ACM MemberNet - November 24, 2020

Welcome to the November 2020 edition of ACM MemberNet, bringing you the world of ACM and beyond. Explore the many facets of ACM with our newsletter of member activities and events. Read past issues of MemberNet online at https://www.acm.org/membership/acm-membernet-archive.

Read coverage of ACM in the news media.

November 24, 2020

TOP STORIES

AWARDS

MEMBER RECOGNITION

SIG AWARDS

CONFERENCES AND EVENTS

PUBLIC POLICY

MEMBER PROGRAMS

LEARNING CENTER

ACM CAREER & JOB CENTER

STUDENT NEWS

DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS PROGRAM

CHAPTERS NEWS

ACM-W NEWS

PUBLICATIONS NEWS

TOP STORIES

Organize an Hour of Code in Your Community during Computer Science Education Week, December 7-13

The Hour of Code has introduced more than 1 billion students in more than 180 countries to computer science. ACM (a partner of Code.org, a coalition of organizations dedicated to expanding participation in computer science) encourages you to host an Hour of Code in your community and give students an opportunity to gain the skills needed for creating technology that’s changing the world.

Now in its seventh year, the Hour of Code is a global movement designed to generate excitement in young people about programming and technology. Games, tutorials, and other events are organized by local volunteers from schools, research institutions, and other groups during Computer Science Education Week, December 7-13. This year, as part of the #CSforGood movement, Hour of Code will shine a light on how Computer Science can serve as a catalyst for social justice: #CSforSocialJustice.

Anyone, anywhere can organize an Hour of Code event, and anyone from ages 4 to 104 can try the one-hour tutorials, which are available in more than 45 languages. Learn more about how to host an Hour of Code and how to promote your event.

Please post activities you are hosting/participating in, pass along this information, and encourage others to post their activities. Tweet about it at #HourOfCode.

Words Matter

As part of ACM’s efforts to combat exclusion in the computing profession, ACM's Diversity and Inclusion Council has launched "Words Matter," an effort to replace offensive or exclusionary terminology in the computing field. They have developed a list of computing terms to be avoided in professional writing and presentations and offer alternative language. The Council plans to expand this list in the future and invites the community to submit suggestions for consideration.

Discover the latest "ACM Selects," Shortlists of Learning Resources Curated by Experts

ACM Selects are themed shortlists curated by subject matter experts for both serious and emerging computing professionals, with the goal of providing new ways to discover relevant resources, either through ACM or authenticated by ACM-affiliated specialists. The latest Selects cover Getting Started with Computer Vision; Why Algorithmic Fairness?; Getting Started with Data Science; and People in Computing #2.

ACM SIGARCH Extending Terms

In accordance with ACM's Constitution and Bylaws, ACM's Special Interest Group on Computer Architecture (SIGARCH) has requested, and the SIG Governing Board EC has granted, an extension of terms. Voting members of ACM SIGARCH may petition the ACM to request an election. A petition with the names/signatures of at least 1% of the ACM SIGARCH membership must be submitted to ACM HQ by 27 November 2020. To initiate the petition process, please contact Pat Ryan, ACM's Chief Operating Officer, at [email protected]. If the petition is successful, ACM SIGARCH will be asked to form a nominating committee and begin the electoral process.

AWARDS

Gordon Bell Prizes Awarded at SC20 Conference

A nine-member research team from Chinese and American institutions was awarded the 2020 ACM Gordon Bell Prize for introducing Deep Potential Molecular Dynamics (DPMD), a new machine learning-based protocol that can simulate a more than 1 nanosecond-long trajectory of over 100 million atoms per day. They were recognized for their project, “Pushing the limit of molecular dynamics with ab initio accuracy to 100 million atoms with machine learning.”
Read the ACM news release.

The 2020 ACM Gordon Bell Special Prize for High Performance Computing-Based COVID-19 Research was presented to a 12-member team for their project “AI-Driven Multiscale Simulations Illuminate Mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Dynamics.” The Prize is being awarded in 2020 and 2021 to recognize outstanding research achievement toward the understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic through the use of high performance computing.
Read the ACM news release.

Both awards were bestowed during the virtual SC20 conference.

ACM Award Nomination Submission Procedures

Each year, ACM recognizes technical and professional achievements within the computing and information technology community through its celebrated Awards Program. ACM welcomes nominations for candidates whose work exemplifies the best and most influential contributions to our community, and society at large. ACM's award committees evaluate the contributions of candidates for various awards that span a spectrum of professional and technological accomplishments.

