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Gen. Mark Milley: Long-Range Weapons Tech a Key Army R&D Area
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Gen. Mark Milley: Long-Range Weapons Tech a Key Army R&D Area


Gen. Mark Milley: Long-Range Weapons Tech a Key Army R&D Area
Mark Milley

Gen. Mark Milley, chief of staff at the U.S. Army, said at a recent House defense appropriations subcommittee hearing the service branch plans to invest in the research and development of long-range weapons technology, National Defense Magazine reported Monday.

“A subset of that is the hypersonics piece,” Milley told lawmakers.

“I believe we will be able to test and then acquire and procure long-range precision weapons that go significantly longer in range than any existing artillery system on the Earth today.”

The Army awarded General Atomics a three-year contract to help the service branch develop, integrate and test electromagnetic railgun.

Railgun projectiles are designed to travel at a speed of at least 3,800 miles per hour, the report noted.

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DoD Seeks Public Comments on Guidance for Unclassified Information
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DoD Seeks Public Comments on Guidance for Unclassified Information


DoD Seeks Public Comments on Guidance for Unclassified InformationThe Defense Department has requested public insight on its draft procurement guidance that requires the adoption of a National Institute of Standards and Technology rule that safeguards controlled unclassified information in non-federal systems and organizations.

The Defense Acquisition Regulations Systems said in a Federal Register notice posted Tuesday DoD drafted the document to streamline the evaluation process of system security plans and plans of actions on information systems, as well as to help implement untouched security requirements.

NIST Special Publication 800-171 requires non-federal agencies to create a system security plan that will include explanations on how the specified security requirements are met or are going to be addressed.

DoD intends to put value in assessing the risk of an unimplemented requirement on information systems and evaluating the risk of a deficient security prerequisite.

DoD will accept public comments through May 31.

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Former Acting CIO Scott Blackburn Expresses Optimism on VA’s EHR Contract Plans
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Former Acting CIO Scott Blackburn Expresses Optimism on VA’s EHR Contract Plans


Former Acting CIO Scott Blackburn Expresses Optimism on VA’s EHR Contract Plans
Scott Blackburn

Scott Blackburn, former acting chief information officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs, has said he is optimistic that DHS would advance the plan to award a contract to implement a new electronic health record system amid a series of leadership changes, Federal Times reported Monday.

“Things are still moving forward to the best of my knowledge, and I’m looking forward to seeing that contract signed in the next couple of months,” Blackburn said Monday at the Government Information Technology Executive Council summit.

Blackburn announced his resignation April 17 on Twitter weeks after President Donald Trump revealed his intention to nominate Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson, White House physician, as replacement to David Shulkin for the VA secretary role.

Shulkin said in March that VA has started integrating the 51 recommendations from the Mitre-led EHR interoperability review into a contract the department intends to award to Cerner.

The report noted that VA plans to align its EHR platform with that of the Defense Department.

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Paul Nakasone Confirmed to Lead NSA & Cybercom, Promoted to General
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Paul Nakasone Confirmed to Lead NSA & Cybercom, Promoted to General


Paul Nakasone Confirmed to Lead NSA & Cybercom, Promoted to General
Paul Nakasone

Paul Nakasone, formerly commander of the Army Cyber Command, has been confirmed by the Senate to serve as director of the National Security Agency and head of the U.S. Cyber Command.

Nakasone’s military rank will also change from lieutenant general to general, NSA said Tuesday.

The Hill reported that he will succeed the retiring Adm. Michael Rogers in the dual-hatted role and will be responsible for the U.S. government’s counterintelligence gathering operations.

Nakasone, a 2018 Wash100 recipient, previously served as commander of the Meade Operations Center at NSA and head of the cyber national mission force at Cybercom. He also held military intelligence roles in South Korea, Iraq and Afghanistan.

His Senate confirmation came two months after President Donald Trump nominated him for the position.

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Jim Bridenstine Takes Oath as NASA Administrator
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Jim Bridenstine Takes Oath as NASA Administrator


Jim Bridenstine Takes Oath as NASA Administrator
Jim Bridenstine

Jim Bridenstine took his official oath of office as the 13th NASA administrator at a ceremony that took place Monday at the space agency’s Washington headquarters.

Vice President Mike Pence swore in Bridenstine four days after the Senate confirmed him,  NASA said Tuesday.

Bridenstine told agency leaders during a video teleconference that the fiscal 2018 spending bill provides funds to help the agency pursue human spaceflight, aeronautics research and partnership efforts.

The former Oklahoma congressman served on the House Armed Services and Science, Space and Technology Committees.

He, a U.S. Navy Reserve pilot, previously worked as executive director of the Tulsa Air and Space Museum and Planetarium.

