Springing into action, the United States Health and Human Services (HHS) takes the wrap off of a recent effort to move public data out in the open. Today at 9 am ET the community event will take place at the National Academy of Sciences Building and also web cast at http://www.hhs.gov/open . Leaders from the White House, Health and Human Services, and Institute of Medicine will be highlighting their support for the initiative in today’s meeting. The HHS is currently offering a collection of initial community data sets . They are available for download or as interfaces. Sponsor What is the Role of Community Health Data In the briefing describing the project, Todd Park, CTO of HHS used the analogy of weather data. He shared that the majority of the raw data used in applications is collected by U.S. satellites and distributed in raw for free. From there, an ecosystem exists to package and distribute this information to consumers (web, TV, print). Innovators have taken advantage of this data and create applications that influence our lives, not unlike predicting the weather. This is the vision for Community Health Data Initiative, provide a place to share federal, state, and community data sets in a predictable (daresay useful) way to developers and let innovation shine brightly. Here the HHS shows the expected hand-off of data to innovation ecosystem in a graphic form. Expected Benefits “We aim to be just as open about sharing what we’ve learned. There is no greater mission than working together to keep our populations safe.” The Honorable Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, HHS is quoted as saying. With this lever, it is clear that the government forces are learning the power to share – with each other – and with the world. The program goes describes itself as “a public-private collaboration that is encouraging innovators to utilize community health data to develop applications that help raise awareness of community health performance and spark action to improve health.” Supporters include leaders from the Department of Health and Human Services, the White House, academia, social sectors, public health communities, state and local government leaders, information technology firms, major businesses, and the health care system. First Results Today, a handful of organizations are demonstrating a preview of their work including Google, Microsoft, GE and others who participated in the first preview efforts. The intention is to extend the data and applications in the public / private model described in operating the Community Health Data Initiative. Google . To highlight the value of HHS’s Hospital Compare database, we imported this public data into Google Fusion Tables so that it can be easily explored and visualized by anyone who wants to ask questions or tell a story about it. Presenters and Organizations: Roni Zeiger, Google Microsoft Bing . Using community health data, Bing has created new features that allow easier selection of hospitals based on patient quality of care ratings and new ways to assess potential areas to live based on a combination of community health measures and access to goods and services. Presenters and Organizations: Irving Kwong Microsoft: Alain Rappaport, Microsoft GE Healthymagination . GE’s Healthymagination is committed to creating better health for more people by improving the quality of, increasing the access to and reducing the cost of healthcare. As part of Healthymagination, GE is expanding the conversation about healthcare to a broad consumer audience. Presenters and Organizations: Camille Kubie General Electric The Network of Care for Healthy Communities (Trilogy and Healthy Communities Institute, National Association of Counties). The existing application is a local web portal that brings national, state and local information to families and policy makers, relative to decisions about health. In this live demonstration we show focus on a public official addresses obesity issues how the site integrates Community Health Data with policy information, local services, best practices, and evaluation tools to affect local action. Presenters and Organizations: Valerie Brown, National Association of Counties, Bruce Bronzan, Trilogy, Deryk Van Brunt, Healthy Communities Institute Community Clash : Healthiest city wins. You play the cards. (MeYou Health – a Healthways company) Community Clash is an online card game that engages you in a discovery of your community’s health and well-being status and how it compares to other communities in a head-to-head clash. Community Clash gets personal, prompting each player to compare his or her own Well-Being Score and encourage social comparison with friends through Facebook integration. Presenters and Organizations: Trapper Markelz, Meyou Health Opportunities Anytime raw data is shared there are a host of challenges and new insights. It seems that agility and openness will be important to the success of the Community Health Data Initiative. Several areas we predict may see future investment as the program grows. Data mashups . Sharing data across data sets and regions will rich area for learning, especially as we see data coming in from community and local services that mixes with federal data sources. Will there will be a change management system in place to fix or enhance data sets and their underlying models – as needed? Services engine . When taking a quick look at the data in the data sets, we found a mix of CSV (comma seperated files), XML, map data, and other sources available. This puts an emphasis on how (even in the best scenarios) how hard it is to offer integrated services and and data models. We wonder if the data sets will migrate to be offered exclusively as APIs and how it will be leveraged across the parties. Missing Gaps . How will the community health data initiative spawn new areas of research knowledge funding? This might be a fun set of applications and community efforts built on top of the current site and processes. Public and Private . What will be the focus of private companies that offer services within the initiative? Right now, it seems to be like a data gold-rush, where first mover advantage may matter. We wonder if this initiative will attract VCs and investors outside of the public sphere. Will community health data will become a part of our daily lives, like the changes in the weather? Discuss

