - Criticisms

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulates "indecent" free-to-air broadcasting. It can issue fines if, for example, the broadcaster employs certain swear words. Radio personality Howard Stern has been a frequent target of fines. This led to his leaving broadcast radio and signing on with Sirius Satellite Radio in 2004. The Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy increased the political pressure on the FCC to vigorously police the airwaves. In addition, Congress increased ...

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Censorship in the United States, Censorship in the United States - Broadcast media censorship, Censorship in the United States - Restrictions on political campaigns, Censorship in the United States - War reporting and national security, Censorship in the United States - Pornography, Censorship in the United States - Cryptography software, Censorship in the United States - Libel, Censorship in the United States - Censorship in the past, Censorship in the United States - Rating systems and industry self-regulation, Censorship in the United States - Related techniques of suppression, Censorship in the United States - Free speech advocates

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United States patent law - Concepts. Assignor estoppel Continuing patent application Design patent Information disclosure statement (IDS) Interference proceeding Non-obviousness Non-provisional patent application Novelty On-sale bar Petition to make special Prosecution history estoppel Provisional application Reduction to practice Reissue application Small entity status Soft ...

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United States patent law, United States patent law - Related topics, United States patent law - Concepts, United States patent law - Legislations, United States patent law - Patent-related decisions, United States patent law - Other

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The export of cryptography software is regulated as a munition under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, although in recent years the regulations have relaxed, due in part to industry lobbying. Daniel J. Bernstein challenged the regulations (see Bernstein v. United States) on First Amendment grounds, and won his case, but some regulations remain. See also export of cryptography. ...

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Censorship in the United States, Censorship in the United States - Broadcast media censorship, Censorship in the United States - Restrictions on political campaigns, Censorship in the United States - War reporting and national security, Censorship in the United States - Pornography, Censorship in the United States - Cryptography software, Censorship in the United States - Libel, Censorship in the United States - Censorship in the past, Censorship in the United States - Rating systems and industry self-regulation, Censorship in the United States - Related techniques of suppression, Censorship in the United States - Free speech advocates

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The courts have ruled that the First Amendment protects "indecent" pornography from regulation, but not "obscene" pornography. Enforcement of federal obscenity laws has increased under the Bush administration. People convicted of distributing "obscene" pornography face long prison terms and asset forfeiture. In 1996, Congress passed the Communications Decency Act, with the aim of restricting Internet pornography. Court rulings have struck down much of the law, however. A widely publicized case from 1990 was that of Robert Mapplethorpe's photography at a Cincinnati arts cener. The show resulted in the ...

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Censorship in the United States, Censorship in the United States - Broadcast media censorship, Censorship in the United States - Restrictions on political campaigns, Censorship in the United States - War reporting and national security, Censorship in the United States - Pornography, Censorship in the United States - Cryptography software, Censorship in the United States - Libel, Censorship in the United States - Censorship in the past, Censorship in the United States - Rating systems and industry self-regulation, Censorship in the United States - Related techniques of suppression, Censorship in the United States - Free speech advocates

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The government heavily censored reporting during World War II, but since that time war censorship has been relatively light. One controversy was the failed attempt to prevent the publication of the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War. In 1979, the magazine The Progressive was sued by the U.S. government (United States v. The Progressive, Inc.) and temporarily blocked from publishing an article that purported to reveal the "secret" of the hydrogen bomb. The article was eventually published. Under the Invention Secrecy Act of 1951 and the Atomic Energ ...

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Censorship in the United States, Censorship in the United States - Broadcast media censorship, Censorship in the United States - Restrictions on political campaigns, Censorship in the United States - War reporting and national security, Censorship in the United States - Pornography, Censorship in the United States - Cryptography software, Censorship in the United States - Libel, Censorship in the United States - Censorship in the past, Censorship in the United States - Rating systems and industry self-regulation, Censorship in the United States - Related techniques of suppression, Censorship in the United States - Free speech advocates

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Political campaigning is regulated, and the regulations have become more restrictive over time (see campaign finance reform). For example, the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 regulates the purchase of TV and radio advertising that identifies a federal candidate within 30 days of a primary or nominating convention, or 60 days of a general election. Supporters of the regulations say that the restrictions are necessary ...

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Censorship in the United States, Censorship in the United States - Broadcast media censorship, Censorship in the United States - Restrictions on political campaigns, Censorship in the United States - War reporting and national security, Censorship in the United States - Pornography, Censorship in the United States - Cryptography software, Censorship in the United States - Libel, Censorship in the United States - Censorship in the past, Censorship in the United States - Rating systems and industry self-regulation, Censorship in the United States - Related techniques of suppression, Censorship in the United States - Free speech advocates

Read more here: » Censorship in the United States: Encyclopedia II - Censorship in the United States - Restrictions on political campaigns