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If 'e.t.' Finds Voyager 1, Will It Phone Earth?
From ACM Opinion

If 'e.t.' Finds Voyager 1, Will It Phone Earth?

In 1519, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan launched the expedition that completed the first circumnavigation of the globe. And so humanity learned the full...

Grand Theft Auto V Lives ­p to Hype, Steals Its Car, Sets House on Fire
From ACM Opinion

Grand Theft Auto V Lives ­p to Hype, Steals Its Car, Sets House on Fire

I'm trying to put into words how difficult a situation it is attempting to summarize my thoughts on a game that I've only been playing for two weeks when I know...

The Message Voyager 1 Carries For Alien Civilizations
From ACM Opinion

The Message Voyager 1 Carries For Alien Civilizations

The year was 1977.

Trigger Finger: Apple Fires Biometrics Into the Mainstream
From ACM Opinion

Trigger Finger: Apple Fires Biometrics Into the Mainstream

By adding a fingerprint scanner to its newest mobile phone, Apple Inc. is offering a tantalizing glimpse of a future where your favorite gadget might become a biometric...

The Real Reasons Apple's 64-Bit A7 Chip Makes Sense
From ACM Opinion

The Real Reasons Apple's 64-Bit A7 Chip Makes Sense

Apple injected a lot of marketing hyperbole into its claims about the wonders of 64-bit computing when it showed off the A7 processor at the heart of the new ...

Apple's New Iphone 'touch Id' Makes Fingerprint Scans Easy, But Don't Ditch Passcodes Yet
From ACM Opinion

Apple's New Iphone 'touch Id' Makes Fingerprint Scans Easy, But Don't Ditch Passcodes Yet

The latest iPhone has arrived, and along with it what may be the slickest integration of biometric security yet: A fingerprint scanner built seamlessly into the...

Why a Cyberwar Won't Happen
From ACM Opinion

Why a Cyberwar Won't Happen

Exactly two decades ago, the RAND Corporation, an influential think tank, proclaimed that "cyberwar is coming!"

Nsa Surveillance Makes For Strange Bedfellows
From ACM Opinion

Nsa Surveillance Makes For Strange Bedfellows

The controversy over U.S. government surveillance has produced a king-size collection of strange bedfellows. Beneath the covers one finds both amusing ironies and...

If the New Iphone Has Fingerprint Authentication, Can It Be Hacked?
From ACM Opinion

If the New Iphone Has Fingerprint Authentication, Can It Be Hacked?

When Apple bought AuthenTec for its biometrics technology—reported as one of its most expensive purchases—there was a lot of speculation about how the company would...

Nsa Surveillance: A Guide to Staying Secure
From ACM Opinion

Nsa Surveillance: A Guide to Staying Secure

Now that we have enough details about how the NSA eavesdrops on the Internet, including today's disclosures of the NSA's deliberate weakening of cryptographic systems...

Why the ­.s. Should ­se Cyber Weapons Against Syria
From ACM Opinion

Why the ­.s. Should ­se Cyber Weapons Against Syria

If the Obama administration does conduct military strikes against Syria, as seems likely, it should use military cyber weapons at the earliest possible moment to...

How Advanced Is the NSA's Cryptanalysis—And Can We Resist It?
From ACM Opinion

How Advanced Is the NSA's Cryptanalysis—And Can We Resist It?

The latest Snowden document is the U.S. intelligence "black budget."

Beyond The Shadows: Apple's Ios 7 Is All About The Screen
From ACM Opinion

Beyond The Shadows: Apple's Ios 7 Is All About The Screen

At some point in the coming weeks, users of Apple iPhones and iPads will wake up to an alert that there is a new version of the company's mobile operating system...

Go Ahead, Mess With Texas Instruments
From ACM Opinion

Go Ahead, Mess With Texas Instruments

Last year, while cleaning out the basement of my childhood home, I discovered a plastic storage bin marked "Calcusoft." Inside were piles of notebooks filled with...

From ACM Opinion

Choosing Real-World Impact Over Impact Factor

My annual report for the 2012-13 academic year stares at me from an undisturbed corner of my desk.

Think You Can Drive a Bulldozer?
From ACM News

Think You Can Drive a Bulldozer?

As he closed the door, leaving me alone at the controls of a 41,000-pound bulldozer with list price of nearly $432,000, a Komatsu Ltd. executive shouted, "No worries...

Madden Turns 25: How the Video Game Sacked Its Rivals
From ACM Opinion

Madden Turns 25: How the Video Game Sacked Its Rivals

The year was 1988. George Michael's "Faith" was top of the pops. "Roseanne" was the number-one show on TV. Bruce Willis, starring in "Die Hard," still had hair.

How a Look at Your Gmail Reveals the Power of Metadata
From ACM News

How a Look at Your Gmail Reveals the Power of Metadata

Sometimes you have to give up a little privacy in order to find out how much—or how little—privacy you really have.

In Markets' Tuned-­p Machinery, Stubborn Ghosts Remain
From ACM News

In Markets' Tuned-­p Machinery, Stubborn Ghosts Remain

A generation ago, when the stock market crashed on Oct. 19, 1987, the Nasdaq stock market appeared to have done much better than the New York Stock Exchange.

What to Do About Google?
From Communications of the ACM

What to Do About Google?

Whether it is acting as a conduit, an editor, or an advisor, the search engine should put user interests first.
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