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Coast Guard Begins Data Networks Transition Under JRSS Initiative; Kevin Lunday Comments
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Coast Guard Begins Data Networks Transition Under JRSS Initiative; Kevin Lunday Comments


Coast Guard Begins Data Networks Transition Under JRSS Initiative; Kevin Lunday CommentsU.S. Coast Guard Cyber Commander Kevin Lunday announced the service has started transitioning its data networks to comply with the Defense Department’s Joint Regional Security Stacks initiative, FCW reported Monday.

Lunday disclosed in an email that the Coast Guard’s transition began with the migration to Windows 10.

“We are currently testing the migration of one of our Coast Guard connections to the rest of the DoD Information Network and out to the internet through a JRSS node,” he said.

Lunday added the service will possibly take advantage of the experiences of other military branches to streamline the migration, which the Coast Guard expects to complete by the end of 2019.

The service branch has been serving as a member of the DoD executive committee overseeing the JRSS program for 18 months.

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NGA Develops Web-Based Geospatial Data Sharing Platform; Robert Cardillo Comments
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NGA Develops Web-Based Geospatial Data Sharing Platform; Robert Cardillo Comments


NGA Develops Web-Based Geospatial Data Sharing Platform; Robert Cardillo Comments
Robert Cardillo

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has introduced an online platform designed to help users collaborate and share unclassified data for geospatial technology development efforts.

NGA said Monday it developed GEOWorks for organizations and individuals to collectively develop tools and services within a data science environment.

“Any U.S. company – large or small – or academic institution – or interested individual – can gain access to our data and tools – and build something,” NGA Director Robert Cardillo, a 2018 Wash100 recipient, told his audience during a keynote speech at the 2018 GEOINT Symposium.

Andy Spage, project manager of GEOWorks, said the new website also serves as a means to connect users to challenge-type contests and offer data tools to government agencies.

Persons who have a login.gov account can use the platform.

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Joseph Kernan Talks DoD’s Project Maven AI Effort at GEOINT Symposium
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Joseph Kernan Talks DoD’s Project Maven AI Effort at GEOINT Symposium


Joseph Kernan Talks DoD’s Project Maven AI Effort at GEOINT Symposium
Joseph Kernan

Joseph Kernan, defense undersecretary for intelligence, has said the Defense Department has initiated artificial intelligence programs and one of those is Project Maven, SpaceNews reported Monday.

Kernan said Monday at the 2018 GEOINT symposium in Florida that Project Maven has been tested in operations abroad and “extraordinarily” useful in intelligence data processing.

Project Maven, also known as the algorithmic warfare cross-functional team, aims to speed up conversion of large data volumes into actionable insights and intelligence and help DoD expedite the integration of machine learning and big data.

The AWCFT seeks to deploy a technology platform that will work to automate processing, exploitation and dissemination operations for mid-altitude full-motion video and tactical aerial drones in support of the campaign against the Islamic State militant organization.

Kernan, a retired U.S. Navy vice admiral, cited the benefits of AI software platforms.

“It’s about enabling analysts to use their cognitive process so they don’t have to jam and finger push things into a computer,” he said of AI software tools.

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DoD’s Innovation Org Creates New Acquisition Program
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DoD’s Innovation Org Creates New Acquisition Program


DoD's Innovation Org Creates New Acquisition ProgramThe Defense Innovation Unit Experimental has introduced a new program that aims to provide Defense Department acquisition professionals an opportunity to learn various methods used in the procurement of technology platforms and how they can work with tech companies, FedScoop reported Monday.

The chosen staff will stay at DIUx’s Mountain View, Calif.-based headquarters for four months to facilitate sharing of procurement ideas as part of the Hacking Acquisition program.

“I think what we hope to achieve is that one, they get a fundamental, foundational understanding of how to leverage different acquisition tools for different problems they’re trying to solve,” said Air Force Maj. David Rothzeid, pathways manager at DIUx.

DIUx plans to fill four slots as part of the initial pilot of the HACQer program and will accept applications for the initiative through May 4.

Rothzeid said DIUx expects the first selected acquisition professionals to arrive July 1 in California for the HACQer initiative.

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Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg to Serve as Mike Pence’s National Security Adviser
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Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg to Serve as Mike Pence’s National Security Adviser


Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg to Serve as Mike Pence's National Security Adviser
Keith Kellogg

Retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, formerly chief of staff and executive secretary at the National Security Council, has been appointed national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence.

The 36-year Army veteran will also continue to serve as an assistant to President Donald Trump, the White House said Monday.

He served as Trump’s national security adviser on an acting basis after Michael Flynn resigned in February of last year.

His military career has included two tours in the Vietnam War and leadership roles such as commander of the 82nd Airborne Division.

Kellogg was the director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s command, control, communications and computers directorate prior to his retirement.

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