Since its founding, MIT has been key to helping American science and innovation lead the world. Discoveries that begin here generate jobs and power the economy — and what we create today builds a better tomorrow for all of us.
When farmers apply pesticides to their crops, 30 to 50 percent of the chemicals end up in the air or soil instead of on the plants. Researchers have now developed a much more precise way to deliver substances to plants: tiny needles made of silk.
The new Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub, a cornerstone of MIT’s Health and Life Sciences Collaborative (MIT HEALS), is aimed at addressing “underinvestment in pediatric healthcare innovations,” the Boston Business Journal reported.
In the Wall Street Journal, Sendhil Mullainathan argued we have a choice about what kind of technology AI becomes: “Whether we end up building things that replace us, or things that enhance our capacities, that is something that we can influence.”
New gene circuits precisely control gene expression levels, enhancing the effectiveness of gene therapy. This advance could offer new treatments for the many diseases caused by a missing or defective copy of a single gene, such as Fragile X syndrome.
Boston Business Journal reported that the US Air Force renewed its longstanding support for MIT Lincoln Laboratory. Ian Waitz said MITLL is “essential to a robust defense sector and to addressing the rapidly evolving nature of world conflict.”
Engineers have created a 10-nanometer-thick electronic “skin” that senses heat without requiring cooling systems, which could enable lightweight night-vision glasses. Xinyuan Zhang notes it “could be directly worn on glasses.”