Please take a moment to consider those individuals in your community who may be suitable for nomination. Refer to the award nominations page for nomination guidelines and the complete listing of Award Subcommittee Chairs and Members. And read ACM President and former ACM Awards Committee Chair Cherri Pancake's article in Communications of the ACM, "Dispelling Common Myths about ACM Awards and Honors."

Deadline for nominations for the main awards for next year is January 15, 2021.

MEMBER RECOGNITION

Call for ACM Senior Member Nominations

The Senior Member advanced grade of membership recognizes ACM members with at least 5 years of Professional ACM membership in the last 10 years. Nominations are accepted on a quarterly basis. The deadline for nominations is December 3.

SIG AWARDS

ACM SIG Awards Recognize Achievements in Diverse Fields

ACM's Special Interest Groups (SIGs) regularly cite outstanding individuals for their contributions in more than 35 distinct technological fields. Some awards presented (or to be presented) at conferences:

CONFERENCES AND EVENTS

SIGGRAPH Asia, December 4 to 13 (online)

The theme for this year’s SIGGRAPH Asia is "Driving Diversity," where a diverse group of worldwide technical and artistic contributors will connect with and inspire new communities through tracks including Frontiers workshops, courses, emerging technologies, art gallery, games, Computer Animation Festival and much more. Academy Award-winning animator Glen Keane and Paul Franklin, VFX Supervisor and Creative Director at DNEG, will keynote.

ACM/IFIP Middleware 2020, December 7 to 11 (online)

The annual ACM/IFIP Middleware Conference is a major forum for the discussion of innovations and recent scientific advances of middleware systems with a focus on the design, implementation, deployment, and evaluation of distributed systems, platforms and architectures for computing, storage, and communication. Highlights will include a technical program, invited speakers, an industrial track, panel discussions involving academic and industry leaders, poster and demonstration presentations, a doctoral symposium, and tutorials. Workshops will address Adaptive and Reflexive Middleware; Container Technologies and Clouds; Distributed Infrastructure for Common Good; and much more.

WSC 2020, December 14 to 18 (online)

The 2020 Winter Simulation Conference features simulation as a natural tool to help drive innovation. The comprehensive program ranges from introductory tutorials to state-of-the-art research and practice, and includes case studies, environmental, sustainability and healthcare applications, logistics, supply chains, and transportation, and much more. Ben Amaba of IBM's Data Sciences and Artificial Intelligence Team is the keynote speaker.

PUBLIC POLICY

Panel of Member Experts Inaugurates New USTPC "Hot Topics" Webinar Series

By Adam Eisgrau, ACM Director of Global Policy and Public Affairs

Election 2020 may be behind us, but whether and how to change US law and policy to require communications platform operators like Facebook and Twitter to more actively regulate what their users can post online, and what kind of speech they may not limit amidst a torrent of misinformation, has crowded recent headlines and certainly will be front and center in the next Congress and Administration.

Earlier this month, USTPC Chair Jim Hendler “cut the ribbon” on a new series of what will be regular webinars on equally hot topics in US technology policy with an inaugural Zoom session titled Section 230: The Origins and Future of Online Content Control and Liability in the United States. Conceived of and moderated by USTPC Law Subcommittee Chair Andy Grosso, the program delved into the provision of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 widely regarded today as "the 26 words that created the internet" by providing online platforms with clear statutory language defining how to avoid being held liable for the content of their users’ speech.

More than 130 attendees were treated to a deep dive into Section 230’s origins, structure and evolution in the judicial and executive branches over the past 25 years by a trio of truly expert panelists: Daniel Weitzner of MIT (Chair of USTPC’s Digital Governance Subcommittee and former US Deputy Chief Technology Officer), Pamela Samuelson of University of California, Berkeley Law (ACM and MacArthur Foundation Fellow), and Mark Rasch (USTPC member and Department of Justice Computer Crimes Unit founder). Lively interaction between the panelists followed by an audience Q & A session afforded listeners a deeper understanding of the legal and political dimensions of this landmark legislation, and of the controversy currently revolving around it. A complete recording of the November 18 event is available online.

Future USTPC “Hot Topic” sessions may include such timely subjects as: electronic voting; encryp­tion “backdoors;” Computer Fraud and Abuse Act reform and litigation; facial recognition; European privacy law; and algorithmic fairness, predictability and transparency. The programs also are intended to introduce more ACM members to USTPC’s critical work and encourage them to explore joining the Committee. To do that today, simply email your interest to [email protected].

