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Astro Teller, Google's ‘captain of Moonshots,' on Making Profits at Google X
From ACM Opinion

Astro Teller, Google's ‘captain of Moonshots,' on Making Profits at Google X

Google is all over the place.

Google, Mighty Now, but Not Forever
From ACM Opinion

Google, Mighty Now, but Not Forever

Technology giants often meet their end not with a bang but a whimper, a slow, imperceptible descent into irrelevancy that may not immediately be reflected in the...

Tim O'reilly Explains the Internet of Things
From ACM Opinion

Tim O'reilly Explains the Internet of Things

Tim O'Reilly has been at the cutting edge of the Internet since it went commercial.

A Retreat For Google Glass and a Case Study in the Perils of Making Hardware
From ACM Opinion

A Retreat For Google Glass and a Case Study in the Perils of Making Hardware

You won't have Glass to kick around anymore. At least not for a while.

Death By Robot
From ACM Opinion

Death By Robot

Imagine it's a Sunday in the not-too-distant future.

Do Aliens Know It's Christmas?
From ACM Opinion

Do Aliens Know It's Christmas?

A star appeared in the East.

The Lesson of the Sony Hack: We Should All Jump to the 'erasable Internet'
From ACM Opinion

The Lesson of the Sony Hack: We Should All Jump to the 'erasable Internet'

This month's news provides yet another occasion for a friendly public-service reminder to anyone who uses a digital device to say anything to anyone, ever.

Turing's Spirit Hovers at a Restored Estate
From ACM Opinion

Turing's Spirit Hovers at a Restored Estate

When "Captain Ridley's shooting party" gathered here in late August 1938 as weekend guests at Bletchley Park, a Buckinghamshire country house, they were accompanied...

Artificial Intelligence as a Threat
From ACM Opinion

Artificial Intelligence as a Threat

Ebola sounds like the stuff of nightmares. Bird flu and SARS also send shivers down my spine.

The Web Is a Terrorist's Command-and-Control Network of Choice
From ACM Opinion

The Web Is a Terrorist's Command-and-Control Network of Choice

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) is the first terrorist group whose members have grown up on the internet.

Megan Smith: 'you Can Affect Billions of People'
From ACM Opinion

Megan Smith: 'you Can Affect Billions of People'

Now that you work at the White House, approximately how many times a day do you find yourself thinking, God, we did this so much better at Google?

When Iphones Ring, the Economy Listens
From ACM Opinion

When Iphones Ring, the Economy Listens

Gloomy economic news and the wild swings of the stock market may be getting you down. But at least you can count on this: We’ve entered the sweet spot of the ...

The August Smart Lock Shows Why You Should Stick With Dumb Keys
From ACM Opinion

The August Smart Lock Shows Why You Should Stick With Dumb Keys

You almost certainly don't need a digital smart lock for your front door.

Why Germans Are Afraid of Google
From ACM Opinion

Why Germans Are Afraid of Google

These days Germany is known for being many things: a leader in clean technology, a manufacturing powerhouse, Europe's foreign policy center.

Every Computer System Can Be Compromised
From ACM Opinion

Every Computer System Can Be Compromised

Unfortunately, there are many risks inherent in online banking and debit cards.

We Want Privacy, but Can't Stop Sharing
From ACM Opinion

We Want Privacy, but Can't Stop Sharing

Imagine a world suddenly devoid of doors.

The Magic in Apple's Devices? The Heart
From ACM Opinion

The Magic in Apple's Devices? The Heart

During the last seismic Apple announcement, in 2010, I was at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco as Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad, a device he...

Police Cameras Can Shed Light, but Raise Privacy Concerns
From ACM Opinion

Police Cameras Can Shed Light, but Raise Privacy Concerns

Michael Brown, the unarmed teenager who was shot during an encounter with police in Ferguson, Mo., on Aug. 9, was recorded by a convenience store surveillance camera...

Founder of America's Biggest Hacker Conference: 'we ­nderstand the Threat Now'
From ACM Opinion

Founder of America's Biggest Hacker Conference: 'we ­nderstand the Threat Now'

For one weekend every year, thousands of the world’s best—or worst, depending on your point of view—hackers meet in Las Vegas, Nevada, for Defcon.

The Next Big Thing in Hardware: Smart Garbage
From ACM Opinion

The Next Big Thing in Hardware: Smart Garbage

There's a box on a shelf in my closet stuffed with smart smoke detectors, old smartphones, chargers, battery cases, fitness trackers, a Kindle that I sat on and...
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