/
White House Outlines 7 Strategies to Help Federal Agencies Develop Big Data R&D Plans
Published on
White House Outlines 7 Strategies to Help Federal Agencies Develop Big Data R&D Plans


big dataThe White House’s National Science and Technology Council has published a document that details seven strategies on how federal agencies can create and expand their individual research and development plans for big data programs.

NSTC said the Federal Big Data Research and Development Strategic Plan calls for agencies to increase investments in collection and analysis of large data volumes and leverage such data to develop new services.

Agencies should also back research on metadata frameworks as well as the use of machine learning systems in data-driven decision making process in order to “ensure the trustworthiness of information and knowledge derived from big data,” the council said in the document.

The council also recommended that federal agencies should build research cyberinfrastructure, establish policies and standards that facilitate data sharing and management in order to increase the value of information, as well as consider privacy, ethical and security concerns associated with the collection, use and sharing of big data.

Agencies are also encouraged to set up an education strategy in order to meet the demand for data scientists and big data professionals as well as engage in R&D partnerships through the creation of cross-agency development testbeds, policy development and establishment of benchmarking centers focused on big data, according to the report.

/
Navy Medicine Publishes Updated Zika Virus Guidelines for Staff
Published on
Navy Medicine Publishes Updated Zika Virus Guidelines for Staff


medical health doctorNavy Medicine posted an updated Zika virus mitigation guidance for U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps personnel on Thursday through a Navadmin message.

The Navy said Friday the updated Navadmin requires installation commanders to implement the defense secretary’s guidance to control virus-carrying mosquitoes at Navy installations and in housing areas while installation commanding officers should manage the coordination of public health emergency officers and installation vector control staff with state and local counterparts.

The service branch added its Bureau of Medicine and Surgery has directed Navy Medicine providers to comply with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention‘s guidelines.

“Navy Medicine implements the latest CDC guidelines and supports installation vector surveillance and control efforts; however, each member of the Navy and Marine Corps family must also do their part to ensure they are protected from the Zika virus,” said Alan Lam, BUMED deputy associate director for public health, emergency preparedness and response.

CDC recommends pregnant women avoid travel to places with active Zika virus transmissions such as areas in the Pacific Islands, the Caribbean and Central America and South America.

Pregnant women who travel in these areas should consult with Navy Medicine providers; choose accommodations with window and door screens; cover exposed skin; use Environmental Protection Agency-approved insect repellents and permethrin-treated clothing and equipment and avoid unprotected sex, the Navy added.

/
Gen. Joseph Votel: A-10 Aircraft at Turkey Base Runs 24/7 Operations Over Syria
Published on
Gen. Joseph Votel: A-10 Aircraft at Turkey Base Runs 24/7 Operations Over Syria


Incirlik Air BaseU.S. Army Gen. Joseph Votel, U.S. Central Command leader, has visited an army base in Turkey and met with U.S. Marine Corps EA-6 Prowler Squadron representatives as part of the general’s five-country trip, DoD News reported Friday.

Votel said operations from the Incirlik Air Base that deploy to Syria work on a 24/7 basis and include air support for the country’s democratic forces, according to the report by Cheryl Pellerin.

447th Air Expeditionary Group Commander Air Force Col. Sean McCarthy commands 12 each of the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft and KC-135 Stratotankers as well as 550 military personnel with approximately 350 members involved in A-10 maintenance and operations.

The Army also looks to address collateral damage through the A-10 weapons that use GPS- or laser beam-guidance as well as fuse delays, Pellerin added.

“The No. 1 thing when it comes to strikes is making sure we do as little damage as possible, especially killing civilians,” said Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Bill Mullen, central Iraq target engagement authority.

Army Implements New DoD Appraisal Program for Civilian Employees
Published on
Army Implements New DoD Appraisal Program for Civilian Employees


HRThe U.S. Army has begun to transition its civilian staff into the new Defense Performance Management and Appraisal Program for Defense Department employees.

The service branch said Wednesday it has transitioned and trained 3,100 Civilian Human Resources Agency staff into the new system and will continue implementation work for more than 200,000 civilians until June 2018.

The new program has a rating period that will run from April 1 to March 31 of the following year and employees who worked under an approved performance plan for a minimum of 90 calendar days will receive a rating based on a three-level pattern, the Army noted.

The ratings are Level 5 for “outstanding,” Level 3 for “fully successful” and Level 1 for “unacceptable,” the service branch added.

Military and civilian supervisors are required to complete a minimum of three formal documented performance discussions after every rating period with plans for employee performance and development as well as feedback and evaluation on employee performance.

Supervisors will also facilitate and document performance management activities through an automated appraisal tool or a hard copy form for those who do not have computer access, the Army noted.

/
Senators Seek to Elevate Cybercom to Combatant Command Through 2017 NDAA Amendment
Published on
Senators Seek to Elevate Cybercom to Combatant Command Through 2017 NDAA Amendment


Cyber CommandSenators have proposed a bipartisan amendment that they plan to integrate with the fiscal year 2017 defense policy bill in an effort to make the U.S. Cyber Command as a unified combatant command within the Defense Department, Defense News reported Wednesday.

Joe Gould writes Sen. Mark Warner (D-Virginia) said he agrees with Navy Adm. Michael Rogers, Cybercom chief, that the proposed move will help the military force respond and defend against cyber threats in the 21st century.

