GAO Report Released Today Critical of National Weather Service Operations Prototype

Weather Forecasting: National Weather Service’s Operations Prototype Needs More Rigorous Planning. GAO-07-650, June 8, 2007. “Using advanced systems and trained specialists located in 122 weather forecast offices throughout the country, the National Weather Service (NWS) provides storm and flood warnings and weather forecasts to protect life and property and to enhance the national economy. To …

Subjects: E-Government, Government Documents

MotherJones Examines Role of Web 2.0 in Political Campaigns

“Open-source politics is the idea that social networking and participatory technologies will revolutionize our ability to follow, support, and influence political campaigns. Forget party bosses in smoky backrooms—netroots evangelists and web consultants predict a wave of popular democracy as fundraisers meet on MySpace, YouTubers crank out attack ads, bloggers do oppo research, and cell-phone-activated flash …

Subjects: Blogs, Internet, Knowledge Management

Recent CRS Reports on Iran, Iraq , India, Pakistan, Trafficking in Persons

Potential F-22 Raptor Export to Japan, Updated July 2, 2007 Iraq: Government Formation and Benchmarks, Updated June 27, 2007 Iran: U.S. Concerns and Policy Responses, Updated June 27, 2007 Iraq: Oil and Gas Legislation, Revenue Sharing, and U.S. Policy, June 26, 2007 India-U.S.Relations, Updated June 26, 2007 Trafficking in Persons: U.S. Policy and Issues for …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Government, Government Documents

Vacancy Report Finds Homeland Security and Continuity of Government at Risk

Press release: “Today, Congressman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, identified in a staff report that nearly one quarter of the senior leadership positions located in the Department of Homeland Security are vacant. The overall senior leadership vacancies, termed “executive resources,” total 24%, and refer to positions in the highest …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents

New Think Tank Report Questions Government Calls for Less Regulation of RFID Technology

Press release: “Imposing new regulations on RFID technology is premature, according to Playing Tag: An RFID Primer, a new report released today by the Pacific Research Institute (PRI), a California-based free-market think tank. “A relatively new technology like RFID tends to spark fear in people, but fear should not drive government regulation,” said K. Lloyd …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Government, Privacy

Newsweek Interview: Supreme Court Justice Kennedy

Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Court- In an exclusive interview, Justice Kennedy discusses life, center stage, by Stuart Taylor Jr. and Evan Thomas: ” In 19 cases during the past year, the Supreme Court split down the middle along ideological lines. The court’s four conservatives—Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas …

Subjects: Courts, Legal Research

Administrator of 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund to Administer Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund Distributions

Press release: “Virginia Tech President Charles Steger has asked Kenneth R. Feinberg, who served as “Special Master of the federal September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001,” to administer distributions of the university Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund (HSMF)…“The Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund was established through generous contributions from Southwest Virginians and thoughtful citizens from across …

Subjects: Knowledge Management

Intellectual Property Management in Health and Agricultural Innovation

Intellectual Property Management in Health and Agricultural Innovation: A free resource from MIHR and PIPRA. [thanks to Warren Leary] From Pipra’s Blog: “Lita Nelsen, head of technology transfer for MIT and one of the editors of the two volume reference book, describes it as “the How-To manual for using the tool of IP.” It is …

Subjects: Intellectual Property, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

Consumer Reports Reviews Fee-Based Credit Report Services

‘Free’ Credit Report Sites: Worth the Real Costs? Review of 24 Sites Shows Potential for Consumer Confusion, Unnecessary Services (35 pages, PDF): “This report examines Web sites that offer consumers paid access to their credit reports in combination with credit scores, credit monitoring, and/or identity theft insurance. These sites are alternatives to annualcreditreport.com, created as …

Subjects: Privacy

European Commission Opens Inquiry into Google/DoubleClick Merger

Follow up to the Google DoubleClick Merger In the News, from EPIC: The European Commission Directorate on Competition will review Google’s $3.1 billion merger with internet advertising company DoubleClick. The news comes a few days after European consumer group BEUC sent a letter (pdf) urging Commission to investigate the merger. The Article 29 Data Protection …

Subjects: EU Data Protection, Privacy, Search Engines