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Daily Archives: March 11, 2015

OECD – Early gender gaps drive career choices and employment opportunities

“Education systems have made major strides to close gender gaps in student performance but girls and boys remain deeply divided in career choices, which are being made much earlier than commonly thought, according to a new OECD report. The ABC of Gender Equality in Education: Aptitude, Behaviour and Confidence says that gender bias, conscious and unconscious, among parents, teachers and employers is partly responsible… Less than one in 20 girls considers a career in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) compared to one in five boys, despite similar performances in the OECD’s PISA science test. This matters because careers in these fields are in high demand and among the most highly paid. OECD PISA surveys have shown that girls lack the same self-confidence as boys in science and maths and new analysis reveals striking differences in parental encouragement that exacerbate the problem.”

Consumer Goods Industry Commits to New Guidelines on Consumer Engagement and Data Privacy

“In order to help build trust with consumers and shape the way companies, retailers and manufacturers use consumer information that is collected digitally, The Consumer Goods Forum today announced that its Board of Directors has agreed on a new set of ‘Consumer Engagement Principles’ (the “Principles”). The industry-wide Principles will act as a framework for… Continue Reading

New Long-Term Earthquake Forecast for California

“A new California earthquake forecast by the U.S. Geological Survey and partners revises scientific estimates for the chances of having large earthquakes over the next several decades.  The Third Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast, or UCERF3, improves upon previous models by incorporating the latest data on the state’s complex system of active geological faults, as… Continue Reading

Federal Contracts and the Contracted Workforce

“The Congressional Budget Office has performed a brief analysis of federal contracts in an attempt to ascertain the size and cost of the federal government’s contracted workforce. Regrettably, CBO is unaware of any comprehensive information about the size of the federal government’s contracted workforce. However, using a database of federal contracts, CBO determined that federal… Continue Reading

CFPB Report Outlines Legal Violations Uncovered by Supervision

“Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its latest supervision report highlighting legal violations uncovered by the Bureau’s examiners. The Bureau found deceptive student loan debt collection practices, unfair and deceptive overdraft practices, mortgage origination violations, fair lending violations, and mishandled disputes by consumer reporting agencies. The report also shows that CFPB supervisory resolutions… Continue Reading

Federal Reserve releases results of Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review

“The Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced it has not objected to the capital plans of 28 bank holding companies participating in the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR). One institution received a conditional non-objection based on qualitative grounds, and the Federal Reserve objected to two firms’ plans on qualitative grounds. In its fifth year, CCAR… Continue Reading

New GAO Reports – Crop Insurance, Public Safety Communications

Crop Insurance: In Areas with Higher Crop Production Risks, Costs Are Greater, and Premiums May Not Cover Expected Losses, GAO-15-215: Published: Feb 9, 2015. Publicly Released: Mar 11, 2015. Public Safety Communications: Preliminary Information on FirstNet’s Efforts to Establish a Nationwide Broadband Network, GAO-15-380T: Published: Mar 11, 2015. Publicly Released: Mar 11, 2015.   Continue Reading

Report – The Safe Cities Index 2015 – Economist Intelligence Unit

“The Safe Cities Index 2015 is an Economist Intelligence Unit report, sponsored by NEC. The report is based on an index composed of more than 40 quantitative and qualitative indicators. These indicators are split across four thematic categories: digital security; health security; infrastructure safety; and personal safety. Every city in the Index is scored across… Continue Reading

The World Bank Legal Review, Volume 6. Improving Delivery in Development

“Wouters, Jan; Ninio, Alberto; Doherty, Teresa; Cissé, Hassane. 2015. The World Bank Legal Review, Volume 6. Improving Delivery in Development : The Role of Voice, Social Contract, and Accountability. Washington, DC: World Bank. © World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/21553 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.” “In recent years, better delivery in development has been at the center of… Continue Reading

Forecasting the Future of Libraries 2015

Trends in culture, community, and education point to increased potential for expanding the role of libraries of all types This special section focuses on some of the key trends shaping libraries. It pairs with American Libraries’ an­nual coverage of the ALA Emerging Leaders. These librar­ians are, after all, representative of a new wave of library… Continue Reading