June 2004 - Vol. 47 No. 6

Features

Opinion Editorial pointers Jun 1 2004

Wireless sensor networks—incorporating hundreds, even thousands, of tiny interconnected monitoring devices—are not only increasing in scope and function, but now interacting with environments that are physically remote, hostile, or inaccessible. With each pioneering application we move a bit closer to the vision of a pervasive globally embedded Internet. Sensor networks operate in a wholly different […]

Diane Crawford

Architecture and Hardware

News News track Jun 1 2004

News Track

The U.S. government, despite denials to the contrary, is making its first moves toward a military-style draft of citizens with special skills in computers and foreign languages, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. The Selective Service System, an independent federal agency, has begun creating the procedures and policies to conduct such a targeted draft in the […]

CACM Staff

Architecture and Hardware

Opinion Forum Jun 1 2004

Forum

The special section "Homeland Security" (Mar. 2004) detailed external attacks on various computer systems but did not mention that threats also originate inside those systems. The 9/11 attackers, for instance, were trained to fly inside "the system" and allowed to board U.S. aircraft by that same system. Protecting U.S. computer systems requires Americans to assume […]

Diane Crawford

Architecture and Hardware

Opinion The business of software Jun 1 2004

Real Work, Necessary Friction, Optional Chaos

Challenges in estimating software scope by effort.

Phillip G. Armour

Computing Applications

Opinion Legally speaking Jun 1 2004

Why Reform the U.S. Patent System?

Considering three important reforms to improve the current system.

Pamela Samuelson

Computing Applications

Opinion Viewpoint Jun 1 2004

The Spinning Cube of Potential Doom

Practically every computer linked to the Internet is constantly being scanned for security vulnerabilities and targeted for attack by viruses, worms, and worse.

Stephen Lau

Architecture and Hardware

News On Site Jun 1 2004

Growing a Participatory Programming Environment

A leading pharmaceutical company discovers how programming issues are resolved more effectively when a team approach is employed.

Allan Glaser, Snow Fu, and Mark Tumelty

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Wireless sensor networks Jun 1 2004

Introduction

Thousands of tiny low-power devices spread over large physical spaces collaboratively monitor the environment, guide vehicles, and predict potential faults in buildings, bridges, roads, and rails.

David E. Culler and Wei Hong

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Wireless sensor networks Jun 1 2004

Habitat Monitoring with Sensor Networks

These networks deliver to ecologists data on localized environmental conditions at the scale of individual organisms to help settle large-scale land-use issues affecting animals, plants, and people.

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Wireless sensor networks Jun 1 2004

The Platforms Enabling Wireless Sensor Networks

All emphasize low-cost components operating on shoestring power budgets for years at a time in potentially hostile environments without hope of human intervention.

Jason Hill, Mike Horton, Ralph Kling, and Lakshman Krishnamurthy

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Wireless sensor networks Jun 1 2004

Networking Support For Query Processing in Sensor Networks

Networking and query processing must be co-designed to allow data self-organization for flexible but efficient in-network storage, access, and processing.

Alec Woo, Sam Madden, and Ramesh Govindan

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Wireless sensor networks Jun 1 2004

Security in Wireless Sensor Networks

They are susceptible to a variety of attacks, including node capture, physical tampering, and denial of service, while prompting a range of fundamental research challenges.

Adrian Perrig, John Stankovic, and David Wagner

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Jun 1 2004

Should Spam Be on the Menu?

Email marketing is an excellent, low-cost way to reach consumers, but spammers are currently looting much of its potential. The challenge is to develop an email marketing process that is consensual, efficient, and constitutional.

Janice C. Sipior, Burke T. Ward, and P. Gregory Bonner

Computing Applications

Practice Jun 1 2004

How to Retain Online Customers

When there's a worldwide marketplace available at your customers' fingertips, maintaining a dedicated following is a tremendous challenge. A recent study of a leading bank's online services illustrates what it takes to keep novice and sophisticated users happy and loyal.

Banphot Vatanasombut, Antonis C. Stylianou, and Magid Igbaria

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jun 1 2004

Emerging Business Models For Mobile Brokerage Services

Business models designed specifically for the mobile arena are reshaping the industry. But each model has unique advantages and disadvantages---potential adopters should take care in choosing among them.

Clayton A. Looney, Leonard M. Jessup, and Joseph S. Valacich

Computing Applications

Practice Jun 1 2004

Who Should Work with Whom?: Building Effective Software Project Teams

Personality type analysis can help take the guesswork out of putting together a high-performance software project team.

Narasimhaiah Gorla and Yan Wah Lam

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jun 1 2004

A Paradigm Shift in Computing and It Education

Examining the changing organizational alignment in colleges of computer and information technology.

Hal Berghel and David L. Sallach

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jun 1 2004

An Analysis of Research in Computing Disciplines

Comparing the topics and methods of the three major subdivisions of the computing realm.

Robert L. Glass, V. Ramesh, and Iris Vessey

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jun 1 2004

Successful E-Government in Singapore

How did Singapore manage to get most of its public services deliverable online?

Weiling Ke and Kwok Kee Wei

Computing Applications

Opinion Technical opinion Jun 1 2004

Toward Universal Literacy: from Computer Science Upward

An appeal for more extensive expression and understanding.

Hartmut Wedekind and Erich Ortner

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Opinion Inside risks Jun 1 2004

Optimistic Optimization

Many people continue to ignore the long-term implications of decisions made for short-term gains, often based on overly optimistic or fallacious assumptions. In principle, greater benefits can result from farsighted vision based on realistic assumptions. For example, serious environmental effects (including global warming, water and air pollution, and adverse genetic engineering) are largely ignored in […]

Peter G. Neumann

Computing Applications

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