If you want to know about major innovation in the public sector then look to NASA. The space agency is a crown jewel of government innovation and a global role model for groundbreaking scientific research and discovery. NASA serves as a reminder to America of what’s possible when Uncle Sam harnesses his full potential, asRead… Read more »
More than two-thirds of NASA employees are scientists and engineers, and NASA has one of the oldest workforces in the federal government – many of whom are nearing retirement. So what’s the plan for recruiting new scientific, engineering, and medical leadership talent? Dr. Gina Scott Ligon, along with her University of Nebraska at Omaha colleaguesRead… Read more »
My last post explored the question: Is the government equipped to compete in scientific research? While we looked at both sides of the argument, perhaps the better answer is that things aren’t so black and white. Perhaps the answer lies in the shades of gray, that government is well-equipped for research in some areas andRead… Read more »
Many of you work in scientifically-oriented agencies. These agencies have many functions, one of which is often scientific research. And yet, while we often hear about innovations made by prominent university professors at top-tier schools, or the latest drug breakthrough from a pharmaceutical company, it is less often that we hear about the achievements ofRead… Read more »
Announcing beta.usgs.gov In 1994 when the USGS launched it’s first website, the web was a very different place. Many websites that were launched had little consideration given to, or even had an understanding of, things such user experience, content strategies, or design. Over the next 20 years our USGS web presence has grown immensely asRead… Read more »
Data science has many analytical methods which can make the field sound very mysterious. Methods such as K-Means Clustering, Naïve Bayes Classifier, and Random Forests. The math behind the methods can be complex but for many methods, the concepts are easy to understand. Especially when you know what question the method is being used toRead… Read more »
So, it has been a while since I’ve regularly blogged on GovLoop. It has been a busy 2013 as I’ve been concentrating on building up a data science function in my agency. Recently, I have given a couple of talks on big data and data science which have shown me the need to educate theRead… Read more »
STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math – are career fields in the U.S. jobs market that tripled in recent years. In fact, current projections are that the demand for these skills will outstrip the supply by at least one million jobs. Since the late 1950s, after the Russians launched Sputnik to the surprise ofRead… Read more »
Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory will lead a study into the surfaces of asteroids and the moon for NASA as the agency aims to explore those areas with humans and robots. The five-year initiative aims to build on APL’s previous Lunar Science Institute project for NASA that sought to learn more about the geologyRead… Read more »
Recently, I was asked to speak about thoughts on the future of data science and data scientists to a government audience. Not being a data scientist myself, rather carving my niche in the world as a solution architect turned evangelist, I pondered on a number of alternative messages I could share with the audience. QuiteRead… Read more »