In this video, PBS explores a new technique MIT researchers developed to enlarge brain samples, making them easier to image at high resolutions. Prof. Ed Boyden explains that he hopes the technique could be used to “hunt down very rare things in a tissue.”
Prof. Kerry Emanuel writes for The Conversation about what scientists have learned since Hurricane Katrina about how hurricanes are influenced by climate. Emanuel writes that, “the incidence of the strongest hurricanes – those that come closest to achieving their potential intensity – will increase as the climate warms, and there is some indication that this is happening.”
Huffington Post contributor Derrick Crowe writes about a new MIT study that examines how increasing ocean acidification is impacting phytoplankton populations. The study showed how ocean acidification, “can throw off the balance of the plankton population, causing significant changes with profound implications for other species that depend on them.”
Writing for the Huffington Post, Dr. Sandra Bond Chapman highlights an MIT study that shows different mental processes peak at different ages. The study “examined a number of different brain processes that make up intelligence, rather than viewing intelligence as a single measure as has traditionally been done.”
The Economist examines Prof. Max Tegmark’s theories on the existence of multiple universes. Tegmark is, “one of the leading proponents of multiverses,” according to The Economist. “Dr Tegmark suggests a fourfold classification of possible types of multiverse.”
A team led by Prof. Stephen Buchwald has developed single-use capsules that could make chemistry experiments less labor intensive, writes Carmen Drahl for Forbes. “We’re always looking for ways to make our chemistry more user-friendly,” says Buchwald.
Prof. John Deutch argues in this Wall Street Journal op-ed that the U.S. ban on direct exports of crude oil should be abolished. Lifting the ban, Deutch writes, “will increase U.S. jobs and increase the country’s influence in world oil markets, with little risk of higher gasoline prices for consumers.”
Andrew Revkin writes for The New York Times about a compact design for a fusion reactor that could make fusion power a possibility within a decade. Revkin highlights how the research originated from an MIT course, writing, “it’s exciting to see academia integrating directly with innovation on this scale.”
Professor Edward Gibson speaks on Huffington Post Live about his research, which indicates that all human languages share a common link. “It turns out that across all languages people tend to put the words that go together to make the bigger phrases close together linearly in the sentences,” said Gibson.
MIT researchers have found that different parts of the human brain work best at different ages, reports Susan Pinker for The Wall Street Journal. “Some abilities mature early, such as how fast we recall names and faces. Others, like vocabulary and background knowledge, are late bloomers,” Pinker explains.
Karen Weintraub writes for The Boston Globe about Prof. Susumu Tonegawa’s research examining how triggering happy memories could help alleviate depression. “When that kind of technology is invented,” Tonegawa explains, “it could potentially become very powerful therapy.”
Prof. and Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek provides readers of The Wall Street Journal with a glimpse into his everyday routines in this piece chronicling a week in his life. Wilczek writes that he spends most of one day “on my recent obsession: expanding perception.”
MIT researchers have found that increasing ocean acidification will impact phytoplankton species worldwide, reports Michelle Toh for The Christian Science Monitor. Toh explains that the researchers found, “the balance of various plankton species will radically change as the world’s oceans increase in acidity over the next 85 years.”
UPI reporter Brook Hays writes about new MIT research examining how ocean acidification will impact phytoplankton. The researchers found that “more acidic waters could allow some species to outcompete and wipe out entire other species" of phytoplankton.
In an article for Bloomberg Business about how poverty can impact brain development in children, John Tozzi highlights research by Prof. John Gabrieli examining how family income can affect academic achievement. "It’s only in the last few years that there’s been any systematic research asking about the biological side of the story," explains Gabrieli.