Augmental, a startup co-founded by MIT graduates, has developed a Bluetooth mouthpiece that makes it easier for individuals with mobility issues to use computers, reports WHDH. “People with severe hand impairment are isolated in this world and it’s just not fair,” says co-founder Tomás Vega SM ‘19. “So, our interface seeks to help those people and enable them to access and to share with the world.”
Boston.com reporter Ross Cristantiello spotlights a new study by MIT researchers that examines the financial impact of rising sea levels on the MBTA. The researchers noted that their results suggest that “absent adaptation schemes, particularly at tunnel ingress locations, coastal flood risk will continue to accelerate, potentially resulting in permanent inundation of underground and low-lying sections of the transit system.”
Prof. Zeynep Ton established the “Good Jobs Institute” to improve the quality of frontline jobs, reports Adrian Wooldridge for Bloomberg.
Research scientist Ana Jaklenec spoke with Jonathan Grinstein at Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News about a new microneedle patch printer she and her colleagues have developed that may one day enable on-demand vaccine manufacturing. “The idea was that you could, in an emergency situation, deploy some of these printers and locally vaccinate the population to prevent the global spread of infection,” says Jaklenec.
Researchers from MIT and elsewhere have found that experienced workers might be more impacted by ChatGPT, reports Mack DeGeurin for Gizmodo. “Customer support agents using a generative AI conversation assistant in a new study saw a 14% uptick in productivity compared to others who didn’t use the tool,” writes DeGeurin.
Writing for The Hill, Prof. David Rand and research affiliate Ben Tappin examine their recent study that finds “Americans are more receptive to information that challenges their party leader’s position than we — and most others — had previously thought.” Rand and Tappin emphasize that “our identities, motivations and values are not (yet) reducible to party loyalty, and arguments and evidence can still change people’s minds — even if only a little bit at a time.”
Steven Simon, a fellow with MIT’s Center for International Studies, and Jonathan Stevenson of the International Institute for Strategic Studies write for Politico about how the 2024 election could lead to political violence and civil breakdown. “Despite all that U.S. national security and law enforcement officials have learned since Jan. 6, the country is still not prepared for a far-right revolt,” write Simon and Stevenson.
Writing for NBC Boston, Senior Lecturer Tara Swart shares various techniques that could help improve memory skills. “What separates people with excellent memory skills apart from those who struggle is that they have both a strong working memory (retaining information immediately after learning it) and long-term memory (recalling information more than a day after memorizing it,” writes Swart.
Writing for Science, the MIT China Strategy Group explores how U.S. universities can manage the pressures posed by rising geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China, outlining the approach they developed to “help MIT advance knowledge and the needs of the United States and the world -- without damaging U.S. interests in national security or the economy, without endangering human rights, and in ways consistent with the core values of our institution.”
Writing for Forbes, senior lecturer Bill Fischer highlights lessons from the late pianist Ahmad Jamal on leadership and communication. “As a result, there are leadership lessons to be learned from the great jazz-masters, and in the case of delivering a message, or sharing ideas, Ahmad Jamal’s lessons are well-worth paying attention to,” writes Fischer.
Forbes reporter Matt Symonds spotlights Prof. Sanjay Sarma’s professional and academic career as he prepares to begin his role as President, CEO and Dean of Asia School of Business. At MIT, Sarma “conceived and then led the launch of the MicroMasters, a new type of credential that allows working professionals to pursue master’s-level courses online,” writes Symonds.
Researchers from the Future of Data Initiative at MIT have published a white paper examining “how to design more accountable and traceable financial data systems,” reports Ben Schreckinger for Politico. Senior research scientist Daniel Weitzner says information accountability “means that uses of personal data should be visible to data subjects. And that the companies or government who use personal data should be accountable for misuse.”
Prof. Christopher Knittel speaks with Radio Boston host Tiziana Dearing about how high electric bills are impacting efforts to address climate change. The current artificial inflation of the volumetric rate “makes electrification hard, it makes it more expensive,” notes Knittel. “As we, as a Commonwealth, want to move toward electrification, it’s a big headwind that is going to push against our climate goals,” says Knittel.
New York Times reporter John Markoff spotlights Ivan Sutherland PhD ’63 and his contributions to the development of modern computing. Markoff notes that while working on his PhD thesis at MIT, Sutherland “created Sketchpad on a Lincoln TX-2 computer and started a revolution in computer graphics.”
Joseph Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab, writes for Forbes about how a person’s zip code can impact their retirement planning. “Most of us think where we’ll live in retirement is answered by where we live now,” writes Coughlin. “That is, we choose to age in place and stay put. However, as we age, our needs, desires, health conditions, social connections, and more will change. This can often create a disconnect between what works now and what will work later on.”