MIT researchers introduce generative AI for databases
This new tool offers an easier way for people to analyze complex tabular data.
Department
Brain and Cognitive Sciences
What is language for?
Drawing on evidence from neurobiology, cognitive science, and corpus linguistics, MIT researchers make the case that language is a tool for communication, not for thought.
“UnrulyArt” creates joy and engagement, regardless of ability
Researchers and staff from MIT, including from the Simons Center for the Social Brain, collaborated with schoolchildren with special needs to create art, have fun, and learn from each other.
Microscope system sharpens scientists’ view of neural circuit connections
A newly described technology improves the clarity and speed of using two-photon microscopy to image synapses in the living brain.
Technologies enable 3D imaging of whole human brain hemispheres at subcellular resolution
Three innovations by an MIT-based team enable high-resolution, high-throughput imaging of human brain tissue at a full range of scales, and mapping connectivity of neurons at single-cell resolution.
With programmable pixels, novel sensor improves imaging of neural activity
New camera chip design allows for optimizing each pixel’s timing to maximize signal-to-noise ratio when tracking real-time visual indicator of neural voltage.
Symposium highlights scale of mental health crisis and novel methods of diagnosis and treatment
Co-hosted by the McGovern Institute, MIT Open Learning, and others, the symposium stressed emerging technologies in advancing understanding of mental health and neurological conditions.
Just thinking about a location activates mental maps in the brain
MIT neuroscientists have found that the brain uses the same cognitive representations whether navigating through space physically or mentally.
Nancy Kanwisher, Robert Langer, and Sara Seager named Kavli Prize Laureates
MIT scientists honored in each of the three Kavli Prize categories: neuroscience, nanoscience, and astrophysics, respectively.
Study models how ketamine’s molecular action leads to its effects on the brain
New research addresses a gap in understanding how ketamine’s impact on individual neurons leads to pervasive and profound changes in brain network function.
Ten with MIT connections win 2024 Hertz Foundation Fellowships
The fellowships provide five years of funding to doctoral students in applied science, engineering, and mathematics who have “the extraordinary creativity and principled leadership necessary to tackle problems others can’t solve.”
A technique for more effective multipurpose robots
With generative AI models, researchers combined robotics data from different sources to help robots learn better.
Understanding why autism symptoms sometimes improve amid fever
With support from The Marcus Foundation, an MIT neuroscientist and a Harvard Medical School immunologist will study the “fever effect” in an effort to devise therapies that mimic its beneficial effects.
Study explains why the brain can robustly recognize images, even without color
The findings also reveal why identifying objects in black-and-white images is more difficult for individuals who were born blind and had their sight restored.
Q&A: A graduating student looks back on his MIT experience
Christopher Wang, a senior in EECS, shares his favorite study spaces, how he discovered theater at the Institute, and what he'll miss most.