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For the first time, a large high-temperature superconducting electromagnet was ramped to a field strength of 20 tesla, the most powerful magnetic field of its kind ever created. The demonstration helps resolve the greatest uncertainty in the quest to build the first fusion power plant that can produce more energy than…
Researchers have discovered ancient Roman concrete-manufacturing strategies that incorporated self-healing. Applying this knowledge toward modern cement production, they hope to improve the material’s environmental impact.
An MIT study reveals what happens in the brain as lapses of attention occur following sleep deprivation. During these lapses, a wave of cerebrospinal fluid flows out of the brain — a process that typically occurs during sleep and helps to wash away waste products that have built up during the day.
Engineers at MIT and NREL have developed a heat engine with no moving parts that is as efficient as a steam turbine.
A completely passive solar-powered desalination system developed by researchers at MIT and in China could provide more than 1.5 gallons of fresh drinking water per hour for every square meter of solar collecting area. Such systems could potentially serve off-grid arid coastal areas to provide an efficient, low-cost…
The MIT spinout Frequency Therapeutics uses a new kind of druggable regenerative therapy that targets progenitor cells to create hair cells of the inner ear and reverse hearing loss.
An MIT-led research team has developed a drug capsule that could be used to deliver oral doses of insulin, potentially replacing the injections that patients with type 2 diabetes have to give themselves every day.
Researchers at MIT and Princeton have found a way to increase the output of silicon solar cells by allowing a single photon to release two electrons in the silicon.
MIT Lincoln Laboratory, in partnership with NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, built and designed a communications payload, TBIRD, which is demonstrating space-to-ground laser communications at unprecedented data rates.
At the interface of water and air, light can, in certain conditions, bring about evaporation without the need for heat, according to an MIT study.
A new CRISPR-based map ties every human gene to its function using a tool called Perturb-seq. The work was led by Jonathan Weissman and colleagues at MIT and the Whitehead Institute, and is free for other scientists to use.
MIT engineers have flown the first silent, fuel-free “ion plane.” The light aircraft is the first plane to fly with no propellers, turbine blades, or other moving parts.
After acquiring his entire elementary and secondary education from OpenCourseWare and <i>MITx,</i> Ahaan Rungta joined the MIT Class of 2019 at age 15.
MIT researchers created an ultrathin loudspeaker that can turn any rigid surface into a high-quality, active audio source. The fabrication process can enable the thin-film devices to be produced at scale.
MIT neuroscientists have found reading computer code does not rely on the regions of the brain involved in language processing. Instead, it activates the “multiple demand network,” which is also recruited for complex cognitive tasks such as solving math problems or crossword puzzles.
A new solar desalination system takes in saltwater and heats it with natural sunlight. The system flushes out accumulated salt, so replacement parts aren’t needed often, meaning the system could potentially produce drinking water that is cheaper than tap water.
MIT biologists have found a possible explanation for the Warburg effect, first seen in cancer cells in the 1920s. They found cancer cells use fermentation, an inefficient metabolic pathway, because it helps them to generate large quantities of a molecule called NAD+, which they need to synthesize DNA and other…
Radio signals from deep space: Astronomers including researchers at MIT have detected the first periodic fast radio burst from 500 million light years away.
Algorithm recovers speech from the vibrations of a potato-chip bag filmed through soundproof glass.
DrivAerNet++, the largest open-source dataset for car aerodynamics developed to date, can be used to quickly train an AI model to generate novel car designs. This process could potentially lead to more fuel-efficient cars and electric vehicles with longer range.
MIT Media Lab Spin-off Augmental has developed the MouthPad, a device that allows users to interact with phones and computers using their tongue and other head gestures.
A new system developed at MIT CSAIL helps users design three-sided fasteners called “Y-zippers,” then 3D prints them. The devices can be attached or embedded to camping equipment, medical gear, robots, and art installations, seamlessly switching each item between soft and rigid.
The winner of the 2022 MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition was Nona Desalination, which is developing a low-cost, portable water desalination and purification device.
MIT mathematicians and engineers have developed a mathematical model that predicts how stable a knot is, based on several key properties, including the number of crossings involved, and the direction in which the rope segments twist as the knot is pulled tight.
MIT researchers developed a silk fabric, which is barely thicker than a human hair, that can suppress unwanted noise and reduce noise transmission in a large room.
A new material developed at MIT can mimic plants by taking carbon dioxide from the air and turning it into a useful solid material, potentially helping in the battle against global climate change.
MIT chemical engineers have created a new material that is stronger than steel, as light as plastic, and can be easily manufactured in large quantities.
Encora Therapeutics, which developed a wrist-based device that reduces essential tremor, started as a project in MIT’s famous product-design class, 2.009 (Product Engineering Processes).
MIT engineers designed an adhesive patch that produces ultrasound images of the body. The stamp-sized device sticks to skin and can provide continuous ultrasound imaging of internal organs for 48 hours.
MIT neuroscientists have identified a brain circuit critical for learning to make decisions that require evaluating the cost or reward of an action. They showed this circuit is negatively affected by aging and in Huntington’s disease.