TECHNOLOGY AND THE BUSINESS OF GOVERNMENT

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.

NASA plans for robots to work next to astronauts and GM's interest is to have robots working in assembly plants, according to GM's press release.

NASA and GM worked together through a Space Act Agreement at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston to build a R2.

Hat tip: Boingboing

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.

Yes, we know, there are a lot of awards programs in government. But when we asked federal managers and industry executives what is missing, they told us unanimously: No awards recognize federal employees who took on risks -- personal, political and otherwise -- and boldly acted to see their idea to fruition. Or if their idea died, at least they took on entrenched bureaucratic interests in an attempt to make government better through the use of technology.

We invite you to visit our awards page to learn more and to nominate someone who fits the criteria. The technology isn't the reason for the award, but the bold idea must rely on it in some way. And we encourage you to tell us a story about the individuals you nominate. We want you to wow us because we know there are dozens of stories of federal employees trying to improve government and the lives of citizens, but they are up against big odds. Yet, they have acted bravely and with resolve to bring about change. We want to know about them, the drama they faced and the results they achieved. And, of course, the technology they used.

The winners of the Nextgov Awards will be honored at a luncheon at TechWeb's Gov 2.0 Expo in May. (Nextgov is a TechWeb partner for the event.) We'd love to see you there.

More to come.

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.

Yes, we know, there are a lot of awards programs in government. But when we asked federal managers and industry executives what is missing, they told us unanimously: No awards recognize federal employees who took on risks -- personal, political and otherwise -- and boldly acted to see their idea to fruition. Or if their idea died, at least they took on entrenched bureaucratic interests in an attempt to make government better through the use of technology.

We invite you to visit our awards page to learn more and to nominate someone who fits the criteria. The technology isn't the reason for the award, but the bold idea must rely on it in some way. And we encourage you to tell us a story about the individuals you nominate. We want you to wow us because we know there are dozens of stories of federal employees trying to improve government and the lives of citizens, but they are up against big odds. Yet, they have acted bravely and with resolve to bring about change. We want to know about them, the drama they faced and the results they achieved. And, of course, the technology they used.

The winners of the Nextgov Awards will be honored at a luncheon at TechWeb's Gov 2.0 Expo in May. (Nextgov is a TechWeb partner for the event.) We'd love to see you there.

More to come.

During rush hour in Washington, a D.C. police officer texting while driving.

(The District of Columbia and 19 states ban texting while driving. The District and six states ban the use of cell phones while driving.)

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.

The confirmation of Johnson has grown increasingly heated, with President Obama jumping into the debate on Wednesday. According to Federal Times, the president, appearing at the Senate Democratic Policy Committee Issues Conference, said:

Nobody can tell me that there's anything particularly wrong with her. They're blocking her because of some unrelated matter. Don't hold this, this woman hostage.

The delay, since April 2009, was the possibly the cause behind resignaitons of at least two top execs at GSA. From Government Executive in January:

Danielle Germain, named GSA's chief of staff in June, stepped down, citing the lengthy delay in Johnson's nomination. Meanwhile, Barnaby Brasseux, who served as GSA's deputy administrator since September 2008, retired in early January.