Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
August 2023
From ACM News
Major Websites Are Blocking AI Crawlers From Accessing Their Content
In the AI era, publishers are more aggressively blocking crawlers because there's no upside, for now, in handing over their data to AI companies.
From ACM News
USENET, the OG Social Network, Rises Again Like a Text-Only Phoenix
It is still alive, and quite vigorous considering its age.
From ACM TechNews
More Developers Are Using the Rust Language
The 2022 State of Rust Survey published earlier this month found more developers using the programming language than ever before.
From ACM TechNews
Hackathon Offers Glimpse of Quantum Potential
The U.K.'s National Quantum Computing Centre recently held its second quantum hackathon at the University of Birmingham,
From ACM TechNews
AR Technology Helps Non-Speaking Autistic Population Find Their Voice
The new HoloBoard system can be paired with Microsoft's HoloLens 2 augmented reality device to help non-speaking autistic individuals improve their motor skills and communication.
From ACM TechNews
Robotaxis Are Making Enemies as They Go Around San Francisco
Despite receiving recent approval to expand their robotaxi services in San Francisco, Waymo and Cruise continue to face backlash over traffic and safety concerns.
From ACM News
Using Physics Data to Refocus Computer Vision
Exploring ways to supplement conventional computer vision data with metadata collected from physics-based sensors and systems.
From ACM News
Microsoft Infuses AI With Human-Like Reasoning Via an 'Algorithm of Thoughts'
A new technique combines the strengths of human cognition with algorithmic logic.
From ACM News
A New Protocol to Reliably Demonstrate Quantum Computational Advantage
This protocol relies on mid-circuit measurements and a cryptographic technique.
From ACM News
AI Misinformation: Why It Works and How to Spot It
Determining what's real online is getting more difficult. But there are steps you can take to deal with it.
From ACM TechNews
Why Scientists Are Delving into the Virtual World
A growing number of scientific researchers are using virtual reality (VR) technology in the lab, often to more easily collaborate with distant colleagues, or simply to work remotely.
From ACM TechNews
Chinese Robot Waiters Fuel Korean Anxiety Over Labor Shortages
South Koreans are anxious over a flood of cheap Chinese robot waiters amid labor shortages, population declines, and growing rivalry with Chinese technology firms.
From ACM TechNews
Twelve Nations Urge Social Media Giants to Tackle Illegal Data Scraping
A joint statement from a dozen countries called on social media platforms to address illegal data scraping, emphasizing that local laws require them to protect user information.
From ACM News
UMass Amherst Computer Scientists Use AI to Accelerate Computing Speed by Thousands of Times
Their development Scalene, an open-source tool for dramatically speeding up the programming language Python, circumvents issues limiting computer processing speed.
From ACM News
These Tools Could Help Protect Our Pictures From AI
However, these tools are neither perfect, nor enough on their own.
From ACM News
Embuing AI with Ethics
In lieu of regulations, companies are starting to develop their own guidelines to control the use of artificial intelligence.
From ACM TechNews
These Nifty Drones Can Lock Together in Mid-Air to Form a Bigger, Stronger Robot
Researchers at Japan's University of Tokyo have developed drones that can assemble and dissemble in mid-air.
From ACM TechNews
Novel Algorithm Proposed for Selecting Variables Efficiently
Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Hefei Institutes of Physical Science has developed a variable selection algorithm for chemometrics applications.
From ACM TechNews
Framework Allows Robots to Perform Interactive Tasks in Sequential Order
A new framework allows quadruped robots to perform tasks that get progressively more complex without having to relearn motions.
From ACM News
Despite Cheating Fears, Schools Repeal ChatGPT Bans
Some districts that once raced to block A.I. chatbots are now trying to embrace them.
From ACM News
Behind the AI Boom, an Army of Overseas Workers in 'Digital Sweatshops'
More than 2 million people in the Philippines perform "crowdwork," according to informal government estimates, as part of AI's vast underbelly.
From ACM TechNews
AI Brings the Robot Wingman to Aerial Combat
Artificial intelligence (AI) operates the U.S. Air Force's pilotless XQ-58A Valkyrie experimental aircraft, which the military envisions as a next-generation robot wingman for traditional fighter jets.
From ACM TechNews
AI Can Spot Early Signs of a Tsunami from Atmospheric Shock Waves
Researchers found that off-the-shelf artificial intelligence (AI) models can detect the early signs of a tsunami in two-dimensional (2D) images from GPS satellites.
From ACM TechNews
Opening the Black Box
Researchers hope to enable scientists and processor designers to understand the underlying reasoning of deep learning accelerator designs through explainable-design space exploration.
From ACM TechNews
Scientists Sequence Last Piece of the Human Genome: The Y Chromosome
The Telomere-to-Telomere consortium has completed sequencing the human genome by adding the fully mapped Y chromosome.
From ACM TechNews
ML System Based on Light Could Yield More Powerful, Efficient LLMs
A team of researchers has developed a light-based machine learning system that could surpass the system behind ChatGPT in terms of power and efficiency, while also consuming less energy.
From ACM TechNews
Cyberattack Shutters Major NSF-Funded Telescopes for More Than 2 Weeks
Since the beginning of August, 10 telescopes in Hawaii and Chile run by the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab coordinating center for ground-based astronomy have been offline due to a cyberattack.
From ACM News
A Stroke Stole Her Ability to Speak at 30. A.I. Is Helping to Restore It Years Later.
The brain activity of a paralyzed woman is being translated into words spoken by an avatar. This milestone could help others who have lost speech.
From ACM News
The Myth of 'Open Source' AI
A new analysis shows that "open source" AI tools like Llama 2 are still controlled by big tech companies in a number of ways.
From ACM News
Competing Agendas Roil Online Content Moderation Efforts
The EU and the U.S. diverge on how they handle online content moderation.