Faster-than-Fast Fourier transform

CanEHdian writes: MIT news reports on research done resulting in a Faster-than-fast Fourier Transform algorithm, the Nearly Optimal Sparse Fourier Transform, which also has practical applications:

At the Association for Computing Machinery's Symposium on Discrete Algorithms (SODA) this week, a group of MIT researchers will present a new algorithm that, in a large range of practically important cases, improves on the fast Fourier transform. Under some circumstances, the improvement can be dramatic — a tenfold increase in speed. The new algorithm could be particularly useful for image compression, enabling, say, smartphones to wirelessly transmit large video files without draining their batteries or consuming their monthly bandwidth allotments.

Paper will be available on arXiv.