Welcome to "Cerf's Up!" I am grateful for Editor-in-Chief Moshe Vardi's invitation to continue writing for Communications; this column succeeds the "From the President" column I penned during my service to ACM in that role.
Vinton G. Cerf
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While ACM is deeply dependent on the extraordinary contributions of our volunteers, the organizational framework and underlying support for this work is key to ACM's successful operation.
Too often one gets the impression of tacit expectation that scientific research has to produce results within some predictable time. But many examples illustrate that it may take some time to validate the results of theoretical research.
The Internet Governance Ecosystem
Over the past decade, the Internet and its governance has become the topic of major discussion, debate, and controversy.
If there are intelligent civilizations in our galaxy, why have we not yet detected any evidence of them? Noted science fiction writer David Brin has a particularly scary answer to the question. What if we are the ones who are supposed to light the galaxy?
Every time I see calendar dates like 2014, I feel as if I have been transported by time machine into the future. Isaac Asimov made some remarkably astute projections about 2014 in 1964, so what might he say today?
I have just returned from a trip to Warsaw where I had the opportunity to visit the Copernicus Science Museum. The facility houses an amazing array of interactive exhibits. As I encountered these fascinating experiences, I thought about what we have been able to achieve in the virtual world of computing.
I have been thinking about the implications of the increasing number of programmable devices and appliances that surround us. For one thing, they all require software to function. Who will write all that software?
The inaugural Heidelberg Laureate Forum affected my thinking about computability and computation.
Revisiting the Tragedy of the Commons
While the commons created by the Internet need not be bounded, it is a shared environment that must be protected for the benefit of its users.
Shape the Future of Computing
ACM encourages its members to take a direct hand in shaping the future of the association. There are more ways than ever to get involved.
Get Involved