November 2018 - Vol. 61 No. 11

November 2018 issue cover image

Features

Opinion Cerf's up Nov 1 2018

The Upper Layers of the Internet

The Internet Protocol layer does not know or care what it carries in its payloads except that they are made up of binary bits. Above the application layer, however, the meaning of the content becomes important.

Vinton G. Cerf

Computing Applications

Google Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist Vinton G. Cerf

Opinion Departments Nov 1 2018

Self-Reference and Section 230

The explosive growth of social-media platforms has led to the proliferation of "bad" speech on social-media platforms, which has become politically untenable.

Moshe Y. Vardi

Computing Profession

Former CACM Editor-in-Chief Moshe Y. Vardi

BLOG@CACM Nov 1 2018

The Gap in CS, Mulling Irrational Exuberance

Carl Hewitt suggests computer science needs a reference resource, while Vijay Kumar decries intellectual dishonesty in technology forecasting.

Carl Hewitt and Vijay Kumar

Architecture and Hardware

Carl Hewitt, Vijay Kumar

News Nov 1 2018

AI, Explain Yourself

It is increasingly important to understand how artificial intelligence comes to a decision.

Don Monroe

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

AI Explain Yourself, question mark on mobile phone

News Nov 1 2018

A New Movement in Seismology

Unused telecom fiber might be used to detect earthquakes, uncover other secrets in the soil.

Neil Savage

Architecture and Hardware

seismograph

News Nov 1 2018

Weighing the Impact of GDPR

The EU data regulation will affect computer, Internet, and technology usage within and outside the EU; how it will play out remains to be seen.

Samuel Greengard

Computing Profession

EU stars on binary background

Opinion Legally speaking Nov 1 2018

The EU’s Controversial Digital Single Market Directive

Should copyright enforcement have precedence over the interests of users in information privacy and fundamental freedoms?

Pamela Samuelson

Computing Profession

EU filter, illustration

Opinion Inside risks Nov 1 2018

The Big Picture

A systems-oriented view of trustworthiness.

Steven M. Bellovin and Peter G. Neumann

Security and Privacy

The Big Picture, illustration, viewing machine

Opinion Education Nov 1 2018

How Machine Learning Impacts the Undergraduate Computing Curriculum

The growing importance of machine learning creates challenging questions for computing education.

R. Benjamin Shapiro, Rebecca Fiebrink, and Peter Norvig

Computing Profession

How Machine Learning Impacts the Undergraduate Computing Curriculum, illustration

Opinion Viewpoint Nov 1 2018

Using Any Surface to Realize a New Paradigm for Wireless Communications

Programmable wireless environments use unique customizable software processes rather than traditional rigid channel models.

Computing Profession

Using Any Surface to Realize a New Paradigm, illustration

Opinion Viewpoint Nov 1 2018

Crude and Rude?

Old ways in the new oil business.

Janne Lahtiranta and Sami Hyrynsalmi

Computing Applications

Crude and Rude, illustration

Research and Advances China region Nov 1 2018

Introducing Communications’ Regional Special Sections

I am pleased to introduce the first regional special section of Communications, which we hope will become a feature that you anticipate and enjoy, and of course value for the insights and perspectives it presents!

Andrew A. Chien

Computing Applications

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

Welcome to the China Region Special Section

We are pleased to present the China Region special section.

Wenguang Chen and Xiang-Yang Li

Computing Applications

Wenguang Chen and Xiang-Yang Li

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

China’s Computing Ambitions

China plans to become the world's high-tech leader, and quickly.

Elliott Zaagman

Computing Profession

Made in China 2025, illustration

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

Quantum Communication at 7,600km and Beyond

There are two major challenges to achieving secure quantum cryptography over long distances.

Chao-Yang Lu, Cheng-Zhi Peng, and Jian-Wei Pan

Architecture and Hardware

quantum communication, illustration

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

The Future of Artificial Intelligence in China

In addition to government-supported academic research, China's technical giants, such as Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent, and Huawei, are actively investing in AI research and related development.

Jun Zhu, Tiejun Huang, Wenguang Chen, and Wen Gao

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

chip with map of China

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

Consumers, Corporations, and Government: Computing in China

Unique historical, socioeconomic, and political conditions have created a distinctive path for China's rapid integration of computing and technology into its economy and society.

Peter Guy

Computing Applications

logos of Baidu, Alibaba, DiDi, and Tencent

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

Regional Computing Culture and Personalities

Despite China's massive market and bountiful opportunities for computing careers, Chinese corporations face great obstacles in attracting high-tech talent.

San Zhang

Computing Profession

Regional Cultures and Personalities, illustration

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

Can China Lead the Development of Data Trading and Sharing Markets?

A survey of China's data trading and sharing markets.

Xiang-Yang Li, Jianwei Qian, and Xiaoyang Wang

Computing Profession

China stars on binary code backdrop

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Hot Topics Nov 1 2018

Exploiting Psychology and Social Behavior for Game Stickiness

Interactive video games, which support various forms of collaboration and confrontation among gamers, create an obsessive stickiness.

Luyi Xu

Computing Applications

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds game

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Big Trends Nov 1 2018

People Logistics in Smart Cities

Governments have been searching for new technologies to make cities in China more efficient, and smart mobility has been the top priority in all solutions.

