Use and Privacy Policy

The Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Net) is a national community of researchers and informal science educators working together to foster public awareness, understanding, and engagement with nanoscale science and technology. It is the desire of the NISE Net to provide a broad array of digital resources (henceforth “resources” or “resources and products”) to be used for nano education and to make those resources easily accessible, useable, and available through these websites in an open source fashion whenever possible. NISE Network digital resources are defined as resources developed by the NISE Network, in part or in whole, with funding from the National Science Foundation under cooperative agreement #ESI-0532536, and include but are not limited to digital versions of programs, exhibits, forums, activities, photographs, video, text, audio, Web pages, drawings, illustrations, interactive tools, and other materials.

The following terms and conditions have been developed with these principles in mind but there are limitations. Access to and use of this Web site and all other sites produced by the NISE Network (“the Sites”) is provided subject to the following terms and conditions.

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS CAREFULLY AS YOUR ACCESS AND USE OF THE SITES CONSTITUTES AGREEMENT TO ALL TERMS, CONDITIONS AND NOTICES CONTAINED OR REFERENCED HEREIN.

Terms and Conditions of Use

By using the Sites, you are deemed to have agreed to these terms and conditions of use. The NISE Network reserves the right to modify these terms at any time. You should check these terms and conditions periodically for changes. By using the Sites after we post any changes to these terms and conditions, you agree to accept those changes, whether or not you have reviewed them. If at any time you choose not to accept these terms and conditions of use, please do not use the Sites.

All content on the Sites is subject to change without notice. The NISE Network reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate your access to all or part of the Sites with or without notice. The NISE Network may change, suspend or discontinue all or any aspect of the Sites at any time, including the availability of any feature, database, or content (including the Interactive Areas), without prior notice or liability.

Scope of Terms and Conditions

These terms and conditions apply to your use of all of the sites and services owned or operated by the NISE Network. These terms and conditions do not apply to your use of those sites to which the Sites links.

Use of Materials Posted on the Sites

It is the intention of the NISE Network to make its resources as accessible and usable as possible. Therefore, unless otherwise stated, all NISE Network resources are available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike license. Unless otherwise stated, you may print, download, reproduce, distribute, publicly perform and/or publicly display all NISE Net resources for non-commercial, educational use provided they are credited to the NISE Network, NSF, and, where applicable, the organization or person who developed the resources. You may make adaptations of or modifications to NISE Network resources for non-commercial, educational purposes, again provided the derivative work is properly attributed and is "shared alike"—available to others under the same license that governs the original work.

The NISE Network's resources are protected by copyright and trademark laws, and are the property of NISE Network affiliated organizations.

Credits

We encourage others to both use and adapt our resources and products. However, all products must be appropriately credited. Where applicable, this acknowledgement should follow the copyright notice. The National Science Foundation requires that an acknowledgement of support and a disclaimer appear in publications of any material, whether copyrighted or not, when the work is based on or developed under NSF-supported projects.

NISE Network resources and products must include the NISE Network and NSF logos and acknowledge both groups, with the URL (www.nisenet.org) as a live link in digital environments:

"Developed for the NISE Network with funding from the National Science Foundation under Cooperative Agreement #ESI-0532536. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation."

Any adaptations or modifications of NISE Net resources and products should be credited in the following manner:

"Based on [a program, exhibit, publication, video, or material] developed by [Organization] for the NISE Network, with funding from the National Science Foundation under Cooperative Agreement #ESI-0532536. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation"

Questions regarding acknowledgements or credits can be directed to info@nisenet.org.

Permitted Use

You may not reproduce, record, publish, modify, or distribute any NISE Network resources or products for commercial purposes. Requests by the Media for use of any image should be coordinated through info@nisenet.org.

