I did a little research and stumbled upon the book “Complex Copyright” which mentions that copyright does not just affect obvious creative works such as pieces of art and literature, but also such things as maps and software. Although I had known this in the back of my mind, I never really thought about how strange it is that even objects such as maps can be copyrighted. It made me think of other creative works that may be copyrighted that many people do not immediately associate with creative works. I know that I have never really looked at maps in a creative manner, for example. I have always seen them as being much more factual and not really having an author.
http://0-site.ebrary.com.libcat.lafayette.edu/lib/lafayettecol/docDetail.action?docID=10518240
My article about the magicians did the same for me, in terms of thinking about all of the things in the world that could be copyrighted or patented. If you were to go with a philosopher’s idea that all of our ideas are never original, that somebody has thought of it before, then we are all guilty of copyright infringement and plagiarism.
Things like software make sense to be under copyright, but it is interesting to find maps under the same thing. I suppose however, that in their providing of information, there can be a difference in maps, such as how a coastline may differ from one cartographer to another. Or if a maker just wants to make one “upside down.”