A new underwater mapping technique may allow vehicles to see through low-visibility conditions, for scientific exploration, underwater construction, and deep-sea recovery. The system combines sonar and visual data to create real-time 3D maps, even in cloudy water.
Chemists have improved how well common polymers, including a type of rubber used in shoe soles, absorb harsh impacts. The approach “can substantially increase the amount of energy that the material absorbs under ballistic impact,” says Jeremiah Johnson.
A new sensor could speed detection of bladder cancer: Using a catheter coated with carbon nanotubes, researchers can detect biomarkers produced by cancer cells in the bladder. “It’s like a camera for molecules instead of light,” Michael Strano says.
Using technology invented at MIT, Cartesian helps retailers track products in real-time; its system could also find uses in manufacturing, logistics, and robotics. “The broad vision for what we are doing is spatial AI,” Fadel Adib says.
A new storytelling project titled Curiosity on a Mission champions the long-horizon science that powers American innovation. The MIT effort highlights how basic research sparks enormous advances in medicine, technology, national security, and economic growth.
In a world without MIT, radar wouldn’t have been available to help win World War II. We might not have email, CT scans, time-release drugs, photolithography, or GPS. And we’d lose over 30,000 companies, employing millions of people. Can you imagine?
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.