Writing for the Financial Times, Channing Arndt highlights a study co-authored by MIT researchers that finds climate mitigation efforts will not hamper economic growth in developing countries. “If poorer countries were exempted for a period of time from having to curb emissions, not only would climate change still be constrained, but most poorer countries would be likely to reap net economic benefits,” writes Arndt.
UPI reporter Brooks Hays writes that MIT researchers has developed a new test to verify the destruction of nuclear weapons. “The test can identify the specific isotope of the target element, which could allow inspectors to confirm the identity of a warhead before it's disassembled,” writes Hays.
Speaking with WBUR's Carrie Jung, Prof. Catherine Drennan shares how the experience of growing up with dyslexia has shaped her research and helped her better connect with her graduate students. "I know how to give them an environment where they can really show what they're capable of doing," she says.
In a letter to The Boston Globe, Tim Brothers, observatory manager of the MIT Wallace Astrophysical Observatory, argues for the importance of reducing light pollution. “Preserving the night sky is about more than the stars: It protects our fragile ecosystem, saves taxpayer dollars, and brings our carbon reduction goals much closer to reality,” writes Brothers.
Writing for The New York Times, Alexander Agadjanian of the MIT Election Lab examines the potential political implications of the Democratic presidential candidates embracing more progressive policies. In a recent survey, Agadjanian found that the “embrace of progressivism…repels independents, with a negative effect that is stronger and clearer than the signs of enthusiasm generated among Democrats.”
Writing for The New York Times, Alexander Agadjanian of the MIT Election Lab examines the potential political implications of the Democratic presidential candidates embracing more progressive policies. In a recent survey, Agadjanian found that the “embrace of progressivism…repels independents, with a negative effect that is stronger and clearer than the signs of enthusiasm generated among Democrats.”
Writing for The Boston Globe, Prof. Richard Samuels examines Japan’s current approach towards foreign policy and national security. “Despite its ambitious and enhanced capabilities,” writes Samuels, “Tokyo still has its hands full in resisting or deterring foreign provocations — including from Washington.”
MIT alumna Ally Huang speaks with WCVB-TV’s Mike Wankum about BioBits, educational biology kits developed in the lab of Prof. James Collins that allow students hands-on experience experimenting with DNA. “Biobits was created to show the students visually how DNA goes to RNA goes to protein, what DNA is, what protein is,” Huang explains.
A new book co-authored by Prof. Daron Acemoglu examines how countries become “prosperous, stable, well-governed, law-abiding, democratic and free societies.” “Their simple answer is: it is hard,” writes Martin Wolf for the Financial Times. “Their deep answer is: ‘Liberty originates from a delicate balance of power between state and society.’”
MIT researchers have identified a brain circuit that suppresses distracting information and in doing so, “started to take baby steps toward a better understanding of how body and mind — through automatic sensory experiences, physical movements and higher-level consciousness — are deeply and inextricably intertwined,” writes Jordana Cepelewicz for Quanta Magazine.
Forbes contributor Geri Stengel writes about how MIT alumna Laurel Taylor founded a company aimed at helping students and their parents with student debt “by assisting them in consolidating the management of their loans and lowering the interest rates so they could get out of debt faster.”
TechCrunch reporter Jonathan Shieber spotlights MIT startup VideaHealth, which is developing machine learning technology aimed at creating a standard of care across dental practices. VideaHealth CEO and MIT alumnus Florian Hillen explains that by applying AI technologies to dentistry, “we support the dentist to detect diseases more reliably, more accurately, and earlier.”
Boston Globe reporter Peter Keough spotlights “Augmented,” a new documentary that explores Prof. Hugh Herr’s work “to develop bionic prosthetic limbs that would be available for all who need them.”
Writing for Wired, research scientist Stephanie Thien Hang Nguyen argues that a push to regulate design features on websites could have unintended consequences. “For the sake of users, politicians, researchers, and technology companies alike must remember that design cannot be reduced to binary categorizations of dark or light—there is nuance,” Nguyen notes.
Prof. Josh Tenenbaum has been selected as the recipient of a MacArthur Foundation fellowship, reports Danny McDonald for The Boston Globe. The MacArthur Foundation noted that Tenenbaum is one of the “first to develop and apply probabilistic and statistical modeling to the studying of human learning, reasoning, and perception.”