Friday, May 27, 2011

I.T. Graduates In Demand

Employers are looking to hire graduates with degrees in computer science more than any other college graduates, according to a new survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). More than 56 percent of computer science majors who have applied for a job have received an offer, giving the major the highest offer rate for the class of 2011. NACE surveyed more than 50,000 college students and found that the job offer rate for computer science graduates has increased 13.8 percent from 2010. Half of engineering graduates who have applied for jobs have received an offer, and the overall job offer rate for 2011 graduates has risen to 41.2 percent from 38.2 percent a year ago. In a separate survey released earlier in the month, NACE reported that computer science graduates were receiving starting salaries of $63,000.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

What Makes an Image Memorable?

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers have developed an algorithm that can identify which photos humans will find memorable, based on statistical data taken from a study of people remembering images. The researchers, led by MIT's Phillip Isola, found that the most memorable photos are those that contain people, followed by static indoor scenes and human-scale objects, while landscapes are not as memorable. After gathering the data, the researchers created memorability maps of each image by asking people to label all of the objects in the images. A computer model analyzed the maps to determine which objects make an image memorable. Then the researchers used machine-learning techniques to create a computational model that analyzed the images and their memorability rate, which enabled them to create an algorithm that can predict the memorability of images the computer has not previously analyzed.

I.T. Professionals in High Demand

There are more technology job openings in a single day on Dice's career Web site than there are computer science graduates joining the U.S. workforce, according a Dice Holdings report. The report also found that 18 states have shortages of local graduates compared to job openings, particularly in key tech markets such as Silicon Valley, Seattle, Dallas, Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and Chicago. The report notes that the gap between graduates and job openings has created competition for talent among tech companies. There are at least two or three jobs for every computer science graduate, says Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Ann Hunter. " 'America's Tech Talent Crunch' is a snapshot of how businesses, educational institutions, and employees are dealing with palpable shortages in real time," the report says. An earlier Dice report found that, on average, technology professionals had not received salary raises in the last two years. However, "companies can no longer get away with paltry salary increases for their technology staffs based on the demand we are seeing for talent," says Dice's Tom Silver.