Communications of the ACM
Python-Based Compiler Achieves Performance Speedups
The Codon compiler, from a team led by researchers from MIT CSAIL, allows developers to create new domain-specific languages … From ACM TechNewsAn edited collection of advanced computing news from Communications of the ACM, ACM TechNews, other ACM resources, and news sites around the Web.
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Computer Runs Calculations Depending on How You Squish It
Pennsylvania State University researchers built a soft computer from rows of rubber blocks that performs different calculations based on how it is squished.
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Artificial Neuron Swaps Dopamine with Rat Brain Cells Like a Real One
Could be incorporated into future human-machine interfaces.
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Robot Unties Knotted Cables but Can't Pick Them Up
University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) researchers have developed a robot that can untie knotted cables using the grippers on its arms.
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How the Secrets of Ancient Cuneiform Texts Are Being Revealed by AI
Artificial intelligence is being used to read and translate cuneiform, helping to recreate ancient libraries by piecing together fragmented tablets and predicting...
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Fiber-Optic Cables Could Be Used for Spying
Device can eavesdrop on people up to 1 km away using existing fiber-optic cables.
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Headline Tricks Make People Share News Stories on Facebook
Usual punctuation in headlines can make people more likely to share news stories on Facebook, although asking questions is less likely to encourage engagement. ...
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Computer Component Could Use as Little Energy as Physically Possible
Researchers built a nanomechanical logic gate that uses vibrations for information processing rather than electrons.
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Quantum Computer Cools Itself by Performing Calculations
A small diamond-based quantum computer performs a sequence of mathematical operations to cool itself.
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Acoustic Levitation Used to Build Complex Structures in Mid-Air
A new system incorporates a robotic arm that generates sound waves to levitate and move objects to build complex structures in mid-air without touching the parts...
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Seventy-Five Percent of the World's Top Websites Allow Bad Passwords
Princeton University's Arvind Narayanan and colleagues found 75% of 120 top-ranked English-language websites permit weak passwords.
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Google Wants to Challenge AI with 200 Tasks, to Replace the Turing Test
Artificial intelligence researchers have proposed an update to the Turing test for rating the capabilities of AI technology.
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3D Rabbit 'Hologram' Created by Levitating Screen Using Sound Waves
An algorithm developed by researchers at the U.K.'s University College London can generate "holograms" by acoustically levitating objects.
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Robot Can Find Keys in a Bag by Listening as It Rummages
Stanford University researchers trained a microphone-outfitted robotic arm to locate objects like keys in a handbag by listening for telltale sounds while searching...
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AI Translates Math Problems into Code to Make Them Easier to Solve
Researchers used the Codex neural network of artificial intelligence research company OpenAI to translate mathematical problems from plain English into formal code...
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Advanced Quantum Computer Available to the Public
The researchers behind a quantum computer that encodes data in pulses of light have connected it to the Internet and made it available for public use.
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Quantum Computer Could Catch Its Own Errors
A team of Austrian and German scientists has constructed a 16-quantum bit computer that runs error-free calculations.
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Smart Contact Lens for Glaucoma Could Release Drugs When Needed
A prototype wireless contact lens could help treat glaucoma by automatically dispensing drugs when pressure inside the eye becomes excessive.
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Virtual Tennis Racket Uses Air Jet to Recreate Feel of Hitting Ball
Researchers have developed the AirRacket, a virtual reality controller that emits bursts of compressed air to simulate a ball's impact in racket sports.
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AIs Could Be Hacked with Undetectable Backdoors to Make Bad Decisions
Renegade staff theoretically could insert undetectable backdoors in third-party artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, enabling hackers to commandeer the AIs...
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