technology and society archive

A hands-on approach to Third World aid - About 60 people from 20 nations will descend on the MIT campus next week to begin an intensive month-long process of creating technological solutions for the needs of people in the world's developing nations. July 10, 2008

Everything new under the sun - In a major new project that could help set the agenda for policymakers, researchers and industry leaders, a team of MIT faculty members has begun a comprehensive study of the technology and economics of harnessing the power of the sun. May 29, 2008

Hope on the horizon - As the economy appears to falter and as more Americans fear that the country is on the wrong track, the MIT News Office asked a collection of MIT researchers what they think are potentially life-altering technologies that lie just around the corner. May 21, 2008

Hope on the Horizon: Fusion - Leslie Bromberg on fusion. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Bioengineering - Phillip Sharp on bioengineering. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Biosolar Cells - Shuguang Zhang on biosolar cells. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Digital Fabrication - Neil Gershenfeld on digital fabrication. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Education - Eric Klopfer on education. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Electrochemical Energy - Paula Hammond on electrochemical energy. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Embedded Electronics - Michael S. Strano on embedded electronics. May 21, 2008

Hope on the horizon: Life Extension - Mehmet Fatih Yanik on extension of the human lifespan. May 21, 2008

New game lets visually impaired share the fun - AudiOdyssey, a new computer game that simulates a deejay laying down musical tracks, has been developed by MIT and Singaporean students to make it possible for visually impaired people to play on a level field with their sighted friends. May 13, 2008

Conference asks 'what's the use of race?' - "What's the Use of Race?"--a conference exploring whether race and ethnicity can be used as analytic categories in law, medicine and government without calcifying the very divisions that research in these fields is supposed to erase--will be held April 25-26 at MIT. April 17, 2008

Study challenges notion of 'pandemic' flu - The widespread assumption that pandemic influenza is an exceptionally deadly form of seasonal, or nonpandemic, flu is hard to support, according to a new MIT study in the May issue of the American Journal of Public Health. April 11, 2008

Two MIT student projects win peace grants - Two MIT student projects to promote peace in Sudan and in Bangladesh have won Davis Projects for Peace grants of $10,000 each. April 1, 2008

The city that never sleeps ... nor stops talking - What does the telecommunications traffic flowing in and out of New York City reveal about the city that never sleeps? MIT researchers hope to find out with their novel project, the New York Talk Exchange. February 18, 2008

Hilts named new Knight Fellowships director - Philip J. Hilts, the author of six books and a prize-winning health and science reporter for both The New York Times and The Washington Post, has been named director of the Knight Science Journalism Fellowships program. January 28, 2008

Study sees potential for more U.S. emissions - U.S. greenhouse gas emissions could grow more quickly in the next 50 years than in the previous half-century, even with technological advances and current energy-saving efforts, according to a new study co-authored by an MIT professor. November 13, 2007

MIT AgeLab unveils driving support materials - The MIT AgeLab, in collaboration with The Hartford Financial Services Group, today unveiled new materials to help families and caregivers determine when it is time for people suffering from dementia to stop driving. November 1, 2007

Cask from the past - For the first time, researchers have identified DNA from inside ceramic containers in an ancient shipwreck on the seafloor, making it possible to determine what the ship's cargo was even though there was no visible trace of it. October 29, 2007

Digitalk: Where IT's at--Copyright corner - Digitalk interviewed Larry Benedict, dean for Student Life, and Jerrold "Jerry" Grochow, vice president for IS&T, for a high-level view of how MIT is responding to concerns about peer-to-peer file sharing and copyright infringement. October 24, 2007

'Wiki City Rome' to draw a map like no other - Residents of Italy's capital will glimpse the future of urban mapmaking next month with the launch of "Wiki City Rome," a project developed at MIT that uses data from cellphones and other devices to illustrate the city's pulse in real time. August 30, 2007

GM plugs in to battery technology with MIT roots - A company with roots at MIT has been selected to develop battery cells to power the Chevrolet Volt, a highly anticipated plug-in hybrid car that should be able to travel about 40 miles on battery power alone. GM hopes to begin selling the car in 2010. August 10, 2007

Innovators present solutions for developing world - Question: What do a pedal-powered grain mill, a Guatemalan bicycle mechanic, and MIT students have in common? Answer: The first International Development Design Summit, where participants have been busy solving problems in the developing world. August 7, 2007

Thinking locally: appropriate technology challenges - Amy Smith, a senior lecturer in mechanical engineering, works with her students to find "appropriate technology" for developing nations. "The essence of really good design is embodied in these challenges," Smith said at an STS colloquium May 7. May 14, 2007

