Drop in on these MIT research sites...

Earth System Initiative
Understanding the nature of interactions among the physical, chemical and biological processes of Earth

Energy Science and Engineering
Engines, propulsion systems, power generation, wind power, solar energy, thermoelectricity and more

The Broad Institute
A multi-institution collaboration creating tools for genomic medicine and applying these tools to propel the understanding and treatment of disease

Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences & Technology
Integrating science, engineering and medicine to solve problems in human health

MIT Center for Advanced Nuclear Engineering Systems
Creating new concepts for nuclear energy systems that promise more favorable economics, safety, proliferation resistance and environmental impact

Center for Theoretical Physics
Focusing on fundamental physics, with activities ranging from string theory and cosmology at the highest energies down through quark matter, and nuclei at the low energy scale

MIT

 

Science and engineering at MIT have long been a hotbed of exciting interdisciplinary collaborations. Advances in energy, medicine and physics are among the new discoveries and initiatives of the past year.

Energy

See Hot New Experiment at right, plus:

Spinach may soon power more than Popeye's biceps
For the first time, MIT researchers have incorporated a plant's ability to convert sunlight to energy into a solid-state electronic "spinach sandwich" device that may one day power laptops and cell phones. At the heart of the device is a protein complex dubbed Photosystem I that is derived from spinach chloroplasts and is only 10 to 20 nanometers wide. Around 100,000 of them would fit on the head of a pin.

Medicine

See Mending Broken Hearts at right, plus:

Rest easy: MIT study confirms melatonin's value as sleep aid
A new study by MIT scientists and colleagues confirms that melatonin is an effective sleep aid for older insomniacs and others. Misuse of the hormone had led some to question its efficacy, but the latest work could jump-start interest in the dietary supplement and help more people get a good night's sleep.

Physics

See Novel Fabrics at right, plus:

MIT undergrad IDs supersized stars
An MIT undergraduate who says she's been interested in astronomy for "as long as I can remember" is lead author of an Astrophysical Journal paper announcing the discovery of three stars that have the largest diameters of any normal stars known, more than a billion miles across.


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April 2005

Recent MIT Research

Plasma Fusion and Science Center equipment
Hot New Experiment
MIT and Columbia University researchers have begun confining high-temperature ionized gas using the strong magnetic fields from a half-ton superconducting ring, which may pave the way for a new source of energy.
 
MIT researchers
Mending Broken Hearts
MIT engineers report creating a small swatch of heart tissue that displays many of the hallmarks of mature cardiac tissue, including regular contractions.
 
Spectrometric fabric
Novel Fabrics
In work that could lead to applications such as multifunctional textile fabrics and all-optical computer interfaces, MIT researchers report the creation of flexible fibers and fabrics that can not only sense light, but also analyze its colors.