NASA Tech Briefs Ignores NASA

Keith’s note: NASA usually keeps a close eye on companies that use NASA’s logo to imply an endorsement of a company’s products – unless NASA has an agreement in place. Then there’s the curious case of NASA Tech Briefs – a company with whom NASA Has a long-standing agreement in place that allows them to use word “NASA” and the NASA logo. If you go to their website you see that NASA logo, the word “NASA” everywhere but when it comes to actually directing visitors to their website to NASA well … they do not do that. I did a “view source” on the NASA Tech briefs home page such that I could search for links to things at “nasa.gov”. As you can see there are no links. Looking at the site they seem to be operating some sort of parallel NASA tech effort that avoids actually mentioning what NASA is doing in that area.
The link “Who’s Who at NASA” goes to a page that makes no mention of the NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate. The link NASA Tech Needs goes to a page that has a lead item of “Insect Processing Technologies for Chicken Feed” followed by “New Synthetic Nematicides” and other things last updated on 1 October 2013.
This is not a new problem (see below) – but it is a problem NASA seems to be uninterested in addressing. I would be willing to bet that there are commercial efforts out there who coud do a vastly better job of presenting NASA’s technology portfolio – if only this relationship was opened up for competition.
– Why Does NASA Ignore NASA Tech Briefs?, 2012 post
– NASA Technology That Can’t Link To Itself, 2012 post
– Why Does NASA Ignore NASA Tech Briefs?, 2011 post
– Official NASA Publication Seeks Opinions On Gun Control, 2008 post
– NASA Technology Outreach Is Still Scattered and Dysfunctional, 2014 post