The Economist reports that Prof. Daniela Rus and Dr. Shuhei Miyashita have developed a tiny origami robot that can be swallowed and used to collect dangerous items that have been accidentally ingested. “The device is based on foldable robot technology that their team of researchers have been working on for years.”
President Barack Obama honored Prof. Michael Artin and RPI President Shirley Ann Jackson, an MIT Corporation Life Member, with The National Medal of Science. Artin was honored for “leadership in modern algebraic geometry,” and Jackson for her work in “condensed matter physics and particle physics, and science-rooted public policy achievements,” according to AP reporter Darlene Superville.
BBC News reporter Nathan Tauger writes that researchers from MIT and other institutions have created a miniature robot that can perch like an insect. MIT graduate student Moritz Graule explains that perching solves the problem posed by the fact that “hovering microrobots run out of energy really quickly."
MIT researchers have developed a tiny robot that can perch like an insect, writes G. Clay Whittaker for Popular Science. “It's a widely applicable breakthrough that will, for instance, keep future robots perched while they wait for instructions,” Clay explains.
Prof. Daniela Rus speaks on Marketplace Tech about the origami robot that her group developed to serve as a microsurgeon. “This robot is ingestible in the form of a capsule,” explains Rus. “Once the robot reaches the stomach, the robot unfolds and can do interesting tasks.”
Forbes contributor Pete Saunders highlights a new study by Prof. Mercedes Delgado that examines the relationship between industry clusters and employment growth in cities. Delgado found that “while inner city neighborhoods start with an economic disadvantage compared to central business districts, they do have competitive advantages.”
Tim Logan writes for The Boston Globe that MIT has received approval to develop new buildings, open spaces, restaurants, research and commercial spaces in Kendall Square. “We want to create a greater sense of place,” says Provost Martin Schmidt. “A greater place to live and learn, not only for our community, but also for our neighbors.”
MIT alumnus Ilan Goldfajn has been nominated to serve as the next president of Brazil’s central bank, Luciana Magalhaes and Rogerio Jelmayer report for The Wall Street Journal. They note that Goldfajn “has worked as a consultant for international organizations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations.”
In an article for Forbes, Nish Acharya examines MIT’s entrepreneurial culture, highlighting how the Institute supports innovators through a variety of programs on campus. Acharya writes that “other universities can learn from MIT how it has empowered its students, faculty and alumni to build their ideas by strategically, and formally, leveraging the institutional capabilities of MIT.”
In an article for USA Today, Mary Bowerman writes that MIT researchers have “developed a tiny robot that can unfold itself from a biodegradable capsule once ingested, and then crawl across the stomach to remove swallowed items like button batteries.”
Prof. Thomas Kochan speaks with WBUR reporter Deborah Becker about the contract dispute between Verizon and the company’s employees. Kochan says that in order to avoid these situations in the future, “we need to fundamentally change our labor policy to provide more workers access to a variety of different ways to have a voice at work.”
Prof. Earl Miller speaks with Meghna Chakrabarti, host of Radio Boston, about the dangers of distracted driving. Miller explains that our brains “have a very limited capacity for simultaneous thought.” He adds that people have a hard time ignoring their phones while driving because the “brain evolved to find new information rewarding.”
In an article for The Huffington Post, Susan Blumenthal highlights how researchers from MIT have developed a paper-based test for diagnosing the Zika virus. Blumenthal writes that “the test consists of a paper covered with yellow dots that turns purple in the presence of the RNA of the virus.”
Popular Science reporter Christine Jun writes that the MIT team has unveiled the pod they developed to compete in the SpaceX Hyperloop competition. Jun explains that the MIT team’s pod is “8 feet long, weighs 500 pounds, and is expected to reach speeds up to 230 miles per hour with an acceleration of 2.4 Gs.”
Financial Times reporter Rebecca Knight spotlights Joe Bellantoni, who will receive an MIT Executive MBA degree nine years after he was blinded in a car accident. Bellantoni credits his wife for her unwavering support. “Ms. Bellantoni has driven her husband to the school’s Cambridge campus every two to three weeks; accompanied him to classes, attended his study groups and typed up his homework assignments.”