MORPHEUS vs. Everybody
DARPA pitted 500+ hackers against this computer chip. The chip won.
Tag Archives: hardware
Both Tech Shop locations open for pickup
For the 2021 winter term, Tech Shop offers at-the-door pickup service at both campus locations—Michigan Union and Pierpont Commons. Pickup service is available by appointment only; both stores continue to be temporarily closed to in-person shopping at this time. Service at the Pierpont Commons location launched on January 19 and is available on Tuesday and Friday each week.… Read More »
Dell to be U-M’s new strategic supplier for computer hardware
Dell Technologies has been selected as U-M’s new strategic supplier for computer hardware, which includes laptops, PCs, monitors, keyboards and other equipment. The new contract goes into effect Jan. 18 and replaces the current HP contract. Dell was selected by a cross-functional team composed of representatives from the Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses as well as Michigan… Read More »
Hacking reality
Where does “computer” end, and “real world” begin? This line, separated so firmly in our minds by apps and user interfaces, is finer than it appears as our devices are under attack in new, increasingly sophisticated ways: microphones that “hear” light; microprocessors that “tell” us secrets; self-driving cars that “see” fake objects; sensors that “feel” the wrong temperature.… Read More »
Founded by CoE alum, SambaNova announces AI-accelerated HPC system
As artificial intelligence applications grow and multiply, researchers have been racing to design a new generation of hardware that meets the unique computational needs of those applications. The market for these “AI chips” is booming, and a key player in this new space is Palo Alto based SambaNova Systems. SambaNova, now a unicorn valued at over $2.5 billion,… Read More »
Major side-channel discovery wins NSA contest
The National Security Agency recently recognized a major breakthrough in the field of side-channel attacks as the winner of the 2020 Best Scientific Cybersecurity Paper competition. Daniel Genkin, assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science, worked on the paper with collaborators from around the world. The winning paper, describing an exploit called Spectre, broke open a new… Read More »
First digital single-chip millimeter-wave beamformer will exploit 5G capabilities
The first fully-integrated single-chip digital millimeter-wave (MMW) beamformer, created by electrical and computer engineers at U-M, opens up new possibilities in high-frequency 5G communications. The technology could be used to improve vehicle-to-vehicle communication, autonomous driving, satellite internet, and national defense, to name a few. Beamforming allows a device that is transmitting signals to point them in a particular… Read More »
Tracking monarch butterfly migration with the world’s smallest computer
In a project funded by National Geographic, electrical and computer engineering researchers are teaming up with the department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology to advance our understanding of monarch butterfly migration with the most ambitious iteration of the Michigan Micro Mote yet. The M3, created by David Blaauw, professor of electrical engineering and computer science, and several other… Read More »
SI’s Silvia Lindtner examines China’s place in the global IT industry
Silvia Lindtner, an associate professor at U-M’s School of Information, is the author of the new book Prototype Nation: China and the Contested Promise of Innovation, which tells the story of China’s shifting place in global geopolitics and its contested place in the global tech industry. It is the culmination of nearly a decade of research Lindtner conducted in China, Silicon… Read More »
Hardware model checker takes gold at international competition
Work by Karem Sakallah, professor of computer science and engineering, and PhD student Aman Goel took first place at the 11th edition of the Hardware Model Checking Competition, an event hosted by the Conference on Formal Methods in Computer-Aided Design to determine the best current method for formally verifying a hardware system. The event featured nine categories composed… Read More »
Tech Tip: f.lux
This month, I’m sharing an app that I’ve used for many years, but runs so seamlessly in the background that I didn’t think of sharing it until recently: f.lux. F.lux “makes the color of your computer’s display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day.” Years ago, an app like this… Read More »
Tech Shop launches at-the-door pickup
As the next step in a public health informed return to service, Tech Shop now offers at-the-door pickup for online orders, in addition to a variety of shipping options. Online orders can be placed at techshop.umich.edu. This service will be available by appointment at the Michigan Union location. Service hours are 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., Monday through… Read More »
Probing tech’s soft underbelly
On any given day in Kevin Fu’s laboratory at the College of Engineering research investigators might use an antenna to fool the lab’s sensor into giving a false temperature readings or a laser light beam to inject false voice commands in a voice-controlled assistant from a distance of 300 feet. Unlike many cybersecurity troubleshooters, Fu is not looking… Read More »
Engineering students improve data center efficiency
Two U-M computer science and engineering students have distinguished themselves with their work on ways to speed up and improve data center efficiency. Computer science undergraduate Nathan Brown competed in the Association for Computing Machinery’s (ACM) Student Research Competition and took first place among undergraduates. His project provides a means to speed up software applications by reading future… Read More »
Putting hardware accelerators to work with automatic code translation
Most programs in use today have to be completely rewritten at a very low level to reap the benefits of hardware acceleration. This system demonstrates how to make that translation automatic. A new technique developed by researchers at U-M could enable broader adoption of post-Moore’s Law computing components through automatic code translation. The system, called AutomataSynth, allows software… Read More »
Undergraduate laptop program expands, supports low-income students
The Michigan Undergraduate Laptop Program has moved from LSA to the Office of Enrollment Management (OEM) where it will have broader impact to support students in U-M schools and colleges across the institution.
Securely self-manage UM-owned devices
U-M faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to use computers and devices that are managed by a central U-M IT service provider, but in some circumstances, faculty and staff may need to self-manage a UM-owned device: Computers and other devices purchased with research grant funds to meet very specific research needs. Developers needing specific operating systems or software… Read More »
Taking transistor arrays into the third dimension
Silicon integrated circuits, which are used in computer processors, are approaching the maximum feasible density of transistors on a single chip—at least, in two-dimensional arrays. Now, a team of engineers at U-M have stacked a second layer of transistors directly atop a state-of-the-art silicon chip. They propose that their design could remove the need for a second chip… Read More »
U-M researchers hack devices with laser “Light Commands”
A team of researchers including Kevin Fu and Daniel Genkin, U-M professors of electrical engineering and computer science, have found a way to take over Google Home, Amazon’s Alexa, or Apple’s Siri devices from hundreds of feet away by shining laser pointers, and even flashlights, at the devices’ microphones. “We’ve shown that hijacking voice assistants only requires line-of-sight… Read More »
Blaauw, Sylvester are 2019 Distinguished University Innovators
Pioneering computer technology that is spurring innovation and disruption across industries has earned David Blaauw and Dennis Sylvester, professors of electrical engineering and computer science, this year’s Distinguished University Innovator Award. The pair will receive the award Oct. 22 at Celebrate Invention, an annual event that recognizes entrepreneurship and inventions from U-M researchers. Blaauw and Sylvester have worked… Read More »