Some examples of permitted use of NISE Network resources:

• publicly displaying or performing educational products such as exhibits, programs, websites and publications in museums, libraries, schools, and other non-commercial, educational outlets,
• printing and distributing a NISE Network activity or handout for an educational workshop,
• including NISE Network resources in packets that you create for educational purposes, such as pre- or post-field trip materials, or a teacher's guide to nano,
• linking from your website to specific NISE Net resources on the www.nisenet.org website.

• including NISE Network resources or products, or reproductions of NISE Network resources or products, in a commercial publication or product to be sold or provided in exchange for a fee,
• using NISE Network images to promote a commercial program, product, event, or activity,
• serving NISE Network web pages on your web site,
• using a NISE Network activity, publication, or other product without properly crediting the person or groups that developed the product, the NISE Network and the National Science Foundation, whether for educational or commercial purposes.

Rules of Conduct

You shall not post on the Sites any content which is libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, abusive, harassing or threatening, contains viruses or other contaminating or destructive features, violates the rights of others, such as content which infringes any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret or violates any right of privacy or publicity, or otherwise violates any applicable law.

You may post links to external Web sites on the Sites, with the understanding that the NISE Network does not approve or condone in any way the content linked to. The NISE Network may, for any reason, remove external links from the Sites. The Sites may not be used by you for any commercial purpose, to distribute any advertising or solicitation of funds or goods and services or to solicit users to join competitive online services.

Links to the Sites

The NISE Network welcomes links to the Sites. Permission to create a link to the Sites is not required. However, we do reserve the right to request removal of a link from any Web page we believe does not further the NISE Network's mission. You may NOT enclose pages from the NISE Network Web site within a frame set on your site.

The Sites may provide links and pointers to Internet sites maintained by others. The NISE Network is not responsible for the availability of any other site to which the Sites link. Nor does the NISE Network endorse or take responsibility for the content, advertising, products or other materials made available through any other site. Under no circumstances shall the NISE Network be held responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss or damage that is caused or alleged to have been caused to you in connection with your use of, or reliance on, any content, goods or services available on any other site.

Trademarks

NISE Net, NISE Network, nisenet.org, and NanoDays, and their logos, are trademarks of the NISE Network. Adaptations or modifications of NISE Network resources or products ("third party works") shall be appropriately credited, however, the NISE Network trademarks may not be used in connection with a third party work in a manner that is likely to cause confusion among users.

Submissions

The NISE Network is not responsible for material appearing on any message board, chat room, or similar interactive service appearing on the Site, except for material signed by an identified representative of the NISE Network administration. The NISE Network is not responsible for screening material posted by users for libel, obscenity, invasion of privacy, copyright or trademark infringement, accuracy, or for any other reason. We do, however, retain the right to modify or remove messages or other material that we, in our sole discretion, consider infringing, offensive, abusive, defamatory, obscene, stale, or otherwise unacceptable. We also reserve the right to edit materials for any other reason. Whether or not we modify or remove such material, users remain solely responsible for the content of their own messages or postings.

By submitting content to the Sites, you give (or warrant that the owner of such rights has expressly granted) the NISE Network the nonexclusive right to use your questions, comments, and postings, in their original or edited form, in television programs, books, articles, commentaries, or in any other medium now known or later developed. You are not entitled to any compensation for such use.

Any messages sent to the Sites will be treated as nonproprietary and non-confidential and will become the property of the NISE Network where it may or may not be used for any purpose.

Security

Violations of system or network security are prohibited and may result in criminal and/or civil liability. The NISE Network will investigate incidents involving such violations and may involve and cooperate with law enforcement if a criminal violation is suspected. Complaints regarding suspected illegal use or network security should be sent to .

Disclaimers

THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THE SITES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED. WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

NEITHER THE NISE NETWORK NOR ANY OF ITS RESPECTIVE LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS WARRANT OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OR THE RESULTS OF THE USE OF THE MATERIALS IN THE SITES IN TERMS OF ITS CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. YOU (AND NOT THE NISE NETWORK OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATED COMPANIES OR ANY OF ITS RESPECTIVE LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS) ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION.

