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In Sigma Xi lecture, Barsoum to focus on pyramids

Michel Barsoum PhD '85, distinguished professor at Drexel University, will deliver the 2008 Sigma Xi Lecture, entitled "The Mystery of the Great Egyptian Pyramids: The role of materials research in suggesting a partial solution," on May 7. May 7, 2008

Gathering 'concrete' evidence

Even though they are among the best-known structures on Earth, the pyramids of Egypt may still hold surprises. This spring, an MIT class is testing a controversial theory that some of these structures may consist of concrete. April 2, 2008

Researchers rip into 'wallpaper problem'

Frustrated by tape that won't peel off the roll in a straight line? Angry at wallpaper that refuses to tear neatly off the wall? A new study by an MIT mathematician and others shows that wallpaper is simply obeying the laws of physics. March 30, 2008

Researchers boost thermoelectric efficiency

Researchers at Boston College and MIT have used nanotechnology to achieve a major increase in thermoelectric efficiency, a milestone that paves the way for a new generation of products that run cleaner. March 20, 2008

Researchers unravel secrets of spider silk's strength

The strength of a biological material like spider silk lies in the specific geometric configuration of structural proteins, which have small clusters of weak hydrogen bonds that work cooperatively to resist force and dissipate energy, MIT researchers report. March 19, 2008

MIT finds pre-Columbian use of transport rafts

Oceangoing sailing rafts plied the waters of the equatorial Pacific long before Europeans arrived in the Americas, and traveled from modern-day Chile to western Mexico, according to new findings by MIT researchers. March 19, 2008

Shell shock

An MIT materials scientist's research on sea snails has helped transform battery technology and may end the era when cell phones die if they're dropped and PDAs must be replaced if they get dunked in the tub. March 11, 2008

Miriam Yoffa Rich, former longtime lab technician, 88

Miriam Yoffa Rich, who worked for 41 years as a laboratory technician at MIT, died Wednesday, Feb. 6. She was 88. March 5, 2008

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