Computer science and technology

Kaashoek wins ACM’s prize for young researchersThe professor of computer science, 45, is only the fourth recipient of the prize from the Association for Computing Machinery.

Understanding proteinsNew model of protein folding helps researchers handle flood of genomic data

Dueling algorithmsIf software companies design their algorithms with the sole intention of outperforming each other, the customer can be the loser.

The big picture on energy lossMIT system, tested in Cambridge, gives comprehensive view of energy inefficiency across large areas.

The birth of electrical engineeringThe creation of the first electrical-engineering curriculum may have said as much about MIT’s educational philosophy as it did about the pace of innovation.

Four professors named MacVicar fellowsSanyal, Schuh, Verghese and Winston honored for undergraduate teaching excellence

The quantum singularityA new experiment would use quantum effects to perform otherwise intractable calculations, but conducting it should be easier than building a quantum computer.

The next operating systemOperating systems for multicore chips will need more information about their own performance — and more resources for addressing whatever problems arise.

Designing the hardwareImproving communication between distributed processors and managing shared data are two of the central challenges in creating tomorrow’s chips.

Rivest unlocks cryptography's past, looks toward futurePublic-key system has worked and made Internet commerce feasible, but new systems are ready in case flaws are found.

Professor Eric Grimson named next chancellorCurrent head of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science to succeed Phillip L. Clay.

Kenneth Olsen, MIT Corporation life member emeritus, dies at 84Institute alum, computer pioneer was co-founder of Digital Equipment Corp.

Boning to serve as director of the MIT Masdar ProgramProfessor, associate head of EECS succeeds Moavenzadeh as head of the program.

Turning reviews into ratingsA new system automatically combs through online reviews to provide recommendations according to unusual criteria.

Five from MIT elected fellows of the American Physical Society

Collective memoryAn MIT project provides a way to preserve information in constantly changing networks, without resorting to a shared server.

How wise are crowds?By melding economics and engineering, researchers show that as social networks get larger, they usually get better at sorting fact from fiction.

Remembering Art Smith'Stabilizing force' was a counselor, advocate, friend and champion for students.

7 win presidential early career honorsMIT has greatest number of recipients from a single institution.

Social StudiesIn MIT's Human Dynamics Lab, Sandy Pentland PhD '82 uses cell phones and wearable sensors to research nonverbal signals, information flow, and the value of face-to-face conversation.

Nerve-cell regeneration quest is fast trackedMicrochip technology rapidly identifies compounds for regrowing nerves, in live animals.

Construction begins on high-performance computing centerPresident Hockfield joins Gov. Patrick and others at groundbreaking ceremony.

Four engineering students named Intel PhD fellowship recipientsMaterials science, EECS graduate students among 27 honored

5 from MIT win NIH awardsThe grants are designed to promote risky, innovative research with the potential to transform a field of study.

Multicore may not be so scaryResearch suggests that the free operating system Linux will keep up with the addition of more ‘cores,’ or processing units, to computer chips.

First improvement of fundamental algorithm in 10 yearsThe max-flow problem, which is ubiquitous in network analysis, scheduling, and logistics, can now be solved more efficiently than ever.