Listening to Science | | This 1972 image, taken by the crew of the Apollo 17 mission to the moon, helped to inspire a reconsideration of our place in the universe. | | “Our deepest well of practical hope is in science,” President L. Rafael Reif wrote in a Boston Globe op-ed this week, which marked the 50th anniversary of the first Earth Day. Reif compared our responses to Covid-19 and climate change: “Science is also our best warning system — if we can force ourselves to listen.” Full story via MIT News → |
Researchers identify cells likely targeted by Covid-19 virus A study finds specific cells in the lungs, nasal passages, and intestines that are more susceptible to infection. Full story via MIT News → | |
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An MIT team races to fill the Covid-19-related ventilator shortage | An ad hoc team of engineers and doctors has developed a low-cost, open-source alternative, now ready for rapid production. Full story via MIT News → | |
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How to restart the economy with a post-pandemic workforce Getting people back to work quickly and safely is vital for the economy. Professor Alex Pentland outlines how testing and tech can help identify a “safe” workforce. Full story via MIT Sloan → | |
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Maria Zuber on climate change: “Breakthroughs will happen” MIT’s vice president for research identifies three areas that show particular promise for climate action. Full story via MIT News → | |
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Taking a new look at ancient books Classicist Stephanie Frampton traverses disciplines to study how the content and form of writing interacted in the ancient world. Full story via MIT News → | |
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MIT machine learning model shows relaxing quarantine rules will spike Covid-19 cases // TechCrunch MIT researchers developed a machine learning model that can help predict when Covid-19 infections will slow in different countries. They found that “any immediate or near-term relaxation or reversal of quarantine measures currently in place would lead to an ‘exponential explosion’ in the number of infections.” Full story via TechCrunch → |
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New York needed ventilators. So they developed one in a month // The New York Times A team in New York, inspired by the open-source ventilator design from the MIT E-Vent group, developed a lower cost ventilator now in production. The “hurry-up engineering feat” relied on a network of MIT professors, students, and alumni. Full story via The New York Times → |
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MIT leads global push for phone-based Covid-19 trackers // The Boston Globe | During a virtual conference, MIT researchers brought together experts from around the world to discuss efforts to develop digital contact tracing efforts that could help track the spread of Covid-19. Full story via The Boston Globe → |
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How schools are handling grades during the coronavirus pandemic // Teen Vogue “MIT was among the first major institutions to give its grading policy a high-profile makeover, framing the national debate by implementing a type of pass/no record policy.” Full story via Teen Vogue → |
| | MIT Media Lab Research Scientist Dan Novy has joined Zoom calls from a chorus line, the deep sea, and outer space. The elaborate antics were meant to deter meetings — but instead, “now people invite me to meetings just to see what I’m going to pull off.” Watch the video → | 8 | Percentage of global emissions that come from cement, the primary binder in concrete, the world’s most consumed construction material | Full story via MIT News → | | | Despite all the sadness, fear, and anxiety, I want to believe that some good will come out of all of this. And I am starting to see the initial signs of good, like a rainbow peeking out from behind the dark storm clouds. | | —Olivia Y., a first-year graduate student in the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology, on continued community in the era of physical distancing Full essay via the MIT Graduate Admissions Blogs → | This edition of the MIT Weekly was brought to you by a piano “drop” from space. 🎹 Visit the MIT Covid-19 website for the latest updates on the Institute’s response to the Covid-19 emergency. Thanks for reading, and have a great week! —MIT News Office |
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