n6 Although no circuit court has yet resolved the issue that we face, there exists quite a bit of academic debate on the subject of whether the Patent Act preempts Article 9. Professor Gilmore argues that, although the Patent Act "contains no express authorization of patent mortgages comparable to the copyright provision ...[,] the statute confers upon patents 'the attributes of personal property' and the recording provision makes an unrecorded assignment void 'against any subsequent ... mortgagee,' [and] there can be no doubt that security transfers of patents are recognized." Grant Gilmore, Security Interests in Personal Property § 10.1, at 417 (1965) (quoting 35 U.S.C. § 261). There also is academic support for the opposite view, which (for the reasons explained in the text of this opinion) we embrace. See William C. Hillman, Documenting Secured Transactions, 2-19 to 2-20 (May 1998 rev.) (concluding that the Patent Act does not preempt Article 9); 4 White & Summers § 30-12, at 86 (noting that the text of "federal statutes appears to distinguish between security interests and outright assignments, and among lien creditors, mortgagees, bona fide purchasers and others"); Haemmerli, supra note 1, at 1696-1700 (arguing that security interests are not within the scope of 35 U.S.C. § 261).