Joshua Kim of Inside Higher Ed writes about “Whiplash,” a book co-written by Media Lab Director Joi Ito. Kim writes that the book gives the reader, “a positive vision for a new kind of organizational…without ever falling victim to the techno-utopian blather of much of technology journalism.”
Prof. Iyad Rahwan speaks with the AP about the moral dilemmas posed by driverless cars. "There is a real risk that if we don't understand those psychological barriers and address them through regulation and public outreach, we may undermine the entire enterprise," Rahwan explains. “It would stifle what I think will be a very good thing for humanity."
Joi Ito, director of the Media Lab, discusses his new book, which examines how to cope with technological change, with Meghna Chakrabarti of Radio Boston. Ito stresses the importance of agility, explaining “you have to spend that energy that you used to spend planning and learning and knowing everything in completeness to developing an ability to know what’s going on.”
The Media Lab will serve as one of the first anchor institutions for a new initiative, the Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund, which will “support research and development to make AI beneficial for humans,” reports Jordan Graham for the Boston Herald.
The Media Lab will serve as a founding institution for a new effort focused on advancing artificial intelligence research for the public good, reports April Glaser for CNBC. Research will focus on everything from investigating how” socially responsible artificially intelligent systems can be designed” to fostering “understanding of the complexities of artificial intelligence.”
Saqib Shah writes for FOX News that researchers from the Media Lab’s Electome project are launching an interactive tool “that compares tweets shared by the White House with a sampling of those shared by the public.”
The City of Haverhill will test a solar-powered bench designed by Soofa, a Media Lab spinoff, reports Brenda J. Buote for The Boston Globe. The city will “track how often the bench is used as a way to measure positive community development.”
Kevin Roose of The New York Times writes about “Whiplash,” a new book co-written by Joi Ito, director of the Media Lab, which examines the next generation of technology. Roose explains that the book “puts forth broad theories of technological change, accompanied by examples from their work at the Media Lab.”
Guardian reporter Nicola Davis spotlights Prof. Hugh Herr’s development of an autonomous exoskeleton device that could reduce the amount of energy humans use to walk. “We are taking a first principle approach, and joint by joint understanding deeply what has to be done scientifically and technologically to augment a human,” Herr explains.
In this piece for The New Yorker, Michael Specter writes about Prof. Kevin Esvelt’s idea to use gene-editing technology to eradicate Lyme disease. “This is an ecological problem,” Esvelt explains. “And we want to enact an ecological solution so that we break the transmission cycle that keeps ticks in the environment infected with these pathogens.”
Writing for Wired, Juan Enriquez highlights the MIT Center for Extreme Bionics, which was launched in an effort to develop technologies that augment human performance and could help eliminate disabilities. Enriquez writes that the center’s “long-term ambitions are breathtaking.”
KQED reporter Queena Sook Kim highlights Code Next, a program created by researchers from the Media Lab and Google aimed at encouraging high school students to learn to code through the process of making. “Coding is also making, and it takes the same problem-solving skills as making stuff in real life,” Kim explains.
Guardian reporter Mark Harris writes about research scientist Caleb Harper’s work developing sensor-controlled systems that could allow farmers to grow food in varying conditions around the world. Harper has also developed a system to share data on optimal growing conditions in the hopes of providing “access to biology in the same way that HTML gave us access to the internet.”
Grace Leslie, a Media Lab visiting scientist, is creating music using the signals produced by the electrical activity of her brain and changes in her heart rate, writes Richard Gray for BBC Future. Leslie believes that this new form of musical expression “could be used to help those who have difficulty interacting with the world, such as those with autism.”
MIT researchers have found that flashing lights could potentially be used to stave off Alzheimer’s disease, writes Oscar Williams for The Huffington Post. “Light stimulation directed to the hippocampus, the part of the brain that processes memories, led to a reduction of…beta amyloid,” which is found in Alzheimer’s disease.