2009 archive

Surviving without growing - Jay Forrester, the father of system dynamics, now 90 and a professor emeritus of the MIT Sloan School of Management, took the time to speak with us about sustainability and organizational decision making. January 30

Lee Anne Coffey, EHS business manager, 41 - Lee Anne (Hardiman) Coffey, business manager of the Environmental Health and Safety Headquarters Office, passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at Massachusetts General Hospital after a courageous battle with breast cancer. She was 41. January 30

Who's the best recycler of all? - The entire MIT community will have a chance to compete this year as the campus squares off against others around the country for a national recycling competition. January 30

Field of neurotech spawns brainy businesses - The rapidly growing field of neurotechnology is becoming a boon for existing businesses while generating startup ventures. With the aim of grooming the sector's future leaders, MIT has created a new research program and is offering numerous classes. January 29

What causes motor complications of Parkinson's treatment? - Research results at MIT may lead to new approaches to the treatment of dyskinesias in Parkinson's patients, of which there are more than 1 million in the United States alone. Involuntary nodding and rocking are common side effects known as L-DOPA-induced dyskinesias. January 29

Darwin lives - Many of the mysteries from Charles Darwin's theories on evolution were explored this month as part of a three-day MIT conference that celebrated the 200th birthday of the famed naturalist and examined his continuing impact on geology, biology and culture. January 28

Who Lives Here? - Nishima Chudasama held open the shop door for the man with the haunted eyes and bird's nest beard and wondered about his life. Then she stopped wondering and started finding out. January 28

Select W1 improvements to proceed this spring - Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of an anonymous donor, MIT will proceed with limited improvements to the W1 residence hall this spring.  January 27

Berger receives French Legion of Honor medal - MIT political science professor Suzanne Berger was presented with a French Legion of Honor medal Monday in recognition of both her research and her efforts to strength ties between MIT and French researchers. January 27

Physicists discover variation in superconductors - MIT physicists have discovered that several high-temperature superconductors display patchwork quilt-like variations at the atomic scale, a surprising finding that could help scientists understand a new class of unconventional materials. January 27

Sloan site to share teaching resources, knowledge - In an effort to share its knowledge with the world for free, MIT's Sloan School of Management launched a web site Monday that will offer case studies, teaching videos and other innovative instructional resources to anyone with access to the Internet. January 26

Bhatia among tech paper's 10 'Women to Watch' - Sangeeta Bhatia, a professor of electrical engineering and health sciences and technology, was named one of the 10 "Women to Watch" on Jan. 23 by the newspaper Mass High Tech. January 26

J-PAL captures major new international award - MIT's Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, which uses scientific methods to assess the effectiveness of poverty relief and development programs, has been given a major new international award in recognition of its contributions and innovations. January 22

Lincoln Laboratory is on a 'ROLL' - In response to the growing popularity of robotics programs in high schools and elementary schools, several Lincoln Laboratory staff members have joined together to mentor students in robotics competitions. January 22

Robo-forklift keeps humans out of harm's way - Researchers in MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) are working on a better way to handle supplies in a war zone: a semi-autonomous forklift that can be directed by people safely away from the dangers of the site. January 21

Waves of tranquility - Hackers recently turned Killian Court into a zone of tranquility and calm, in part thanks to the blanket of fresh snow that fell this past week. January 21

LaMay memorial service being held Jan. 28 - A memorial service for Doug LaMay, an officer with the Office of Environment, Health & Safety, will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 3 p.m. in the MIT Chapel. January 21

DUSP's Briggs joins Obama administration - Xavier de Souza Briggs, has been named associate director of the White House Office of Management and Budget and will be on a two-year professional leave effective Inauguration Day. January 20

The role of race - Through careful analysis of 2008 exit-poll data, researchers found that Barack Obama won the election precisely because of his race, most significantly because of his appeal among black voters who turned out in record numbers. January 20

Kaufmann memorial service scheduled for Jan. 31 - A memorial service for William W. Kaufmann, an MIT professor emeritus of political science who was one of the country's leading experts on defense planning in the nuclear age, will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 31, in the MIT Chapel. January 20

Schizophrenia may cause exaggerated focus on self - Schizophrenia may blur the boundary between internal and external realities by over-activating a brain system that is involved in self-reflection, and thus causing an exaggerated focus on self, a new MIT and Harvard brain imaging study has found. January 19

Nitric oxide shown to cause colon cancer - Scientists from MIT's Division of Comparative Medicine and Department of Biological Engineering have found that nitric oxide produced by inflammatory cells during bacterial infection can cause colon cells to become cancerous. January 19

Masdar Institute joins MIT Energy Initiative - The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology is becoming the inaugural founding public member of MITEI. The collaboration will support ongoing research and development of alternative and renewable energy technologies and solutions. January 19

Genetically altered plants produce new compounds - In work that could expand the frontiers of genetic engineering, MIT chemists have, for the first time, genetically altered a plant to produce entirely new compounds, some of which could be used as drugs against cancer and other diseases. January 18

A better way to pinpoint underground oil reserves - Picture this: an accurate map of a large underground oil reservoir that can guide engineers' efforts to coax the oil from the vast rocky subsurface into wells where it can be pumped out for storage or transport. January 16

