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Daily Archives: April 7, 2014

Gallup – Americans Say College Degree Leads to a Better Life

Gallup: “Americans believe in the importance of postsecondary education, with more than nine in 10 (94%) saying a postsecondary degree or credential is at least somewhat important and 70% saying it is very important, similar to last year’s findings. However, most also say higher-education institutions must evolve to better serve the needs of today’s students. These results are from a Nov. 25-Dec. 15, 2013, study by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation with a random sample of U.S. adults. While Americans in every age group are equally likely to see the importance of higher education, more than three-quarters (77%) of those who have completed postsecondary education themselves say it is very important to attain a certificate or degree, compared with 60% who have some college experience and 66% who have a high school diploma or less education.”

WHO – 7 million premature deaths annually linked to air pollution

News release and related links: “In new estimates released today, WHO reports that in 2012 around 7 million people died – one in eight of total global deaths – as a result of air pollution exposure. This finding more than doubles previous estimates and confirms that air pollution is now the world’s largest single environmental… Continue Reading

EPIC Warns White House About Privacy Risks of “Big Data”

“In response to a request from the White House, EPIC has submitted extensive comments on “Big Data and the Future of Privacy.” EPIC warned the White House about the enormous risk to Americans of current “big data” practices but also made clear that problems are not new, citing the Privacy Act of 1974 which responded to the challenges of “data… Continue Reading

Assessing Principles of Sustainable Development and Governance in the World Bank’s Project Plans

World Resources Institute: “The World Bank has sought to reinvent itself in the face of a growing number of global development challenges, including economic uncertainty, political unrest, and the increasingly severe  impacts of a changing climate. This report examines the extent to which the World Bank is integrating elements of sustainable development and effective client-country governance considerations into the design of… Continue Reading

Progress report on implementation of the Basel regulatory framework

“This updated April 2014 Progress report on implementation of the Basel regulatory framework provides a high-level view of Basel Committee members’ progress in adopting Basel II, Basel 2.5 and Basel III, as of end March 2014. It focuses on the status of domestic rule-making processes to ensure that the Committee’s capital standards are transformed into national law… Continue Reading

McKinsey – How government can promote open data

Michael Chui, Diana Farrell, and Kate Jackson: “Institutions and companies across the public and private sectors have begun to release and share vast amounts of information in recent years, and the trend is only accelerating. Yet while some information is easily accessible, some is still trapped in paper records. Data may be free or come at… Continue Reading

New GAO Reports – Federal Facility Security, SBA, TARP

FEDERAL FACILITY SECURITY: Additional Actions Needed to Help Agencies Comply with Risk Assessment Methodology Standards, GAO-14-86: Published: Mar 5, 2014. Publicly Released: Apr 7, 2014. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION: Actions Needed to Ensure Planned Improvements Address Key Requirements of the Development Company (504) Loan Program, GAO-14-233: Published: Mar 6, 2014. Publicly Released: Apr 7, 2014. TROUBLED ASSET RELIEF PROGRAM: Status of the Wind… Continue Reading

The Thomas Jackson Letters

“Here you will find a unique collection of previously unpublished letters describing facts and feelings about slavery and the civil war as seen from the grass roots level in Reading, Pennsylvania. These detailed, authentic, contemporary reports, most in excellent condition, have all been left to us in the letters of rope-maker Thomas Jackson. The author had… Continue Reading

Multiple Crossings of a Large Glacial River by Canada Lynx

“Rivers may act as barriers to the movement of terrestrial mammals, which could limit dispersal and gene flow. Glacial rivers are particularly hazardous because of the cold water temperature and swift current. Yet, we determined that 2 Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis) equipped with GPS collars repeatedly swam across the main channel of the Tanana River in interior Alaska in… Continue Reading