Hack’s Haven

As I sit here with less than an hour on the clock before the weekend, I realize this is not an average Friday. After over thirteen years in my current division, next Monday I’m being kicked out of the proverbial nest. Assuming I don’t hit the ground and splat, I’ve been tasked […]

It was bound to happen eventually. I’ve been discovered buying “video game arcades” on the government dime. Before I’m sent to Guantanamo Bay how should I respond to this email?
Good Morning, Eric - On August 2, 2007, you made purchase card transactions in the amounts of $377.96 and $234.72 from Second […]

What started as a weekend getaway with the National Science Foundation has turned into a nine day marathon with connections in more government agencies than I knew existed. Granted, the inner workings of Uncle Sam were never my forte, but by the time this trip is over I hope to have the unnecessary ability […]

The concept of collective intelligence and the wisdom of crowds has been around for awhile, but rarely makes headwind into traditional science applications. I’d love to see the concept applied to weather models! Here is they layout:
Create an interface where visitors sign up for an account and provide basic social networking information. […]

Speaking of government involvement in virtual worlds, check out today’s announcement:
“There will be a U.S. Federal Government consortium organizational meeting for Second Life in Washington DC, July 11th from 1:00-4:00 at the National Defense University. The consortium hopes to find ways to share resources, work collaboratively on projects, streamline funding and contracting processes, […]

After much thought, NOAA has released their new purchase card policies. Here is one of the highlights from the document:
“A funding document for each transaction must be in the card holder’s file (i.e. e-mail with funds availability approval or other document executed by the appropriate individual with funds commitment authority)”
My […]

Certain federal agencies that will remain nameless haven’t had the best luck in the press over the last couple years due to the unfortunate conception that their science is controlled by politics. In my mind, this is partly due to applying traditional PR models to a little understood web 2.0 society.
Sadly, I’m pretty sure […]

While not as recognized as the DOD or IRS, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is yet another fine U.S. government agency. Thankfully, they don’t collect taxes on virtual profits or monitor virtual gambling habits. Instead, they are more interested in understanding the *real* Earth and fostering an environmentally literate society.
That said, […]

My first attempt at “machinima” designed to lower the entrance barrier for NOAA’s virtual land in Second Life. Be kind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is8YX32GAyQ

Hypothetical situation: I walk down a market street on a weekend shopping excursion. Without my knowledge, my geographical position is being monitored and recorded every few seconds. Business owners, or for that matter anyone willing to pay can reconstruct my shopping trip to determine which products I’m most likely to buy on my next visit […]