Media Laboratory
Digital technology is now ubiquitous: travelers send email wirelessly from 35,000 feet over the Pacific, our cars tell us where we are, and kids leave text messages for their parents through their cell phones rather than scrawled notes on the kitchen table. But many of these technologies are still in their infancy, and we have only begun to scratch the surface of how they can be integrated into improving the quality of our everyday lives. Tomorrow's computers will not only be spiffy machines with fast connections but will also have common sense and the ability to understand and respond to us in more satisfying and "human" ways.
Toward this end, the Media Lab is now embarking on the next phase of the digital revolution—looking at how we can leverage digital technologies in new and meaningful ways. Over the past year, the lab announced two new initiatives: an MIT-wide Communications Futures Program and an expanded effort in common-sense computing.
Led by Andrew Lippman and David P. Reed, the Communications Futures Program is a joint effort with the School of Engineering and Sloan School of Management to better deploy the wide range of research resources across campus in inventing tomorrow's roadmaps for the communications industry. The goal is to strengthen and apply the diverse experience and expertise of six to ten MIT laboratories and research programs to define the possible future structures of this rapidly changing industry and develop the critical technologies and models necessary to guide investment and organization. Just as the advent of the PC dramatically altered the computing landscape, digital, scalable, open-architecture communications will open doors for innovation, new business models, and new entrants.
Common-sense computing is certainly not a new idea. For almost 50 years, Marvin Minsky has been asking the question, "Why has it been so hard to give computers the ability to reason about ordinary goals and concerns?" Now the Media Lab is taking a fresh look at this problem, exploring ways to give computers common-sense knowledge about the physical world in which they exist, social knowledge of how people interact, sensory knowledge of how things look and taste, and psychological knowledge about the way people think.
The Media Lab is inventing a future where our machines will not only respond to our commands but will also understand our emotions—a future where our human capabilities are digitally assisted and augmented and where innovation becomes the domain of all.
Research Achievements
Here is a sampling of 2002–2003 Media Laboratory research accomplishments:
- Ripley, a sensor-rich conversational robot that—at least to a limited degree—can interact with people using grounded, spoken language. He is not programmed with scripted speech, but rather learns the meaning of words, much as a young child does.
- GOOSE, a goal-oriented search engine that uses common-sense reasoning to adapt to the user's style of inquiry, rather than vice versa.
- A fully instrumented Chrysler 300M that collects data on a driver's mental workload and emotional state. The goal is to design a car whose enhanced features will interact with the driver in nonintrusive ways, making everyday driving safer and less stressful.
- Collaborative (viral) communication schemes that use bandwidth and energy far more efficiently than traditional point-to-point wireless technology.
- An autonomous, synthetic pup that demonstrates a practical approach to real-time learning for autonomous synthetic characters. This animated pup learns from experience and can be trained with the same techniques used for real dogs.
- A robotic, sea anemone-like creature to help us learn what aesthetic, behavioral, and interactive qualities give a robot a lifelike presence and how people relate to an "alien" creature that seems organic but is not anthropomorphic.
- Every Sign of Life, which explores the use of computer games to make monitoring personal health fun and engaging.
- New ways of joining the physical environment and cyberspace by making "tangible bits" accessible through everyday physical surfaces like walls or desktops. One project, Sensetable, allows the user to easily explore how one—or several—changes will affect a system by projecting graphic representations of complex computations directly onto the surface of a table.
- ALF, an inexpensive, expressive plastic head that provides children with an easy-to-use introduction to programming and mechanical design.
- A unique graphical display, Genomic Cartography, which focuses on new ways to represent complex information from very large data sets—like the human genome—through dynamic, 3-D images.
- Toy Symphony, a multiyear project involving children, soloists, composers, and symphony orchestras around the world, which aims to radically alter how children are introduced to music and to redefine the relationship between professional musicians and young people.
- Inexpensive, wireless motion sensors that are worn or held by people and transmit a short radio frequency pulse. These inexpensive sensors can be used to sense a crowd's energy and, for example, can change music in response to it. They can also have numerous applications for health care, signaling when an elderly person opens a medicine cabinet or alerting relatives when there is a lack of motion.
- A new technology that exploits the reduced melting point and high solubility of nanoparticles to produce super-cheap transistors by printing them directly onto a flexible, plastic substrate.
Exhibitions and Performances
Three Media Lab projects representing the work of assistant professor Cynthia Breazeal, Professor Tod Machover, and graduate student Ben Fry were included in the 2003 National Design Triennial at the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York City. The exhibit runs from April 2003 through January 25, 2004.
