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NEWS ABOUT: MIT

MIT stories: 49 news summaries

1 - 20 of 49 Stories | 1 2 3 Next >>

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 Obama to MIT: 
 Win the Green Race 

President pushes climate change legislation

Oct 23, 09 1:12 PM CDT
(Newser) - President Obama urged MIT to get cracking on green energy research today, saying America’s future depends on it. “The nation that wins this competition will be the nation that leads the global economy,” he said. “I want America to be that nation. It’s that simple.... More »

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climate change • Barack Obama • energy • MIT

Colleges Use Student Blogs as Free PR

Warts-and-all posts by undergrads can lure savvy prospects

Oct 2, 09 12:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - Colleges are loosening the reins on student bloggers in hopes that a dose of candid commentary will lure prospective applicants. At MIT, for instance, bloggers paid by the admissions office go about their work with no fear of censorship. That policy has caused some friction—including a spat between the... More »

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admissions • college admissions • censorship • MIT • blogging • blogger • college student • high school students • college applications • undergraduates • Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Haverford College

 MIT Students 
 Snap Space Pics 
 on the Cheap 

'Project Icarus' sends camera to the stratosphere for under $150

Sep 22, 09 4:22 AM CDT
(Newser) - A trio of MIT students managed to take photographs from the edge of space for less than $150, the Guardian reports. The students sent a digital camera and a GPS-equipped mobile phone in a coolbox into the stratosphere by attaching the kit to a helium balloon. They retrieved the photos... More »

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MIT • camera • photography • atmosphere • outer space

Facebook Friend List Can Indicate Sexuality: Study

MIT students identified gay men using sexuality of online friends

Sep 21, 09 2:52 PM CDT
(Newser) - Students at MIT designed a program that allowed them to identify gay men using their Facebook friends' sexual preferences, and the results are sparking debate about online privacy, the Boston Globe reports. The "Gaydar" project looked at the “interested in” field and tabulated the number of gay friends... More »

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social networking • MIT • Facebook • homosexuality • gaydar • homosexual • gay

(Newser) - An opulent, rent-free mansion complete with staff is one of the perks of the job for many university presidents but the luxury is beginning to grate on financially strapped campuses, the Boston Globe reports. A chorus of complaints can be heard on campuses hit by layoffs, and universities like Harvard... More »

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MIT • Harvard • universities • campus • mansion • Harvard University

 On the Fence? 
 Play a Hunch.com 

Site asks questions, then makes recommendations

Jun 16, 09 10:08 AM CDT
(Newser) - A new website is ready to answer your queries, but it wants to get to know you first. Hunch.com, created by MIT scientists, asks a series of questions before making a recommendation—say, which car to buy, where to go on vacation, what campy movie to watch. It offers... More »

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Internet • MIT • website • decision • hunch.com

 DJ Remixes 
 Birth of a Nation for MoMA 

This up-and-comer does a little bit of everything

May 29, 09 1:07 PM CDT
(Newser) - DJ Spooky is not your average turntabilist. The sci-fi-writing, French-lit-and-philosophy-studying 39-year-old has created arguably the greatest remix ever with his trip-hop soundtrack for the controversial 1915 film Birth of a Nation, the Stimulist reports. Next on the list for this soon-to-be household name? Showing his Rebirth of a Nation at... More »

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entertainment • music • MIT • James Joyce • Sundance Film Festival • avant-garde • New York Museum of Modern Art • Jay-ZTV • DJ Spooky • Birth of a Nation • Rebirth of a Nation • Marcel Duchamp

Battery Breakthrough Could Recharge Phones in Seconds

Scientists believe super-fast ion transfer will let technology charge ahead

Mar 13, 09 3:48 AM CDT
(Newser) - MIT scientists have developed new battery technology that could potentially recharge a cell phone in seconds and an electric car in minutes, the Boston Globe reports. The researchers, who say the breakthrough could revolutionize technology and even lifestyles, have created a coating that speeds the transfer of ions into and... More »

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cell phones • MIT • battery • electric cars • lithium ion batteries • cell phone charger

(Newser) - A technology entrepreneur has given Massachusetts General Hospital its largest gift ever—$100 million—to create an interdisciplinary institute focused on finding an AIDS vaccine, the Boston Globe reports. The institute will bring together doctors and scientists from MGH, Harvard, and MIT, including engineers and mathematicians, who would otherwise... More »

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philanthropy • HIV • MIT • Harvard • AIDS vaccine • Massachusetts General Hospital • Terrence Ragon

 Lava Spotted on Mercury 

NASA flybys uncover planet's secrets

Oct 30, 08 2:39 AM CDT
(Newser) - A spacecraft studying the planet Mercury has discovered evidence of enormous volcanic eruptions. The scale of the volcanic activity has astonished scientists, according to the National Geographic News. Images from the Messenger spacecraft reveal 3,600 cubic miles of solid lava inside a single crater—enough to drown the entire... More »

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NASA • MIT • spacecraft • Mercury • Mariner • vulcanism • lava

