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The Time I Went on Border Patrol in a Virtual Reality World
From ACM Opinion

The Time I Went on Border Patrol in a Virtual Reality World

I found myself on a desolate desert road, in front of a man who was leaning against the hood of a banged-up sedan and next to a United States Border Patrol agent...

How Tech Giants Are Devising Real Ethics For Artificial Intelligence
From ACM Opinion

How Tech Giants Are Devising Real Ethics For Artificial Intelligence

For years, science-fiction moviemakers have been making us fear the bad things that artificially intelligent machines might do to their human creators.

Can We Trust Julian Assange and Wikileaks?
From ACM Opinion

Can We Trust Julian Assange and Wikileaks?

The release of a cache of emails from the Democratic National Committee by WikiLeaks last month has raised a great many questions—about the role of the D.N.C. in...

Make Algorithms Accountable
From ACM Opinion

Make Algorithms Accountable

Algorithms are ubiquitous in our lives.

Lessons From the Tesla Crash
From ACM Opinion

Lessons From the Tesla Crash

A recent fatal crash in Florida involving a Tesla Model S is an example of how a new technology designed to make cars safer could, in some cases, make them more...

Self-Driving Cars Could Flip the Auto Insurance Industry on Its Head
From ACM Opinion

Self-Driving Cars Could Flip the Auto Insurance Industry on Its Head

As the driverless car gets closer to reality, so too does the dilemma of how to insure the car and its owner.

A Russian Cybersleuth Battles the 'dark Ages' of the Internet
From ACM Opinion

A Russian Cybersleuth Battles the 'dark Ages' of the Internet

A sense of menace stirs right off the elevator on the fifth floor of Kaspersky Lab's Moscow headquarters, where a small television screen displays cyberthreatsa...

Jobs Threatened By Machines: A Once 'stupid' Concern Gains Respect
From ACM Opinion

Jobs Threatened By Machines: A Once 'stupid' Concern Gains Respect

They replaced horses, didn't they? That's how the late, great economist Wassily Leontief responded 35 years ago to those who argued technology would never really...

Eske Willerslev Is Rewriting History With Dna
From ACM Opinion

Eske Willerslev Is Rewriting History With Dna

As a boy growing up in Denmark, Eske Willerslev could not wait to leave Gentofte, his suburban hometown. As soon as he was old enough, he would strike out for the...

Doom Is a Gleefully Gory Ballet Set in a Nightmare
From ACM Opinion

Doom Is a Gleefully Gory Ballet Set in a Nightmare

My instinct upon leaping into id Software's hyper-gruesome Doom, a gonzo shooter out May 13 for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, is to dawdle.

IBM Researcher: Fears Over Artificial Intelligence Are 'overblown'
From ACM Opinion

IBM Researcher: Fears Over Artificial Intelligence Are 'overblown'

The debate over artificial intelligence has divided some of Silicon Valley's brightest minds.

Europe's Web Privacy Rules: Bad For Google, Bad For Everyone
From ACM Opinion

Europe's Web Privacy Rules: Bad For Google, Bad For Everyone

It's been a rough few months for Google in Europe.

Have Comment Sections on News Media Websites Failed?
From ACM Opinion

Have Comment Sections on News Media Websites Failed?

Many newspapers and online media companies have begun disabling comment sections because of widespread abuse and obscenity.

Why Apple's Stand Against the F.b.i. Hurts Its Own Customers
From ACM Opinion

Why Apple's Stand Against the F.b.i. Hurts Its Own Customers

Two weeks ago, privacy advocates across the country celebrated as the Federal Bureau of Investigation backed off its request for Apple to help gain access intoiPhone...

When Is the Singularity? Probably Not in Your Lifetime
From ACM Opinion

When Is the Singularity? Probably Not in Your Lifetime

Misconception: Computers will outstrip human capabilities within many of our lifetimes.

To Beat Go Champion, Google's Program Needed a Human Army
From ACM Opinion

To Beat Go Champion, Google's Program Needed a Human Army

Nearly 20 years ago, after a chess-playing computer called Deep Blue beat the world grandmaster Garry Kasparov, I wrote an article about why humans would long remain...

Should Hackers Help the F.b.i.?
From ACM Opinion

Should Hackers Help the F.b.i.?

The United States Justice Department announced this week that it was able to unlock the iPhone used by the gunman in the San Bernardino shooting in December, and...

Andy Grove's Warning to Silicon Valley
From ACM Opinion

Andy Grove's Warning to Silicon Valley

The praise this week for Andy Grove, who died on Monday at age 79, has been wrapped up in praise for Silicon Valley, where he was a towering figure in the semiconductor...

Apple Policy on Bugs May Explain Why Hackers Would Help F.b.i.
From ACM Opinion

Apple Policy on Bugs May Explain Why Hackers Would Help F.b.i.

After a third party went to the F.B.I. with claims of being able to unlock an iPhone, many in the security industry said they were not surprised that the thirdApple...

Inside Apple Ceo Tim Cook's Fight With the Fbi
From ACM Opinion

Inside Apple Ceo Tim Cook's Fight With the Fbi

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