This CNN video highlights the new programmable backpack unveiled during the grand opening of the AFFOA headquarters in Cambridge. MIT alumnus Tairan Wang, COO of AFFOA, explains that the backpack is made with a programmable fabric that allows users to share information. The technology addresses how people initially connect, Wang explains.
MIT researchers have developed a computer chip that uses beams of light to mimic neurons, reports Matthew Hutson for Science. Hutson explains that, “such ‘optical neural networks’ could make any application of so-called deep learning—from virtual assistants to language translators—many times faster and more efficient.”
The launch of the AFFOA headquarters featured demos of two new smart fabrics, including a programmable backpack and fabric that uses LED lights to stream information to the wearer, writes Donna Goodison for the Boston Herald. Prof. Yoel Fink, AFFOA’s CEO, explains that, “the way to changing what fabrics are involves changing what fibers are.”
In a Guardian article about how technology can be used to help refugees, Tazeen Dhunna Ahmad highlights MIT’s Refugee ACTion Hub (ReACT). ReACT is aimed at finding, “digital learning opportunities for a lost generation of children who, as a result of forced displacement, are losing their education.”
A group of teenage girls from Los Angeles will present a solar powered tent designed to help combat homelessness during Lemelson-MIT’s EurekaFest, writes Sophie Gallagher for HuffPost. The tent comes equipped with “button-powered lights, two USB ports, a micro-USB port, and even plans for a sanitizing UVC light on a countdown timer,” explains Gallagher.
Boston Globe reporter Hiawatha Bray writes that at the launch of the AFFOA headquarters, researchers unveiled smart fabrics that can send messages, tune in audio signals and more. Bray writes that Prof. Yoel Fink, CEO of AFFOA, explained that “because the new fibers can process data like a computer…engineers will be able to develop an endless array of ways to use it.”
Prof. Phillip Sharp speaks with WBUR’s Asma Khalid about how the Greater Boston area became a hub for the biotech industry. "I think one of the transformative parts of what the next 20 years will hold is engineering with medicine and biotech," Sharp explains, adding that he thinks the Greater Boston area is “ahead of that story."
Zeninjor Enwemeka reports for WBUR on the opening of the Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) headquarters, during which the center’s first fabric products were unveiled. Enwemeka explains the, “big idea here is to develop fabrics that provide services. The folks at AFFOA think fabrics are the next software.”
Graduate student Shriya Srinivasan speaks with Ira Flatow of PRI’s Science Friday about the surgical technique she and her colleagues developed to make prosthetic limbs feel more natural. Srinivasan explains that the technique allows patients to have, “finer prosthetic control — and be able to modulate position, velocity, and stiffness of prosthetic devices, which is a significant improvement to the clinical standard.”
During a panel discussion during the Koch Institute’s 16th Annual Cancer Research Symposium, participants discussed how the convergence of biology and engineering could accelerate treatments for cancer and other diseases, writes Robert Weisman for the Boston Globe. “To my mind, this is the 21st century’s innovation story,” said President Emerita Susan Hockfield.
UPI reporter Brooks Hays writes about MIT spinout Open Water Power, which developed a battery that can be powered by seawater. Hays writes that the, “technology promises to extend the range and capabilities of unpiloted underwater vehicles, or UUVs.”
Jesse Lichtenstein writes for The New York Times about Jonny Sun, a PhD candidate in DUSP, whose humorous Twitter feed, “jomny sun,” has become increasingly popular for offering “comfort, whimsy and an alternative to the rage/panic/schadenfreude/political flame-warring of much online discourse.” “Twitter is often thought of as a shallow, superficial thing,” said Sun, but “there’s a lot of honest pathos and humanity in it.”
Graduate student Erik Duhaime writes for Forbes about his research with Prof. Evan Apfelbaum on political polarization over taxes. Duhaime and Apfelbaum found that, “giving people personalized taxpayer receipts significantly reduced polarization over taxes, even if it didn’t make everyone suddenly thrilled about paying them.”
Deniz Cam of Forbes highlights MIT graduate Mubarik Mohamoud in an article about students from the Abaarso School in Somaliland, which is aimed at educating the country’s next generation of leaders. After a six-month internship, Mohamoud will return to MIT to pursue a master’s degree in computer science.
During a panel discussion held during Times Higher Education’s (THE) World Reputation Forum, Provost Martin Schmidt spoke about the need for universities to relay the value and importance of their work to the public, writes Jon Marcus for THE. “It’s on us to basically frame that in a way that is comprehensible and digestible,” Schmidt explained.