acm-header
Sign In

Communications of the ACM

Recent Articles


bg-corner

If There Are Aliens Out There, Where Are They?
From ACM Opinion

If There Are Aliens Out There, Where Are They?

Physicist Enrico Fermi famously asked the question "Where are they?" to express his surprise over the absence of any signs for the existence of other intelligent...

Political Gifs Are the New Sound Bites This Campaign Season
From ACM Opinion

Political Gifs Are the New Sound Bites This Campaign Season

Every few decades, a piece of technology comes along that alters political campaigning.

In 2015, Promising Surveillance Cases Ran Into Legal Brick Walls
From ACM Opinion

In 2015, Promising Surveillance Cases Ran Into Legal Brick Walls

Today, the first Snowden disclosures in 2013 feel like a distant memory.

Security's Biggest Winners and Losers in 2015
From ACM Opinion

Security's Biggest Winners and Losers in 2015

This year, lawmakers surprised us by taking initial steps—albeit, baby ones—to rein in some of the NSA's mass spying and provide better oversight of the intelligence...

Learning to Apply Data Science to Business Problems
From ACM Opinion

Learning to Apply Data Science to Business Problems

One of the most exciting parts of data science is that it can be applied to many domains of knowledge, given our newfound ability to gather valuable data on almost...

And Science's Breakthrough of the Year Is …
From ACM Opinion

And Science's Breakthrough of the Year Is …

It was conceived after a yogurt company in 2007 identified an unexpected defense mechanism that its bacteria use to fight off viruses.

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.

The Dark Side of the Coming Chatbot Revolution
From ACM Opinion

The Dark Side of the Coming Chatbot Revolution

Artificial intelligence is coming to a messaging app near you.

Genome-Editing Revolution: My Whirlwind Year with Crispr
From ACM Opinion

Genome-Editing Revolution: My Whirlwind Year with Crispr

Some 20 months ago, I started having trouble sleeping.

How the Internet of Things Limits Consumer Choice
From ACM Opinion

How the Internet of Things Limits Consumer Choice

In theory, the Internet of Things—the connected network of tiny computers inside home appliances, household objects, even clothing—promises to make your life easier...

The Science to Look Out For in 2016
From ACM Opinion

The Science to Look Out For in 2016

A Swiss company is set to become the first firm to capture carbon dioxide from the air and sell it on a commercial scale, a stepping stone to larger facilities...

Why Knowledge Representation Matters
From Communications of the ACM

Why Knowledge Representation Matters

A personal story: From philosophy to software.

Unbalanced Data Leads to Obsolete Economic Advice
From Communications of the ACM

Unbalanced Data Leads to Obsolete Economic Advice

Few computer scientists and technological workers worry about their role in the economies of their industries and their countries. Background supplementary material...

Where Code Comes From
From Communications of the ACM

Where Code Comes From: Architectures of Automatic Control from Babbage to Algol

Considering the evolving concept of programming.

The Chaos Machine
From Communications of the ACM

The Chaos Machine

Complexity, predictability, and modern projects.

Extrapolating from Moore's Law
From Communications of the ACM

Extrapolating from Moore's Law

Behind and beyond Microsoft, Intel, and Apple.

Biometric Identity
From Communications of the ACM

Biometric Identity

Assessing the promises and dangers of biometric identity plans.

The Death of American Research and Development
From ACM Opinion

The Death of American Research and Development

When rumors began to fly about a merger between chemical giants Dow Chemical  and DuPont , it was obvious the deal was not your ordinary fee-driven scheme dreamed...

A Pause to Weigh Risks of Gene Editing
From ACM Opinion

A Pause to Weigh Risks of Gene Editing

The technology for altering defects in the human genome has progressed so rapidly in the last three years that it has outstripped the ability of scientists and...

Elon Musk's Billion-Dollar AI Plan Is About Far More Than Saving the World
From ACM Opinion

Elon Musk's Billion-Dollar AI Plan Is About Far More Than Saving the World

Elon Musk and Sam Altman worry that artificial intelligence will take over the world. So, the two entrepreneurs are creating a billion-dollar not-for-profit company...
Sign In for Full Access
» Forgot Password? » Create an ACM Web Account