Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
January 2013
From ACM News
Apps Crash the Enterprise
When Apple introduced the App Store in July 2008 it represented nothing less than a revolutionary way to distribute software. Now the concept is invading the enterprise.
From ACM News
Google Cleared of Search Results Bias After 2-Year U.s. Investigation
Google has been forced by regulators in the U.S. to agree to legally binding changes to the way it presents some search results and runs its search advertising following nearly two years of investigation. But the internet search…
From ACM Opinion
What Turned Jaron Lanier Against the Web?
I couldn't help thinking of John Le Carré's spy novels as I awaited my rendezvous with Jaron Lanier in a corner of the lobby of the stylish W Hotel just off Union Square in Manhattan.
From ACM News
Never-Before-Seen Stage of Planetary Birth Revealed
Astronomers studying a newborn star have caught a detailed glimpse of planets forming around it, revealing a never-before seen stage of planetary evolution.
From ACM TechNews
Israel Launches Cyber Warfare Training Program
Israel is recruiting top students for a new cyberwarfare training program. The program shows how Israel is advancing in the field of cybernetics to develop "high-quality human capital," says Eviatar Matania with the Israel National…
From ACM TechNews
Robotic 'pack Mule' Would Relieve Equipment Burden For Soldier in the Field
DARPA researchers are developing the Legged Squad Support System, a robotic system designed to carry 400 pounds of equipment, walk 20 miles at a time, and serve as an auxiliary power source for troops to recharge batteries for…
From ACM News
Visionary Images: The Lost Fractals of Benoît Mandelbrot
Many people know Benoît Mandelbrot from the computer screensavers of a pre-LCD era. Others have a deeper understanding of his mathematics, the repeating geometries that earned him the sobriquet Father of Fractals.
From ACM TechNews
Supercomputers From IBM sed to Improve Jobs in Nevada
The Desert Research Institute is teaming up with IBM to help improve Nevada's economy. "This is a transformative step because we're partners with IBM to build a trained workforce to provide innovation economic development,"…
From ACM TechNews
Five Linux Predictions For 2013
Continued improvements to Linux in 2013 should lead to new applications for the open source operating system. The trend of smaller and less expensive computers will continue as "free, open source, and resource-efficient Linux…
From ACM News
Outmaneuvered at Their Own Game, Antivirus Makers Struggle to Adapt
The antivirus industry has a dirty little secret: its products are often not very good at stopping viruses.
From ACM Opinion
Marking the Birth of the Modern-Day Internet
A long time ago, my colleagues and I became part of a great adventure, teamed with a small band of scientists and technologists in the U.S. and elsewhere.
From ACM Careers
Ftc Offers $50,000 Reward to Help Stop Robocalls
Unwanted telemarketing calls, trademarked for interrupting dinners across the nation, have become such a nuisance over the years that the Federal Trade Commission is calling for help to stop the illegal robocalls.
From ACM Opinion
How To Charge Your Laptop
Whether they're in our computers, cell phones, or cars, the only time we think about batteries is when they're almost dead and we need to find some place to charge them—and then we're not thinking nice things.
From ACM News
Privacy by the Numbers: A New Approach to Safeguarding Data
In 1997, when Massachusetts began making health records of state employees available to medical researchers, the government removed patients' names, addresses, and Social Security numbers.
From ACM TechNews
Pentagon Looks to Fix 'pervasive Vulnerability' in Drones
The U.S.'s fleet of robotic drone aircraft has a "pervasive vulnerability" because their control algorithms are written in a fundamentally insecure manner, according to Tufts University researcher and DARPA program manager Kathleen…
From ACM News
Can China Prevent Web Pseudonyms? Probably Not
Chinese Internet cops are at it again.
From ACM TechNews
Agile Developers Needed, Demand Outpaces Supply: Study
The number of advertised agile software development jobs outnumbers active candidates by 4.59 to one, according to a recent Yoh Services study.
From ACM TechNews
The Life-Saving Real World Results of Intelligent Vehicle Systems
The European field-operational test on active-safety functions in vehicles project recently completed the first-ever pan-European field operational test to assess the benefits of intelligent vehicle systems on traffic safety…
From Communications of the ACM
Beyond Hadoop
The leading open source system for processing big data continues to evolve, but new approaches with added features are on the rise.
From Communications of the ACM
Just the Facts
In repackaging other companies' news, some news aggregators are diverting readers and ad dollars, and, critics argue, undercutting the incentive to spend money on original reporting. It is an economic and ethical problem without…
From Communications of the ACM
Stopping the Leaks
Side channels give out information that can be used to crack secrets, but researchers are identifying the holes and trying to close them.