In April and May, following its huge successes in Berlin, Dublin, and Edinburgh, Tod Machover's Toy Symphony made its US debut with performances at MIT and in New York City.
Professor John Maeda's Føød exhibit, which included 30 digital photographs, was shown at the Cristinerose Gallery in New York City during December and January.
Collaboration within MIT
The Media Laboratory continues to vigorously engage in collaborations within MIT. These collaborations are in the form of joint academic appointments, teaching efforts, and research programs. Some 20 percent of the graduate students supported by the lab and directly supervised by Media Arts and Sciences (MAS) faculty are from departments other than MAS. As in years past, the lab engaged approximately 280 undergraduates through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and had 23 students enroll in the alternative freshman program, which completed its third year.
Media Lab Abroad
Media Lab Europe
Media Lab Europe (MLE), under the guidance of acting director Kenneth Haase, continues to grow intellectually and programmatically. Its current research agenda is defined by three broad themes: augmenting senses, enhancing thinking, and connecting people. In September 2002, MLE stepped up activity with the launch of a series of open house events to provide existing and potential partners the opportunity to learn more about the lab and to meet with academic and industry leaders in specific fields of interest. A number of MIT faculty members participated in these events as guest speakers. This year, in conjunction with Trinity College, Dublin, MLE also hosted Eurohaptics 2003, an international conference for researchers in the field of human haptic sensing and touch-enabled computer applications.
Media Lab Europe has attracted three new partners in the last financial year: Orange, Portuguese Science & Technology Foundation, and Scottish Business Lab. These join existing partners, which include the AIB Group, BBC, Ericsson, Essilor, and Fondazione Ugo Bordoni. Donors include Denis O'Brien, Compaq, Hewlett Packard, Heidrick and Struggles, and Motorola.
Media Lab Asia
After an 18-month trial period, the government of India and the MIT Media Lab have decided not to continue their administrative partnership in developing a Media Lab Asia in India. Some of the projects initiated will continue to be funded by the government of India, some will be picked up by other institutions in India, and some will be terminated. This decision will not lessen the Media Lab's commitment to e-development and to meeting the challenges faced by the developing world; the Media Lab continues to participate in collaborative projects focused on learning, health, and economic development in Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama.
Sponsors
During most of FY2003, funding for the Media Lab's research programs continued to be affected by a weak economy, declining to a level closer to FY2001 but with a larger portion coming from directed research sponsorships. However, the final quarter of FY2003 saw a resurgence of corporate support.
Research Sponsors
In FY2003 the Media Lab submitted approximately 50 proposals for new and continuing directed research projects. Half of these proposals remain under consideration, and 13 have resulted in awards. Over 95 percent of the proposals submitted were in response to government solicitations (NSF, DARPA, and NIH), with additional limited interest in directed sponsorship from foundations and nongovernmental sources. The proposals ranged in size from $28K to $3.5M, spanning one to five years; grants that were awarded ranged from $28K to $1.5M, with an average award of $150K per year for two years.
Consortia
Sponsors joining the lab's consortia include the following:
- Digital Life: Eyematic Interfaces and Sony Corporation
- Digital Nations: Corporación Colombia Digital Nation
- Things That Think: Cleanup Corporation, Intel, IBM, Ricoh, TOPPAN Printing, and Zebra Technologies
- Sanyo Electric Company and Escher Group became affiliate sponsors of the Lab.
Special Funds
Six corporate sponsors—BT, France Telecom, Intel, LEGO, Motorola, and Telmex—funded student fellows. Additional fellow sponsors included the family and friends of the late Steven R. Holtzman, who established a fellowship in his memory; Media Lab Europe; and Media Lab Asia.
The following were named fellows during FY2003:
- BT: Aggelos Bletsas, Dan Chak, Brian Chow, Marc Downie, Raffi Krikorian, and Thomas J. McLeish
- France Telecom: Tom Stocky
- Steven R. Holtzman Fellowship for Digital Expression: Ben Fry
- Intel: Vikas Anant, Erik Blankinship, Vidya Lakshmipathy, Josh Lifton, James Patten, Benjamin Vigoda, and Earl Wagner
- LEGO: Michael Rosenblatt, Michael Smith-Welch, and Claudia Urrea
- Media Lab Asia: Vikrant Agnihotri, Leo Burd, Tanzeem Choudhury, Rich DeVaul, Sheel Dhande, Nathan Eagle, Akshay Mohan, Niloy Mukherjee, Manu Prakash, and Jason Taylor
- Media Lab Europe: Margarita Dekoli, Tristan Jehan, Ali Mazalek, and Carson Reynolds
- Motorola: Barbara Barry, Ryan Chin, Hong Ma, Cameron Marlow, Amanda Parkes, and Cagri Savran
- Telmex: Georgina Echániz-Pellicer, Carla Gomez-Monroy, Emmanuel Munguia Tapia, Wilfrido Sierra, Hugo Solís, Gerardo Vallejo, and Larissa Welti-Santos
Human Resources/Administration
Several new staff members were welcomed to the Media Lab in 2002–2003. These included Stephen Whitney, who joined the lab as director of finance, Valerie Chin, who came from MIT Information Systems to take on the role of fiscal officer for the Media Lab's finance group, and Teresa Kratman, who assumed the position of contracts and intellectual property administrator.
