In the halls of MIT, a distinctive thread of compassion weaves through the fabric of education. As students adjust to a postpandemic normal, many professors have played a pivotal role by helping them navigate the realities of hybrid learning and a rapidly changing postgraduation landscape. The Committed to Caring (C2C) program at MIT is a […]
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If you’re a resident of Hull, Lynn, Salem, or other Massachusetts towns currently exposed to noise from aircraft approaching Boston Logan Airport, you may notice the skies getting a little quieter this year. Over the last decade, improvements to aircraft navigation technology have allowed departing and arriving aircraft to follow highly precise routes in the […]
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To save on fuel and reduce aircraft emissions, engineers are looking to build lighter, stronger airplanes out of advanced composites. These engineered materials are made from high-performance fibers that are embedded in polymer sheets. The sheets can be stacked and pressed into one multilayered material and made into extremely lightweight and durable structures. But composite […]
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On Vassar Street, in the heart of MIT’s campus, the MIT Stephen A. Schwarzman College of Computing recently opened the doors to its new headquarters in Building 45. The building’s central location and welcoming design will help form a new cluster of connectivity at MIT and enable the space to have a multifaceted role. “The […]
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QS World University Rankings has placed MIT in the No. 1 spot in 11 subject areas for 2024, the organization announced today. The Institute received a No. 1 ranking in the following QS subject areas: Chemical Engineering; Civil and Structural Engineering; Computer Science and Information Systems; Data Science and Artificial Intelligence; Electrical and Electronic Engineering; […]
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On Monday, April 8, the United States will experience a total solar eclipse — a rare astronomical event where the moon passes directly between the sun and the Earth, blocking out the sun’s light almost completely. The last total solar eclipse in the contiguous U.S. was in 2017, and the next one won’t be until […]
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Operating an oil field is complex and there is a staggeringly long list of things that can go wrong. One of the most common problems is spills of the salty brine that’s a toxic byproduct of pumping oil. Another is over- or under-pumping that can lead to machine failure and methane leaks. (The oil and […]
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From wiping up spills to serving up food, robots are being taught to carry out increasingly complicated household tasks. Many such home-bot trainees are learning through imitation; they are programmed to copy the motions that a human physically guides them through. It turns out that robots are excellent mimics. But unless engineers also program them […]
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If there is life in the solar system beyond Earth, it might be found in the clouds of Venus. In contrast to the planet’s blisteringly inhospitable surface, Venus’ cloud layer, which extends from 30 to 40 miles above the surface, hosts milder temperatures that could support some extreme forms of life. If it’s out there, […]
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If a robot traveling to a destination has just two possible paths, it needs only to compare the routes’ travel time and probability of success. But if the robot is traversing a complex environment with many possible paths, choosing the best route amid so much uncertainty can quickly become an intractable problem. MIT researchers developed […]
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“It’s been a wild ride,” says Christopher Williams PhD ’12, moments after he received his astronaut pin, signifying graduation into the NASA astronaut corps. Williams, along with Marcos Berríos ’06 and Christina “Chris” Birch PhD ’15, were among the 12-member class of astronaut candidates to graduate from basic training at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, […]
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