Communications of the ACM
The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
August 2016
From ACM News
New Brain-Mapping Technique Captures Every Connection Between Neurons
The human brain is among the universe’s greatest remaining uncharted territories. And as with any mysterious land, the secret to understanding it begins with a good map.
From ACM TechNews
Data on Taxi Routes and Points of Interest May Improve Crime Predictions
Researchers say knowing where taxis travel and how people label points of interest on social media could aid analysts and police in understanding neighborhood crime rates.
From ACM TechNews
Now You Can Play Angry Birds sing a Touch-Sensitive Second Skin
Researchers have developed a transparent, stretchable, wearable touchpad that enables users to control apps and games.
From ACM TechNews
Nowhere to Hide: c San Diego Researchers Devise New Method For Detecting Hardware Trojans
A new technique for detecting Trojans hidden in a device's hardware has been developed by University of California, San Diego computer scientists.
From ACM TechNews
Energy Department to Invest $16 Million in Computer Design of Materials
The U.S. Department of Energy will invest $16 million over the next four years to accelerate the design of new materials for a wide range of fields.
From ACM News
Augmented Reality Not Just For Gaming
Beyond entertainment, applications for augmented and virtual reality are being developed for business.
From ACM News
The Shadow Brokers Mess Is What Happens When the Nsa Hoards Zero-Days
When the NSA discovers a new method of hacking into a piece of software or hardware, it faces a dilemma.
From ACM News
Crispr's Hopeful Monsters: Gene-Editing Storms Evo-Devo Labs
Most summers since 1893, young developmental and evolutionary biologists have flocked to Woods Hole, Massachusetts, to master the tricks of their trade.
From ACM News
This Supercomputer Will Try to Find Intelligence on Reddit
Is it possible that the secret to building machine intelligence lies in spending endless hours reading Reddit?
From ACM News
Astronomers Are on a Celestial Treasure Hunt. The Prize? Planet Nine
Astronomers think they've discovered a new planet in our solar system.
From ACM TechNews
New Computer Program Replicates Handwriting
Researchers at University College London have developed software that can analyze and mimic a person's handwriting.
From ACM TechNews
.s. Says Transfer of Internet Governance Will Go Ahead on Oct. 1
The U.S. will move forward with its plan to transfer governance of the Internet domain name system to a multi-stakeholder entity on Oct. 1.
From ACM TechNews
Powerful Nsa Hacking Tools Have Been Revealed Online
The online exposure of some of the most powerful hacking tools developed by the U.S. National Security Agency could threaten the agency's operations and security.
From ACM TechNews
Robot Octopus Points the Way to Soft Robotics With Eight Wiggly Arms
Several labs from European and Israeli universities have together built a robot 0ctopus.
From ACM TechNews
World Should Consider Limits to Future Internet Expansion to Control Energy Consumption
Researchers at Lancaster University think the world should consider ways to limit data growth on the Internet in order to prevent runaway energy consumption.
From ACM News
China Launches Quantum Satellite in Bid to Pioneer Secure Communications
China launched the world's first quantum communications satellite from the Gobi Desert early Tuesday, a major step in the country’s bid to be at the forefront of quantum research, which could lead to new, completely secure methods…
From ACM News
Spiking Genomic Databases with Misinformation Could Protect Patient privacy
Large genomic databases are indispensable for scientists looking for genetic variations associated with diseases. But they come with privacy risks for people who contribute their DNA.
From ACM News
Putting a Computer in Your Brain Is No Longer Science Fiction
Like many in Silicon Valley, technology entrepreneur Bryan Johnson sees a future in which intelligent machines can do things like drive cars on their own and anticipate our needs before we ask.
From ACM TechNews
Researchers Set New 5g World Record and Earn Multiple Awards
Researchers say they have set a new world record in spectrum efficiency for wireless communication using a form of 5G technology.
From ACM TechNews
ta Researcher Wins Grant to se Data Mining to Improve Diagnosis, Treatment of Depression
University of Texas at Arlington professor Heng Huang's data-mining efforts could help improve the diagnosis and treatment of depression.
From ACM TechNews
IBM Researchers se Grocery Scanner Data to Speed Investigations During Early Foodborne Illness Outbreaks
IBM researchers have found that analyzing retail-scanner data from grocery stores against maps of confirmed cases of foodborne illness can speed early investigations.
From ACM News
China's New Satellite Would Create the World's Largest Quantum Network
China's quantum network could soon span two continents, thanks to a satellite launched earlier today. Launched at 1:40PM ET, the Quantum Science Satellite is designed to distribute quantum-encrypted keys between relay stations…
From ACM Opinion
Mind-Controlled Robo-Skeleton Enables Paraplegics to Regain Some Motion
Patients paralyzed by a spinal cord injury can face a grim and grueling recovery process—one in which regaining function is far from a sure thing. But a new study published last week in Scientific Reports may provide some hope…
From ACM News
2016 Tech Impact Champion Announced: Ed Lazowska to Be Honored
Ed Lazowska, University of Washington Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science & Engineering, was named Seattle Business magazine's Tech Impact Champion.
From ACM News
Smart Lighting Follows People
A new low-cost technique allows the use of light-emitting diodes to track people’s locations and gestures within a room.
From ACM News
Artificial Black Hole Creates Its Own Version of Hawking Radiation
Black holes are not actually black. Instead, these gravitational sinks are thought to emit radiation that causes them to shrink and eventually disappear.
From ACM News
Ironic Windows Vulnerability Shows Why Backdoors Can't Work
Apple's refusal to comply with a court order to help the FBI crack an iPhone highlighted the pressure tech companies face to include backdoors in their software.
From ACM Opinion
Tim Cook: Running Apple 'is Sort of a Lonely Job'
On a sleek white coffee table in Apple CEO Tim Cook's fourth-floor office in late July, beneath framed posters of Robert F. Kennedy, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Jackie Robinson, a rose gold iPhone 6s sits in its original…
From ACM Careers
Envisioning Bitcoin's Technology at the Heart of Global Finance
A new report from the World Economic Forum predicts that the underlying technology introduced by the virtual currency Bitcoin will come to occupy a central place in the global financial system.
From ACM TechNews
Bugs in the System
Bacteria could be used to improve the electronic properties of graphene.