Disgruntled LED inventor calls Japan's judicial system 'corrupt'

[The Sushi Bandit]

http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/20050113p2a00m0dm004001c.html

Shuji Nakamura, a professor at University of California at Santa Barbara who signed a settlement over a lawsuit for his invention, blue light-emitting diode (LED), harshly criticized Japan's judicial system.

After the Tokyo District Court ordered his former employer, Nichia Corp., to pay him 20 billion yen as a reward for his invention, the Tokyo High Court set the settlement amount DOWN to 608 million yen plus interest.

"It was a complete failure," Nakamura told a press conference on Wednesday. "I had no choice but to reach a court-arranged settlement. I am furious."

[Deja Q]

1. If he got $20 bil, how much would our fancy new DVD players cost?

Or would they merely swap out all the pretty blue ones for red ones (which is easier on the eyes, for one thing!!)

Yes, yes, he made a blue light bulb from various polymers made from liquified remains of 65 million year old critters. So what? God made us all and the universe. You don't see God suing us for fucking up the whole of Creation, do you? (sorry atheists. I believe there is a God. The difference is, I refuse to be vain and guess what God is, what God looks like, what sort of genetalia God may or may not have, who God will turn into a pillar of salt and for why, and so on. And if there is no God and we're all one big accident, then tell me why we shouldn't use nukes to turn this planet into a radioactive cinder? Obviously the world would be better off at this point.)

[Greyskye]

2. He did not get $20 billion

At todays exchange rates, 608 Million JPY = $5,931,082.03 USD (1 USD=102.511 JPY).

Still a healthy chunk of change.

And I'm not even going to dignify that ridiculous hypothetical of why shouldn't we nuke "this planet into a radioactive cinder" if God doesn't exist. I'll just point out that such a viewpoint is pretty much the ultimate in the vanity that you profess not to indulge in.

[zara]

3. you're silly to think that life has no value if god doesn't exist

after all, you can still go hiking in the high sierra!
but seriously, it amazes me to read your post that suggests mass murder is ok if there is no god. just ignorance.

[dxdem]

4. We went

from Blue LEDs......to god? Did I miss something? Lol.

[Az]

5. I was about to mention that

Good grief. Ease up up there. Your grinding metal dude. It's a light bulb. Not an invitation to throw down with the atheists. Trust me, you want to discuss such matters we got forums for it.

[charlie]

6. Heh

Yowza. Or I've gotta get my browser checked. The page says DU, but somehow I wound up on Usenet.

[Jose Diablo]

7. Sorry to say, but DVD's need the shorter wavelength of blue light

to detect the smaller 'bits' on the DVD. If you change the blue LED's for red, you get a CD.

I also believe in God, but what does this have to do with an inventor getting screwed by Japan's judiciary out of $190M. Do you really believe DVD's will become cheaper if the manufacturers do not have to pony-up that additional $190M? The guy had a good idea, the USPTO declared that he is the "owner of an original and useful device". Being the owner, he should benefit from the device he owns. Whats to argue about?

[muriel_volestrangler]

8. If your rant was meant to be serious

then I want to point out that blue LEDs allow for major power savings in things like traffic signals.

"Given all of this, one can see why a bunch of LEDs drawing somewhere around 12 watts can do as good a job in a traffic light as the usual 116 watt incandescent traffic signal bulb!"
http://members.misty.com/don/lede.html#t

Do that over a whole country, for lights that are on the whole day, and the savings are considerable.