ACM Technology Policy Council Welcomes New Members

ACM's global Technology Policy Council welcomes three new members: election security expert Barbara Simons, cybersecurity expert Chris Hankin, and cybersecurity and privacy expert Stuart Shapiro. Simons, internationally known expert on voting technology and Board member of US Election Assistance Commission, is past President of ACM and recipient of the 2019 ACM Policy Award. Hankin, professor of Computer Science at Imperial College London, past Chair of the Scientific Council of INRIA, and immediate Past Chair of the ACM Europe Council, is the new Chair of the ACM Europe Technology Policy Committee. Shapiro, principal engineer at MITRE and Past Chair of the ACM US Technology Policy Committee, is the new Chair of the TechBriefs Committee.

Two additional members were welcomed earlier this year: computer vision expert P J Narayanan and digital governance expert Virgilio Almeida. Narayanan, Director at IIIT Hyderabad, is a Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering and Past President of the ACM India Council. Almeida, emeritus professor at Federal University of Minas Gerais and Brazilian Academy of Sciences member, was National Secretary for IT Policies of the Brazilian government from 2011 to 2015.

They join current Council members Lorraine Kisselburgh (Chair), Michel Beaudouin-Lafon (Vice Chair), Vint Cerf, James Hendler, Jeanna Matthews, Maire O'Neill, and Latanya Sweeney. With a global reach, the Technology Policy Council sets the vision and priorities for ACM's policy activities and serves as the central convening point for interactions with government organizations, the computing community, and the public in public policy matters.

MEMBER PROGRAMS

Become an Ambassador for ACM—You Could Be a Grand Prize Winner!

The Ambassadors for ACM program rewards ACM members like you for encouraging new members to join. Your first-hand experience with ACM's valuable career development and continuous learning programs makes you a perfect envoy to share your ACM experiences with prospective members. The Ambassadors for ACM program offers opportunities for you to earn new prizes, rewards and bonus gifts with each referral. Submit the ACM Referral Form, and your referrals can join ACM at a special discount rate. Our members are our greatest asset. Your support of ACM is critical to our continuing efforts to advance computing as a science and a profession. Please consider becoming an Ambassador for ACM.

Looking to book a Stay-cation, Near-cation or Drive-cation? ACM is pleased to offer exclusive hotel and car rental discounts to our members through Local Hospitality. Save time and money on your next trip by visiting the ACM Travel Discount Program page.

ACM Academic Membership Option

The ACM Academic Department Membership option allows universities and colleges to provide ACM Professional Membership to their faculty at a greatly reduced collective cost. ACM offers a membership for academic department faculty at the cost of $49 per person, more than half off the standard ACM professional membership fee of $99 per year. Through this program, each faculty member will receive all the benefits of individual professional ACM membership, including Communications of the ACM, member rates to ACM Special Interest Group conferences, member subscription rates to ACM journals, and much more. To learn more, visit the ACM Academic Department Membership page or contact Cindy Ryan.

ACM and SocialCoder Team Up for Positive Impact through Computing

You can use your technical skills for social good and offer volunteer support on software development projects to organizations who could not otherwise afford it. SocialCoder connects volunteer programmers/software developers with registered charities and helps match them to suitable projects based on their skills, experience, and the causes they care about. Learn more about ACM's partnership with SocialCoder, and how you can get involved.

LEARNING CENTER

ACM ByteCast Interviews Shwetak Patel

ACM ByteCast is ACM's series of podcast interviews with researchers, practitioners, and innovators who are at the intersection of computing research and practice. In each monthly episode, guests share their experiences, the lessons they've learned, and their own visions for the future of computing. The latest episode features Shwetak Patel, 2018 ACM Prize in Computing recipient and 2011 MacArthur Fellow. The podcast is available in the ACM Learning Center.

Watch December 9 TechTalk with Mikaela Greiler on Code Reviews—From Bottleneck to Superpower

Watch the ACM TechTalk, Code Reviews—From Bottleneck to Superpower, to be presented on December 9 by software researcher and consultant Mikaela Greiler. Learn more about this topic on ACM's Discourse page.

Visit the TechTalks Archive for our full archive of past TechTalks.

ACM CAREER & JOB CENTER

ACM Career & Job Center Connects You with Career Opportunities

Connecting with the right employers in computing can be a daunting task. Thankfully, the world's leading companies, colleges and universities come to the ACM Career & Job Center to find the best candidates. By creating an account on the ACM Career and Job Center, you'll gain access to a wide range of tools to help you find the perfect job:

  • Finding a Job - Use the job search tools to find a job that matches your search criteria.
  • Create and Manage Email Alerts - Stay on top of the latest job openings. Receive an email when new jobs match your search criteria.
  • Create/Post Resumes - Get noticed by employers. Create or upload a resume with our easy-to-use tools so employer can get in touch with you.
  • View Saved Jobs - Save jobs that interest you, add notes, share with friends, and track your applies to keep on top of your job search.

