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The Electronic Scholarly Publishing Project: Providing world-wide, free access to classic scientific papers and other scholarly materials, since 1993.
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ESP General Publications (Other) 20 Dec 2024 Updated:
Papers and Other Material of Interest
A few items about the Human Genome Project and other topics of interest.
an introduction to the Human Genome project, produced by the federal agency that got the project started - The US Department of Energy. What does the Energy Department have to do with genetic research?! Read the pamphlet and find out.
(1 million plus bytes; 38 pages; many pictures)
an exploration of issues raised by genetic research. Your Genes, Your Choices describes the Human Genome Project, the science behind it, and the ethical, legal, and social issues that are raised by the project. This book was written as part of the Science + Literacy for Health project of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
(1 million plus bytes; 78 pages; many pictures)
a wonderful introduction to the conceptual basis of modern genetics and the whole international Human Genome project. This document, too, was produced by the US Department of Energy.
(approx 700,000 bytes; 44 pages; many pictures)
NIH Publications No. 90-1590, April 1990.
(13 megabytes; 103 pages)
Web page managed by the NIH National Human Genome Research Institute
A New Five-Year Plan for the U. S. Human Genome Project
reprint of original 1993 essay in Science by Francis Collins and David Galas, outlining the plans and needs for genome research in the United States for the 1993-1998 five-year period.
(89,819 bytes; 11 pages)
Ahead of Schedule and on Budget (1994)
reprint of original editorial in Science by Daniel E. Koshland, Jr., congratulating the leaders of the U.S. Human Genome Project for providing "brilliant leadership ... without the burden of ideological proscriptions or impractical administrative mechanisms."
(8,095 bytes; 2 pages)
New Goals for the U.S. Human Genome Project: 1998-2003
original 1998 essay, written by the leaders of thge US Human Genome Project, laying out new goals after the successful completion of the 1993-1998 goal set
USA v. Microsoft, 23 June 1998
Ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia Circuit, overturning the injunction barring Microsoft from
treating Windows95 and Internet Explorer as a unified product.
Although officially only a ruling on the original injunction, the
clarity and strength of the ruling is likely to affect the general
anti-trust action still pending. For example, the appellate court
ruled that, "On the facts before us ... we are inclined to conclude
that the Windows 95/IE package is a genuine integration;
consequently, s IV(E)(i) does not bar Microsoft from offering it
as one product." (page 28)
With regard to the appointment of a "special master" to provide
advice on technical matters, the appellate court was even more
forceful: "The reference to the master was in effect the
imposition on the parties of a surrogate judge and either a clear
abuse of discretion or an exercise of wholly non-existent
discretion. We grant mandamus to vacate the reference." (page 37)
(636,017 bytes; 56 pages)
USA v. MicroSoft, 28 June 2001
The latest ruling by the United States Court of Appeals in the
on-going Microsoft case.
In this ruling, the Court finds serious fault in the handling of
the case by the original judge, Thomas Penfield Jackson, and in a
section entitled "Remedies for Judicial Misconduct and Appearance
of Partiality" orders that he be disqualified from further
involvement with the case. The Court also sets aside the break-up
remedy specified by Judge Jackson.
At the same time, the Court confirms the original finding of
monopoly practices by Microsoft, and remands the case to a lower
court:
The judgment of the District Court is affirmed in part, reversed
in part, and remanded in part. We vacate in full the Final
Judgment embodying the remedial order, and remand the case to
the District Court for reassignment to a different trial judge
for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
(418,404 bytes; 125 pages)
Response of the United States to Public Comments on the Revised Proposed Final Judgment, 27 Feb 2002
The U.S. Department of Justice has provided the Microsoft antitrust
case judge an all-encompassing response to the more than 32,000
public comments it received about the case - the largest public
response ever filed in an antitrust case.
The government received 32,329 public comments, the most it ever
received under the Tunney Act, a federal sunshine law for antitrust
settlements. More than 90% of the comments were sent via e-mail.
(602,440 bytes; 248 pages)
ESP Quick Facts
ESP Origins
In the early 1990's, Robert Robbins was a faculty member at Johns Hopkins, where he directed the informatics core of GDB — the human gene-mapping database of the international human genome project. To share papers with colleagues around the world, he set up a small paper-sharing section on his personal web page. This small project evolved into The Electronic Scholarly Publishing Project.
ESP Support
In 1995, Robbins became the VP/IT of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA. Soon after arriving in Seattle, Robbins secured funding, through the ELSI component of the US Human Genome Project, to create the original ESP.ORG web site, with the formal goal of providing free, world-wide access to the literature of classical genetics.
ESP Rationale
Although the methods of molecular biology can seem almost magical to the uninitiated, the original techniques of classical genetics are readily appreciated by one and all: cross individuals that differ in some inherited trait, collect all of the progeny, score their attributes, and propose mechanisms to explain the patterns of inheritance observed.
ESP Goal
In reading the early works of classical genetics, one is drawn, almost inexorably, into ever more complex models, until molecular explanations begin to seem both necessary and natural. At that point, the tools for understanding genome research are at hand. Assisting readers reach this point was the original goal of The Electronic Scholarly Publishing Project.
ESP Usage
Usage of the site grew rapidly and has remained high. Faculty began to use the site for their assigned readings. Other on-line publishers, ranging from The New York Times to Nature referenced ESP materials in their own publications. Nobel laureates (e.g., Joshua Lederberg) regularly used the site and even wrote to suggest changes and improvements.
ESP Content
When the site began, no journals were making their early content available in digital format. As a result, ESP was obliged to digitize classic literature before it could be made available. For many important papers — such as Mendel's original paper or the first genetic map — ESP had to produce entirely new typeset versions of the works, if they were to be available in a high-quality format.
ESP Help
Early support from the DOE component of the Human Genome Project was critically important for getting the ESP project on a firm foundation. Since that funding ended (nearly 20 years ago), the project has been operated as a purely volunteer effort. Anyone wishing to assist in these efforts should send an email to Robbins.
ESP Plans
With the development of methods for adding typeset side notes to PDF files, the ESP project now plans to add annotated versions of some classical papers to its holdings. We also plan to add new reference and pedagogical material. We have already started providing regularly updated, comprehensive bibliographies to the ESP.ORG site.
ESP Picks from Around the Web (updated 28 JUL 2024 )
Old Science
Weird Science
Treating Disease with Fecal Transplantation
Fossils of miniature humans (hobbits) discovered in Indonesia
Paleontology
Dinosaur tail, complete with feathers, found preserved in amber.
Astronomy
Mysterious fast radio burst (FRB) detected in the distant universe.
Big Data & Informatics
Big Data: Buzzword or Big Deal?
Hacking the genome: Identifying anonymized human subjects using publicly available data.
