Communications of the ACM
The blog archive provides access to past blog postings from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
October 2010
From The Eponymous Pickle
Willpower not a Limited Resource
In Lifehacker a short piece on a recent Stanford study. That " ... the endurance you get from willpower is at least in part determined by your beliefs ... ". Obvious. Its been in the news recently about how powerful a resource…
From Wild WebMink
links for 2010-10-19
Sender ID Finds Followers Ahead of Approval If anyone has forgotten why RAND and RAND-Z terms are a defect awaiting exploitation to undermine software freedoms, this article – from 2005 – ought to jog your memory. (tags: SenderID…
From Computational Complexity
My Trip to Denmark
Last week I had a pleasant short trip to Aarhus, Denmark for the inauguration of the new Center for Research in the Foundations of Electronic Markets. Kevin Leyton-Brown had a more interesting trip to the center. The Center…
From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
Introducing the Microsoft US Academic Bloggers
I'm part of a group of people at Microsoft who work with academics all across the country. A number of them have active blogs and I thought this might be a good time to introduce them to others. For each blogger I have theirBob…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Benoit Mandelbrot, Dead at 85
In the ACM: Mandelbrot was a major inspiration for me in the 1980s. Met in a conference at IBM at about that time. In particular his work with financial analysis. And, of course his exploration of the 'mandelbort set' which…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Scientific Feuds
Mind Hacks mentions an HG Wells piece on scientific feuds. Was was pointed out to me years ago. A good reminder about how researchers are people, and science is social too, for all of its good and bad aspects.
From The Eponymous Pickle
WiFi in Flight
I briefly encountered the ability to get WiFi wireless on a flight today. I said no. This CW article outlines the fact that though this convenience is getting more common, travelers are reluctant to pay. I find most flights…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Heart Rate Sensor for IPhone
Have been exploring a number of sensor options and developments for Smartphones. Here is a relatively new one which does heart rate tracking. Sent to me by Mapmyfitness.
From Computer Science Teachers Association
Google Announces Google Code-In
I'd like to introduce myself - my name is Carol Smith and I'm the Google Summer of Code program administrator. I recently helped announce the launch of a new program, Google Code-in, which is starting on November 22.
If you've…From BLOG@CACM
Should Students Buy an iPad or a Year's Supply of Pot Noodles?
Considering whether an iPad would be a good educational investment for a student.
From BLOG@CACM
How Should Peer Review Evolve?
A simmering debate on peer review processes threatens to boil to the surface of various discussion forums for the scientific communities and the public at large. What are the issues, historical context, and issues we must consider…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Google Goggles: Image Recognition on Mobile
Have been involved in a number of image recognition projects, and the general problem is still hard. Google Goggles is now available on the Iphone as part of the Google Mobile App. It is also available for the Android Standalone…
From The Female Perspective of Computer Science
Ontario Celebration of Women in Computing
Just in case I wasn't attending enough Women in Computing events (see posts on this year's Grace Hopper), I registered for the Ontario Celebration of Women in Computing (ONCWIC) coming up this weekend in Kingston, Ontario. Not…
From Computational Complexity
Beno
Clouds are not spheres, mountains are not cones, coastlines are not circles, and bark is not smooth, nor does lightning travel in a straight line.
From Wild WebMink
? Monday Links
Split JCP: a compromise proposal Stephen Colebourne articulates what I am sure has been on many people’s minds – that it’s time for an independent JCP, and that the only way Oracle would tolerate such a thing would be to remove…
From Schneier on Security
Fingerprinting Telephone Calls
This is clever:
The tool is called PinDr0p, and works by analysing the various characteristic noise artifacts left in audio by the different types of voice network -- cellular, VoIP etc. For instance, packet loss leaves tiny…From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
Interesting Links 18 October 2010
Well things are heating up with the Imagine Cup. Last week was the round one entry for the fall round of the game and Software Development invitational. Lots of teams have signed up but we will have a second round of sign ups…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Smart Grid as Wikinomics
The Smart Grid is Wikinomics on a Macro Scale from Voices - HarvardBusiness.org by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. WilliamsAlexander Graham Bell would not recognize today's telephone network, but Thomas Edison would feel right at…
From Computer Science Teachers Association
Exploring Computer Science Website Arrives!
Exploring Computer Science is a K-12/University partnership committed to democratizing computer science. Our mission is to increase and enhance the computer science learning opportunities in the Los Angeles Unified School District…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Reusable Baggage Tags
Baggage tags were a long time potential application for RFID .. here is a new example.Reusable Electronic Baggage Tag Powered by RFIDVanguard ID Systems' View Tag contains two passive RFID chips and an electronic paper display…
From Wild WebMink
? Monopolies and patents
EU to push patent-free eGovernment The European Interoperability Framework (EIF) is still in play, and despite attempts by companies like Microsoft to "own" interoperability and neuter it to become a concept defining a preference…
From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
FIRST Women in Science and Technology Forum (WIST) - November 5, 2010
FIRST, the people who bring us a whole range of robotics competitions and more, are once again hosting their annual FIRST Women in Science & Technology Forum. The people I have talked to who have attended or brought/sent young…
From Wild WebMink
links for 2010-10-16
New Breed of Patent Claim Bedevils Product Makers A gold-rush for weekend vexatious litigants, and another example of why patent law needs reform (although not to simply make these suits go away). (tags: USA Patents)
From Putting People First
Bill Moggridge audio interview
In this audio interview with Design Observer, Bill Moggridge, industrial and interaction designer, co-founder of design firm IDEO, and director of the Smithsonian
From Putting People First
Interactions and sustainability at the RCA, London
Some great news from the RCA this week: Design Interactions Research The Design Interactions program at the Royal College of Art, led by Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby, has launched a brand new research site, showcasing projects…
From Schneier on Security
Indian OS
India is writing its own operating system so it doesn't have to rely on Western technology:
India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) wants to build an OS, primarily so India can own the source code and architecture…From The Eponymous Pickle
Adverts in Your Head
A fairly good article in CNN on Neuromarketing. They quote Roger Dooley: "the biggest development that I hope we see is some solid research validating neuromarketing techniques. That would be a bigger boost for the industry…
From Putting People First
Design for mobile and for public health
Two new articles in UX Magazine: Design for mobile by Juan Sanchez The Design For Mobile conference, which took place September 20-24 in Chicago, brought together a wide range of professionals, educators, and thought leaders,…
From Putting People First
Innovative ways of appropriating mobile telephony in Africa
The French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) have jointly published the report entitled “Innovative ways of appropriating mobile telephony in Africa“. The democratization…
From Putting People First
UX design in open source development
Olli Savolainen has published a thesis entitled “User experience design in open source development: Approaches to usability work in the Moodle community” at the University of Tampere, Finland. “Usability work is problematic in…