SCIENCE. STORIES. IMPACT.
Terms of Service   :   The terms of service you agree to when using iBiology Courses website.

iBiology Courses Terms of Service

This website is provided as a public service to promote science. It welcomes anyone willing to join us in this pursuit.

You are encouraged to take as many courses on iBiology Courses as you wish for free, and to share what you learn with others both online and offline according to the Creative Commons copyright we assign to each course's material and the site itself.

BY USING THIS WEBSITE, YOU ARE INDICATING THAT YOU HAVE READ, ACKNOWLEDGE, AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE POLICIES, TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET FORTH BELOW (THE “TERMS”) IN THEIR ENTIRETY WITHOUT LIMITATION OR QUALIFICATION.

Last Updated: July 9, 2024

Science Communication Lab, Inc. (“SCL”) provides our services, including any content, functionality, events, services, courses, and communications through the website (https://sciencecommunicationlab.org/), iBiology’s website (https://ibiology.org), iBiology Courses website (https://courses.ibiology.org), and any other websites and services that are owned and/or controlled by us (collectively, the “Website”) are subject to these Terms. The following Terms, together with any documents expressly incorporated by reference, including but not limited to our Privacy Policy, govern your access to and use of the Website.

If you do not agree to these Terms including the agreements incorporated by reference herein, you must not access or use the Website. Please read these Terms carefully as they contain important information regarding your legal rights, remedies, and obligations. 

  1. Modification of Terms

We reserve the right to change or modify these Terms at any time and in our sole discretion. If we make changes to these Terms, we will provide notice of such changes, such as by updating the “Last Updated” date at the beginning of these Terms. By continuing to use the Website at any point after such update, you confirm your acceptance of the revised Terms and all of the terms incorporated therein by reference. You should review these Terms frequently to ensure that you understand the terms and conditions that apply when you access or use the Website. If you do not agree to the revised Terms, you may not access or use the Website.

  1. Use of the Website

The Website is intended solely for users over eighteen (18) years of age or older. Any registration by, use of, or access to the Website by anyone under 18 is unauthorized, unlicensed, and in violations of these Terms. By using the Website, you represent and warrant that you are 18 years of age or older and that you agree to abide by all of the terms and conditions of the Terms. These Terms will remain in full force and effect while you use the Website.

  1. Your Privacy

Please refer to our Privacy Policy for information on how we collect, use, and share your Personal Information. By submitting your Personal Information through the Website, you are expressly consenting to the collection, use, and disclosure of your Personal Information in accordance with the Privacy Policy.

  1. Copyrights and Intellectual Property Rights

All content on the Website, including but not limited to, library archives, courses, other text, photographs, videos, images, guides, audio clips, and promotional copy, as well as the emblems, trademarks, trade names, copyrights, copyrightable material, service marks, and any other form of intellectual property (collectively, “Intellectual Property”) is owned by or licensed to SCL or third parties and are protected from unlawful use, replication, and distribution by copyright, trademark, publicity, and other laws. Nothing in these Terms is to be interpreted as transferring or licensing any Intellectual Property to you. Unless specifically permitted in writing by us, you shall not duplicate, capture, trade, upload, revise, or otherwise exploit in whole or in part any of the Intellectual Property. Any use of the Intellectual Property other than as permitted by the Terms will constitute a violation of the Terms and may constitute copyright and/or patent infringement.  

SCL respects the intellectual property rights of others, and we ask you to do the same. SCL may, in appropriate circumstances and at our discretion, terminate service and/or access to and use of the Website for users who infringe on the intellectual property rights of others. If you believe that your work is the subject of copyright infringement and/or trademark infringement and appears on our Website, please provide SCL’s designated agent the following information:

SCL designated agent for notice of claims of copyright or trademark infringement can be reached as follows:

1936 University Ave, Suite 330
Berkeley, CA 94704

info@scicommlab.org

Please also note that for copyright infringements under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to liability.

  1. Restrictions on Use 

As a condition of your use of the Website, you warrant to SCL that you will not use the Website for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these terms, conditions, and notices. You may not use the Website in any manner which could damage, disable, overburden, or impair the Website or interfere with any other party’s use and enjoyment of the Website. You may not obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through any means not intentionally made available or provided for through the Website.

