Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
August 2019
From ACM TechNews
Developer Jobs: From SQL to Java, These are the Skills Companies are Looking for Now
More than 140,000 advertisements for IT jobs were listed in the U.K. in the second quarter of this year, 13% fewer than were listed in the first quarter
From ACM TechNews
Facial Recognition: School ID Checks Lead to GDPR Fine
The Swedish Data Protection Authority fined the municipality of Skelleftea for using facial recognition to track students in violation of the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation.
From ACM TechNews
Self-Folding 'Rollbot' Paves the Way for Fully Untethered Soft Robots
New soft robotic systems inspired by origami can move and change shape in response to external stimuli.
From ACM TechNews
AI Analysis Gives Guidance to Crisis Counselors
Researchers used state-of-the-art natural language processing to learn how the language employed by crisis counselors systematically changes over time
From ACM TechNews
Facebook's New Tool Lets You See Which Apps, Websites Tracked You
Researchers at Facebook have developed a tool that lets users better see and control the information the company has collected about their browsing habits outside the social network.
From ACM TechNews
Allen School Releases Robotic Race Car Platform to Drive Advances in AI Research, Education
The newly released Multi-agent System for non-Holonomic Racing (MuSHR) platform is intended for use in assembling a robotic race car, as well as for use as a tool for experimenting with artificial intelligence.
From ACM TechNews
Smart Cities Need to Spend More on Security Tech, Study Suggests
A new study predicts 44% of the $135 billion projected to be spent in 2024 to secure critical city infrastructure against hackers will be invested in data safeguards for multiple industries.
From ACM TechNews
Quantum Criticality Could Be a Boon for Qubit Designers
A new technique can transform the quantum behavior of an intermetallic crystal of cerium, palladium, and silicon so electrons compete to occupy either orbitals or spin states.
From ACM News
LiFi Standard Signals a Light-Bulb Moment for the Internet
Light is the power behind the global Internet; it may soon help us connect at work and at home, too
From ACM TechNews
Virtual Caucus at Risk After DNC Experts Hacked Conference Call
The Democratic National Committee warned its Rules and By-Laws Committee that virtual caucusing via teleconferencing may be untenable, as experts successfully hacked into a conference call.
From ACM TechNews
AI Could Help Data Centers Run Far More Efficiently
A new system automatically learns how to optimally allocate data processing workloads across thousands of servers as a means of boosting data center efficiency.
From ACM TechNews
AR Glasses May Help People with Low Vision Better Navigate Their Environment
Adapted augmented reality eyewear can improve mobility and grasp performance in people with the degenerative eye disease retinitis pigmentosa.
From ACM TechNews
Smartphone App Can Detect Tiny Amounts of Norovirus in Water
A new smartphone app can detect extremely small amounts of norovirus (the most common cause of gastroenteritis) in water, when used with a microscope attachment and a light source.
From ACM TechNews
Software Engineering Grads Lack Skills Startups Need
The present state of software engineering education at universities does not meet the needs of technology-based software startups, according to a new study.
From ACM TechNews
Universal Algorithm Set to Boost Microscopes
A new algorithm can ascertain within seconds whether a super-resolution microscope is operating at maximum resolution, from just one image.
From ACM News
ActBlue was Only the Beginning
The online political funding ecosystem is coalescing.
From ACM TechNews
Silicon Valley Looks North as Tech Giants Expand in Toronto
U.S. technology firms are hiring more employees in Toronto, Canada, drawn by a talented workforce, a diverse population, and labor and cultural properties that closely resemble those of major U.S. cities.
From ACM TechNews
The Quantum Revolution Is Coming, and Chinese Scientists Are at the Forefront
China's advantage in the quantum technology field is worrisome to some scientists and officials in the U.S., and Beijing's ongoing investment in the technology is helping it catch up with Western researchers.
From ACM TechNews
Cybersecurity Companies Race to Combat 'Deepfake' Technology
Cybersecurity firms are researching techniques to foil potential deepfake attacks.
From ACM TechNews
Artificial Muscles Bloom, Dance, Wave
Researchers in South Korea have developed an ultrathin artificial muscle, also called an actuator, for soft robotics.
From ACM TechNews
Here's the No. 1 Highest-Paid, Most In-Demand Job in Every State
A study by online employment website CareerBuilder found software developers to be among the highest-compensated and fastest-growing jobs in every U.S. state.
From ACM TechNews
Faced with Data Deluge, Astronomers Turn to Automation
Researchers hope to use algorithms to improve multimessenger astronomy.
From ACM TechNews
Girls Now More Than 20% of Computing GCSE Entries
The number of girls in the U.K. choosing to take computing at the General Certificate of Secondary Education level increased this year, with girls now making up 21.4% of U.K. GCSE computing entries.
From ACM TechNews
Computer Model Could Help Test Sickle Cell Drugs
Brown University researchers have created a computer model to simulate the process by which sickle cell disease distorts red blood cells, which could be used in preclinical drug screening.
From ACM News
The WIRED Guide to Cyberwar
The threat of cyberwar looms over the future: a new dimension of conflict capable of leapfrogging borders and teleporting the chaos of war to civilians thousands of miles beyond its front.
From ACM TechNews
EU Plans Sweeping Regulation of Facial Recognition
The European Commission is planning regulation that will entitle European Union citizens to control the use of their facial recognition data.
From ACM TechNews
Russia Sends Its First Humanoid Robot into Space
Russia has sent an unmanned spacecraft containing a life-size humanoid robot to the International Space Station.
From ACM TechNews
Ethical Hackers Sabotage F-15 Fighter Jet, Expose Serious Vulnerabilities
"White hat" hackers identified serious cyber-vulnerabilities in the flight systems of F-15 fighter jets.
From ACM TechNews
Can We Print a New Set of Coral Reefs Before They're Gone?
Scientists at three Israeli institutions are collaborating to restore dying coral reefs via three-dimensional printing.
From ACM TechNews
Judge Bars Georgia From Using Current Voting Technology in 2020
U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg has ordered Georgia not to use its paperless voting machines, election management software, or servers for the 2020 election.