Technology meets humanity with adaptive devices - Forget cool new gadgets or killer-ap software. "We're hacking the human," said Frank Moss, director of MIT's Media Lab, in introducing "H2.0: New Minds, New Bodies, New Identities," the lab's May 9 symposium. May 11, 2007

Systems biology seeks to define itself - Visiting sociology professor Joan Fujimura discussed her recent work, which focuses on the sociology of science, particularly in the fields of genetics, bioinformatics and systems biology, at an MIT colloquium on April 23. May 2, 2007

Math says voters win with 'winner take all' - For individuals and small groups to have the democratic power to elect the president fairly, presidential elections must be scored by winner-take-all states--not in a single giant national district too large for small numbers to turn, contends MIT's Alan Natapoff. April 10, 2007

MIT Sloan study examines BlackBerry use - One might expect a doctoral student conducting research on BlackBerry usage to own one or more of the handheld devices. But Melissa Mazmanian, a fourth-year MIT Sloan doctoral student, doesn't own one, and she prefers it this way. March 21, 2007

As opinions flow, political power relocates, diffusely - There are many ways to define power, but Manuel Castells defines power as the ability to make people think the way you want them to think--or to convince those who disagree that they can't do anything about it. March 14, 2007

Amsden compares business models' impact - Alice Amsden, the Barton L. Weller Professor of Political Economy, explored which types of businesses are most likely to further growth in developing nations during a talk titled "Nationalism and the Firm." March 13, 2007

AgeLab founder outlines new lives for elders - The houses of the future will monitor our bodily functions through sensors in the bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchens and relay that data to drugstores that will not only fill prescriptions and sell toothpaste but also connect us with health professionals. March 1, 2007

Students learn technology of medieval clothing - Technologies don't have to be complex to be effective. Nor do they need to be complex to be difficult to master. These were among the lessons made clear to students during a 3-day class in making clothes the VERY old-fashioned way. January 30, 2007

Transistor technology may power future devices - MIT engineers have demonstrated a technology that could introduce an important new phase of the microelectronics revolution that has already brought us iPods, laptops and much more. December 12, 2006

Humans grieve for the 'given' world - How are human beings reacting to displacement of their natural, or "given," world by a built world? This question lay at the heart of a talk given by Professor Rosalind Williams, the last in a series of fall colloquia titled "The Big Questions." December 6, 2006

Hard drives will evolve into soft hearts ... or not - A Nov. 30 debate on the limits of intelligent machines held at MIT echoed a presidential campaign slugfest. Nobody won a round, but the audience scored insight from two of the brightest minds in the field of artificial intelligence. December 5, 2006

Robotic pets may be bad medicine - In the face of techno-doomsday punditry, Sherry Turkle has long been a proponent of the positive. But now the director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self says she has finally met a technology that upsets her. November 29, 2006

CSAIL hosts debate on robotic 'nature' and future - "Creativity: The Mind, Machines, and Mathematics," a debate and discussion hosted by AI pioneer Rodney Brooks, will celebrate the 70th anniversary of Alan Turing's groundbreaking paper "On Computable Numbers," on Nov. 30. November 28, 2006

New media, fan muscle will mold TV future - Experts--from network executives, academics and game designers to gadfly media artists--peered into the "Futures of Entertainment" at a two-day conference, Nov. 17-18, sponsored by the MIT comparative media studies program and the Convergence Culture Consortium. November 22, 2006

STS researches effects of medicine across races - New treatments and medical technology can effectively eradicate diseases such as smallpox, yet social and political considerations have hindered similar success with diseases like polio, tuberculosis and AIDS. November 15, 2006

Mitchell maps 'techno-sensual comfort zones' - "Visions of the future from a particular moment always tell more about that moment than they ever tell about the future," MIT Professor William J. Mitchell told his listeners at a recent lunchtime gallery talk. November 7, 2006

Machinima group animates life 'in-world' - Student researchers working with MIT professor Beth Coleman are exploring machinima, one branch of the rapidly evolving world of computer animation, in which they are experimenting with new modes of cinematic expression. October 27, 2006

Laptops will link global learners - The real star at an Oct. 19 lecture by Nicholas Negroponte was not the Media Lab co-founder himself but what he brought to the talk--a bright green and white model from his One Laptop Per Child project. October 24, 2006

Expert discusses U.S.-India nuclear pact - MIT researcher associate Subrata Ghoshroy, an expert on the controversial United States-India "civilian nuclear cooperation" agreement, comments on international nuclear proliferation issues, U.S. policy and anti-missile shield systems. October 20, 2006

