McDonalds Files To Patent Making a Sandwich

Slashdot | McDonalds Files To Patent Making a Sandwich

“McDonalds has applied for patent WO2006068865, which carries the title ‘METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING A SANDWICH.’ John Montagu, the fourth Earl of Sandwich, can eat his heart out (unless that’s been patented, too). Undoubtedly, some people are contemplating whether there’s anything novel in this patent that is somehow obscured by its generic title. Feel free to examine their flowchart for yourself and see exactly how novel their sandwich ’subroutines’ are. The good news is that, given that it only mentions generic sandwich making ‘tool(s),’ rather than any specific machine, it might not survive after the In Re Bilski decision, which was meant to put a stop to absurdities such as this. But until McDonalds’s application is rejected or invalidated, make sure you don’t use their flowchart when making sandwiches. After all, if you ‘apply appropriate condiments to appropriate compartment,’ you might infringe upon their IP.”

Here’s the patent intro info: (WO/2006/068865) METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING A SANDWICH

Applicant: MCDONALD’S CORPORATION [US/US]; McDonald’s Plaza, Oak Brook, IL 60521 (US) (All Except US).
Inventors: PROPER, Kathryn, V.; 530 N. Lake Shore Drive, Unit 1807, Chicago, IL 60611 (US).
EWALD, Henry, T.; 338 Jennifer Lane, Roselle, IL 60172 (US).
SIMMONS, Paul, G.; 22W400 McCarron Road, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137 (US).
Agent: RYNDAK, James, D.; Ryndak & Suri LLP, 200 W. Madison Street, Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60606 (US).
Priority Data:
11/018,989 21.12.2004 US
Title: METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING A SANDWICH
Abstract:
The present invention relates to a sandwich assembly tool and methods of making a sandwich, which may be a hot or cold sandwich, quickly by pre-assembly of various sandwich components and simultaneous preparation of different parts of the same sandwich. The sandwich assembly tool is composed of a member preferably having one or two cavities for containing a quantity of garnish. The cavities are used for the assembly of the sandwich. The tool may have a raised ridge adjacent one or both cavities for placement against the hinge of a bread component. Methods of making a sandwich] are disclosed. The methods may include one or more of the use of preasseribled sandwich fillings, assembly of garnishes in advance of a customer’s order or while ether portions of the sandwich are being heated using the sandwich assembly tool, the simultaneous heating of a bread component and the sandwich filling, placing the bread component over the tool containing garnish, and inverting the tool and bread combination to deposit the sandwich garnish onto the bread component.

The Guardian has a really interesting article on this.

VIX - The Fear Index

I’m not a big investor, so perhaps I’m the last one to know about the VIX, aka The Fear Index.
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia says:

Although the VIX is often called the “fear index,” a high VIX is not necessarily bearish for stocks. Instead, the VIX is a measure of fear of volatility in either direction, including to the upside. In practical terms, when investors anticipate large upside volatility, they are unwilling to sell upside “call” stock options unless they receive a large premium. Option buyers will be willing to pay such high premiums only if similarly anticipating a large upside move. The resulting aggregate of increases in upside stock option “call” prices raises the VIX just as does the aggregate growth in downside stock “put” option premiums that occurs when option buyers and sellers anticipate a likely sharp move to the downside. When the market is believed as likely to soar as to plummet, writing any option that will cost the writer in the event of a sudden large move in either direction may look equally risky. Hence high VIX readings mean investors see significant risk that the market will move sharply, whether downward or upward. The highest VIX readings occur when investors anticipate that huge moves in either direction are likely. Only when investors perceive neither significant downside risk nor significant upside potential will the VIX be low.

I think the world would be a much better place if we didn’t base our economies on fear wrapped up in alchemical logical structures and emotional triggers. Freemarket seems to mean FreePanicMarket economics. Good stocks fall with bad ones, bad ones rise with good ones. Why? Because there’s movement based on factors and forces that have little or no bearing on what the company is actually doing. Why would people trust their future to such a system? Like I said, I have some stocks, but certainly not enough that would represent my future savings. I like to play, but I’m not suicidal.