got geoint?

Welcome once again to the Friday’s Food for Thought post. We hope everyone had a productive work week and are gearing up for a relaxing weekend. And, we are deep into vacation season. So, if you are taking some well-needed time off, we hope you enjoy it! Today’s post is about “Knowledge is Power.” What does that mean? How does that tie into what we do? Think about it. The core of geospatial intelligence is about getting the right information (whether from imagery and mapping) and getting it into the hands of the right people where it is actionable intelligence. In addition, on a broader scale, through out the ages those who held the most knowledge and information, also wielded all the power. Sounds interesting? Scroll down to learn more.

A BRIDGE to Knowledge Sharing and Creation
Did you all know that the ODNI has created a program called BRIDGE, which is an unclassified virtual environment that allows technology providers to develop cutting-edge solutions for the Intelligence Community? It’s very cool and very forward thinking of the ODNI. According to its web site, BRIDGE provides a low barrier-to-entry environment to showcase the utility of new capabilities against relevant intelligence challenges and verify conformance with ODNI CIO standards. So, this means that the ODNI is opening up knowledge sharing and creation for all technology providers. Talk about sharing the power. Read more here.

NSA Using Cloud Model For Intelligence Sharing
We all know that information sharing is vital for the intelligence community. And, the NSA is taking a cloud computing approach in developing a new collaborative intelligence gathering system that will link disparate intelligence databases. According to Randy Garrett, director of technology for NSA’s integrated intelligence program, “the system, currently in testing, will be geographically distributed in data centers around the country, and it will hold essentially every kind of data there is.” Cloud computing seems to be all the rage these days. Read more here.

“Knowledge is Power” Famous Quote By Sir Francis Bacon
“Knowledge is Power” is one of those ubiquitous quotes that nobody really knows who originally said it. Well, it turns out that Sir Francis Bacon came up with the quote. As a refresher, he served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. He was well-known for being a philosophical advocate and practitioner of the scientific revolution. You can read more about Sir Francis Bacon here.

Definition of Power-Knowledge
Have you ever heard of the term “Power-Knowledge”? The definition is that power is based on knowledge and makes use of knowledge; on the other hand, power reproduces knowledge by shaping it in accordance with its anonymous intentions. Power (re-) creates its own fields of exercise through knowledge. Does that make sense to you? It certainly does not make any sense to use either. SO, perhaps clarity in knowledge is just as important as knowledge itself? Wait. That didn’t make any sense either.

Ancient Propaganda
The definition of propaganda is that it is communication aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause. Many people know the term because propaganda is often used during war time to influence people’s perceptions of those in power and often the enemy. But, did you know that has been a human activity as far back as reliable recorded evidence exists? Dating back to 515 BC there are example of the use of propaganda. The earliest example is the Behistun Inscription (c. 515 BC) detailing the rise of Darius I to the Persian throne. Man, what would we do with out Wikipedia?

The Eye of the Tiger
What song conveys the journey of a man facing hard times and mustering up the courage to keep his dreams alive better than the “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor? This classic song is all about power and hey, it motivated Rocky Balboa to beat Clubber Lang (played by Mr. T) in Rocky III. Here’s the original video. Enjoy!

Happy Friday!!

Tags: Eye of the Tiger, Knowledge is Power, NSA, ODNI, ODNI BRIDGE Program, Rocky III, Sir Francis Bacon, Survivor, United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation, USGIF