MIT alumnus Michael Sorkin, “a fiery champion of social justice and sustainability in architecture and urban planning, who emerged as one of his profession’s most incisive public intellectuals over a multifaceted career as a critic, author, teacher and designer,” died on March 26, reports Harrison Smith for The Washington Post.
Boston Globe correspondent Meghan Sorensen spotlights the work of Ellen Swallow Richards, the first woman admitted to MIT. Sorensen notes that Richards was “a pioneer in the field of sanitary engineering and a founder of home economics in the United States.”
Reuters reporters Ann Saphir and Jeff Mason write that a new study by Prof. Emil Verner finds that during the 1918 flu epidemic cities that responded aggressively had fewer deaths and emerged from the pandemic with stronger economic growth. “One can do those types of quite gruesome calculations” says Verner. But evidence suggests “that in some sense, that’s a false tradeoff.”
Popular Mechanics reporter Courney Linder writes that MIT researchers are developing an alternative design for an emergency ventilator using Ambu resuscitation bags found in hospitals. “MIT is adapting the Ambu bags by creating a mechanism that can automate the squeezing and releasing motions,” Linder explains.
Quartz reporter John Detrixhe writes that a new study co-authored by Prof. Emil Verner finds that “aggressive social distancing measures, while extremely disruptive to commerce in the near term, can result in faster economic growth when the disease subsides.”
New York Times reporter Joseph Giovanni memorializes the life and work of MIT alumnus Michael Sorkin. Sorkin was “one of architecture’s most outspoken public intellectuals, a polymath whose prodigious output of essays, lectures and designs, all promoting social justice, established him as the political conscience in the field.”
Forbes contributor Eva Amsen writes that MIT researchers have transformed the biochemical properties of proteins into music, and then used those musical compositions to create new proteins. By converting protein structures into music, the researchers “have created a library of music fragments that directly correspond to the kind of protein structures that you would find in real, existing proteins.”
Prof. Sherry Turkle speaks with NBC News about how the Covid-19 pandemic has inspired people around the world to use the Internet in new and creative ways to connect. "Every group I'm in is trying to reinvent itself in an online form," says Turkle. "You see people trying to find something of themselves that they can use as the medium to express themselves."
A new paper co-authored by Prof. Emil Verner finds that public health measures like social distancing aimed at curbing the spread of Covid-19 may be better for economic growth than laxer measures, reports Max Reyes for Bloomberg. The researchers found that “cities that implemented more rapid and forceful non-pharmaceutical health interventions do not experience worse downturns.”
MIT researchers have launched a mobile phone app aimed at tracking the spread of Covid-19, reports Douglas Belkin and Kirsten Grind for The Wall Street Journal. “Stopping epidemics is a game of numbers. It’s not about getting everybody or nobody (quarantined),” explains Prof. Ramesh Raskar. “The models show that even at 10% there will be gains.”
Profs. Simon Johnson and Retsef Levi write for The Boston Globe about how they are developing risk analytics tools to help government officials determine the Covid-19 risk for specific communities. “There’s more we can and should do to focus on high-risk patients and high-risk clusters,” they write. “It’s essential we pursue these strategies immediately to avoid choosing between collapsing our economy or our health care system.”
Guardian reporter Oliver Wainwright writes that Prof. Carlo Ratti is developing a prototype for transforming shipping containers into portable pods that could be used to expand a hospital’s intensive care space for Covid-19 patients. “The key thing is the ease with which you can move these pods around,” says Ratti. “The advantage of the shipping container is that the infrastructure for moving them already exists.”
Boston Herald reporter Stefan Geller writes that MIT researchers are working on developing a low-cost ventilator to help hospitals meet the growing demand caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The team is developing a “mechanically operated bag-valve resuscitator, which is an inexpensive alternative to a ventilator that currently only works by being hand-operated.”
MIT researchers have found that repurposing a drug used to treat blood clots in heart attack and stroke patients could potentially help those suffering respiratory distress due to Covid-19, reports CBS Boston.
Fast Company reporter Ruth Reader writes about the Covid-19 Policy Alliance, a group of MIT experts working on developing tools to help public officials understand and manage Covid-19 outbreaks across the country. I think there’s some very dark days ahead, and in those dark days state and local officials will want to know where are those vulnerable people,” explains Prof. Simon Johnson.