Researchers at MIT’s Center for Advanced Virtuality have created a deepfake video of President Richard Nixon discussing a failed moon landing. “[The video is] meant to serve as a warning of the coming wave of impressively realistic deepfake false videos about to hit us that use A.I. to convincingly reproduce the appearance and sound of real people,” write Aaron Pressman and David Z. Morris for Fortune.
In an Op-Ed for the Los Angeles Times, Prof. Sinan Aral writes about the need for a coordinated response to the pandemic across state lines. “When a state reopens while its peer state remains closed, travel spikes from the closed state into the open state,” notes Aral. “Only when both states adopt similar shelter-in-place policies does travel between the states diminish.”
Using a scanning electron microscope, MIT researchers observed how hair produces tiny chips in steel razor blades, reports Nell Greenfieldboyce for NPR. "For me, personally, it was both a scientific curiosity, of 'What's going on?' and also aiming to solve an important engineering problem," says Prof. C. Cem Tasan.
By observing and recording the cutting process, MIT researchers have found that human hairs chip razor blades during the shaving process, reports Leah Crane for New Scientist. “We expected that the failure of these materials should just be wear,” says Prof. C. Cem Tasan. “But this is not the case: the process of chipping is much faster.”
Wired reporter Eric Niiler writes that a new study by MIT researchers sheds light on why razor blades get dull so quickly. “We want to design new materials that are better and go longer,” says Prof. C. Cem Tasan. “This problem of the blade is an excellent example. We are so used to it, you don’t think about it. You use the razor for a few weeks and then move on.”
WHDH spotlights MIT startup E25Bio, which is developing a new rapid test to diagnose Covid-19. The test being developed by E25Bio is a paper strip that can deliver test results in 15 minutes, WHDH explains.
A new study by MIT researchers finds that the inferior temporal cortex region of the brain was repurposed to recognize letters and words, providing humans the ability to read, reports Brooks Hays for UPI.
Forbes contributor Elizabeth Fernandez writes that a study co-authored by MIT researchers shows quantum entanglement could give blackjack players a slight edge. Fernandez adds that the research shows how, “entangled systems can show up in our macroscopic, everyday lives.”
Asst. Prof. Lisa Piccirillo speaks with Chelsea Whyte at New Scientist about what led her to a career in math and how she solved the decades-old Conway knot problem. “In maths, 100 per cent of the days, basically you won’t solve anything,” said Piccirillo. “So you have to learn to be okay with that and still enjoy what you’re doing.”
Newsweek reporter Meghan Roos writes that a study co-authored by Prof. Victor Chernozhukov finds a nationwide mask mandate in the U.S. could have reduced Covid-19 deaths by 40% among workers who regularly interact with the public. The researchers found “a national mask mandate for workers could have prevented between 17,000 and 55,000 deaths between the start of April and the start of June.”
CNN reporter Kami Phillips spotlights Prof. Sara Seager’s new book, “The Smallest Lights in the Universe.” Phillips notes, “This moving memoir is a tear-jerking story of grief, love, loss and new beginnings that will leave you comforted, hopeful and optimistic all at the same time.”
Fast Company reporter Amy Farley spotlights graduate student Joy Buolamwini and her work battling bias in artificial intelligence systems, noting that “when it comes to AI injustices, her voice resonates.” Buolamwini emphasizes that “we have a voice and a choice in the kind of future we have.”
A new analysis by researchers from MIT’s Election Data and Science Lab and CBS News finds rejection rates of absentee and mail-in ballots ranged from under 1% to nearly 2% during primary elections held during the pandemic.
President L. Rafael Reif joins Alan Alda on his podcast “Clear + Vivid” to discuss the need for increased American investment in fundamental research and development.
Prof. Richard J. Samuels reviews “Unconditional: The Japanese Surrender in World War II” by Marc Gallicchio for The New York Times. “’Unconditional’ is a sharp reminder of the power, imperfection and politicization of historical narrative,” writes Samuels, “and of the way debates can continue long after history’s witnesses have left the stage.”