Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
March 2019
From ACM News
NASA Mission Reveals Asteroid Has Big Surprises
A NASA spacecraft that will return a sample of a near-Earth asteroid named Bennu to Earth in 2023 made the first-ever close-up observations of particle plumes erupting from an asteroid's surface.
From ACM TechNews
NSW, Sydney ni Join Quantum Powers to Prove Qubit Theory
Researchers in Australia are combining their quantum computing powers, uniting methods designed by researchers at each university to prove their feasibility.
From ACM TechNews
Origami-Inspired Robot Gripper Grasps Objects p to 120 Times Its Weight
Researchers have designed a robot-mounted gripper that can lift items of various weights, shapes, and sizes.
From ACM TechNews
Companies With Tech Expertise on the Board See Higher Revenue Growth, MIT Study Finds
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology found enterprises with technologists on their boards have superior revenue growth, return on assets, and market capitalization expansion, compared to others.
From ACM News
Welcome the Plants That Move on their Own
Exploring the potential of plant-robot hybrids that can produce architectural artifacts and living spaces.
From ACM News
Stanford Helped Pioneer Artificial Intelligence. Now the University Wants to Put Humans at Its Center.
A Stanford University scientist coined the term artificial intelligence. Others at the university created some of the most significant applications of it, such as the first autonomous vehicle.
From ACM News
Why AI Is Still Terrible at Spotting Violence Online
Artificial intelligence can identify people in pictures, find the next TV series you should binge watch on Netflix, and even drive a car.
From ACM Opinion
The ncanny Valley Nobody's Talking About: Eerie Robot Voices
Call it the Great Convergence of Creepiness. The first bit, the uncanny valley, we're all familiar with by now: If a humanoid robot looks super realistic, but not quite realistic enough, it freaks us out.
From ACM TechNews
Top .S. niversities Shun Cash From Huawei nder Trump Pressure
Pressure from Congress and the Trump administration has forced top U.S. universities to refuse research funding from China's Huawei Technologies over national security issues.
From ACM TechNews
Locking More Than the Doors as Cars Become Computers on Wheels
Concern that cars could be hacked by criminals, terrorists, or even rogue governments has prompted a new era of security efforts within the auto industry.
From ACM TechNews
Diversity in Tech: How One VC Firm Is Partnering With Historically Black Colleges to Address the Pipeline Issue
Unusual Ventures this summer will launch a program designed to increase the number of black students working in technical internships.
From ACM TechNews
Computer Kidney Could Provide Safer Tests for New Medications
The first computational model of the human kidney is enabling scientists to more deeply explore kidney function and how new medications may work.
From ACM TechNews
Sensor Cited as Potential Factor in Boeing Crashes Draws Scrutiny
Sensors Boeing was ordered to replace following the near-crash of an Airbus A321 in 2014 are drawing fresh scrutiny after two recent Boeing 737 disasters.
From ACM TechNews
Chinese Children Take to Coding Amid Country's Lofty Goals in AI
China's ambitions to become unparalleled in artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies are reflected in Chinese children's increasing enrollment in coding classes.
From ACM TechNews
Drones That Perch Like Birds Could Go on Much Longer Flights
Yale University researchers have designed an observational drone that can perch like a bird to save energy.
From ACM TechNews
Facial Recognition's 'Dirty Little Secret': Millions of Online Photos Scraped Without Consent
Legal experts warn people's online photos are being used without permission to power facial-recognition technology that could eventually be used for surveillance.
From ACM TechNews
Squeezing More Data Through Less Fiber
Researchers have developed transmitting and receiving equipment that could squeeze 26.2 terabits per second through the MAREA cable.
From ACM TechNews
Facebook's Daylong Malfunction Is Reminder of Internet's Fragility
Facebook said it has corrected a technical error that caused a nearly 24-hour-long service interruption for Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and other Facebook properties this week.
From ACM TechNews
Display Technologies Set to Transform Workspaces
Within the next decade, new workspaces will emerge with multiple displays and larger, panoramic screens.
From ACM News
Escalating Battle with Huawei Ensnares S Allies
The Trump administration's standoff with Chinese tech giant Huawei is entering a new phase, one that could put existing intelligence-sharing agreements with U.S. allies at risk.
From ACM News
Opportunity's Parting Shot Was a Beautiful Panorama
Over 29 days last spring, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity documented this 360-degree panorama from multiple images taken at what would become its final resting spot in Perseverance Valley.
From ACM News
Collaborating with Robots
The challenge of cobots in the workplace.
From ACM TechNews
Finance Teams Bet Technology Will Bridge Budget Gap
Finance departments across the country think new technology will close efficiency gaps created by budget and staff cuts spurred by the next economic slowdown.
From ACM TechNews
Breakthrough Research sing Quantum Cryptography Addresses Security in 5G Networks
Researchers have demonstrated a solution for securing future critical communications infrastructure, including emerging 5G networks.
From ACM TechNews
niversity of Washington Team Creates Voice-Controlled Robot to Help People Eat
A voice-controlled robot can feed pieces of fruit to humans on command.
From ACM TechNews
DeepMind is Asking How AI Helped Turn the Internet into an Echo Chamber
Researchers have analyzed how different recommendation algorithms can accelerate or decelerate filter bubbles and echo chambers online.
From ACM News
China Is Catching p to the S in A.I. Research, Fast
At the world's top computer-vision conference last June, Google and Apple sponsored an academic contest that challenged algorithms to make sense of images from twin cameras collected under varied conditions, such as sunny and…
From ACM News
.S. Warns Germany: sing Huawei Could Crimp Intelligence-Sharing Between Agencies
The U.S. has apparently warned Germany that if Chinese tech companies such as Huawei help build the country's new 5G telecom infrastructure, U.S. agencies might not share as much intelligence with the German government as they…
From ACM TechNews
Researchers Find Critical Backdoor in Swiss Online Voting System
An international research team warned of a critical backdoor flaw in Switzerland's new Internet voting system.
From ACM TechNews
Study Shows Programmers Will Take the Easy Way Out and Not Implement Proper Password Security
Researchers have found that developers tend to write code that stores user passwords in an unsafe manner, because that is easier than creating a more secure product.