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Open to open source

Nothing warms my heart quite like an idealistic, Peace Corps veteran, garbed in a rare, killer Dylan tee. And while I might be feeding a repressed romantic dream, I am convinced that this granola-munching, guitar-toting, Habitat for Humanity-joining citizen is working to make things “better.” Technology has played an important role in addressing the world’s problems, from advances in sustainable agriculture to online education classes. Open-source software is, in many ways, another example of a “volunteer” opportunity for the computing world.

Seeing as the CR editorial staff is located in Columbus, Ohio, I’d like to pay a small homage to our growing city. The last week of June was filled with anticipation for the weekend community festival, ComFest. For three days, locals gathered to share our unique Midwest culture, including dance, music, food, and nature. And there was rain—oh, was there rain. But we rallied on, despite perceived setbacks. Similar to how our festival represents the coming together of many different types of people who are all working to create and encourage a supportive and growing community, open-source software also invites the possibility of involvement. Furthermore, open-source software faces showers of its own. Luckily, umbrellas never go out of fashion.

Phillip Laplante addresses open-source software more rationally than myself in our latest Hot Topic. Whereas I’d liked to jump right in, hand out Nobel prizes to every committer (new jargon, compliments of the HT), there are other, more business-minded aspects to be weighed (not to mention ethical concerns).

But I’ll continue beaming: open source invites contributors from the Web over, as code is worked and reworked until, finally, abracadabra (at least for the moment)! The Columbus community festival is a rare event that brings individuals of all types to one giant picnic blanket, so to speak. So the question is, has open-source software brought the Harvards, the hippies, and the hackers together at last?

Transforming the Fourier transform

Dune is new to me; I’m new to Dune. Science-fiction fanatics cast looks of pity on hearing this confession. If they don’t bolt too fast, I take the blows of scorn from the fashionistas. In a world where Clarke is God—he did give us 2001: A Space Odyssey, after all—I’ve missed the boat. And for those who don’t consider Asimov and Heinlein bookshelf staples, my admission is barely heard, if at all. Still, with a pride not easily wounded, I bear my tattered copy as a shield, firmly grasped in both hands. I was finished, finally, after toting it to the gym and the bar, reading late into the night and feeling like it was all night. Anxious for Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles, I place Dune on my broken-down bookshelf; my demeanor suggests a ceremonial sacredness. Stockhausen’s Stimmung should have been playing, uncannily, in the background.

Karlheinz Stockhausen is a noted spectralist. Fast Fourier transforms (FFTs) are used to analyze sound spectra, which eventually plays a role in composition. Listening to spectral music, I limbo between bizarre and spiritual—often feeling both, simultaneously. The elongated tones and rhythmic patterns have convinced me that Stimmung is Dune’s lost soundtrack. Obviously, it is hard to find the words that accurately describe my impressions of this work. It is even more difficult to list the incredible ways in which FFTs impact our lives—not to mention scientific advancement.

Whether faced with stoicism, glee, or, in my case, unease, introductory physics courses are a necessity. FFTs float around the curriculum, and a basic understanding is achieved. But in truth, considering their ubiquitous nature, FFT studies can, and often do, fill a lifetime—just ask Daniel Potts, our latest Hot Topic author. Specifically, Daniel focuses on an adapted type: nonequispaced fast Fourier transforms (NFFTs). NFFTs, true to form, continue to expand the Fourier transform influence. For more on NFFTs, read our latest Hot Topic.

The Gene That Binds Us

Scanning the gigantic dining room table that our family gathers around for every major event (and, to be quite honest, the minor ones too—like Flag Day, or when my cousin’s braces finally came off), I see my Amazonian height in my grandmother, and my fair skin graces all of the aunts. Looking through photo albums, the mystery surrounding my flaming red hair is solved. There is a strange gratification in sharing these traits with what my family clannishly calls “our people.” These inheritances are innocent enough, especially when compared to the twisted turn my mind suddenly takes: Thanks for the diabetic risk, Grandpa! What’s that about your heart, Uncle Mike?

With something akin to teenage angst, I am inevitably led to ponder those demons—diseases—that stealthily creep through generations. Today, technological advancements allow for the charting of those nastier genetic “gifts,” as the intricacies of hereditary disease become better understood.

Until now, genetic research has mainly focused on specific portions of the genome. This is useful for identifying specific genetic disorders such as cystic fibrosis. More prevalent health concerns are determined by the interaction of a wide variety of genes. And while it’s not all mapped out yet, I’m tempted to call myself lucky in light of my family’s unexplainable freedom from high blood pressure. Perhaps, I should amend the statement to very lucky considering my weekly craving for Philly cheesesteaks. Now, I’m not advocating for scientific advancement solely for justification of my poor eating habits, but it certainly doesn’t hurt.

And while I enjoy pointing out what side of the family saddled me with what genetic threats (similar to pitting Mom against Dad in an attempt to come out the ultimate winner), there is a more reasonable and, arguably, more exciting view to take. Computer science will be the instrumental force in broadening the way we understand humans’ susceptibility to certain diseases. Alright, Jason, I can take a hint. As an adult, it’s time to be reasonable and choose knowledge over familial myth.

Jason Moore provides us with the latest on the need for computational intelligence in human genetics in our latest
Hot Topic. Go check it out before your next family reunion—it can’t possibly be more controversial than religion or politics, right?

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Kate Barr is the assignment editor for Computing Reviews.

New Hot Topic: Adversarial Information Retrieval

It's definitely not hot in here - the weather here in California today is kind of cool and windy. What is hot are our topics!

(That was really bad wasn't it? I just didn't want to waste time coming up with a more clever intro and just get right to it. Forgive me.)

We have a new hot topic out today: "Adversarial Information Retrieval: The Manipulation of Web Content" written by Dennis Fetterly of Microsoft Research. Dennis provides an overview of how spamming works and how search engines are trying to deal with the problem. As someone who's current spam folder gets about 1000 new items a day and fights off comment spam from this and other blogs, this is a problem I'm very interested in! I'm sure I'm not the only one.

New Hot Topic on Game Theory & Electronic Markets

I'm not going to quote from my own quote on the press release because that would be weird, but I'm happy to announce our newest Hot Topic titled "Game Theory and the Design of Electronic Markets" by Amy Greenwald of Brown University.

I think most of us are probably familiar with online auctions and have bought something - or bid for something - on eBay or a similar site. In the essay I found the section on the TAC (Trading Agent Competition) most interesting and wonder how far we are off having most things we buy operate on some kind of e-auction mechanism or having commerce operate on a model that involves more interaction or bargaining than the simple "this is the price, take it or leave it" model we have now.

Additionally, for me this hot topic demonstrates some of where the most interesting computer science work is being done: on the intersection of computing and mathematical theory, real live problem solving and interdisciplinary research.

Hot Topics are free and do not require a subscription to read.