Wanli Min, Liang Yu, Lei Yu, and Shubo He

Architecture and Hardware

circuit board cityscape

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Big Trends Nov 1 2018

Cloud Bursting for the World’s Largest Consumer Market

The development and popularization of cloud computing, especially in emerging domains, brings great convenience and also poses new challenges.

Architecture and Hardware

binary rain on cityscape, illustration

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Big Trends Nov 1 2018

Fintech: AI Powers Financial Services to Improve People's Lives

Financial technology, or fintech, is a fast-evolving field that has reshaped the financial industry.

Yuan Qi and Jing Xiao

Computing Applications

Alipay QR code scanner

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Big Trends Nov 1 2018

Is Last-Mile Delivery a ‘Killer App’ for Self-Driving Vehicles?

There are two dimensions of challenge to an efficient autonomous delivery vehicle solution.

Huaxia Xia and Haiming Yang

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Is Last-Mile Delivery a Killer App, illustration

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Big Trends Nov 1 2018

Video Consumption, Social Networking, and Influence

China's online video industry has as many similarities as differences with the U.S.

Yue Zhuge

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

staring at phones on subway

Research and Advances China Region Special Section: Big Trends Nov 1 2018

Will Supercomputers Be Super-Data and Super-AI Machines?

New challenges in architecture, system software, and application technologies must be addressed to help develop next-generation exascale supercomputing systems.

Yutong Lu, Depei Qian, Haohuan Fu, and Wenguang Chen

Architecture and Hardware

TH-2 supercomputer

Practice Nov 1 2018

Corp to Cloud: Google’s Virtual Desktops

How Google moved its virtual desktops to the cloud.

Matt Fata, Philippe-Joseph Arida, Patrick Hahn, and Betsy Beyer

Architecture and Hardware

Corp to Cloud, illustration

Practice Nov 1 2018

Research for Practice: Knowledge Base Construction in the Machine-Learning Era

Three critical design points: Joint learning, weak supervision, and new representations.

Alex Ratner, Chris Ré, and Peter Bailis

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Research for Practice, illustration

Practice Nov 1 2018

Tracking and Controlling Microservice Dependencies

Dependency management is a crucial part of system and software design.

Silvia Esparrachiari Ghirotti, Tanya Reilly, and Ashleigh Rentz

Computing Applications

man peering into locked car

Research and Advances Contributed articles Nov 1 2018

Skill Discovery in Virtual Assistants

Skill recommendations must be provided when users need them most, without being obtrusive or distracting.

Ryen W. White

Architecture and Hardware

virtual assistant and app icons, illustration

Research and Advances Contributed articles Nov 1 2018

A Look at the Design of Lua

Simplicity, small size, portability, and embeddability set Lua apart from other scripting languages.

Roberto Ierusalimschy, Luiz Henrique De Figueiredo, and Waldemar Celes

Computing Applications

A Look at the Design of Lua, illustration

Research and Advances Contributed articles Nov 1 2018

Modern Debugging: The Art of Finding a Needle in a Haystack

Systematic use of proven debugging approaches and tools lets programmers address even apparently intractable bugs.

Diomidis Spinellis

Computing Applications

video game screen, illustration

Research and Advances Review articles Nov 1 2018

Software Challenges for the Changing Storage Landscape

Conventional storage software stacks are unable to meet the needs of high-performance Storage-Class Memory technology. It is time to rethink 50-year-old architectures.

Daniel Waddington and Jim Harris

Architecture and Hardware

red arrow swerves around obstacle

Research and Advances Research highlights Nov 1 2018

Technical Perspective: Backdoor Engineering

"Where Did I Leave My Keys?" by Checkoway et al. reports on the amazing independent reconstruction of a backdoor, discovered in the firmware of a VPN router commonly used to secure access to corporate intranets.

Markus G. Kuhn

Computing Profession

Research and Advances Research highlights Nov 1 2018

Where Did I Leave My Keys?: Lessons from the Juniper Dual EC Incident

In this paper, we describe the results of a full independent analysis of the ScreenOS randomness and VPN key establishment protocol subsystems, which we carried out in response to the Juniper Dual Elliptic Curve incident.

Computing Profession

Juniper firewall

Research and Advances Research highlights Nov 1 2018

Technical Perspective: Making Sleep Tracking More User Friendly

"LIBS: A Bioelectrical Sensing System from Human Ears for Staging Whole-Night Sleep Study" provides a nice balance in terms of minimizing the burden on users and the granularity at which we can automatically track various measures of sleep.

Tanzeem Choudhury

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Research highlights Nov 1 2018

LIBS: A Bioelectrical Sensing System from Human Ears for Staging Whole-Night Sleep Study

We explore a new form of wearable systems, called LIBS, that can continuously record biosignals such as brain wave, eye movements, and facial muscle contractions, with high sensitivity and reliability.

Architecture and Hardware

ear, illustration

Opinion Last byte Nov 1 2018

Between the Abbey and the Edge of Time

A photo marks my place, then and now

Brian Clegg

Architecture and Hardware

Lacock Abbey entrance

Recent Issues

Explore the Issue Archive