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Virtual Reality Stinks Because It Does Not Smell
From ACM Opinion

Virtual Reality Stinks Because It Does Not Smell

For VR to feel truly immersive, it needs to start stinking it up.

The Future of Robot Nannies
From ACM Opinion

The Future of Robot Nannies

A machine can't love our children, but our children might love them

The Metaverse Is Simply Big Tech, but Bigger
From ACM Opinion

The Metaverse Is Simply Big Tech, but Bigger

It's a rebrand of Silicon Valley's increasing power and reach, and it's made for companies, not people

The U.S. Needs to Get Back in the Business of Making Chips
From ACM Opinion

The U.S. Needs to Get Back in the Business of Making Chips

Pandemic-induced supply disruptions and competition from China pressuring U.S. companies to manufacture semiconductors at home.

The Future of American Industry Depends on Open Source Tech
From ACM Opinion

The Future of American Industry Depends on Open Source Tech

 Open source has two important, and somewhat counterintuitive, advantages: speed and security.

Stop Saying Driverless Cars Will Help Old People
From ACM Opinion

Stop Saying Driverless Cars Will Help Old People

And maybe start including them in research instead of just assuming we know what they want.

Why American Workers Need to Be Protected From Automation
From ACM Opinion

Why American Workers Need to Be Protected From Automation

Bill de Blasio, New York City mayor and a candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, says that as president he would issue a robot tax for corporations...

The FBI Wanted a Backdoor to the iPhone. Tim Cook Said No
From ACM Opinion

The FBI Wanted a Backdoor to the iPhone. Tim Cook Said No

In 2016, Tim Cook fought the law—and won.

Huawei's Problem Isn't Chinese Backdoors. It's Buggy Software
From ACM Opinion

Huawei's Problem Isn't Chinese Backdoors. It's Buggy Software

A report on Thursday from a British government oversight group found that Chinese telecom-equipment maker Huawei has basic but deeply problematic flaws in its product...

China Will Likely Corner the 5G Market, and the ­S Has No Plan
From ACM Opinion

China Will Likely Corner the 5G Market, and the ­S Has No Plan

You may have heard that China has cornered much of the world's supply of strategic metals and minerals crucial for new technology, including lithium, rare earths...

There's No Good Reason to Trust Blockchain Technology
From ACM Opinion

There's No Good Reason to Trust Blockchain Technology

In his 2008 white paper that first proposed bitcoin, the anonymous Satoshi Nakamoto concluded with: "We have proposed a system for electronic transactions without...

Trump Pledges Investment, But Is Silent on Key Tech Issues
From ACM Opinion

Trump Pledges Investment, But Is Silent on Key Tech Issues

In his State of the Union address Tuesday, President Trump promised legislation to invest in "the cutting edge industries of the future." But the speech was characteristically...

What the California Wildfires Can Teach ­s About Data Sharing
From ACM Opinion

What the California Wildfires Can Teach ­s About Data Sharing

When a massive earthquake and tsunami hit the eastern coast of Japan on March 11, 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant failed, leaking radioactive material...

Try Landing InSight on Mars (Without Exploding)
From ACM Opinion

Try Landing InSight on Mars (Without Exploding)

NASA just parked its InSight lander on Mars. Yes, Mars. This is a pretty big deal since quite a few Mars missions didn't make it.

You Know What? Go Ahead and ­se the Hotel Wi-Fi
From ACM Opinion

You Know What? Go Ahead and ­se the Hotel Wi-Fi

As you travel this holiday season, bouncing from airport to airplane to hotel, you'll likely find yourself facing a familiar quandary: Do I really trust this ...

What the Midterm Election Results Mean for Big Tech
From ACM Opinion

What the Midterm Election Results Mean for Big Tech

It may not have been the tsunami some expected, but the Democrat's long-promised blue wave was enough to carry the party to a majority in the House of Representatives ...

What the Boston School Bus Schedule Can Teach ­s About AI
From ACM Opinion

What the Boston School Bus Schedule Can Teach ­s About AI

When the Boston public school system announced new start times last December, some parents found the schedules unacceptable and pushed back.

The Real Houseguest of the Ecuadorian Embassy
From ACM Opinion

The Real Houseguest of the Ecuadorian Embassy

If Julian Assange of WikiLeaks denies the Ecuadorian government's stinging charge that he's a disgusting houseguest, he'd do well not to deny that charge "categorically...

Paper and the Case for Going Low-Tech in the Voting Booth
From ACM Opinion

Paper and the Case for Going Low-Tech in the Voting Booth

In September 2017, barely two months before Virginians went to the polls to pick a new governor, the state's board of elections convened an emergency session. The...

You're Expecting Too Much Out of Boston Dynamics' Robots
From ACM Opinion

You're Expecting Too Much Out of Boston Dynamics' Robots

At the WIRED25 festival in San Francisco Sunday evening, Boston Dynamics' SpotMini robot got onstage and did what no other quadruped robot has done before: It danced...
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