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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.


Taking Baby Steps Toward Software That Reasons Like Humans
From ACM News

Taking Baby Steps Toward Software That Reasons Like Humans

Richard Socher appeared nervous as he waited for his artificial intelligence program to answer a simple question: "Is the tennis player wearing a cap?"

Versatile Instrument to Scout for Kuiper Belt Objects
From ACM News

Versatile Instrument to Scout for Kuiper Belt Objects

At the Palomar Observatory near San Diego, astronomers are busy tinkering with a high-tech instrument that could discover a variety of objects both far from Earth...

Is Digital Privacy Becoming a Partisan Issue?
From ACM News

Is Digital Privacy Becoming a Partisan Issue?

In a Congress where lawmakers have trouble performing even the most basic functions of the legislative branch—funding the government or approving judicial nominees...

Light-Up Skin Stretches Boundaries of Robotics
From ACM TechNews

Light-Up Skin Stretches Boundaries of Robotics

Cornell ChronicleCornell University researchers have developed electroluminescent "skin," which stretches to more than six times its original size while still emitting...

Pentagon Hackers Are Waging America’s First Cyberwar
From ACM News

Pentagon Hackers Are Waging America’s First Cyberwar

U.S. politicians have long threatened America's enemies with tanks, planes, submarines, and nuclear missiles. Last week defense secretary Ashton Carter leveled...

At Rsa Conference, Unlikely Allies Address Value of Digital Security
From ACM News

At Rsa Conference, Unlikely Allies Address Value of Digital Security

To Amit Yoran, a digital security veteran, the fight between Apple and the F.B.I. over access to an iPhone can be viewed in black-and-white terms: What law enforcement...

Inside the Cunning, Unprecedented Hack of Ukraine's Power Grid
From ACM News

Inside the Cunning, Unprecedented Hack of Ukraine's Power Grid

It was 3:30 p.m. last December 23, and residents of the Ivano-Frankivsk region of Western Ukraine were preparing to end their workday and head home through the...

Methane Snow on Pluto's Peaks
From ACM News

Methane Snow on Pluto's Peaks

One of Pluto's most identifiable features, Cthulhu (pronounced kuh-THU-lu) stretches nearly halfway around Pluto's equator, starting from the west of the great...

The Most Important Object in Computer Graphics History Is This Teapot
From ACM TechNews

The Most Important Object in Computer Graphics History Is This Teapot

A teapot has the distinction of being one of the most influential objects in the history of computer graphics, dating back to 1974.

Chip Hacking Might Help Fbi ­nlock Iphones
From ACM News

Chip Hacking Might Help Fbi ­nlock Iphones

Even if the Justice Department loses its legal showdown with Apple Inc. over access to a killer's iPhone, the government might still be able to extract the data...

Software Agents Begin to Form Personal Rapport with ­sers
From ACM News

Software Agents Begin to Form Personal Rapport with ­sers

Making friends with software.

Log In to Your Phone with a Finger-Drawn Doodle Instead of a Password
From ACM News

Log In to Your Phone with a Finger-Drawn Doodle Instead of a Password

Rather than painstakingly typing in passwords on your smartphone, you may eventually just swipe a shape or other pattern on its display to authenticate yourself...

A New Look at Ancient Mars
From ACM News

A New Look at Ancient Mars

Among Earth/s planetary neighbors, Mars has been the one on which humanity has most often, and most variously, projected its hopes and fears.

Defense Secretary Favors Strong Encryption, Not 'back Doors'
From ACM News

Defense Secretary Favors Strong Encryption, Not 'back Doors'

Declaring that strong encryption is essential to the nation's security, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told a tech industry audience Wednesday that he's "not a believer...

How the Feds Could Get Into Iphones Without Apple's Help
From ACM News

How the Feds Could Get Into Iphones Without Apple's Help

It's a showdown that has the country mesmerized.

Tiny Cameras to See in the Intestines
From ACM News

Tiny Cameras to See in the Intestines

The digestive tract can be inhospitable terrain to examine.

Advertising Company Will ­se Its Billboards To Track Passing Cellphones
From ACM News

Advertising Company Will ­se Its Billboards To Track Passing Cellphones

Clear Channel Outdoor—one of the largest outdoor advertising companies in the U.S.—is starting a new program called Radar that will use billboards to map real-world...

Isis Turns to Foreign Encryption Products as Apple-Fbi Fight Rages in ­.s.
From ACM News

Isis Turns to Foreign Encryption Products as Apple-Fbi Fight Rages in ­.s.

FBI and Apple officials spent Tuesday afternoon on Capitol Hill, debating American encryption laws with members of Congress. Prompted by a case related to the ...

How to Tame Your Robot
From ACM TechNews

How to Tame Your Robot

Carnegie Mellon University researcher Madeline Gannon has created the means to instruct a robot to perform tasks by following a human coder's motions.

Iarpa Wants Smarter Algorithms--Not More of Them
From ACM TechNews

Iarpa Wants Smarter Algorithms--Not More of Them

U.S. Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity program manager Jacob Vogelstein discusses the economics of his agency using previously rejected algorithms...
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