Thomas Burton of The Wall Street Journal writes that MIT researchers were among those awarded the first research grants under President Obama’s new BRAIN Initiative. Burton writes that one of the MIT grants will go toward “determining which exact brain circuits are involved in generating short-term memories that influence decisions.”
Boston Globe reporter Deborah Kotz writes that MIT researchers have been awarded new grants from the National Institutes of Health to further brain research. “Biophysicist Alan Jasanoff received a grant to develop imaging agents for functional MRI imaging that would target the flow of calcium into and out of brain cells,” writes Kotz of one of the MIT grants.
MIT neuroscientists were among the recipients of new grants for brain research from the National Institutes of Health, reports Jon Hamilton for NPR. Hamilton explains that as part of one grant, “Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology will try to adapt functional MRI so that it can show the activity of individual brain cells.”
The Boston Globe writes about Professor Sangeeta Bhatia's commitment to mentoring her students. “It's heartening to know that, tucked away in labs all over our region, solution-driven scientists like Sangeeta Bhatia are tinkering and building — and encouraging others to do the same.”
Scientists at the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology have discovered a new way to test for malaria using magnets, reports Charlotte Seager of The Guardian. The new method will allow for individual diagnostic tests to be performed for less than 10 cents.
Boston Globe reporter Chris Reify writes that Professor Sangeeta Bhatia has been awarded the 2014 $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize. “Dr. Bhatia is a wonderful example of a woman who has used her brilliance, skill and creativity to radically improve the detection and treatment of serious global health issues,” says Dorothy Lemelson, Lemelson Foundation chair.
NBC News reports that MIT Prof. Sangeeta Bhatia has been awarded the Lemelson-MIT prize for her work designing miniaturized biomedical tools. "As innovations emerge, we're constantly asking whether they can be repurposed for one of the two diseases we concentrate on: liver disease and cancer,” says Bhatia.
Lina Zeldovich of The Atlantic writes about how Prof. Eric Alm and one of his graduate students tracked their bacterial fluctuations for a year to better understand how daily activities influenced their microbiome. “We just don’t know much about the functional role of any of these bugs,” says Alm.
Nicole Skinner writes for Nature about how MIT researchers have developed a new technique to test for malaria. The new method only requires a tiny droplet of blood to check for malaria and can provide a diagnosis within minutes.
Dietary changes can alter human gut bacteria, Mary Elizabeth Dallas reports in a U.S. News & World Report article on a new MIT study on the role of bacteria in the digestive tract. “These fluctuations could lead to monitoring systems that might help detect and ease flare-ups for people with certain chronic illnesses, such as inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease),” Dallas writes.
“Mechanical engineers from MIT have developed a digging robot that can burrow through soil while expending very little energy -- by mimicking the burrowing mechanism of a razor clam,” writes Katie Collins in Wired of the robotic clam developed by MIT researchers.
Cynthia Graber reports for Scientific American about the robotic clam developed by MIT researchers that can mimic the digging capabilities of the Atlantic razor clam.
The Economist describes how the Atlantic Razor clam’s digging capabilities inspired Professor Amos Winter to develop a new robot that can dig 20 centimeters into the sea floor in just 20 seconds.
John Daly writes about new research from MIT that shows organic materials could be used to conduct electricity and emit different colors of light. The research could have major implications for the development of photovoltaic cells and solar energy
The Guardian reports on new MIT research that shows that adding carbon nanotubes to plants can enhance the natural photosynthesis process. The bionic plants could be used to harvest sunlight or detect environmental pollutants.