Microsoft Research Blog

Research Blog

  1. During Leap Year, Big Advances 

    March 5, 2012

    Posted by Rob Knies   With March 2012 upon us, you could say that, from a calendar perspective, the drama of this leap year already has passed. February has enjoyed its quadrennial enhancement. The ides of March are nearly upon us. A change of season…

  2. WorldWide Telescope Takes Center Stage in Moscow 

    March 1, 2012

    On February 9, 2012, Russian astronomers of all levels—professional, amateur, student, and teacher—congregated at Moscow’s Sternberg Astronomical Institute for WorldWide Telescope Day. Russia’s foremost astronomy institution, the Sternberg Astronomical Institute, also known as GAISH, represents the top echelons of the country’s astronomical research and science…

  3. No Language Left Behind 

    February 28, 2012

    Imagine the informational and cultural isolation that can result if you don’t speak one of the world’s major languages. Think about how limited your Internet experience would be. This is a reality for billions of people worldwide, who find themselves cut off linguistically from this…

  4. Touch Mouse Captures Industry Accolade 

    February 24, 2012

    Posted by Rob Knies Sometimes, things can go sideways. There are an infinite number of ways that a project can get derailed. We’re human. We understand this.But every once in a while, it seems as if everything just stays on track, from start to finish.…

  5. Data Visualization Reaches New Heights with Layerscape 

    February 16, 2012

    In December, I blogged about the beta release of Layerscape, a free set of research tools from Microsoft that enable earth scientists to visualize and tell stories around large, complex data sets. The full release is now available to the public at Layerscape. We’re calling…

  6. .NET Gadgeteer Stirs Excitement in British Schools 

    February 15, 2012

    Youngsters love gadgets. So wouldn’t it be great if they could build their own, and at school? This is exactly what more than 70 British students, ages 13 to 16, are doing by using .NET Gadgeteer. On January 30, they gathered at the Microsoft Research…

  7. Malvar Elected as Member of NAE 

    February 10, 2012

    Posted by Rob Knies One of the singular advantages of working for Microsoft—and for Microsoft Research, in particular—is the opportunity to work on products and technologies that have a positive influence on multitudes worldwide.Henrique Malvar, Microsoft distinguished engineer and chief scientist at Microsoft Research, knows…

  8. Microsoft Research Plays Matchmaker this February 

    February 10, 2012

    Two major computing conferences take place this month in the Seattle area: the ACM International Conference on Web Search and Data Mining (WSDM 2012), which runs February 8–12 in Seattle and focuses on how to improve web search algorithms, and the ACM Conference on Computer…

  9. Workshop Bolsters Chinese Research Uses of Kinect for Windows 

    February 9, 2012

    On December 2, 2011, Microsoft Research Asia held the Kinect for Windows Workshop 2011 in Beijing, China. The event, which drew more than 100 participants, including faculty and students from Chinese universities, provided a forum for exploring research that utilizes Kinect for Windows. It not…

  10. Addressing the Need for More Women in Computer Science Programs 

    February 3, 2012

    Last year, women accounted for only 14 percent of computer science college graduates in the United States, according to the Computing Research Association. That’s down from 35 percent in 1985, despite U.S. Labor Department statistics that show computing to be among the fastest-growing, most in-demand…

  11. Doubloon Dash: A Quest for Understanding 

    January 27, 2012

    Posted by Rob Knies A few months ago, I got a chance to talk with Thore Graepel of Microsoft Research Cambridge about Project Waterloo, a Facebook game that is part of the Research Games project exploring behavioral game theory at a global scale.Now, Graepel and…