Washington Post reporter Matt Schudel writes about the impact Prof. Emerita Suzanne Corkin’s work had on our understanding of memory and cognitive disorders. Schudel writes that Corkin, who died on June 4, “made significant contributions to the study of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, and helped identify regions of the brain affected by degenerative disorders.”
Maria Zuber, MIT’s vice president for research, speaks with Science’s Jeffrey Mervis about her new role as chair of the National Science Board. “U.S. research and education are really what has kept this country at the forefront,” says Zuber. “I think that even in this environment… research spending ought to still be up.”
STAT reporter Damian Garde spotlights alumna Lita Nelson, who led MIT’s TLO for 23 years. Garde notes that Nelsen, “shattered the glass ceiling for women in tech transfer,” and Katharine Ku, head of Stanford’s Office of Technology Licensing, adds that she has been “a beacon for the tech transfer community.”
Alumna Michelle Lee, director of the USPTO, speaks with Radio Boston’s Anthony Brooks during a trip to Boston to speak at MIT about patents and innovation. Lee noted her commitment to encouraging more females to pursue STEM fields because “you never know who’s going to start that next company that’s going to revolutionize the world.”
Financial Times reporter Sarah Murray speaks with Prof. Fiona Murray, associate dean for innovation, about how to encourage and support female entrepreneurs. “It sounds trivial, but when women enter the classroom it’s very important that they see people like them,” explains Murray.
In an article for Ozy about MIT alumna Sabrina Pasterski, Farah Halime writes about Pasterski’s research on black holes, and the nature of gravity and spacetime, all of which “has the world of physics abuzz.” Halime notes that Pasterski, “might be the new Einstein.”
Alumna Michelle K. Lee, director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, writes for USA Today about the need for women to pursue STEM careers. “The lack of gender parity is not just a social issue, it is an economic imperative,” Lee writes. “We need to get more girls into STEM education, and we need to empower more women in STEM professions.”
Prof. Sara Seager speaks with Robin Wilson of The Chronicle of Higher Education for a piece about what it’s like to be a female astronomer. Seager explains that MIT is one of few places where she isn’t treated differently because she’s female. "I don’t think about my gender while I’m here,” she says.
David Rosen writes for Teen Urban News about Girls Day at the MIT Museum, an event that celebrates women in STEM. “Science involves everything,” said graduate student Olivia Hentz, the event’s opening speaker. “You get to learn something no one has ever known. We hope you will be inspired to go back to your schools and study science.”
In an interview with NPR, alumna Noramay Cadena and her daughter, Chassitty Saldana, discuss how Cadena completed her MIT degrees while raising Saldana. Cadena tells Saldana that graduating from MIT “gave me this huge sense of hope for what you would do."
Prof. Marcia Bartusiak writes for The Washington Post about Eileen Pollack’s book, “The Only Woman in the Room,” which examines the obstacles facing women in science. Bartusiak writes that, “Pollack draws attention to this important and vexing problem with a personal narrative, beautifully written and full of important insights on the changes needed to make those barriers crumble.”
President L. Rafael Reif speaks with Fortune’s Erika Fry about Lubna Olayan, CEO and deputy chairperson of Olayan Financing Co., who was named to Fortune’s list of Most Powerful Women. Reif says that Olayan’s mental nimbleness is “an asset and a gift that few people have."
Prof. Thomas Levenson writes for The Boston Globe about sexism in science. “Sadly and infuriatingly, the habits of mind that once almost entirely barred women from the lab remain, less potent, perhaps, but still at work,” writes Levenson.
Stephanie McFeeters writes for The Boston Globe about the social media campaign #ILookLikeAnEngineer, highlighting the MIT students, faculty and alumni who participated in the trend by posting their photos. The campaign stemmed from the negative response one female engineer received after appearing in an ad campaign for her IT company.
Last weekend Institute Professor Mildred Dresselhaus became the first woman to receive the IEEE Medal of Honor for her pioneering work with carbon materials, reports Melissa Lott for Scientific American. Lotts writes that Dresselhaus is known “for her work with buckminsterfullerenes (buckyballs), nanotubes and graphene as well as her dedicated work ethic and caring nature.”