Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
July 2009
From ACM TechNews
Yale Researchers Create Database-Hadoop Hybrid
Yale University professor Daniel J. Abadi has led the development of HadoopDB, an open source parallel database management system (DBMS) that combines the data-processing capabilities of a relational database with the scalability…
From ACM TechNews
Seeking Advice on Women in Science
A hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Science and Technology's Subcommittee on Research and Science Education concluded that while the scientific and engineering community is far more diverse than it was 20 years ago, there…
From ACM TechNews
Robo-Ethicists Want to Revamp Asimov's 3 Laws
Researchers continue to work to make robots safer to be around humans, but some robot experts say the key is to stop making robots that lack ethics. "If you build artificial intelligence but don't think about its moral sense…
From ACM News
This Data Will Self-Destruct: Tool Makes Online Info Vanish
The University of Washington has developed a system, called Vanish, that puts an expiration date on electronic data. After a set time period, electronic communications such as e-mail, Facebook posts and chat messages would automatically…
From ICT Results
Beyond Flash
The race is on for a successor to the popular flash memory used in portable devices. European researchers think they have found a candidate in novel materials combined with a simple, easily fabricated 'crossbar architecture.
From ACM News
Practice Makes Perfect, Even For Brain-Controlled Prosthetics
Those who learn by repetition rely on "muscle memory," a sense that practice trains muscles to perform specific actions without thought. But does muscle memory exist if no actual muscles are involved? According to a paper published…
From ACM TechNews
A New Software to Assess Driving Behavior and Driving Risks
New software designed by a telecommunications engineer at the University of Malaga in Spain has the potential to reduce auto accidents by providing drivers with an assessment of their driving behavior. Gerardo Reveriego says…
From ACM TechNews
Dark Flash Camera Takes Photos Without the Glare
New York University researchers have developed a camera that uses ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) light to take photos in the dark without the use of a traditional flash. To create the "dark flash" camera, Dilip Krishnan…
From ACM TechNews
Researcher Will Measure Large-Scale Data Crunching and Computer Storage Outsourcing
The National Science Foundation has awarded Wayne State University professor Song Jiang with a Faculty Early Career Development Program award to develop a method that will make the outsourcing of data processing and storage more…
From ACM TechNews
Tim Berners-Lee Calls For Free Web
At a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the Web, its creator, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, said the Internet should not be controlled, censored, or intercepted by the government or companies. Berners-Lee said the Internet should…
From ACM TechNews
Researchers Bring Web Access to Developing Regions
University of Waterloo researchers have released a beta version of Vlink, an open source technology that is designed to provide robust and inexpensive Web access to people in developing regions. The researchers say affordable…
From ACM TechNews
Blind Can Take Wheel With Vehicle Designed By Engineering Team
Virginia Tech's Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory Blind Driver Challenge student team has retrofitted a four-wheel dirt buggy with laser range finders, an instant voice command interface, and several other technologies to enable…
From ACM TechNews
Trust But Verify: Security Risks Abound in the It Supply Chain
There are substantial national security issues associated with the use of information technology (IT) products delivered via the global supply chain, including theft of intellectual property, logic bombs and self-modifying code…
From ACM TechNews
Helping Robots Get a Grip
Columbia University robotics researchers Peter Allan and Matei Ciocarlie have developed a new way to control a dexterous robotic hand. The researchers realized that while human hands have 20 joints that can each bend, each joint…
From ACM Careers
The 'flat' World Is 'open': How Technology Is Changing Education
A new book by an Indiana University School of Education professor takes a comprehensive look at how Web technology is changing worldwide education. "The World is Open: How Web Technology is Revolutionizing Education," published…
From ACM TechNews
Future Cars Will Communicate to Avoid Collisions
The recent First Rim Mathematical Association (PRIMA) conference in Sydney featured a demonstration of how the flocking technique could be used to control cars. Bhibhya Sharma and Utesh Chand, researchers at the University of…
From ACM News
Korean Government and Georgia Tech Form Platform Partnership
A team of faculty from the Georgia Institute of Technology has formed a historic partnership with the Korean government, industry, and universities to develop a single platform to support a broad range of multimedia functions…
From ACM TechNews
NICTA Opens Its Software to the World
The National ICT Australia (NICTA) research organization has launched the OpenNICTA portal, which will allow people to view and download software developed and licensed by NICTA. OpenNICTA will serve a major role in the organization's…
From ACM TechNews
Robo-Wheels Go Where Caterpillar Tracks Fear to Tread
Rescue robots could be more useful in snowy conditions thanks to an adjustable wheel that has been developed by researchers in Japan. A team led by Taro Iwamoto of Ryukoku University has mounted six pivoting vanes on the side…
From ICT Results
Smart Clothes For Better Healthcare
Comfortable smart clothes that monitor the wearer’s heart, breathing and body temperature promise to revolutionise healthcare by reducing hospital visits and allowing patients to lead more active lives.
From ACM TechNews
When Robots Invaded the Senate
The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently held a luncheon briefing and open house for U.S. Senate members to demonstrate cyber-physical systems (CPS), an emerging technology that incorporates computing power to improve modern…
From ACM TechNews
Algorithms to Stop Net Threats
University of Wollongong professor Willy Susilo has received a grant to develop cryptographic algorithms that will stay secure against quantum computer attacks. Researchers believe that quantum computers will be able to crack…
From ACM TechNews
How New Technologies Will Ease Our Traffic Woes
A new generation of monitoring and data-gathering technologies could drastically alter how people travel by car by providing them with more accurate information on traffic conditions. These new technologies also could provide…
From ACM TechNews
Rethinking Code Optimization For Mobile and Multicore
The key to the creation of more efficient software for mobile platforms and multicore chips could lie in artificial intelligence (AI), and the MilePost project seeks to make this vision a reality. The project has devised an…
From ACM TechNews
Touch Typists Could Help Stop Spammers in Their Tracks
Newcastle University computer scientists have developed Magic Bullet, a computer game that turns a tedious manual labeling task into entertainment, giving companies a better chance of tracking online spammers.
From ACM TechNews
Data Overload on Dating Sites
New research on online dating sites shows that users can experience "cognitive overload" when faced with too many choices, causing them to make poorer decisions. The researchers, Pai-Lu Wu from Cheng Shiu University and Wen-Bin…
From ACM News
Shape-Shifting Material Suggests Morphable Hardware
Electronic devices that can change their physical shape depending on the needs of the user might sound far-fetched. But recent research advances on several fronts have brought such shape-shifting hardware closer to reality.
From ACM News
Computer Games Stretch and Hone Older Brains
Seniors are sharpening their recall and other mental processes at The Brain Emporium, a community center program in Cleveland opened and run by Case Western Reserve University Psychologist T.J. McCallum. McCallum and graduate…
From ICT Results
Building Better Automated Workplace Assistants
A key component of modern factories is the flexible production cell – a workstation staffed by a worker with the training and tools to carry out a variety of operations. In theory, flexible production stations can combine the…
From ACM TechNews
Cyborg Crickets Could Chirp at the Smell of Survivors
Research supported by the U.S. Pentagon is attempting to turn insects into search-and-rescue systems capable of locating trapped victims in earthquake rubble and other similar situations. The project's primary objective is to…