Communications of the ACM
The opinion archive provides access to past opinion stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
June 2013
From ACM Opinion
Why Americans Don't Fear the Nsa
Cybersnooping was always scheduled to be an important topic during President Obama’s meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
From ACM Opinion
How to Protect Yourself from the Online Axis of Evil
North Korea and Iran are viewed as threats to the world because of their potential to field weapons of mass destruction, but they are far more likely to focus their malfeasance on "mass disruption" via cyber attacks.
From ACM Opinion
Dave Farber, Internet's "grandfather," Seeks to Cut Through Fog of Cyberwar
Over the last few years, the rhetoric if not the actuality of cyberwarfare has been escalating.
From ACM Opinion
Who's Watching You? Not Just the Nsa.
While you were tweeting an Instagram of your home-cooked tikka masala last night, we learned that the National Security Agency (NSA) has been collecting data on millions of Verizon customers.
From ACM Opinion
Opening Dropbox
If you walk the halls at MIT, you may notice a lot of students wearing T-shirts bearing the Dropbox logo. It's a simple design—an opened box—but one that carries outsize significance at the Institute: Alumnus Drew Houston '05…
From ACM Opinion
Would You Go Full Cyborg?
It's only a matter of time, really. Google Glass, Epson's Movierio, the Oculus Rift, and similar technologies are at the cutting edge of wearable technologies. Sci-fi has certainly given us a glimpse at the potential future:…
From ACM Opinion
Make Patent Trolls Pay in Court
From an early age we are taught the importance of fighting fairly.
From ACM Opinion
Our Guts May Hate Mars
Eighty thousand people recently applied for a trip to Mars, an excursion that will allegedly be funded by selling reality-TV show rights for the voyage.
From ACM Opinion
Mit's Magic Bag Of Sand
The camera pushes in. And there, near the meridian line, you see a faint scattering of red lights. Something is in the tar. And it's glowing.
From ACM Opinion
Patent Trolls Are a Serious Threat to .s. Innovation
At last, some good news about America's dysfunctional patent system: the White House has noticed there's a problem.
From ACM Opinion
As Facebook Grows p, Grand Ambitions Get Reality Check
Facebook, which once seemed poised to take over the Internet, is showing its limitations: a host of newer services are gaining ground among trend-setting youth; a much-hyped smartphone app has received a tepid response; and grand…
From ACM Opinion
The Trouble With Neuroscience
No crevice of the human experience is safe.
From ACM Opinion
Wearable Computing Pioneer Says Google Glass Offers 'killer Existence'
Few gadgets have generated as much excitement and hostility as Google Glass, a voice-activated computer-monitor combo worn on eyeglass frames.
From ACM Opinion
Google+ Isn't a Social Network; It's The Matrix
Pretty much everyone (myself included) has been reading Google+ wrongly.
From ACM Opinion
Senator Rand Paul Talks Tech, Civil Liberties, and Keeping the Government Out of Your Email
Rand Paul is having some problems with the jerks back at the office. So today he's bypassing them on a road trip through Silicon Valley.
From ACM Opinion
Forget Google Glass. These Are the Interfaces of the Future
When we talk about design nowadays, the focus has been on the lures (or dangers) of flat design and skeumorphism; whether there should be (or really are any) intuitive interfaces; and wearable, maybe "disappearing" interfaces…
From ACM Opinion
The Fbi's New Wiretapping Plan Is Great News For Criminals
The FBI wants a new law that will make it easier to wiretap the Internet.
From ACM Careers
How and Why to Teach Your Kids to Code
Whether or not your child grows up to be the next Zuckerberg, programming is a highly useful skill for him or her to learn.
From ACM Opinion
The Banality of 'don’t Be Evil'
"The New Digital Age" is a startlingly clear and provocative blueprint for technocratic imperialism, from two of its leading witch doctors, Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen, who construct a new idiom for United States global power…
From Communications of the ACM
Cybercrime, Cyberweapons, Cyber Wars: Is There Too Much of It in the Air?
Where reality stops and perception begins.
From Communications of the ACM
Swamped By Automation
Whenever someone asks you to trust them, don't.
From Communications of the ACM
Thumb Numbers
Rules of thumb stated as numerical rules are enticing, but many are folk theorems that may not apply in your critical situation.
From Communications of the ACM
Access to the Internet Is a Human Right
Connecting Internet access with freedom of expression and creativity.
From Communications of the ACM
What Is a 'Good' Estimate?
Whether forecasting is valuable.
From Communications of the ACM
Learning from the Past to Face the Risks of Today
The Space Shuttle software program can provide guidance to today's projects.