By: Jonathan McGruer

Data privacy laws have seen significant recent change after the European Parliament and Council of the European Union brought the (the “GDPR”) into effect on May 25, 2018. Enacting the GDPR signified a tremendous step further clarifying the EU’s stance on data privacy and consumer rights. However, as a wave of countries scramble to update data privacy laws, data localization requirements introduced in conjunction with new regulations undermine today’s increasingly data-driven global economy that is so reliant on the free flow of data across borders.

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By Jacob Magit

In July, a developer filed plans to build a high rise apartment building on the site of Seattle’s Showbox Theatre, one of the city’s oldest music venues. There was an immediate movement to save the theatre, which has hosted acts such as Duke Ellington, Muddy Waters, and Lady Gaga. The Seattle City Council quickly approved an ordinance that temporarily added the Showbox to the Pike Place Market Historical District, delaying the theatre’s destruction. In response to the ordinance, attorneys representing the building owner filed a lawsuit against the city claiming the City Council’s action was an illegal spot zone that amounts to an unlawful taking of property.

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By: Michael McNeil

Humanity is at the doorstep of our next great accomplishment in space exploration—mining space for resources. However, the legality of space mining is anything but clear. With little authority from international law, countries like America, Japan, and Luxembourg, have made national laws declaring space mining a legal practice. American companies like Planetary Resources, SpaceX, and Deep Space Industries, along with companies in Japan and Luxembourg, are moving forward under their respective national laws developing the technologies to make space mining a reality.  Japan recently announced that two of their Minerva II-1 rovers successfully landed on Ryugu, an asteroid in space, and other companies and nations are not far behind.

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By Alaura Valley

Foodborne illness outbreaks are seemingly on the rise. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that annually 48 million consumers get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die from foodborne illnesses. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), globally, foodborne illness kills around 420,000 each year. One contributing factor to foodborne illness outbreaks are the complexity of the supply chain for produce and other perishable food products.

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By Silas Alexander

Every day, smartphone users collectively take more than three billion photos, millions (if not billions) of which are selfies, autobiographical captures of the human condition. But while our digital photo album continues to expand, few people understand the rights they may be giving up with the click of the share button.

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