Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
April 2020
From ACM TechNews
New Design Could Make Fiber Communications More Energy Efficient
A new optical device emits light in one direction, to make fiber communications more efficient.
From ACM TechNews
Supply-Chain Attack Hits RubyGems Repository with 725 Malicious Packages
ReversingLabs researchers found more than 725 malicious packages in RubyGems, the official channel for distributing programs and code libraries for the Ruby programming language.
From ACM TechNews
AI Accelerates Blood Flow MRI
Researchers have developed an artificial intelligence program that could greatly accelerate dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) of blood flow.
From ACM TechNews
Beyond Encryption: Protecting Consumer Privacy While Keeping Survey Results Accurate
Researchers have proposed a new technique for permanently altering survey datasets to shield consumers’ privacy, while retaining a reasonable degree of accuracy.
From ACM News
Power to the People
Artificial Intelligence software helps citizens end-run censors.
From ACM News
2020 Marconi Prize Awarded to Wireless Innovator Goldsmith
The first woman to win this top communications science award, Goldsmith was honored for her groundbreaking work to deliver high-performing cellular and Wi-Fi services.
From ACM TechNews
Muscle Signals Can Pilot a Robot
A new system taps human muscle signals via wearable sensors to pilot a robot.
From ACM TechNews
Device Simulates Feel of Walls, Solid Objects in VR
Carnegie Mellon University researchers have created a device to help simulate the feel of objects in virtual reality.
From ACM TechNews
Do Privacy Controls Lead to More Trust in Alexa? Not Necessarily, Research Finds
Researchers have found that giving smart assistant users the option to adjust settings for privacy or content delivery, or both, does not necessarily increase trust in the device.
From ACM TechNews
Why Voting Online Is Not the Way to Hold an Election in a Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic's disruption to elections worldwide has rekindled interest in voting online, but experts warn it would be too vulnerable to breaches and cyberattacks.
From ACM TechNews
Pakistan's Younger Women Riding Digital Wave in Drive for Better Jobs
Social enterprises like Circle have initiated programs to improve women's job prospects in Pakistan's information technology sector.
From ACM TechNews
Companies' Use of Thermal Cameras to Speed Return to Work Sparks Worries About Civil Liberties
Thermal imaging may be used to identify those suspected of having the coronavirus, but civil liberties experts warn such systems will monitor some who may not know or consent to being watched.
From ACM News
ACM Members Elected to National Academy of Sciences
Eight members of ACM were among the 120 members and 26 international members elected to the National Academy of Sciences this week.
From ACM TechNews
NTU Singapore Researchers Build Disinfection Robot to Aid Cleaners in COVID-19 Outbreak
Researchers at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, have developed a semi-autonomous robot that can quickly disinfect large surfaces.
From ACM TechNews
Annealing Processor Excels at Solving Combinatorial Optimization Problems
Researchers in Japan have developed a new annealer architecture to handle combinatorial optimization problems.
From ACM TechNews
CaixaBank Uses Hybrid of Conventional, Quantum Computers to Classify Risk
CaixaBank in Spain has created a machine learning algorithm to calculate customer credit risk using quantum computing technology.
From ACM News
Commercial Quantum Computing Made Possible
Intel is chipping away at quantum computing with its Horse Ridge cryogenic control chip.
From ACM News
Governments Must Build Trust in AI to Fight COVID-19
To maintain trust, governments must put much-needed artificial intelligence governance architectures in place.
From ACM News
The Pandemic is Bringing Us Closer to Our Robot Takeout Future
"We saw that business double overnight," startup says of UK grocery deliveries.
From ACM TechNews
Why a Data Security Expert Fears U.S. Voting Will Be Hacked
Finnish data security expert Harri Hursti worries the U.S. voting system is rife with unpatched vulnerabilities that leave it susceptible to election rigging.
From ACM TechNews
Connecticut City Testing Drone That Detects Fevers, Coughs
A "pandemic drone" is being tested by police in Westport, CT,
From ACM TechNews
Sensors Woven Into a Shirt Can Monitor Vital Signs
Researchers have developed a method of incorporating electronic sensors into stretchy fabrics to create clothes that monitor vital signs.
From ACM TechNews
Robot Helping Hospitals Remotely Treat Coronavirus
A robot is being used at Brigham and Women's Hospital of Harvard University to handle remote triage of patients suspected of having COVID-19.
From ACM TechNews
Quantum Entanglement Offers Precision for GPS, Imaging, More
Researchers combined two techniques—radio frequency (RF) photonics sensing and quantum metrology—to give sensor networks a never-before-achieved level of precision.
From ACM TechNews
AI Can Distinguish Between Bots, Humans Based on Twitter Activity
Researchers trained an artificial intelligence system to detect Twitter bots based on differences in the patterns of Tweeting activity of real and fake accounts.
From ACM News
An ESPN Commercial Hints at Advertising's Deepfake Future
With the pandemic having shut down production, companies are asking ad agencies to create commercials made up of digitally altered footage.
From ACM TechNews
This Robot Is Helping Astronauts on the Space Station With Tasks, Stress, Isolation
A ball-shaped robot is helping astronauts on the International Space Station manage tasks, stress, and the isolation of living 200 miles above our planet’s surface.
From ACM TechNews
Belgian Port to Test Virus Bracelets Amid Tech Tracing Fears
Teams of workers at the Belgian port of Antwerp are preparing to test a bracelet designed to help contain the coronavirus pandemic by enforcing social distancing.
From ACM TechNews
Flaw in iPhone, iPads May Have Allowed Hackers to Steal Data for Years
Apple will patch a flaw that iPhones and iPads may have harbored for years.
From ACM TechNews
Pay Users to Spot Bias in AI, Say Top Researchers
Leading researchers have proposed a system of financially rewarding users to spot bias in algorithms.