School of Engineering

MIT chemical engineers have designed a sensor that can be embedded into plant leaves and measure hydrogen peroxide levels, which indicate that damage has occurred. The signal can be sent to a nearby smartphone.

Nanosensor can alert a smartphone when plants are stressed

Carbon nanotubes embedded in leaves detect chemical signals that are produced when a plant is damaged.

April 15, 2020

(Left–right) Top row: Pelkins Ajanoh, Aurel Nagy, Mohamed Ismail. Middle row: Pooja Reddy, Connie Liu. Bottom row: Jason Wang, Riana Shah, Anthony Tabet, Jin Park, Sanath Devalpurkar.

Ten from MIT awarded 2020 Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans

The $90,000 merit-based fellowship funds graduate studies for outstanding immigrants and children of immigrants.

April 14, 2020

Professor Rob MacFarlane is a professor of materials science and engineering at MIT.

3Q: Robert Macfarlane on cleaning your smartphone screen

Materials scientist explores why some household cleaners could harm the protective coating on a smartphone screen.

April 13, 2020

MIT engineers have developed magnetic nanoparticles (shown in white squares) that can stimulate the adrenal gland to produce stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol.

Researchers achieve remote control of hormone release

Using magnetic nanoparticles, scientists stimulate the adrenal gland in rodents to control release of hormones linked to stress.

April 10, 2020

Clockwise from left: Gammacell irradiator in which N95 mask was tested; sodium chloride aerosol apparatus, built by Enze Tian for testing N95 mask filtration efficiency; section of an irradiated N95 mask being loaded into the testing apparatus.

Gamma radiation found ineffective in sterilizing N95 masks

Nuclear scientists and biomedical researchers team up to investigate whether treatment with gamma radiation could make N95 masks more reusable.

April 10, 2020

To reduce lag times and increase quality in video streaming, mobile gaming, and other web services, researchers at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory have designed a congestion-control scheme for time-varying wireless links, such as cellular networks.

Reducing delays in wireless networks

Congestion control system could help streaming video, mobile games, and other applications run more smoothly.

April 9, 2020

Left to right: Katie Collins, Vaishnavi Phadnis, and Vaibhavi Shah are three of the 396 undergraduates in the United States to receive 2020-21 Goldwater Scholarships.

Katie Collins, Vaishnavi Phadnis, and Vaibhavi Shah named 2020-21 Goldwater Scholars

Three MIT undergraduates who use computer science to explore human biology and health honored for their academic achievements.

April 9, 2020

A new system relies on short-range Bluetooth signals emitted from people’s smartphones to trace who they've been in contact with. These signals represent random strings of numbers, likened to “chirps” that other nearby smartphones can remember hearing, offering a way to find people who may have been in contact with people who have tested positive for Covid-19.

Bluetooth signals from your smartphone could automate Covid-19 contact tracing while preserving privacy

A system that enables smartphones to transmit “chirps” to nearby devices could notify people if they have been near an infected person.

April 8, 2020

MIT postdoc Michael Wessely shows off the SprayableTech prototype.

Sprayable user interfaces

CSAIL's SprayableTech system lets users create large-scale interactive surfaces with sensors and displays using airbrushed inks.

April 8, 2020

Left to right: Department of Mathematics Professor Alan Edelman, his co-instructor and family Corgi Philip, and visiting professor and longtime Julia lab collaborator David Sanders have altered their computational thinking course to encourage input on COVID-19 responses.

Computational thinking class enables students to engage in Covid-19 response

Nearly 300 students join an open course that applies data science, artificial intelligence, and mathematical modeling using the Julia language to study Covid-19.

April 7, 2020

Paradigm4 allows users to integrate data from sources like genomic sequencing, biometric measurements, environmental factors, and more into their inquiries to enable new discoveries across a range of life science fields.

Accelerating data-driven discoveries

Life science companies use Paradigm4’s unique database management system to uncover new insights into human health.

April 4, 2020

After water, concrete is the most consumed material on Earth. Researchers in the MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub study how to reduce its impact.

Explained: Cement vs. concrete — their differences, and opportunities for sustainability

Concrete is the world’s most consumed construction material. Yet there’s a lot the public doesn’t know about it or its environmental impact.

April 3, 2020

MIT Professor Markus Buehler designs new proteins with the help of artificial intelligence. He recently translated the spike protein of the novel coronavirus (SARS-Cov-2) into sound to visualize its vibrational properties, as seen here, which could help in finding ways to stop the virus. Primary colors represent the spike’s three protein chains.

Q&A: Markus Buehler on setting coronavirus and AI-inspired proteins to music

Translated into sound, SARS-CoV-2 tricks our ear in the same way the virus tricks our cells.

April 2, 2020

The process of how crystals form on a flat surface, as shown in this electron microscope image, has been difficult to study in detail until now.

Technique reveals how crystals form on surfaces

DNA-based self-assembling system sheds light on processes essential for semiconductors and nanotechnology.

April 1, 2020

MIT engineers have developed nanoparticles that can be delivered to the lungs, where tumor-associated proteases cut peptides on the surface of the particles, releasing reporter molecules. Those reporters can be detected by a urine test.

New sensors could offer early detection of lung tumors

Study shows that a simple urine test can reveal the presence of lung cancer in mice.