A study co-authored by Prof. Christopher Knittel finds that technological advances are needed to reduce the use of oil in the car industry, according to The Economist. The researchers found that “the price of batteries to power EVs would need to fall by a factor of three, and they would need to charge much faster.”
MIT researchers have developed an app that compares automobile emissions and emissions reduction targets to allow consumers to find the most affordable and climate-friendly vehicles, reports Dana Nuccitelli for The Guardian. The app “allows consumers to check how their own vehicles – or cars they’re considering purchasing – stack up on the carbon emissions and cost curves.”
A study by MIT researchers finds that low-emissions vehicles are more cost effective when operating and maintenance costs are included in the price, writes Rae Ellen Bichell for NPR. The study also found that many battery electric and hybrid cars “already meet the global emissions goals the U.S. recently agreed to meet by the year 2030,” explains Bichell.
MIT researchers have found that low-emissions vehicles are among the least expensive to drive. Based off their findings, the researchers developed an app that helps consumers evaluate a car’s carbon impact, reports John Schwartz for The New York Times. “Consumers can save money and save emissions at the same time,” explains Prof. Jessika Trancik.
In an interview with Eduardo Porter of The New York Times, Prof. Christopher Knittel speaks about whether a carbon tax could be effective in the U.S. According to Porter, Knittel explains that “a properly calibrated carbon price in the United States could effectively replace all the climate-related regulations businesses hate so much.”
MIT researchers have developed an algorithm that could reduce how long planes wait before takeoff, reports Lee Moran for The Huffington Post. The formula allows air traffic controllers to use data on weather conditions and runway traffic to “hold airplanes at the gate, which would help avoid congestion.”
Wired reporter Sarah Zhang reports on how MIT researchers developed a new computer model that they used to examine the public health impacts of Volkswagen cheating on emissions standards tests. Zhang explains that the researchers’ model “allows scientists to estimate the impact of extra NOx in any 50 km by 50 km square of the world.”
A new study by researchers from MIT and Harvard shows that pollution from Volkswagen vehicles could lead to premature deaths in the U.S., reports Tom Randall for Bloomberg News. “Volkswagen's deception allowed some 482,000 U.S. diesel cars to pass emissions tests even as they polluted as much as 40 times the legal limit,” writes Randall.
Justin Worland of TIME reports on a new MIT study examining the public health impacts of Volkswagen’s software designed to evade emissions standards. “The emissions problem will also add nearly half a billion dollars in social costs,” writes Worland.
Researchers at MIT and Harvard have determined that emissions resulting from Volkswagen’s rigged inspections will cause 60 premature deaths in the U.S., reports Robert Preidt for U.S. News & World Report. The researchers found that “if VW recalls every affected vehicle by the end of 2016, more than 130 additional deaths may be prevented,” writes Preidt.
CNBC reporter Robert Ferris writes about a study by researchers from MIT and Harvard that examines the impacts of Volkswagen cheating on emissions tests. “Volkswagen's cars have emitted 40 times the amount of noxious nitrogen oxide (NOx) than the limit proscribed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,” Ferris explains.
Nina Godlewski writes for Boston.com that a new study co-authored by MIT researchers found that approximately 60 people in the U.S. will die prematurely due to Volkswagen’s cheating on emissions tests. Godlewski explains that, “if the automaker fails to recall all of the affected vehicles by the end of 2016, more deaths may occur.”
Atlantic reporter Robinson Meyer speaks with Prof. Steven Barrett about his research showing that 140 people will die prematurely if Volkswagen vehicles outfitted with emissions-cheating devices are not recalled. Barrett says that if the cars are returned, “most of those 140 deaths would be averted.”
Matthew Nisbet, a professor at Northeastern University who focuses on climate change communication, writes for The Conversation about MIT’s Climate Action Plan. Nisbet writes that MIT’s plan can “serve as a model for how major research universities can accelerate effective societal actions on climate change by collaborating with a diversity of industry members.”
Prof. John Deutch argues in this Wall Street Journal op-ed that the U.S. ban on direct exports of crude oil should be abolished. Lifting the ban, Deutch writes, “will increase U.S. jobs and increase the country’s influence in world oil markets, with little risk of higher gasoline prices for consumers.”