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An edited collection of advanced computing news from Communications of the ACM, ACM TechNews, other ACM resources, and news sites around the Web.


Pneumatic Computer Uses Pressure Instead of Electricity
From ACM TechNews

Pneumatic Computer Uses Pressure Instead of Electricity

Elliot Hui and colleagues at the University of California, Irvine, built a computer from glass and silicone that encodes data using pneumatic pressure instead of...

Ethereum Closes Security Hole with Energy-Saving Update
From ACM TechNews

Ethereum Closes Security Hole with Energy-Saving Update

An update rolled out by the Ethereum cryptocurrency reduced the energy needed to produce it, and also fixed a security flaw.

Sound Vibrations Can Encode, Process Data Like Quantum Computers
From ACM TechNews

Sound Vibrations Can Encode, Process Data Like Quantum Computers

University of Arizona researchers demonstrated that trapping sound in a simple mechanical device can imitate certain properties of quantum computers.

Software Update for World's Wind Farms Could Power Millions More Homes
From ACM TechNews

Software Update for World's Wind Farms Could Power Millions More Homes

A software upgrade developed by researchers at France's Polytechnic Institute of Paris improves the efficiency of wind turbines by ensuring they spend more time...

Centipede Robots with More Legs Better at Walking Over Bumps
From ACM TechNews

Centipede Robots with More Legs Better at Walking Over Bumps

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology found that multi-legged robots with more legs were better at navigating rough terrain than those with fewer legs...

Smart Glasses Dim Bright Objects
From ACM TechNews

Smart Glasses Dim Bright Objects

Camera- and liquid-crystal display-equipped smart glasses can "balance" a scene by dimming bright objects without affecting dim ones.

Inflatable Drone Can Bounce Off Walls, Perch on Nearly Anything
From ACM TechNews

Inflatable Drone Can Bounce Off Walls, Perch on Nearly Anything

Arizona State University researchers have developed an inflatable drone that can perch on nearly any object.

Wood Transistor Could Let Us Embed Electronics in Trees
From ACM News

Wood Transistor Could Let Us Embed Electronics in Trees

An electrochemical transistor made from balsa wood opens up the possibility of embedding sensors and other electronic devices in plants, which could help in agriculture...

Shapes 3D-Printed into Living Worms Could Be Future of Brain Implants
From ACM TechNews

Shapes 3D-Printed into Living Worms Could Be Future of Brain Implants

A technique developed by researchers at the U.K.'s Lancaster University can print conductive circuits inside living organisms using a photonic three-dimensional...

ChatGPT is Going to Change Education, Not Destroy It
From ACM News

ChatGPT is Going to Change Education, Not Destroy It

The narrative around cheating students doesn't tell the whole story. Meet the teachers who think generative AI could actually make learning better.

Crystal Impervious to Radiation Could be Used in Spaceship Computers
From ACM News

Crystal Impervious to Radiation Could be Used in Spaceship Computers

Putting two forms of semiconductor material called gallium oxide together seems to make it completely resistant to radiation.

Computer Made of DNA Works Out Prime Factors of 6 and 15
From ACM TechNews

Computer Made of DNA Works Out Prime Factors of 6 and 15

Researchers at China's Shanghai Jiao Tong University developed a simple computer using molecules of folded DNA that was able to split the numbers 6 and 15 into...

Supersized Atoms Could Help Quantum Computers Link to Optical Fibers
From ACM TechNews

Supersized Atoms Could Help Quantum Computers Link to Optical Fibers

Researchers developed a device that could enable multiple quantum computers to be networked together by converting quantum outputs into light signals that can travel...

Venus Flytrap Cyborg Snaps Shut with Smartphone Commands
From ACM TechNews

Venus Flytrap Cyborg Snaps Shut with Smartphone Commands

Wenlong Li and colleagues at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University have transformed Venus flytraps into biological robots.

Quantum Computers May Finally Have Practical Use
From ACM TechNews

Quantum Computers May Finally Have Practical Use

Researchers have developed a method for certifying that quantum computers generate truly random numbers without having to inspect the process.

Quantum Computers That Use 'Cat Qubits' May Make Fewer Errors
From ACM TechNews

Quantum Computers That Use 'Cat Qubits' May Make Fewer Errors

Researchers in France found so-called "cat qubits” (quantum bits) could reduce errors by quantum computers and accelerate the cracking of common encryption algorithms...

U.S. Air Force Giving Military Drones the Ability to Recognize Faces
From ACM TechNews

U.S. Air Force Giving Military Drones the Ability to Recognize Faces

A contract between the U.S. Department of Defense and RealNetworks calls for the Seattle-based company to equip U.S. Air Force autonomous drones with facial recognition...

Kombucha Cultures Can Be Turned into Flexible Electric Circuit Boards
From ACM TechNews

Kombucha Cultures Can Be Turned into Flexible Electric Circuit Boards

Researchers at the U.K.'s University of the West of England, Bristol used the mat of cells that form on top when brewing kombucha to develop flexible electric circuit...

Flying Robot Echolocates Like a Bat to Avoid Hitting Walls
From ACM TechNews

Flying Robot Echolocates Like a Bat to Avoid Hitting Walls

Frederike Dümbgen and colleagues have equipped a flying robot to use bat-like echolocation to map its surroundings using a simple microphone and speaker.

AI Has Designed Bacteria-Killing Proteins from Scratch
From ACM TechNews

AI Has Designed Bacteria-Killing Proteins from Scratch

A multi-institutional team of California researchers engineered an artificial intelligence to design bacteria-destroying proteins that actually worked.
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