> in less than six months a research group in some country where US patents aren't held in very high regard will have duplicated the work and either sell it as

> in less than six months a research group in some country where US patents aren't held in very high regard will have duplicated the work and either sell it as a service or publish it in the scientific literature US patents can be used to prevent the sale or import of violating foreign products into the US market. It's still the largest market and US patents are still the lynchpin of any patent portfolio. Simultaneous discovery does occur and primacy is difficult to prove. Most patent offices had first-to-file as the deciding rule, the USPTO adopted first-to-file a few years back to cut down on endless litigation.