The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

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As Washington races to build the next generation of national security technology, some cybersecurity experts are focused on the systems already in the field Sep 04, 2026

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A new White House strategy ranks the technologies viewed as most important to national security and economic competitiveness. According to one new industry analysis, less attention is being paid to reducing cyber risk in the systems government already relies on every day. Rob Smith and Brad LaPorte of LionFish Tech Advisors join me now to discuss those gaps.

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The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Friday, September 4, 2026 Sep 04, 2026

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Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

Recent attacks on water utilities exposed a cybersecurity challenge that's national in scope but local in responsibility
It may be easier to calculate the cost of defending military bases from drones than to design defenses that can adapt as quickly as the drones do.
As Washington races to build the next generation of national security technology, some cybersecurity experts are focused on the systems already in the field

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Agencies are being forced to take prioritized approach to software patching Sep 03, 2026

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Artificial intelligence is forcing agencies and industry to take a prioritized approach to software patching. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s new directive on patching is designed to have agencies focus on the highest risk cyber vulnerabilities and give them more time to focus on other important security practices. For more, Federal News Network’s Justin Doubleday joins me.

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OPM’s overhauls to FEVS pose both opportunities and risks, workforce experts say Sep 03, 2026

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Agencies have a few months left to survey their employees before the required end-of-year deadline. For most, it will be their first time distributing an employee engagement survey on their own. For some federal workforce experts, transitioning to agency-specific surveys is a welcome change. But questions remain about a tight timeline, limited resources and lack of experience. Here with more, Federal News Network’s Drew Friedman.

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NASA's newest space telescope wasn't built to zoom in on a single mystery. It was built to show astronomers more of the universe at once Sep 03, 2026

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The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope combines the image quality of Hubble with a field of view that's dramatically larger. That will allow scientists to map vast portions of the sky, search for distant planets, and study some of the biggest unanswered questions in astronomy. Federal News Network's Eric White gets more details from Matthew Bolcar, senior optical systems engineer at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

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The federal government is asking universities and laboratories to make more decisions about biological research risks Sep 03, 2026

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For years, research institutions operated under relatively defined federal standards for reviewing high-risk biological research. A new government-wide policy shifts toward a broader risk-based approach that requires universities and laboratories to make more of those decisions themselves, with significant compliance consequences if they get them wrong. Here with a breakdown of where the rules are changing is Cara Baer, partner at Butler Snow.

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The people earning STEM Ph.D.s aren't ending up where doctoral education was originally built to send them Sep 03, 2026

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The traditional Ph.D. model was built around academic research careers. As industry absorbs more advanced scientific talent, NSF is testing whether a different approach could better align training with opportunity. Here to walk through NSF's pilot program is Sr. Erwin Gianchandani, Assistant Director for Technology Innovation and Partnerships at the National Science Foundation.

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The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Thursday, September 3, 2026 Sep 03, 2026

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Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

The people earning STEM Ph.D.s aren't ending up where doctoral education was originally built to send them
The federal government is asking universities and laboratories to make more decisions about biological research risks before Washington gets involved
NASA's newest space telescope wasn't built to zoom in on a single mystery. It was built to show astronomers more of the universe at once

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

OPM calls for wider AI adoption in federal hiring process Sep 02, 2026

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Artificial intelligence may become a more prominent part of the federal hiring process. The Office of Personnel Management is encouraging agencies to more widely adopt AI tools in their recruitment efforts. A new OPM memo outlines where agencies should or shouldn’t begin using the technology. Here with more, Federal News Network’s Drew Friedman.

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OMB lays out two-year move to single sign-on using Login.gov Sep 02, 2026

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The long journey to establish a single sign-on capability for federal services has taken a big step forward. The Office of Management and Budget is mandating that agencies transition to the login.gov platform for many public facing websites over the next two years. Federal News Network executive editor Jason Miller joins me now with more on OMB's latest memo.

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