Electrical engineering and computer science (EECS)

To develop safer, more durable robots, CSAIL researchers have developed a technique to 3-D print robots with shock-absorbing skins, reports Matt McFarland for CNN. McFarland explains that as the “‘bumpers’ aren't rigid, it's less dangerous for a robot to crash into something.”

Popular Science reporter Mary Beth Griggs writes that researchers from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab have developed a method to 3-D print robots with customized shock absorbers. The researchers hope that the “shock absorbing material could be used to create better shock absorbers for delivery drones, shock-resistant shoe soles, and even helmets.”

Dr. Mallika Marshall reports for CBS Boston that MIT researchers have created a robot that helps maternity nurses make scheduling and placement decisions. “What we found was that the suggestions of the robot were accepted 90 percent of the time, which was very exciting for us,” explains Prof. Julie Shah.

CSAIL researcher have created a device that uses changes in heart beat and breathing to detect emotions, writes Forbes’ Kevin Murnane. The heart of the system,” writes Murnane, “is the algorithm that extracts the heartbeat from the RF signal. It’s an impressive achievement that solves a difficult problem.”

A device created by CSAIL researchers can detect emotions by wirelessly measuring heartbeats, according to the Associated Press. The device is “87 percent accurate in using heartrate and what it’s already learned about a person to recognize joy, pleasure, sadness or anger.”

CSAIL researchers have developed a device that can determine a person’s mood using wireless signals, write Jordan Graham and Donna Goodison for The Boston Herald. “We view this work as the next step in helping develop computers that can better understand us at an emotional level,” explains Mingmin Zhao.

CSAIL researchers have developed a device that can determine emotion by analyzing reflections from wireless signals bounced off the human body, writes Mary Beth Griggs for Popular Science. “Because it can measure heart rate, it might also be a less invasive way for doctors to monitor patient's heartbeats, potentially watching for conditions like arrhythmias,” writes Griggs. 

In a Huffington Post video, Prof. Daniela Rus explains that the ingestible origami robot her team developed could enable incisionless surgery. “What we have developed so far is a proof of concept that shows that you could have tetherless machines that can do active and important functions inside the body,” she explains. 

In an article about the increasing number of women studying electrical engineering and computer science at some of the nation’s leading universities, Washington Post reporter Nick Anderson highlights how “more than half of engineering bachelor’s degrees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology went to women in 2015.”

CSAIL Director Daniela Rus speaks with Peter High of Forbes about the lab’s research, history and mission. Rus notes that CSAIL researchers are focused on "inventing the future of computing. We want to use computer science to tackle major challenges in fields like healthcare and education.”

MIT researchers have developed a new algorithm to create videos from still images, writes G. Clay Whittaker for Popular Science. “The system "learns" types of videos (beach, baby, golf swing...) and, starting from still images, replicates the movements that are most commonly seen in those videos,” Whittaker explains. 

MIT researchers have developed a new way to record the activities of human cells, reports Kevin Hartnett for The Boston Globe. “Most of the studies we do to understand diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s involve studying cells in a dish. We’re interested in understanding how cells function in their natural environments,” explains Prof. Timothy Lu. 

MIT has been named the top university in the world in the latest QS World University Rankings, reports Nick Morrison for Forbes. This is the fifth consecutive year that MIT has earned the number one spot in the QS rankings. 

A new WiFi system developed by CSAIL researchers is three times faster than a normal wireless network, writes Thomas Tamblyn for The Huffington Post. The new system allows transmitters “to work together and make sure that they’re sending information that isn’t clashing to each device,” explains Tamblyn.

In an article for Forbes, Kevin Murnane writes that a new system developed by MIT researchers significantly improves WiFi performance. Murnane writes that the system “could be used at locations like concert halls and sports stadiums to eliminate the poor WiFi performance people often experience in these venues.”