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Daily Archives: April 1, 2015

U.S. Smartphone Use in 2015

Pew – Aaron Smith: “The traditional notion of “going online” often evokes images of a desktop or laptop computer with a full complement of features, such as a large screen, mouse, keyboard, wires, and a dedicated high-speed connection. But for many Americans, the reality of the online experience is substantially different. Today nearly two-thirds of Americans own a smartphone, and 19% of Americans rely to some degree on a smartphone for accessing online services and information and for staying connected to the world around them — either because they lack broadband at home, or because they have few options for online access other than their cell phone. Indeed, 7% of Americans own a smartphone but have neither traditional broadband service at home, nor easily available alternatives for going online other than their cell phone. This report documents the unique circumstances of this “smartphone-dependent” population, and also explores the ways in which smartphone owners use their phones to engage in a wide range of activities.”

Governor Brown Directs First Ever Statewide Mandatory Water Reductions

News release: “Following the lowest snowpack ever recorded and with no end to the drought in sight, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced actions that will save water, increase enforcement to prevent wasteful water use, streamline the state’s drought response and invest in new technologies that will make California more drought resilient. “Today we… Continue Reading

FEMA – State Mitigation Plan Review Guide

“The State Mitigation Plan Review Guide is FEMA’s official policy on, and interpretation of, the requirements for State Standard and Enhanced Mitigation Planning found at 44 Code of Federal Regulations Part 201 Mitigation Planning.  The intended use of the State Mitigation Plan Review Guide is to facilitate consistent evaluation and approval of State Mitigation Plans… Continue Reading

White House Announces A New Tool Against Cyber Threats

“It’s one of the great paradoxes of our Information Age — the very technologies that empower us to do great good can also be used by adversaries to inflict great harm. The same technologies that help keep our military strong are used by hackers in China and Russia to target our defense contractors and systems that support… Continue Reading

Legal, Political and Institutional Constraints on the Financial Crisis Policy Response

Legal, Political, and Institutional Constraints on the Financial Crisis Policy Response. March 2015. Phillip Swagel is Professor in International Economic Policy, University of Maryland School of Public Policy, College Park, Maryland. From December 2006 to January 2009, he was Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy at the US Department of the Treasury. “The story of the… Continue Reading

EPIC Sues FAA, Challenges Failure to Create Drone Privacy Safeguards

EPIC – “Today EPIC filed suit in the federal appeals court in Washington, DC arguing that the Federal Aviation Administration failed to establish privacy rules for commercial drones as mandated by Congress. Congress had required the FAA to develop a “comprehensive plan” for drone deployment. In 2012 EPIC and more than 100 organizations and experts… Continue Reading

International Statistical Agencies

Via Census – International Statistical Agencies – links to data from around the world. “The U.S. Census Bureau conducts demographic, economic, and geographic studies of other countries and strengthens statistical development around the world through technical assistance, training, and software products. For over 60 years, the Census Bureau has performed international analytical work and assisted… Continue Reading

The information professions: knowledge, memory, heritage

Bates, M.J. (2015). The information professions: knowledge, memory, heritage. Information Research, 20(1), paper 655. Retrieved from http://InformationR.net/ir/20-1/paper655.html (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/…) “Introduction. Along with leading to growth in the numbers of people doing information work, the increasing role of information in our contemporary society has led to an explosion of new information professions as… Continue Reading

POGO – Watchdog Scrutinizes Pentagon Spending in Afghanistan

POGO – “Part of something is better than all of nothing. Keep this proverb in mind while reading the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction’s (SIGAR) top-level analysis of Department of Defense (DoD) reconstruction spending in Afghanistan. Between FY 2002 and FY 2014, Congress appropriated $104 billion for Afghanistan reconstruction, 80 percent of which is… Continue Reading