There were also a number of support staff appointments, including John Archambault, Lisa Breede, Linda Carpenter, Maureen Coleman, Sarah Dionne, and Lynne Lenker.
The Media Lab was pleased to announce two internal promotions. Melissa Corley was promoted to program manager for the Things That Think consortium and Melania Lewis was promoted to executive assistant for the chairman of the Media Lab. In addition, Elizabeth Farley was promoted to administrative assistant in the Human Design group.
More information about the Media Laboratory can be found on the web at http://www.media.mit.edu/.
Media Laboratory Sponsors
CORPORATE AND STRATEGIC RESEARCH PARTNERS*
BT
Hewlett-Packard Company
Information and Communications University
Learning Lab Denmark
The LEGO Group
MasterCard International
Motorola, Inc.
Swatch AG
Telmex
US Postal Service
*Members of all consortia and special interest groups
RESEARCH CONSORTIA
Changing Places
Salt River Project
State Farm Insurance
Digital Life (DL)
Acer Incorporated
Banco Bradesco
Bertelsmann AG/BMG Entertainment
Eastman Kodak
Eyematic Interfaces, Inc.
France Telecom/Orange
Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Industrial Technology Research Institute
McDonald's Corporation
Nortel Networks
NTT Comware
Panasonic Technologies Company
Philip Morris USA
Royal Ahold
Sony Corporation
Stan Winston Studio, Inc.
Telecom Italia LAB
Digital Nations
Banco Bradesco
Corporación Colombia Digital Nation
INCAE
SENACYT
information: organized (i:o)
AARP
Eastman Kodak
Grupo Estado
Johnson & Johnson
McGraw-Hill
Sun Microsystems
Time Inc. Production
US Department of Defense
Things That Think (TTT)
American Greetings Corporation
ChevronTexaco Information Technology Company
Cleanup Corporation
DaimlerChrysler
EDS
FEI Company
Fraunhofer e.V.
General Motors
Intel
International Business Machines
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc.
Lucent Technologies
Mars, Incorporated
Mattel, Inc.
Microsoft Corporation
Minolta Co., Ltd.
NEC Solutions (America), Inc.
Nokia Corporation
Pitney Bowes, Inc.
Ricoh Co., Ltd.
Roche Diagnostics Corporation
Saab AB
Schott Glas
Sensormatic Electronics Corp.
Steelcase Inc.
Sun Microsystems
Telenor R&D
TOPPAN Printing Co., Ltd.
Toshiba
Yamaha Corporation
Zebra Technologies
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS
Counter Intelligence
Cleanup Corporation
Royal Ahold
e-markets
Acer Incorporated
Royal Ahold
Gray Matters
AARP
Silicon Biology /Personal Fabrication
Agfa-Gevaert
Lucent Technologies
Roche Diagnostics Corporation
Sensormatic Electronics Corp.
Toshiba
SPECIAL FUNDS
ASCII Corporation
BT
CSK Corporation
Heller Werkstatt
The LEGO Group
Motorola, Inc.
NTT Comware
SEED Foundation
SEGA
Telmex
RESEARCH CONTRACTS
France Telecom/Orange
W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Microsoft Corporation
National Science Foundation
Old Dominion University/NASA
US Air Force
US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
US Department of the Army
AFFILIATES
Accenture
Datalogic S.p.A.
Escher Group, Ltd.
Sanyo Electric Company, Inc.
Varian, Inc.
ENDOWMENT AND NAMING GRANTS
Rudge and Nancy Allen
Asahi Broadcasting Corporation
AT&T Corp.
Armand and Celeste Bartos
BT
Joseph Chung
Alex Dreyfoos, Jr.
Fukutake Publishing
Informatix, Inc.
The LEGO Group
LG Electronics, Inc.
MasterCard International
Misawa Homes
Motorola, Inc.
NEC
Isao Okawa
Schlumberger
Sony Corporation
Swatch AG
Telmex
Toshiba
Philippe Villers
Media Lab Europe is the Media Lab's European Research Partner.