Called Out For Bad Behavior
02/26/10 05:56 pm ET
Recovery.gov, the Web site tracking progress of the economic stimulus package, is naming names when it comes to stimulus-funded tech companies who have twice failed to report on their spending. >>
TECHNOLOGY AND THE BUSINESS OF GOVERNMENT
02/26/10 05:56 pm ET
Recovery.gov, the Web site tracking progress of the economic stimulus package, is naming names when it comes to stimulus-funded tech companies who have twice failed to report on their spending. >>
02/25/10 05:11 pm ET
The Defense Department is known to be high tech, but the general public doesn't often hear about much of what goes on inside the Pentagon walls. In the spirit of engagement, the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command last week debuted Army Technology Live, a free iPhone app intended to build dialogue around Army tech initiatives. >>
02/25/10 02:14 pm ET
The 2010 census is fast approaching, and a friendly challenge could help boost public excitement. The Census Bureau today launched an online mapping tool showing the 2000 census' participation rates across states, counties and cities. >>
02/24/10 03:05 pm ET
Agencies continue to innovate in response to the Obama administration's open government initiatives, said panelists at a Wednesday event sponsored by Government Executive, Nextgov's sister publication.>>
02/24/10 09:01 am ET
Engineers, scientists and at least one lawmaker are pushing like never before to resuscitate a legislative agency that once provided Congress with technological expertise. >>
02/23/10 12:44 pm ET
James Lewis, director of the technology and public policy program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and one of Washington's more respected cybersecurity experts, is on schedule to give testimony Tuesday afternoon at the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. The panel's topic: "Cybersecurity: Next Steps to Protect Our Critical Infrastructure." The Cybersecurity Act of 2009 will be a topic of conversation. >>
02/23/10 05:01 pm ET
The General Services Administration wants to know: has USA.gov, the all-encompassing government information portal, made your life easier? >>
02/22/10 12:16 pm ET
The Agriculture Department is going virtual, and employees may soon be able to conduct business through 3D avatars rather than traditional teleconferencing, email or good old-fashioned staff meetings. >>
02/19/10 05:03 pm ET
Walter Cronkite may be dead, and we no longer have the sense that television can bring the nation to the moon at the same time, but Nasa's Twitter feed manages to give its 270,000 followers the chance to almost be in space with its astronauts -- in real time. >>
02/19/10 11:16 am ET
If you've ever had a burning desire to read Zachary Taylor's inaugural address, wondered about the exact wording of the Mayflower Compact or simply forgotten the 17th Amendment, don't worry. There's an app for that. >>
02/19/10 10:16 am ET
Do you know a federal manager who recently took risks to push through a bold idea, policy or program that uses technology to make government work better or improve public services? If so, we'd like to hear your story by nominating your colleague for a Nextgov Award. >>
02/18/10 03:58 pm ET
The government announced on Thursday that IBM U.S. Federal has won a $74.4 million dollar contract to consolidate disparate systems that track contractor performance. The reconfiguration is intended to make it easier for federal acquisition workers to monitor the purchase of equipment, supplies, information technology and telecommunications services governmentwide, according to the General Services Administration, the agency that awarded the contract. >>
02/18/10 10:44 am ET
The latest screening technology to hit airports nationwide is perhaps less controversial than full-body scanners but less familiar to travelers: Explosive Trace Detection units that test swabs of luggage and passengers' hands for explosives. >>
02/17/10 04:18 pm ET
Teens and young adults are moving away from blogging and using Facebook and other social media sites in increasing numbers, according to a recent study from the Pew Research Center. >>
02/17/10 03:44 pm ET
The Office of Management and Budget on Tuesday announced the debut of another IT dashboard, this time as a window into the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. >>
02/16/10 04:17 pm ET
A new experiment in crowd-sourced digitization kicked off last week with the inaugural meeting of the International Amateur Scanning League. This new club's first task will be to organize its volunteers to digitize 1,500 DVDs from the National Archives and Records Administration so that the content can be shared on YouTube, the Internet Archive and Public.Resource.Org's Public Domain Stock Footage Theater for free. >>
02/16/10 03:14 pm ET
The Democratic National Committee last week announced a new job opening sure to invite a flood of responses. The position? Social networks manager, otherwise known as Barack Obama's twitterer. >>
02/12/10 05:43 pm ET
Local governments already are starting to lobby Google for a spot along an experimental super-speed network the company announced Wednesday. Axcess Ontario, a public-benefit corporation overseeing the development of Ontario County, N.Y.'s community fiber network, began the application process on behalf of the county...>>
02/16/10 02:47 pm ET
Wired had a field day decrying Darpa's proposed project, BioDesign, as a "mad science" project to "re-write the laws of evolution to the military's advantage, creating 'synthetic organisms' that can live forever -- or can be killed with the flick of a molecular switch." If that sounded just a little alarming, the fine print of Darpa's FY2011 budget didn't help placate enraged readers. >>
