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TOP STORIES FOR FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2005 Journals Using Software to Uncover Plagiarism VeriSign to Add DNS Servers FCC Requires 911 for VoIP Feds Conduct Searches Related to Data Thefts JOURNALS USING SOFTWARE TO UNCOVER PLAGIARISM Software designed to uncover plagiarism is increasingly being used not only for student papers, where it got its start, but also for academic journals, where it is turning up instances of self-plagiarism as well. Although some dismiss self-plagiarism as unimportant relative to plagiarizing another's work, the practice of republishing one's own work in various venues strikes others as similarly objectionable. Christian Collberg, assistant professor of computer science at the University of Arizona, characterized self-plagiarism as vita padding and said that self-plagiarists who are funded from public sources are misusing taxpayer money. Collberg is working on a software application specifically designed to uncover instances of self-plagiarism. Though not as concerned about self-plagiarism, Cornell University is testing a plagiarism-detection application on an archive it maintains of articles in physics, math, and computer science. Among the 300,000 articles in the archive, the tool has found a few thousand instances that warrant further investigation. Chronicle of Higher Education, 19 May 2005 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/prm/daily/2005/05/2005051901t.htm VERISIGN TO ADD DNS SERVERS VeriSign announced plans to add replicas of the Domain Name System (DNS) servers that it maintains. DNS servers are responsible for translating textual Web addresses into the numeric addresses necessary for computers to locate specific Web sites. VeriSign is one of several organizations that currently maintain 13 root servers in about 80 locations. VeriSign is responsible for two root servers and currently has replicas operating in 18 locations. Within a year, the company plans to increase the number of replicas by as many as 100, in locations including South Africa, Taiwan, Spain, Poland, Brazil, and unnamed spots in the Middle East. VeriSign ultimately plans to have root server replicas running in more than 200 separate locations. VeriSign's Aristotle Balogh said that adding replicas to its stable of root servers will increase stability of the Internet, making it harder for hackers to bring it down, and will shorten the physical distance for many Internet users to the nearest DNS server, speeding the transfer of data. ZDNet, 19 May 2005 http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5714319.html FCC REQUIRES 911 FOR VOIP In a unanimous decision, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ruled that providers of Internet phone service, also known as voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), must have functioning 911 service for their customers. With VoIP, calls are made and received on typical phone equipment, but the signal is carried on the Internet rather than on telephone networks. The 911 network is its own network, and the challenge for VoIP providers has been gaining access, through local telephone companies, to the 911 network. As part of its ruling, the FCC ordered local phone companies to work with VoIP providers to establish the necessary link. Meanwhile, Vonage, one of the leading providers of VoIP service, announced it has reached deals with two of the local phone companies, BellSouth and SBC, to provide 911 services to Vonage customers. Questions remain about how to allow VoIP customers to move their phones and yet keep network operators aware of the location of those phones so that emergency services can be sent to the proper location. New York Times, 19 May 2005 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/19/technology/19cnd-voip.html FEDS CONDUCT SEARCHES RELATED TO DATA THEFTS Federal authorities investigating the theft of personal information from LexisNexis this week conducted raids and searches at several locations around the country. LexisNexis, which collects and aggregates information on millions of people, recently reported that information on nearly 300,000 individuals had been stolen by hackers. Investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Secret Service searched the homes and computers of close to one dozen people, resulting in at least three arrests. Spokespersons for the agencies conducting the raids as well as for LexisNexis declined to give many details other than that the investigations are ongoing. Wall Street Journal, 20 May 2005 (sub. req'd) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111653162281238311,00.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. 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