News & Stories

Foreign policy advice: Don’t look back

President Joe Biden’s administration represents a fresh start for the U.S. in foreign affairs. But as experts observed at an online MIT panel on Wednesday, the U.S. cannot just reset foreign policy to the last time Biden worked in the White House, as vice-president in the Obama administration. Too many things have changed, too dramatically, […]

Rock magnetism uncrumples the Himalayas’ complex collision zone

With some of the world’s tallest peaks, Asia’s “the abode of snow” region is a magnet for thrill seekers, worshipers, and scientists alike. The imposing 1,400-mile Himalayan mountain range that separates the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau is the scene of an epic continent-continent collision that took place millions of years ago and changed […]

Case studies show climate variation linked to rise and fall of medieval nomadic empires

Tree growth rings and ice cores illuminate the climatic conditions of times gone by. When combined with historical records and documents, climate data can also shed light on important events in human history — including the activities of nomadic groups such as the ancient Türks and Mongols. “Climate data actually can tell us quite a […]

When playing favorites can hurt growth

In recent decades China has built over 1,400 large industrial parks, a massive investment accounting for over 40 percent of the country’s manufacturing jobs. However, some of these projects are more successful than others. Now, a study co-authored by an MIT professor suggests that some industrial parks appear to have been developed due to networks […]

Four MIT students awarded 2022 Schwarzman Scholarships

Three MIT seniors, Alice Ho, Francesca Macchiavello Cauvi, and Ava Waitz, and doctoral student Lucio Milanese have been awarded 2022 Schwarzman Scholarships. They will begin their program at Tsinghua University in Beijing next August. For their one-year master’s program in global affairs, Schwarzman Scholars receive instruction by renowned international faculty, with frequent guest lectures from […]

Faculty seed projects grow into pandemic research opportunities

Global partnerships are a fundamental component of research at MIT — even during this time of suspended travel. MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) supports those connections via MISTI Global Seed Funds (GSF). GSF enables participating faculty teams to collaborate with international peers, either at MIT or abroad, to develop and launch joint research projects. MISTI […]

3 Questions: Historian Emma Teng on face masks as 公德心

As The Washington Post has reported, “at the heart of the dismal U.S. coronavirus response” is a “fraught relationship with masks.” With its Meaning of Masks series, which explores the myriad historic, creative, and cultural meanings of masks, the MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS) aims to offer Americans more ways to […]

When culture clashes with Covid-19

In China, wearing masks during an epidemic is a readily accepted practice — unlike the situation in, say, the United States or some European countries, where the issue of mask-wearing is revealing civic and political fault lines. To what extent are these differences attributable to the “culture” of each country? And how much have widespread […]

Transportation policymaking in Chinese cities

In recent decades, urban populations in China’s cities have grown substantially, and rising incomes have led to a rapid expansion of car ownership. Indeed, China is now the world’s largest market for automobiles. The combination of urbanization and motorization has led to an urgent need for transportation policies to address urban problems such as congestion, […]

Supply chain outlook: Why the situation varies by industry

With the Covid-19 virus disrupting the global economy, what is the effect on the international supply chain? In a pair of articles, MIT News examines core supply-chain issues, in terms of affected industries and the timing of unfolding interruptions. By now, the media images are familiar: empty shelves in large markets where shoppers have loaded […]