Singapore collaboration aims to spur gaming sector - MIT and the Singapore Media Development Authority have announced an agreement to establish the Singapore-MIT International Game Lab. October 9, 2006

Hockfield urges investment in math, science literacy - MIT President Susan Hockfield told a national panel Sept. 14 that the future of the economy is at stake if the U.S. doesn't beef up the number of college students majoring in math and better prepare high school graduates for college. September 15, 2006

SHASS announces new department heads - Five new heads in the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences have been named, effective July 1, 2006. September 12, 2006

MIT maps Rome at Venice Biennale - Real Time Rome, a pioneering MIT project that promises to usher in a new era of urban mapmaking, will have its worldwide debut at the Venice Biennale, the prestigious biannual exhibition of contemporary art, from Sept. 10 to Nov. 19. September 5, 2006

Jenkins illuminates clash of media - The exploding complexity of the media in today's society has set up a clash between traditional media -- print, broadcast and the corporate giants that own them -- and the constantly mutating world of new media on the Internet. August 31, 2006

Handheld computers make light work of education - A group of MIT undergraduate students is writing code for PDAs as part of a group of projects aimed at making science, economics and other "dry" topics vividly interesting, interactive and fun, for students, teachers and citizens at large. August 23, 2006

GEM4 researchers examine facets of diseases - What happens when you bring together dozens of international researchers and set them to work studying human health and disease? You get GEM4, a one-year-old interdisciplinary collaboration that takes on broad medical challenges. August 16, 2006

eLens: A digital take on the streets where we live - A walk down the street may someday be as rich with information as the web, thanks to the emergence of location-aware technology. Not surprisingly, MIT is at the vanguard of this movement with a project called Electronic Lens (eLens). August 11, 2006

Technology and Policy Program marks anniversary - MIT's Technology and Policy Program celebrated 30 years of educating scientists and engineers about policy earlier this month with a symposium that featured remarks by Jessica Stern, author of "Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill." June 23, 2006

Nobelist offers views on flu pandemic - If an influenza pandemic sweeps across the globe, as many public health officials fear, it will take a combination of scientific work and political planning to handle it effectively, said Nobel laureate Peter Doherty at a lecture at MIT. May 17, 2006

Artist explores human-robot interaction - Alumna Pia Lindman has a new solo show in the MIT Museum's Compton Gallery: She will become a human imitating machines that imitate human gestures. April 12, 2006

Experts tackle issues raised by race-based drugs - Scientists and scholars specializing in medicine, public health, social sciences, ethics and law will convene at MIT on April 7 and 8 for a groundbreaking conference on the complex implications of medications created for specific races. April 5, 2006

OpenCourseWare marks 5 years - Five years ago today, in an unprecedented step toward making knowledge accessible worldwide, MIT announced it would make the materials for nearly all of its courses available on the Internet. April 4, 2006

Youth benefit from digital culture, Jenkins says - Children need to participate fully in digital culture in order to develop the "skills, knowledge, ethical frameworks and self-confidence needed to be full participants in the world around them," according to MIT Professor Henry Jenkins. March 15, 2006

New directions for digital design on display - "Digital_minimal," a new exhibition in the School of Architecture and Planning's Wolk Gallery, explores a number of alternative directions for our digital future. March 1, 2006

Virtual forms for buildings and society - Two MIT faculty members presented research and offered innovative perspectives on building technology and digital literacy at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science held February 16-20 in St. Louis. February 23, 2006

Women engineer future through SWE - When the MIT chapter of SWE was founded just over 25 years ago, women graduates faced a male-dominated industry. Much has changed since then, but the society is still helping women achieve full potential in careers as engineers and leaders. February 16, 2006

Sky's no limit for Lemelson winner - The 28-year-old winner of this year's Lemelson-MIT Student Prize, MIT doctoral candidate Carl Dietrich, now has an extra $30,000 to help him get his personal flying machine off the ground. February 15, 2006

Robot photographs ancient Greek shipwreck - Sometime in the fourth century B.C., a Greek merchant ship sank in the eastern Aegean Sea. Filled with ceramic jars of wine and olive oil, it might never have divulged its clues to ancient Greek culture, except for a research team including scientists from MIT. February 2, 2006

Students showcase 'Seamless' fashion - "Seamless: Computational Couture," a runway fashion event curated by MIT Media Lab graduate students, will present its second annual collection of technologically experimental clothing at the Museum of Science on Feb. 1. January 26, 2006

Survey gauges teens' view of tech future - Gasoline-powered automobiles, compact discs and desktop computers are headed toward the technology scrap heap, according to a recent survey of American teenagers conducted by the 2006 Lemelson-MIT Invention Index. January 12, 2006

