Boston Globe reporter Tim Logan writes that MIT has unveiled preliminary plans for the Volpe Center site. Logan writes that the plans currently include “1,400 housing units — one-fifth set at affordable rents — 1.7 million square feet of office and lab space, street-level retail and three acres of greenspace on the campus.”
Prof. Tyler Jacks, director of the Koch Institute, speaks with Meghna Chakrabarti of WBUR’s Radio Boston about cancer research in Boston. Jacks says the large number of researchers in the area “gives us a distinctive advantage,” as it provides researchers the opportunity to interact and collaborate with various institutions.
Appearing on WCVB-TV’s Chronicle, Provost Marty Schmidt explains why Kendall Square is a hub for innovation, highlighting how the region brings together organizations working on everything from computer science and biotech to brain and cognitive sciences. Schmidt explains that Kendall Square’s innovation ecosystem means research “coming out of MIT (can) be immediately translated to impact.”
Boston Globe reporter Tim Logan writes that MIT has signed an agreement to redevelop the Volpe Center site. “What we have in mind is a big vision,” says Israel Ruiz, MIT’s executive vice president and treasurer. “We want to do more in Kendall Square. This enables us to do it at a level of scale.”
Research engineer Michael Sacarny joined forces with the Charles River Alliance of Boaters to develop a map charting the Charles River basin, reports Daniel Adams for The Boston Globe. The chart “promises to become a foundational tool of multiple efforts to study, navigate, and manage the increasingly crowded Charles.”
Boston-area museums swapped Instagram accounts this week to promote and share the plethora of cultural offerings available, reports Steve Annear for The Boston Globe. The Peabody Essex Museum visited the MIT Museum and shared images of Kismet, “art from the Hart Nautical Collection; and Harold Edgerton’s stop-motion photograph the ‘milk-drop coronet.’”
In an article for The Boston Globe’s special section on the 2016 “Top Places to Work,” Sacha Pfeiffer highlights MIT’s new commuter benefits. Pfeiffer writes that MIT is providing “employees free MBTA bus and subway access through a chip embedded in their university ID cards.”
Boston Globe reporter Tim Logan writes that federal officials announced the initial section of MIT to redevelop the Volpe Transportation Center in Kendall Square. “They understand how to work in Cambridge,” says Greg Vasil of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board of MIT’s long history in the area. “With something this big and intricate, that can really pay off.”
Writing for WBUR’s Bostonomix blog, Bruce Gellerman speaks with Senior Lecturer Bill Aulet about how a new administration in Washington might impact Boston’s innovation economy. Aulet explains that he tries to teach student entrepreneurs how to adapt to change and become what he calls, “anti-fragile.”
Xconomy reporter Jeff Engel writes about The Engine, a new venture MIT launched to provide “resources to startups whose technologies typically take lots of time and capital to develop—think biotech, robotics, advanced manufacturing, medical devices, and energy.”
BostInno reporter Olivia Vanni writes that MIT is launching a new venture to support startups working on scientific and technological innovations that require time and patient capital. Vanni writes that tech industry leaders see the new effort “as a prime opportunity to retain our local tech talent."
CNN reporter Matt McFarland writes that MIT is launching a new entity aimed at providing space, funding and support for startups focused on tackling the world’s biggest challenges. "This is putting a piece in the puzzle that is missing," explains Executive Vice President and Treasurer Israel Ruiz. "There's a deficiency in the ecosystem to support these startups."
President L. Rafael Reif writes for The Boston Globe about The Engine, a new venture built by MIT to support startups tackling the world’s pressing challenges. Reif writes that The Engine will provide a model of support that nurtures “high-impact ideas and speeds them into the world while helping our regional innovation ecosystem flourish.”
Zeninjor Enwemeka reports for WBUR that MIT is launching an effort aimed at helping startups bring scientific inventions from the lab to the marketplace. Enwemeka notes that in addition to providing space, funding and support for startups, The Engine “will tap into the region's innovation hubs and aims to create an innovation network across the area.”
MIT’s new enterprise, called The Engine, is aimed at supporting startups in research-heavy fields, writes Curt Woodward for The Boston Globe. “We see the opportunity for MIT to start this process and really make a huge difference in driving down the cost of innovation in hard technology and science,” notes Israel Ruiz, MIT’s executive vice president and treasurer.