links for 2009-12-11

Integration, information sharing and interoperability across platforms for emergency services. All very important and good. Even if built on open-source, let's hope against technological lock-in.

What was up with federal CTO Aneesh Chopra nervously frat-giggling his way through the live video chat? It looked more like a PC vs Mac commercial than the announcement of, you know, an important government technology initiative.

"In 2001, during a conference sponsored by the European Science Foundation, four major impediments to the greater use of subsurface geological modeling by a broad spectrum of users were identified. These constraints were: (1) a lack of 3D/4D mathematical, cognitive, and statistical spatial tools, (2) a lack of cheap modeling tools designed for the shallow subsurface that can be operated without specialist personnel, (3) the inability of models to depict natural variability of geological systems, and (4) a shortage of case histories. By 2008, these constraints had been largely overcome with the use of new modeling software and techniques and, importantly, with an understanding of the needs of the client."