Communications of the ACM
Why the Simplex Method, at Age 75, is Still the Go-To Algorithm
Daniel A. Spielman and colleague Shang-hua Teng solved the mystery of the Simplex Method using a technique called smoothed analysis… From ACM NewsAn 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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Robots in Reality
Consider the following scenario: A scout surveys a high-rise building that's been crippled by an earthquake, trapping workers inside. After looking for a point...
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Smarter Robot Arms
A combination of two algorithms developed at MIT allows autonomous robots to execute tasks much more efficiently—and move more predictably.
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Streamlined Rules For Robots
With the explosion of the Internet and the commoditization of autonomous robots (such as the Roomba) and small sensors (such as the ones in most cell phones),...
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Honing Household Helpers
Imagine a robot able to retrieve a pile of laundry from the back of a cluttered closet, deliver it to a washing machine, start the cycle and then zip off to the...
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Joichi Ito Named Director of MIT Media Lab
MIT announced that Joichi (“Joi” — pronounced “Joey”) Ito has been selected as the next director of the MIT Media Lab.
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Programming Crowds
With the Web, people worldwide can work on distributed tasks. But getting reliable results requires algorithms that specify workflow between people, not transistors...
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Shape-Shifting Robots
Self-folding sheets of a plastic-like material point the way to robots that can assume any conceivable 3D structure.
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Computer Automatically Deciphers Ancient Language
A new system that took a couple hours to decipher much of the ancient language Ugaritic could help improve online translation software.12