Linked Data LCSH & RAMEAU Now Link to Each Other: Implications for Legal Informatics

The Linked Data version of the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) and the Linked Data version of the French-language RAMEAU subject headings now link to each other. See, e.g., the link in the LCSH record for “subrogation” to the corresponding RAMEAU record, and the link in the corresponding RAMEAU record to the relevant LCSHRead… Read more »

CFR in XML Available for Bulk Download from GPO

The U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) for 2007-2009 is now available for bulk download in XML from U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) FDsys. Click here for the user guide. Why is this of potential interest to the legal community? First, attorneys, legal IT personnel, and law librarians can download the CFR in XML andRead… Read more »

To Serve the Dream of MLK

If I did my math right, Martin Luther King Jr. was 39 when he was killed – about the same age as me. In the roughly last decade of his life, he traveled a zilliion miles, presented his message of peaceful advocacy at over 2,500 speaking engagements, wrote 5 books and myraid articles, PLUS, heRead… Read more »

Law.gov: A Law-Related Open Government Data Project

[NOTE: Updated on 2 February 2010 to link to the Law.gov Project Google Group. Updated on 27 January 2010 to link to video and a summary of the Law.gov panel at the Princeton Open Government Workshop. Updated on 25 January 2010 to link to news about the National Inventory of Legal Materials. Updated on 23Read… Read more »

Expediting U.S. humanitarian assistance to Haiti?

So far I have heard very little mentioning of the possible use of the Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) regulation (15 CFR Part 700) to expedite deliveries of goods and services supporting the humanitarian efforts in Haiti. The DPAS, which is use routinely by the Department of Defense, allows for the placement of priorityRead… Read more »

In Challenging Times, No More “Inner Child”: Boldly Bring Your Inner Chutzpah

Over lunch, my agent posed a provocative challenge: “Write an article on chutzpah.” He believes the timing is right. In this difficult economy and uncertain times it’s certainly tempting to withdraw into a shell. But a better strategy might be a contrary one, throwing off the shell and putting yourself out there. One “chutzpah” sourceRead… Read more »

What would Martin Luther King Jr. say about the Open Government Directive? Are we on the right path?

“I Have A Dream” The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. August 28, 1963 “I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day thisRead… Read more »

RDF and Open Government Data

More often than not the topic of RDF (W3C’s Resource Description Framework) comes up soon after you get into any conversation about open government data. It comes up as the discussion strays into ways of making published datasets more valuable to developers and other potential consumers of any data that might be made available. WellRead… Read more »

January Twitter Senate Experiment Results

You may recall that I started an experiment on Twitter reaching out to Political accounts on twitter, feel free to read here for a reminder. The United States Senate was out of session when I launched this experiment and I will run it again in February. However, I wanted to quickly report the results asRead… Read more »