The Guardian, Oliver Balch: “The world’s first monitoring tool providing ‘near real time’ data on changes in forest cover could change how companies track deforestation in their supply chains. A new global mapping service…launched today, Global Forest Watch is pitched as the world’s first monitoring tool providing ‘near real time’ data on changes in forest cover. The brainchild of the World… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
New GAO Report – Plutonium Disposition Program
PLUTONIUM DISPOSITION PROGRAM: DOE Needs to Analyze the Root Causes of Cost Increases and Develop Better Cost Estimates, GAO-14-231: Published: Feb 13, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 13, 2014. “The Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) identified various drivers for the close to $3 billion increase in the estimated cost of the Plutonium Disposition program’s two… Continue Reading
Feasibility study on approaches to aggregate OTC derivatives data
Consultation Paper – Feasibility study on approaches to aggregate OTC derivatives data. Financial Stability Board. February 4, 2014. “A good deal of progress has been made in establishing the market infrastructure to support the commitment that all contracts be reported to TRs. However, the data will be reported to multiple TRs located in a number of jurisdictions. The… Continue Reading
Laws Affecting the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program
CFR – Laws Affecting the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. Annie L. Mach, Analyst in Health Care Financing. Ada S. Cornell, Information Research Specialist, February 18, 2014 “The Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) has been in existence for over 50 years. Since its creation, it has provided private health insurance coverage to federal employees, annuitants, and their dependents. It is… Continue Reading
Women in Science and Technology: What Does the Literature Say?
Inter-American Development Bank – Women in Science and Technology: What Does the Literature Say? Tacsir, Ezequiel; Grazzi, Matteo; Castillo, Rafael. Feb 2014 “Skill gaps are a key constraint to innovation, hindering productivity growth and economic development. In particular, shortages in the supply of trained professionals in disciplines related to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) may weaken the innovation potential… Continue Reading
New Report on Impact of Camp Lejeune Past Water Contamination
Evaluation of mortality among marines and navy personnel exposed to contaminated drinking water at USMC base camp Lejeune: a retrospective cohort study, Environmental Health 2014, 13:10 doi:10.1186/1476-069X-13-10 “Two drinking water systems at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina were contaminated with solvents during 1950s-1985…There were 8,964 and 9,365 deaths respectively, in the Camp Lejeune and… Continue Reading
EIA – Syria Country Analysis Brief
Report – “Syria’s energy sector is in turmoil because of the ongoing hostilities between government and opposition forces. Syria’s oil and natural gas production has declined dramatically since March 2011 because of the conflict and because of the subsequent imposition of sanctions by the United States and European Union in particular. Syria’s energy sector is… Continue Reading
Who’s Borrowing Now? Change in Debt by Credit Score and Age Group
“The New York Fed’s Household Debt and Credit Report for 2013Q4 shows that net aggregate household borrowing has resumed, and our blog post discusses who is driving this change and how it compares with 2006. The charts here show contributions to changes in balances by borrower age and credit score (we use the Equifax Risk Score for these) for… Continue Reading
Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee, January 28-29, 2014
“The Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday released the attached minutes of the Committee meeting held on January 28-29, 2014. The minutes for each regularly scheduled meeting of the Committee ordinarily are made available three weeks after the day of the policy decision and subsequently are published in the Board’s Annual… Continue Reading
Emerging Nations Embrace Internet, Mobile Technology
Pew Report – Cell Phones Nearly Ubiquitous in Many Countries – “In a remarkably short period of time, internet and mobile technology have become a part of everyday life for some in the emerging and developing world. Cell phones, in particular, are almost omnipresent in many nations. The internet has also made tremendous inroads, although most… Continue Reading
EFF – A Massive Expansion of Plate Data Collection
National License Plate Recognition Database: What It Is and Why It’s a Bad Idea: “…Automated License Plate Reader or ALPR cameras already scan and record the plates of millions of cars across the country. Law enforcement agencies in large metropolitan areas like Los Angeles and New York have databases of millions of plates—and these databases will only increase in size… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – IRS’s Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program, Medicaid, Oil and Gas
IRS’S OFFSHORE VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE PROGRAM: 2009 Participation by State and Location of Foreign Bank Accounts, GAO-14-265R: Published: Jan 6, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 19, 2014. MEDICAID: Demographics and Service Usage of Certain High-Expenditure Beneficiaries, GAO-14-176: Published: Feb 19, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 19, 2014. OIL AND GAS: Interior Has Begun to Address Hiring and Retention Challenges but Needs to Do More, GAO-14-205: Published: Jan… Continue Reading