Middle-schoolers ask tough science questions - Seventh- and eighth-grade students from Stoughton, Mass., recently engaged a panel of eminent research scientists from MIT and Harvard in a discussion of stem cell research, technology and ethics. December 21, 2005

National Academies honors Levenson's film for NOVA - Associate Professor Thomas Levenson has been awarded the 2005 National Academies Communications Award in the TV/radio category for "Origins: Back to the Beginning," a film broadcast on the NOVA series on PBS in 2004. November 30, 2005

Forum examines 'Cell Phone Culture' - Cell phones have transformed the micro-culture of classrooms and may shape the macro-culture of global youth, according to experts who gave talks at an MIT Communications Forum, "Cell Phone Culture." November 30, 2005

Panel explores 'unnatural' Katrina disaster - Although Hurricane Katrina was a "natural" disaster, there are lessons to be learned from some of the highly unnatural disasters that followed in its wake, a panel of experts told a crowd gathered at MIT on Nov. 15. November 23, 2005

Hockfield talks on responsibility of universities - MIT's primary responsibility is education and research in service to the nation and the world, said President Susan Hockfield in the Miller Lecture on Science and Ethics on Nov. 7. November 9, 2005

Hockfield to give Miller Lecture - MIT President Susan Hockfield will give a talk on "The University and Its Responsibilities" on Monday, Nov. 7, at 4 p.m. in Kirsch Auditorium. November 2, 2005

Apply now for Siegel Prize - Submissions are now being accepted for the Benjamin Siegel Prize, a $2,500 prize offered to the MIT student who submits the best written work on issues in science, technology and society. October 26, 2005

David Dibner, philanthropist, dies at 78 - David Dibner, the distinguished philanthropist and civic leader who established the Dibner Institute for the History of Science and Technology, died unexpectedly at his home in Wilton, Conn., on Sept. 28. October 11, 2005

'Genius grants' go to 2 with MIT ties - A computer scientist specializing in mapping "six degrees of separation"-style links among people and a historian of modern American sound -- both with ties to MIT -- were among the 25 recipients of MacArthur Fellowships. September 28, 2005

Economist to discuss ending poverty Sept. 14 - Muhammad Yunus, the Bangladeshi economist who pioneered the microcredit movement, will deliver a talk titled "Ending Global Poverty" on Wednesday, Sept. 14, in Kirsch Auditorium at the Stata Center. September 13, 2005

MIT program bridges Mideast divide - Much has been said about the political, religious and historical rifts that divide Israelis from Palestinians, but two MIT students have found something young people from these groups have in common: an interest in technology. August 16, 2005

MIT starts second wireless revolution - Technology being developed at MIT promises to pave the way for the next generation of wireless networks, saving consumers hundreds of billions of dollars over the next 20 years. July 11, 2005

Study to explore implications of synthetic genomics - At a time when biologists are faced with more ethics and security concerns than ever, MIT has joined with two other organizations to conduct a new study of the societal implications of synthetic genomics, a new field involving the development of viruses and cells using designed and engineered DNA. June 28, 2005

MIT takes on world's energy crisis - MIT President Susan Hockfield and Provost Robert A. Brown have announced the establishment of an Energy Research Council to spearhead efforts to address the world's mounting energy problems. June 8, 2005

Bush names AgeLab chief to advisory committee - President George W. Bush has selected Joseph F. Coughlin, director of MIT's AgeLab, to serve as a member of the Advisory Committee to the 2005 White House Conference on Aging. May 25, 2005

Pulitzer winner Friedman to speak - Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist and author Thomas L. Friedman will discuss globalization and the digital revolution in a lecture at MIT on Monday, May 16. May 11, 2005

Unuseless ball celebrates what's unnecessary but fun - The delight of "what if?" lies deep at the heart of MIT life, and Luis Berrios-Negron's vision of capturing that spirit in a design contest and major party will be realized this Friday night at MIT's First Unuseless Beaux Arts Awards Ball, to be held in R&D Common, Stata Center, fourth floor, at 8 p.m. May 10, 2005

Professors make uncommon connections - An engineer working with a gymnastics coach and a chemist collaborating with surgeons were among those who described their collaborative research work at MIT during a May 3 Inauguration Week symposium. May 5, 2005

Conference addresses neuroethics - Scientists, ethicists and members of diverse religions debated the difficult questions raised by advances in neuroscience at an MIT conference held April 17-19. April 27, 2005

Photographer Frankel honored - Science photographer Felice Frankel, a research scientist in the School of Science, has been named the 2005 Honorary Fellow of the Society for Technical Communication. April 25, 2005

