Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
October 2018
From ACM TechNews
These Scientists May Be Your Next Members of Congress
A growing number of aspiring candidates for U.S. congressional offices have a background in science.
From ACM News
The Ick of AI That Impersonates Humans
Philip K. Dick was living a few miles north of San Francisco when he wrote Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, which envisioned a world where artificially intelligent androids are indistinguishable from humans.
From ACM News
All Eyes on Hurricane Michael
Hurricane Michael plowed into the Florida panhandle Wednesday, Oct. 10, as a major Category 4 storm—the strongest hurricane ever to hit that region.
From ACM TechNews
Google, Facebook Team p on Artificial Intelligence Tech
Google and Facebook researchers are working together to make Facebook's open source PyTorch framework interoperate with Google's custom machine learning chips.
From ACM TechNews
What You Can't See Can Hurt You
Researchers have found homeowners will significantly alter their behavior to improve the air quality in their homes if presented with visualizations of how it changes.
From ACM TechNews
A New Molecular Programming Language: CRN++
Researchers have created a new language for programming deterministic chemical kinetics in performing computations.
From ACM TechNews
Researchers Develop Novel Technique to Locate Robots, Soldiers in GPS-Challenged Environments
Scientists have developed an algorithm that enables localization of humans and robots in areas where global positioning systems are unavailable.
From ACM News
Painting Cars for Mars
When John Campanella's friend wanted his beloved Ferrari painted, he knew exactly who to call.
From ACM News
Turbulence, the Oldest nsolved Problem in Physics
Werner Heisenberg won the 1932 Nobel Prize for helping to found the field of quantum mechanics and developing foundational ideas like the Copenhagen interpretation and the uncertainty principle.
From ACM News
Graduate Student Solves Quantum Verification Problem
Urmila Mahadev spent eight years in graduate school solving one of the most basic questions in quantum computation.
From ACM News
S Weapons Systems Are Easy Cyberattack Targets, New Report Finds
The first step in solving any problem is admitting there is one. But a new report from the US Government Accountability Office finds that the Department of Defense remains in denial about cybersecurity threats to its weapons …
From ACM News
Tech Gives Bike Riders Some Spin
Apps and connectivity have improved bicycles for serious and casual riders.
From ACM News
Researchers nveil Tool to Track Disinformation on Social Media
Researchers released a new tool Wednesday to track how many stories posted on social media are coming from sources known to publish disinformation.
From ACM TechNews
A Google Intern Built the AI Behind These Shockingly Good Fake Images
Google researchers have developed an artificial intelligence system that generates incredibly realistic fake images.
From ACM TechNews
Heat-Seeking Drones Find Brisbane's Hiding Koalas
Researchers in Australia are using drones with heat-seeking sensors to tally Brisbane's koala population in spite of concealing foliage.
From ACM TechNews
Sound Software for Fault Detection in Machinery
A European Union-funded research project has developed software that can analyze the sounds of industrial machinery to determine if they require maintenance.
From ACM TechNews
Voting Experts: Why the Heck Are People Still Voting Online?
A new study calls online ballots a key weakness in the securing of U.S. election systems, and estimates at least 100,000 Americans cast online ballots in the 2016 Presidential election.
From ACM TechNews
Social Media Data sed to Predict Retail Failure
An international team of researchers has developed a model that can predict with 80% accuracy whether a new business will fail within six months.
From ACM TechNews
Cardiff niversity's New X-Ray Method Reveals Ancient Scroll
Researchers have developed an x-ray tomography technique to reveal hidden text inside damaged and unreadable scrolls.
From ACM News
How Russian Spies Infiltrated Hotel Wi-Fi to Hack Victims p Close
For years, the Kremlin's increasingly aggressive hackers have reached across the globe to hit targets with everything from simple phishing schemes to worms built from leaked NSA zero day vulnerabilities.
From ACM Careers
China Makes A Big Play In Silicon Valley
A year ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping stood before the 19th Communist Party Congress and laid out his ambitious plan for China to become a world leader by 2025 in advanced technologies such as robotics, biotechnology and artificial…
From ACM TechNews
Machine Learning Helps Improving Photonic Applications
Researchers in Germany used computer models and machine learning to demonstrate how the design of photonic nanostructures can be selectively optimized.
From ACM TechNews
NT Singapore Scientists Develop Smart Technology for Synchronized 3D Printing of Concrete
Researchers have developed a technology for synchronized, robotic three-dimensional printing of concrete.
From ACM News
I Like the Way You Walk
Artificial intelligence video system sends smartphone messages based on how you move.
From ACM News
Curiosity Rover to Temporarily Switch 'Brains'
Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, this week commanded the agency's Curiosity rover to switch to its second computer.
From ACM News
'Quantum Atmospheres' May Reveal Secrets of Matter
Over the past several years, some materials have proved to be a playground for physicists.
From ACM TechNews
Smartphone With a Finger Crawls Across the Table to Stroke Your Wrist
MobiLimb is a realistic-looking mechanical finger that plugs into the USB port of a mobile device as an additional way to interact with a smartphone or tablet.
From ACM TechNews
This Tech Would Have Spotted the Secret Chinese Chip in Seconds
Researchers have developed a semiautomated system that could have identified in seconds malicious chips reportedly inserted into computer systems by the Chinese government.
From ACM TechNews
Researchers Raise Alarm Over se of AI in Immigration, Refugee Decision-Making
Researchers in Canada are concerned about government initiatives to replace human decision-making with artificial intelligence regarding immigrants' human rights.
From ACM TechNews
This App Knows When You've Been in an Accident—and Then It Calls 911 for You
A new mobile application accesses a smartphone's sensors to determine if the phone's owner has been in an auto accident, and can alert 911 emergency services if needed.