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Cost Estimating NewsBrief: August 5, 2022
AI task force for Navy surface fleet devising comprehensive data catalog
(FedScoop) A Navy task force formed to operationalize artificial intelligence and machine learning across the surface fleet is steering efforts to fix data and lay the foundation for associated emerging technology applications in the near future. Effective AI depends on data that is “clean” or cohesive enough to build algorithms off of. Naval Surface Force components, which equip and staff warships ahead of their deployments to respective fleet commands for military operations, create and use heaps of data — but currently, it’s all pretty messy from an organizational perspective. Read More
DoD Needs Better Workforce Planning for Cloud Adoption, GAO Says
(FEDWeek) DoD is on track with requirements set by OMB for security and procurement considerations related to adoption of cloud computing but still has work to do regarding workforce planning aspects, the GAO has said. It said that partial progress has been made on identifying the future skills needed for cloud-based services and conducting regular evaluations of customer experiences and user needs but that DoD has not yet “developed and executed communication plans to inform employees of changes related to using these services. Addressing these workforce areas is essential to realizing the benefits of cloud computing,” a report said. Read More
Cloud Computing: DOD Needs to Improve Workforce Planning and Software Application Modernization
(Science Daily) Scientists and engineers are constantly developing new materials with unique properties that can be used for 3D printing, but figuring out howto print with these materials can be a complex, costly conundrum. Often, an expert operator must use manual trial-and-error — possibly making thousands of prints — to determine ideal parameters that consistently print a new material effectively. These parameters include printing speed and how much material the printer deposits. MIT researchers have now used artificial intelligence to streamline this procedure. They developed a machine-learning system that uses computer vision to watch the manufacturing process and then correct errors in how it handles the material in real-time. Read More
Lawmakers push Biden for an order to root out dark money from federal contractors
(FCW) Senate Armed Services Committee members are sounding an alarm on the United States’ capacity and infrastructure to test hypersonic systems, as the nation races against China and Russia to develop and field those advanced defensive and offensive weapons capabilities. Unlike warheads on detectable rockets for ballistic missiles used in previous conflicts, when in-the-making and ultramodern missiles reach and maneuver at hypersonic speeds — or more than 5 times faster than the speed of sound — they become almost impossible to track or deter. America has attempted to master hypersonic flight in fits and starts over the last few decades, but recently sharpened its focus and started massively boosting investments to enable associated assets, largely in response to its competitors’ ambitious programs pushing rapid development. Read More
These Are the Agencies Federal Employees Are Leaving at the Highest Rates
(NextgOV) Young federal employees are leaving the federal government at a rapid rate, with nearly 9% of those under 30 quitting in fiscal 2021. Governmentwide, according to a new report from the Partnership for Public Service that looked at voluntary quits and retirements, the attrition rate was 6.1% that year. While a slight increase from fiscal 2020, the figure is fairly steady from the pre-pandemic years. Some agencies and demographics, however, have experienced much higher turnover. The Veterans Affairs Department had the highest attrition rate in government, at 7.1%, followed by the Army, Air Force and Treasury Department. Read More
Rocket Lab launches US spy satellite on mystery mission
(Space.com) Another U.S. spy satellite has taken flight on a mystery mission. The U.S. National Reconnaissance Office’s (NRO) NROL-199 spacecraft launched today (Aug. 4) atop a Rocket Lab Electron booster from New Zealand, rising off the pad at 1 a.m. EDT (0500 GMT; 5 p.m. local time in New Zealand). If all goes according to plan, Rocket Lab will deploy the satellite about an hour after liftoff. The launch occurred about two days later than planned after high winds delayed an attempted liftoff on Aug. 2. Rocket Lab shut down its webcast shortly after the Electron reached orbit at the request of the NRO. Read More
Tonga eruption blasted unprecedented amount of water into stratosphere
(Terra Daily) When the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted on Jan. 15, it sent a tsunami racing around the world and set off a sonic boom that circled the globe twice. The underwater eruption in the South Pacific Ocean also blasted an enormous plume of water vapor into Earth’s stratosphere – enough to fill more than 58,000 Olympic-size swimming pools. The sheer amount of water vapor could be enough to temporarily affect Earth’s global average temperature. Read More
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