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“I think the flexibility of having the opportunity to discover what you're interested in, to pursue these things, and to create a space for yourself where you can feel comfortable was what drove me to MIT,” Larissa Senatus says.

Larissa Senatus learns about the world by doing

Mechanical engineering major hopes to bring hands-on learning opportunities home to Haiti.

January 13, 2016

Donald Sadoway (right) of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, David Bradwell MEng ’06, PhD ’11, and their collaborators have developed a novel molten-metal battery that is low-cost, high-capacity, efficient, long-lasting, and easy to manufacture — characteristics that make it ideal for storing electricity on power grids today and in the future.

A battery made of molten metals

New battery may offer low-cost, long-lasting storage for the grid.

January 12, 2016

This diagram illustrates the principle behind the proposed energy-harvesting system. Two metal electrodes made of lithium-alloyed silicon form a sandwich around a layer of electrolyte, a polymer that ions (charged atoms) can move across. When the sandwich is bent, unequal stresses cause lithium ions to migrate across the electrolyte, producing a compensating electron current that can be harnessed ...

Harnessing the energy of small bending motions

New device could provide electrical power source from walking and other ambient motions.

January 6, 2016

MIT graduate students (l-r) Ritchie Chen, Kelsey Stoerzinger and Scott Grindy, won Silver Awards at the Materials Research Society 2015 Fall Meeting in Boston.

Grad students honored for their research at Materials Research Society meeting

Three MIT graduate students win Silver Awards for work on catalysts, hydrogels, and magnetic nanoparticles.

January 5, 2016

As bacteria stream through a microfluidic lattice, they synchronize and swim in patterns similar to those of electrons flowing through a magnetic material. This image shows a microfluidic 6x6 lattice. The left-hand side shows the original data as seen under the microscope. The overlaid color coding on the right-hand side shows the relative strength of clockwise (purple) or anti-clockwise (green) ...

Study reveals shared behavior of microbes and electrons

Bacteria streaming through a lattice behave like electrons in a magnetic material.

January 5, 2016

Clearing the way for Floquet-Bloch states

Team demonstrates pure quantum-mechanical mixture of electrons and photons in the solid topological insulator bismuth selenide.

January 4, 2016

3 Questions: Neil Gershenfeld and the spread of Fab Labs

Ten years after launching Fab Lab, the project’s founder describes the program’s research, global impact.

January 4, 2016

Researchers have discovered how some organisms can safely process oxalate, which is found in many fruits and vegetables. This discovery could lead to new ways to lessen the harmful effects that can occur when oxalate builds up in humans, who cannot metabolize this molecule.

A healthy breakdown

Researchers discover how some organisms process oxalate, a molecule that can harm humans.

December 28, 2015

Researchers have produced a working optoelectronic chip that computes electronically but uses light to move information. The chip has 850 optical components and 70 million transistors, which, while significantly less than the billion-odd transistors of a typical microprocessor, is enough to demonstrate all the functionality that a commercial optical chip would require.

Optoelectronic microprocessors built using existing chip manufacturing

High-performance prototype means chipmakers could now start building optoelectronic chips.

December 23, 2015

PANDA is based on the open-source whole-system emulator known as QEMU (Quick Emulator), which uses binary translation to support multiple processor architectures. PANDA supports Windows, Linux, and Android operating systems; can efficiently record and replay whole-system executions; and has a modular software design that allows analysts to implement multiple software-analysis plugins. According to...

MIT Lincoln Laboratory receives three 2015 R&D 100 Awards

Three software products named among 100 most technologically significant innovations of 2015.

December 22, 2015

Joel Jean (left) and Vladimir Bulović (center) of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Patrick Brown of the Department of Physics have, together with their collaborators, performed a rigorous assessment of today’s many commercial and emerging solar photovoltaic technologies. They conclude that none should be ruled out, given the urgent need to move to a low-carbon...

Study assesses solar photovoltaic technologies

MIT researchers recommend rapidly scaling up current silicon-based systems while continuing to work on other technologies.

December 16, 2015

A rounded cancer cell (top left) sends out nanotubes connecting with endothelial cells. Genetic material can be injected via these nanotubes, transforming the endothelial cells and making them more hospitable to additional cancer cells.

Scientists discover how cancer cells escape blood vessels

Study offers new targets for drugs that may prevent cancer from spreading.

December 16, 2015

In a two-year study with New York City garbage trucks, the startup’s sensors cut the frequency and duration of filter regeneration in half, which produced a 1 to 2 percent fuel savings. This can be significant for fleets of trucks, such as those in the study, which use roughly 5,000 to 8,000 gallons of diesel fuel annually.

Wireless sensors could make diesel engines greener

Startup’s sensors measure soot and ash buildup in filters to help engines burn more efficiently.

December 15, 2015

At the 2015 Paris climate talks, MIT faculty, students, staff, and alumni have been observing negotiations and participating in side events. A few of those participating: (l-r) MIT researcher and Climate Interactive director Travis Franck; PhD student Michael Davidson; MIT Center for Collective Intelligence/Climate CoLab Director Thomas Malone; MIT Climate CoLab project manager Laur Fisher; alumna...

Sharing climate research and strategies in Paris

MIT events throughout climate talks underscore Institute’s global perspectives and partnerships.

December 11, 2015

Gen9's BioFab process, now being used by dozens of researchers and companies, cuts costs and accelerates the creation and testing of genes.

Scaling up synthetic-biology innovation

MIT professor’s startup makes synthesizing genes many times more cost effective.

December 10, 2015

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