The Association for Computing Machinery (the ACM) was founded in
1947, immediately after Eckert and Mauchly unveiled one of the first
electronic computers, the ENIAC, in 1946. Since then, the ACM has
grown by leaps and bounds, becoming one of the leading educational
and scientific societies in the computer industry.
The ACM's stated purposes are:
To advance the sciences and arts of information processing;
To promote the free interchange of information about the sciences and
arts of information processing both among specialists and among the
public;
To develop and maintain the integrity and competence of individuals
engaged in the practices of the sciences and arts of information
processing.
Membership in the ACM has grown from seventy-eight in September, 1947,
to over 77,000 today. There are local chapters around the world, and
many colleges and universities endorse student chapters. Lecturers
frequent these meetings, which tend to be one step above the normal
"user group" gathering. A large variety of published material is
also available at discounted prices for members of the association.
The ACM has a number of Special Interest Groups (SIGs) that
concentrate on a certain area of computing, ranging from graphics to
the Ada programming language to security. Each of the SIGs also
publishes its own newsletter. There is a Usenet group, comp.org.acm,
for the discussion of ACM topics. Usenet News for more information
on reading news.
For more information and a membership application, write to:
Assocation for Computing Machinery
1515 Broadway
New York City, NY 10036
ACMHELP@ACMVM.BITNET
(212) 869-7440
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility
from their letter to prospective members
The CPSR is an alliance of computer professionals concentrating on
certain areas of the impact of computer technology on society. It
traces its history to the fall of 1981, when several researchers in
Palo Alto, California, organized a lunch meeting to discuss their
shared concerns about the connection between computing and the
nuclear arms race. Out of that meeting and the discussions which
followed, CPSR was born, and has been active ever since. {This
section is part of the CPSR's letter to prospective members.}
The national CPSR program focuses on the following project areas:
Reliability and Risk This area reflects on the concern that
overreliance on computing technology can lead to unacceptable risks
to society. It includes, but isn't limited to, work in analyzing
military systems such as SDI.
Civil Liberties and Privacy This project is concerned with such
topics as the FBI National Crime Information Center, the growing use
of databases by both government and private industry, the right of
access to public information, extension of First Amendment rights to
electronic communication, and establishing legal protections for
privacy of computerized information.
Computers in the Workplace The CPSR Workplace Project has
concentrated its attention on the design of software for the
workplace, and particularly on the philosophy of "participatory
design," in which software designers work together with users to
ensure that systems meet the actual needs of that workplace.
The 21st Century Project This is a coalition with other
professional organizations working towards redirecting national
research priorities from concentrating on military issues to
anticipating and dealing with future problems as science and
technology enter the next century.
For more information on the CPSR, contact them at:
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility
P.O. Box 717
Palo Alto, CA 94302
cpsr@csli.stanford.edu
(415) 322--3778
(415) 322--3798 (Fax)