MIT to launch diversity and inclusion site this month - Building on the momentum established at the Diversity Leadership Congress in November, MIT will launch a new web site dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion at the Institute. January 16

MIT conference celebrates Darwin bicentennial - Featuring some of the nation's most prominent researchers in a variety of disciplines, the Jan. 22-24 Charles Darwin Bicentennial Symposium will highlight recent discoveries on how evolution works and how it continues to alter our lives. January 16

Astronomers crack longstanding lunar mystery - Rocks that the Apollo astronauts brought back from the moon carried with it a riddle that has puzzled scientists since the early 1970s: What produced the magnetization found in many of those rocks? The puzzle has now been solved by researchers at MIT. January 15

Nyhart memorial service scheduled for March 7 - A memorial service for John Daniel Nyhart, the former dean for student affairs who served MIT for 41 years in a variety of roles, will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 7, in the MIT chapel. January 15

Awards and Honors - Recent achievements by members of the MIT community January 14

CIS scholars offer advice, new ideas to Obama - In response to the immense global challenges facing President-elect Barack Obama, scholars affiliated with MIT's Center for International Studies (CIS) have produced a document of succinctly stated fresh ideas and suggestions for the new president's consideration. January 14

Four win NSF CAREER awards - Four MIT researchers are among the latest recipients of CAREER awards, the highly selective grants that the National Science Foundation awards to junior faculty members who are likely to become academic leaders of the future. January 14

Do-it-yourself biology - Building a cell from scratch is a lot more complicated than building a computer. But that's just what synthetic biologists, including many at MIT, are trying to figure out how to do. January 13

Beyond the mind's eye - 20 years after Elizabeth Goldring, a senior fellow at MIT's Center for Advanced Visual Studies and colleagues began work on a "seeing machine," she smiles as she shows a visitor photos she's taken - and can see - with her blind eye. January 13

Putting heads (and computers) together - Imagine if the planet's collective brainpower and computing power could be brought together to tackle some of the world's toughest problems. It may sounds like science fiction, but researchers at MIT's are trying to make it reality. January 13

Going green saves MIT green - When it comes to changing the ways energy is produced and used, MIT has long been at the forefront of research. Now, in addition, students, faculty and staff are working hard to put improvements in energy efficiency into practice on campus. January 13

MIT scientists to be key Lunar Institute members - MIT faculty and students will play substantial roles on two of the seven teams that NASA selected to be part of its virtual Lunar Science Institute, in preparation for the resumption of human visits to the moon about a decade from now. January 12

Emergency text-message service being tested this month - Be on the lookout this month for a test of the MIT Alert text-messaging service, a key component of the Institute's emergency notification program. January 12

Too much of a good thing - A naturally occurring DNA repair system that normally protects cells from damage can cause retinal degeneration and blindness when overstimulated, according to a new study by MIT researchers. January 9

Get ready to getfit@mit - Did you resolve to get into better shape in 2009? If so, you're in luck, because registration for the fifth annual getfit@mit team fitness challenge is now open. January 8

Three from MIT among world's top economists - Three MIT economists - Esther Duflo, Amy Finkelstein and Iván Werning - have been singled out by The Economist magazine as among the world's eight best young economists, who are "making a big splash in their discipline and beyond." January 8

MIT provides in-depth look at exploded star - Using views captured by several orbiting and ground-based telescopes, an MIT researcher and her colleagues have produced the first fully three-dimensional reconstruction of the remains of a star that exploded in a cosmic cataclysm called a supernova. January 8

Teens prepared for careers, yet lack mentors - American teens are embracing the subjects of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) with increasingly positive attitudes; yet many lack the necessary encouragement from mentors according to this year's Lemelson-MIT Invention Index. January 7

Source of cognitive decline in aging brains - As people age, memory and the ability to carry out tasks often decline. A new study by MIT neuroscientists has found that memory and cognitive impairments were more associated with loss of brain "white matter," which forms connections within and between brain regions. January 7

Zuber urges Congress to fund research - Funding for research and education in science and technology should be a major priority in the economic recovery package, said MIT geophysics professor Maria T. Zuber testified before the Steering and Policy Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives. January 7

MIT named one of 100 best values among private schools - MIT was ranked number eight among the nation's top 50 private universities in Kiplinger's Personal Finance's annual assessment of schools that combine outstanding academic excellence and exceptional economic value. January 7

The legacy of Larry Vale - As he steps down from what he good-naturedly calls "year seven of my four-year term as department head," Larry Vale takes satisfaction in what everyone in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning agrees has been a most productive term of office. January 5

Douglas LaMay, EHS officer, 38 - Douglas LaMay, an officer with the Office of Environment, Health & Safety, died on Sunday, Jan. 4. He was 38. January 5

Model predicts how to build a better stent - Researchers have been puzzled in recent years by drug-releasing stents that can increase blood clots and heart attacks. Now, a model developed by MIT engineers can predict whether particular types of stents are likely to cause life-threatening side effects. January 5

Getting cells to pair off - MIT engineers have developed a new, highly efficient way to pair up cells so they can be fused together into a hybrid cell. January 4