In an article for The Hill, Prof. Phillip Sharp writes about the need for increased funding for cancer research. “Our arsenal against cancer is growing, and more discoveries and therapies are in the pipeline—but these will only be realized if we sustain our efforts,” Sharp writes.
In an article for U.S News & World Report, Alan Mozes writes that MIT researchers have developed a new imaging technique that lights up cancer cells. The technique may “eventually help surgeons remove all of a cancer the first time.”
Researchers from MIT, Duke University Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital have developed a technique for lighting up cancer cells, reports Alice Park for TIME. The technique could “help doctors to target radiation therapy to just the right parts of a tumor to kill remaining cancer cells.”
MIT researchers have developed a microscope that can generate close to real-time images on nanoscale processes, reports Kevin Hartnett for The Boston Globe. The microscope allows “microscopic worlds that had appeared static suddenly leap into motion,” Hartnett explains.
Boston.com reporter Eric Levenson writes that MIT researchers have developed a polymer material capable of storing solar energy and releasing it later as heat. The “polymer being developed would store the sun’s rays in a chemical reaction that is then converted into heat,” explains Levenson.
MIT researchers have detected the largest galaxy cluster that amassed in the early universe, writes Laura Crimaldi for The Boston Globe. “It’s the most massive cluster to assemble in the first 4 billion years of the universe,” explains Prof. Michael McDonald. “It’s sort of like the first civilization to pop up.”
In an article for TIME, Shane Parrish writes about and highlights excerpts from Prof. Alan Lightman’s book, “The Accidental Universe: The World You Thought You Knew.” Parrish writes that “‘The Accidental Universe’ is an amazing read, balancing the laws of nature and first principles with a philosophical exploration of the world around us.”
Prof. Tod Machover writes about the work of French composer Pierre Boulez, who died January 5, in an article for The Wall Street Journal. “[Boulez] has left a legacy as a bold fighter for the seriousness, sophistication and transformative power of music at a moment when we have often forgotten how…to really listen,” writes Machover.
A Wall Street Journal opinion piece highlights a study by MIT and Dartmouth researchers that finds that a rule allowing airlines to be fined for delays has increased delays for passengers. “While the rule has been ‘highly effective in reducing the frequency of occurrence of long tarmac times,’ the study found that it has also significantly increased flight cancellations.”
A study by researchers from MIT and Dartmouth finds that new regulations meant to reduce passenger delays on flights have instead increased them, reports Christopher Elliott for Fortune. “Each minute of time saved waiting on the tarmac translates into roughly three minutes of total passenger delay, according to the research,” Elliott explains.
A number of MIT students, researchers and alumni have been named to Forbes’ annual “30 Under 30” list, which honors rising stars in 20 different sectors.
Boston Magazine reporter Madeline Bilis writes about the Reality Editor, an application developed by researchers from the MIT Media Lab. “Users can ‘edit reality’ by drawing virtual lines to and from objects with their smartphone’s camera to alter their uses and capabilities,” Bilis explains.
MIT computer scientists have developed a program that can predict how objects will move with the same accuracy as humans, reports Mary Beth Griggs for Popular Science. The researchers hope to eventually be able to program the system to “make predictions in the natural world even faster than we can.”
Deepa Seetharaman writes for The Wall Street Journal about Prof. Sinan Aral’s research on the popularity of social media messaging applications. Aral found that people are three times more likely to try an app if invited by private message and 17 percent more likely to repeatedly use the application.
In a New York Times article about automation and employment, John Markoff highlights the work of several MIT researchers. A new study by Prof. Frank Levy that examines how automation could impact lawyers finds that “for now, even the most advanced A.I. technology would at best make only modest inroads into the legal profession.”