Just as physical cities emerged over the centuries by creating environments that fostered inhabitants to share and consume a multitude of services, so too are "infohabitants" being drawn to urban life in the virtual world. The roots of these emerging information cities may not be as deep as their physical counterparts, but economic and social […]
In the U.S., November is the month in which we usually take time to give thanks, joining with family and friends to celebrate our lives together. As I write this column (on a solemn September afternoon in New York City), I cannot tell you how truly thankful we are to be able to present this […]
As I write this column, the press is having a field day over reports that the latest corporate entity to surf the Wi-Fi wave is, of all things, McDonald’s (see News Track, page 10). The decision may not be as pioneering as, say, the low-cal vegan McWrap, but the hamburger giant is surely in impressive […]
Online search is part of daily life, with popular search engines and digital libraries typically supporting users best able to define their information needs. The hitch comes when those needs are sketchy or the knowledge necessary is absent. How do users find the information they need if they don’t know it exists? How do they […]
The one sure thing about "E-service" is that it’s anything but one thing. Seek out the phrase with your favorite search engine and the findings tell the story. The global proliferation of businesses, universities, and government offices adopting e-service technologies appears limitless. It’s clearly a term that translates in any language, though its definition is […]
A new U.S. president was named last night. The pronouncement came 36 nights after the election took place and what occurred between then and now will be dissected for decades to come. Countless words—in every language—have been written on this unprecedented race for the U.S. presidency, and you can bet this is just a warm-up […]
My previous column, "The Foresight Saga, Redux," began a discussion that is continued here regarding some lessons learned from the 2012 U.S. November elections. In addition, I reflect on the collateral effects of Hurricane Sandy.
The answer to the question "Is the Crouching Tiger a Threat?" in Robert L. Glass’s "Practical Programmer" column (Mar. 2006) is both yes and no. Yes in the sense that the U.S. position as computing/IT superpower is indeed threatened and no in the sense that more opportunity for rewarding employment in the world is good […]
Speech technology is a curious field that has been on the threshold of "emerging" for many years. In 1960, J.C.R. Licklider estimated we would achieve significant speech recognition by 1965. Indeed, I recall sitting in the plush offices of a true industry guru well over a decade ago as he demonstrated the latest in speech-to-text. […]
The familiar interfaces that have allowed humans and computers to communicate are being transformed before our eyes. The era of pointing, clicking, or typing is giving way to new seamless, intuitive links between the two worlds. This issue presents two very different special sections with one common anthem: It’s clear we’ve reached a turning point […]
One important ethical aspect of the use of models for decision making is the relative power of the various actors involved in decision support: the modelers, the clients, the users, and those affected by the model. Each has a different stake in the design of decision support models, and the outcome of modeling depends on both the technical attributes of the model and the relationships among the relevant actors. Increasing the transparency of the model can significantly improve these relationships. Here, we explore the importance of transparency in the design and use of decision support models.
Communications of the ACM (CACM) is now a fully Open Access publication.
By opening CACM to the world, we hope to increase engagement among the broader computer science community and encourage non-members to discover the rich resources ACM has to offer.
