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Bob Brewin

Editor at Large

Bob Brewin joined Government Executive in April 2007, bringing with him more than 20 years of experience as a journalist focusing on defense issues and technology. Bob covers the world of defense and information technology for Nextgov, and is the author of the “What’s Brewin” blog.

Results 2391-2400 of 2537

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Homeland Security plans to modernize Coast Guard navigation system

February 12, 2008 The Homeland Security Department plans to modernize and upgrade the Coast Guard's terrestrial Long Range Navigation (LORAN) system to serve as backup to the satellite-based Global Positioning System, which is used for navigation to determine location and precise timing information. The decision ended a cliffhanger policy-making process that started in ...

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Defense agency submits blast-proof budget request for White House communications

February 12, 2008 The 2009 budget of the White House Communications Agency offers rare insights into communications systems used by the president and other top federal officials, including development of a nationwide network capable of operating after exposure to a potentially crippling high-altitude electromagnetic pulse (HEMP) from a nuclear blast. WHCA, managed by ...

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Defense Information Systems Agency seeks big budget boost

February 5, 2008 The need for more telecommunications and computer networks to support the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have caused the Defense Information Systems Agency to request a sharp increase in its fiscal 2009 operations and maintenance budget. DISA's fiscal 2009 operations and maintenance budget request tops $1.2 billion, a 30 percent ...

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VA slated for big technology budget boost

February 4, 2008 The Veterans Affairs Department would see a nearly 18 percent jump in its information technology budget if Congress approves President Bush's fiscal 2009 budget request. In contrast, the proposed tech budget for the Pentagon is just 2 percent higher than last year's figure -- despite the department's overall $515 billion ...

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FDA seeks budget increase for food, medical product inspections

February 4, 2008 The Food and Drug Administration has asked in its fiscal 2009 budget request for a multimillion-dollar increase to improve its food inspection and medical product approval process. FDA asked for a $42.2 million increase in its 2009 food supply protection budget, which will allow it to hire an 94 more ...

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VA urged to use advanced technology to cut backlog of benefit claims

January 30, 2008 Advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence could help the Veterans Affairs Department reduce a backlog of disability claims that has spiked past 1 million, according to computer experts and veterans advocates. The Veterans Benefits Administration, which processes the claims, has a backlog of 650,000 pending claims and another 147,000 that ...

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Air Force employee celebrates 60 years of federal service

January 29, 2008 When Bettye Krieter started her federal government career in 1948, it cost 3 cents to mail a first-class letter and she worked on a Royal typewriter. Today it costs 41 cents to mail a first-class letter and typewriters are viewed as museum pieces. But one thing has not changed in ...

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FDA panel cites shortfalls in technology, staffing

January 29, 2008 The Food and Drug Administration faces shortfalls in staffing and information technology, which have resulted "in a plethora of inadequacies that threaten our society," according to a report by the agency's Science Board. The board also concluded that "an information crisis is putting the FDA's mission at risk." The report ...

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NOAA names new National Hurricane Center director

January 28, 2008 The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has named Bill Read director of its Tropical Prediction Center, which includes the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The post has been vacant since NOAA removed the previous director, Bill Proenza, last summer. Read has served as the center's acting deputy director since August ...

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Genome project to require Google-like computing power

January 24, 2008 An ambitious project with the goal of producing a more detailed understanding of the link between genetic variations and susceptibility to disease will require an unprecedented amount of computing power and terabytes of data storage, according to the leaders of the project. The 1,000 Genomes Project, announced earlier this week ...