Topic:
Innovation and R&D
Latest Headlines
Latest Headlines
National Research Council outlines 10-year solar and space physics plan
The National Research Council is recommending a 10-year research path to studying the sun, including its connections with the Earth and its interactions with other bodies in the solar system in a new report . A team of about 85 solar and space physicists and space system engineers lay out four scientific goals for basic and applied research for the next 10 years, according to a National Research Council announcement describing highlights of the 454-page report.
Park: 'Go time' for innovation fellows
The White House announced Aug. 23 the inaugural class of Presidential Innovation Fellows. The group of 18 private-sector professionals will work for 6 months on one of five "tough but tractable challenges" the administration says will "provide immediate benefits and cost-savings to American citizens, entrepreneurs and businesses." The launch of the fellows program was a requirement of the White House's Digital Government Strategy . Since the Presidential Innovation Fellows program was announced May 23, the White House received more than 700 applications, said Federal CTO Todd Park.
Report: National Weather Service must prioritize and partner
The National Weather Service modernized its weather observing and forecasting systems in 2000, but is at risk of slipping behind once again if it does not prioritize its core capabilities and partner with other institutions, according to an Aug. 2 report from the National Research Council.
NNMI proposal could hinge on view of today's U.S. manufacturing sector
Whether or not members of Congress support the Obama administration's proposal for a $1 billion National Network for Manufacturing Innovation effort may depend on which side of a debate over the state of American manufacturing representatives fall, says the Congressional Research Service.Those of a view that U.S. manufacturing is in decline point to the decades-long overall decline of manufacturing jobs in the U.S. economy. At its peak, in June 1979, manufacturing employed 19.6 million Americans, 41 percent of the workforce.
Federal agencies lag in encouraging innovation
The federal government lags behind the private sector when it comes to encouraging employees to innovate--at least, according to public- and private-sector employees themselves. A study (.pdf) based on responses by federal and private-sector employees to the Office of Personnel Management's 2011 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey finds that 71 percent of respondents in the private sector said they feel encouraged to come up with new and better ways of doing things, while only 59.2 percent of federal employees could say the same thing.
NNMI funding a 'back of the envelope calculation,' says Holdren
Holdren said OSTP expects the program to have 15 institutes for manufacturing innovation spend approximately $30 million per year, over 5 years--totaling $2.25 billion, with $1 billion of that coming from government.
USAID uses data.gov for crowdsourcing
"People in the government have only used data.gov to open and release data. It's never been used as an interactive platform to actually crowdsource," said Stephanie Grosser, presidential management fellow at USAID.
Sustained DOE science funding necessary, says panel
Energy Department research facilities are currently some of the best in the world, but their place could quickly slip without continued, stable funding for the DOE office of science, said panelists during a June 21 hearing.
Nanotechnology risk research not always investigating risk, says GAO
Auditors say that any nanotechnology project even only vaguely connected to studying risks was classified by federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health as an environment, health and safety risk project.
NOAA looks to electronic monitoring of fisheries
After several pilot experiments, the service is ready to test on a wider scale electronic monitoring systems on halibut and sable fishing vessels, releasing June 14 a presolicitation for video systems planned for placement on up to 15 small boats in the Gulf of Alaska.
