Massachusetts Institute of Technology / MIT Museum
Building N51 265 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02139
Open Daily 10am – 5pm / Closed Major Holidays
NOTE: Special schedule on Thursday, May 23. See our Hours & Admission page for details.
Spring 2013 | Spring 2012 | Fall 2011
This program was a co-production of the MIT Museum and the MIT School of Architecture & Planning. Funding has been provided by the School of Architecture and Planning, the Consulate of Italy in Boston, and the MIT Museum.
Wed. 3/20 |
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Rebuilding Credibility in the Face of Natural Disaster When natural disaster strikes, who is held responsible? After the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake struck the Italian region of Abruzzo, killing more than 300 people, six seismologists were convicted of manslaughter. Nearly three years later, the city is still rebuilding. Join representatives from the city's reconstruction team in discussion with MIT experts on geology, architecture, and dispute resolution. Share your thoughts on the limitations of scientific data, and the obligation of scientists, city planners, and policy makers alike to predict and plan for the impact of natural disasters on local communities. |
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Celebrate the power of the visual experience as you explore the role of imagery in science, from your mind's eye, across the globe, and through the ages.
Tue. 3/20 |
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Visualizing Science: All In Your Head How do humans recognize and remember images? Can these processes be artificially created? Join MIT professors Aude Oliva, James Di Carlo, and Antonio Torralba in a dynamic conversation about the intersection of vision and cognition in humans and machines. |
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Tue. 4/17 |
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Visualizing Science: The Changing Arctic Ice Explore the Arctic ice cap with photographer Chris Linder, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution scientist John Toole, and MIT oceanographer Patrick Heimbach. See stunning images from the pole, explore the latest data from deep beneath the cap’s surface, and find out how such information can be used to forecast global environmental change. |
Tue. 5/22 |
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Visualizing Science: Through the Lens How do images influence the way you think about science? With a camera, an artist’s eye, and a bit of input from MIT scientists, photographer Berenice Abbott brought the world of physics into a new light. Join science photographer Felice Frankel, art historian Caroline Jones, and molecular biologist Christopher Turner for a lively discussion about the role of modern day photography in the scientific landscape. |
Are We Alone? That question has perplexed humanity for centuries. Perhaps scientists are getting closer to the answer; come find out during four evenings of discussion as biologists, astronomers, geologists, chemists and anthropologists talk and share their insights with you as they explain some of their latest research about life on other planets, as well as on our own.
Life in the Universe
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Think big. Dimitar Sasselov, astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and director of Harvard’s Origins of Life Initiative provides a cosmic perspective on the conditions for life in the universe, while Sara Seager, MIT’s Ellen Swallow Richards Professor of Planetary Science and Professor of Physics, presents the latest research on the search for exoplanets. How many places capable of supporting life may there be in the universe?
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In the Beginning
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
In the beginning, life was different. Join Nobel Laureate Jack Szostak, Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School, and Roger Summons, Professor of Geobiology at MIT, for an interdisciplinary conversation about the origins and evolution of complex life on Earth. What does it take for life to appear, and how does it develop over time?
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Why Mars Matters
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
From Viking to the Mars Exploration Rovers, the Red Planet has long held our fascination as a platform for life. Klaus Biemann, Professor Emeritus in MIT’s Department of Chemistry, Samuel Kounaves, Associate Professor of Chemistry at Tufts University, and Zara Mirmalek, postdoctoral associate in MIT’s Program in Science, Technology, and Society, share their experiences working on various Mars exploration missions. What are we really searching for on Mars, and what might we conceivably find?
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Finding Intelligence
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Mind matters. Harvard researchers Paul Horowitz, Professor of Physics and Electrical Engineering, and Richard Wrangham, Ruth Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology, lead the final conversation of the series, discussing the nature of intelligence and how we go about detecting it – on Earth, and elsewhere in the universe. What does it take for animals to evolve intelligence, and how common is this event in the universe?
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MIT MUSEUM Building N51 265 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02139
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