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An edited collection of advanced computing news from Communications of the ACM, ACM TechNews, other ACM resources, and news sites around the Web.


Don't Call Them 'utility' Rules: The Fcc's Net Neutrality Regime, Explained
From ACM News

Don't Call Them 'utility' Rules: The Fcc's Net Neutrality Regime, Explained

Within a few weeks we’ll have a huge document full of legalese on the Federal Communications Commission’s net neutrality rules, to replace the near-200-page ...

Cops Get Handheld Radar that Can 'detect People Breathing' Through Walls
From ACM News

Cops Get Handheld Radar that Can 'detect People Breathing' Through Walls

At least 50 local law enforcement agencies—and the United States Marshals—have acquired a type of handheld radar that allows cops to scan through walls to detect...

Snowden: ­.s. Has Put Too Much Emphasis on Cyber-Offense, Needs Defense
From ACM News

Snowden: ­.s. Has Put Too Much Emphasis on Cyber-Offense, Needs Defense

In an on-camera interview with James Bamford for an upcoming episode of PBS' NOVA, Edward Snowden warned that the U.S. Department of Defense and National Security...

Fbi Says Search Warrants Not Needed to Use 'stingrays' in Public Places
From ACM News

Fbi Says Search Warrants Not Needed to Use 'stingrays' in Public Places

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is taking the position that court warrants are not required when deploying cell-site simulators in public places.

4 Seconds of Body Cam Video Can Reveal a Biometric Fingerprint, Study Says
From ACM News

4 Seconds of Body Cam Video Can Reveal a Biometric Fingerprint, Study Says

Researchers say they can have computers examine body camera video footage and accurately identify a person wearing a body-mounted device in about four seconds,a...

Baer's Odyssey: Meet the Serial Inventor Who Built the World's First Game Console
From ACM Opinion

Baer's Odyssey: Meet the Serial Inventor Who Built the World's First Game Console

Even if you're a devoted fan of video games, there's a decent chance you're not familiar with the name Ralph H. Baer.

Beyond Gaming, the Vr Boom Is Everywhere—from Classrooms to Therapy Couches
From ACM News

Beyond Gaming, the Vr Boom Is Everywhere—from Classrooms to Therapy Couches

When Oculus almost single-handedly revived the idea of virtual reality from its '90s vaporware grave, it chose the 2012 Electronic Entertainment Expo as the place...

Prepare For the Part-Time Self-Driving Car
From ACM News

Prepare For the Part-Time Self-Driving Car

Self-driving AI cars have been a staple in popular culture for some time—any child of the 1980s will fondly remember both the Autobots and Knight Rider's KITT—but...

Julian Assange on Snowden, Disliking Google, and His 'inevitable' Freedom
From ACM Opinion

Julian Assange on Snowden, Disliking Google, and His 'inevitable' Freedom

It would be too much to say that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange feels optimistic.

Air Force Research: How to ­se Social Media to Control People Like Drones
From ACM News

Air Force Research: How to ­se Social Media to Control People Like Drones

Facebook isn't the only organization conducting research into how attitudes are affected by social media.

Massachusetts High Court Orders Suspect to Decrypt His Computers
From ACM News

Massachusetts High Court Orders Suspect to Decrypt His Computers

Massachusetts' top court ruled, in a 5-2 decision on Wednesday, that a criminal suspect can be ordered to decrypt his seized computer.

Scotus to Weigh In on When Online Rants Become Criminal Threats
From ACM News

Scotus to Weigh In on When Online Rants Become Criminal Threats

The US Supreme Court on Monday announced that it will consider a case involving a thorny free speech issue in the digital age: at what point does a statement made...

Aereo Analysis: Cloud Computing at a Crossroads
From ACM News

Aereo Analysis: Cloud Computing at a Crossroads

The question of whether online broadcast television is to remain in the hands of a stodgy industry that once declared the VCR the enemy is being put directly before...

Supreme Court Weighing When Online Speech Becomes Illegal Threat
From ACM News

Supreme Court Weighing When Online Speech Becomes Illegal Threat

When does an online threat become worthy of criminal prosecution?

As Human Laws Grapple with Robots, There Are No Easy Answers
From ACM News

As Human Laws Grapple with Robots, There Are No Easy Answers

There's been a lot of buzz about robots lately.

Government Wants You to Broadcast Your Driving Data—Eventually
From ACM News

Government Wants You to Broadcast Your Driving Data—Eventually

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced that it's finally ready to consider regulations that...

How the Nsa (may Have) Put a Backdoor in Rsa's Cryptography: A Technical Primer
From ACM News

How the Nsa (may Have) Put a Backdoor in Rsa's Cryptography: A Technical Primer

There has been a lot of news lately about nefarious-sounding backdoors being inserted into cryptographic standards and toolkits.

Secret Court Declassifies Opinion Providing Rationale For Metadata Sharing
From ACM News

Secret Court Declassifies Opinion Providing Rationale For Metadata Sharing

For the first time, the United States' most secret court, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), has published its legal rationale as to why the ...

Supreme Court: 'business Method' and Software Patents Ok
From ACM News

Supreme Court: 'business Method' and Software Patents Ok

This morning, the Supreme Court decided the long-running Bilski case on business method patents--a case with broad applicability to software patents. As expected...
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