Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
September 2015
From ACM News
The Smart Ui Design Behind Apple’s Frictionless 3D Touch
Midway through Apple's demonstration of the new iPhone 6S, Craig Federighi took an emergency selfie.
From ACM Careers
You Aren't Good Enough to Win Money Playing Daily Fantasy Football
Every first-time player of daily fantasy football begins the new season undefeated, just like even the most hopeless NFL teams.
From ACM Opinion
sing Technology to Break the Speed Barrier of Reading
I grew up in a tiny New York City apartment, packed in alongside our four cats and my father's immense personal library of some 3000 books.
From ACM News
Online Security Braces For Quantum Revolution
Encryption fix begins in preparation for arrival of futuristic computers.
From ACM News
What Happened to Early Mars' Atmosphere? New Study Eliminates One Theory
Scientists may be closer to solving the mystery of how Mars changed from a world with surface water billions of years ago to the arid Red Planet of today.
From ACM TechNews
Animators Turn to Motion Capture Tech For Better Results
Researchers at the University of Bradford are presenting their work in motion-capture technology at the upcoming British Science Festival.
From ACM TechNews
Realizing Carbon Nanotube Integrated Circuits
Northwestern University researchers have developed encapsulation layers that protect carbon nanotubes from environmental degradation.
From ACM TechNews
Rmit to Tackle Single Sign-On Issues By Developing Continuous Authentication
RMIT University is collaborating with CA Technologies to research the security issues surrounding single sign-on.
From ACM TechNews
Ornl-Developed Building Efficiency Software Now Available
New software developed at the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory can inexpensively produce calibrated energy models of buildings.
From ACM News
How Google's Self-Driving Cars May Handle the Toughest Situations
Left-hand turns are one of the tougher things drivers have to do.
From ACM News
China Flexes Tech Muscles Before a State Visit
As President Xi Jinping of China prepares for his first state visit to the United States this month, Washington has warned that it could hit Chinese companies with sanctions over digital attacks for trade secrets. Beijing is…
From ACM News
A Tricky Path to Quantum-Safe Encryption
In the drive to safeguard data from future quantum computers, cryptographers have stumbled upon a thin red line between security and efficiency.
From ACM TechNews
A Humanoid Robot to Liaise Between Space Station Crews
Researchers have developed "an autobiographical memory" for the robot Nao, enabling it to pass on knowledge between groups of people.
From ACM TechNews
Researcher Hacks Self-Driving Car Sensors
Laser-ranging (lidar) systems that most self-driving cars use to detect obstacles can be hacked by a setup costing about $60.
From ACM TechNews
Will Software that Writes Code Alter Tech's Script?
Several companies are promising to create software that will be able to do most of the grunt work of writing software on its own.
From ACM TechNews
Researchers Turn Clothes Into Electronic Displays
Researchers say they have achieved an advance in wearable devices that could lead to wearable displays in clothing that provide users with feedback.
From ACM TechNews
The Strange Link Between Global Climate Change and the Rise of the Robots
A recent paper concluded humans would not stand a chance against super-intelligent robots following a hypothetical mass extinction event.
From ACM News
Cryptographers Brace For Quantum Revolution
It is an inevitability that cryptographers dread: the arrival of powerful quantum computers that can break the security of the Internet. Although these devices may be a decade or more away, researchers are adamant that preparations…
From ACM TechNews
This Preschool Is for Robots
University of California, Berkeley researchers are working to develop artificial intelligence that lets machines learn the way humans do.
From ACM TechNews
Hacking Medical Mannequins
Researchers at the University of South Alabama are investigating potential breaches of medical mannequins used in training.
From ACM TechNews
Even Encrypted Medical Record Databases Leak Information
Many types of databases used for electronic medical records are vulnerable to leaking information, according to a new study from Microsoft researchers.
From ACM TechNews
Nasa AI to Power First-Responder Tech
First responders are set to benefit from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration's effort to extract insights from its 500-terabyte Planetary Data System.
From ACM News
The First Exascale Computer
The supercomputer that holds the current speed record is the Tianhe-2 of the National Super Computer Centre in Guangzhou (China).
From ACM News
The Broadband Is Coming
The world's fastest residential Internet may be found in the middle of the English countryside, built by farmers for farmers.
From ACM TechNews
This AI Creates Interactive Fiction By Reading Other People's Stories
An artificial intelligence developed by Georgia Institute of Technology researchers can generate interactive narratives by learning from stories written by human authors.
From ACM TechNews
More Students Taking Ap Physics, Computer Science Exams
Participation rates for Advanced Placement science exams rose over the last year, with computer science seeing the second-largest increase, according to the College Board.
From ACM TechNews
Magnetic Fields Provide a New Way to Communicate Wirelessly
Researchers have demonstrated a new wireless communication technique that works by sending magnetic signals through the human body.
From ACM TechNews
Your Smartphone Can Tell If You're Bored
Researchers at Telefonica Research in Spain have developed an algorithm that enables a smartphone to determine whether or not its user is bored.
From ACM TechNews
Self-Driving Golf Carts
The Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology recently conducted an experiment in which self-driving golf carts carried 500 tourists around winding paths.
From ACM TechNews
How IBM Research Wants to se Mobile Devices to Detect Early Stage Dementia
Researchers have developed a smartphone and tablet app that compresses a diagnostic test for dementia usually performed by a clinician.