Communications of the ACM
The opinion archive provides access to past opinion stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
August 2012
From ACM Opinion
Paul Otellini on Intel and the Pc's Evolution
Since taking over as CEO in 2005, Otellini has focused on pushing Intel beyond the PC.
From ACM Opinion
Exploring the Planets Enriches S at Home
NASA's newest marvel, a one-ton rover named Curiosity, has been set down with all the delicacy of a carton of eggs on the surface of Mars.
From ACM Careers
In a Valley of Vc Clones, Google Ventures Does More Than Just Write Checks
Joe Kraus isn't just a Google Ventures partner. He's also a poker player, and I think he knows that both pursuits involve a certain amount of gambling, regardless of how much skill you think you have.
From ACM Opinion
There's Only One Truly Open Platform: The Web
As Twitter and Facebook continue to fight a variety of skirmishes in the ongoing "platform wars," with both companies trying to control as much of their networks as they can in order to monetize them as quickly as possible, it's…
From ACM Opinion
Why High-Frequency Trading Doesn't Compute
Wall Street is no autobahn. Traders pushing pedal to the metal risk hurtling into the Buttonwood Trees.
From ACM TechNews
Developer Interview: How Haiku Is Building a Better Beos
BeOS, an operating system that was originally designed for Apple hardware but was passed over for NeXT's OpenStep, has found a new life thanks to Haiku.
From ACM Opinion
15 Technologies of Today We'll Still Be sing in 2030
Sure, we now have faster, smaller computers, smartphones that talk back to you, and smart TVs, but in so many areas of technology the pace of change is slower than Windows Vista booting off a floppy disk.
From ACM Opinion
Trust: Ill-Advised in a Digital Age
Bruce Schneieer ordered a Coke, no ice, at the Rio casino on a Saturday afternoon. I ordered Diet Coke, also no ice, and handed the bartender an American Express card.
From ACM Opinion
Nasa Mohawk Guy Bobak Ferdowsi on Sci-Fi, Legos, and Becoming a Meme
As space geeks watched nervously to see if NASA's Curiosity rover would land safely on Mars, many found themselves wondering, "Hey, who's that cool dude with the stars-and-stripes mohawk?"
From ACM Opinion
Meet Gauss, the Latest Weapon in the nfolding .s.-Israeli Cyberwar
To the steadily growing list of digital weapons that appear to have been jointly created by the combined resources of the U.S. and Israel, we can now add another. The researchers at Russia-based Kasperky Labs who discovered it…
From ACM Opinion
Robot Master
When you visit Manuela Veloso at Carnegie Mellon University, you're not guided to her office by a security officer or even issued instructions by a secretary at reception. Instead, one of Veloso's autonomous CoBots (short for…
From ACM Opinion
Why I Love Mars
Every now and then, I spend time on Mars. I dig my naked toes into the fine, red-orange soil, watch how it clings to my skin—and feel an incipient itch.
From ACM Opinion
How Will Apple Restore Icloud Trust?
After being on the receiving end of a truly awful hacking attack, Wired writer Mat Honan explained how it happened in detail. And he was very clear about two of the parties responsible for leaving major loopholes that let hackers…
From ACM Opinion
How the Icloud Hack Happened and How to Avoid Being Next
Mat Honan, the technology reporter who was digitally disemboweled this past weekend, has revealed exactly how he was so spectacularly owned. His case, a cascade of security failures that involved four well-known companies, should…
From ACM TechNews
Tired of Security Problems? Change Rules of Writing Code
Security researcher Dan Kaminsky believes rethinking the basic rules of computer science can dramatically improve computer security, and argues that "there's not enough science [being done]."
From ACM Opinion
How Cyber Security Could Be a Winning Issue for Obama
A blackout in Manhattan. A major dam failure. Mayhem at a chemical plant. Those are all potential, and entirely plausible, consequences of a cyber attack, according to a range of current and former national security officials…
From ACM Opinion
Seven Reasons Curiosity Is the Baddest Rover Ever
While Curiosity was still flying through space, way before it landed on Mars, scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory were busy working with a clone rover back on earth.
From ACM Opinion
How Apple and Amazon Security Flaws Led to My Epic Hacking
In the space of one hour, my entire digital life was destroyed.
From ACM Opinion
Why Drone Pilots Deserve Medals
The escalating dependence on drone pilots, as Maj. Dave Blair agonized in the May-June issue ofAir & Space Power Journal, is undercutting the ability to award combat medals.
From ACM Opinion
Meet the Man Who Put the '@' in Your Email
Who invented email? That's a bit like asking, "Who invented the Internet?" Even those with intimate knowledge of its creation can’t agree on the moment it actually came to life. But amid all the bluster over the origins of email…
From ACM Opinion
His Other Car Is on Mars
On Earth, Scott Maxwell drives his red Prius without paying much attention to the San Gabriel Mountains in the distance.
From ACM Opinion
Here's Why Tablets (yes, Tablets!) Will Replace the Smartphone
I'm sure to get the "you're off your rocker" commentary on this one, but I make a living by looking ahead in the world of mobile technology. And what I see now is a trend that I have watched build for nearly half a dozen years…
From ACM News
How Fbi Technology Woes Let Fort Hood Shooter Slip By
On November 5, 2009, an Army psychiatrist stationed at Fort Hood, Texas shot and killed 12 fellow soldiers and a civilian Defense Department employee while wounding 29 others.
From ACM Opinion
Neil Degrasse Tyson on the Future of .s. Space Exploration After Curiosity
In two days, NASA's Curiosity rover will hopefully survive its "seven minutes of terror" and land safely on the surface of Mars. What comes next for U.S. space exploration?
From ACM Opinion
Why Siri Is Still the Future
When Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S last year, the new phone looked just like the previous one. It had a better camera and a faster chip, but it could do only one new thing: Siri.
From ACM Opinion
Suggestions For an Apple Shopping List
Question: What would you do if you had $117 billion?
From Communications of the ACM
Internet Elections: Unsafe in Any Home?
Experiences with electronic voting suggest elections should not be conducted via the Internet.
From Communications of the ACM
The Politics of 'Real Names'
Power, context, and control in networked publics.
From Communications of the ACM
The Internet Is Everywhere, but the Payoff Is Not
Examining the uneven patterns of Internet economics.
From Communications of the ACM
Inside the Hermit Kingdom: IT and Outsourcing in North Korea
North Korea has a sizeable IT sector. Some 10,000 professionals work in the field, and many more have IT degrees. They are already engaged in outsourcing contracts for other countries, and are keen to expand further.