A patent is a form of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using and importing an invention for a limited period of years, in exchange for publishing an enabling public disclosure of the invention. In most countries patent rights fall under civil law and the patent holder needs to sue someone infringing the patent in order to enforce his or her rights. In some industries patents are an essential form of competitive advantage; the procedure for granting patents, requirements placed on the patentee, the extent of the exclusive rights vary between countries according to national laws and international agreements. However, a patent application must include one or more claims that define the invention. A patent may include many claims; these claims must meet relevant patentability requirements, such as novelty and non-obviousness. Under the World Trade Organization's TRIPS Agreement, patents should be available in WTO member states for any invention, in all fields of technology, provided they are new, involve an inventive step, are capable of industrial application.

There are variations on what is patentable subject matter from country to country among WTO member states. TRIPS provides that the term of protection available should be a minimum of twenty years; the word patent originates from the Latin patere, which means "to lay open". It is a shortened version of the term letters patent, an open document or instrument issued by a monarch or government granting exclusive rights to a person, predating the modern patent system. Similar grants included land patents, which were land grants by early state governments in the USA, printing patents, a precursor of modern copyright. In modern usage, the term patent refers to the right granted to anyone who invents something new and non-obvious; some other types of intellectual property rights are called patents in some jurisdictions: industrial design rights are called design patents in the US, plant breeders' rights are sometimes called plant patents, utility models and Gebrauchsmuster are sometimes called petty patents or innovation patents.

The additional qualification utility patent is sometimes used to distinguish the primary meaning from these other types of patents. Particular species of patents for inventions include biological patents, business method patents, chemical patents and software patents. Although there is some evidence that some form of patent rights was recognized in Ancient Greece in the Greek city of Sybaris, the first statutory patent system is regarded to be the Venetian Patent Statute of 1474. Patents were systematically granted in Venice as of 1474, where they issued a decree by which new and inventive devices had to be communicated to the Republic in order to obtain legal protection against potential infringers; the period of protection was 10 years. As Venetians emigrated, they sought similar patent protection in their new homes; this led to the diffusion of patent systems to other countries. The English patent system evolved from its early medieval origins into the first modern patent system that recognised intellectual property in order to stimulate invention.

By the 16th century, the English Crown would habitually abuse the granting of letters patent for monopolies. After public outcry, King James I of England was forced to revoke all existing monopolies and declare that they were only to be used for "projects of new invention"; this was incorporated into the Statute of Monopolies in which Parliament restricted the Crown's power explicitly so that the King could only issue letters patent to the inventors or introducers of original inventions for a fixed number of years. The Statute became the foundation for developments in patent law in England and elsewhere. Important developments in patent law emerged during the 18th century through a slow process of judicial interpretation of the law. During the reign of Queen Anne, patent applications were required to supply a complete specification of the principles of operation of the invention for public access. Legal battles around the 1796 patent taken out by James Watt for his steam engine, established the principles that patents could be issued for improvements of an existing machine and that ideas or principles without specific practical application could legally be patented.

Influenced by the philosophy of John Locke, the granting of patents began to be viewed as a form of intellectual property right, rather than the obtaining of economic privilege. The English legal system became the foundation for patent law in countries with a common law heritage, including the United States, New Zealand and Australia. In the Thirteen Colonies, inventors could obtain patents through petition to a given colony's legislature. In 1641, Samuel Winslow was granted the first patent in North America by the Massachusetts General Court for a new process for making salt; the modern French patent system was created during the Revolution in 1791. Patents were granted without examination. Patent costs were high. Importation patents protected new devices coming from foreign countries; the patent law was revised in 1844 - patent cost was lowered and importation patents were abolished. The first Patent Act of the U. S. Congress was passed on April 10, 1790, titled "An Act to promote the progress of useful Arts".

The first patent under the Act was

Albert Joseph Ward, known as Reg Ward, was the first Chief executive of the London Docklands Development Corporation, serving in that capacity from 1981 to 1988. The son of a miner, Reg Ward was born on 5 October 1927 in the Forest of Dean and educated at East Dean Grammar School, Gloucestershire. While lecturing on radar equipment as a young RAF pilot, he was encouraged to apply for University – the first in his family to do so, he went to Manchester University to study Medieval History and Fine Art and Architecture. However he rejected the possibility of becoming an academic, preferring instead to join the Inland Revenue as a Tax Inspector. In his mid-30s, Ward had a third change of career, leaving the Revenue for a job as administrator of the architecture department at Lancashire County Council. A series of local government appointments followed, culminating in him becoming Chief executive of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, of Hereford and Worcester County Council. Ward was a surprise choice by Secretary of State Michael Heseltine to lead the new Docklands body on its inception in 1980 and for 9 months was the only member of staff during its "shadow period" of operation.

