New research shows a neutrino laser is impossible
Due to physical and fundamental limitations, an earlier proposal for producing laserlike beams of neutrinos cannot be achieved, scientists report.
Cognition and consciousness arise from analog computations, says new theory
The brain's ability to generate quick, nimble volitional thought — and a unified awareness of thought and experience — arises from analog computations, MIT neuroscientists argue in a new review.
Atlas of the brain’s striatum could guide researchers to new drug treatments
A new study reveals insights into populations of neurons affected by Huntington’s disease, schizophrenia, addiction, and other disorders.
Translating economic growth into better lives
Graduate student Lyonel Tanganco investigates how to improve public policy interventions and address challenges in nutrition, climate, and development.
MIT Quantum Initiative launches postdoctoral fellowship program
The Institute welcomes its first cohort of QMIT Fellows this fall to advance interdisciplinary quantum research.
Study: Peptides can form well-defined structures in harsh, Venus-like conditions
New research offers support for the possibility that complex biological molecules could exist in the highly acidic environment of Venus’s cloud layer.
Playing against climate risk
Climate scientist Sai Ravela is using games to help coastal communities find creative adaptations to climate change.
Looking beyond natural sequences
A new machine-learning framework aims to improve the success rate of computational protein design while moving away from results that reproduce sequences found in nature.
New type of attack can slip past the defenses in your computer’s processor
MIT CSAIL researchers found a way to exploit a split-second gap in chip security — and used it to acquire a Linux system’s password file.
MIT engineers create a system for building shape-changing smart devices
Dubbed “bifur-circuits,” these interactive building blocks could be used to develop reconfigurable robotic grippers or customized assistive devices.
AI helps design new materials that work in the real world
The “CrysVCD” tool developed at MIT could cut the huge amounts of time and money spent on screening out chemically unstable designs.
Retooling to help democracy revive
Deindustrialization didn’t only hurt some workers, Daron Acemoglu says in a new book; it shrank the coalition supporting democracy, which needs expanding.
Cells use a little-known molecule to protect themselves from iron overload
This discovery points toward new combination strategies against cancer, and may explain the iron buildup seen in disorders such as early-onset Parkinson’s disease.
The secret love life of the longfin squid
MIT Sea Grant resident artist and acclaimed underwater photographer Keith Ellenbogen captures an intimate look at courtship and communication in a hidden spawning spectacle off Cape Cod.
Brain circuit keeps tabs on what just happened to aid judgment of what’s happening now
To keep track of what’s going on in front of it, the brain relies not only on what it sees, but also a comparison with what it just saw. A new study pinpoints the circuit that provides that service.