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On Air: Federal News Network
Federal Insights
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Seth Diamond Executive Deputy Commissioner New York City Department of Social Services
May 03, 2010 -
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The World Bank Group recently made many of its statistical databases available to the public online. The site is data-dot-worldbank-dot-org and is a place for global crowdsourcing. The move has required the cooperation of several governments and groups, reaching across the span of several cultures and languages. Some two-thousand indicators will become available that could be of help to researchers, journalists, nongovernmental organizations, entrepreneurs, and students. Bank officials say the data is arranged in a variety of ways. Users can search by country name for information on health, education, environment, standard of living, cost of living and other indicators. The website also comes with a variety of interfaces that allow a user to manipulate the data in a variety of ways. The site is part of the World Bank\'s broader Access to Information policy set to be launched July first.
May 02, 2010 -
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A new form of platinum that could be used to make cheaper, more efficient fuel cells has been created by researchers at the Department of Energy\'s S-L-A-C National Accelerator Laboratory and the University of Houston. The process could help enable broader use of the devices, which produce emissions-free energy using hydrogen. Fuel cells hold significant promise for clean energy because the cell\'s only byproduct is water. But current fuel cell designs can require as much as 100 grams of platinum, pushing their price tags into the thousands of dollars. By tweaking platinum\'s reactivity, the researchers were able to curtail the amount of platinum required by 80 percent, and hope to soon reduce it by another 10 percent, greatly trimming away at the overall cost.
May 02, 2010 -
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Commerce Secretary Gary Locke has announced that nine American Recovery Act investments will go to help bridge the technological divide and boost economic growth nationwide, meeting several goals of that Department. More than $114 million dollars will be awarded to increase broadband access, and adoption, in more than a dozen states. The grants will fund projects that lay the groundwork to bring enhanced high-speed Internet access to thousands of households and businesses and link hundreds of schools, hospitals, libraries, and public safety offices through the internet. All told, the Department has awarded 82 Broadband Technology Opportunities Program grants worth a total of $1.2 billion dollars to expand broadband access through projects in a majority of states and territories.
May 02, 2010 -
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The United States plans give the Pakistani government $600 million to pay for military operations they\'ve undertaken in the last 12 months. A pentagon spokesman says, \"There has been some concern on the Pakistani\'s part about the rate at which they are reimbursed for Coalition Support Funds for their efforts in the war on terror on our behalf within their borders.\" The U.S. owes Pakistan about $2 billion dollars.
April 30, 2010 -
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James Cameron Director, \"Avatar\" John Berry Director, Office of Personnel Management Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) Sharon Pinnock Director, AFGE Membership and Organization Department Perry Pidgeon Hooks President, Hooks Book Events Bob Hill Financial Advisor, First Command
April 29, 2010 -
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Former Pakistani Military Ruler and then President Pervez Musharraf is said to be exploring a return to power in Pakistan. Musharraf has been living in London since he left office in 2007. He could face criminal charges if returns to the country. Pakistani sources say he\'s planning to move to Middle east shortly and launch a new political party. Pakistani political observers the former military ruler would face difficult circumstances if he tried to re-enter politics.
April 29, 2010 -
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April 26th and April 28th, 2009 Michelle Moore Federal Environmental Executive, Executive Office of the President Office of the Federal Environmental Executive
April 28, 2010 -
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Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he\'s satisfied with Pentagon planning to counter the threat posed by Iran\'s nuclear program. During a joint news conference at the Pentagon with Israeli defense minister Ehud Barak, Gates also said, \"We are at a point now where Hezbollah has far more rockets and missiles than most governments in the world.\" Those weapons are a clear threat for Israel. Barak said Israel was closely watching Hezbollah.
April 28, 2010 -
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Officials from the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve System and the Secret Service have unveiled the new design for the $100 note, complete with advanced technology to combat counterfeiting. Among new security features in the redesigned note are a 3-D Security Ribbon and the so-called \"Bell in the Inkwell.\" The blue Ribbon on the front of the bill contains images of bells and the number 100 that move and change as you tilt the note. The Bell in the Inkwell changes color from copper to green when the note is tilted, an effect that makes it seem to appear and disappear within a copper inkwell. The new security features come after more than a decade of research.The new note will be issued on February 10th of 2011.
April 26, 2010 -
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The U.S. Geological Survey has awarded $2.7 million in cooperative agreements under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to several American universities and UNAVCO, Incorporated, to improve networks that detect minute changes in the earth\'s crust caused by faulting in earthquake-prone regions. The agency says monitoring the changes - undetectable except through the methods of advanced technology - is an integral part of assessing the likely rate of large earthquakes. They say, for optimal performance in real time, many existing monitoring stations will need modern sensors and improved communication systems. Funds provided through six cooperative agreements will improve monitoring capabilities by replacing obsolete sensors.
April 26, 2010 -
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In observation of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, the Vice President\'s Office announced the selection of 25 communities for up to $452 million in Recovery Act funding to \"ramp-up\" energy efficiency building retrofits. Under a Department of Energy initiative, communities, governments, private sector companies and non-profits will work together on programs for concentrated retrofits of neighborhoods and towns - and eventually entire states. Meeting one of the Energy Department\'s missions, the models are expected to save households and businesses about a $100 million annually in utility bills, while leveraging private sector resources, to create what could be as many as 30,000 new jobs over the next three years.
April 26, 2010 -
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A nuclear arms race in the Middle East is one of the biggest concerns among western diplomats. Iran is at the center of this issue. Experts like Dr. David Kay, a former U.N. weapons inspector have said repeatedly that if Iran is successful in building a nuclear weapon, other countries in the region will feel compelled to do the same just to protect themselves. As a result, the Saudi press agency reports officials there have established a renewable energy complex, confirming the country\'s interest in nuclear energy.
April 26, 2010