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While Flash on the iPhone and iPad certainly isn’t in the cards , it looks like it will be coming to Android even sooner than Google VP Any Rubin said it would . Mobile browser company Skyfire released version 2.0 today, which brings Flash video to Android along with a few other features. Sponsor The company says that it is aiming to create “the first Android browser built for the video-viewing generation but also the first mobile browser built for the Facebook generation, complete with a variety of social features” with this next version. This new version will work on any Android version 1.6 and above and offers Flash video by transcoding it using the H.264 codec into HTML5 or into another format that your phone can understand. As the company noted in its email, “the HTML5 conversion is also promising as they intend to submit this product for iPhone fairly soon.” Though, as we mentioned, we surely won’t be seeing native support for Flash on the iPhone, transcoding seems to be the way of Flash for mobile . Skyfire transcodes video “in the cloud”, compressing video by about 70% much in the way that Opera boosts its speeds by utilizing its servers as proxy servers. Opera recently opened the doors to other browsers on the iPhone, so Skyfire on the iPhone may too be a reality soon. In addition to bringing Flash video to Android before the OS adopted native support, the new version of Skyfire brings media recommendations based on their browsing habits and integrated social network sharing. But obviously, the big feature it’s hoping catches on is its Flash video transcoding. Before you go getting to excited, just make a note of the fact that Hulu has already gone and blocked Skyfire from accessing its video, but the company notes that Skyfire should play a “vast majority” of Flash videos on the Web. Discuss

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Blippy , the controversial site where the over-sharing, Web-connected generation can link their credit cards and share their purchases has just come under fire from numerous tech blogs as it has been discovered that people’s credit card numbers are now available on Google. The site’s value has been hotly debated since its launch with some saying it’s an incredible recommendation service while others say it’s a privacy disaster waiting to happen. Interestingly enough, it was featured yesterday on the New York Times , where that same question was posed to readers. Sponsor Update: Blippy’s Response Blippy just posted an update on the company blog, arguing that the security breach “looks super-scary and certainly sucks for the 4 people who were affected (to whom we apologize and are contacting), and is embarrassing to us, it’s a lot less bad than it looks.” You can find Blippy’s full explanation here . Thanks to a tipster who apparently emailed all the popular technology blogs (see: VentureBeat , Mashable , CenterNetworks for more coverage), there’s a way to enter a simple search query into Google and get back the credit card numbers of Blippy users. The query is: site:blippy.com +”from card” At present, this security hole seems to be affecting Citibank-issued MasterCard numbers only, according to the bloggers at VentureBeat . Blippy proponents will likely argue that the mistake, although quite a large one, was caught in time before major damage could be done. It’s doubtful that any identity thieves have been able to retrieve these credit card numbers quickly enough to cause harm to those affected. However, the users whose credit card info has been compromised will now have to cancel their cards and be issued new ones – a hassle to say the least. Was the benefit of using Blippy worth it? What if this security hole was only discovered by criminals and not a white-hat hacker-type like the guy who contacted us? We’ve argued before that people should definitely weigh the risks to their privacy before using services like Blippy, especially since you’re not just sharing info from one private credit card account, you’re aggregating all of them. If Blippy’s infrastructure was compromised, hackers could get all your credit card info and the usernames and passwords you use across the Web, too. (Probably the same one you use everywhere, if you’re like most people). If that risk is acceptable to you, then by all means, share away. You might find it interesting to see what others have shared too. But when something like this happens, don’t be surprised. Nothing put on the Web is ever really private – as this breach clearly shows. Discuss