NEITHER THE NISE NETWORK NOR ANY OF ITS RESPECTIVE LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS WARRANT THAT ANY FUNCTIONS CONTAINED IN THE SITES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, OR THAT THE SITES OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THEM AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS.

APPLICABLE LAW MAY NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Limitation of Liability

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO NEGLIGENCE, WILL THE NISE NETWORK OR ANY OF ITS RESPECTIVE LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES THAT RESULT FROM THE USE OF, OR THE INABILITY TO USE, THE MATERIALS ON THE SITE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

APPLICABLE LAW MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY OR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Privacy Policy

We are committed to protecting your privacy and security and have explained in detail the steps we take to do so. We urge you to read our Privacy Policy.

Jurisdictional Issues

We control and operate the Sites from our offices in the United States of America. We do not represent that materials on the Sites are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Persons who choose to access the Sites from other locations do so on their own initiative, and are responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent local laws are applicable.

Choice Of Law

If any disputes arise regarding your use of the Sites, such disputes shall be resolved according to the laws of the State of California, without reference to its choice of law provisions, and the federal or state courts of the City and County of San Francisco shall have exclusive jurisdiction over all claims. If any of these terms and conditions are found unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision will be considered severable from the remaining terms and conditions, and will not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions.

ALL TEXTUAL, GRAPHICAL, AND OTHER CONTENT APPEARING ON THESE WEB SITES ARE THE PROPERTY OF THE NISE NETWORK OR IN SOME CASES THE PROPERTY OF OTHERS FROM WHOM THE NISE NETWORK HAS SECURED PERMISSION.

PRIVACY POLICY

The NISE Network respects the privacy of our online visitors and we are committed to protecting the privacy and security of the users of our Sites.

This privacy policy will advise you about how we protect your personal information. Please read this policy carefully. We may need to change this policy from time to time in order to address new issues and reflect changes on our Site. All changes will be posted here. If you have any questions or concerns about our privacy policy, please e-mail . Please do not send general Network questions to this address. They will not be answered.

Personal Information

We will not sell, trade, or give out e-mail addresses to companies or other organizations. We will not intentionally disclose any personal identifiable information about you as an individual user (such as, for example, your full name, street address, telephone number or e-mail address) to any third party without having first received your permission to list you in the NISE Network directory. We may request personal identification information from you in connection with your use of, or participation in, contests, sweepstakes, games, surveys, submissions, chat and bulletin boards, and Network modeling. However, we will only collect this personal information from you if it has been voluntarily submitted to us.

Any personal information provided to us may be used in connection with the activities previously referred to above. Should you send us an e-mail with questions or comments, we may use your personal information in order to respond to your questions or comments. We may also keep your comments or questions for future reference.

It is important to note that if you give out personal information online, through a message board or chat room, for example, that information may be collected and used by third parties. Although we strive to protect our users' privacy, we cannot guarantee the security of information you post in these arenas. You disclose such information at your own risk.

Exception

One exception to this policy is that we will release specific information about you or your account to comply with any valid legal process such as a search warrant, subpoena, statute or court order.

Privacy of Minors

The NISE Network does not solicit personal information from minors. Consistent with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998, we will never knowingly request personally identifiable information from anyone under the age of thirteen (13) without prior verifiable parental consent.

If we become aware that a subscriber is under the age of thirteen (13) and has registered without prior verifiable parental consent, we will remove his or her personally identifiable registration information from our files. Please note: We may nevertheless maintain a record of that person's name and address in a "do not register" file to avoid subsequent registration by a child under the age of thirteen (13).

Use of Cookies

A cookie is a small data file stored on the user's hard drive which may contain information about the user. We use cookies but do not store personally identifiable information in your cookie. We currently use cookies only to allow automatic log-in to the Sites and to help us generate our web site usage statistics. If you are a registered user, your cookie allows us to recognize you when you return to our site and provides you with access to your account information. If you register with us, we also use cookies to monitor and maintain information about your use of the Sites.