Popular Science reporter Charlotte Hu writes that MIT researchers have developed an “electronics chip design that allows for sensors and processors to be easily swapped out or added on, like bricks of LEGO.” Hu writes that “a reconfigurable, modular chip like this could be useful for upgrading smartphones, computers, or other devices without producing as much waste.”
Prof. Desiree Plata speaks with AccuWeather senior on-air meteorologist Geoff Cornish about her research in using zeolite clay to control and remove methane emissions from the air. “So, the really interesting thing about zeolite is it has these cool pore spaces so when you drop copper into those pore spaces it can grab onto a methane molecule and attach an oxygen atom to it and that helps convert that methane into carbon dioxide which is a much less potent greenhouse gas and so the net benefit to the climate can be quite dramatic,” explains Plata.
Forbes contributor Jeff Kart writes that a new study by MIT researchers finds that yeast, an abundant waste product from breweries, can filter out even trace amounts of lead. The researchers demonstrated that in just five minutes “a single gram of the inactive, dried yeast cells can remove up to 12 milligrams of lead in aqueous solutions with initial lead concentrations below 1 part per million.”
MIT engineers have developed a wireless, reconfigurable chip that could easily be snapped onto existing devices like a LEGO brick, reports Miriam Fauzia for The Daily Beast. “Having the flexibility to customize and upgrade an old device is a modder’s dream,” writes Fauzia, “but the chip may also help reduce electronic waste, which is estimated at 50 million tons a year worldwide.”
Researchers from MIT have discovered a hardware vulnerability in Apple’s M1 chip using an attack called PACMAN, reports Harry Guinness for Popular Science. “Attackers can only use PACMAN to exploit an existing memory bug in the system, which can be patched,” explained Guinness.
Scientists from MIT and Brigham and Women’s Hospital have developed a plant-based gel that can be used to deliver effective doses of antimicrobial drugs around the world, reports Ed Cara for Gizmodo. The gels “can be produced cheaply and combined with edible materials like beeswax to create different textures and viscosity, ranging from something like a protein shake to yogurt,” writes Cara.
CSAIL researchers have found a security vulnerability in Apple’s M1 chip, reports Philip Tracy for Gizmodo. “The flaw could theoretically give bad actors a door to gain full access to the core operating system kernel,” explains Tracy.
MIT researchers have discovered a hardware vulnerability in Apple’s M1 chips that can allow attackers to break through its security defenses, reports Carly Page for TechCrunch. “Researchers from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, however, have created a novel hardware attack, which combines memory corruption and speculative execution attacks to sidestep the security feature,” writes Page.
The new Wright Brothers Wind Tunnel at MIT, which is capable of reaching wind speeds of up to 230 miles per hour, provides a controlled environment to measure the aerodynamics of an object, reports Matt Shearer for WBZ. "Everybody turns into a little kid when they get into a wind tunnel," says Prof. Mark Drela.
Researchers at MIT have developed a wood-like plant material which could eventually serve as a viable wood substitute in various construction projects, reports Tim Newcomb for Popular Mechanics. Researchers adjust “chemicals in the growth process to precisely control the physical and mechanical properties, such as stiffness and density,” explains Newcomb.
Based on data from the MIT Election Data and Science Lab and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, researchers have found that mortality rates are improving faster in Democratic counties than Republican ones, reports Adrianna Rodriguez for USA Today. “Democratic counties also saw greater reductions in deaths from chronic lower respiratory tract diseases, diabetes, influenza and pneumonia, and kidney disease,” writes Rodriguez.
Information from MIT’s Election Data and Science Lab and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were used in a new study that found mortality rates in Democratic and Republican counties are growing further apart, reports WCVB. The study found “that mortality rates decreased more in Democratic counties than in Republican counties,” writes WCVB.
Keri Pearlson, executive director of the Cybersecurity at MIT Sloan consortium, and Prof. Stuart Madnick write for The Wall Street Journal about how managers should build and equip their organizations for cyber threats. “It is more effective to build a cybersecurity culture – an effort that goes beyond training and gets employees to see security as part of their job,” write Pearlson and Madnick.
Researchers from MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC) and Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) are working on making commercial nuclear fusion a reality, reports Juandre for Popular Mechanics. “CFS will build [the tokamak] SPARC and develop a commercial fusion product, while MIT PSFC will focus on its core mission of cutting-edge research and education,” says Prof. Dennis G. Whyte, director of the PSFC.
Associate Provost Richard Lester and Prof. Noelle Selin speak with Tiziana Dearing, host of Radio Boston, about MIT’s Climate Grand Challenges. “To me, the Climate Grand Challenges effort really represents that we’re kind of at a frameshift when thinking about the climate problem. It’s not just a problem that some people can work on,” says Selin. “A climate challenge is a whole of society challenge, and therefore it really has to be a whole of MIT challenge.” Lester adds he hopes the challenges will “inspire a new generation of students to roll up their sleeves, put their shoulders to the wheel and help us solve this problem.”