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Building strong networks and developing meaningful relationships are cornerstones to business success. Although it may be a cliche, “who you know” can be incredibly important for startups. With the growth of social networking sites, it seems easier than ever to develop a sizable network of connections: Facebook friends, Twitter followers, your Google social circle, your LinkedIn connections. But having a large social media network means little if you do not maintain these connections. It is important continue to meet new people, cultivate existing relationships and to emphasize the quantity rather than the quality of your connections. Sponsor Last week, in a post on the blog Journalistics, Jeremy Porter wrote, “Too many people think networking is about collecting business cards – whether actual or virtual – in an effort to demonstrate how many people they ‘know’.” Porter listed tips on how to strengthen your network. Here are some things, based on some of his suggestions, to consider as you expand your network: Establish goals: What are the types of people you want to build relationships with? For example, do you need to meet journalists or venture capitalists? Set goals and deadlines for reaching out to make some of these connections. Keep score: If you set goals, track your progress. If you aren’t meeting the people you want and/or building your network how you want, revise your strategy. Make the most of face-to-face opportunities: Some events, such as conferences, are geared towards networking. Make an effort not only to attend these sorts of events but to maximize the networking opportunities there. Have a good opener: As we noted with our tips for crafting your elevator pitch, you need a hook. When you introduce yourself, you should be able to answer the “What do you do?” question consistently and memorably. Here’s my card: It might seem obvious or even outdated, but do not undervalue the importance of the business card – whether electronic or paper. While social networking does make it easy to locate people, having a business card is an invitation for a follow-up. Follow up: It’s easy to toss business cards in a drawer where they’re never to be seen again. Follow up a first meeting with an email or phone call within 48 hours. If you skip this step, you might as well toss the cards. Stay in touch: Don’t let your relationships die off. Keep in touch with people. Porter writes, “Some job hunters I met back in the late 90s are now directors at big brands. When you keep in touch with contacts over the long haul, you’ll be surprised how many interesting connections you’ll have down the road. You’ll quickly become one of those people that knows somebody that ‘does that’ or “works there.” Of course, you want to stay in touch with people so they’ll remember you too. People forget who you are and what you do – you have to remind them regularly if you want to get value from your network.” Share: Give value to your participation in a network and make it so that people value your connection. If you come across interesting information, share it. If somebody asks for help, offer it. Porter says, “Don’t miss the opportunity to pay it forward, you’ll feel great and will find people often reciprocate.” Look in the mirror: Regular self-assessment is good. Ask yourself if you are both gaining from and contributing to your network. Reciprocity is important. Build relationships when you don’t need them: It’s a mistake to only network when you need something (such as financing, a new job, a new team member). Be an active part of your network before you make your pitch to it. Start with one new connection today: Meeting new people and building your network might be one of the most important investments – personally and professionally – you can make. Discuss

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New York-based online video management company whistleBox has developed a new browser-based augmented reality (AR) experience geared directly at children by integrating it with the one thing every kid loves: cartoons. The project, dubbed Do Crew , is a series of animated stories for kids that include interactive AR games and challenges that the kids can play with using a webcam attached to a desktop or laptop computer. Sponsor In examples shown in videos on the Do Crew site, kids can control cartoon vehicles by jumping or leaning side-to-side, and can play other games by waving their hands in front of the camera. Think Project Natal but in a web browser, and integrated within kids’ cartoons. This is an excellent use of augmented reality technology because it is a practical application with genuine value, an attribute we discussed last week as being the strongest way AR can break into the mainstream. Best of all, with games like these, kids will no longer be passively glued to their sofas as this new AR project encourages the kids of stand and use their body and arms to control the games. The Do Crew developers state that their mission with the game is help combat the growing epidemic of child obesity. “Children will not stop watching television, and parents will not stop feeling guilt about that fact. So, where does that leave us? It leaves us with a rare opportunity to acknowledge this epidemic and treat it at the most basic level,” the site says. “The Do Crew team is dedicated to making all passive media active, and we believe that with a little technology and imagination we can reimage the personal computer or console video game system as effective electronic exercise equipment.” Going after the children’s entertainment market could also be a boon for the augmented reality industry which has yet to find the public spotlight. Time Magazine named AR as one of the top tech trends to watch in 2010 , and by engaging children, AR may be able to make significant strides towards mass public adoption and acception. Actually, AR experiences aimed at kids are not a new concept; a LEGO Store installation that helped kids see 3D reprensentations of model kits right on their boxes, and a web-based Topps baseball card experience that made the players on the cards come alive in 3D are two of the most well known AR roll-outs to date. New projects like Do Crew are not only great for kids, but also for AR as a whole as it strives to gain credibility and traction with as wide an audience as possible. Discuss

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