$20M project sets sights on future of computing - MIT has teamed up with Quanta Computer Inc. on a five-year, $20 million joint research project designed to change the way people interact with technology. April 8, 2005

CDO program to begin this fall - MIT's new S.M. program in Computation for Design and Optimization (CDO) will prepare graduates to understand the key computational methods and issues in both the design and operation of complex engineering and scientific systems. January 12, 2005

Boat brings hope to Indian villagers - Two MIT researchers have joined forces with a humanitarian effort half a world away to help bring relief to a region of India routinely flooded by monsoonal rains each year. November 17, 2004

Columbia Group dives into safety issues - A multidisciplinary MIT group formed last year to explore safety culture questions surrounding the Columbia Space Shuttle accident, has since created several related intellectual products illustrating its commitment to interdisciplinary collaborations. November 3, 2004

Giant media hobbled by blogs - Three journalists presented their darkening views of the future for established American news media in a panel discussion at MIT titled "New Roles for Old Media?" November 3, 2004

Internet's snowball effect changes campaigns - "New Media, Old Politics," an MIT panel discussion held last Friday, featured presentations on the impact of the Internet and other forms of new media on the 2004 presidential campaign. October 20, 2004

Smart city cars in the 21st century - As part of the MIT Media Lab's concept car research project with architect Frank Gehry and General Motors, the Media Lab will present "Concept Car: A Work in Progress" on the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 8. September 1, 2004

New site encourages neighborliness - Researchers at MIT have created a free online service called I-Neighbors, designed to help neighborhoods strengthen local bonds and social interaction. August 26, 2004

New media has new impact at DNC - The Democratic National Convention in Boston illuminated new faces in the party and the new face of media coverage of American politics generally, say two MIT authors. July 29, 2004

Catalyst for innovation - MIT's Community Innovation Lab hosted the Spark Summit, an innovation workshop focused on technology and social change. July 13, 2004

Should Dad still drive? - A guide produced by MIT's AgeLab and The Hartford Financial Services Group helps families decide if it's time for older relatives to turn in their car keys. June 23, 2004

Dibner Institute names Fellows - The Dibner Institute for the History of Science and Technology will welcome nine senior fellows, one senior research scholar, four postdoctoral fellows, four re-appointed postdoctoral fellows, one science writer fellow, and seven graduate student fellows. June 2, 2004

Science journalism Fellows chosen - Ten journalists from the United States, Japan, Argentina and the Czech Republic have been selected to spend the 2004-05 academic year on campus as the 22nd class of Knight Science Journalism Fellows. May 19, 2004

Scientists examine post-9/11 challenges - Can scientists do anything to limit the spread of dangerous technologies? If so, can they do so and keep science free and open? Such were questions asked at an MIT forum, "A Conversation Among Future Scientists on Science in an Age of Terrorism." May 12, 2004

AgeLab scientist briefs Senate on technology - Joseph F. Coughlin, director of MIT's AgeLab, testified before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging about technology-enabled innovations to support our aging society. May 12, 2004

Emerging technologies realm - More then 100 MIT students, professors, and industry and government experts convened for a symposium on "Emerging Technologies: Recognizing Uncertainty and Assessing Implications." April 28, 2004

CMI launches 'pervasive computing' initiative - The Cambridge-MIT Institute has launched the Pervasive Computing Community to explore the challenges of a world where computers are burgeoning in numbers and influence. March 31, 2004

Gates: PCs a rough draft - Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates called PC's "a good rough draft" in a presentation to MIT undergraduates aimed at attracting them to the software industry. March 3, 2004

New program studies emerging technologies - The National Science Foundation has awarded MIT $2.9 million for a multidisciplinary graduate program on assessing effects of emerging technologies. February 11, 2004

Software venture launched - MIT is a partner in the Sakai Project, a collaboration to develop and share open-source software for higher-education course management tools. January 28, 2004

Educational software - MIT is partner in Sakai Project, a collaboration among higher education institutions to develop and share open-source software for course management tools that was launched. January 23, 2004

Women join engineering faculty - Daniela Rus and Yang Shao-Horn are among the 19 women who joined the School of Engineering faculty in the past three years. December 17, 2003

Arcade in classrooms - The Education Arcade, a new initiative involving MIT researchers, aims to transform the way video and computer games are used in the classroom. November 19, 2003

Humanoid will open doors - Cardea and 14 other robots from universities across the country recently demonstrated their capabilities in D.C., for officials from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). November 5, 2003

Plasmatron could cut emissions - A bus in Indiana is the latest laboratory for MIT's plasmatron reformer, a small device its developers believe could significantly cut the nation's oil consumption. October 22, 2003

