Posted by Rob Knies The world is awash in scientific data these days, but all that information is not being harnessed to its potential to help steer the planet to a more sustainable future.That’s the message Stephen Emmott, head…
Posted by Rob Knies Each year, the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) recognizes several of its members for their contributions to computing by naming them as Fellows. Today, 46 ACM members have been named as Fellows—and six of them are…
Human trafficking of minors—including the illegal trade of children and teens for commercial sexual exploitation—is a crime so vile that it makes most people shudder. But unfortunately, not everyone recoils: pedophiles and procurers have made the commercial sexual exploitation of…
Every so often, a new platform comes along that really shakes things up. Well, if you’re part of the earth-sciences community, prepare to be shaken, because Microsoft Research has just released a new way to convey earth-science concepts. It’s called…
The Jim Gray eScience Award—named for Jim Gray, a Technical Fellow at Microsoft Research and a Turing Award winner who disappeared at sea in 2007—recognizes innovators whose work makes science easier for other scientists.It was a special pleasure to be…
The first documented case of HIV was in 1981. Today, HIV is viewed as a treatable, chronic disease by many in developed nations where treatments are readily available. Yet HIV continues to devastate, claiming the lives of 1.8 million people…
Through my work with academics in Brazil, I have witnessed an increasing awareness of the importance of computing in advancing scientific research in such areas as bioenergy, biodiversity, climate change, and plant physiology. In order to advance these fields, scientists…
Posted by Rob Knies Congratulations to Georges Gonthier, a principal researcher at Microsoft Research Cambridge, for winning the 2011 EADS Foundation Grand Prize in Computer Science.Gonthier, who spends a significant amount of his time collaborating with French researchers from INRIA…
It began with a simple question: “Why can’t students earn digital rewards for being awesome?” A research group comprised of university faculty, staff, and students at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) decided to find out. The team delved into…