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
Geeks Are the New Guardians of Our Civil Liberties
A decade-plus of anthropological fieldwork among hackers and like-minded geeks has led me to the firm conviction that these people are building one of the most...
From ACM Opinion
The Increasingly Blurry Line Between Big Data and Big Brother
The potential benefits of "big data" have been well described, both by us and others: the ability to spot flu trends earlier and potentially save lives, for example...
From ACM Opinion
Eric Schmidt nloads on China in New Book
Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt is brutally clear: China is the most dangerous superpower on Earth.
From ACM Opinion
After Adding Online Privacy Protections, F.t.c. Chief Resigns
Jon Leibowitz, the chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, said on Thursday that he would resign effective mid-February.
From ACM Opinion
Inside the Targeted Attack on The New York Times
The Chinese group behind the targeted attack on The New York Times was laser focused on accessing the email of a reporter and the newspaper’s former Beijing bureau...
From ACM Opinion
Google's Eric Schmidt: Drone Wars, Virtual Kidnaps, and Privacy For Kids
Google's chairman has sketched out a future world in which cyberterrorists are targeted by government drone strikes, online identities are taken hostage and held...
From ACM Opinion
A Fuzzy and Shifting Line Between Hacker and Criminal
In January 2011, I was assigned to cover a hearing in Newark, where Daniel Spitler, then 26, stood accused of breaching AT&T's servers and stealing 114,000 email...
From ACM Opinion
The Two Classes of Cyber Threats
There is one number that matters most in cybersecurity.
From Communications of the ACM
The Explosive Growth of Postdocs in Computer Science
Considering the factors influencing the recent rapid increase in the number of postdoctoral positions in computer science.
From Communications of the ACM
Cloud Services Certification
How to address the lack of transparency, trust, and acceptance in cloud services.
From Communications of the ACM
The Value of Microprocessor Designs
Applying a centuries-old technique to modern cost estimation.
From Communications of the ACM
Reflections on Stanford's MOOCs
New possibilities in online education create new challenges.
From Communications of the ACM
More Sight on Foresight
My previous column, "The Foresight Saga, Redux," began a discussion that is continued here regarding some lessons learned from the 2012 U.S. November elections. In...
From Communications of the ACM
The Tangled Web We Have Woven
Seeking to protect the fundamental privacy of network interactions.
From ACM Careers
Becoming Biohackers: Learning the Game
When you have lunch courtesy of the FBI, you are offered chicken Caesar salad, hamburger, or fish.
From ACM Opinion
Google's Approach to Government Requests For ser Data
Today, January 28, is Data Privacy Day, when the world recognizes the importance of preserving your online privacy and security.
From ACM Opinion
Ito: Think Twice About Immortality and the Singularity
Ray Kurzweil's vision of the "singularity"—when nanobots make humans immortal and computer progress is so fast that the future becomes profoundly unknowable—is...
From ACM Opinion
Neil Degrasse Tyson: Science Funding Can 'guarantee Your Economic Future'
Neil deGrasse Tyson came to Washington on Wednesday to deliver the science-specific version of President Barack Obama's second inaugural address.
From ACM Opinion