Zen and art of computers - Naoko Tosa and her collaborator Seigo Matsuoka created "The ZENetic Computer," an interactive installation that opens at the MIT Museum. October 22, 2003

Aircraft noise studied - The Air Transportation Center of Excellence for Aircraft Noise and Aviation Emissions Mitigation will conduct basic research and engineering development for solutions. October 1, 2003

OpenCourseWare hits 500 - MIT OpenCourseWare has published its 500th course and now offers free and open access to educational materials. October 1, 2003

Dalai Lama talk - The Dalai Lama appeared on the Kresge Auditorium stage to start the conference "Investigating the Mind: Exchanges Between Buddhism and the Biobehavioral Sciences on How the Mind Works." September 16, 2003

Legal downloads explored - MIT is exploring a range of services that would allow legal access to digital music, according to Professor James D. Bruce, vice president for information systems. September 10, 2003

MIT has major roles in Columbia investigation - MIT researchers played significant roles in the investigation of the space shuttle Columbia accident, by conducting research that gave insights into exactly what happened. August 29, 2003

Project Prakash sheds light - Pawan Sinha, assistant professor of brain and cognitive sciences at MIT, traveled to India this summer as part of Project Prakash ("light" in Sanskrit). August 27, 2003

Mass. voters thwarted - About 120,000 votes were lost in Massachusetts statewide elections in 2000 due to election practices and technologies that could be reformed, according to Caltech/MIT report. August 27, 2003

Newman to head TPP - Professor Dava J. Newman has been named director of the Engineering Systems Division's Technology and Policy Program, effective July 1. June 12, 2003

IS & IT awards - MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives awards. June 4, 2003

Dibner names Fellows - MIT's Dibner Institute for the History of Science and Technology has named 13 senior fellows, one research associate, 12 postdoctoral fellows and eight graduate student fellows. May 21, 2003

SmartCells wins competition - A life sciences team won the MIT $50K Entrepreneurship Competition for the fifth year in a row on Wednesday, May 14. May 21, 2003

Modern technology helps studies of high-tech Civil War ships - In "Civil War High Tech: Excavating the Hunley and Monitor," panelists described why the two ships were so ingenious and how technologies have been key to locating them. May 14, 2003

Hastings co-director of ESD - Daniel Hastings, professor of aeronautics and astronautics and of engineering systems, has been named co-director of the Engineering Systems Division. May 14, 2003

iCampus includes iQuarium - The 2003 iCampus student project leaders gave presentations May 6 on work they have done since February. The projects will continue through 2003. May 14, 2003

GM establishes lab at MIT - General Motors Corp. will fund a collaborative research laboratory at MIT to help develop advanced material processing and manufacturing systems for global automotive operations. May 7, 2003

Innovation called for - Without pain, organizations don't change and the U.S. government is no exception, the science advisor to President Bush told his audience at a Faculty Club luncheon. May 7, 2003

The Bard in bits and bytes - Shakespeare set the stage for a high-tech revolution in an MIT curriculum--an irony not lost on Peter Donaldson, principal investigator on the Shakespeare new media projects. May 7, 2003

Technology's past - Leave it to MIT faculty members to produce a history of the United States that gives science and technology their rightful due. April 30, 2003

Technologies key excavating Civil War vessels - Two of the most famous ships from the Civil War were the subject of an MIT mini symposium last Friday that neatly juxtaposed high technology of the 1860s with that of today. April 29, 2003

Sci-tech strategy endorsed - The need for Massachusetts to compete with other states for science and technology jobs united local leaders in common cause last week at the Museum of Science. April 16, 2003

SMA expands grad program - NUS, NTU and MIT signed a memorandum of understanding last week to take the Singapore-MIT Alliance to the next level of science graduate education. April 2, 2003

Technology aids terrorists - The technology that helped advance communications and globalization has also made the world safer for terrorists and easier for them to execute their plans. April 2, 2003

Concept car revs up interest - Fifteen students enrolled in the IAP subject "Solutions for Mobility in the 21st Century" visited a Lufthansa factory discussed cars of the future. March 12, 2003

Deshpande funds 8 projects - Projects in nanotechnology, information technology and alternative energy were funded in the first round of "Ignition" grants awarded this year to engineering faculty members. March 5, 2003

Classroom technology - MacVicar Day activities will highlight the relationship between effective educational methods and the changes to the physical space in which teaching and learning take place. February 26, 2003

Greenhouse gases should be reduced - Any attempt to curb global warming should include efforts to reduce natural and man-made greenhouse gases. February 11, 2003

