capitol hill
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday gave its stamp of approval to a government review process prized by high technology companies as an easy and cheap way to combat “patent trolls” and others that bring patent infringement lawsuits. The justices ruled 7-2 that a type of in-house patent review at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office does not violate a defendant’s right under the U.S. Constitution to have a case adjudicated by a federal court and jury.
What the first day of the Zuckerberg hearings made clear is that many American lawmakers are illiterate when it comes to 21st century technology. As a result, the issue that was supposed to be the focus of the hearing -- "social media privacy and the use and abuse of data," as Sen. Chuck Grassley put it -- was but one among many. And at the moment when the country needed a smart conversation about privacy, what it got was meandering questions and misfires.
"This is the first approval of a U.S.-licensed satellite constellation to provide broadband services using a new generation of low-Earth orbit satellite technologies," the Federal Communications Commission said in a statement. The system proposed by privately held SpaceX, as Space Exploration Holdings is known, will use 4,425 satellites, the FCC said.
Junk science is no longer welcome at the Environmental Protection Agency. Administrator Scott Pruitt has declared war on what he calls “secret science” - the process whereby EPA regulators have been able to craft rules using non-publicly-available science data.
The drumbeat to regulate Big Tech began pounding long before the Cambridge Analytica scandal rocked Facebook--six long years ago, the Obama administration pushed a “Privacy Bill of Rights” that, like most other legislative attempts to safeguard your data online, went nowhere. But this time, as they say, feels different. Thanks to repeated lapses from not just Facebook but all corners of Silicon Valley, some sort of regulation seems not only plausible but imminent.
To celebrate Women’s History Month and to honor the contributions women have historically made in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), Congressman Jerry McNerney (CA-09) introduced a bill to expand opportunities for young women to pursue careers in STEM, and ensure the nation can continue to compete in the global economy.
The guidance released by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) walks agency and department heads through the implementation of the Modernizing Government Technology (MGT) Act, which authorizes two different funding streams to help agencies replace legacy IT systems with newer, more efficient and more secure technology.
Russia used several American social media accounts in an attempt to disrupt U.S. energy markets, according to a House committee report released Thursday.
As Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell oversees monetary policy and regulates banks. But members of Congress questioned him as if he were an omnipotent politician capable of addressing all sorts of issues that fell beyond the normal duties of central banking.
According to the FCC, if the proposal is approved, it would be the first time an American company has been given permission to use low-Earth orbit satellites for providing broadband. Other companies like OneWeb, Space Norway and Telesat are also pursuing similar projects, which have been approved by the FCC.