Machinery of the state
Associate Professor Mai Hassan documents bureaucratic systems in Eastern Africa set up for coercion, as well as roadblocks to democratic government.
Urbanization: No fast lane to transformation
Associate Professor Noah Nathan is generating a body of scholarship on the political impacts of urbanization throughout the global South.
A whole new world of learning via MIT OpenCourseWare videos
“I get the chance to not only watch the future happen, but I can actually be a part of it and create it,” says Ugandan entrepreneur Emmanuel Kasigazi.
Ben Bernanke PhD ’79 awarded a share of the Nobel Prize in economic sciences
MIT alumnus and two others honored for research on the role of banks in the economy, including during financial crises.
Making each vote count
MIT PhD candidate Jacob Jaffe uses data science to identify and solve problems in election administration.
What lies beneath
In a new book, an MIT scholar examines how game-theory logic underpins many of our seemingly odd and irrational decisions.
J-PAL launches the Egypt Impact Lab to improve lives through evidence-informed policymaking
New collaboration aims to strengthen Egypt’s poverty alleviation policies through rigorous evaluation and innovation.
New power sources
Thirty-six million people in the U.S. use an energy system developed by a handful of activists in the 1990s. An MIT scholar examines this unusual story.
Study: Higher minimum wages raise voter turnout
Low-wage workers, who vote infrequently, gain a participation boost when their salaries increase.
From modeling quantum devices to political systems
Senior Sihao Huang uses his background in physics and complex systems to inform his interdisciplinary approach to political science.
3 Questions: Jinhua Zhao on a “third place” between home and office
Remote workers have been seeking new types of workspaces, with implications for business and transit.
Cynthia Breazeal named dean for digital learning at MIT
Overseeing business and research units across MIT Open Learning, Breazeal will focus on the future of digital technologies and their applications in education.
Agustín Rayo named dean of SHASS
Philosophy professor brings deep experience in campus leadership to his role as head of the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences.
Giving robots social skills
A new machine-learning system helps robots understand and perform certain social interactions.
Cures for the health insurance enrollment blues
An experiment in Indonesia shows how much subsidies and in-person assistance spur people to get insurance — and how many people stop trying.