A new study co-authored by MIT researchers examines if consumers would be comfortable buying a self-driving car programmed for utilitarianism, reports Sarah Kaplan for The Washington Post. The researchers found that “participants largely agreed autonomous vehicles should be utilitarian, they didn’t necessarily believe the cars would be programmed that way.”
Prof. Yossi Sheffi writes for The Wall Street Journal that businesses need to safeguard their supply chains against “black swan” events, rare situations that wreak havoc. Sheffi explains that the “changing nature of supply chains has made it more important to consider the potential impact of the black-swan event.”
In an article for Stat, Andrew Joseph writes that the Commonwealth Foundation for Cancer Research is committing $20 million to the Bridge Project, which funds research at the Koch Institute and Dana-Farber. “We’re looking for the best people, regardless of where they are, to tackle these very important problems,” explains Tyler Jacks, director of the Koch Institute.
Anna Nowogrodzki reports for New Scientist on Hyrdoswarm, a company founded by graduate student Sampriti Bhattacharyya that is designing autonomous robots to map the oceans. “A network of autonomous drones could be used for disaster response, coral reef monitoring, surveillance for port security and finding places to drill for oil and gas,” writes Nowogrodzki.
Washington Post reporter Matt McFarland writes that MIT researchers have developed a device that tracks human movement through walls and could be used to monitor children or the elderly. “We want to provide peace of mind without intruding too much on lives or taking independence away,” explains Prof. Dina Katabi.
MIT researchers have developed a device that can trace the movement of a person’s silhouette through a wall using wireless signals, reports Robert Ferris for CNBC. The device can "distinguish up to 15 different individuals with 90 percent accuracy,” Ferris explains.
Hiawatha Bray writes for BetaBoston about Emerald, a new device created by MIT researchers that can track a person’s movements using wireless signals. “Our main interest is really elderly care,” explains Prof. Dina Katabi.
“A study predicting deadly heat waves in the Persian Gulf by the century’s end has underscored concerns about the effects of rising global temperatures on cities in other parts of the world, including the United States,” writes Joby Warrick of a new study co-authored by MIT researchers in a piece for The Washington Post.
Brandon Miller reports for CNN on an MIT study that indicates that climate change could drastically increase the frequency of extreme heat events in the Persian Gulf. By 2100 temperatures could be “31°C on an average summer day and the most extreme days could exceed the lethal value of 35°C,” writes Miller.
Prof. David Mindell speaks with Moira Gunn of KQED’s Tech Nation about his book “Our Robots, Ourselves,” and the future of autonomy. “All software embeds human values in one way or another,” says Mindell. “When we think about autonomy and driving, what are those values that are going to be embedded in our software?”
Doyle Rice writes for USA Today about a new MIT study that finds evidence that heat in the Persian Gulf region could reach intolerable levels due to climate change. The researchers found that “extreme heat that might occur 1 out of 20 days now will be the normal summer day of 2070 and beyond.”
Nitya Rajan reports for The Huffington Post on a new study co-authored by MIT researchers that found that climate change could raise temperatures in the Persian Gulf region to fatal levels by the end of this century. “Beyond a certain threshold, the human body loses the ability to get rid of heat,” writes Rajan.
A new study by Prof. Elfatih Eltahir indicates that climate change could cause the Persian Gulf region to warm to lethal levels of heat and humidity, reports Alan Kasujja for BBC’s Newsday. “The ability of a human body to adapt to that kind of environment becomes very limited,” explains Eltahir.
In a new study, Prof. Elfatih Eltahir warns that unmitigated climate change could increase the frequency of high-temperature events in the Persian Gulf by 2100, writes Chris Arsenault for Reuters. "If greenhouse gas emissions continue on their current trajectory, then temperatures in that region will reach levels intolerable to humans," says Eltahir.
Research by Prof. Elfatih Eltahir indicates that, if climate change goes unchecked, the Persian Gulf could see deadly high temperatures by 2100, writes Damian Carrington for The Guardian. Gulf countries “have a vital interest in supporting measures that would help reduce the concentration of CO2 in the future,” says Eltahir.