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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.


Computer Swap on Curiosity Rover
From ACM News

Computer Swap on Curiosity Rover

The ground team for NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has switched the rover to a redundant onboard computer in response to a memory issue on the computer that had been...

Teaching Robots Lateral Thinking
From ACM News

Teaching Robots Lateral Thinking

Many commercial robotic arms perform what roboticists call "pick and place" tasks: The arm picks up an object in one location and places it in another.

Pushing the Wrong Button: Bad Button Placement Leads to Drone Crashes
From ACM News

Pushing the Wrong Button: Bad Button Placement Leads to Drone Crashes

Unmanned aircraft crash. In fact, they crash a lot—though there's no recent specific data, the Congressional Research Service reported last year that despite improvements...

And Now, From I.b.m., Chef Watson
From ACM News

And Now, From I.b.m., Chef Watson

I.B.M.'s Watson beat "Jeopardy" champions two years ago. But can it whip up something tasty in the kitchen?

This Amazing 3d Desktop Was Born at Microsoft
From ACM News

This Amazing 3d Desktop Was Born at Microsoft

The history of computer revolutions will show a logical progression from the Mac to the iPad to something like this SpaceTop 3D desktop, if computer genius Jinha...

Autopsy of a Dead Social Network
From ACM Careers

Autopsy of a Dead Social Network

Friendster is a social network that was founded in 2002, a year before Myspace and two years before Facebook.

On Today's Battlefield, Is Information More Important Than Firepower?
From ACM Opinion

On Today's Battlefield, Is Information More Important Than Firepower?

Halo, Borderlands, Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, Battlefield, Metal Gear Solid—these kinds of games taught a generation to see enemies as red dots on a mini-map...

Wearable Computers Struggle to Go Mainstream: 10 Reasons Why
From ACM TechNews

Wearable Computers Struggle to Go Mainstream: 10 Reasons Why

The market for wearable technology remains small and faces obstacles to widespread use. 

Coming to a Smartphone Near You: Personalized Experiences
From ACM TechNews

Coming to a Smartphone Near You: Personalized Experiences

A new study suggests future apps will provide personalized experiences through systems that integrate across all service platforms.

China Says ­.s. Routinely Hacks Defense Ministry Websites
From ACM News

China Says ­.s. Routinely Hacks Defense Ministry Websites

Two major Chinese military websites, including that of the Defense Ministry, were subject to about 144,000 hacking attacks a month last year, almost two-thirds...

Sd College Tests Fingerprint Purchasing Technology
From ACM News

Sd College Tests Fingerprint Purchasing Technology

Futurists have long proclaimed the coming of a cashless society, where dollar bills and plastic cards are replaced by fingerprint and retina scanners smart enough...

After M.t.a. Setbacks, No-Swipe Fare Cards Are Still Stuck in the Future
From ACM News

After M.t.a. Setbacks, No-Swipe Fare Cards Are Still Stuck in the Future

For nearly 50 years, coins were the currency in New York’s subway and bus system. Tokens carried the next 40 years, until the MetroCard first slid into riders’...

Stuxnet Missing Link Found, Resolves Some Mysteries Around the Cyberweapon
From ACM News

Stuxnet Missing Link Found, Resolves Some Mysteries Around the Cyberweapon

As Iran met in Kazakhstan this week with members of the UN Security Council to discuss its nuclear program, researchers announced that a new variant of the sophisticated...

The Art of Cyberwar
From ACM Opinion

The Art of Cyberwar

The New York Times’ front-page report last week that the Chinese army is hacking into America's most sensitive computer networks from a 12-story building outside...

Three Radical New Brain-Mapping Tools Scientists Want Obama to Deliver
From ACM News

Three Radical New Brain-Mapping Tools Scientists Want Obama to Deliver

The Obama administration wants to make a huge investment in mapping the human brain,according to The New York Times. How can they get the most bang for their buck...

Human-Robot Relations: Why We Should Worry
From ACM TechNews

Human-Robot Relations: Why We Should Worry

Technology is eroding social connections between human beings as machines step in to fill social needs, according to one researcher. 

The Next Frontier Is Inside Your Brain
From ACM Opinion

The Next Frontier Is Inside Your Brain

The Obama administration is planning a multiyear research effort to produce an "activity map" that would show in unprecedented detail the workings of the human,...

How Augmented-Reality Content Might Actually Work
From ACM Opinion

How Augmented-Reality Content Might Actually Work

Augmented reality is very exciting. The promise of it is this: all the information on the Internet overlaid on the real world exactly where and when you need it...

The Ar-15 Is More Than a Gun. It's a Gadget
From ACM Opinion

The Ar-15 Is More Than a Gun. It's a Gadget

I was shaking as I shouldered the rifle and peered through the scope at the small steel target 100 yards downrange.

New Ipad App For People With Sight Loss Needs Backing From Publishers
From ACM TechNews

New Ipad App For People With Sight Loss Needs Backing From Publishers

A new iPad app could make it easier for people with macular disease to read. 
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