Communications of the ACM
An 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
Automated Line Calls Replace Human Judges at U.S. Open
With the coronavirus pandemic highlighting the need for safety, the upcoming U.S. Open tennis tournament will replace human line judges on 15 of 17 match courts...
From ACM News
For Robots, It’s a Time to Shine (and Maybe Disinfect)
The pandemic has turned cleaning and other mundane building tasks into a challenge, stoking interest in machines as cost-effective solutions.
From ACM TechNews
Aboard the Diamond Princess, a Case Study in Aerosol Transmission
Researchers are using computer models to determine how the coronavirus moves through a community, building, or small group of people.
From ACM News
This Tool Could Protect Your Photos From Facial Recognition
Researchers at the University of Chicago want you to be able to post selfies without worrying that the next Clearview AI will use them to identify you.
From ACM News
The Star of This $70 Million Sci-Fi Film Is a Robot
Meet Erica, an android believed to be Hollywood's first fully autonomous artificially intelligent actor. Can she overcome the uncanny valley?
From ACM TechNews
Major Security Flaws Found in South Korea Quarantine App
Software engineer Frederic Rechtenstein found a South Korean mobile application designed to enforce pandemic quarantines contained major security flaws that could...
From ACM News
Google Promises Privacy With Virus App but Can Still Collect Location Data
Some government agencies that use the software said they were surprised Google may pick up the locations of certain app users. Others said they had unsuccessfully...
From ACM News
Goodbye to the Wild Wild Web
The Internet is changing, and the freewheeling, anything-goes culture of social media is being replaced by something more accountable.
From ACM News
Can an Algorithm Predict the Pandemic’s Next Moves?
Researchers have developed a model that uses social-media and search data to forecast outbreaks of Covid-19 well before they occur.
From ACM News
Are Companies More Productive in a Pandemic?
Many claim their employees are hyper efficient while working from home. But there are social and emotional costs to ambition in isolation.
From ACM News
Reddit, Acting Against Hate Speech, Bans 'The_Donald' Subreddit
The influential pro-Trump community broke the rules on harassment and targeting, said Reddit, which also banned other groups.
From ACM News
Wrongfully Accused by an Algorithm
In what may be the first known case of its kind, a faulty facial recognition match led to a Michigan man's arrest for a crime he did not commit.
From ACM News
A Multibillion-Dollar Opportunity: Virus-Proofing the New Office
Tech, catering and design companies are rushing to sell employers on fever scanners, box lunches, and office floor-planning apps for social distancing. But it's...
From ACM News
Big Tech Zeros In on the Virus-Testing Market
As businesses grapple with how to safely reopen the workplace, some companies are rushing out new work force health-vetting and tracking tools.
From ACM News
China is Collecting DNA From Tens of Millions of Boys and Men, Using U.S. Equipment
Even children are pressed into giving blood samples to build a sweeping genetic database that will add to Beijing's growing surveillance capabilities.
From ACM News
Riding Out Quarantine With a Chatbot Friend: ‘I Feel Very Connected’
The digital companions may sound like science fiction. But when social isolation became the norm, they helped deal with the loneliness, some users say.
From ACM News
Signal Downloads Are Way Up Since the Protests Began
Organizers and demonstrators say they feel safer communicating with end-to-end encryption.
From ACM News
Amazon Pauses Police Use of Its Facial Recognition Software
The company said it hoped the moratorium "might give Congress enough time to put in place appropriate rules" for the technology.
From ACM TechNews
With an Internet of Animals, Scientists Aim to Track, Save Wildlife
Sensors and other equipment aboard the International Space Station will be used to monitor wildlife, revolutionizing animal tracking.
From ACM News