Communications of the ACM
The blog archive provides access to past blog postings from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
November 2012
From Schneier on Security
Friday Squid Blogging: Possible Squid Eyeball Found in Florida
It's the size of a softball. No sign of the squid it came from.
As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven't covered.
From The Eponymous Pickle
Big Data in Ohio
In Adage: More on the IBM Big Data and analytics center in Ohio.
From The Eponymous Pickle
DemandTec/IBM Shopper Insights
Our own enterprise was devoted to the art and science of being shopper centric. Decades of research allowed us to leverage that capability against the needs of the consumer. Centricity was the key to making the system work…
From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
Microsoft’s Imagine Cup
One of the really interesting events that Microsoft runs is a set of competitions called the Imagine Cup. These competitions are international events that challenge students to create serious and meaningful projects for a chance…
From Wild WebMink
GitHub and Open Source Licenses
Are you ar risk if you use code from GitHub? There’s a lot of code shared on GitHub. But surprisingly, much of it is “all rights reserved”, meaning despite being public you have no specific rights to use it. GitHub don’t require…
From Schneier on Security
Hacking by the Syrian Government
Good article on how the Syrian government hacked into the computers of dissidents:
The cyberwar in Syria began with a feint. On Feb. 8, 2011, just as the Arab Spring was reaching a crescendo, the government in Damascus suddenly…From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
A Day With a Windows 8 Slate
One the the farewell presents from Microsoft (actually something I won in a company promotion) was a Samsung Series 7 slate running Windows 8. It’s a very nice slate PC with touch capability and a stylus. Windows 8 is of course…
From The Eponymous Pickle
What Does Big Data Mean?
Michael Stonebraker continues his useful set of of articles on the meaning of the term, which directly includes the volume part, but where we frequently forget other frequently present aspects of its complexity. In talks I…
From Computer Science Teachers Association
The Power of 15
We all have them, it is the rare person who doesn't. I am talking about those dreaded days were our energy is low, where we can't get started, where even the simplest tasks seem like moving a mountain regardless if they are personal…
From Schneier on Security
Advances in Attacking ATMs
Cash traps and card traps are the new thing:
[Card traps] involve devices that fit over the card acceptance slot and include a razor-edged spring trap that prevents the customer’s card from being ejected from the ATM when the…From The Female Perspective of Computer Science
Proof Overtime Is Bad
I am against overtime. I do as little of it as possible. And now I have proof that this philosophy actually makes sense!
From Gödel's Lost Letter and P=NP
Barriers to P=NP Proofs
Why TSP resists being mapped to a small linear program Sebastian Pokutta just gave a beautiful colloquium talk on proving lower bounds on the size of linear programs. He is a recent addition to the Georgia Tech faculty, but alas…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Real Time Shopper Feedback
In Progressive Grocer: How BJ's is using a real-time shopper feedback system. " ... BJ's Wholesale Club is using a survey platform from On The Spot Systems that provides real-time feedback from members who use mobile devices…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Sales: Amazon vs Wal-Mart
In Adage: A competitive interaction that we are likely to see more of. As you might expect, some demographic layering here.
From The Computing Community Consortium Blog
“Recent Developments in Deep Learning”
Scientists have seen significant progress in developing software that can perform human activities like seeing, listening and thinking. A New York Times article recently highlighted advances in this type of cutting edge technology…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Columbus Ohio IBM Analytics Center
Announced today. Columbus, Ohio event. Brought to my attention recently and of interest. There was an online video session today I was unable to attend. " ... This partnership between Columbus 2020 and IBM will help grow…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Neurons Interact without Synapses
We were all taught that brain neurons interact through synapses. Now apparently, at least in some cases, they can communicate without using synapses. A study with insects that points to other ways of brain function.
From My Biased Coin
STOC Goings-On
Joan has permitted/encouraged me to post on the STOC PC process this year. So far, all seems to be running smoothly. Despite pre-conference suggestions by some naysayers that the formatting rules would be a problem, it doesn't…
From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
What Do You Want To Make?
As I mentioned yesterday (Cool Toys For Teaching Software and Engineering) I am attending the Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference this week. Not a lot of computer science here which is true of most education technology conferences…
From Putting People First
Nestor’s World, a Belgian social design tool
The full service design agency Pars Pro Toto in Ghent, Belgium built the “Wereld van Nestor” [Nestor's World], a social design tool meant to help local governments in Flanders to create a better world for their elderly citizens…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Robots for IPad
IEEE Spectrum has just published an publication App that surveys a number of robots and robotic applications. This appears to be only available for the iPad systems at this time. Costs $4.99 " ... Robots have long captured…
From Computational Complexity
App Love
First a shout out to our friends up north on the 30th anniversary of the New York Theory Day this Friday. Just two years ago I wrote a post Gadget Love but now I don't use many gadgets any more, it's all built into my iPhone…
From Schneier on Security
James Bond Movie-Plot Threats
Amusing post on the plausibility of the evil plans from the various movies.
From Putting People First
The rise of the sharing communities
As the sharing economy picks up momentum, its reach has become global. In cities and towns around the world, people are creating ways to share everything from baby clothes to boats, hardware to vacation homes. There are also…
From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred Thompson
Cool Toys For Teaching Software and Engineering
I’m attending the Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference this week and spent the morning in the exhibit hall. Most of the hall is stuff I’m not that interested in. I’m not looking for student management systems or projectors…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Thomas Malone on Collective Intelligence
Thomas W Malone was a consultant for us for a number of years. here he writes in the Edge on collective intelligence. Of course our intelligence has always been collective, but now the opportunity is so much deeper and broader…
From Schneier on Security
The Psychology of IT Security Trade-offs
Good article. I agree with the conclusion that the solution isn't to convince people to make better choices, but to change the IT architecture so that it's easier to make better choices.
From Putting People First
The skyscrapers of tomorrow: Experientia features in eVolo 2012 competition
Working together with Marco Visconti architects, Experientia has created a forward-looking skyscraper concept, addressing the theme of global warming. The Visconti/Experientia skyscraper was created for the eVolo 2012 Skyscraper…
From Computer Science Teachers Association
Try Going a Day Without Technology!
It's no doubt that most of us have become dependent (if not addicted) to technology. We rely on our cell phones, texting, Facebook, Twitter, and Internet searches each day. In fact, sometimes our work requires such communications…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Privacy Implications of Cyborg Eyepieces
Much has been heard about the 'Google Glasses' idea of letting someone experience a place overlaid with a computer screen. We examined eye tracking and Neuromarketing approaches that overlay what a person is looking at and non…