How will the wide-scale adoption of always-on connected devices change the environment for federal leaders?
Of the five trends I outlined in my last post, the first, always-on connected devices, is so fundamental, so important, so paradigm-shifting, that it is quickly becoming invisible. Keep reading →
This is the last of a four-part series on innovation at the National Weather Service.
The National Weather Service has improved disaster response through a collaborative project aimed at communicating crucial weather information and helping emergency managers stay current and build networks online and onsite. Keep reading →
This is the third in a series of stories about innovation at the National Weather Service.
A new version of the well-known weather Doppler radar technology now gives meteorologists the ability to see storms from additional angles and provide a more accurate forecast. Keep reading →
This is the second in a series of stories about innovation at the National Weather Service.
This storm season, National Hurricane Center scientists are using sophisticated simulation models, new-age aircraft and better communications tools to achieve finely honed forecasting. Keep reading →
While iPhone aficionados may have to wait three to four more weeks to get their hands on the new iPhone 5, Apple officially released it latest mobile operating system, iOS 6, today. And that meant federal IT executives had yet another new mobile issue to contend with as they began in earnest to evaluate how the new operating system, which boasts 200 enhancements, might impact the growing use of Apple devices across the federal government.
“I think it’s safe to say that these continually improving and expanding features are a key reason why government workers find consumer mobile devices in general – and iOS devices in particular – so compelling for use in accomplishing their missions,” said Dr. Rick Holgate, assistant director for science and technology and chief information officer for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF). Keep reading →
It’s not easy following Todd Park, the federal government’s chief technology officer, and his breathless on-stage enthusiasm for promoting technical innovation in government and the virtues of collaboration.
Park clearly found an avid proponent, however, in Seth Harris, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor, who made a persuasive case last week in describing the inherent logic for government and the private sector to work jointly in turning information into useful tools for the American public and the U.S. economy. Keep reading →
Make the rounds with government agency CTOs or at any public sector technology conference these days and two words are likely to emerge in the conversation very quickly: big data.
Whether the discussion is around Hadoop, MapReduce or other big data tools, the focus to date has been largely on data analytics and how to rapidly and efficiently analyze extremely large and unstructured datasets. big data analytics is important for government agencies seeking to gain better insights into their data and make more informed decisions based on this insight, but analytics represents the tip of the iceberg in making big data work. Keep reading →
When it comes to budget cutting, there comes a time when some programs simply have to be dumped. Keep reading →
The sinking of the passenger liner Titanic in 1912 has mesmerized generations. It was so intriguing to NOAA maritime archaeologist James Delgado, he eventually led the hunt in 2010 to get answers about what happened when the Titanic hit an iceberg and sank a century ago.
Using 21st century technology, Delgado, 56, was the chief scientist on the ship that monitored robots diving, photographing and collecting data at the bottom of the sea with high-tech tools to develop an electronic archaeological site map that will be completed by next year. Keep reading →
On February 17, The Wall Street Journal reported that a researcher working for them discovered that Google ran hidden code designed to circumvent the security settings on Apple devices that use the Safari web browser. While much of the coverage of this revelation has focused on consumers and whether the action may have violated laws or the consent agreement between the FTC and Google, little has been written about the impact for public sector customers.
Public sector customers are big users of Apple devices and these users are governed by a strict set of unique regulations and laws. Given the circumstances of the events here, the question needs to be asked: Did Google break any of the laws or regulations that restrict entities from accessing or changing government computing systems? Keep reading →