Bureau of the Public Debt – Areas for Improvement in Information Systems Controls, GAO-12-616R, May 24, 2012 Information Technology – HUD’s Fiscal Year 2011 Expenditure Plan Satisfies Statutory Conditions, GAO-12-654, May 24, 2012 Information Technology Reform – Progress Made; More Needs to Be Done to Complete Actions and Measure Results, GAO-12-745T, May 24, 2012 Uranium… Continue Reading
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Monthly Archives: May 2012
Report – Condition of Education 2012
The Condition of Education (COE) is a congressionally mandated annual report, from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), that summarizes important developments and trends in education using the latest available statistics. “Only 16 percent of high school students were employed in 2010, compared to 32 percent in 1990….The report looks at how high school… Continue Reading
UN – World Urbanization Prospects, the 2011 Revision
World Urbanization Prospects, the 2011 Revision, April 2012 “Africa and Asia together will account for 86 per cent of all growth in the worlds urban population over the next four decades, adding that this unprecedented increase will pose new challenges in terms of jobs, housing and infrastructure. Africas urban population will increase from 414 million… Continue Reading
Gulf Kaleidoscope: Reflections on the Iranian Challenge
Gulf Kaleidoscope: Reflections on the Iranian Challenge, by Jon B. Alterman, May 21, 2012 “As the world works to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, there is widespread agreement on what failure looks like. Understanding alternative outcomes and ways to accomplish them can help prevent the worst outcomes from coming to pass…This volume is… Continue Reading
World Bank Group Finds over 80 percent of Investment Promotion Agencies Efforts Falling Short
News release: “Even as countries compete to attract investments, 80 percent of national investment promotion agencies are failing to respond to investor inquiries in the key sectors of agribusiness and tourism, according to the World Bank Groups Global Investment Promotion Best Practices 2012 report. The report assessing 189 economies responsiveness to investors finds that investment… Continue Reading
New Paper – Unveiling the Revolutionaries: Cyberactivism and Women's Role in the Arab Uprisings
“Over the course of 2011’s momentous Arab Spring uprisings, young women in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Bahrain and Yemen used social media and cyberactivism to carve out central roles in the revolutionary struggles under way in their countries, according to a new study commissioned by Rice Universitys Baker Institute for Public Policy. The study, Unveiling the… Continue Reading
From Fingerprints to DNA: Biometric Data Collection in U.S. Immigrant Communities
“Today the Immigration Policy Center (IPC) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) release From Fingerprints to DNA: Biometric Data Collection in U.S. Immigrant Communities and Beyond. The paper outlines the current state of U.S. government collection of biometric information and the problems that could arise from these growing databases of records. It also points out… Continue Reading
Digital Government: Building a 21st Century Platform to Better Serve the American People Strategy
“The Digital Government Strategy complements several initiatives aimed at building a 21st century government that works better for the American people. These include Executive Order 13571 (Streamlining Service Delivery and Improving Customer Service), Executive Order 13576 (Delivering an Efficient, Effective, and Accountable Government), the Presidents Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government, OMB Memorandum M-10-06 (Open… Continue Reading
Horizontal drilling boosts Pennsylvanias natural gas production
Follow up to previous postings on fracking, from EIA, Horizontal drilling boosts Pennsylvanias natural gas production: “Between 2009 and 2011, Pennsylvania’s natural gas production more than quadrupled due to expanded horizontal drilling combined with hydraulic fracturing. This drilling activity, which is concentrated in shale formations that cover a broad swath of the state, mirrors trends… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – 401(k) Plans, Military Disability System, Public Service, Streamlining Government, VA Dialysis Pilot
401(k) Plans – Increased Educational Outreach and Broader Oversight May Help Reduce Plan Fees, GAO-12-325, Apr 24, 2012 401(k) Plans – Survey of 401(k) Plan Sponsors on Fees (GAO-12-550SP, April 2012), an E-supplement to GAO-12-325 GAO-12-550SP, Apr 24, 2012 Military Disability System – Preliminary Observations on Efforts to Improve Performance, GAO-12-718T, May 23, 2012 Public… Continue Reading
Energy prices jump while food prices show modest increases
Energy prices jump while food prices show modest increases, Jonathan Church “The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services. Produced monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the CPI uses a market… Continue Reading
CRS – Intelligence Authorization Legislation: Status and Challenges
Intelligence Authorization Legislation: Status and Challenges – Richard F. Grimmett, Specialist in International Security. May 21, 2012 Continue Reading
