Electrical engineering and computer science (EECS)

CSAIL researchers have developed software that allows users to design and virtually test drones, writes Alex Davies for Wired. Graduate student Tao Du explains that the software can help users “explore and try different shapes and different controllers.”

A report from MIT’s Center for International Studies and CSAIL encourages the government to increase cybersecurity systems guarding the nation’s infrastructure, reports Jordan Graham for the Boston Herald. One suggestion from the report is to “establish incentives for owners and operators of private infrastructure who boost security,” explains Graham.

James Brenner, the former NSA Inspector General and a research fellow at MIT, speaks with Meghna Chakrabarti of Radio Boston about a new report by MIT researchers that examines potential cyber security vulnerabilities in American infrastructure. Brenner explains that the report aims to “shine a light on what the underlying problems are both technological, commercial and political.”

Timothy Revell writes for New Scientist about a new report by MIT researchers that calls for securing critical U.S. infrastructure against cyberattacks. Joel Brenner, former NSA inspector general and a research fellow at the MIT Center for International Studies, explains that “we know how to fix the vulnerabilities, but there’s no market incentive for companies to do so.”

MIT researchers have developed a new low-power chip that could make voice control practical for simple electronic devices, reports Tim Moynihan for Wired. While other speech-processing platforms use the cloud to process voice commands, “the MIT chip handles much more of that processing itself.”

Clive Cookson of the Financial Times spotlights the work of Institute Professor Emerita Mildred Dresselhaus, who died at 86. Known as the “Queen of Carbon,” Dresselhaus’ research “led the way to round molecules with 60 carbon atoms, known as fullerenes or buckyballs, and ultimately to graphene,” explains Cookson.

CSAIL researchers have developed a system that allows robots to correct their mistakes based on input from the brainwaves of human operators, reports Wired’s Matt Simon. “It’s a new way of controlling the robot,” explains Prof. Daniela Rus, “in the sense that we aim to have the robot adapt to what the human would like to do.”

Anthony Cuthbertson of Newsweek writes that CSAIL researchers have developed a system that allows robots to change their actions based on feedback from the brain waves of a human operator. “Imagine robots or smartphones that could immediately correct themselves when you realize they’re making a mistake,” says PhD candidate Joseph DelPreto. 

CSAIL researchers have developed a system that allows robots to detect brain signals generated by human operators, writes Oscar Williams of Huffington Post. The researchers hope the new system could “pave the way for more seamless interactions between robots and humans.”

A feedback system developed by CSAIL researchers allows humans to correct a robot’s mistakes using brain signals, writes Janet Burns for Forbes. The system could be used as a “communication method for those who can't use verbal means, such as immobilized or even 'locked in' victims of paralysis,” explains Burns. 

MIT researchers have developed a device that allows humans to guide robots using brainwaves, reports Clive Cookson for the Financial Times. The prototype brain-computer interface “enables a human observer to transmit an immediate error message to a robot, telling it to fix a mistake when it does something wrong.”

New Scientist reporter Matt Reynolds writes that MIT researchers have developed a new brain-computer interface that enables people to correct robots’ mistakes using brain signals. “We’re taking baby steps towards having machines learn about us, and having them adjust to what we think,” explains Prof. Daniela Rus, director of CSAIL. 

MIT senior Lilly Chin, winner of the 2017 Jeopardy! College Championship, speaks to Paris Alston of WGBH about her experience on the competition. “I wasn’t expecting to get in, I just wanted to have some fun with it,” Chin says about initially trying out for the quiz show. 

NPR reporter Colin Dwyer writes about the life and work of Institute Professor Emerita Mildred Dresselhaus, who died at 86. Dwyer writes that “during her celebrated career, she sought to prepare a path for potential successors — the female scientists whom she mentored and opened doors for across decades.”

Lilly Chin, a senior at MIT majoring in electrical engineering and computer science, won the 2017 Jeopardy! College Championship, reports Kenneth Singletary for The Boston Globe. Singletary notes that “for her efforts, Chin won $100,000 and a chance to play on the Tournament of Champions.”