In the Media

NPR’s Elizabeth Blair highlights the work of Prof. Danna Freedman, one of the 2022 MacArthur Fellows. Freedman, a synthetic inorganic chemist, is "creating novel molecular materials with unique properties directly relevant to quantum information technologies." Moriba Jah, a Martin Luther King Jr. Visiting Scholar, has also been awarded a MacArthur "genius grant" for his work "envisioning transparent and collaborative solutions for creating a circular space economy that improves oversight of Earth's orbital spheres."

MIT has been named one of the top 10 best colleges in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, writes Celia Fernandez for CNBC.

Researchers from MIT and Harvard Medical School are investigating how exercise and high-fat diets can alter cells, genes and cellular pathways, reports Abby Patkin for Boston.com. “Their research could eventually help develop drugs that would mimic the effects of exercise and combat obesity,” explains Patkin.

President L. Rafael Reif speaks with Washington Post correspondent David Lynch about innovation in America. “The U.S. is still innovating the way it once did, the problem is that the way it once did is not good enough now,” says Reif. “The global ecosystem is much more competitive. Others are doing very, very well. Others are catching up or running ahead of us. And we have to reassess our innovation ecosystem to figure out how to fine tune it to adapt to this new reality.”

Researchers from MIT and elsewhere have found that U.S. senior citizens are more likely to live independently if there are more immigrants in an area, reports Stuart Anderson for Forbes. This study suggests that the supply of immigrant labor "affects caregiving arrangements, and allows more older Americans to age in the community,” write the researchers.

Milena Pagán ’11 speaks with Good Morning America about her inspiration for opening Little Sister Café, which is bringing a taste of Puerto Rican cuisine to Providence, Rhode Island. "This food is authentic to my experience, which is I lived half of my life in Puerto Rico, half of my life in America and I love to travel all over the world,” says Pagán, “so I'm just putting all of it together, and in that sense it's very authentic." 

Prof. Paulo Lozano speaks with Boston Globe reporter Travis Anderson about NASA’s recent asteroid test, which successfully shifted the orbit of a harmless asteroid. The mission had a “truly inspirational result,” says Lozano. “We’re getting closer to hav[ing] the ability to protect our planet from one of the most destructive forces in nature.”

Prof. Danna Freedman has been honored as a recipient of a 2022 MacArthur Fellowship, “one of the nation’s most prestigious awards for intellectual and artistic achievement,” reports Michael T. Nietzel for Forbes. “Using molecular chemistry [Freedman] is designing molecules that can act as qubits—the building blocks of quantum systems - to address fundamental questions in physics,” writes Nietzel.

Washington Post reporter David Lynch highlights the work of Ben S. Bernanke PhD ’79, one of the recipients of this year’s Nobel Prize in economic sciences, who was honored for his research on the role banks play during financial turmoil. “Bernanke demonstrated that bank failures — rather than resulting from the downturn — were responsible for making it so deep and so long. When banks collapsed, valuable information about borrowers disappeared, making it difficult for new institutions to channel savings to productive investments,” notes Lynch.

The 2022 Nobel Prize in economic sciences was awarded in part to Ben S. Bernanke PhD ’79 for his research showing that “bank failures can propagate a financial crisis rather than simply be a result of the crisis,” reports Jeanna Smialek for The New York Times. When asked about his advice for younger economists, Bernanke noted “one of the lessons of my life is, you never know what is going to happen.”

Ben S. Bernanke PhD ’79 has been honored as one of the recipients of this year’s Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences, reports the Associated Press. Bernanke was recognized for his work examining the Great Depression and “showing the danger of bank runs — when panicked people withdraw their savings — and how bank collapses led to widespread economic devastation,” notes the AP.

Researchers from MIT and the University of Southern California are “using large-scale mobility data to follow people's eating behaviors throughout the day, to understand how food choice is influenced by what’s accessible, available, and affordable,” reports Mike Branom for Daily Beast.

Ben Bernanke PhD ’79, former chair of the Federal Reserve, has been awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in economic sciences, reports Allison Morrow for CNN. Bernanke “received the award for his research on the Great Depression,” says Morrow. “In short, his work demonstrates that banks’ failures are often a cause, not merely a consequence, of financial crises.”

Cybersecurity at MIT Sloan has launched a cyberattack prevention course for business leaders, reports Sydney Lake for Fortune. “Board members must be knowledgeable participants in cyber leadership,” says Keri Pearlson, executive director of Cybersecurity at MIT Sloan. “Board members need a set of frameworks, a language, some examples, and actionable insights so they have an independent way to interpret and understand what their organization is doing to be cybersecure.”

Ben Bernanke PhD ’79 has won a share of the 2022 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences for his research on banks and financial crises, reports Micahel T. Nietzel for Forbes. Bernanke and his fellow winners are credited with significantly improving “our understanding of the role of banks in the economy, particularly during financial crises,” says The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.