You may not attempt or cause to attempt to gain unauthorized access to any portion or feature of the Website, or any other systems or networks connected to the Website, by hacking, password “cracking,” or any other illegitimate means. You may not breach or cause to breach the security or authentication measures on the Website, or any other systems or networks connected to the Website, or otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper functioning of the Website. You will not falsify your identity or impersonate another person engage in conduct that limits the use and enjoyment of the Website, or any part thereof, by other users in any way, in each case as determined by us in our sole and absolute discretion.

You agree not to and will not assist another to: 

  1. Proprietary Information and Usage Policy

We encourage the SCL and iBiology community, non-profit organizations, bloggers, news media, etc, to share our videos through social media and to embed individual films in contextually relevant ways on non-commercial websites using embed code found on the SCL and iBiology YouTube channels. Non-commercial usage of SCL and iBiology videos should follow the terms of our Creative Commons license, Attribution – NonCommercial – NonDerivative (BY-NC-ND), and the guidelines that are listed below, which may be updated from time to time. 

Please note that this license only applies to our content posted on YouTube. For our feature films’ content, please contact us for more information.

Creative Commons License – SCL videos are available to use under the Creative Commons License. Non-commercial usage of SCL videos should follow the terms of our Creative Commons License, which requires Attribution –NonCommercial – NonDerivative (BY-NC-ND). This Creative Commons License allows non-commercial entities to use the videos provided on our Website freely and easily subject to the following restrictions: 

These conditions can be modified only by explicit permission of Science Communication Lab, Inc. The complete text of the license can be seen on the Creative Commons (CC) license website linked above. Creative Commons licensing doesn’t replace copyright — which remains undivided with Science Communication Lab, Inc.

Sharing Guidelines – SCL videos may be shared on your site or blog by using the embed code from SCL’s official YouTube channels, so long as you meet the Creative Commons guidelines described above and follow the additional guidelines described below:

  1. ACCOUNT REGISTRATION AND USE

In order to use certain features of the Website, you may have to register and create a password-protected account (your “Account”) and submit your name, email, and institution (collectively, “Personal Information”).

Your Account: This Website is provided as a public service to promote science. It welcomes anyone willing to join us in this pursuit.

  1. You are encouraged to view as many SCL videos as you wish for free, and to share what you learn with others both online and offline.
  2. Anyone 18 and over can comment on SCL videos on the Website. 
  3. We are seeking to build a mature online community. Please be aware, when commenting on the Website or SCL YouTube channels, that we will remove:
    • content promoting pseudo-science, conspiracy theories, zealotry, proselytizing, self-promotion, product-hawking, and new-age fluff;
    • content written in speak, all-caps, or otherwise lazy grammar;
    • content using joke names or non-names; and
    • disrespectful, distasteful, unconstructive, or illegal content.
  4. If you act disrespectfully, disruptively, illegally, or in violation of these Terms, our YouTube channels, or social media platforms we reserve the right to block your access from further commenting or the right to delete Your Account.

You agree to: (i) immediately notify SCL of any unauthorized use of your password or Account, or any other breach of security, (ii) immediately change your password if you become aware that your Account has been compromised, (iii) ensure that you fully exit from your Account at the end of each session, (iv) not allow others to utilize your Account and that you will not disclose your SCL password to anyone (see section titled “Security” below for more information on your Account), and (v) maintain and promptly update all information provided by you during your registration process, and any other information you provide to us, so that it remains true, accurate, up-to-date and complete at all times.

You can request that your Account be deactivated at any time by contacting us. When your Account is deactivated, your user profile and all public activities (such as comments) will be hidden. If you subscribed to our newsletters and wish to unsubscribe, please click on the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of a newsletter you have received.

  1. Security

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your Account and password and for restricting access to your computer. You agree to accept responsibility for all activities that occur under your Account or password, regardless of whether such use is authorized by you or not. SCL will be entitled to monitor your password and, at its discretion, require you to change it. If you use a password SCL considers insecure SCL will be entitled to require you to change the password and/or terminate your Account. Our use of any Personal Information that you provide to us during the Account creation process is governed by our Privacy Policy. You must be at least eighteen (18) years of age to obtain an Account. 

You are prohibited from using any services provided in connection with the Website to compromise security or tamper with system resources and/or accounts. The use or distribution of tools designed for compromising security (e.g., password guessing programs, cracking tools, or network probing tools) is strictly prohibited. If you become involved in any violation of system security, SCL reserves the right to release your details to system administrators at other websites in order to assist them in resolving security incidents. SCL reserves the right to investigate suspected violations of these Terms.