Warner co-sponsored the amendment with Sens. Steve Daines (R-Montana); Cory Gardner (R-Colorado); Joni Ernst (R-Iowa); Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut); Michael Bennet (D-Colorado); Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Ben Cardin (D-Maryland); and Senate Appropriations Committee ranking member Barbara Mikulski (D-Maryland).

The House version of the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act that passed the lower chamber last week contains a provision that would elevate Cybercom to a combatant command, according to Defense News.

Military.com: ‘Cannibalized’ Parts to Support Carrier Strike Group in Middle East Operations
Published on
Military.com: ‘Cannibalized’ Parts to Support Carrier Strike Group in Middle East Operations


U.S. NavyA fleet of ships including the Nimitz-class carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower that will sail to the Middle East to support airstrikes against the Islamic State group will be using second-hand parts from other operational units, Military.com reported Thursday.

Hope Hodge Seck writes U.S. Navy operational commanders disclosed this at a House subcommittee hearing as they discussed the current readiness status of service ships and aircraft as a result of reduced maintenance funding and sequestration.

Adm. Phil Davidson, commander of U.S. Fleet Forces Command, has said the command and U.S. Pacific Fleet have a maintenance and operations budget shortfall of $848 million.

Capt. Scott Robertson, USS Normandy commander, has added that 13 mission-essential parts were “cannibalized” from the guided-missile cruiser to support the Eisenhower carrier strike group deployment.

“If a part fails on a unit that’s operational, we look in the supply system, and the supply system says either there no parts available at all or parts are not going to be available for a few months,” said Capt. Gregory McRae, Submarine Squadron 6 commander.

He noted that parts are being salvaged from the submarine force at a rate of 1.5 per day to help fund current operations, the report said.

“Accepting these risks means accepting less readiness across the whole of the Navy,” Davidson added.

Pentagon Eyes European-Built Rockets to Launch Military Satellites
Published on
Pentagon Eyes European-Built Rockets to Launch Military Satellites


Defense Meteorological SatellitePentagon officials are investigating the use European-built rockets to launch U.S. military satellites to space as part of an effort to sever the nation’s reliance on Russian engines, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.

Claire Leon, U.S. Air Force’s rocket-acquisition officer, told a space conference that the military has kicked off a study on the feasibility of sending national security payloads into orbit with Arianespace-built rockets, Andy Pasztor reports.

The goal is to use the Ariane 5 launcher over the coming years for satellite launch missions until U.S. launch companies address the financial and technical issues surrounding their space launch initiatives, according to the report.

Pasztor writes the Air Force and Arianespace officials are set to conduct further negotiations and the study is still in an early stage.

Lawmakers who oversee military funding will have to approve that policy decision, the Journal reports.

Arianespace told the Journal that the company has carried national security payloads for NATO allies over the last 30 years and that the company is poised to provide backup launch for the U.S. if called upon.

/
NIH to Grant $142M to Mayo Clinic for Biological Sample Collection
Published on
NIH to Grant $142M to Mayo Clinic for Biological Sample Collection


HealthThe National Institutes of Health plans to award $142 million to the Rochester, Minnesota-based Mayo Clinic to collect, store and distribute biological samples or biospecimens to support research efforts under the Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort program.

NIH said Thursday the PMI Cohort program aims to study individual differences in health and disease through biospecimens, lifestyle and health questionnaires, medication history, electronic health records, physical exams and real-time physiology.

“The more we understand about individual differences, the better able we will be to tailor the prevention and treatment of illness,” said NIH Director Francis Collins.

The Mayo Clinic Florida Biospecimen Accessioning and Processing Core laboratory will work to store, analyze and give researchers access to more than 35 million biospecimens and associated data through laboratory automation and robotics, NIH said.

The clinic will also serve as a biobank that could store eight to 10 million samples — which make up 20 to 25 percent of the biospecimen collection — to protect them from natural disasters, the agency added.

NIH looks to announce grants for the PMI Cohort Program coordinating center, participant technologies center and healthcare provider organization enrollment centers to prepare for the program’s main launch later this year.

/
Peter Cook: Budget Woes Put Military Readiness, Training at Risk
Published on
Peter Cook: Budget Woes Put Military Readiness, Training at Risk


PentagonPentagon Spokesperson Peter Cook has reiterated that budget uncertainty will endanger the U.S. military’s readiness and training programs, DoD News reported Thursday.

Cook told reporters in Washington that the threat posed by sequestration to the readiness of the U.S. armed forces highlights the need to stabilize funding for defense operations, Lisa Ferdinando reports.

He said the Defense Department‘s $582.7 billion budget request for fiscal year 2017 accounts for the military’s needs and aims to address the services’ readiness requirements, according to the report.

Cook added that Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has maintained that modernization funding, force structure and readiness must continue after consulting directly with the services, DoD News reports.

/
Ashton Carter: DoD Should Accelerate Tech Dev’t Efforts
Published on
Ashton Carter: DoD Should Accelerate Tech Dev’t Efforts


Ashton Carter
Ashton Carter

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has visited the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport, Rhode Island, to receive a classified briefing on the facility’s unmanned undersea vehicle technology, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.

Jennifer McDermott writes Carter has said the Defense Department should emulate the NUWC facility’s efforts to accelerate the development of new technology.

Carter previously said at a meeting of the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee that DoD should look to the technology sector to adopt innovation approaches in order to keep pace with emerging threats.

“I’ve been pushing the Pentagon to think outside our five-sided box, and invest aggressively in innovation — from innovative people, to innovative technologies, to innovative practices,” he said, according to the report.

1 … 2,484 2,485 2,486 2,487 2,488 … 2,624