Nidhi Subbaraman writes for BetaBoston about WaitChatter, a new application developed by MIT students that could help teach users a foreign language while they chat online. “The application uses the brief window when the ellipses dominate the screen as an opportunity to spring a vocabulary quiz,” Subbaraman explains.
Lindsay Kalter writes for The Boston Herald about PicnicHealth, a California-based startup founded by MIT alumnus Troy Astorino that allows patients to store all their medical records in one spot. One day “patients will really have ownership of their own medical info and have it all in one place,” said Astorino.
Jon Christian of The Boston Globe reports that MIT startup Accion Systems has developed a thruster technology that will allow satellites to adjust their orbits. “Eventually, we hope to be able to scale up the performance to address the really large, school bus-size satellites,” explains Accion co-founder and MIT alumna Natalya Brikner.
In an article for BetaBoston, Janelle Nanos writes about Jana, an MIT startup that allows mobile phone users in developing countries to access the Internet for free. “We’re empowering people with connectivity and we’re not limiting how they’re using that connectivity,” explains Jana founder and MIT alumnus Nathan Eagle.
The Boston Globe spotlights how the MIT Edgerton Center provides students opportunities for hands-on learning. “I’ve soldered solar cells, analyzed the aerodynamics of the body, learned how to weld — you figure out how to overcome obstacles you never encounter on the theoretical side,” says graduate student Kathleen Alexander of her work at the center.
Rohan Banerjee writes for The Tech about a new MIT report that examines 15 areas of research that would benefit from increased government support. Prof. Marc Kastner explains that the report is aimed at informing political leaders of the importance of basic research. “It’s important to remind Congress and the public that the health of the country depends on doing research,” he says.
CNBC reporter Meg Tirrell reports on the biotechnology boom in Cambridge, explaining that one reason so many biotech companies want to be located in Kendall Square is the area’s proximity to MIT. “Everybody wants to be next to MIT, this hotbed of technology and life sciences work,” says Tirrell.
Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik writes that declining government investment in basic research is contributing to a U.S. innovation deficit, citing a new MIT report examining how funding cuts are impacting different areas of research. The report finds that declining support for basic research is “tantamount to mortgaging our scientific future.”
The Boston Herald highlights a new MIT report that examines how decreased government funding for basic research is holding back advances in 15 fields. Science funding is “the lowest it has been since the Second World War as a fraction of the federal budget,” explains Professor Marc Kastner.
A new MIT report finds that declining government investment in basic research could be driving top academic talent overseas, writes RobertMcMillan of The Wall Street Journal. “We are undercutting ourselves by not supporting basic science,” says Prof. Andrew Lo.
Salon reporter Joanna Rothkopf writes that a report prepared by MIT researchers finds that declining government investment in basic research is creating an innovation deficit. “The report warns that the lack of adequate funding for sciences in the U.S. is threatening 15 fields, including neurobiology, cybersecurity, infectious diseases and robotics,” Rothkopf writes.
A new MIT report examines the growing innovation deficit caused by declining government support for basic research, reports Sharon Begley for Reuters. Prof. Marc Kastner, who led the committee that prepared the report, explained that the decline in basic research funding, "really threatens America's future."
Craig Lemoult of WGBH News speaks with MIT researchers about a new report examining the impacts of declining government support for basic research. Prof. Marc Kastner notes that many of the “technologies that have made our lives better” stem from basic research advances.
Inside Higher Ed highlights a new report prepared by a committee of MIT researchers that examines the need for increased federal funding for basic research. The report “examines the lost opportunities for science and for U.S. competitiveness vs. other nations due to inadequate federal support for basic research.”
Curt Woodward writes for BetaBoston about how MIT graduate student Ben Letham developed a formula for measuring the misery and difficulty of a particular winter. Woodward explains that Letham’s formula, which gave more weight to snowfall concentrated in short periods of time, showed that “this winter’s snow was more relentless, and more miserable to live through, than any other.”