Computing2324 articles archived since 1845

How to Use a Virtual Machine

What is a virtual machine and how can you use it to boost your computer efficiency? Tech Talker explains

NOVA Evolution Lab

What could you possibly have in common with a mushroom, or a dinosaur, or even a bacterium? More than you might think.

Bionic Arm Taps New Part of Brain for Smooth Moves

Connections to a robotic arm have been wired into a tetraplegic person's brain and enabled him to use his thoughts to execute tasks requiring smooth motor control

Can't Touch This--New Encryption Scheme Targets Transaction Tampering

An Estonia-based cybersecurity firm adopts a “blockchain” public ledger system to verify online transfers of sensitive information

Moore's Law Keeps Going, Defying Expectations

It’s a mystery why Gordon Moore’s “law,” which forecasts processor power will double every two years, still holds true a half century later

Satellite Sensor Reveals Earth’s Nocturnal Secrets

Inventions: 70 Years That Changed the World, 1845–1915 [Slide Show]

Smartphone Lock Pouch Leaves Students to Their Own (Unusable) Devices

One school is trying out a lightweight sack meant to keep devices from being a classroom distraction without forcing students to give up their digital lifelines

Here's What a Cyber Warfare Arsenal Might Look Like

Stuxnet was just the beginning, as malware becomes the new nuclear option

Pop Music Gets Its Fossil Record Analyzed

An investigation of more than 17,000 hit tunes suggests popular music undergoes periods of shifting diversity, and that new styles evolve in bursts. Christopher Intagliata reports

Star Wars Day: May the Fourth Be with You

16-year-old Paul Vermeesch recreate the impossible structures in M.C. Escher's Relativity--but with a Star Wars theme--in LEGO.

Computing after Moore's Law

The technologies chip makers hope can keep Moore’s Law alive

Queen of Carbon Becomes First Women to Receive IEEE Medal of Honor

In June, Professor Mildred Dresselhaus will formally receive the 2015 IEEE Medal of Honor for her leadership and contributions across many fields of science and engineering. She is the first woman to receive the organisation’s highest honor since its inception in 1917...

MESSENGER’s Mercurial Swan Song and Other Interplanetary Smash-Ups

On April 30, if all goes well, after running out of fuel to fight off orbital decay NASA’s long-running MESSENGER spacecraft will end its mission to Mercury by crashing into the planet’s surface at nearly 4 kilometers per second...

5 Instagram Tips for Science Artists

I’ve been on Instagram for a long time, with a private account to share family photos with friends. Last year, I decided to start up a second account, @FlyingTrilobite, to share my art in process, and the sort of things I normally share on my blog...

The Billion-Dollar Race to Reinvent the Computer Chip

With the end of Moore's law in sight, chip manufacturers are spending billions to develop novel computing technologies

What Is the "Internet of Things"?

The "Internet of Things" is everywhere. But what is it exactly? And how does it affect your life? Tech Talker delves into this hot new buzz word

Adaptive Headlights Could Help Drivers Avoid Hitting Bambi

Robotics researchers are building a headlight that quickly adjusts to changing conditions, allowing drivers to see through rain and snow, follow GPS directions and dodge roadway obstacles...

Program with Paper: A-Maze Your Friends with a Hand-Written Computer Program

Learn more about how computer programs work by writing one yourself—to solve a maze of your own creation!

Fateful Phone Call Spawned Moore’s Law [Excerpt]

Nobel laureate physicist William Shockley recruited Gordon Moore to help advance transistor technology, kicking off the creation of Silicon Valley and the digital revolution itself