Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
October 2023
From ACM TechNews
Disney Packs Big Emotion into Little Robot
A team of Disney Research scientists last week unveiled a bipedal robotic character combining a child-size frame with stubby legs, wiggling antennae, and an expressive walk.
From ACM TechNews
Optical Chip Self-Configures to Perform Various Functions
A team led by researchers at China's Huazhong University of Science and Technology developed a self-configuring optical chip for applications requiring optical neural networks.
From ACM TechNews
Glasses Transcribe Speech in Real Time
Several companies have started marketing "live-captioning glasses" to help hearing-impaired users communicate by overlaying real-time transcribed speech on the lenses.
From ACM News
'A.I. Obama' and Fake Newscasters: How A.I. Audio Is Swarming TikTok
TikTok accounts are spreading falsehoods with the help from A.I.-generated voices.
From ACM News
This Robot Could Be the Key to Empowering People With Disabilities
It's simple to use and gives users—and their caregivers—much needed independence.
From ACM TechNews
AI Beats Human Sleuth at Finding Problematic Images in Research Papers
A study by independent U.K. biologist Sholto David found that artificial intelligence can identify image manipulation in research papers faster and more accurately than humans.
From ACM TechNews
Robot Learns to Clean Space Just the Way You Like It
Roboticists developed a robot that can clean spaces based on users' personal preferences.
From ACM TechNews
'Impossible' Millimeter Wave Sensor Has Wide Potential
A proof-of-concept sensor for millimeter wave radars can detect vibrations 1,000 times smaller and target-position changes 100 times smaller than a strand of human hair.
From ACM TechNews
Unequal Park Quality Exposed Using Social Media, Machine Learning
The study uses social media and machine learning to show environmental injustices in Philadelphia's urban parks.
From ACM News
Inherit the Wind
Wind forecasting is entering the age of artificial intelligence.
From ACM News
Chinese Scientists Claim Record Smashing Quantum Computing Breakthrough
Paper says JiuZhang 3 is a million times faster than its predecessor and light years ahead of the world's fastest supercomputer
From ACM TechNews
States Are Calling for More Computer Science Classes. Now They Need Teachers
Code.org reported that every U.S. state had a law or policy in place promoting K-12 computer science education by 2022.
From ACM TechNews
Geoffrey Hinton on the Promise, Risks of Advanced AI
U.K. computer scientist and 2019 ACM A.M. Turing Award recipient Geoffrey Hinton said advanced artificial intelligence (AI), for all its promise, could conceivably take over.
From ACM TechNews
Software Detects Hidden Emotions in Parents
Software can identify complex hidden emotions by mapping facial features and evaluating the intensities of multiple facial expressions.
From ACM TechNews
Microscopy Image Segmentation via Point and Shape Regularized Data Synthesis
Researchers applied a new segmentation network trained by point annotations and synthetically produced image-segmentation pairs to microscopy images.
From ACM TechNews
Bilingual Game App Aims to Stave Off Dementia
A multilingual app developed by researchers at the Singapore University of Technology and Design aims to use gamification to help ward off dementia in older adults.
From ACM TechNews
Dubai to Start Robotaxi Trials
The U.A.E. city of Dubai will launch its first wave of robotaxis this month in a bid to reduce congestion and accidents.
From ACM News
Laureates Look Past the Hype in Generative AI
Attendees at this year's Heidelberg Laureate Forum anticipate future applications of the technology.
From ACM TechNews
3D Printing Method Shows Promise for Repairing Brain Injuries
Scientists at the U.K.'s University of Oxford three-dimensionally (3D)-printed human neural cells to emulate the cerebral cortex's architecture.
From ACM TechNews
An Exabyte of Disk Storage at CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland has exceeded the 1-exabyte threshold, amassing 1 million terabytes (TB) of disk space.
From ACM TechNews
Morphing Robots Can Grip, Climb, Crawl Like Insects
Three new robotic systems can adapt their shapes to better navigate tough terrain.
From ACM News
Keshav Pingali Recognized with ACM-IEEE CS Ken Kennedy Award
The award will be formally presented to Pingali in November at The International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage and Analysis (SC23).
From ACM TechNews
An Hour of Training to Control Third Robotic Arm
Researchers found that one hour of training is sufficient to make working with supernumerary robotic arms as effective as working with a partner.
From ACM TechNews
CRISPR Tool Could Help Shred Viruses
Rice University scientists have characterized the three-dimensional structure of one of the smallest known CRISPR-Cas13 systems for shredding or altering RNA.
From ACM TechNews
3D Printer Makes Fast, Affordable Delivery of Post Office
A new post office in Bengaluru, India, is the first in the world to be built using a three-dimensional (3D) printer.
From ACM TechNews
Security Companies Are Turning to Robots as the Labor Shortage Bites
Robots increasingly are being used by security services firms to address a shortage of labor and high turnover rates.
From ACM News
Detect Quakes With 'Raspberry Shakes'
Raspberry Pi-based seismometers can supplement existing networks.
From ACM News
Looking Within
Biosensing takes medical diagnostics to a deeper level.
From ACM News
Men Overran a Job Fair for Women in Tech
The Grace Hopper Celebration is meant to unite women in tech. This year droves of men came looking for jobs.
From ACM TechNews
AI Designs New Robot from Scratch in Seconds
A research team led by Northwestern University scientists created an artificial intelligence capable of designing robots from scratch almost immediately.