The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
Researchers at the University of Southampton, Leeds University, and the University of Strathclyde are studying the use of ultrasonic transducers that can be used in small robotic vehicles, which could go to places that are too…
North Carolina State University researchers have developed a method for growing magnetic nanoparticles that could lead to much more dense computer memory devices.
Computer scientists in the United Kingdom are developing a system that would offer a high level of security at one-tenth the cost of existing systems using specialized quantum technology.
University of California, Riverside researchers led by professor Alexander Balandin have developed technology that could keep laptops and other electronics from overheating.
Sandia National Laboratories researchers and the U.S. Department of Energy recently hosted a workshop for photovoltaic systems integrators to identify and address the industry's reliability challenges.
Physicists at McGill University have developed a system for measuring the energy involved in adding electrons to semiconductor nanocrystals, also known as quantum dots—a technology that may aid the development of silicon chip…
The next time you're low on cash and need to get a quick read on the public's feeling on politics or current events, consider sampling Twitter.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill mathematicians and colleagues have developed a new technique for examining networks to help identify patterns and see how connections evolve.
Don’t worry about Microsoft trying to follow your every move. The company probably already knows what you will do next.
Earlier this month, the journal Lancet Neurology published a study showing that the generic drug lithium did nothing to slow the course of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a devastating neurological disease. The findingsPatientsLikeMe…
A new Ars Technica research paper in Nature Photonics implies that hard drives with terabytes-per-square-inch areal densities may soon emerge—and with them, a dramatic explosion in capacities.
Years of neglect have left many NASA labs that might be used for breakthrough technology research in rough shape, says a report from the U.S. National Academies of Science.
New cures for neurological disease and a better understanding of how the brain works are among the dozens of potential applications awaiting a new neurological probing platform developed by European scientists.
Software piracy cost technology companies more than $50 billion around the world last year. For every $100 of legitimate software sales in 2009, another $75 worth of unlicensed programs were sold, a Business Software Alliance…
When cybersecurity firm Triumfant was founded in late 2002, it developed software meant to assist help desks in managing information technology problems. The company soon found a more valuable use for its software: detecting…
Blasting zombies may seem to have little to do with serious research, but video game hardware is helping scientists in a variety of ways including helping them to unravel the mysteries of the brain.
A Washington state supreme court issued a decision yesterday [May 6, 2010] supporting a public library's decision to fully filter Internet content, stating that such filtering could be considered "collection development".
German researchers have developed a prototype safety system that would reduce the injuries of humans working alongside robots using household tools.
Universidad Politecnica de Madrid researchers have developed a model for three-dimensional virtual learning environments using an autonomous virtual tutor that detects collaboration.
A new system that analyzes behavioral data to identify potential Internet threats, which may also have application in areas such as health-care monitoring, is under development at the University of Texas at Dallas.
IBM and Singapore's Nanyang Technological University (NTU) announced a joint effort to research and develop a platform for the convergence of cloud computing and high performance computing (HPC).
New object recognition systems that deconstruct images into ever smaller elements, using methods developed at MIT and UCLA, should be much more efficient than previous systems and may yield insights on brain behavior.
Researchers have developed a way to use water to transfer layers from one surface to another by exploiting the fact that different materials have different hydrophilicity, a discovery that could lead to lower manufacturing costs…
D.E. Shaw Research will house Anton, its new 512-node supercomputer, at the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center beginning next fall.
Having trouble encouraging your child to follow you into the sciences? You're not alone. A new survey finds that 53 percent of parents of school-aged children admit that they could use more help to support their child's interest…
Max Palevsky, the computer industry pioneer and early investor in Intel who died at age 85 last week, had, ironically, a fairly well-documented skepticism of computers, cells phones, Google, and games later in his life.
University of Utah scientists Jens Krueger and Tom Fogal have developed ImageVis3D, a 3-D imaging program that converts complex data into colorful pictures that can be viewed with an iPhone or iPad.
Computer science students from Dubai's University of Wollongong took fourth place at the Microsoft Gulf Imagine Cup for developing Ear It, software that turns a mobile device into a tool for conducting a hearing test.
The Microsoft Research Lab in Cambridge, England, has developed BarrelFish, an operating system designed to overcome the latency problem in multi-core computers.
To encourage the commercialization of new technology, the U.S. Department of Commerce's i6 Challenge gives innovative thinkers the chance to win up to $1 million in prize money.