Seeing nature through a molecular engineer’s eye
Alfredo Alexander-Katz probes systems in action, from clotting blood to walking molecules.
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Can today’s EVs make a dent in climate change?
Electric vehicles can meet drivers’ needs enough to replace nearly 90 percent of vehicles now on the road.
MIT develops self-shading windows
New system can rapidly switch glass from transparent to dark — and keep it that way without power.
What’s wasting power at home? Ask your app!
New system from MIT can identify how much power is being used by each device in a household.
New lithium-oxygen battery greatly improves energy efficiency, longevity
New chemistry could overcome key drawbacks of lithium-air batteries.
Borrowing from pastry chefs, engineers create nanolayered composites
Method to stack hundreds of nanoscale layers could open new vistas in materials science.
Study opens new realms of light-matter interaction
Some “forbidden” light emissions are in fact possible, could enable new sensors and light-emitting devices.
New technique provides detailed views of metals’ crystal structure
Method uses readily available tools to quickly determine materials’ properties.
Anne White: A passion for plasma
Physicist has a fascination for the complexities of turbulence, and how to reduce it in fusion reactors.
New mid-infrared laser system could detect atmospheric chemicals
Laser pulses produce glowing plasma filaments in open air, could enable long-distance monitoring.
![“Researchers and practitioners have struggled to compare the costs of different [energy] storage technologies, because of the multiple dimensions of cost and the fact that no technology dominates along all dimensions," says Jessika Trancik, the Atlantic Richfield Career Development Assistant Professor of Energy Studies at MIT.](/sites/default/files/styles/search_result_item/public/images/201606/MIT-Econ-Storage.jpg?itok=AZsMilT2)
Energy storage for renewables can be a good investment today, study finds
Systems that bank energy can add value to solar and wind projects.
Researchers find a way to extend life and improve performance of fuel cell electrodes
Surface treatment greatly reduces degradation of catalyst material.
Researchers discover new way to turn electricity into light, using graphene
By slowing down light to a speed slower than flowing electrons, researchers create a kind of optical “sonic boom.”
New method snips complex fibers into uniform particles
Stretching process can produce nanoscale rods or strips made of many material combinations.
Matt Damon celebrates his “fake graduation” while addressing the Class of 2016
“Turn toward the problems you see” Damon says; MIT President Reif urges graduates to prepare for “cosmic problem set.”