Ideas

Play Nice

Researchers have worked to find a link between violence in video games and aggressive behavior. The findings can be <a href=http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080418/005355882.shtml>conflicting and confusing</a>.

Ideas

Facebook and the Hatch Act

Marc Ambinder, who blogs for Nextgov sister site Atlantic.com, <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/03/state-department-removes-political-fan-pages-from-facebook-site/36984/">raises an issue</a> for agencies that have created a Facebook page -- which seems like just about every agency.

Ideas

Is Cybersecurity All Hype?

Wired's Ryan Singel wrote a long <a href=http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/03/cyber-war-hype/>post</a> in the site's Threat Level blog arguing that much of the concern over the security of the Internet is being fueled by federal contractors, which would benefit financially from the government pursuing policies to lock it down and to track 'Net users.

Ideas

That Silly Internet Thing

Our colleagues at Government Executive <a href="http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=44672&oref=todaysnews">point to a blog post</a> that highlights a 1995 <em>Newsweek</em> article on how the Internet will fail. A great line: " . . . no computer network will change the way government works."

Ideas

Time to Regulate Internet Security?

James Lewis, director of the technology and public policy program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and one of Washington's more respected cybersecurity experts, is on schedule to give testimony Tuesday afternoon at the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. The panel's topic: "Cybersecurity: Next Steps to Protect Our Critical Infrastructure." <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090401_6424.php>The Cybersecurity Act of 2009</a> will be a topic of conversation.

Ideas

Nominate a Colleague for an Award

Do you know a federal manager who recently took risks to push through a bold idea, policy or program that uses technology to make government work better or improve public services? If so, we'd like to hear your story by <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov_awards/>nominating</a> your colleague for a Nextgov Award.

Ideas

NASA's Version of R2

NASA and General Motors Corp. unveiled on Thursday a robot the two organizations have developed for use in space exploration and car manufacturing. What's striking about Robonaut 2 is the dexterity of its fingers, although its thumb is rather elongated. The YouTube video below shows R2, as it is referred to, gently moving back a piece of cloth to pick up a manila envelope.

Digital Government

Announcing: The Nextgov Awards

Nominate someone as we recognize innovative, brave and bold federal managers.

Ideas

Announcing: The Nextgov Awards

Nextgov has launched the <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov_awards/>Nextgov Awards</a>, an inaugural program to recognize federal managers who have shepherded a program, policy or management practice that is not only innovative, but bold and brave.

Ideas

Sight of the Day

During rush hour in Washington, a D.C. police officer texting while driving.

Ideas

Johnson to GSA by Friday?

Martha Johnson, whose confirmation to head the General Services Administration has been held up for months by Senate Republicans, may be at work as early as Friday, say sources knowledgeable about the process. The Senate is expected to vote to close debate and move on her confirmation via unanimous consent.

Ideas

Geeks Are Studs

For decades, computer geeks - the pocket-protector crowd -- have been considered the bottom feeders in the dating ocean. (We're talking about men, here, not the female techies.) But guys take heart. Technologists just actually may be more attractive to women than their rivals in other occupations.

Ideas

Obama Year One: An Assessment

Wednesday marks the one-year anniversary of President Obama's inauguration and it comes at a time when reports indicate the public is dissatisfied with the president's performance, especially with its overhaul of the health care system.

Ideas

The Flash Drive Is the Computer

Flash drives have caused many information security officers headaches. But now Lockheed Martin Corp. says it has developed a USB drive, called "Iron Clad" that, according to Reuters:

Ideas

TSA: The Tech Vs. Human Argument

Slate held a contest for readers to submit ideas on how the Transportation Security Administration could improve security at airports. The site received 375 submissions, which were judged by a panel of four judges:

Ideas

Haiti: What Agencies Are Tweeting

Jose Antonio Vargas at the Huffington Post reminded readers about the power of the Web and social networking during times of natural disasters, such as the earthquake in Haiti:

Ideas

Acquisitions Solutions Buys Consulting Firm

Acquisition Solutions Inc. purchased nearly all of the assets of ICOR Partners LLC, a government consulting firm, and has created a business unit to specialize in management solutions. Acquisition Solutions provides agencies with training sand program management services, development of contract requirements, and process improvement and other contracting support. ICOR offers enterprise architecture, governance, business transformation, performance and portfolio management advice.

Ideas

A Discussion on the IT Budget -- 2

Bob Evans, senior vice president and content director at TechWeb, and I have been discussing federal IT spending -- too much, not enough, or how do you know? It was prompted by a <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=222200171">blog item</a> he posted on Jan. 5. We started the <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=222200171">e-mail discussion</a> shortly after.

Ideas

A Discussion on the IT Budget

Bob Evans, senior vice president and content director at TechWeb, this week took on Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=222200171">in his blog</a> for adding $5 billion to -- rather than cutting -- the $76 billion federal information technology budget.

Ideas

Would-be Bomber Fallout Piles Up

<em>New York Times</em> columnist Maureen Dowd pointed out in <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/30/opinion/30dowd.html?_r=1">her Wednesday column</a> the incongruity of a President Obama's technological savvy and his inability to prod agencies to move out of the past: