Wil's Rant

A group of Americans identify a new planetoid, but before they can announce their findings, a group of Spanish scientists essentially look on the internet to see what the Americans are looking at and announce the discovery as their own. I thought they called that theft. What's even more amazing is the fact that the Spanish guys are arguing the validity of claiming the American's work as their own because it was available on the internet. On the internet or not, this one seems pretty straightforward. Scientists make this information available to anyone interested in an attempt to further the cause of good science in the spirit of co-operation. That doesn't mean that someone else reading said material can claim it as their own. In my view, based on the information available, this one has to go to the Americans.