02/12/10 02:39 pm ET
The Xbox, Microsoft's powerful video game console, may soon be good for more than just virtual basketball games and war simulations. Company researchers currently are looking to adapt the device to various healthcare needs, including the transfer and display of electronic medical records. >>
02/11/10 11:12 am ET
The Office of Science and Technology Policy on Wednesday announced the launch of its redesigned Web portal, which updates the old site's features and incorporates a few new ones. >>
02/10/10 04:36 pm ET
A Washington think tank will host a simulated cyberattack on the United States on Tuesday to demonstrate how the government would respond to a large-scale attack on the nation's computer systems and networks. >>
02/10/10 04:20 pm ET
Sun Microsystems Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Schwartz late last week announced his resignation on Twitter. His tweet incorporated a bit of haiku -- Financial crisis/Stalled too many customers/CEO no more -- and fell just below the platform's 140-character maximum. When major private sector players start using social media to break news, will others follow suit?>>
02/09/10 01:49 pm ET
With record-breaking snow pounding the Washington area over the weekend (and more expected tonight and tomorrow), much has been made of the Office of Personnel Management's decision to close the federal government two days in a row. Feds in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area have been so anxious for news that OPM's operating status page has been down for brief periods on both Sunday and Monday nights. >>
02/09/10 12:51 pm ET
Small businesses that don't have email may find themselves in trouble with the Labor Department, according to The Pension Department, a New York-based consultancy. >>
02/08/10 04:11 pm ET
Over the weekend, the White House quietly launched a new Web site aimed at tracking agency compliance with an open government directive released in December. >>
02/08/10 11:35 am ET
The Homeland Security Department launched an online tool for citizens and those involved in security to suggest ideas for enhancing transparency at the agency. >>
02/08/10 12:00 pm ET
When it comes to brainstorming solutions for just about anything, federal agencies under the Obama administration like to turn first to their employee suggestion boxes -- which often are attached to major rewards.>>
02/05/10 12:42 pm ET
Tomorrow (February 6) marks the next deadline in the Obama administration's Open Government Directive, the date by which agencies must have a new Web page up and running. >>
02/05/10 11:21 am ET
The Homeland Security Department completed the first step of a three-step process to better link operations to agency missions by submitting a review of long-term strategic goals to Congress. Technology played a crucial role, said a DHS official, by providing representatives from all segments of the homeland security community with the opportunity to contribute. >>
02/05/10 12:41 pm ET
NASA and General Motors Corp. unveiled on Thursday a robot the two organizations have developed for use in space exploration and car manufacturing. What's striking about Robonaut 2 is the dexterity of its fingers, although its thumb is rather elongated. The YouTube video below shows R2, as it is referred to, gently moving back a piece of cloth to pick up a manila envelope.>>
02/04/10 06:19 pm ET
Nextgov has launched the Nextgov Awards, an inaugural program to recognize federal managers who have shepherded a program, policy or management practice that is not only innovative, but bold and brave.>>
02/04/10 06:19 pm ET
Nextgov has launched the Nextgov Awards, an inaugural program to recognize federal managers who have shepherded a program, policy or management practice that is not only innovative, but bold and brave.>>
02/04/10 04:36 pm ET
The Senate today confirmed Martha Johnson as General Services Administration administrator, nearly ten months after her nomination to the post. >>
02/04/10 12:10 pm ET
President Obama on Monday addressed the nation, but not from the Oval Office or the House floor. Instead, he got on YouTube and answered questions from videos uploaded by users around the world. >>
02/04/10 11:59 am ET
The House passed the 2009 Cybersecurity Enhancement Act on Thursday 422 - 5, after lengthy deliberations and amendment votes yesterday. There is no companion bill n the Senate, yet.>>
02/04/10 09:51 am ET
During rush hour in Washington, a D.C. police officer texting while driving.>>
02/03/10 04:54 pm ET
Martha Johnson, whose confirmation to head the General Services Administration has been held up for months by Senate Republicans, may be at work as early as Friday, say sources knowledgeable about the process. The Senate is expected to vote to close debate and move on her confirmation via unanimous consent. >>
02/03/10 04:22 pm ET
NASA, already in the spotlight for a budget that scraps plans to return to the moon, received more negative publicity from federal auditors on Wednesday about ongoing information security problems. >>
02/03/10 11:24 am ET
If ever there were doubts about Google ruling the world (or at least parts of it), a recent addition to President Obama's technology focused staff might settle some uncertainty.>>
02/02/10 05:53 pm ET
President Obama reinforced his call to modernize government by asking Congress to spend tens of millions of dollars over three years on governmentwide innovations. >>
02/01/10 06:40 pm ET
The Veterans Affairs Department has test-launched a Web site that details the performance of information technology projects summarized on the federal IT Dashboard site, which tracks the progress of IT investments governmentwide. >>