Ed Tech Fair draws crowd to Lobby 10, Bush Room - Faculty members staffed booths to share information about pedagogy projects, and staff members were on hand to describe technological services developed at MIT. February 5, 2003

CSBi lays groundwork - MIT Computational and Systems Biology Initiative hosted more than 300 participants from academia and industry at its first annual conference at MIT. January 29, 2003

Private data on hard drives - Discarded computers, even those with "erased" disk drives, may harbor confidential information such as credit card numbers and medical records, two MIT graduate students found. January 29, 2003

New Year's advice - Four MIT professors were asked to play White House science advisor for the online publication Edge, which invited them to write a pretend memo to Bush. January 29, 2003

Massport panel includes 5 from MIT - The Massachusetts Port Authority has announced the creation of an advisory council to explore the use of new security technologies. January 8, 2003

Biological weapons overrated - Biological weapons never have been considered major arms by military strategists, Senior Fellow Jeanne Guillemin told a colloquium at MIT's Dibner Institute. October 30, 2002

DSpace digital symposium to launch - A symposium titled "Scholarly Communication in the Digital World" will celebrate the worldwide launch of DSpace, an open-source institutional digital repository developed by the MIT and HP. October 30, 2002

Gerstner predicts IT will become a utility - Customers will acquire computing power in the future by turning on the tap, according to Louis Gerstner, chair of IBM. October 30, 2002

Open Knowledge Initiative opens - Open Knowledge Initiative, a collaborative program housed at MIT that aims to define learning-technology architecture for the higher education community, recently announced a new program. October 30, 2002

Researchers reach out... - Researchers have linked "hands across the water" in the first transatlantic touch, literally "feeling" each other's manipulations of a small box on a computer screen. October 30, 2002

Uncle Sam wants you - for cybersecurity duty - National cybersecurity chief Richard Clarke made it clear that the federal government plans to rely on market forces to secure the nation's cyberspace infrastructure. October 23, 2002

Techies need to teach - Princeton University professor Brian Kernighan is on a mission to educate nontechnical people about the basic workings and issues of computers. October 23, 2002

Secrecy in research opposed - University leaders have criticized government proposals designed to establish a vague new level of secrecy in scientific research. October 23, 2002

Secrecy rules urged - Leaders said Friday the scientific community should work closely with federal agencies to research ways to combat new national security threats. October 23, 2002

IT to become a utility? - Customers will acquire computing power in the future by turning on the tap, according to Louis Gerstner, chair of IBM. October 16, 2002

Politics of motherhood focus of talk - On Friday, Oct. 18, the first of three lectures in an MIT series on "The Politics and Technology of Motherhood" will take place. October 9, 2002

OCW site gets hits - More than 13 million hits from approximately 120,000 unique visitors were recorded on the MIT OpenCourseWare web site in the first week after course materials appeared online. October 9, 2002

ArchNet launched - The Aga Khan, MIT and Harvard have unveiled the world's largest online resource of historical and contemporary materials on architecture, urbanism, landscape design and related issues of concern to the Muslim world and people interested in it. October 2, 2002

Terrorism protection is a challenge - In an MIT talk titled "Living with Catastrophic Terrorism," Branscomb said that science and technology, not the terrorists, created America's vulnerability. October 2, 2002

OpenCourseWare debuts - With the opening of the pilot site of MIT OpenCourseWare on Monday, Sept. 30, the ambitious initiative took the first step toward fulfilling expectations. October 2, 2002

Lab develops new technique - MIT researchers have developed a new physical approach to protecting information such as credit card numbers sent over the Internet or electronic cash stored in smart cards. September 25, 2002

Kirkbride discusses campus life - Maryanne Kirkbride, clinical director for campus life, talked with Michael Glover, MIT Medical's communications manager, about her background, her new role, and how she hopes to strengthen the links between MIT Medical and the MIT community. September 25, 2002

Fla. voting machines 35% better, project finds - Florida's push to get new voting equipment online for the 2002 primary election appears to have paid off, despite initial reports of problems in the recent gubernatorial primary election. September 25, 2002

New voting technology paid off in Florida - If one measures election success by equipment performance alone, then Florida's push to get new voting equipment on-line for the 2002 election appears to have paid off. September 19, 2002

Global security web site - MIT has launched a new web site, "Homeland and Global Security," to focus on research, education, people, discussions and events related to Sept. 11 attacks. September 11, 2002

Vendor Fair is next week - The annual vendor fair happens next week under the tent on McDermott Court, rain or shine. September 11, 2002

Jet needs closer inspection - The flight risk of Airbus' A300-600 jet needs closer inspection, says Professor James H. Williams Jr. May 8, 2002

