SDFM The Business of Defense
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Participants in the Health 2.0 Boston Big Data Code-a-Thon were challenged to create applications that turned large amounts of health data into usable information. The winner - the "No Sleep Kills" website, which teaches people about the dangers of not getting enough sleep. Developers used data from multiple sources including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to create the site.
June 04, 2012 -
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says he does not see the U.S. taking military action in Syria without the backing of a U.N. Security Council resolution. According to Reuters, Panetta says his greatest responsibility is to make sure that if U.S. troops are deployed in any military role, that America has the support it needs from the international community. His comments came after Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, suggested that some type of military intervention may be the only remaining option because diplomatic efforts so far have failed to remove Syrian President Bashar Assad from power.
June 04, 2012 -
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is trying to demystify cloud computing for federal agencies. They've just published the final version of a document called Cloud Computing Synopsis and Recommendations. In it, NIST aims to provide a plain-language breakdown of how clouds are deployed, what services they can offer, typical terms of service, and security issues. NIST says the publication is aimed at IT decision makers, designed to help them decide what cloud technologies and configurations will meet their needs.
June 01, 2012 -
The General Services Administration is moving its huge database of federal spending information to a big data cloud. The USASpending.gov site will make the move to a platform that can take in federal contract award information from a variety of sources and perform data analytics. The system is based on the Apache Software Foundation's open source Hadoop platform. USASpending lets users search for federal spending information, both prime contracts and subawards, by using simple keyword searches.
June 01, 2012 -
U.S. military officers are back on Pakistani soil. According to Reuters, this suggests the two sides may be working together more closely after a series of setbacks and the Pakistani government's insistence the U.S. apologize for the accidental killing of 24 Pakistan troops in a cross-border incident last year. Their jobs are to improve communications between ISAF personnel and Pakistani troops in Afghanistan. Yet to be resolved is the shutdown of the Pakistani border to shipments of supplies intended for NATO troops.
June 01, 2012 -
As Commissioner of Social Security, he has focused his efforts on reducing the disability backlog and improving service to the public, particularly through electronic services.
May 31, 2012 -
A soldier from northern Virginia has been killed in a helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan. According to the Associated Press, the Pentagon says that 51-year-old Chief Warrant Officer 5 John C. Pratt of Springfield was one of two soldiers who died Saturday in Kabul from injuries sustained in the crash. Also killed was 26-year-old Capt. John "Jay" Brainard II, of Newport, Maine, who was a helicopter pilot. Officials said the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter crashed while on patrol. Authorities were investigating the cause of the crash, but initial reports indicated there was no enemy activity in the area at the time the helicopter went down. The soldiers were assigned to the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade in Ansbach-Katterbach, Germany.
May 31, 2012 -
This week on AFGE's "Inside Government" Department of Defense Local 1708 President Bill McGuire and 4th District National Representative Kevin Droste detail the union's efforts to save 40 veterans' jobs at the Military Ocean Terminal Sunny Point in Southport, N.C. Charles Stephenson, co-author of "The Beat! Go-Go Music from Washington, D.C.," also discusses the birth of go-go in the District and how Chuck Brown inspired the city through music.
May 30, 2012 -
Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Policy and Services (10P), Veterans Health Administration Madhulika Agarwal, MD, MPH serves as the Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Policy and Services for the Department of Veterans Affairs.…
May 30, 2012 -
Mr. Carpenter was born in November 1964 and raised in New London, CT. He joined the U.S. Army in 1984 and served in Operation Desert Shield, Operation Desert Storm and Somalia as a Medic. In…
May 30, 2012 -
PAHM, Director of the My HealtheVet Program and Executive Sponsor of the Blue Button Department of Veterans Affairs Theresa Hancock is the Director of the My HealtheVet Program and Executive Sponsor of the Blue Button…
May 30, 2012 -
Chief of Staff Dr. Fletcher was appointed Chief of Staff, Washington DC VA Medical Center on January 1, 2000. Dr. Fletcher completed his M.D. Degree (AOA), medical house staff training, and first year fellowship at…
May 30, 2012 -
Tom Temin, of the Federal Drive, has an in depth discussion with the experts and users about the My HealtheVet program. He reviews the clinical applications of the new upgraded system and what that means for Veterans today and for the future.
May 30, 2012 -
The U.S. is returning to its maritime roots. The words Secretary Defense Leon Panetta used at the Naval Academy graduation yesterday. He said "one of the key projects that your generation will have to face is sustaining and enhancing American strength across the great maritime region of the Pacific," There were a total of 1,099 graduates, including 877 men and 222 women. 810 were commissioned as naval officers. 267 commissioned as officers in the Marine Corps, and some as officers in the Air Force and Coast Guard.
May 30, 2012 -
What makes an effective leader? Why pursue a career in public service? Over a dozen past and current government executives share their extended reflection on these questions and more.
May 24, 2012