Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
December 2021
From ACM TechNews
Human Induced Cells Grown in Petri Dish Learn to Play Pong Faster Than AI
Researchers at Cortical Labs in Australia demonstrated that human-induced neurons grown in a petri dish can be taught to play the retro videogame Pong in only five minutes.
From ACM TechNews
Using Sparse Data to Predict Lab Quakes
Researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory have developed a machine learning approach that can predict fault slip in laboratory earthquakes with reliability while accounting for sparse data due to infrequent major earthquakes…
From ACM TechNews
Large-Scale Phishing Study Shows Who Bites the Bait More Often
Researchers at Switzerland's ETH Zurich found that study participants aged 18-19 and those aged 50-59 are most likely to click on phishing links.
From ACM TechNews
Desperate for Workers, MGM Resorts Lets Applicants Role Play With VR
MGM Resorts will adopt virtual reality headsets that allow job applicants to experience various customer-service roles before making a decision.
From ACM TechNews
Machine Learning Framework Models Quantum Devices
An algorithm developed by researchers at the University of Tokyo uses machine learning to determine the relationship between quantum inputs and outputs in order to reconstruct the workings of a time-dependent quantum device.
…From ACM TechNews
Walk-Through Metal Detectors Can Be Hacked, Research Finds
Researchers at Cisco Talos have identified nine software vulnerabilities in commonly used metal detectors manufactured by Garrett.
From ACM TechNews
Robotic Inchworm Climbs to Higher Ground
Researchers at China's Shanghai Jiao Tong University have developed a robot that moves like an inchworm and can make its way between horizontal and vertical planes.
From ACM TechNews
How Fast Can Quantum Computers Process Information?
Physicists at Germany's University of Bonn and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have investigated the determinants of quantum-computer information processing speed.
From ACM News
'Pop-Up' Electronic Sensors Could Detect When Heart Cells Misbehave
Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a tool that monitors the electrical activity inside heart cells using tiny "pop-up" sensors that poke into the cells without damaging them.
From ACM News
Levi's AI Chief Says Algorithms Have Helped Boost Revenue
Artificial intelligence and a data repository built on Google Cloud have helped Levi Strauss & Co. improve revenue and profitability, says chief strategy and AI officer Katia Walsh.
From ACM TechNews
Homeland Security Offers Hackers a Bounty to Find Bugs
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced the "Hack DHS" bug bounty program in which outside hackers will be paid to identify vulnerabilities in certain DHS computer systems.
From ACM TechNews
Toyota Gives Robots a Soft Touch, Better Vision
Researchers at the Toyota Research Institute have developed a soft touch sensing gripper that helps robots determine the right amount of force to grip and help identify objects by touch.
From ACM TechNews
U.S. National Security Adviser Asks Software Companies to Discuss Cybersecurity
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan has asked major software companies and developers to discuss ways to improve digital security, as hacks against U.S. targets this year added urgency to the threats.
From ACM TechNews
Virginia Family Gets Keys to Habitat for Humanity's First 3D-Printed Home in U.S.
A Virginia family purchased Habitat for Humanity's first 3D-printed home in the U.S., constructed in partnership with 3D printing company Alquist.
From ACM TechNews
IT Security: Computer Attacks With Laser Light
Researchers at Germany's Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, the Technical University of Braunschweig, and the Technical University of Berlin demonstrated that physically isolated computer systems can be hacked using a directed…
From ACM TechNews
AI Points the Way to Better Doctor-Patient Communication
Medical doctors commonly use language that patients cannot understand, according to an analysis of more than 250,000 secure emails conducted by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, Arizona State University…
From ACM News
Barbados Is Opening a Diplomatic Embassy in the Metaverse
Barbados is building its next embassy in Decentraland, an online world that is accessible to anyone with a computer and a virtual reality headset.
From ACM TechNews
Texas Teen Creates App to Give His Sister a Voice
Texas-based teenager Archer Calder created a Web-based application to give his sister Della, who has a speech-inhibiting genetic disorder, the means to communicate.
From ACM TechNews
Medical AI, Radiologist Experts May Be Vulnerable to Adversarial Attacks
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and from China deceived an artificial intelligence (AI) breast cancer diagnosis model and human specialists with doctored mammograms.
From ACM TechNews
Nike Buys Virtual Sneaker Maker RTFKT in Metaverse Push
Nike has acquired RTFKT, a virtual sneaker company, as part of an effort to expand in the "metaverse," where users can purchase clothing, virtual land, and other digital assets for avatars with non-fungible tokens.
From ACM TechNews
Seconds Before Earthquake Rattled California, Phones Got Vital Warning
An early-alert system managed by the U.S. Geological Survey on Monday warned Californians of a 6.2-magnitude earthquake by phone, seconds before it struck.
From ACM TechNews
Exploring Emotions with VR
Researchers used virtual reality to evoke emotions as realistically as possible in a study.
From ACM TechNews
World's First Autonomous Oil Rig Drills First Well
Oil and gas drilling contractor Nabors Industries drilled its first well in West Texas' Permian Basin using its Pace-R801 autonomous rig.
From ACM TechNews
Different Strokes: Using AI to Tell Art Apart
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have developed an artificial intelligence algorithm that can distinguish between the brush strokes of different artists.
From ACM News
Microsoft, Apple Reveal Anti-Slavery Measures in Australia Law
Critics say policy would be stronger with non-compliance fines.
From ACM News
A Novel Machine Learning Algorithm Allows for Efficient and Accurate Verification of Quantum Devices
The new tool tool could make verifying the behavior of quantum devices a more efficient and precise undertaking than it is at present.
From ACM News
Americans Widely Distrust Facebook, TikTok, Instagram with Their Data, Poll Finds
Pulled between not trusting some tech companies and still wanting to use their products, people look to government regulation, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll.
From ACM News
Designed to Prepare for Cyberattacks, a Panel Wraps Up Its Work
Some of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission's work remains unfinished as lawmakers wrestle with how to oversee security of cloud computing providers and other issues.
From ACM News
AI Can Predict Who Will Develop Dementia with 92% Accuracy
The technique works by spotting patterns linked to dementia outcome in data.
From ACM News
Is Artificial Intelligence About to Transform the Mammogram?
A Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher who survived breast cancer has devised a technique that seems to predict many breast cancer cases.