Supercomputers can take months to simulate the climate – but my new algorithm can do it ten times faster
These are some of the most complex and important pieces of software ever written.
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We’re getting closer to having practical quantum computers – here’s what they will be used for
Quantum computers can explore every possible solution to a problem at the same time.
Microsoft seeks security in the expert hands of Satya Nadella
Faced with uncertain times, Microsoft has named Satya Nadella as its new CEO. His appointment follows months of speculation over who would replace longstanding leader Steve Ballmer, who retired last year…
Genetic testing is easy to access thanks to computer scientists
Frederick Sanger, who died recently at the age of 95, won two Nobel prizes in chemistry for his methods for sequencing proteins and DNA. Proteins were of more direct interest to many people because many…
Science relies on computer modelling – so what happens when it goes wrong?
Relying on computer modelling can be dangerous: in 1999 NASA lost a space probe because of a silly error in the control software.
Interactive cinema: how films could alter plotlines in real time by responding to viewers’ emotions
A new film changes its story based on the emotions expressed by the viewer.
Five ways the Raspberry Pi is making life a little sweeter
The Raspberry Pi project began when a few of us in Cambridge bemoaned the fall in numbers of computer science applicants and the decline in hobbyist programmers. Five years on, much has changed. Applications…
Alan Turing’s legacy is even bigger than we realise
Alan Turing is one of the world’s best-known mathematicians, and probably the best known in the past century. This is partly for his work on cracking German codes in World War II, and partly for his arrest…
How to solve virtual reality’s human perception problem
VR is being applied to shopping, car manufacturing and exercise – but it remains a challenge to transport humans to new worlds with an acceptable sense of presence.
Why we fell out of love with algorithms inspired by nature
Computer scientists used to calculate how to make the modern world better by drawing analogies with nature. But now the backlash has begun.
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