However this long period gave him the opportunity to walk extensively through Docklands, drawing pictures of the old warehouses and imagining what possible redevelopments could take place. A story told by ex LDDC staffers was that his first work for the organisation took place using a bucket for a seat and an old upturned tea chest as a desk. Docklands had been the subject of many redevelopment frameworks and plans over the years, none of which had come to fruition. Ward's genius was to be open to new ideas, to seize opportunities which came along, rather than to create reports and paperwork. Ward said if he had created some grand plan..."we would still be debating and nothing would have got built. Instead, we have gone for an organic, market-driven approach, responding pragmatically to each situation."It was Ward who invited Michael von Clemm of Credit Suisse First Boston to Docklands to look for a site for a food factory. When von Clemm suggested that the Canary Wharf site might be suitable for offices to house bank trading floors, Ward leapt upon the idea and helped sell it to Government..

At the LDDC Ward was responsible for progressing the ideas of Docklands Light Railway, London City Airport, Canary Wharf and he helped Iain Shearer on the ExCeL Exhibition Centre. According to the Daily Telegraph: "Ward’s greatest achievement was to persuade hard-nosed City and property investors that Docklands revival was going to work. By 1986, the LDDC had spent around £300m of public money, but had succeeded in attracting £1.4 billion in private investment."His forthright style did not sit well with his colleagues in central government, in particular the Secretary of State for the Environment Nicholas Ridley, appointed to replace Heseltine in 1986. Ward's disregard for Civil Service protocol and rules caused one colleague to remark: "the corns he has stepped on would fill more shoes than Imelda Marcos possessed", he is said to have once avoided answering phone calls from the Secretary of State for several days because he knew the call was to say that one of his road projects would be cancelled.

Ward was eased out of his job shortly. However, he is now viewed as the main driver in Government behind the extraordinary change and development in London Docklands. If there is one single person, responsible for London's Dockland being transformed into London Docklands, that person is Reg Ward. Ward went on to work in Barcelona and Sydney on major regeneration projects before being appointed to head the regeneration of St Kitts in the Caribbean. In his years, he ran his own consultancy company and was a regular contributor to debates on urban regeneration and the future of the Thames Gateway. Ward married Betty in 1954, they had met in nursery school and she predeceased him in early 2010. They had two children. Obituary in Estates Gazette, 10 January 2011 Obituary in Daily Telegraph, 12 January 2011 LDDC History Pages

The 2008–09 Minnesota Wild season began October 11, 2008. It was the Wild's ninth season in the National Hockey League. At the conclusion of the Pre-season, the Wild finished with a 5-2 record; the Wild were the most disciplined team in the League during the regular season, with just 291 power-play opportunities against. They allowed the fewest power-play goals, with just 36. Bold – qualified for playoffs, y – division winner, p – Presidents' Trophy winnerCE – Central Division, NW – Northwest Division, PA – Pacific Division The Minnesota Wild failed to qualify for the 2009 NHL Playoffs. After qualifying in 2006-07 and 2007–08 †Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Wild. Stats reflect time with Wild only. ‡Traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with Wild only. Minnesota's picks at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft in Ontario. Updated March 4, 2009. 2008–09 NHL season

Suffolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2017 census, the estimated population was 90,237, it is the largest city in Virginia by boundary land area as well as the 14th largest in the country. Suffolk is located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area; this includes the independent cities of Chesapeake, Newport News, Norfolk and Virginia Beach, smaller cities and towns of Hampton Roads. With miles of waterfront property on the Nansemond and James rivers, present-day Suffolk was formed in 1974 after consolidating with Nansemond County and the towns of Holland and Whaleyville; the current mayor is Linda T. Johnson. Suffolk was founded by English colonists in 1742 as a port town on the Nansemond River in the Virginia Colony. Known as Constant's Warehouse, for settler John Constant, Suffolk was renamed after Royal Governor William Gooch's home of Suffolk, a county in East Anglia, England. Before European contact, successive cultures of indigenous American tribes had lived in the region for thousands of years.

At the time of English settlement, the Nansemond Indians lived along the river. Through purchase and warfare, the English pushed them off their lands. In the early colonial years, the English cultivated tobacco as a commodity crop, but turned to mixed farming. Suffolk was designated as the county seat of Nansemond County in 1750. Early in its history, Suffolk became a land transportation gateway to the areas east of it in South Hampton Roads. Before the American Civil War, both the Portsmouth and Roanoke Railroad and the Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad were built through Suffolk, early predecessors of 21st-century Class 1 railroads operated by CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern, respectively. Other railroads and major highways followed after the war. Suffolk became an incorporated town in 1808. In 1910, it separated from Nansemond County. However, it remained the seat of Nansemond County until 1972, when its former county became the independent city of Nansemond. In 1974, the independent cities of Suffolk and Nansemond merged under Suffolk's charter.

Peanuts grown in the surrounding areas became a major agricultural industry for Suffolk. Notably, Planters' Peanuts was established in Suffolk beginning in 1912. Suffolk was the ` birthplace' of the mascot of Planters' Peanuts. For many years, the call-letters of local AM radio station WLPM stood for World's Largest Peanut Market. Suffolk is located at 36°44′29″N 76°36′36″W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 429 square miles, of which 400 square miles is land and 29 square miles is water, it is the largest city in second-largest by total area. Part of the Great Dismal Swamp is located in Suffolk; as of the census of 2010, there were 84,585 people, 23,283 households, 17,718 families residing in the city. The population density was 159.2 people per square mile. There were 24,704 housing units at an average density of 61.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 50.1% White, 42.7% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other races, 2.3% from two or more races.

Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 2.9% of the population. There were 23,283 households out of which 36.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.1% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 23.9% were non-families. 20.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.1% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.09. The age distribution was 27.8% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $41,115, the median income for a family was $47,342. Males had a median income of $35,852 versus $23,777 for females; the per capita income for the city was $18,836. About 10.8% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.2% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2005, the city's median income jumped to $60,484. A number of government-related, contractor high-tech jobs had developed with new businesses in the city's northern corridor, bringing in wealthier residents. Suffolk ranked a close second in median income to its neighbor Chesapeake in South Hampton Roads. Norfolk Portsmouth Chesapeake Newport News Isle of Wight County Southampton County Camden County, North Carolina Gates County, North Carolina Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge Nansemond National Wildlife Refuge The city was hit by an EF3 tornado which produced a large swath of extensive damage through the city and nearby communities during the late afternoon of April 28, 2008. After 4:00 PM EDT on April 28, a tornado touched down multiple times, causing damage and leaving more than 200 injured in Suffolk; the path of the storm passed north and west of the downtown area, striking near Sentara Obici Hospital and in the unincorporated town of Driver. The storm damaged more than 120 homes and 12 businesses.

The subdivisions of Burnett's Mill and Hillpoint Farms were damaged, as were several older historic structures in Driver. Near Driver, the large radio and television broadcast towers, which were located in an antenna farm serving most of Hampton Roads, were spared serious damage. Governor Timothy Kaine declared a state of em

Robert "Bob" Dawson or "Sheriff Bob" was an American television personality and producer. Dawson was famous for creating and hosting the children's television series Sheriff Bob, which featured his kind-hearted personality and direct connection to his young audiences; the program aired from 1954 until 1978. Dawson was born in Iowa on May 9, 1924, the son of Leland Wayne and Lillian Opal Dawson. After high school he attended Drake University and the American Institute of the Air studying Radio Broadcasting. Dawson served his country in the U. S. Army during World War Two as an Artillery Sergeant. Throughout the years Dawson worked a variety of jobs. Following the war, he worked as the morning DJ at KCBC and as an on-air announcer at KGTV in Des Moines, he moved to Eau Claire where he worked at WEAU for 24 years in public relations at the Eau Claire Consumer's Cooperative for 11 years. Dawson worked for a short time at Luther Hospital and was elected to serve on the Eau Claire County Board for several years.

In 1954, Dawson began working at a Wisconsin television station. Dawson was the meteorologist during newscasts. Dawson created the Sheriff Bob program for the station in 1954; the show featured a live studio audience of children. Dawson visited children in area hospitals boosting their spirits and making them smile. Dawson died in 2014 at the age of 90, he is interred at Rest Haven Cemetery. In 2007, the Eau Claire County Board recognized Dawson and named him as'Honorary Sheriff.' A documentary was produced about Sheriff Bob's life and aired on public television stations

State Criminal Police Office or Landeskriminalamt, in German, is an independent law enforcement agency in all 16 German states, directly subordinate to the state's ministry of the interior. LKAs supervise police operations aimed at preventing and investigating criminal offences, coordinate investigations of serious crime involving more than one Präsidium, they can take over investigative responsibility in cases of serious crime, e.g. drug trafficking, organized crime and white-collar crime or extremist and terrorist offences. Each Landeskriminalamt is a modern central office for information, analyzing police intelligence from home and abroad and transmitting it to police stations, it collates data on criminal offences and offenders in crime statistics that are used as a basis for new strategies, policy decisions and legislative initiatives. It analyzes certain offense areas, evaluates the police measures executed in each case, forecasts expected tendencies and describes events in annual reports.

The LKA maintains forensic equipment for central examination of evidence using the latest scientific methods. LKAs coordinate support for local police in hostage and blackmail situations and provide experts in such cases, e.g. the SWAT team Spezialeinsatzkommando, the negotiation group or bomb disposal experts. It is the central office for physical security technology and crime prevention, coordinates state anti-drug programs. Crime in Germany State bureau of investigation Bundeskriminalamt Polizei.de Bundeskriminalamt - German Federal Investigation Bureau Baden-Württemberg Landeskriminalamt Bavarian Landeskriminalamt Berlin Landeskriminalamt Bremen Landeskriminalamt Hamburg Landeskriminalamt Hessen Landeskriminalamt Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Landeskriminalamt Lower Saxony Landeskriminalamt North Rhine-Westphalia Landeskriminalamt Rheinland-Pfalz Landeskriminalamt Saxony Landeskriminalamt Saxony-Anhalt Landeskriminalamt Schleswig-Holstein Landeskriminalamt Thuringia Landeskriminalamt