Communications of the ACM
Innovation Is Overrated: A Provocation
Digital innovation is not working in the interest of the whole of society. It is time to radically rethink its purpose without…
From ACM Opinion
The S Cannot Crush s, Says Huawei Founder
The founder of Huawei has said there is "no way the US can crush" the company, in an exclusive interview with the BBC.
From ACM Opinion
What's Behind China's Space Programme Expansion
China is a relative late-bloomer when it comes to the world of space exploration. But just 15 years after it first sent an astronaut into orbit, China has become...
From ACM Opinion
Fake News: Can Teenagers Spot It?
If we are to make it less of a threat to democracy, that effort is going to need to start in schools.
From ACM Opinion
What It's Like to Fly in the Bermuda Triangle of Space
"Before I became an astronaut, I had seen stories of astronauts who had seen white flashes from radiation while they flew in space," says Terry Virts, a former...
From ACM Opinion
Will AI and Blockchain Be Game-Changers?
This week saw another major achievement by Google's Deep Mind, when it showed that a neural network could learn to play Go in just three days, without even looking...
From ACM Opinion
Why Video Games Are Obsessed With the Apocalypse
Video games are, in a way, the perfect medium through which to depict the post-apocalypse. If we assume that after the collapse of civilisation everyone will revert...
From ACM Opinion
Defending Tor, Gateway to the Dark Web
When Roger Dingledine talks about the dark web, he waves his hands in the air, as if not quite convinced of its existence.
From ACM Opinion
Tracking Terrorists Online Might Invade Your Privacy
Remember that picture you sent to your family of your children playing in the paddling pool? Or that private text you sent to someone trusted? Or when you searched...
From ACM Opinion
Why the Biggest Challenge Facing AI Is an Ethical One
Artificial intelligence is everywhere and it's here to stay.
From ACM Opinion
What If the Internet Stopped Working For a Day?
Jeff Hancock likes to give his Stanford University students weekend assignments that let them experience concepts discussed in class for themselves.
From ACM Opinion
If We Made Contact with Aliens, How Would Religions React?
In 2014, Nasa awarded $1.1M to the Center for Theological Inquiry, an ecumenical research institute in New Jersey, to study “the societal implications of astrobiology”...
From ACM Opinion
The New Words That Expose Our Smartphone Obsessions
New words sometimes skewer a trend so perfectly you wonder how you survived without them. One of the most delightfully apt new phrases I've found in the last few...
From ACM Opinion
Facebook Fake News Row: Mark Zuckerberg Is a Politician Now
I've long suspected that Mark Zuckerberg, who often refers to himself as the "leader" of Facebook, has dreams of high office.
From ACM Opinion
Maths Becomes Biology's Magic Number
"If you want a career in medicine these days you're better off studying mathematics or computing than biology."
From ACM Opinion
Would It Be Ethical to Implant False Memories in Therapy?
Take a moment to remember an event that you experienced as a child.
From ACM Opinion
What If the Aliens We Are Looking For Are Ai?
For more than a century we have been broadcasting our presence to the cosmos.
From ACM Opinion
How Will Virtual Reality Change Our Lives?
And it's not just gamers who are benefiting from the immersive possibilities it offers.
From ACM Opinion
The Secret Signals That Rule Transport Networks
It is early morning on Brighton beach, and we are sitting on a slope of pebbles, looking out to sea.
From ACM Opinion