MIT startup Duality Technologies was named one of the 10 most innovative data science companies of 2020 by Fast Company. “Duality is poised to create what could be a new gold standard for data analytics that keeps data private while still allowing businesses to glean essential insights from it.”
Wall Street Journal reporter Katie Camero spotlights the work of several MIT researchers who are developing new materials and technologies aimed at improving athletic apparel and equipment. “We’ll see more performance gear that passively adapts to environmental conditions while keeping people comfortable,” says Prof. Anette “Peko” Hosoi.
MIT researchers have developed a new computer model that “offers a path for building AI systems that can learn why things happen,” reports Will Knight for Wired. The experiment was developed “to push beyond just pattern recognition,” explains Prof. Joshua Tenenbaum.
STAT reporter Sharon Begley writes that a study by MIT researchers demonstrates the effecrtiveness of hand washing in curbing the spread of disease. “Big airports around the world, such as London Heathrow, see thousands of people in a day,” explains postdoc Christos Nicolaides. “Small tasks like hand washing can affect the global spread of the virus.”
Writing for The Wall Street Journal, Prof. Stuart Madnick argues that frequently changing passwords does not help protect systems from hackers. “Increasing cybersecurity is an important goal for every organization and every employee,” writes Madnick. “But we need to carefully examine the impact of recommended security measures, and be sure that the benefits indeed exceed the costs.”
Writing for Science, Marcia McNutt highlights the life and work of Frank Press, an MIT Corporation life member emeritus who served as the chair of the MIT Department of Geology and Geophysics, advised four U.S. presidents and led the National Academy of Sciences. McNutt writes that, “no scientist had more impact on the American science-policy interface in the late 20th century.”
The Boston Globe spotlights the MIT Museum’s Girls Day, which “celebrates female innovators in the STEM fields, and includes hands-on activities. The program theme, All Eyes on Science, looks at how objects such as gamma-ray telescopes and Polaroid cameras convert data into useful and sometimes beautiful visuals.”
Prof. Dennis Whyte speaks with Chris Gloninger of NBC Boston about how fusion energy could be used to power energy grids and could help aid the transition to renewable energy. “Fusion is the power source of the universe,” explains Whyte “because fusion powers stars.”
Prof. Bruce Walker writes for The Boston Globe about how scientists and clinicians from MIT, Harvard and other institutions are forming a new consortium aimed developing “diagnostic tools, treatments, and vaccines with utmost urgency for this new coronavirus epidemic.”
Vice reporter David Gilbert writes that a new study by MIT researchers shows that efforts to mark inaccurate news stories as questionable on Facebook had the unintended effect of making unmarked articles appear accurate, even if they were not. The researchers found that employing “more fact-checkers so that all news content posted to Facebook is checked” could alleviate the problem.
Boston Globe reporter Michael Silverman spotlights the origins and evolution of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, which evolved from a course offered at Sloan to a “wildly successful can’t-miss sports industry gathering.”
New York Times contributor Alex Stone highlights research by Profs. Catherine Tucker and Duncan Simester analyzing the retail, real estate and political habits of consumers dubbed “harbingers of failure.” Tucker explains that, “I think what we’re picking up on is that there are just some people who, for whatever reason, have consistently nonmajority tastes.”
Fast Company reporter Mark Wilson spotlights a new study co-authored by Prof. David Rand that finds tagging some stories as false on social media platforms makes readers more willing to believe other stories and share them with friends. “When you start putting warning labels on some things, it makes everything else seem more credible,” says Rand.
Students from MIT and other institutions have observed a black hole flare using the Regolith X-Ray Imaging Spectrometer (REXIS), reports Jennifer Leman for Popular Mechanics. “Detecting this X-ray burst is a proud moment for the REXIS team,” explains graduate student Madeline Lambert. “It means our instrument is performing as expected and to the level required of NASA science instruments.”
Senior lecturer John Parsons speaks with Marketplace host David Brancaccio about a study showing that trading energy resources with Quebec could help parts of New England and New York transition away from carbon technologies.