Patent law lives in the uncanny valley, at the thermodynamic triple point between the real, the possible, and the absurd. The archives of the United States Patent and Trademark Office are nothing less than a dream journal of the mad, the ambitious, and those with more money than sense.
This site will provide the reader with a look into the strange and unseemly world of intellectual property. It will focus on patents, with an aim toward showing the reader that an embossed “Patent Pending” is always suspect, that the world is stranger than they think, and that a skilled patent attorney can spin straw into gold. Or, at least, into very shiny straw.
Each week, a new patent will be featured that plumbs these depths. You can expect to see quasi-science, pseudo-science, the occult, and actual earnest attempts at creating a product that were, perhaps, ill-advised. On top of that, there will be unsettling amateur artwork, an insider’s view on the patent process, and some occasional topical commentary.
While the focus is on patents, we may venture into the occasional trademark, copyright, or trade secret issue, if they are salacious enough.
Patenting the odd, the impossible, and the unnerving 