Hubbard Radio Washington DC, LLC. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
On Air: Federal News Network
Workforce
-
![]()
Prefunding USPS pension plans, says the Postal Service, is breaking them. Lorie Nelson, with the USPS OIG, has some surprising findings.
December 16, 2010 -
![]()
A new policy is promoting the use of unscheduled telework for employees with existing agreements when the Washington area faces weather or other emergency events. OPM also has redefined what it means when the government is closed due to natural or man-made incidents. The agency said the changes will help save employees\' vacation time and ensure the government is meeting its mission.
December 16, 2010 -
![]()
WFED\'s Jason Miller describes the new OPM guidance on telework during weather-related closings.
December 15, 2010 -
![]()
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration just completed its first joint international mission where telepresence was used to send data, including images from the seafloor in real-time, via satellite and high-speed Internet pathways to scientists in Exploration Command Centers around the world. The 2010 expedition was the maiden voyage of NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, which worked with the Indonesian Research Vessel Baruna Jaya IV. U.S. and Indonesian scientists worked side-by-side on both ships as well as in the shore-based command centers in Jakarta, Seattle, Silver Spring, MD and Kingston, RI, where they analyzed the data sent from the Okeanos Explorer\'s Remotely Operated Vehicle or ROV. The mission\'s goal was to study deep sea habitats and marine life in unknown ocean areas near Indonesia. \"In an incredible extension of telepresence technology, live images from the seafloor also went for the first time to scientists ashore beyond Exploration Command Centers,\" said NOAA scientist Steve Hammond, Ph.D., the expedition\'s U.S. chief scientist. \"One scientist at the University of Victoria shared the live seafloor video with her ocean science students and took still frames from the video to email to other ocean experts who could help with identifications. We had scientists of many disciplines in numerous locations all sharing comments in an online chat room as they viewed live video,\" he said. \"All those comments are time-coded to the video for further reference and research.\" NOAA had to make sure the images sent back using telepresence were the highest quality. The ROV that gathered the images, dubbed Little Herc, was given an extensive 4 month overhaul. According to NOAA, Little Herc boasted a new motor controller and power bottle system, an upgraded fiber optic multiplexer system, a new Ultra Short Baseline Tracking System (USBL), a full color imaging sonar, a new Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) sensor, two new single chip color CCD cameras, two new LED lights, two 400watt HMI Lights and a spectacular High Definition video camera, in addition to new tethers, new tether terminations, a new transformer, a new electrical junction box, new depth and altitude sensors, a new light bar and a new version of control software. Little Herc can travel down to a depth of 4,000 meters. The Okeanos Explorer is the only NOAA ship to have a dedicated ROV, which makes it easier to deploy at any time. On the Okeanos Explorer, there is an integrated control room for operating the ROV and for running telepresence communication. According to NOAA, having the screens and computers permanently wired to the ship makes it more efficient to sustain long-term exploration in remote areas of the world. Images from the seafloor also can go live into classrooms, newsrooms, and living rooms through the use of the telepresence technology. The application of telepresence technology for ocean science and exploration and for education and outreach was first envisioned by Robert Ballard, Ph.D., who partnered with NOAA to develop and refine the technology to bring underwater discovery to audiences ashore. Expedition scientists on this latest mission believe that high-definition video transmitted from the deep sea to scientists ashore in real-time provided a significant step forward in identifying marine animals, geologic features and other aspects of the deep regions of the Sulawesi Sea near Indonesia. \"We had a fantastic view of the summit area of Kawio Barat and the features we saw strongly suggest very recent volcanic activity at 6,200 feet,\" said David Butterfield, PhD., a scientist with NOAA\'s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle. \"Seeing an eruption at Kawaio Barat is a priority for future observations. Although 70 percent of Earth\'s volcanic activity takes place under the ocean surface, researchers have only observed active eruptions by two undersea volcanoes.\" NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer is operated, managed and maintained by NOAA\'s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, which includes commissioned officers of the NOAA Corps and civilian wage mariners. NOAA\'s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research is responsible for operating the cutting-edge ocean exploration systems on the vessel. It is the only federal ship dedicated to systematic exploration of the planet\'s largely unknown ocean. Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., the U.S. under secretary for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator says Okeanos is scheduled to return to Indonesia next summer to continue its mission.
December 15, 2010 -
![]()
The Office of Personnel Management provides a behind-the-scene look at how Director Berry plans to handle the winter ahead, introduces a new set of operating status notifications, and looks at the National Weather Service\'s long range forecast.
December 15, 2010 -
![]()
As proposed by the President, people who pay into Social Security would have their payroll tax cut by 2 percentage points next year. Those who don\'t pay into Social Security, like nearly 600,000 federal employees, would see no change. NARFE\'s Dan Adcock explains why there\'s grousing on both sides.
December 15, 2010 -
![]()
The agency issued a proposed rule expanding and clarifying what a positions could impact the country through access to information or weapons.
December 14, 2010 -
![]()
With the new telework bill signed into law, federal employees will soon have more opportunities to telework, and agencies have more incentive to invest in or increase their telepresence options. After the Senate passed the bill in September, the House followed suit in November. It was signed into law last week, and encourages federal employees to telework. Currently, about 5 percent of federal employees participate in some sort of telework plan, and agencies will have to improve their existing technology capabilities and options to meet the increase in participating employees. \"We\'re talking about bringing the government into the 21st century from a technology point of view and every other point of view,\" said bill sponsor Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) in an interview with Federal News Radio last month. \"The technology is moving so aggressively there\'s no reason not to have a good telework policy,\" Wolf said. Video teleconferencing is already a component of telework programs at many agencies, and has in some cases enabled greater allowance for teleworking. At the Defense Information Systems Agency, the desktop- and laptop- based telepresence has \"enabled our telework program to thrive, allowing DISA employees to fully participate in meetings, no matter where they are located,\" Colonel Brian Hermann, chief of the Net-Centric Enterprise Services branch. \"It allows off-site employees to \"participate fully in small-group meetings, including the use of whiteboarding and sharing presentations,\" Hermann said. Will other agencies follow suit? Stay tuned. Navy adding telepresence at National Naval Medical Center The National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda is looking to install a video teleconferencing room which will serve as the Admiral\'s Conference room. The conference room will be used for executive-level video teleconference and Board of Directors meetings, among others according to a solicitation posted to FedBizzOpps.gov.
December 14, 2010 -
![]()
Contract negotiations between SSA and AFGE won\'t be going forward without the help of a special mediator.
December 14, 2010 -
![]()
According to a new study from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the main benefit to people who work from home at least three days a week is a better balance between life and work.
December 14, 2010 -
![]()
Former OPM Director Linda Springer discusses her top story of 2010 in the DorobekINSIDER series \'2010 and Beyond.\'
December 13, 2010 -
![]()
Telework surfaces on the pay debate radar.
December 13, 2010 -
![]()
The report comes as Congress and the administration are considering a two-year pay freeze. The White House held 2011 locality pay at the 2010 levels. The council also wants to add six new cities to the locality pay list.
December 10, 2010 -
![]()
The Partnership for Public Service\'s Tim McManus explained the findings of a report on best practices for federal hiring.
December 10, 2010
