MIT researchers have developed a new smart diaper that can send caregivers a message when it detects moisture, reports Caroline Enos for The Boston Globe. “A small moisture sensor in the diaper contains a radio frequency identification tag, which transmits a radio signal to a nearby receiver when the diaper becomes wet,” Enos writes.
Graduate student Clara Park speaks with Ira Flatow of Science Friday about her work developing a bionic heart that could be used to test cardiac devices. Park explains that she and her colleagues fused a real heart “with robotic muscles to mimic the realistic motions and anatomy of the heart.”
Atlantic reporter Conor Friedersdorf highlights a new study by MIT researchers that shows handwashing at airports could help reduce the spread of disease.
Verge reporter Thomas Ricker writes that MIT researchers have developed a new RFID sensor that could be used to detect moisture in diapers and send an alert to caregivers. “The sensor can be manufactured for less than 2 cents, making it suitable for disposable diapers without adding bulk,” Ricker explains.
Artist Christine Sun Kim speaks with Boston Globe reporter Diti Kohli about her exhibit at the MIT List Visual Arts Center and her experiencing signing the national anthem at the Super Bowl. For visitors to her exhibit, Kim says she hopes her work “sits in the back of their mind, and stays with them in terms of respecting our deafness and sign language.”
In a segment for PRI’s The World, Lucy Martirosyan spotlights the work of artist Christine Sun Kim, who has a new exhibit at the MIT List Visual Arts Center and performed the national anthem in American Sign Language during this year’s Super Bowl. “I always find that the best way to communicate with a wider audience who [is] not deaf is to use a format that people can easily understand,” Kim said.
Forbes reporter Bruce Dorminey explores how MIT researchers have captured new images of the Pallas asteroid that “reveal a tiny world that is so pockmarked with craters that it resembles a high-end golf ball, maybe a Titleist or a Top-Flite.”
MIT researchers have found that an internet voting app has security flaws that could make it vulnerable to hackers, reports Anthony Izaguire for the AP. “In order to maintain trust in our elections system, we must assure that voting systems meet the high technical and operation security standards before they are put in the field,” explains principal research scientist Daniel Weitzner.
Writing for Motherboard, Kim Zetter explores a new study by MIT researchers that uncovers security flaws in a mobile voting app that was used in West Virginia and a number of other states. “It’s really impressive that they were able to find such a pervasive set of vulnerabilities,” says Prof. Matt Blaze of Georgetown Law School.
TechCrunch reporter Brian Heater writes that CSAIL researchers have developed a new material that could help bring a sense of touch to robotic arms. “The usually rigid material was reconfigured into a ‘kirigami’ configuration, laser cut and reassembled into chain-linked rows so it can be stretched and flexed to adhere to the shape of the robot and move with it,” explains Heater.
Smithsonian reporter Katherine J. Wu writes that astronomers from MIT have captured a series of photographs of the Pallas asteroid that could shed light on the asteroid’s turbulent history. Wu notes that the findings “reveal Pallas as the most cratered object in the asteroid belt—a title it’s almost certainly earned by bashing into some of its neighbors.”
Verge reporter Russell Brandom writes that a team of MIT researchers has found that the Voatz mobile voting application is vulnerable to outside attacks. “After reverse-engineering Voatz’s Android app, the researchers concluded that an attacker who compromised a voter’s phone would able to observe, suppress, and alter votes nearly at will,” writes Brandom.
Wired reporter Lily Hay Newman writes about a new report by MIT researchers that identifies security vulnerabilities in a mobile voting application. Newman notes that the “MIT research speaks to the pressing need for transparent, auditable voting systems—a point researchers have also strenuously made about existing, in-person voting machines.”
Prof. Alan Lightman speaks with New York Times reporter Dennis Overbye about what inspired him to pursue his interest in writing, alongside his work as a physicist. “I love physics, but what was even more important to me was leading a creative life,” says Lightman. “And I knew that writers could continue doing their best work later in life.”
Fast Company reporter Mark Sullivan spotlights a new study by MIT researchers that provides evidence that a popular voting app could allow hackers to alter, stop or expose how users have voted.