For any assistance with the ACM Career and Job Center, please contact ACM's Advertising Sales Manager, Ilia Rodriguez.

STUDENT NEWS

US High School Students Encouraged to Apply for 2020-2021 ACM/CSTA Cutler-Bell Prize

Every year, the ACM/CSTA Cutler-Bell Prize in High School Computing recognizes talented high school students in computer science. The intent of the program is to promote and encourage the field of computer science, as well as to empower young and aspiring learners to pursue computing challenges outside of the traditional classroom environment.

The application process involves a Challenge that focuses on having the student develop an artifact that engages modern computing technology and computer science. Judges will be looking for submissions that demonstrate ingenuity, complexity, relevancy, originality, and a desire to further computer science as a discipline. The application period closes January 18, 2021.

Up to four winners will be selected and each will be awarded a $10,000 prize, which will be administered through the financial aid department at the university the student will attend. The prizes are funded by a $1 million endowment established by David Cutler and Gordon Bell.

Detailed information, including the link to the online application, is available on the ACM/CSTA Cutler-Bell Prize in High School Computing website.

Upcoming ACM Student Research Competitions: Submission Deadlines

ACM Student Research Competitions (SRCs), sponsored by Microsoft Research, offer a unique forum for undergraduate and graduate students to present their original research at well-known ACM sponsored and co-sponsored conferences before a panel of judges and attendees. The most recent SRC winners presented at SIGSPATIAL 2020. The next conferences accepting submissions are:

  • ICSE 2021, May 23-29, deadline January 4, 2021
  • CHI 2021, May 8-13, deadline January 11, 2021

Learn more about competitions on the SRC submissions page and SRC guidelines for students.

ACM Scholarships for Women Computing Students to Attend Research Conferences

The ACM Community of Support for Women in Computing (ACM-W) provides support for women undergraduate or graduate students in computer science and related programs who wish to attend research conferences. This exposure to the computer science research world can encourage a student to continue on to the next level (Undergraduate to Graduate, Masters to Ph.D., Ph.D. to an industry or academic position). For application form, notification dates and more information, please visit the scholarships page.

Graduating Students Eligible for Special Transition Rate

ACM offers a special ACM Professional Membership for $49 USD (regularly $99) to help graduating students make the transition to professional careers, and take advantage of continuous learning opportunities, including free online books and courses and access to ACM's Career & Job Center. This one-year-only transition rate includes all the benefits of Professional Membership plus the option of purchasing a Digital Library subscription for $50. Recent graduates can access this special transition offer through ACM's convenient online renewal form, or by following the instructions on the paper renewal form. For more information, visit the Reasons to Transition to Professional Membership page.

DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS PROGRAM

About the ACM Distinguished Speakers Program

Book the speaker for your next event through the ACM Distinguished Speakers Program (DSP) and deliver compelling and insightful content to your audience. ACM will cover the cost of transportation for the speaker to travel to your event. Our program features renowned thought leaders in academia, industry and government speaking about the most important topics in the computing and IT world today. Our booking process is simple and convenient.
See ACM Distinguished Speakers in action on our flickr page.

Mohamed Elhoseny is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Computers and Information, Mansoura University, where he is also the Director of the Distributed Sensing and Intelligent Systems Lab. He has authored or co-authored many journal articles, and authored or edited conference proceedings, book chapters, and books. His research interests include smart cities, network security, artificial intelligence, internet of things, and intelligent systems. Mohamed serves as the Editor-in-Chief of International Journal of Smart Sensor Technologies and Applications and is an associate editor of journals such as IEEE Access, IEEE Future Directions, Remote Sensing, and International Journal of E-services and Mobile Applications.

For more information on Mohamed, please visit his DSP speaker information page.

ACM, IEEE Computer Society Share Distinguished Speakers Programs

IEEE-CS and ACM are sharing their invited speaker programs, to further the dissemination of technical knowledge of computing fields that greatly benefit both memberships. IEEE-CS chapter volunteers can host a speaker from ACM's Distinguished Speakers Program (DSP), with access to top technology leaders and innovators from nearly every sector of the computing industry, by following the instructions on the DSP site. Make sure you identify yourself as an IEEE Computer Society Chapter.

IEEE-CS provides a popular offering of first-quality speakers serving its professional and student chapters. The Distinguished Visitors Program (DVP) owes its success to the many volunteers and staff members of the Computer Society who generously contribute their time and talent. Organizers of an ACM chapter, conference, or event can host a speaker from IEEE-CS's DVP by following the instructions on the DVP site. Make sure you identify yourself as an ACM chapter or event.

