Government Technology - October 2008 - (Page 52)

pectrum reports from the IT horizon —NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES spectrum ideas to managing editor Karen Stewartson kstewartson@ govtech.com Send j OCT_08 You’ve Got What’s in the Water? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has created a Web-accessible database for water-quality assessments and total maximum daily pollutant loads. The new site, www. epa.gov/waters/ir, improves access to state and local data and increases county leaders’ ability to make informed water-quality decisions, according to Carrie Clingan, National Association of Counties community service associate. The site lets users view dynamic, continuously updated tables and charts that summarize state-reported information for the whole nation, for individual states and waters, and for the 10 EPA regions. With the increase in broadband and wireless technology, it’s easier to connect to the Internet and appease users’ obsession with e-mail. The following shows what time of day users check their e-mail. Source: AOL e-mail addiction survey: Final Report. Upon waking 23% Mail 34% Ranking Government Readiness Respondents to a recent survey ranked governments more prepared for crises than commercial businesses or nonprofits. The survey was conducted for a crisis-readiness study published by New York University’s Center for Catastrophe Preparedness and Response and the Public Entity Risk Institute. Results are based on 468 responses from readers of Governing, MIT Sloan Management Review and Chronicle of Philanthropy. Crisis Readiness by Sector Sector Government Business Nonproﬁt Very ready 51% 20% 29% Somewhat ready 44% 21% 34% Not ready 15% 29% 56% During breakfast 8% During lunch 4% Throughout day Right when home from work 11% During dinner <0.5% Right after dinner 9% Right before bed 7% Throughout night 5% Tower of Power Construction is expected to start soon on the rotating Dynamic Tower in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which will use wind and solar power to generate more power than it consumes. Forty-eight wind turbines will be sandwiched between the tower’s 59 independently rotating floors. Each turbine will create 0.3 megawatts of power, and the structure’s roof will be covered by solar panels, adding to the overall power production. The tower’s designers say it will produce 10 times the energy it needs. A second Dynamic Tower is expected to be built in Moscow. — Blorge.com Protecting Your Palate European researchers developed a system for quickly spotting food-borne pathogens and contaminants in the field. A prototype of the new technology is designed to test food for campylobacter and salmonella — the most common culprits of food poisoning — in less than an hour. Researchers intend to test the device — described as a “lab on a chip” — in Danish poultry farms. The technology is a product of the European Unionfunded OptoCard project, an initiative to create chips that spot pathogens and contaminants in food and water supplies, as well as test human blood for cancer, hepatitis, AIDS and flu. The new test chip uses microelectromechanical systems, including sensors, fluid channels and optical components. — DAILY TECH 52 http://www.epa.gov/waters/ir http://www.epa.gov/waters/ir http://www.Blorge.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Government Technology - October 2008

Government Technology - October 2008 Contents Point of View On the Scene Big Picture Four Questions for... Letters Cover Stories: Border Crossing The Australian E-Connection Easy Rider Northern Exposure Technology on the Cheap Ditching the Desktop Heightening the Experience Pipe Dream Falling Between the Cracks Come Together, Right Now... It's a ... Car? Digital State of the Art Spectrum Products Two Cents signal:noise

Government Technology - October 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.