acm-header
Sign In

Communications of the ACM

News


Latest News News Archive Refine your search:
subjectComputer Systems
authorThe Washington Post
bg-corner

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


5 Futuristic Oddities From the Weird World of Wearable Tech
From ACM TechNews

5 Futuristic Oddities From the Weird World of Wearable Tech

Concepts of human-machine interaction are undergoing a transformation thanks to advances in wearable technology. 

If Killer Robots Arrive, the Terminator Will Be the Least of Our Problems
From ACM TechNews

If Killer Robots Arrive, the Terminator Will Be the Least of Our Problems

Experts warned of the threat of autonomous weaponry at last week's World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. 

The New Way Police Are Surveilling You: Calculating Your Threat 'score'
From ACM News

The New Way Police Are Surveilling You: Calculating Your Threat 'score'

While officers raced to a recent 911 call about a man threatening his ex-girlfriend, a police operator in headquarters consulted software that scored the suspect's...

The Big Data of Bad Driving, and How Insurers Plan to Track Your Every Turn
From ACM News

The Big Data of Bad Driving, and How Insurers Plan to Track Your Every Turn

For years, insurance companies have used estimates of your annual mileage to determine your car insurance rates.

The A.i. Anxiety
From ACM News

The A.i. Anxiety

The world’s spookiest philosopher is Nick Bostrom, a thin, soft-spoken Swede.

5 Amazing and Alarming Things That May Be Done with Your Dna
From ACM Opinion

5 Amazing and Alarming Things That May Be Done with Your Dna

"You're a male, you're 34-years-old and your 5-foot-10 1/2 inches tall." That's a prediction that Craig Venter, long a pioneer on the frontier of genomics, offered...

The Nsa School: How the Intelligence Community Gets Smarter, Secretly
From ACM Careers

The Nsa School: How the Intelligence Community Gets Smarter, Secretly

Leonard Reinsfelder's wife found a note on her car as she was leaving a shopping center one day: "Have your husband give us a call. We think we could use him."

The Significance of an MIT Drone Weaving Around Tree Branches at 30 Mph
From ACM News

The Significance of an MIT Drone Weaving Around Tree Branches at 30 Mph

To get his Ph.D., MIT grad student Andy Barry packed up a car with a drone and a catapult to launch it. Then he headed west.

Everything You Need to Know About the Vast ­ndersea Network that Makes the Internet Work
From ACM News

Everything You Need to Know About the Vast ­ndersea Network that Makes the Internet Work

Russians submarines and spy ships are "ggressively operating" near the undersea cables that are the backbone of the global Internet—worrying some U.S. intelligence...

How Human Nature Could Foil Tesla's New Autopilot
From ACM TechNews

How Human Nature Could Foil Tesla's New Autopilot

Researchers and driving safety experts warn the new autopilot option installed in most Tesla vehicles could cause unsafe conditions. 

With Court Order, Federal Judge Seeks to Fuel Debate About Data Encryption
From ACM News

With Court Order, Federal Judge Seeks to Fuel Debate About Data Encryption

A federal judge in New York is seeking to expand to the courts the hot debate over whether tech companies should be forced to find ways to unlock encrypted smartphones...

How Google's Self-Driving Cars May Handle the Toughest Situations
From ACM News

How Google's Self-Driving Cars May Handle the Toughest Situations

Left-hand turns are one of the tougher things drivers have to do.

­.S. Developing Sanctions Against China Over Cyberthefts
From ACM News

­.S. Developing Sanctions Against China Over Cyberthefts

The Obama administration is developing a package of unprecedented economic sanctions against Chinese companies and individuals who have benefited from their government's...

Could Hackers Take Down a City?
From ACM TechNews

Could Hackers Take Down a City?

Researchers warn of the possibility of cyberattackers crippling a city because of urban centers' increasing reliance on technology. 

Why the Ftc Is Showing ­p at Hackers' Biggest Conferences
From ACM Opinion

Why the Ftc Is Showing ­p at Hackers' Biggest Conferences

The Federal Trade Commission, the de facto federal watchdog for consumers' privacy and data security, knows it needs help.

Inside the Fake Town in Michigan Where Self-Driving Cars Are Being Tested
From ACM News

Inside the Fake Town in Michigan Where Self-Driving Cars Are Being Tested

Later this year a Michigan pedestrian named Sebastian will spend his days throwing himself in the path of speeding cars.

Watson's Next Feat? Taking on Cancer
From ACM TechNews

Watson's Next Feat? Taking on Cancer

IBM's Watson supercomputer is being trained to find personalized cancer treatments. 

June Will End with a Rare 61-Second Minute
From ACM News

June Will End with a Rare 61-Second Minute

We'll need to wait for July just a shade longer, as the world's timekeepers have added a leap second June 30—to officially keep Earth and our precise, atomic clocks...

Facial Recognition Technology Is Everywhere. It May Not Be Legal.
From ACM News

Facial Recognition Technology Is Everywhere. It May Not Be Legal.

Being anonymous in public might be a thing of the past.

The Government's High-Tech Plan For Identifying You Based on Your Tattoos
From ACM TechNews

The Government's High-Tech Plan For Identifying You Based on Your Tattoos

The U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology has reviewed the results of a challenge to develop systems to identify a person based on their tattoos.
Sign In for Full Access
» Forgot Password? » Create an ACM Web Account