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How Donald Trump Will Dismantle Obama's Internet Legacy
From ACM Opinion

How Donald Trump Will Dismantle Obama's Internet Legacy

President-elect Donald Trump could eviscerate some of the most significant tech policies of the 21st century, all but erasing President Obama's Internet agenda...

Nate Silver Blew It When He Missed Trump. Now He Really Needs to Get It Right.
From ACM Opinion

Nate Silver Blew It When He Missed Trump. Now He Really Needs to Get It Right.

Nate Silver is on the downtown 1 train. Possibly because he looks like a (modestly) hip math teacher, and hardly looks up from his phone, he goes unrecognized until...

Ted Cruz Is Wrong About How Free Speech Is Censored on the Internet
From ACM Opinion

Ted Cruz Is Wrong About How Free Speech Is Censored on the Internet

Sen. Ted Cruz wants to engineer a United States takeover of a key Internet organization, ICANN, in the name of protecting freedom of expression.

The Cold War Is Over. The Cyber War Has Begun.
From ACM Opinion

The Cold War Is Over. The Cyber War Has Begun.

Contemplating Russian nuclear threats during the Cold War, the strategist Herman Kahn calibrated a macabre ladder of escalation, with 44 rungs ranging from "Ostensible...

Here's How Russian Hackers Could Actually Tip an American Election
From ACM Opinion

Here's How Russian Hackers Could Actually Tip an American Election

Reports this week of Russian intrusions into U.S. election systems have startled many voters, but computer experts are not surprised.

The Brave New World of Robots and Lost Jobs
From ACM Opinion

The Brave New World of Robots and Lost Jobs

Job insecurity is a central theme of the 2016 campaign, fueling popular anger about trade deals and immigration. But economists warn that much bigger job losses...

America Wants to Believe China Can't Innovate. Tech Tells a Different Story.
From ACM Opinion

America Wants to Believe China Can't Innovate. Tech Tells a Different Story.

Silicon Valley may be powered by organic kale, but when Chinese tech gurus gather at 3W, a coffee shop-slash-incubator in the Chinese capital, they want sunflower...

The Real Reason America Controls Its Nukes with Ancient Floppy Disks
From ACM Opinion

The Real Reason America Controls Its Nukes with Ancient Floppy Disks

America's nuclear arsenal depends on a surprising relic of the 1970s that few of us may recall: the humble floppy disk.

A Court Is About to Make One of the Most Important Decisions in the History of the Internet
From ACM Opinion

A Court Is About to Make One of the Most Important Decisions in the History of the Internet

If you thought the battle over net neutrality ended when the Federal Communications Commission slapped a series of unprecedented rules on Internet providers last...

The Creepy, Inescapable Advertisements That Could Define Virtual Reality
From ACM Opinion

The Creepy, Inescapable Advertisements That Could Define Virtual Reality

When cookie giant Oreo wanted to promote its latest flavors, its marketing heads decided to spice up its traditional TV ads with something not just new, but otherworldly...

This One Thing Could Hurt Apple's Case in Washington
From ACM Opinion

This One Thing Could Hurt Apple's Case in Washington

Apple's fight with the FBI is widening beyond the courts.

Why Robots and Smart Thermostats Keep America's Spy Chief ­p at Night
From ACM Opinion

Why Robots and Smart Thermostats Keep America's Spy Chief ­p at Night

Some people are already used to having their personal information exposed in massive data breaches.

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

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

Autonomous weapons experts sounded the alarm last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, cautioning that unless governments act to limit these...

The Case For Looking to the States, Not the Federal Government, to Protect Your Privacy
From ACM Opinion

The Case For Looking to the States, Not the Federal Government, to Protect Your Privacy

A year ago, President Obama stood behind a podium at the Federal Trade Commission and called for legislation that would set a single national standard for when...

Why It's So Hard For Washington to Draft Tech Companies Against the Islamic State
From ACM Opinion

Why It's So Hard For Washington to Draft Tech Companies Against the Islamic State

Here's the basic problem the government faces when it comes to stopping the Islamic State's Internet propaganda: It needs Silicon Valley's help. But some tech companies—even...

Driverless Cars Are Colliding with the Creepy Trolley Problem
From ACM Opinion

Driverless Cars Are Colliding with the Creepy Trolley Problem

Philosophers have been gnawing on the infamous Trolley Problem for decades, and it’s always been a purely intellectual exercise with no "right" answer.

Apple Is Learning an Expensive Lesson About ­niversities
From ACM Opinion

Apple Is Learning an Expensive Lesson About ­niversities

You may have heard that Apple's on the hook for $862 million in potential penalties after a jury ruled that it infringed on a patent owned by the University of...

How Tetris Explains the Promise of the ­ltimate Algorithm
From ACM Opinion

How Tetris Explains the Promise of the ­ltimate Algorithm

Pedro Domingos is a serious guy with big ambitions.

The Very Best Ideas For Preventing Artificial Intelligence from Wrecking the Planet
From ACM Opinion

The Very Best Ideas For Preventing Artificial Intelligence from Wrecking the Planet

The Boston-based Future of Life Institute, backed by a $10 million donation from Elon Musk, recently announced its list of 37 winners of research grants in the....

6 Reasons Why We're ­nderhyping the Internet of Things
From ACM Opinion

6 Reasons Why We're ­nderhyping the Internet of Things

Just when you thought the Internet of Things couldn't possibly live up to its hype, along comes a blockbuster, 142-page report from McKinsey Global Institute ("The...
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