It turns out a little knowledge can indeed be a dangerous thing.

That’s something the Army Research Laboratory (ARL) discovered when testing the value of artificial intelligence (AI) as an aid to battlefield decision-making. Researchers from ARL and the University of California, Santa Barbara, found in a series of test scenarios that people trust their own judgement more than they trust an AI’s advice. This was true even when an AI agent provided perfect guidance,  and when ignoring that advice led to negative results. People might trust an AI personal assistant to recommend a movie or the best way to drive to the theater, but not so much when they have skin–or their own skin–in the game. […]

The Technology Modernization Fund’s (TMF) website shows minimal or no spend thus far on the projects for which $89 million of funding has been awarded. […]

In late January, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) issued a solicitation to invite submissions of innovative basic or applied research concepts in neurotechnology. […]

The White House Executive Office of the President (EOP) extended the deadline for a sources sought notice about contractor support for developing and maintaining applications for the Executive Office of the President. The deadline for industry response is February 20. […]

The EastWest Institute (EWI) on Thursday released a new report providing guidance on how to make tomorrow’s “smart cities” secure and safe through effective technology management by executives and administrators. […]

The Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released a presolicitation notice for procurement of Priority Telecommunications Services (PTS) for the agency’s Emergency Communications Division (ECD). The notice does not include a response due date. […]

President Trump signed legislation today that fully funds Federal government agencies and operations through Sept. 30 – putting an end to nearly two months of funding disruption and anxiety that included the 35-day partial shutdown of agencies and impacted about one quarter of the Federal civilian workforce. […]

Senators during an Energy and Natural Resources Senate Committee hearing Thursday called for more urgency regarding cyberattacks on the energy grid. […]

The White House said today that President Trump will sign funding legislation set to be approved by Congress, but at the same time also will declare a national emergency under which he will seek to access additional funding for wall construction on the U.S.-Mexico border. […]

The bill expected to be approved by the House and Senate today to fully fund Federal government agencies through Sept. 30 provides $550 million for the Agriculture Department’s rural broadband loan and grant pilot program, which supports the creation of broadband infrastructure in rural parts of the U.S., according to a Democratic party summary of the Consolidated Appropriations Act. […]

The General Services Administration (GSA) announced a revamp of how agencies can acquire mobility solutions through IT Schedule 70 with a single Special Item Number (SIN) replacing expiring blanket purchase agreements (BPAs) under the Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative. […]

The Senate voted today 55-45 to approve the nomination of William Barr as Attorney General and head of the Justice Department. […]

The issue of back-pay for contractors left high and dry by the 35-day partial government shutdown failed to make the cut in the Consolidated Appropriations Act legislation to be considered as soon as today by the House and Senate. […]

The Consolidated Appropriations Act–the bill negotiated by Democrats and Republicans in Congress that could fully fund several Federal agencies and avert another partial government shutdown–features a variety of funding for IT modernization projects at multiple agencies, according to the joint explanatory statement released with the bill: […]

Gen. Paul Nakasone, director of the National Security Agency and head of U.S. Cyber Command, told senators today he was optimistic about the future of U.S. cybersecurity, but also warned that Russian attempts to influence U.S. elections remain a threat. […]

The Consolidated Appropriations Act–the bill agreed to by House and Senate negotiators that could avert another partial government shutdown–features more cybersecurity-related funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), but also further obligations to report to Congress in the coming months on key security-related issues. […]

The proposed Federal government appropriations bill crafted by a House-Senate conference committee to fund large swaths of Federal agency operations through September would give Federal civilian workers a 1.9 percent pay increase for the 2019 calendar year, according to a summary of the legislation provided by Democrats today. […]

President Trump said today he intends to take a “very serious” look at proposed funding legislation that would forestall another government shutdown beginning on Feb. 15. […]

The White House announced today that it is nominating Dr. Michael Wooten to lead the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), as the agency’s Administrator. […]

With the 2020 national election cycle on the horizon, House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., convened a hearing Wednesday to examine the how the United States was working to secure its elections. The hearing, broken into two panels, heard from senior Federal election officials, as well as state and local election officials. […]

During a webinar today hosted by Federal News Network, Harry Singh, CIO of the Department of Treasury’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing, spoke about the bureau’s effort to get its user stakeholders more engaged in the planning phases to modernizing its technology. […]

The Office of Management and Budget issued a memo to Federal agencies Tuesday, pushing them to make sure their Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request systems work with the National FOIA Portal. […]

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., former chairman and current member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, said today at an event organized by Axios that he is working with Sen. Gary Peters, R-Mich., on an effort to reintroduce legislation in the Senate that would allow manufacturers to sell tens of thousands of autonomous vehicles each year in the U.S. […]

A report released today by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) finds that passage of an internet privacy law plus expanded authorities could help the Federal government better protect consumer privacy, adding ammo to the recent push for a national data privacy law. […]

With the 2020 national election cycle on the horizon, House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., convened a hearing Wednesday to examine the how the United States was working to secure its elections, and despite some partisan squabbling from members over the issue, a senior Homeland Security Department (DHS) official testified that election security is on the upswing. […]

The General Services Administration announced the 2019 class of Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIF) today, adding 17 fellows to support Federal agencies in delivering innovative projects and technology. […]

The proliferation of the Internet of Things (IoT) is soon to be accelerated with the arrival of 5G, which promises a world of smart devices that can improve everything from public transportation and driverless cars to remote medical care. […]

Claroty announced today that it is naming retired U.S. Navy Admiral Michael S. Rogers as Chairman of the company’s advisory board. […]

A group of three Democratic representatives from the Capital region sent a letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Tuesday, asking for an update on back pay for Federal workers amid reports of discrepancies. […]

House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif, named six Republican representatives to the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress on Monday. […]