Steve Annear writes for Boston Magazine about FOLD, a platform created by Media Lab researchers Kevin Hu and Alexis Hope designed to add elements that enhance news story narratives. FOLD is designed to keep readers on the same page, eliminating the hassle of needing to visit additional sites for information.
David Snzondy writes for GizMag about new materials created by a team that included Professor Nick Fang. These “metamaterials,” which are lightweight and can withstand weights 160,000 times their own, could have applications for the construction of aircraft and other vehicles.
Kris Anderson reports for WHDH on MindRider, a bike helmet developed by a team at MIT that monitors the rider’s stress levels while also tracking location. "By mapping your community, you can really grow the safety and your own ridership in your town," said project leader Arlene Ducao.
Carolyn Johnson writes for The Boston Globe that Professor Robert Langer has been awarded the $500,000 Kyoto Prize for Advanced Technology, which honors significant scientific, cultural, or spiritual leaders. Langer is best known for his pioneering contributions to the field of tissue engineering.
Jeffrey Brown of the PBS News Hour speaks with Professor Craig Wilder about the recent $40 million settlement received by five black and Latino men wrongly convicted of rape and assault in New York City 25 years ago.
Liz Stinson reports for Wired on a project by the Senseable City Lab that aims to reduce wasted energy by using localized beams of heat. The system uses a WiFi-enabled tracking system and can sense when a person is present.
Dr. Keith Isaacson of Newton-Wellesley Hospital discusses the hospital’s collaboration with MIT on gynepathology research with Andrea Timpano of Boston Magazine. Isaacson, with MIT researchers, developed a smartphone app that helps endometriosis patients monitor their condition.
“Based on the current rates of success in creating new drugs for Alzheimer's disease, it could take 260 years until the next one is approved,” writes The Boston Globe’s Carolyn Johnson on the rationale for why Professor Andrew Lo is proposing a new, portfolio-based approach to Alzheimer's research.
Professor Barry Posen argues against involvement in the current crisis in Iraq while speaking with Tom Ashbrook, host of NPR’s On Point. “[T]his argument that it’s going to be an easy and convenient base for a terrorist enterprise is challengeable on many fronts,” says Posen.
Robin Young of WBUR speaks with Professor Jim Walsh about the crisis unfolding in Iraq ahead of President Obama’s address. Walsh predicts that Obama will attempt to find a middle course between those calling for intervention and those hoping to keep the U.S. from being involved further in Iraq.
Rachel Zimmerman of WBUR reports on how neuroscientists have located a neural pathway that could transform how dyslexia is addressed. “In preliminary findings, researchers report that brain measures taken in kindergartners — even before the kids can read — can “significantly” improve predictions of how well, or poorly, the children can master reading later on,” Zimmerman reports.
Wall Street Journal reporter Jason Douglas writes that Prof. Kristin Forbes, who was recently appointed to the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee, "highlighted a risk to economic recovery that is preoccupying central bankers on both sides of the Atlantic: Investors appear too sanguine about risk."
The Economist covers Professor Joshua Hartshorne’s ‘Which English?’ quiz, which aims to gauge where the user learned English. The quiz uses grammar-focused questions and gives three guesses as to the user’s native language.
New York Times reporter Gina Kolata examines new findings from researchers at the Broad Institute that provide evidence that triglycerides are a cause of heart attacks.
New Scientist reporter Hal Hodson writes about a new algorithm called StreetScore that creates a perceived safety map of a city based off of crowdsourced data. “The idea is not to create no-go areas, but to locate areas of inequality,” Hodson explains.