MIT chemists develop a wireless electronic lateral flow assay test for biosensing
Design from the Swager Lab uses electronic polymers, rather than colored lines, to indicate a positive response, enabling quantitative monitoring of biomarkers.
Artificial intelligence model can detect Parkinson’s from breathing patterns
An MIT-developed device with the appearance of a Wi-Fi router uses a neural network to discern the presence and severity of one of the fastest-growing neurological diseases in the world.
Bringing lessons from cybersecurity to the fight against disinformation
Mary Ellen Zurko pioneered user-centered security in the 1990s. Now she’s using those insights to help the nation thwart influence operations.
Stranded assets could exact steep costs on fossil energy producers and investors
A new study estimates potential losses by 2050 amid low-carbon energy transition.
When a task adds more steps, this brain circuit helps you notice
By tracking feedback during tasks, the anterior cingulate cortex notices when a new step has become necessary and signals the motor cortex to adjust.
Engineers fabricate a chip-free, wireless electronic “skin”
The device senses and wirelessly transmits signals related to pulse, sweat, and ultraviolet exposure, without bulky chips or batteries.
Living Lego
Mathematical modeling speeds up the process of programming bacterial systems to self-assemble into desired 2D shapes.
MIT team reports giant response of semiconductors to light
The materials’ stiffness increases up to 40 percent, in a reversible effect, the researchers report in a study that also explains the phenomenon's atomic origins.
A new method boosts wind farms’ energy output, without new equipment
By modeling the conditions of an entire wind farm rather than individual turbines, engineers can squeeze more power out of existing installations.
Scientists identify a plant molecule that sops up iron-rich heme
The peptide is used by legumes to control nitrogen-fixing bacteria; it may also offer leads for treating patients with too much heme in their blood.
Thinking like a cyber-attacker to protect user data
Researchers found that an understudied component of computer processors is susceptible to attacks from malicious agents. Then, they developed mitigation mechanisms.
New programmable materials can sense their own movements
Engineers 3D print materials with networks of sensors directly incorporated.
3 Questions: Amar Gupta on an integrated approach to enhanced health-care delivery
The MIT researcher and former professor discusses how Covid-19 and the influx of virtual technologies created a new medical ecosystem that needs more synchronized oversight.
Solving a longstanding conundrum in heat transfer
Hailing from a small town in Italy, Matteo Bucci is determined to address some of the unknowns plaguing fundamental science.
New test may predict Covid-19 immunity
The paper test measures the level of neutralizing antibodies in a blood sample and could help people decide what protections they should take against infection.