Civil and environmental engineering

Bringing power to the people — and heat as wellSun-powered system developed by MIT students could provide electricity, heat and cooling to rural schools and clinics.

New model of disease contagion ranks U.S. airports in terms of their spreading influenceAirports in New York, Los Angeles and Honolulu are judged likeliest to play a significant role in the growth of a pandemic.

Matthew Orosz awarded Echoing Green Fellowship to further off-grid energy workNewly minted MIT PhD selected for two-year social entrepreneurship fellowship.

Civil engineers find savings where the rubber meets the roadStudy shows that pavement deflection under vehicle tires makes for a continuous uphill drive that increases fuel consumption.

ESD Interim Director Joseph Sussman discusses the case for complex sociotechnical systems as a new field of studyDelivers annual Charles L. Miller Lecture

Study shows unified process of evolution in bacteria and sexual eukaryotesA single gene mutation can sweep through a population, opening the door for the concept of ‘species’ in bacteria.

Seeing the music in natureFrom spider webs to tangled proteins, Markus Buehler finds the connections between mathematics, molecules and materials.

Buehler to receive Outstanding Young Investigator Award from the Materials Research SocietyHonored for highly innovative and creative work in computational modeling

Buckle inInspired by a toy, the ‘buckliball’ — a collapsible structure fabricated from a single piece of material — represents a new class of 3-D, origami-like structures.

Greenhouse gas can find a home undergroundNew MIT analysis shows there’s enough room to safely store at least a century’s worth of U.S. fossil fuel emissions.

In the World: How rainwater can meet clean-water needsRainfall can provide an alternative to polluted groundwater in developing countries, but systems are needed to keep it clean.

Robert Whitman, longtime CEE professor, dies at 84World-renowned geotechnical engineer and earthquake expert worked at MIT for more than 40 years.

Researchers create first large-scale model of human mobility that incorporates human natureWork is broadly applicable to studies of commuting, migration, freight, even epidemics.

National Engineers Week: A Q&A with Richard de NeufvilleOn engineering design and the book 'Flexibility in Engineering Design'

Companies looking at a more regional approach to manufacturingChina no longer the obvious choice for manufacturing functions of large U.S.-based companies, paper says

How spider webs achieve their strengthIt’s not just the strength of the silk itself, a new study finds; the silk’s way of stretching and the structure of the whole web help it resist damage.

Viruses con bacteria into working for themCoevolution of guest and host lets a virus control its host’s machinery.

Traditional social networks fueled Twitter’s spreadSite’s U.S. growth relied primarily on media attention, geographic proximity of users.

PhD candidate Malek wins Marshall Sherfield Fellowship

Researchers link patterns seen in spider silk, melodiesAnalogy could help engineers develop materials that make use of repeating patterns.

Carbon capture? Go for the sourceNew analysis shows pulling CO₂ from the air would not be cost-effective in the foreseeable future.

Bacteria may readily swap beneficial genesMicrobes have developed a quick and effective way to exchange genetic information coding for antibiotic resistance, other functions.

Commemorating 20 years of the JR East Professorship

MIT and Cyprus Institute expanding collaborative research, education

Escaping legacy IT systemsSophisticated computer model lets corporate IT managers evaluate upgrades and reconfigurations without risking the stability of their networks.

Improved buildings could make a big dent in climate changeNew MIT report on concrete buildings shows many areas for major reductions in their lifetime carbon footprint.