Marcelo Gleiser writes for NPR about different theories on furthering our understanding of the universe, including Professor Max Tegmark’s book “Our Mathematical Universe.” “According to Tegmark, math is not just the tool we invent to describe both physical reality and pure rational constructions, but the very essence of nature,” writes Gleiser.
Professor Marin Soljacic was one of three winners of the prestigious Blavatnik National Awards, reports Nature. Soljacic received the award for his work on electromagnetic phenomena, including wireless charging of batteries.
Jane Porter writes for Fortune about WiTricity, an MIT spinout focused on the development of wireless power-transfer technology. By using vibrational frequencies, electricity can be transferred over distances of up to four feet.
Wired reporter Nick Stockton reports on Prof. Pedro Reis’ work developing a morphable surface that could be used to increase the efficiency and speed of vehicles. The surface can, “wrinkle into a dimpled pattern similar to a golf ball’s, with similar aerodynamic properties.”
Ruth Graham of The Boston Globe writes about Professor Franz-Josef Ulm’s work with “urban physics.” Ulm’s research, “places him among a number of scientists now using the tools of physics to analyze the practically infinite amount of data that cities produce in the 21st century, from population density to the number of patents produced to energy bill charges.”
Dennis Overbye of The New York Times writes about Illustris, a calculation by Professor Mark Vogelsberger’s team that mathematically models how dark matter evolved from its initial, uniform cloud. They found “the closest match yet between dark matter models and the distribution and types of galaxies in the visible universe,” writes Overbye.
"Astronomers think it is very likely that every single star in our Milky Way galaxy has at least one planet," said Professor Sara Seager at a NASA panel on the possibility of life on other planets, writes Sara Gates for The Huffington Post.
"We believe we're very, very close in terms of technology and science to actually finding the other Earth and our chance to find signs of life on another world," said Professor Sara Seager during a NASA panel on the search for extraterrestrial life, reports Suzanne Presto of CNN.
Hal Hodson writes for The New Scientist about the Smart Morphable Surface developed by Professor Pedro Reis. The surface dimples into different depths and patterns to create the best aerodynamics for the conditions.
Dan Vergano of National Geographic profiles Professor Alan Guth’s career in physics. "What always fascinated me about science was the desire to understand what underlies it all, and I think physics is basically the study of that," Guth explains.
David Snzondy writes for GizMag about new materials created by a team that included Professor Nick Fang. These “metamaterials,” which are lightweight and can withstand weights 160,000 times their own, could have applications for the construction of aircraft and other vehicles.
Bruce Dorminey writes for Forbes about how scientists are looking to close a quantum physics loophole. “We wanted to come up with a potential test that could close one of the last major remaining quantum physics loopholes that could still allow entangled particle experiments to be interpreted according to classical physics,” explains MIT postdoc Andrew Friedman.
Neil Swidey profiles Professor Alan Guth and his work developing the theory of cosmic inflation in a piece for The Boston Globe Magazine. “Perhaps you went to school with someone like Alan Guth, a child so preternaturally gifted that the teachers didn’t know what to do with him,” Swidey writes.
Professor Max Tegmark writes for The New York Times about recent research that appears to support the theory of cosmic inflation, and the implications of this discovery for the study of physics and the origins of the universe.
Xinhuanet highlights a new system developed by MIT Professor Marin Soljačić and graduate student Yichen Shen that allows for filtering light waves based on direction. This research could have major implications for solar energy technology.