LATEST ARTICLES

If You Write It Better, You Will Say It Better

by Philip Yaffe

Today it is generally accepted that to fully achieve in most fields of endeavor you must be a competent (if not a superior) writer and public speaker. Computer science and computer programming are no exception. However, it is a mistake to believe that good expository (non-fiction) writing public speaking are distinct disciplines. They are flipsides of the same coin. Recognizing this essential dualism makes achieving competence in both faster and significantly easier. ...

Words That Don't Translate into English

by Philip Yaffe

The better you become as a good expository (non-fiction) writer, the more you appreciate just how challenging (and rewarding) it is to produce good expository text. Most treatises on good writing seem to presume that you are writing for native speakers of the language in which you are writing. However, often this is not the case. If you are not a polyglot, a poor translation could lead to poor outcomes. ...

Companion Robots: A Debate

by Michael J. Quinn, Jeff Riley

Is it good or bad for humans to form intimate relationships with machines? This question has vexed machine designers for many years. One of its early appearances in computing was Joe Weizenbaum's Eliza program in 1966. Eliza mimicked a conversation one might have with a Rogerian psychotherapist. Weizenbaum was astounded when some of his friends, including his secretary, started divulging personal secrets to the machine and having warm feeling for the machine. He tried to dissuade them by showing them the inner workings of Eliza: a short program with no intelligence, just a short algorithm substituting keywords into user-typed strings. He was unsuccessful. They did not want to be dissuaded. This question has come back into public view with the arrival of large language models, which engage in competent, fluid conversations. It is now possible for robots to have natural language conversations with people. One of the areas where this is happening is companion robots, which have been introduced into long term care homes to provide companionship with residents and alert caretakers when someone has an emergency.

Ubiquity is pleased to present a debate on companion robots. Computer scientist and author Michael Quinn argues their use may bring harmful consequences. Ubiquity's Jeff Riley, a semi-retired technologist and casual researcher in theoretical astrophysics, argues they have proved beneficial in research studies. Following their position papers are short rebuttals by Quinn and Riley on each other's positions.---Peter J. Denning, Editor in Chief, Ubiquity

The Digital Economy as a Complex System

by Kemal A. Delic, Jeff Johnson

The digital economy is a complex system, but orthodox economic theory is unable to handle such complexity. For some decades economists have realized that the conventional theoretical models are not consistent with data on what people and institutions actually do, and a new behavioral economics is emerging. The science of complex systems developed over the last 50 years has developed many new ideas and methods for analyzing the non-linear non-equilibrium dynamics of complex systems. Responding to the failures of orthodox economics, those managing the global economy are willing and able to embrace and lead in this new way of looking at economic systems. Thus, economics is evolving and better able to inform decision making in the public and private sectors.

This offers new ways of sthinking about the digital economy for entrepreneurs and policy makers which in turn will provide many new example of real-world complexity. The digital economy will drive the creation of future wealth and prosperity, co-evolving with the science of complex systems. We postulate that the research in complex systems will enable better understanding of the digital economy, augment existing economic models and improve their prediction powers.