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Daily Archives: October 2, 2011

New GAO Reports: Climate Monitoring, Decennial Census, Defense Logistics, Energy Star, Motor Carrier Safety, Streamlining Government

  • Climate Monitoring: NOAA Can Improve Management of the U.S. Historical Climatology Network, GAO-11-800, Aug 31, 2011
  • Decennial Census: Census Bureau and Postal Service Should Pursue Opportunities to Further Enhance Collaboration, GAO-11-874, Sep 30, 2011
  • Defense Logistics: Department of Defense Has Enhanced Prepositioned Stock Management but Should Provide More Detailed Status Reports, GAO-11-852R, Sep 30, 2011
  • Energy Star: Providing Opportunities for Additional Review of EPA’s Decisions Could Strengthen the Program, GAO-11-888, Sep 30, 2011
  • Motor Carrier Safety: More Assessment and Transparency Could Enhance Benefits of New Oversight Program, GAO-11-858, Sep 29, 2011
  • Streamlining Government: Key Practices from Select Efficiency Initiatives Should Be Shared Governmentwide, GAO-11-908, Sep 30, 2011
  • Veterans Disability Benefits: Clearer Information for Veterans and Additional Performance Measures Could Improve Appeal Process, GAO-11-812, Sep 29, 2011

ACLU Cell Phone Location Tracking Public Records Request

News release: “In a massive coordinated information-seeking campaign, 35 ACLU affiliates are filing over 381 requests in 32 states across the country with local law enforcement agencies large and small that seek to uncover when, why and how they are using cell phone location data to track Americans. The requests seek information from local law… Continue Reading

2011 Summary Report of SEC's Examinations of Each Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization

2011 Summary Report of Commission Staff’s Examinations of Each Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization, September 2011 Generally, the agencies vary in their focus on credit ratings for particular asset classes. Some agencies specialize in a particular class. Moody’s and S&P report issuing the greatest number of credit ratings for corporate issuers, asset-backed securities, and government… Continue Reading

Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E)- Plants Engineered to Replace Oil (PETRO)

“ARPA-E Director, Dr. Arun Majumdar announced 60 cutting-edge research projects worth a combined $156 million aimed at dramatically improving how the U.S. produces and uses energy. ARPA-E selections focus on accelerating innovations in clean technology while increasing America’s competitiveness in rare earth alternatives and breakthroughs in biofuels, thermal storage, grid controls, and solar power electronics.… Continue Reading

(Re)Forming the Jury: Detection and Disinfection of Implicit Juror Bias

Roberts, Anna, (Re)Forming the Jury: Detection and Disinfection of Implicit Juror Bias (September 29, 2011). Connecticut Law Review, Vol. 44, 2012. “This Article investigates whether one of the most intractable problems in trial procedure can be ameliorated through the use of one of the most striking discoveries in social science. The intractable problem is selecting… Continue Reading

Federal Reserve Bank of NY RFP: Sentiment Analysis And Social Media Monitoring Solution

Federal Reserve Bank of New York – Sentiment Analysis And Social Media Monitoring Solution. Request for Proposal (Event-6994) “Social media platforms are changing the way organizations are communicating to the public. Conversations are happening all the time and everywhere. There is need for the Communications Group to be timely and proactively aware of the reactions… Continue Reading

Finances of Selected State and Local Government Employee Retirement Systems: 2nd Quarter 2011

News release: “This quarterly survey provides national summary statistics on the revenues, expenditures and composition of assets of the 100 largest state and local public employee retirement systems in the United States. These 100 systems comprise 89.4 percent of financial activity among such entities, based on the 2007 Census of Governments. This survey presents the… Continue Reading

REVISED: New Economic Indicator Database Search Available from Census Bureau

News release: “On Sept. 26, 2011, we released a tip sheet notice highlighting the Census Bureau’s online tool for searching economic indicators. The tool currently searches on 12 but will be updated to allow searches on a 13th indicator (housing vacancies and homeownership). Below is the language of the notice revised to reflect this update.… Continue Reading

Pew: No Consensus About Whether Nation Is Divided Into 'Haves' and 'Have-Nots'

Pew Research Center: No Consensus About Whether Nation Is Divided Into ‘Haves’ and ‘Have-Nots’, September 29, 2011 “Despite an extended economic downturn, the public’s impression of whether the nation is economically divided remains relatively stable. While 45% say American society is divided between “haves” and “have-nots,” 52% say it is incorrect to think of the… Continue Reading

NARA – Online Access To The Founding Fathers Papers

News release: “The National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), the grant making arm of the National Archives, has signed a cooperative agreement with the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, affiliated with the University of Virginia, to provide pre-publication access to 68,000 historical papers of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George… Continue Reading