Boston Globe reporter Carolyn Johnson writes about MIT Professor Richard Binzel’s proposal that asteroids should be the next destination for space travel. “It’s the destination that’s important, not the object,” says Binzel. “Certainly, some objects will be more interesting than others, but the fundamental goal is to have an interplanetary test flight.”
The Washington Post’s Editorial Board writes about the importance of MIT’s survey examining sexual misconduct. “By undertaking such a detailed fact-finding mission — and publishing the results — MIT has signaled that it is serious about finding solutions, and it offered a model that other institutions would do well to emulate.”
Pilita Clark of the Financial Times writes about the battery developed by Dr. Qichao Hu and Professor Donald Sadoway that can extend the driving range and lower the cost of an electric car. The new battery can store “twice as much energy as conventional [battery] cells,” Clark reports.
Writing for The New York Times, Richard Friedman highlights how MIT researchers examined brain activity in adults with A.D.H.D. They found that “adults who had had A.D.H.D as children but no longer had it as adults had a restoration of the normal synchrony pattern, so their brains looked just like those of people who had never had it.”
The Tech calls on students to take strong action to combat sexual assault, following the results of a survey examining sexual misconduct at MIT. “To quote President Reif, sexual assault ‘has no place here’,” writes The Tech. “But if the entire effort is to have a chance at success, students cannot opt out of this conversation — and that’s on us.”
TIME reporter Michael D. Lemonick writes about Professor Richard Binzel’s commentary in Nature that proposes an alternative to NASA’s current plans to capture and examine a small asteroid. Binzel suggests that scientists identify Nearth-Earth asteroids, and then send astronauts out to match their orbit and examine the asteroids.
Alexandre Stipanovich writes for The Huffington Post about Professor Earl Miller’s research into understanding consciousness. "Some parts of consciousness are very subjective, but the most objective thing about conscious thoughts is that it is a limited capacity,” explains Miller.
The Dalai Lama will speak at MIT Friday, reports Philip Marcelo for the Associated Press. The Dalai Lama will participate in panel discussions focused on how individual actions can help address global warming, food security and other global challenges.
Meera Senthilingam writes for CNN about “Underworlds,” a new project aimed at collecting information about microbes in a city’s sewers and predicting epidemics. "We will be able to monitor the microbiome individually, and tell you about your body," says Professor Carlo Ratti, "to monitor and detect this before you fall sick."
Writing for The Boston Globe, MIT President L. Rafael Reif reflects on the life and legacy of long-time Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. “I came to see him as a natural leader, always able to attract people who could make a difference in causes that mattered,” writes Reif.
Amina Khan writes for The Los Angeles Times about Professor Richard Binzel’s opposition to NASA’s Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM). According to Binzel, the Obama administration “should abandon the ARM mission concept and make an asteroid survey its top priority to provide a basis for future crewed missions."
Carey Goldberg of WBUR speaks with Professor Emery Brown about an implantable chip that could help those with PTSD or depression. “We’re moving out of the box,” says Brown. “We’re not just saying, ‘Let’s rely on the drugs’ anymore.”
WBUR reporter Erin Trahan writes about ListenTree, a project created by MIT graduate students Edwina Portocarrero and Gershon Dublon. The tree “conducts sound vibration from a hidden, remote device. Passersby must press their ears to any part of the trunk or branches to hear the broadcast by way of bone conduction.”
Salon reporter Allegra Kirkland reports on a study co-authored by MIT Professor Chris Warshaw that examined the political leanings of cities across America. The researchers found that “ideology has tangible effects on policy at the municipal level,” Kirkland writes.
Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, writes about MIT bioengineer Dr. Aaron Meyer, a recipient of the NIH Director’s Early Independence Awards. The award will fund Meyer's chemotherapy resistance research into identifying “better targets for future cancer therapies.”