 Now Brace for Short-Sellers 

Wall Street steels for end of ban short-selling

Oct 8, 08 6:01 AM CDT
(Newser) - The controversial three-week ban on short-selling financial stocks ends at midnight tonight and analysts are uncertain about the impact on an already-traumatized Wall Street. Financial shares have plunged 23% since the ban was imposed, suggesting short-selling might not have played as large a role as suspected in earlier declines, reports... More »

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NASDAQ • General Motors • MIT • General Electric • SEC • short selling • financial stocks • hedge funds • CVS Caremark

 Multitasking 
 Is a Myth 

Imaging shows brain quickly switches among tasks instead

Oct 4, 08 9:33 AM CDT
(Newser) - Pull your ears away from that cell phone: Multitasking is a myth. New research shows we can’t really concentrate on two things at once; rather, the executive functions of the brain sweep quickly between multiple tasks. It’s thought that survival and the hunt made this rapid refocusing of... More »

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MIT • human evolution • MRI • multitask • University of Michigan • natural selection • scientific research • executive function

 Autism-Reversing 
 Drugs Show Promise 

MIT scientists stumbled onto workaround for misfiring brain system

Sep 24, 08 12:50 PM CDT
(Newser) - MIT scientists have discovered one of the mechanisms of Fragile X Syndrome, one cause of autism, and are developing drugs to treat it, NPR reports. The disorder, triggered by a genetic mutation, interferes with the normal links between brain cells, making those networks something like a car without a brakes.... More »

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medical breakthrough • mental health • autism • MIT • brain • neurons • scientific research • Fragile X Syndrome

'Biohackers' Push DIY Science in the Basement

Movement aims to capitalize on American passion for invention

Sep 15, 08 12:28 PM CDT
(Newser) - Just as individual computer experts can create new programs and technological movements from home, a new generation of scientists wants to make do-it-yourself biology a household activity. Sessions such as those teaching laypeople how to extract DNA show "how much science can be about duct tape and having a... More »

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science • MIT • biology • hackers • science experiment

 Contest Offers $25K for
Best 'Crazy Green' Scheme

X Prize proposals to be posted on YouTube

Sep 11, 08 2:44 AM CDT
(Newser) - The X Prize Foundation is at it again, this time with a new eco-challenge offering $25,000 for the best “crazy green idea” to stop global warming, reports CNET. The organization, famous for its high-stakes engineering contests, is looking for breakthrough ideas in energy and housing. Proposals must be... More »

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climate change • YouTube • sustainable living • global warming • MIT • contest • green energy • engineering • X Prize Foundation • Automotive X Prize • Lunar X Prize • Prize Capital

 Colleges Adding Meow to Mix 

MIT among higher-ed bastions allowing students to keep cats in dorms

Sep 9, 08 2:38 PM CDT
(Newser) - Colleges around the country are warming up to furry friends, the Boston Globe reports. MIT is in the vanguard, offering as an example its 8-year-old program that allows student-vetted felines to live in certain dorms. "They can really lighten the mood,” one senior says, “especially when students... More »

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pets • MIT • college • college dorms • cat • undergraduates

Suit Stops Hackers From Showing Subway Flaw

MIT students see bug in electronic fare cards; judge says zip it

Aug 10, 08 7:28 PM CDT
(Newser) - Boston’s mass transit system has blocked three MIT students from revealing a flaw in its electronic fare system, the Boston Globe reports. Most Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority customers use the CharlieCard, which allows them to store fares. By cracking it, the students vowed to give attendees at a... More »

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technology • subway • Boston • MIT • hacker • Massachusetts • court • DefCon

 Yoga Turning 
 B-Schoolers 
 on Their Heads 

Capitalists latch on to search for inner peace

Jul 20, 08 7:37 PM CDT
(Newser) - Inner peace through capitalism? Americans spend $5.7 billion a year on yoga classes and products, and now, BusinessWeek reports, yoga clubs are cropping up in some of the country's most high-pressured institutions: top business schools. "Having a yoga practice helped sort through the white noise," one MIT... More »

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MIT • business • University of Chicago • stress • business school • capitalism • Harvard • yoga • BusinessWeek • Northwestern University

Oil-Slurping Nanotechnology Next Front in Fighting Spills

MIT scientists create mesh that keeps water out, can hold 20 times its weight in crude

Jun 4, 08 7:52 PM CDT
(Newser) - Cleaning up oil might soon get faster and cheaper, thanks to nanotechnology. Scientists at MIT have crafted a paper-like substance that can absorb up to 20 times its weight, the Economist reports. The mesh of nanowires, each 1/1,000th the diameter of a human hair, feels and looks like paper—... More »

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environment • MIT • oil spill • nanotechnology • environmental damage

 Robot Worms Offer
 Cancer Hope 

Tiny machines could identify, kill tumors early

May 13, 08 2:31 PM CDT
(Newser) - Little mechanical “worms” offer the latest hope for early detection—and eradication—of cancer. Researchers have created tiny machines that travel through the body, find tumors that are too small to see in normal scans, and then deliver drugs to kill them. The method has worked to spot tumors... More »

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cancer • MIT • medical research • tumors • University of California at San Diego • UC Santa Barbara

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