CHAPTERS NEWS

The Hour of Code Is Coming—Plan Events for Your Chapter During Computer Science Education Week, December 7-13

The Hour of Code has introduced more than 1 billion students in more than 180 countries to computer science. This year, with your chapter's participation, we can make it bigger and better than ever!

The Hour of Code is a global movement designed to generate excitement in young people about programming and technology. Games, tutorials, and other events are organized by local volunteers from schools, research institutions, and other groups during Computer Science Education Week, December 7-13. This year, as part of the #CSforGood movement, Hour of Code will shine a light on how Computer Science can serve as a catalyst for social justice: #CSforSocialJustice.

Anyone, anywhere can organize an Hour of Code event, and anyone from ages 4 to 104 can try the one-hour tutorials, which are available in more than 45 languages. Learn more about how to host an Hour of Code and how to promote your event.

We encourage your chapter to organize an Hour of Code event, and to share posts from your event to your social networks. Please be sure to use the #HourOfCode hashtag and @mention ACM in your posts so we can share them with ACM's broader audience. We're @theofficialacm on Twitter, and @AssociationForComputingMachinery on Facebook.

We'll provide official recognition to your chapter in a special ACM Bulletin to all ACM members and an upcoming Communications of the ACM issue. Please send a brief description of your plans by December 4 to [email protected].

Welcome New ACM Chapters

Chapters are the "local neighborhoods" of ACM. The regional ACM Professional, Student, ACM-W, and Special Interest Group (SIG) chapters around the globe involve members locally in competitions, seminars, lectures, workshops, and networking opportunities. ACM welcomes new chapters that were chartered October 17 to November 16, 2020:

ACM Student Chapters:

  • Arizona State University ACM Student Chapter, Tempe
  • BMU ACM Student Chapter, BML Munjal University, Gurgaon, India
  • CBU ACM-W Student Chapter, Christian Brothers University, Memphis, Tennessee
  • Florida Gulf Coast University ACM Student Chapter, Fort Meyers
  • Izmir University of Economics ACM Student Chapter, Balcova, Turkey
  • NUCES Chiniot-Faisalabad ACM Student Chapter, Fast National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences, Faisalabad, Pakistan
  • Shaw University ACM Student Chapter, Raleigh, North Carolina
  • University of Mauritius ACM Student Chapter, Reduit

ACM Professional Chapter:

  • San Antonio ACM Chapter, San Antonio, Texas

ACM-W NEWS

Celebrating Technology Leaders, Episode 3: Women in UI/UX

In this third episode of ACM-W’s webinar series, “Celebrating Technology Leaders,” host Bushra Anjum will explore user-centric design and design thinking—and the multitude of career paths they open—with leading user interface and user experience design professionals. How has the UI/UX design space evolved in the last two decades? What are the various stages of the design process and how to design with a business growth mindset? Is it really possible to predict user expectations? Register here to view on demand.

Join ACM-W's Membership Email List

Did you know that ACM-W offers a general email distribution list for its members? This ACMW-public list is a communication channel for disseminating general information about ACM-W, bulletins and upcoming events. To join the list, visit: http://signup.acm.org/listserv_index.cfm?ln=ACM-W-PUBLIC. Also read the ACM-W Connections newsletter for updates on ACM-W programs: local celebrations, scholarships and awards, chapters, and more.

PUBLICATIONS NEWS

ACM TWEB Seeking New Editor-in-Chief

ACM Transactions on the Web (TWEB): Nominations due December 1

ACM Publications Welcome New Editors-in-Chief

ACM Transactions on Autonomous and Adaptive Systems (TAAS) has named Valérie Issarny as Editor-in-Chief, for the term December 1, 2020 to November 30, 2023. Valérie is a Director of Research at the National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology (France).

ACM Transactions on Algorithms (TALG) has named Edith Cohen as Editor-in-Chief, for the term December 1, 2020 to November 30, 2023. Edith is a Research Scientist at Google in Mountain View, California and visiting professor at Tel Aviv University in Israel.

ACM Queue Presents: "A Second Conversation with Werner Vogels"

In 2006 ACM Queue published a conversation between Jim Gray and Werner Vogels, Amazon's CTO, in which Vogels explained that Amazon should be viewed not just as an online bookstore but as a technology company. In the intervening 14 years, Amazon's distributed systems, and the patterns used to build and operate them, have grown in influence. In this follow-up conversation, Vogels speaks with Tom Killalea about the lessons to be learned from the evolution of a single distributed system, S3, which was publicly launched close to the time of that 2006 conversation.

Subscribe to Communications of the ACM

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