Research

Prof. Daron Acemoglu speaks with Washington Post reporter Benjamin Guggenheim about his views on advancing AI, and how the technology might impact the labor market over the next decade. “What we saw at the end of ‘25 and the beginning of ‘26 was an acceleration. I think the agentic AI models are certainly much better in terms of a number of tasks, such as coding and other sort of simple cognitive tasks,” says Acemoglu. 

The Guardian’s David Kohn points to a study by Prof. Siniša Hrvatin that proposes targeting the preoptic area of the brain to induce torpor (a hibernation-like state) as a solution for astronauts to survive long term space travel. “Key aspects of the circuit appear to be conserved across different animals,” says Hrvatin. “I think we can use it to modify metabolism.” 

Fast Company’s Adele Peters spotlights “Project Obsidian,” a new geothermal power plant developed by MIT spinout Quaise Energy. The findings of former Senior Research Engineer Paul Woskov helped Quaise develop their tech. “Paul’s epiphany was realizing that if we can use the same energy to heat plasmas to millions of degrees Celsius to get fusion, why not use that for heating and drilling through rock at a much more modest temperature?” says Matthew Houde, Quaise co-founder.  

Prof. Raphael Zufferey and his colleagues developed a winged robot that can swim underwater and fly through the air, writes New York Times reporter K.R. Callaway. The robot was inspired by data from nearly 100 species of diving birds. “There was a very good chance that this [design] would have not been possible at all,” says Zufferey. “I took that risk because I believed that if birds could do it, with good engineering we might also be able to.” 

USA Today reporter Anthony Thompson explains that researchers from MIT, UMass Amherst and the Center for Coastal Studies have found evidence of invasive Manila clam reproduction at multiple sites from Boston Harbor to Cape Cod. "We do need more research to understand the Manila clam’s potential effects on the shellfishing industry and ecological communities," says Research Scientist Carolina Bastidas. "There could also be positive impacts." 

As an alternative to sticky electrode pads, Visiting Research Scientist Ankan Dutta helped develop a safe and reliable polymer electrode that can be painted right onto the skin to track muscle activity, heart rate, and brain waves with 95.1% consistency, explains Gizmodo reporter Matthew Phelan. “[E]lectrodes can be designed with cartoon patterns, which may reduce anxiety and improve acceptance among pediatric users by making EP [electrophysiology] monitoring less intimidating,” the researchers suggest.  
 

Lecturer Franco Rossi is spotlighted by National Geographic reporter Taylor Mitchell Brown for deciphering the name of ancient Maya mathematician, Sak Tahn Waax, or “White-Chested Fox,” found inscribed in the mural room at the Maya site of Xultún in Guatemala. “You can look at some of these texts forever, and it won't click,” says Rossi. “Then, one day you see it, and it just clicks.” 

In a Science article by reporter Laura Martín Agudelo, Lecturer Franco Rossi delves into the discovery of the autograph of the ancient Maya mathematician, Sak Tahn Waax, or “White-Chested Fox” in Xultun, Guatemala. “[T]here’s good evidence for codex book production [at Xultun],” says Rossi. “So if there’s going to be a name … this would be the most logical place.” 

Scientific American’s Joseph Howlett highlights how Lecturer Franco Rossi helped discover the name of ancient Maya mathematician, Sak Tahn Waax, or “White-Chested Fox,” which was inscribed in a 1,000-year-old chamber beneath Guatemala. “Rossi showed how the markings on a particular scrap of plaster could be seen as a sort of celestial chronology; the team then reconstructed how the scraps’ symbols tabulated the time it took for planets such as Mars and Venus to come back to the same position, relative to the sun,” writes Howlett.  

MIT researchers have created a new building design model that could enable engineers to construct buildings and bridges that use less materials, writes Tech Briefs’ Andrew Corselli. “Traditional topology optimization essentially starts with a blank space and tries to figure out at each point in this blank space: ‘Should there be material,’ ‘should there not be material’ from an efficiency standpoint,” says Prof. Josephine Carstensen. “Our approach populates the space with a bunch of lines that are instead candidates for ‘should there be material’ or ‘should there not be material.’ By using this line approach, we have the opportunity to have more control.” 

Writing for the Financial Times, Prof. Carlo Ratti makes the case that “the answer to imperfect peer review is better peer review, not political supervision.” Ratti shares: “Replacing scientific judgment with political alignment risks undermining the very engine of discovery. Faced with the risk that a project could be cancelled when the political weather turns, the rational researcher abandons the ambitious idea for the safe one.” 

Politico’s Mike Soraghan cites a 2019 study by Prof. Christopher Knittel and researchers on the net benefits of oil fracking. The study found homeowners, profiting about $2,500 annually per household, were five to seven times more likely to benefit from fracking than renters. “Fracking is a perfect example of something where there are net beneficiaries and net losers,” says Knittel. “And, unfortunately, society often doesn’t look out for those net losers.” 

To explain the longevity of a 1,900-year-old latrine, Scientific American’s Sam Macdonald highlights a study by Prof. Admir Masic that found the bright white chunks, or lime clasts, in Roman concrete may help preserve ancient structures. Masic explains that the findings strengthen “the idea that carbonates are more dynamic in these systems and play a fundamental role, not a marginal one.”  

After analyzing data from the LIGO, Virgo and KAGRA gravitational wave detectors, MIT researchers have found that 14% of black holes may be second-generation, formed by the merger of two smaller black holes, writes Gayoung Lee for Gizmodo. The scientists “created an analytic model to capture the kind of wobble that would have emerged from second-generation black holes. Around 14% of merging black holes followed this pattern, and the second-generation black holes identified had a very specific range of masses, at around 20 solar masses or 40 solar masses and above,” Lee explains.  

An article by ZME Science reporter Jordan Strickler showcases FAAV, the flapping-wing aerial-aquatic vehicle, by Assistant Prof. Raphael Zufferey that can dive underwater and take flight like an aquatic bird in order to take underwater measurements and samples. “Our dream vision is for oceanographers, marine biologists, and members of coastal communities to launch this robot from a boat, or from shore, and it would fly close to the area of interest, such as an iceberg or a port facility, or over a pod of whales,” says Zufferey.