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
Why the Russians Might Hack the Boy Scouts Next
In the two years since Russia made headlines for targeting an American political organization–the Democratic National Committee–and undermining Hillary Clinton's...
From ACM Opinion
How Will Google's Innovation Continue Beyond Its 20th Year?
As millions of people came online in the late 1990s they needed help figuring out what each webpage was about, and how to find what they were looking for.
From ACM Opinion
Detecting 'DeepFake' Videos in the Blink of an Eye
A new form of misinformation is poised to spread through online communities as the 2018 midterm election campaigns heat up. Called "deepfakes" after the pseudonymous...
From ACM Opinion
What Are Rare Earths, Crucial Elements in Modern Technology? 4 Questions Answered
Most Americans use rare earth elements every day—without knowing it, or knowing anything about what they do. That could change, as these unusual materials are becoming...
From ACM Opinion
Programmers Need Ethics When Designing the Technologies that Influence People's Lives
Computing professionals are on the front lines of almost every aspect of the modern world.
From ACM Opinion
Weaponized Information Seeks a New Target in Cyberspace: Users' Minds
The Russian attacks on the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the country's continuing election-related hacking have happened across all three dimensions of cyberspace—physical...
From ACM Opinion
Supreme Court Struggles to Define 'Searches' as Technology Changes
What the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution means when it protects citizens against an unreasonable search by government agents isn't entirely clear.
From ACM Opinion
Microprocessor Designers Realize Security Must Be a Primary Concern
Computers' amazing abilities to entertain people, help them work, and even respond to voice commands are, at their heart, the results of decades of technological...
From ACM Opinion
Disrupting Pro-ISIS Online 'Ecosystems' Could Help Thwart Real-World Terrorism
Supporters of the Islamic State, or ISIS, around the world gather online, becoming members of virtual communities in much the same way any of us might join online...
From ACM Opinion
Misinformation and Biases Infect Social Media, Both Intentionally and Accidentally
Social media are among the primary sources of news in the U.S. and across the world.
From ACM Opinion
Connected Cars Can Lie, Posing a New Threat to Smart Cities
The day when cars can talk to each other—and to traffic lights, stop signs, guardrails and even pavement markings—is rapidly approaching.
From ACM Opinion
What Are These 'Levels' of Autonomous Vehicles?
As automated and autonomous vehicles become more common on U.S. roads, it's worth a look at what these machines can—and can't—do.
From ACM Opinion
Nazis Pressed Ham Radio Hobbyists to Serve the Third Reich, but Surviving Came at a Price
When people have free and unfettered choices of activities, they both entertain and express themselves through their pastimes—whether stamp or coin collecting,...
From ACM Opinion
It's Not My Fault, My Brain Implant Made Me Do It
Mr. B loves Johnny Cash, except when he doesn't. Mr. X has watched his doctors morph into Italian chefs right before his eyes.
From ACM Opinion
How Cambridge Analytica's Facebook Targeting Model Really Worked, According to the Person Who Built It
The researcher whose work is at the center of the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data analysis and political advertising uproar has revealed that his method worked...
From ACM Opinion
Ready Player One: We Are Surprisingly Close to Realizing Just Such a VR Dystopia
I was fortunate enough to catch a preview screening of Ready Player One, Steven Spielberg's adaptation of Ernest Cline's futuristic novel.
From ACM Opinion
Cambridge Analytica Scandal: Legitimate Researchers sing Facebook Data Could Be Collateral Damage
The scandal that has erupted around Cambridge Analytica's alleged harvesting of 50m Facebook profiles assembled from data provided by a UK-based academic and his...
From ACM Opinion
sing Blockchain to Secure the 'Internet of Things'
The world is full of connected devices—and more are coming. In 2017, there were an estimated 8.4 billion internet-enabled thermostats, cameras, streetlights and...
From ACM Opinion
Bioengineers Today Emphasize the Crucial Ingredient Dr. Frankenstein Forgot: Responsibility
Mary Shelley was 20 when she published "Frankenstein" in 1818. Two hundred years on, the book remains thrilling, challenging and relevant—especially for scientists...
From ACM Opinion