Communications of the ACM
What Would the Chatbot Say?
Seeking to explain the unanticipated abilities of large language models.
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.
From ACM TechNews
World's Most Essential Open-Source Code to Be Stored in Arctic Vault
GitHub this month plans to add another 100 million folders to its existing cache of the equivalent of 10,000 folders of source code files in Coal Mine 3, a disused...
From ACM TechNews
Small Robots Could Help Look After Salmon Without Stressing Them Out
Salmon seem to prefer small robots to larger ones, a discovery that could help guide how fish farms are automated.
From ACM TechNews
U.S. Military Facial Recognition System Could Work From 1 Kilometer Away
The U.S. Special Operations Command is developing a portable facial recognition system that can identify individuals from 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) off.
From ACM TechNews
Cyborg Grasshoppers Engineered to Sniff Out Explosives
Washington University researchers converted grasshoppers into bomb-sniffing tools by implanting electrodes in the insects' antenna lobes to tap into the capabilities...
From ACM TechNews
China is Using Mass Surveillance Tech to Fight Coronavirus Spread
The Chinese government is working with technology companies to monitor citizens and track confirmed cases of people infected with the coronavirus.
From ACM TechNews
Deepfake Software Translates Videos from One Language to Another
New software automatically translates a video of a person speaking in one language into another language, while matching their lip movements to the new words.
From ACM TechNews
SIM Swapping, Poor Web Security Put Millions at Risk
Researchers at Princeton University have found that two-factor authentication is easily hackable and could put millions of people at risk.
From ACM TechNews
A Robot Equipped with Real Feathers Flies Like a Bird
Stanford University researchers affixed actual pigeon feathers to a robot to allow it to fly like a bird.
From ACM TechNews
A Lazy Fix 20 Years Ago Means the Y2K Bug Is Taking Down Computers Now
A glitch connected to the Y2K bug addressed two decades ago is crashing payment systems and computers, due to a poor fix.
From ACM News
A Computer Made From DNA Can Compute the Square Root of 900
A computer made from strands of DNA in a test tube can calculate the square root of numbers up to 900.
From ACM TechNews
3D-Printed Bunny Contains DNA Instructions to Make Copy of Itself
Researchers three-dimensionally-printed a polyester rabbit that contains DNA in which instructions for making copies of itself are stored.
From ACM TechNews
Turn Any Object Into a Robot Using This Program and a 3D Printer
Researchers created a program to render household items into hand-activated robots using a three-dimensional (3D) printer.
From ACM TechNews
Swarms of Golf Ball-Sized Robots Could Detect Leaks in the Sewers
Researchers have developed golf ball-sized robots designed to collect data as they float through pipes.
From ACM TechNews
This Piece of Music Could Stop Your Amazon Alexa
Carnegie Mellon University researchers developed a technique to inhibit the Amazon Alexa voice assistant's ability to respond to commands by playing an audio clip...
From ACM TechNews
Robot Arm Lets You Remotely Lend Friends Helping Hand with Repairs
Researchers at the University of Bristol in the U.K. have developed a handheld robot for remote assistance with repairs.
From ACM TechNews
Delivery Drones Could Land on Public Transport to Extend Their Range
Researchers at Stanford University have developed a computer program that plans deliveries by getting drones to piggyback on public transport for a range boost....
From ACM TechNews
AI Could Help Count How Many People are in Large Crowds
German Aerospace Center researchers have developed an artificial intelligence system that can accurately count the number of people in large crowds.
From ACM TechNews
DeepMind AI Beats Humans at Deciphering Damaged Ancient Greek Tablets
Researchers at DeepMind trained an artificial intelligence algorithm to guess missing words or characters from Greek inscriptions up to 2,600 years old.
From ACM TechNews
Fast Swimming Fish Robot Could Perform Underwater Surveillance
University of Virginia researchers have built a fish-inspired robot that can swim as fast as actual fish, and faster than similar robots.
From ACM TechNews