Larry Greenemeier writes for Scientific American about why government agencies want access to encrypted data, highlighting a report co-authored by MIT researchers that warns against providing special access. The researchers argue that providing access would “make software and devices much more complex, difficult to secure and expensive for tech companies to maintain."
MIT biologists have developed a genetically modified version of a common gut bacteria that could be used to treat disease, reports Catherine Woods for the PBS NewsHour. “You could engineer a Bacteroides to live in the gut and detect when inflammation is just starting…so that you can seek treatment right away,” explains Prof. Timothy Lu.
Researchers at MIT have developed tools that could one day allow intestinal bacteria to monitor, diagnose and treat diseases, writes Eryn Brown for The Los Angeles Times. "Just as you'd program computers, we're starting to learn how to program cells by modifying their DNA," says Prof. Timothy Lu.
Network World reporter Tim Greene writes that a committee of security experts state in a new report that allowing government agencies access to secure data could increase data breaches. MIT Principal Research Scientist Daniel Weitzner, who led the preparation of the report, explains that allowing special access creates “vulnerabilities to infrastructure being used in the commercial sector.”
Cat Zakrzewski writes for TechCrunch that a new report co-authored by MIT researchers details how giving law enforcement agencies access to encrypted communications could pose security risks. The report, “tells us that a backdoor for the government and law enforcement also provides an opening that could be exploited by hackers.”
Danny Yadron, Damian Paletta and Jennifer Valentino-Devries write for The Wall Street Journal that in a new report MIT cybersecurity experts argue that allowing governments access to encrypted data is “technically impractical and would expose consumers and business to a greater risk of data breaches.”
Government proposals for access to data would put digital communications at risk, according to a paper by CSAIL security experts. The New York Times’ Nicole Perlroth calls the report “the first in-depth technical analysis of government proposals by leading cryptographers and security thinkers.”
Financial Times reporter Richard Waters writes about how graduate student Abe Davis’ motion magnification research could be used to create more realistic virtual worlds. Waters writes that Davis’ work presents the “possibility of capturing and manipulating real-world objects in virtual space.”
MIT startup LiquiGlide has announced that they are partnering with the international food packaging company Orkla to use their non-stick coating inside mayonnaise bottles, reports Katie Palmer for Wired. Palmer explains that LiquiGlide has “created an algorithm to optimize the thermodynamic relationships between a textured solid on the inside of the bottle, its liquid 'lubricant,' and the product in question.”
MIT spinout LiquiGlide has signed a deal with Orkla that will allow the company to use LiquiGlide’s non-stick coating in their mayonnaise bottles, reports Chris Foxx for the BBC. Foxx explains that a customized version of the LiquiGlide “coating is created for each product, resulting in a "permanently wet" surface inside containers that helps the product slip out.”
In this video, BBC Click’s LJ Rich explores how researchers at MIT CSAIL have devised a system that can reconstruct sound from a video recording. “I think what’s really different about this technology is that it provides you with a way to image this information,” says graduate student Abe Davis.
BetaBoston reporter Nidhi Subbaraman writes that MIT startup LiquiGlide has signed a deal with Orkla ASA to license LiquiGlide’s “slippery coatings for a brand of mayonnaise due to be launched in the next year in northern and central Europe.”
MIT researchers have devised a system that repairs software bugs similar to the way a surgeon applies skin grafts, writes Jonathan Vanian for Fortune. “The new system detects bugs, takes healthy code from a publicly available source, and then grafts it onto the sick software,” Vanian explains.
In a special issue on the Internet of Things, Politico’s Danny Vinik compiles an oral history to describe the origins of the Internet of Things. “I’m sure there’s a sci-fi novel somewhere that talks about this,” quips Sarma, who features prominently in the piece, which also references MIT’s Auto-ID Lab.
Politico editor Steve Heuser compiles a special series on the policy questions raised by the Internet of Things. In it, Prof. Sanjay Sarma calls attention to security concerns, writing, “if leaders don’t think this through, and don’t create a framework for it to succeed, there’s a real chance that the full potential of the Internet of Things could be compromised.”