From Cairo to Wall Street to the West Bank, plotting a world of upheaval, by Dana Stuster – “This is what data from a world in turmoil looks like. The Global Database of Events, Language, and Tone (GDELT) tracks news reports and codes them for 58 fields, from where an incident took place to what sort of event it… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
CDC provides estimate of Americans diagnosed with Lyme disease each year
“Preliminary estimates released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that the number of Americans diagnosed with Lyme disease each year is around 300,000. The preliminary estimates were presented Sunday night in Boston at the 2013 International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and Other Tick-Borne Diseases. This early estimate is based on findings from… Continue Reading
Health Reform: Seven Things You Need to Know Now
Health Reform: Seven Things You Need to Know Now. “Consumer Reports has developed this brief guide to help you understand how the changes brought about by health reform, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010, will affect you and your family, now and in the future. Providing easy-to-understand comparative information to help consumers make the… Continue Reading
IRS IG – Desktop and Laptop Software License Management Is Not Being Adequately Performed
Desktop and Laptop Software License Management Is Not Being Adequately Performed, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, June 25, 2013. Reference Number: 2013-20-025. “The IRS is not adequately performing software license management and is not adhering to Federal requirements and recommended industry best practices. The IRS does not have enterprisewide or local policies, procedures, and… Continue Reading
New GAO Report – VA Health Care
VA Health Care: Actions Needed to Improve Administration of the Provider Performance Pay and Award Systems, GAO-13-536, Jul 24, 2013: “The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) performance pay policy has gaps in information needed to appropriately administer this type of pay. The performance pay policy gives VA’s 152 medical centers and 21 networks discretion in… Continue Reading
FACT SHEET on the President’s Plan to Make College More Affordable
“[August 22, 2013], President Obama outlined an ambitious new agenda to combat rising college costs and make college affordable for American families. His plan will measure college performance through a new ratings system so students and families have the information to select schools that provide the best value. And after this ratings system is well… Continue Reading
UK Guardian to share Snowden NSA documents with New York Times
Via the Guardian’s Lisa O’Carroll: “The Guardian has struck a partnership with the New York Times which will give the US paper access to some of the sensitive cache of documents leaked by the National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden. The arrangement was made when the Guardian was faced with demands from the UK government… Continue Reading
James River Bald Eagle Population Sets Record
By Dr Bryan Watts, Director, The Center for Conservation Biology “The bald eagle population along the historic James River has exceeded 200 pairs for the first time in written history. The 2013 aerial survey conducted by The Center for Conservation Biology recorded 205 pairs that produced 267 young. Areas supporting the highest densities include Charles… Continue Reading
How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2013
“After three decades of increases, adult obesity rates remained level in every state except for one, Arkansas, in the past year, according to F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America‘s Future 2013, a report from the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The full report is available here. Visit… Continue Reading
In U.S., Employment Most Linked to Being Depression-Free
Gallup – One in 10 Americans say they currently have or are being treated for depression, by Alyssa Brown and Kyley McGeeney WASHINGTON, D.C. — “For Americans, being unemployed, being out of the workforce, or working part time — but wanting full-time work — are the strongest predictor of having depression. Unemployed adults and those… Continue Reading
International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance
Final version 10 July 2013 –International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance: “As technologies that facilitate State surveillance of communications advance, States are failing to ensure that laws and regulations related to communications surveillance adhere to international human rights and adequately protect the rights to privacy and freedom of expression. This… Continue Reading
Digital Market Manipulation
Calo, M. Ryan, Digital Market Manipulation (August 15, 2013). University of Washington School of Law Research Paper No. 2013-27. Available at SSRN “Jon Hanson and Douglas Kysar coined the term “market manipulation” in 1999 to describe how companies exploit the cognitive limitations of consumers. Everything costs $9.99 because consumers see the price as closer to… Continue Reading
