News & Stories

Coated seeds may enable agriculture on marginal lands

Providing seeds with a protective coating that also supplies essential nutrients to the germinating plant could make it possible to grow crops in otherwise unproductive soils, according to new research at MIT. A team of engineers has coated seeds with silk that has been treated with a kind of bacteria that naturally produce a nitrogen […]

Lamborghini and MIT pave the way for the electric supercar of the future

“He was here to dream, and I said ‘OK, let’s dream together,’” recalls Professor Mircea Dincă of his first encounter with Automobili Lamborghini Head of Development Riccardo Parenti in February 2017. Two years later, the team is celebrating its first major collaborative victory by filing a joint patent. The new patented material was synthesized by […]

MIT Energy Initiative report charts pathways for sustainable personal transportation

In our daily lives, we all make choices about how we travel and what type of vehicle we own or use. We consider these choices within the constraints of our current transportation system and weigh concerns including costs, convenience, and — increasingly — carbon emissions. “Insights into Future Mobility,” a multidisciplinary report released today by […]

Advancing nuclear detection and inspection

If not for an episode of soul-searching at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Areg Danagoulian ’99 might have remained content pummeling protons with photons and advancing experimental nuclear physics. Instead, the assistant professor of nuclear science and engineering took off on a different trajectory. “At Los Alamos, where I worked after my doctoral research, I began […]

Microparticles could help fight malnutrition

About 2 billion people around the world suffer from deficiencies of key micronutrients such as iron and vitamin A. Two million children die from these deficiencies every year, and people who don’t get enough of these nutrients can develop blindness, anemia, and cognitive impairments. MIT researchers have now developed a new way to fortify staple […]

From 3D-printed limbs to semi-autonomous race cars

In early October, the MIT International Design Center and the MIT Edgerton Center hosted a panel discussion on “Envisioning the Future of Technology-Enabled Mobility.” Moderated by Edgerton Center Director and Professor of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering J. Kim Vandiver, panelists included Robert Bond, chief technology officer of MIT Lincoln Laboratory; Dan Frey, professor of mechanical […]

New process could make hydrogen peroxide available in remote places

Hydrogen peroxide, a useful all-purpose disinfectant, is found in most medicine cabinets in the developed world. But in remote villages in developing countries, where it could play an important role in health and sanitation, it can be hard to come by. Now, a process developed at MIT could lead to a simple, inexpensive, portable device […]

MIT Policy Lab issues fifth call for proposals to faculty and researchers

The MIT Policy Lab at the Center for International Studies, which encourages academically informed solutions to major public policy challenges, has announced its fifth call for proposals. The Policy Lab works with faculty at MIT to develop strategies for creating two-way dialogues between scholars and policymakers, helping to ensure that public policies are informed by the […]

MIT expands global supply chain research with opening of new facilities in Ningbo, China

The Ningbo Supply Chain Innovation Institute China (NSCIIC) has strengthened its role as China’s premier center for supply chain research and education with the appointment of Jiequn “Jay” Guo as center director, and the opening of new facilities at its Meishan campus near the port of Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. Guo has pledged to expand NSCIIC’s […]

A look at Japan’s evolving intelligence efforts

Once upon a time — from the 1600s through the 1800s — Japan had a spy corps so famous we know their name today: the ninjas, intelligence agents serving the ruling Tokugawa family. Over the last 75 years, however, as international spying and espionage has proliferated, Japan has mostly been on the sidelines of this […]