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Sep 26 2012

Research {Preposition} Infrastructure

Computing research and advanced computing infrastructure–each is dependent on the other in a myriad of subtle and complex ways, yet each is profoundly different in culture, process, skills and metrics. As the scale, scope and influence of computing grow ever larger, each needs to understand the constraints and needs of the other.   
Computing Profession
Sep 21 2012

Nomenclaturing: Let’s Ture to the Max!

Christos Papadimitriou's recently published reminiscences include the fascinating story of how he learned about Turing Machines: As a bored undergraduate in a Greek university, he happened to see the definition buried within an article about pattern recognition, and he was immediately entranced.   
Computing Profession
Sep 15 2012

When Is ­User-Centered Design Selfish?

User-centered design is now firmly established within HCI research. It is commonly praised for democratising system development and empowering users. But is this always the case? This article raises some ethical questions surrounding the involvement of certain vulnerable user groups in user-centered design.
HCI
Sep 5 2012

Designing APIs For Mobile Performance Best Practices

While there are many ways of tackling these unique obstacles of mobile performance, this article is largely focused on things that can be done from an API, or backend service, to improve the performance (or the perception thereof) of mobile clients.  The article is focused on 2 main parts: 1.      Minimizing network connections and the need to transmit data – efficient media handling, effective caching, and employing longer data-oriented operations with fewer connections. 2.      Sending the "right" data across the network – designing APIs to return only the data that is needed/requested, and optimizing for the various types of forms of mobile devices.   
Computing Applications
Jul 31 2012

Data Mining Product Reviews

When it comes to big data, one of the greatest things we can do as computer scientists creating products is to distill all the information down to what is important. Of course, the challenge with these sorts of problems always lies in the details. This article goes into a few of the challenges associated with applying data mining to product reviews.  
Computing Applications
Jul 24 2012

Quantum Gaming

Scientific discovery games are an exciting new approach to solving thorny scientific problems using contributions from a distributed group of non-expert humans. The approach has been successful in the domain of biochemistry, but can it also be used in other domains? This article discusses challenges in a current project where we are attempting to get humans to solve problems in hair curling-ly complex quantum information processing by playing a game inside a Perspex hamster ball.
Computing Applications
Jul 17 2012

Online Higher Education

The higher education community is abuzz with debates regarding massive open online courses (MOOCs). This feels like a time of profound change, when the confluence of technologies, social expectations and economic pressures will reshape elements of our university structures.
Computing Profession

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