Inferring urban travel patterns from cellphone data
Big-data analysis could give city planners timelier, more accurate alternatives to commuter surveys.
Pushing through sand
Simple equation predicts force needed to push objects through granular and pasty materials.
New solar cell is more efficient, costs less than its counterparts
Exposed in step-like formation, layers of new photovoltaic cell harvest more of sun’s energy.
Unfriendly skies: Piston engine aircraft pose a significant health threat
Study shows long-lasting health, economic impacts of lead emissions from U.S. general aviation flights.
3-D printed structures “remember” their shapes
Heat-responsive materials may aid in controlled drug delivery and solar panel tracking.
Hacking microbes
Startup’s engineered yeast helps clients produce fragrances and flavors more efficiently.
Using light to control genome editing
New technique offers precise manipulation of when and where genes are targeted.
New method developed for producing some metals
Using electricity rather than heat can reduce both energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions.
Programmable network routers
New design should enable much more flexible traffic management, without sacrificing speed.
Lifelong learning a hallmark of MIT pursuits
Professor Philip Gschwend discusses the importance of comprehensive systems approaches to curing environmental ills.
Study reveals new physics of how fluids flow in porous media
Key flow mechanisms, crucial to carbon sequestration and fuel-cell operation, have been visualized.
Sponge creates steam using ambient sunlight
Bubble-wrapped structure requires no mirrors or lenses to focus the sun’s heat.
Seeing nature through a molecular engineer’s eye
Alfredo Alexander-Katz probes systems in action, from clotting blood to walking molecules.
Recording analog memories in human cells
Engineers program human cells to store complex histories in their DNA.
New heads of house join undergraduate and graduate communities to start the fall semester
Areas of expertise include robotics, writing, physics, jewelry-making, and breakfast cereal.