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Latest News News Archive Refine your search:
subjectComputers And Society
authorNew Scientist
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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.


Matchstick-Sized Sensor Can Record Your Private Chats
From ACM News

Matchstick-Sized Sensor Can Record Your Private Chats

Everyone knows that to have a private chat in the NSA era, you go outdoors.

Early Humans Saw Black Hole Light in the Night Sky
From ACM News

Early Humans Saw Black Hole Light in the Night Sky

Some 2 million years ago, around the time our ancestors were learning to walk upright, a light appeared in the night sky, rivalling the moon for brightness and...

Tough Robo-Challenge Casts Robots as Rescuers
From ACM TechNews

Tough Robo-Challenge Casts Robots as Rescuers

Global robotics specialists are competing to design a robot that can perform emergency-response duties during disasters. 

Biodiversity App Logs Insects By Their Telltale Call
From ACM TechNews

Biodiversity App Logs Insects By Their Telltale Call

Cicada Hunt is a smartphone app designed to listen for the call of the endangered New Forest cicada; it also can be trained to detect other animals by their calls...

Twitter Hashtags Predict Rising Tension in Egypt
From ACM TechNews

Twitter Hashtags Predict Rising Tension in Egypt

The Political Polarization Index uses Twitter to measure political tension in Egypt. 

Foursquare Check-Ins Tell Stores Where to Set Up Shop
From ACM TechNews

Foursquare Check-Ins Tell Stores Where to Set Up Shop

A recent study on the use of social media was designed to help retailers find the best locations for new stores. 

Twitter Tracker Shows Where Food Poisoning Is a Risk
From ACM TechNews

Twitter Tracker Shows Where Food Poisoning Is a Risk

A new machine-learning system can track tweets and show which restaurants are giving people food poisoning. 

Kindergarten Coders Can Program Before They Can Read
From ACM TechNews

Kindergarten Coders Can Program Before They Can Read

Researchers are studying the ability of kindergarten-aged children to program computers using a graphics-based coding language called ScratchJr. 

To Create a Robot With Common Sense, Mimic a Toddler
From ACM TechNews

To Create a Robot With Common Sense, Mimic a Toddler

A new robot is being designed to mimic the common sense of a three-year-old. 

Submarine Internet Cables Are a Gift For Spooks
From ACM News

Submarine Internet Cables Are a Gift For Spooks

It's a golden age for spying. The subsea fibre-optic cables that carry telephone and Internet traffic are a technological marvel—and a gift to intelligence agencies...

Graffiti Codes Let You Surf With a Wave of Your Phone
From ACM TechNews

Graffiti Codes Let You Surf With a Wave of Your Phone

Researchers want to enable people to create quick response (QR) codes on the spot, like graffiti. 

Robot Arm Wrapped in Sensitive Skin Has Gentle Touch
From ACM TechNews

Robot Arm Wrapped in Sensitive Skin Has Gentle Touch

Researchers have developed a robot arm that navigates by using the sense of touch, rather than trying to avoid bumping into people and objects. 

Parcels Find Their Way to You Via the Crowd
From ACM TechNews

Parcels Find Their Way to You Via the Crowd

A potential crowd-powered delivery system called TwedEx would deliver packages to consumers without requiring them to deviate from normal routes. 

AI Card Game Knows How to Bend the Rules
From ACM TechNews

AI Card Game Knows How to Bend the Rules

A new artificial intelligence system generates new card games from scratch. 

Crowd Diagnosis Could Spot Rare Diseases Doctors Miss
From ACM TechNews

Crowd Diagnosis Could Spot Rare Diseases Doctors Miss

A new Web-based tool  uses crowdsourcing techniques to help solve difficult medical cases. 

Virtual Traveller: Beam a Live, 3D You Into the World
From ACM TechNews

Virtual Traveller: Beam a Live, 3D You Into the World

A new virtual reality system combines 3D glasses and a hack of Microsoft's Kinect to enable life-sized images of people to be recreated in a virtual space. 

Wireless Smart Meter Measures How Much Power You Use
From ACM TechNews

Wireless Smart Meter Measures How Much Power You Use

An inexpensive wireless device  can monitor the power consumption of home appliances. 

Software Uses Linkedin Network to Guide Your Career
From ACM TechNews

Software Uses Linkedin Network to Guide Your Career

New software provides career guidance based on the profiles of LinkedIn users. 

How to Find the Right Twitter User in a Crisis
From ACM TechNews

How to Find the Right Twitter User in a Crisis

Researchers have developed a way to find people on Twitter who are tweeting useful information during a crisis. 

Curiosity's Discoveries Hint at Life's Cradle on Mars
From ACM News

Curiosity's Discoveries Hint at Life's Cradle on Mars

NASA's Curiosity rover has found what it was looking for in its very first taste of Martian rock—much to everyone's surprise.
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