Computer science and technology

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.

Cars as traffic sensorsA new algorithm optimizes the dissemination of information about traffic and road conditions through networks of wirelessly connected cars.

Sizing samplesMany scientific disciplines use computers to infer patterns in data. But how much data is enough to ensure that the inferences are right?

15 MIT students awarded DOE-funded Science Graduate FellowshipsAmong 150 students nationwide awarded fellowships in program's first year

RNA offers a safer way to reprogram cellsNew technique holds promise to revert cells to an immature state that can develop into any cell type.

3 Questions: Nicholas Roy on deploying drones in U.S. skiesMIT robotics expert discusses the logistical hurdles of regulating unmanned aircraft for civilian use.

Rick Cory named Boeing Engineering Student of the Year

A plane that lands like a birdAn innovative control system allows a foam glider to touch down on a perch or a wire like a pet parakeet.

Computer automatically deciphers ancient languageA new system that took a couple hours to decipher much of the ancient language Ugaritic could help improve online translation software.

An Internet 100 times as fastA new network design that avoids the need to convert optical signals into electrical ones could boost capacity while reducing power consumption.

Slideshow: President Hockfield in ChinaShe meets with leaders of government, business and academia -- as well as MIT alumni -- during stops in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Taipei.