SCL reserves the right to fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing SCL to disclose the identity of anyone posting any e-mail messages, or publishing or otherwise making available any materials that are believed to violate these Terms.

By accepting these Terms, you waive and hold harmless SCL from any claims resulting from any action taken by SCL during or as a result of its investigations and/or from any actions taken as a consequence of investigations by either SCL or law enforcement authorities.

  1. Links to Other Services

Our Website may contain links to other websites, social media platforms, and services (“Linked Sites”). The Linked Sites are not under the control of SCL, and SCL is not responsible for the contents of any Linked Site, or the material contained within the Linked Sites, including, without limitation, any link contained in a Linked Site, or any changes or updates to a Linked Site. SCL is not responsible for webcasting, or any other form of transmission received from any Linked Site. You understand that SCL cannot and does not guarantee or warrant that files or software of any kind, or from any source, available for downloading through the Website, will be free of infection or viruses, worms, trojan horses, or other code or defects that manifest contaminating or destructive properties. SCL is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement by SCL of the Linked Site or any association with its operators. SCL urges you to review the terms and conditions and privacy policies of Linked Sites before use.

  1. Limitations of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL WE BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY LOST PROFIT OR ANY INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM THESE TERMS, YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE, ANY ITEMS, OR FOR ANY DAMAGES RELATED TO LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, OR LOSS OF DATA, AND WHETHER CAUSED BY TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT, OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE AND EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. ACCESS TO, AND USE OF, THE WEBSITE IS UNDERTAKEN BY YOU AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK, AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR MOBILE DEVICE OR LOSS OF DATA RESULTING THEREFROM.

NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY CONTAINED HEREIN, IN NO EVENT SHALL OUR MAXIMUM AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY RELATED TO THESE TERMS, YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE WEBSITE, CONTENT (INCLUDING YOUR CONTENT), OR ANY ITEMS, PURCHASED, OR SOLD THROUGH THE WEBSITE EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) $100 OR (B) THE AMOUNT PAID TO US BY YOU FOR THE WEBSITE THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE CLAIM.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you.

  1. DISCLAIMERS

THE WEBSITE, CONTENT CONTAINED THEREIN, AND ITEMS LISTED THEREIN ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. WE (AND OUR SUPPLIERS) MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT THE WEBSITE: (A) WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; (B) WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AN UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE BASIS; OR (C) WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, COMPLETE, LEGAL, OR SAFE. WE DISCLAIM ALL OTHER WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT AS TO THE WEBSITE OR ANY CONTENT CONTAINED THEREIN. WE DO NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT CONTENT ON THE WEBSITE IS ACCURATE, COMPLETE, RELIABLE, CURRENT, OR ERROR-FREE. WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OF ANY KIND FROM ANY ACTION TAKEN OR TAKEN IN RELIANCE ON MATERIAL OR INFORMATION, CONTAINED ON THE WEBSITE. WHILE WE ATTEMPT TO MAKE YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE WEBSITE AND CONTENT SAFE, WE CANNOT AND DO NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE WEBSITE, CONTENT, OR ANY ITEMS LISTED ON OUR WEBSITE OR OUR SERVERS ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. WE CANNOT GUARANTEE THE SECURITY OF ANY DATA THAT YOU DISCLOSE ONLINE. YOU ACCEPT THE INHERENT SECURITY RISKS OF PROVIDING INFORMATION AND DEALING ONLINE OVER THE INTERNET AND WILL NOT HOLD US RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY BREACH OF SECURITY UNLESS IT IS DUE TO OUR GROSS NEGLIGENCE.

  1. Violations of These Terms

You agree that we may, in our sole discretion and without prior notice, terminate your access to the Website and/or block your future access to the Website if we determine that you have violated or caused to be violated these Terms or other agreements or guidelines associated with your use of the Website. You also agree that any violation by you of these Terms will constitute an unlawful and unfair business practice, and will cause irreparable harm to us, for which monetary damages would be inadequate, and you consent to our obtaining any injunctive or equitable relief that we deem necessary or appropriate in such circumstances. These remedies are in addition to any other remedies we may have at law or in equity.