Mouse genome info available - International scientists from the Whitehead/MIT Center for Genome Research and other institutions announced Monday that more than 96 percent of the genetic blueprint for the mouse. May 8, 2002

Novartis is opening center - Swiss-based pharmaceutical giant Novartis is creating a worldwide drug discovery center on MIT commercial property in Technology Square. May 8, 2002

Panelists explore technology in Asia - MIT panelists and their counterparts in Singapore swept aside an almost 13-hour time difference with a live seminar on "Innovation Technology in a New Asia." May 8, 2002

Novartis in Tech Square - Swiss-based pharmaceutical giant Novartis is creating a world-wide drug discovery center on MIT commercial property in Technology Square. May 6, 2002

Nuclear weapons scientists' histories probed - The personal and working lives of nuclear weapons scientists were discussed at the AAAS meeting by Hugh Gusterson, associate professor of anthropology in the Program in Science, Technology and Society. February 27, 2002

Vest named advisory post - MIT President Charles M. Vest has been appointed to President George W. Bush's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). December 14, 2001

Statement on computer misuse - James D. Bruce, Vice President for Information Systems, issued a statement on MIT's rules for use of technology in light of the alleged misuse of computers. December 12, 2001

MIT cooperating in computer piracy raid - Law enforcement officials executed a coordinated raid Tuesday involving about 100 sites in six nations and 27 US cities, seizing computers allegedly used to store and distribute pirated software. December 12, 2001

High-schoolers face off - The New England States regional event was held at MIT this past weekend. Five individuals and three teams, using visual and oral presentations, competed for college scholarships. November 7, 2001

STS event celebrates research - The Program in Science, Technology and Society celebrated its 25th anniversary with an Oct. 31 symposium that displayed the depth and innovativeness of its faculty research. November 7, 2001

STS holds 25th anniversary - The Program in Science, Technology and Society (STS) will celebrate its 25th anniversary today with a symposium comprising two panels of speakers. October 31, 2001

Chomsky speaks on terror war - Institute Professor Noam Chomsky of linguistics will speak on "The New War Against Terror" on Thursday, Oct. 18. October 17, 2001

Speakers probe role of technology after attacks - Technology can combat terrorism in the short term, but it cannot secure lasting solutions to international conflicts, a panel of eight MIT faculty and graduate students agreed. October 3, 2001

New center explores diversity - The establishment of the MIT Center for the Study of Diversity in Science, Technology, and Medicine will change the perception of minority group contributions throughout history. September 12, 2001

Group focuses on art/tech. - "We want to expose Boston artists to MIT and MIT artists to Boston, and encourage these artists to show their work," said Paluska, who founded and launched ATat. July 18, 2001

Conferees discuss images - The personal images on nametags at a novel MIT conference last month told a little about each wearer -- and the goal of the conference itself. July 18, 2001

Tech Day explores origins - The annual Technology Day program on Saturday, June 9 will focus on current understanding of our origins, as well as new frontiers in three areas. May 23, 2001

Miller Lecture set for May 7 - This year's annual Science, Technology, and Society-sponsored Arthur Miller Lecture on Science and Ethics will be delivered by John Staudenmaier on Monday, May 7. May 2, 2001

Vest addresses science advisors - President Vest said federal spending on R&D is proportionately lower than it was 15 years ago and significantly fewer engineers are graduating from American universities. May 1, 2001

Welcome by President Vest - Welcome and remarks by MIT President Charles M. Vest for OSTP 25th Anniversary Symposium. May 1, 2001

Artists enliven cyberfest - When the spotlight shines on creative connections between the worlds of art and technology, you're sure to find MIT representation. April 11, 2001

Closing the digital divide - "Culture is a more important force than infrastructure" in determining a country's "digital" potential, said Professor Nicholas Negroponte at a conference last week. April 11, 2001

Using images to communicate - How images can be used to communicate science more effectively to other scientists and to the public is one focus of an upcoming MIT conference, workshop and exhibition. April 11, 2001

TI's wireless mobile Internet - The wireless mobile Internet, powered in part by new Texas Instrument, Inc. advances, will transform the use of the Internet, according to CEO and chairman Tom Engibous. February 14, 2001

Project reports voting analysis - A nationwide study of voting systems by the Caltech/MIT Voting Project reveals that paper ballots, optical scanning devices and lever machines are more efficient than punch-card and ATM-like electronic systems. February 7, 2001

Study votes for paper ballots, levers, scanners - A nationwide study of voting systems by the Caltech/MIT Voting Project reveals that paper ballots, optical scanning devices and lever machines are more efficient than punch-card and ATM-like electronic systems. February 6, 2001