Peter Shor wins Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics
MIT professor to share $3 million prize with three others; Daniel Spielman PhD ’95 wins Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics.
A “golden era” to study the brain
“We can’t think of the brain only as neurons,” says PhD student Mitch Murdock, who explores the cellular basis of Alzheimer’s disease.
MIT cognitive scientists win Ig Nobel for shedding light on legalese
Edward Gibson and Eric Martinez are among this year's winners of the satiric prize, for explaining what makes legal documents so difficult to comprehend.
Saturn’s rings and tilt could be the product of an ancient, missing moon
A “grazing encounter” may have smashed the moon to bits to form Saturn’s rings, a new study suggests.
Study reveals how environment and state are integrated to control behavior
A simple animal model shows how stimuli and states such as smells, stressors, and satiety converge in an olfactory neuron to guide food-seeking behavior.
Study: Astronomers risk misinterpreting planetary signals in JWST data
Refining current opacity models will be key to unearthing details of exoplanet properties — and signs of life — in data from the powerful new telescope.
Divorce is more common in albatross couples with shy males, study finds
In a long-studied population of wandering albatrosses, females are less likely to stick with a shy mate.
Computing for the health of the planet
The MIT Schwarzman College of Computing welcomes four new faculty members engaged in research and teaching that address climate risks and other environmental issues.
How the brain focuses on what’s in mind
When holding information in mind, neural activity is more focused when and where there are bursts of gamma frequency rhythms.
Biologists glean insight into repetitive protein sequences
A computational analysis reveals that many repetitive sequences are shared across proteins and are similar in species from bacteria to humans.
Modeling the social mind
PhD student Setayesh Radkani studies the psychological and neural mechanisms at work when humans learn from and influence each other.
Studies of autism tend to exclude women, researchers find
A commonly used screening test creates a gender gap that may hinder diagnosis and treatment for women and girls.
MIT students contribute to success of historic fusion experiment
Students are part of large team that achieved fusion ignition for the first time in a laboratory.
How the brain generates rhythmic behavior
MIT neuroscientists have identified an oscillatory circuit that controls the rhythmic movement of mouse whiskers.
Microscopy technique reveals hidden nanostructures in cells and tissues
Separating densely packed molecules before imaging allows them to become visible for the first time.