You agree that we may, in our sole discretion and without prior notice, terminate your access to the Website, including as a result of (1) requests by law enforcement or other government agencies, (2) a request by you (self-initiated account deletions), (3) discontinuance or material modification of the Website or any service offered on or through the Website, (4) unexpected technical issues or problems. We similarly reserve the right to do any of the following, at any time, without notice: (1) modify, suspend or terminate operation of or access to the Website, or any portion of the Website, for any reason; (2) modify or change the Website, or any portion of the Website, and any applicable policies or Terms; and (3) interrupt the operation of the Website, or any portion of the Website, as necessary to perform routine or non-routine maintenance, error correction, or other changes.

If we take any legal action against you due to your violation of these Terms, we will be entitled to recover from you, and you agree to pay, all reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs of such action, in addition to any other relief granted to us. You agree that SCL will not be liable to you or to any third party for termination of your access to the Website for any reason.

  1. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless SCL and its affiliates, and their officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, and suppliers, from and against any and all losses, liabilities, expenses, damages, and costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs, arising or resulting from any violation and use of these Terms. If you cause a technical disruption of the Website, or the systems transmitting the Website to you or others, you agree to be responsible for any and all losses, liabilities, expenses, damages, and costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs, arising or resulting from that disruption.

  1. Dispute Resolution and Arbitration

To expedite resolution and control the cost of any dispute, controversy, or claim related to these Terms (“Dispute”), you and SCL agree to first attempt to negotiate any Dispute (except those Disputes expressly provided below) informally for at least thirty (30) days before initiating any arbitration or court proceeding. Such informal negotiations commence upon written notice from one person to the other. You will send your notice to:

Science Communication Lab, Inc.
1936 University Ave, Suite 330
Berkeley, CA 94704 

If you and SCL are unable to resolve a Dispute through informal negotiations within 30 days, either you or SCL may elect to have the Dispute (except those Disputes expressly excluded below) finally and exclusively resolved by binding arbitration. Any election to arbitrate by one party will be final and binding on the other. YOU UNDERSTAND THAT ABSENT THIS PROVISION, YOU WOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO SUE IN COURT AND HAVE A JURY TRIAL. The arbitration will be commenced and conducted under the Streamlined Arbitration Rules and Procedures (the “Rules”) of JAMS, which is available at the JAMS website www.jamsadr.com. The determination of whether a Dispute is subject to arbitration will be governed by the Federal Arbitration Act and determined by a court rather than an arbitrator. Your arbitration fees and your share of arbitrator compensation will be governed by the Rules. The arbitration may be conducted in person, through the submission of documents, by phone, or online. The arbitrator will make a decision in writing, but need not provide a statement of reasons unless requested by a party. The arbitrator must follow applicable law, and any award may be challenged if the arbitrator fails to do so. Except as otherwise provided in the Terms, you and SCL may litigate in court to compel arbitration, stay proceedings pending arbitration, or to confirm, modify, vacate or enter judgment on the award entered by the arbitrator.

You and SCL agree that any arbitration will be limited to the Dispute between SCL and you individually. To the full extent permitted by law, (a) no arbitration will be joined with any other; (b) there is no right or authority for any Dispute to be arbitrated on a class-action basis or to utilize class action procedures; and (c) there is no right or authority for any Dispute to be brought in a purported representative capacity on behalf of the general public or any other persons.

You and SCL agree that the following Disputes are not subject to the above provisions concerning informal negotiations and binding arbitration: (a) any Disputes seeking to enforce or protect, or concerning the validity of, any of your or SCL’s intellectual property rights; (b) any Dispute related to, or arising from, allegations of theft, piracy, invasion of privacy or unauthorized use; and (c) any claim for injunctive relief.

  1. Limitation on Time to File Claims

ANY CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM YOU MAY HAVE ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OF USE OR THE SITE MUST BE COMMENCED WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ACCRUES; OTHERWISE, SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM IS PERMANENTLY BARRED.

Before seeking legal recourse for any harm you believe you have suffered arising from or related to your use of the Website, you agree to inform us in writing and to give us thirty (30) days to cure the harm before initiating any action unless such cure requires, in our sole discretion, a longer time period, in which you agree to give us ninety (90) days or such other, longer time period as the parties reasonably agree to before initiating any action. 

  1. Miscellaneous
  1. Contact Us

Please direct all inquiries related to these Terms to:

info@scicommlab.org or by mailing a letter to:

Science Communication Lab, Inc.
1936 University Ave, Suite 330
Berkeley, CA 94704