Top News
U.S. Key to Building Prosperity and Opportunity in Latin America
Washington (Jan. 24)—The Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration (ITA) released new data demonstrating the United States’ contribution to prosperity in the Western Hemisphere. In conjunction with the Association of American Chambers of Commerce in Latin America (AACCLA), ITA issued fact sheets which highlight the trade, investment and social development provided by the U.S. to countries in the hemisphere from Mexico to Argentina. (More)
Gutierrez Meets with Korean Special Envoy to the U.S.
Washington (Jan. 23)—Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez and Korean Special Envoy to the U.S. Chung Mong-joon met to discuss economic ties and the benefits of trade between the two countries. They also discussed the importance of the pending U.S.-Korea Free-Trade Agreement, and the Secretary stressed the need to resolve outstanding issues on the export of U.S. beef to the Korean market.
NIST Helps Heat Pumps ‘Go With the Flow’ to Boost Output
Gaithersburg, Md. (Jan. 23)—Researchers at Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are working to further improve the performance of air-source heat pumps—which already typically deliver up to three times more heating energy to a home than the electric energy they consume—by providing engineers with computer-based tools for optimizing heat exchanger designs. Researchers have developed a testing apparatus camera to track the motion and distribution of air flow in finned-tube heat exchangers. (More)
Secretary Gutierrez Meets with Wife of Jailed Cuban Democracy Advocate
Washington (Jan. 22)—Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez and members of Congress from Florida, Senator Mel Martinez, and Representatives Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Mario Diaz-Balart met Tuesday night with Elsa Morejon to hear first hand the plight of her husband, jailed Cuban democracy advocate Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet. Ms. Morejon will meet with President Bush at the White House on Thursday. (More)
Warmer Ocean Could Reduce Number of Atlantic Hurricane Landfalls
Washington (Jan. 22)—A warming global ocean—influencing the winds that shear off the tops of developing storms—could mean fewer Atlantic hurricanes striking the United States according to new findings by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) climate scientists. Furthermore, the relative warming role of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans is important for determining Atlantic hurricane activity. (More)
Gutierrez Calls for Government, Private Sector, and Academic Actions on Innovation Measurement
Washington (Jan. 18)—Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez announced steps for the federal statistical agencies and others to work to explain and quantify one of the largest and most elusive drivers of the economy─innovation. Among the innovation measurement initiatives announced by Gutierrez were comprehensive accounting of the effect of high-tech goods and services, measuring the increase in productivity due to increased investments in innovation and expanding collection of data on innovation. (More) (Fact Sheet) (Notable Quotations) (Report)
Secretary Gutierrez to Address Trade and Investment Conference in Jordan
Washington (Jan. 17)—U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez will deliver keynote remarks at a Middle East business conference to stress the importance of continued economic reform and expanding our economic ties and mutual commercial relationship. The U.S.-Middle East and North Africa Trade and Investment Conference will be held at the Dead Sea in Jordan, February 10-11. Gutierrez will also meet with his economic and trade counterparts from the region to discuss trade and investment. (More)
Emergency Beacons Save Record Numbers
Washington (Jan. 17)—Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced that personal locators used to send a distress signal helped rescue 353 people in the United States and its surrounding waters in 2007 from potentially life-threatening emergencies. These signals were transmitted to rescue teams via a NOAA environmental satellite more commonly known for providing information to weather forecasters. (More)
NIST Conference Focuses on Safeguarding Health Care Information
Gaithersburg, Md. (Jan. 16)—Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) hosted a conference Wednesday on safeguarding the electronic health information of individuals, as specified by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The conference focus is on the HIPAA Security Rule, which specifies physical, technical, and administrative methods for protecting electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI). (More)
2007 Was Tenth-Warmest for U.S., Fifth-Warmest Worldwide
Washington (Jan. 15)—The average temperature for the contiguous U.S. in 2007 is officially the tenth-warmest on record, according to data from scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA’s) National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C. The agency also determined the global surface temperature last year was the fifth-warmest on record. (More)